Use of complementary and alternative medicine in general population during COVID-19 outbreak: A survey in Iran / 中西医结合学报

OBJECTIVE@#Some epidemic diseases such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have caused many physical, psychological, and social challenges, despite the existence of treatment strategies. Many people are looking for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to prevent such diseases. The present study was performed to determine how some types of CAM were being used during the COVID-19 epidemic in Iran.@*METHODS@#The present study had a cross-sectional descriptive correlational design. All Iranian residents above 17 years old were eligible to participate in the study. A total of 782 participants completed a demographic information questionnaire, a questionnaire about their use of CAMs and a questionnaire about their satisfaction with the CAMs they used. Web-based sampling was conducted from 20 April 2020 to 20 August 2020.@*RESULTS@#Of the participants, 84% used at least one type of CAM during the COVID-19 outbreak. The most used CAMs were dietary supplements (61.3%), prayer (57.9%), and herbal medicines (48.8%). The majority of the participants (50%-66%) have used CAMs to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 or to reduce anxiety caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. CAM use was associated with sex, having children, place of residence, COVID-19 status, and source of gathering information about CAM (P < 0.05). All 32 participants who had been infected with COVID-19 used at least one type of CAM for treatment or alleviation of the disease symptoms.@*CONCLUSION@#During the COVID-19 outbreak, some types of CAM, particularly nutritional supplements, medicinal herbs, and prayer, were commonly used to prevent COVID-19 and reduce pandemic-related anxiety.

comparison between the quality of life and mental health of patients with hypothyroidism and normal people referred to Motahari clinic of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences

Background: Hypothyroidism is a condition caused by a decrease in the thyroid gland hormones. This disease is very common at all age ranges. Regarding its long term therapeutic procedure, this disease can affect the quality of life and the mental health of the patients. The present study aimed to compare the quality of life and mental health in hypothyroid patients and normal people

Methods: This descriptive-analytic investigation was performed using convenience sampling on 95 patients with hypothyroidism and 95 normal cases referring to Motahari clinic between October 2014 and August 2015. Data were collected through General Health Questionnaire [consisted of 4 fields; physical signs, anxiety, social function disorder, depression] and Quality of life Questionnaires. Data were analyzed using Independent t- test, Pearson correlation coefficient and Variance analysis. P-values<0.05 were considered as significant

Results: Both control [normal] and test [patient] groups were matched in demographic characteristics in this study [P>0.001]. The results showed that there was no significant difference between the quality of life of patients and that of the normal people [test and control groups] [P>0.001]. But the comparison of mental health level of patients [59.70] and normal people [48.68] showed a significant difference at all aspects [P<0.001]

Conclusion: Considering and improving the mental health status of such patients can be positively effective in their treatment procedure. Considering this key point in a country like Iran with rich religious backgrounds can be useful in designing self-care and therapeutic programs and even for all people

[Evaluation of prevalence and risk factors for hepatitis E in pediatric patients in Tabriz children hospital]

Background and Objectives: Hepatitis E is usually self-limited, but may be associated with high mortality in some situations. Hepatitis E virus [HEV] has a fecal-oral transmission cycle and is transmitted through environmental contamination, mainly water. Previous studies have shown that, HEV is responsible for more than 50% of acute hepatitis cases in young patients in developing countries. This study was aimed to determine the prevalence of anti-HEV antibodies among pediatric patients in Tabriz Children Hospital

Materials and Methods: The study was a cross sectional and descriptive-analytical survey on the children who had been referred to clinic of Tabriz children hospital. For each patient, demographic data including age, sex, area of residence, method of sewage and waste disposal and type of water supply, history of animal contact, history of surgery, blood transfusion and parent's addiction were recorded in questionnaires. Serum levels of specific anti-HEV IgG antibody were measured. The relationshiop between seropositivity and demographic characteristics was investigated

Results: A total of 252 children aged 2-16 years were studied. In 9 patients [3.6%], the sample was positive for anti-HEV IgG antibody consisting of 5 boys [2%] and 4 girls [1.6%]. There was no significant statistic relationship between our demographic characteristics and seropositivity

Conclusion: This study revealed 3.6% seropositivity for anti HEV antibody in children living in Tabriz. According to the present study, the prevalence of HEV is considerable in Iran. Thus HEV study is strongly recommended in the approach to all clinical hepatitis cases

Inverse association of plasma level of glutathione peroxidase with liver fibrosis in chronic hepatitis B: potential role of iron

Background: Oxidative stress plays a major pathogenic role in liver injury following chronic hepatitis B. Glutathione peroxidase [Gpx] has a central role in regulating the oxidative state. Hepatitis B virus [HBV] results in down-regulation of Gpx. On the other hand, iron homeostasis is disrupted in HBV infected patients. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the interplay of Gpx and serum iron on clinical and virological characteristics of patients with chronic HBV infection

Method: One hundred and fifty adult, treatment-naïve, patients with chronic hepatitis B were randomly selected from an ongoing cohort of patients with HBV. Plasma Gpx1 concentration and HBV DNA quantity were measured. Liver stiffness was measured by transient elastography

Results: Serum iron had a positive association with HBV DNA count in the total population. Serum iron was not associated with liver stiffness. However, HBV DNA was significantly associated with liver stiffness only in male patients. Serum Gpx was inversely associated with liver stiffness. Serum iron and Gpx had indirect effects on liver stiffness via HBV DNA count. We observed distinct effects of serum iron on HBV DNA and Gpx on liver stiffness in male and female patients

Conclusion: We identified interplay of serum iron and Gpx1 in relation to level of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B. Our results suggest that oxidative stress and serum iron are differentially implicated in the progression of chronic hepatitis B in male and female patients