[Effect of educational intervention on the lifestyle of elderly people referred to clinical centers of Eslamshahr, Iran: application of health belief model]

Introduction: health-promoting lifestyle helps elderly population to enjoy longer life, without burden of diseases or disabilities. This study was designed and performed to determine the effect of educational intervention on lifestyle of elderly population based on health belief model

Method: this quasi-experimental study was performed on 80 elderly individual who visited the clinical centers of Eslamshahr, Iran in 2013-2014. In the pre-test stage, randomized sampling was carried out among the elderly who visited the clinical centers of Eslamshahr. The participants were divided into two interventions [39 persons] and control [41 persons] groups using block randomization method. The intervention group participated in educational courses designed based on Health Belief Model. Three months after the end of the intervention stage, post-test was given to both intervention and control groups. Data were entered into SPSS version 19. Then it was analyzed using repeated measures and Chi-square test

Results: three months after the intervention, mean perceived susceptibility between both groups was statistically significant. [P<0.001]. Mean perceived severity was also significantly different [P=0.002]. Mean of perceived barriers and perceived benefits was significantly different in both groups [P<0.001]. Similarly, three months after the intervention, self-efficacy components and cues to action were significantly different [P<0.001]. Prevention [P=0.03], exercise, and nutrition [P=0.03] showed significant differences. However, no significant differences were noted in stress and interpersonal relations between the two groups [P<0.005]. Three months after intervention, mean lifestyle scores increased significantly in intervention group [P=0.03]

Conclusion: Education based on health belief model may affect healthy lifestyle promotion in the elderly population

Malaria status in economic cooperation countries; achievement and gaps toward United Nations Millennium Development Goals

Evaluating the malaria status of the Economic Cooperation Organization [ECO] member countries relation to goal 6 of 3rd Millennium Development Goals [MDGs] which includes have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria. By 2009, we reviewed the MDGs reports, extracted the data from surveillance system, published, and unpublished data. The main stakeholders, from both governmental and international organizations in the country have been visited and interviewed by the research team as part of the data validation process. The malaria incidence is very heterogeneous among ECO countries, which differ less than 200 cases in total country in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan to 82,564 cases [2,428/100,000] in Afghanistan and 59,284 cases [881/100,000] in Pakistan and about 18/100,000 in Iran in 2008. Malaria has been a major public health problem in Pakistan and Afghanistan and will continue to pose serious threat to millions of people due to poor environmental and socioeconomic conditions conducive to the spread of disease. The main malaria endemic areas of Iran are in southeastern part of the country; consist of less developed provinces that are bordered in the east by Afghanistan and Pakistan. There are little valid information about proportion of population in malaria-risk areas using effective malaria prevention and treatment measures indicators. All ECO countries could achieve MDGs malaria indicators by 2015 except Pakistan and Afghanistan, unless preparing urgent intervention programs to fulfill the goals

CMV detection and monitoring in bone marrow transplant [BMT] recipients by Real-Time PCR [RQ-PCR]

Cytomegalovirus [CMV] is an important pathogen in patients undergoing bone marrow transplantation. The prevalence of CMV varies from 30-100% in different countries as shown by seroepidemiological studies. Only 20-25% of patients develop CMV disease. Because of the similarity between CMV and GVHD and the different therapies required, detection of viral load will be effective in patients' survival. 51 recipients of BMT were monitored for 100 days post-BMT during which the samples were collected weekly. The Real-Time PCR was developed for quantitation of CMV viral DNA, using TaqMan tecnnology. For generation of standard curve, UL83 gene from CMV was cloned into a plasmid using a T/A cloning procedure. RQ-PCR assay was preformed in parallel with pp65 antigenemia assay on 415 samples. The results obtained by both techniques were significantly correlated [p < 0.01]. We could detect 13x10[1] -15x10[7] [CMV DNA copies/2x10[5] cells] by RQ-PCR method. About 76% of patients developed at least one episode of CMV reactivation. First positive result of RQ-PCR appeared 13 days earlier than of pp65 antigenemia. After preemptive therapy, 16 days were required to achieve negative result by RQ-PCR. Both assays were highly correlated; however, RQ-PCR was more sensitive than the antigenemia assay. After preemptive therapy, negative results of RQ-PCR were the best indicator to determine the endpoint of treatment and its success

Trends in nested case- control studies as compared to case- control and cohort designs, 1996- 2005

This investigation was prompted by the growing importance of nested case-control studies and the increasing frequency with which they are done in epidemiologic research. After a brief explanation of nested case-control studies, we evaluate the trends in research methodology over the last decade, especially with regard to cohort, case-control, and nested case-control designs. Data for this study were extracted from the PubMed database, using these keywords: Nested Case-Control, Risk-Set Sampling and Density Sampling. The search was confined to the 10-year period from 1996 to the end of 2005. As for other methodologies, we used keywords Cohort and Case-Control for a search over the same time period. The search itself was performed on April 25, 2006. We found 201 1 articles reporting nested case-control studies. There were 95 such articles in 1996; the number had increased to 289 in 2005. Case-control and cohort designs accounted for 68456 and 60479 articles, respectively. The number of case-control articles rose from 4378 in 1996 to 10270 in 2005, while that of cohort articles increased from 2981 to 9771 over the same period. The number of cohort and nested case-control articles followed similar upward trends over the last decade and their rate of increase was greater than that of simple case-control articles