prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Iran: a systematic review

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder [ADHD] is the most common neurobehavioral disorder of childhood. Children with ADHD may experience significant functional problems. Our objective was to examine the prevalence of ADHD and its subtypes in Iran. Pubmed, ISI web of science, psychinfo, Iranpsych, Iranmedex, Irandoc were searched. Irandoc, Iranmedex and Iranpsych are Iranian databases of which the last one is especially for psychiatry and psychology literature. Inclusion criteria were: conducting studies by random sampling, using valid instruments to assess ADHD diagnosis or symptoms, and presenting a prevalence of ADHD or attention deficit and / or hyperactivity symptoms. After quality assessment, 16 studies were accepted. Their estimation of prevalence was different as different scales were used. Hyperactive type was more prevalent in boys, and inattentive type was more prevalent in girls. Being aware of the epidemiology of ADHD in Iran helps us to make improvements in planning the allocation of funds for mental health services. Using one instrument in studying the prevalence of ADHD in a population may lead to more precise estimations

Being child of prisoners of war: the case of mental health status

Captivity has political, mental and social effects on captives. According to stress severity, captivity duration, religious idea, resistance and affective susceptibility, captivity causes significant mental and neurological effects. Present study was aimed to evaluate mental situation of captives' children in Isfahan Province. This was a cross-sectional analytic observational study. Strengths and difficulties questionnaire [SQD] was used for mental evaluation of captives' children. We selected 384 objectives by random sampling. There was a significant difference between emotional signs, disruptive and communicational problems and social behaviors related with the age of children. A significant difference was also seen between emotional signs and educational level of children. Captivity of the father in long term has unsuitable physical and mental effects on children. Rate of these effects depends on mother's reaction to loss of spouse as well as age, and the social support provided for children

Impact of maternal ramadan fasting on growth parameters in exclusively breast-fed infants

There are many advantages of breast milk for infants. The impact of Ramadan fasting of breast-feeding mothers on their exclusively breast-fed infants' growth is still not clear. The objective of this study is to determine the impact of maternal Ramadan fasting on growth parameters of exclusively breast-fed infants. This cohort study was conducted during Ramadan and five months after Ramadan on 116 healthy, exclusively breast-fed infants aged 15 days to 6 months. 36 infants, whose mothers fasted throughout Ramadan [case group] and 80 infants, whose mothers did not fast [control group], were enrolled in the study. All infants underwent periodic physical examinations, twice in Ramadan, 3 times in the second month and twice monthly in the next 4 months. The data analyses were done using a repeated measure analysis of variance. Statistical significance was defined as P<0.05. Analyses were performed using SPSS statistical package and repeated measures ANOVA. All growth parameters increased during the study period [P< 0.05], rate of increase being the same for both groups [P>0.05]. There is obvious increasing trend for all growth parameters; this trend depends on age and is almost similar for both groups. Ramadan fasting by breast-feeding mothers did not adversely affect the growth parameters of exclusively breast-fed infants in short-term

Family satisfaction from point of view of diabetic and non- diabetic pares

Family satisfaction in subpopulations referred to the endocrine clinic including diabetic and non diabetic patients and their spouses are compared in the present study. This study also assesses the correlation between family satisfaction and variables such as age, sex, educational level, economic status, type of diabetes, duration of the disease, type of therapy and dosage of drugs. A comparison of the frequency of sexual dysfunction between diabetics and non-diabetic pairs was also done. In this case- control study, 400 subjects were selected as simplified non-randomized method from outpatients referred to the Shahre Kord endocrine clinic in 2002. We assigned samples to group I [diabetic patients, n=100], group II [diabetic patients spouses, n=100], group III [non-diabetic patients, n=100] and group IV [non-diabetic patients spouses, n=100]. Groups I and II were similar in sex, socioeconomic status and educational level. GRIMS family relationship questionnaire was used to evaluate family satisfaction. Family satisfaction for diabetics in comparison with non-diabetics [P=0.05], diabetics in comparison with their spouses [P=0.003], and non-diabetics in comparison with their spouses [p=0.002] were significantly less. There was no significant difference between family satisfaction in diabetic and non-diabetic patients spouses [p>0.05]. Relative frequency of sexual dysfunction was 76% and 29% and relative frequency of decreased libido was 32% an 12%, in diabetic and non- diabetic couples, respectively. Family satisfaction was less in patients with diabetes type I and whom using higher dosage of drugs. This study emphasized on the attention to the family as a part of approach to the diabetic patients. According to our results, it is recommended to focus the most attention in this field to the patients with type I diabetes and who consume more amounts of drugs

[Effects of two types of computer assisted intervention on spelling scores of primary school children with attention- deficit/hyperactivity disorder]

This study assessed the effects of computer games and computer assisted typing instructions on spelling scores of primary school children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder [ADHD]. In this single blind clinical trial, 37 primary school children with ADHD were assigned to group 1 [n=17] and group 2 [n=20]. The children in group 1 played computer games in 8 one-hour sessions [three times a week], while the children in group 2 received 8 one-hour sessions of typing instructions [three times a week]. Twelve school's spelling scores were obtained; pre-, intra-, and post-intervention each four scores. Eight session's spelling scores were also recorded. The two groups were matched for age, school grade, gender, IQ, medications, parents' and teachers' Conner's score, having a personal computer at home, experience of working with the computer, and average spelling scores. After taking sessions of computer games, intra-intervention school's spelling scores [17.93 +/- 0.03] showed a significant borderline increase in comparison to the pre-intervention scores [17.25 +/- 3.26]. The typing instructions sessions made no difference. Improvement in the mean spelling scores of the primary school students with ADHD during sessions of computer games can be due to improvement of their attention. The interesting format of these games, fast feedback, absence of negative feedback, and their supporting the decision making in children can also explain this finding