Sexual and reproductive behaviors among undergraduate university students in Mashhad, a city in northeast of Iran

The incidence of sexual transmitted infections [STIs] and HIV/AIDS is globally higher in young people. This study evaluated the prevalence of sexual reproductive behaviors among undergraduate students of Mashhad, Iran. The study was conducted on 605 students in twelve non-medical faculties of a great university of Mashhad. A self-administered questionnaire was completed on demographic information, sexual contact in the lifetime and during the last three months, and age of first sex. Kaplan-Meier statistic was used to calculate the mean age of initiation of sex. A p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. After exclusion of individuals over 25 years of age, among 590 students with a mean age of 20.8 +/- 1.5 years included in the analysis, 71.4% were female and 85.3% were single. Prevalence of at least one sexual contact in life was 15.1% and 35.3% of single sexually experienced students reported to have sex in the last three months. The lifetime prevalence of sexual relationship in males was significantly higher than females [32.9% vs. 7.6%, p<0.001]. The mean age of first sexual experience was 23.7 years with a significant difference between both sexes [p<0.001]. In single sexually experienced students, the mean age at first sex was 17.6 +/- 3.3 years, 24% started sexual activity at <15 years, 34.3% had at least 3 partners and only 40.6% stated using condom in their last sex. Although very small proportion of females reported premarital sex, a significant minority of male students experienced sexual and risky behaviors. Therefore, the use of educational programs on related issues to reduce the risk of STIs/ HIV among youth including university students seems to be a necessity

Comparison of two different induction doses of atracurium in myasthenia gravis in patients undergoing thymectomy

Myasthenia gravis is an autoimmune disorder resulting from a decreased number of active acetylcholine receptors at the neuromuscular junction. Thymectomy is one of its current treatments. Due to sensitivity of myasthenic patients to non-depolarizing muscle relaxants and also the interaction of this medication with anti-cholinestrase drugs, determining the dosage of non-depolarizing muscle relaxants for induction of anesthesia is one of the hurdles in thymectomy. Twenty myasthenic patients undergoing transsternal thymectomy were enrolled into the study. They were divided into two groups randomly, and received either 0.25 mg/kg or 0.50 mg/kg of atracurium to facilitate tracheal intubation. Neuromuscular blockade was measured using train of four [TOF] mode of neuromuscular stimulator 15 minutes after administration of atracurium and then each 5 minutes till entered the recovery phase. The time between injection of atracurium and the recovery phase was compared between the two groups. The two groups were similar with respect to age and gender. The time from the onset of myasthenia gravis to surgery, dosage and duration of pyridostegmine used preoperatively were not significantly different between the two groups. The time from administration of atracurium to recovery phase was not significant between the two groups [P=0.24]. There was no difference between two different doses of atracurium regarding entering the recovery phase, and as the effects of nondepolarizing muscle relaxants are unpredictable in myasthenic patients, we recommend the lower dose to prevent profound skeletal muscle weakness and postoperative complications