Measuring self-perceived social health of Iranians; finding from Iran social health survey

Background: The novelty of the study is to measure self-perceived social health of Iranians as one of the main dimensions of health

Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in all provinces of Iran in September 2014 with 10500 participants to measure self-perceived social health on a scale from 33 to 165 arranged in three areas; family, friends and relatives, and community. Area of "family" was measure in a range from 6 to 30; area of "friends and relatives" was from 9 to 45; and area of "community" was from 19 to 95. The psychometrics of scale was examined in separate previous study

Results: From a total of 10500 participants, 10244 fulfilled questionnaire [Response rate= 97.6%]. 49.2% of participants were male. Mean of the total social health score was 99.91; area of "family" was 22; area of "friends and relatives" was 27.6; and area of "community" was 51.2. The main factors negatively influences on social health were low house size, unemployment, being divorced or widow and being at the age of 18-30. There was no significant relationship between social health score and educational level

Conclusion: It is magnificently attained that standardized social health rate in the present study was 3.9% lower than the rate has been estimated in comparison to similar previously conducted study in three big cities of Iran, two years earlier. Area of "community" is also the main accountant for this drop. To continue monitoring the social health of Iranians, we recommend conducting the next rounds every 3-5 years

prevalence of pediculus capitis among primary schools of Shahriar county, Tehran province, Iran, 2014

Background: Pediculosis capitis is a common parasitic infection of children, which has been neglected in many areas as well in Shahriar County, Tehran province. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of pediculosis capitis among pupils in primary schools of Shahriar County

Materials and Methods: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted in Shahriar for the period of 2012 to 2013. Data were collected by questionnaires and direct head inspection. The prevalence rate was determined in three primary schools and 750 girls participated, which were selected by a randomized cluster method. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences [SPSS16] and Chi-square test

Results: Among the 750 girls who were examined, head pediculosis was observed in 36 cases [4.8%]. There was a significant relationship between head lice infestation and two factors, father's job and using private tools in hair salon

Conclusion: The results showed that pediculosis capitis could be a potentially health threatening problem for school children. It is necessary to give health education to families in order to prevent pediculosis in the study areas

effect of progesterone suppositories on threatened abortion: a randomized clinical trial

Threatened abortion is a common complication of pregnancy. In order to prevent miscarriage in the cases with threatened abortion, this study was conducted to determine whether progesterone suppository is effective in allowing pregnancy to proceed beyond week 20 in women with threatened abortion. This single-blind clinical trial study was done on 60 pregnant women with threatened abortion. Pregnant women, who had vaginal bleeding until 20 weeks of their pregnancy, were assessed for inclusion. Participants were divided into two groups by random allocation; the control group, which did not undergo any treatment and the case group. The case group was given 400 mg of vaginal progesterone suppository [Cyclogest] each day until their bleeding stopped in less than one week. Participants were followed up until the end of their pregnancy. The treatment was considered successful if pregnancy continued beyond 20 weeks of gestation. Qualitative and quantitative variables were analyzed statistically by Chi Square and T- test respectively. The p-values of less than 0.05 were considered significant. There was no statistically significant difference between the case and the control groups in terms of background variables. The number of abortions in the case group [6 cases, 20%] was lower than the control group which had 10 abortions [33.3%]. The study demonstrated that the rate of abortion was reduced in women treated with progesterone suppositories. However, the difference was not statistically significant

[Serum IgG4 levels in patients with ulcerative colitis, a predicting factor for primary sclerosing cholangitis?]

Primary sclerosing cholangitis [PSC] is a chronic cholestatic disease that results in segmental stenosis of the bile ducts, cholestasis and fibrosis. During the previous two decades, patients with steroid responsive PSC have been presented in a few case reports and studies. This study aims to evaluate and compare IgG4 levels in patients with ulcerative colitis [UC], with and without PSC. This cross-sectional study enrolled 116 patients with UC who referred to the Gastrointestinal Clinic of Imam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran, Iran. Patients with allergic diseases such as asthma and atopic dermatitis as well as those with autoimmune disorders such as vasculitis and systemic lupus erythmatosus were excluded. After signing an informed consent form, 5cc blood sample was taken for serum IgG4 evaluation. Patients with clinical or laboratory signs of PSC underwent Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography [MRCP] after which patients were divided into two groups [with and without PSC] according to the results of their MRCP findings. IgG levels more than 157 mg/dl were considered elevated. SPSS software package version 16 was used for data analysis. A significance level of 0.05 was considered statistically significant. There were 57[49.1%] male participants, of which 24 [20.7%] had evidence of PSC. Among these, 7 [29.1%] had elevated IgG4 titers. Of participants, 92 did not have PSC. From this group, 9 [9.7%] had elevated IgG4 levels. This difference was statistically significant [p =0.012]. The odds ratio was 3.9 [CI: 1.28-12.1] and the area under the curve for IgG4 in predicting PSC in the ROC curve was 0.65. There was a significant relationship between IgG4 titer and colitis extension in both groups. However there was no significant relationship regarding the severity of colitis [p=0.247]. It is necessary to evaluate IgG4 titers in all patients with PSC because of its treatable nature. Determining IgG4 levels in all UC patients can be a predicting factor for PSC. Thus additional cohort studies with larger numbers of participants are recommended.