Understanding Female Students’ Needs to Develop Health Promoting School Programme: An Exploratory Qualitative Analysis

Background: This study was carried out on Iranian female adolescents to understandhealth needs for the purpose of designing health promoting intervention in schools.Methods: In this exploratory qualitative study, two focus group discussion (15 teachers)and 30 individual in-depth interviews were conducted among female adolescents in the eighthgrade in Zahedan, Iran. Qualitative content analysis was used for data evaluation.Results: The views of students and teachers demonstrated nine of needs including:informing students about the schools’ health project aims, education and training all dimensionsof health with an emphasis on mental health, use of experts in various fields for education fromother organisations, employing capable and trusted counselors in schools, utilisation of a varietyof teaching methods, activating reward systems for encouraging students’ participation in groupactivities, teaching communication and the ability to establish good relationships with parents andstrategies for resolving family conflict, teaching parents and students high-risk behaviours andstrategies for handling them as well as reforming wrong attitudes and indigenous sub-culture.Conclusion: This study found the different needs of Iranian female students comparedto other cultures about a health promoting school programme. Therefore, their contribution canprovide an insight for formulating policies and intervention in schools.

Seroprevalence and risk factors of hepatitis delta virus in chronic hepatitis B virus infection in Zahedan

Hepatitis delta virus [HDV] infection results in more severe and even fulminant form of hepatitis B in co-infected cases. This study was designed to estimate the prevalence of anti-HDV positivity and the associated risk factors in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection in Zahedan [Iran]. In this cross sectional study a total of 440 consecutive patients with chronic hepatitis B virus [HBV] infection attending the Zahedan Gastroenterology and Hepatology clinics from 2008 to 2011 were included. We performed test for HDV serum marker, using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Patients were split into two groups according to their HDV antibody status as HDV positive or negative. The collected data were coded, and the statistical analyses were conducted. Four hundred and forty patients with various forms of chronic HBV-related liver diseases enrolled in the study. 200 [45.5%] patients were carrier for HBV. 196 [44.5%] patients had chronic active hepatitis and 44 [10%] patients suffered from cirrhosis. Anti-HDV was demonstrated in 75 patients [17%]. The prevalence of HDV was 7%, 16.3% and 65.9% in carriers, patients with chronic active hepatitis and cirrhosis, respectively. HDV infection is still an important public health problem in Zahedan and appears a major cause of progression of liver disease induced by HBV

Mortality risk prediction by application of pediatric risk of mortality scoring system in pediatric intensive care unit

The Pediatric Risk of Mortality [PRISM] score is one of the scores used by many pediatricians for prediction of the mortality risk in the pediatric intensive care unit [PICIT]. Herein, we intend to evaluate the efficacy of PRISM score in prediction of mortality rate in PICU. In this cohort study, 221 children admitted during an 18-month period to PICU, were enrolled. PRISM score and mortality risk were calculated. Follow up was noted as death or discharge. Results were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier curve, ROC curve, Log Rank [Mantel-Cox], Logistic regression model using SPSS 15. Totally, 57% of the patients were males. Forty seven patients died during the study period. The PRISM score was 0-10 in 71%, 11-20 in 20.4% and 21-30 in 8.6%. PRISM score showed an increase of mortality from 10.2% in 0-10 score patients to 73.8% in 21-30 score ones. The survival time significantly decreased as PRISM score increased [P<0.001]. A 7.2 fold mortality risk was present in patients with score 21-30 compared with score 0-10. ROC curve analysis for mortality according to PRISM score showed an under curve area of 80.3%.PRISM score is a good predictor for evaluation of mortality risk in PICU

[Evaluation of the concentration of proinflammatory/Pro Th1 Cytokines IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha and anti inflammatory/Pro Th2 cytokines IL-13 and IL-4 in breast milk and their relationship to atopic dermatitis]

Atopic dermatitis [AD] is one of the most common chronic, highly pruritic and inflammatory skin diseases. The exclusive influence of breastfeeding in the prevention of inflammatory diseases is a matter of debate. In this study, we aimed to determine the concentration of interferon-gamma [IFN-gamma], tumor necrosis factor-alpha [TNF-alpha], interleukin-13 [IL-13] and interleukin-4 [IL-4] cytokines as anti Th2 or anti Th1 cytokines in breast milk and their relationship with atopic dermatitis in breastfed infants. This study carried out in Afzalipour Hospital of kerman during one year from 2010 to 2011, we selected 50 breastfed infants with AD as cases and 50 healthy infants without AD or any other allergic disease as the controls. The concentrations of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines were measured by ELISA in the mothers' milk. The demographic characteristics were recorded in a data collection form. Moreover, severity of the disease was determined by SCORAD index. T-test and logistic regression were used for assessment of the correlation among study variables. The concentrations of IFN-gamma and IL-13 were significantly higher [respectively, P=0.04, and P=0.02] in the case group. However, logistic regression revealed that only IFN-gamma significantly increased the risk for atopic dermatitis [P=0.02]. Concentration of TNF-alpha was similar in the milk from mothers belonging to the two groups. The results indicate that the concentrations of IFN-gamma, IL-13 and IL-4 cytokines are higher in the milk of mothers whose infants have AD. However, the risk for atopic dermatitis increases by 49% by every ten-unit [in pg/mL] increase in the level of IFN-gamma

Noise pollution in zahedan and residents' knowledge about noise pollution

Noise is considered one of the most pervasive and harmful agents in crowded cities. The aim of this study was to determine the exposure rate to noise pollution of residents on the main streets of Zahedan city in southeastern Iran and the knowledge and attitudes of these residents concerning noise. Noise was measured for three consecutive weeks in the October-November areas of the city in 31 test locations, using a CEL-440 Classic sound level meter and analyzer during the noisiest hours of the day [07:00 to 22:00]. Using a validated questionnaire, data were collected from 400 subjects to estimate their knowledges and attitudes about noise pollution. The average noise level in the main city streets during the day was 75 +/- 2.96 dB. The mean age of participants was 31.9 +/- 11 years. Approximately 82.3% of the subjects tested reported that street noise pollution was too high, and 48% suggested that the best way to decrease city noise pollution was to enhance people's knowledge of the problem. Furthermore, 65.8% of the subjects stated that street noise is a cause of stress. There was a significant association between noise levels and subjects' sleepiness [P < 0.05]. In addition, noise pollution in Zahedan city streets was found to be higher than standard levels. It was concluded that appropriate traffic management and a health promotion program are essential for increasing the residents' understanding about how to improve the current noise pollution situation