Psychometric Properties of Persian Version of Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 for Personality Disorders.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to examine the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 for personality disorders (SCID-5-PD) among patients referred to psychiatric centres in Iran. METHODS: Between March 2017 and June 2019, 287 outpatients and inpatients aged 16 to 75 years who were referred to three psychiatric centres in Tehran, Iran were invited to participate. Patients were interviewed using the Persian version of the SCID-5-PD by two PhD students in clinical psychology who were blinded to patient records. Face validity and content validity of the Persian version of the SCID-5-PD were assessed by five specialists with ≥2 years of clinical experience. The agreement between the diagnoses made with the Persian version of the SCID-5-PD by the two PhD students in clinical psychology and the gold standard diagnoses made with DSM-5 by psychiatrists was determined, as were sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative likelihood ratios. 109 (43.6%) patients were interviewed again after an interval of 7 to 10 days for inter-rater reliability and test-retest reliability. RESULTS: A total of 250 patients aged 17 to 74 (mean, 32.56) years were included. Face validity and content validity of the Persian version of SCID-5-PD were acceptable. The agreement between the Persian version of SCID-5-PD and DSM-5 (gold standard) was acceptable (kappa >0.4) for the diagnoses of obsessive-compulsive, paranoid, schizotypal, schizoid, histrionic, narcissistic, borderline, and antisocial personality disorders, whereas the agreement was unacceptable (kappa <0.4) for the diagnoses of avoidant and dependent personality disorders. Sensitivity for all diagnoses was high, except for avoidant (0.66) and dependent (0.66) personality disorders. Specificity for all diagnoses was high, except for avoidant personality disorder (0.66). The positive and negative likelihood ratios showed that the SCID-5-PD was accurate for diagnosing all personality disorders, except for schizoid personality disorder. Inter-rater reliability was good for all personality disorders, except for schizotypal personality disorder (0.531). Test-retest reliability was good for all personality disorders. CONCLUSION: The Persian version of the SCID-5-PD can be used to evaluate those who seek psychotherapy for all personality disorders, except for avoidant, dependent, schizoid, and schizotypal personality disorders.

Degradable porous drug-loaded polymer scaffolds for localized cancer drug delivery and breast cell/tissue growth.

This paper presents the results of a combined experimental and analytical study of blended FDA-approved polymers [polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA), polyethylene glycol (PEG) and polycaprolactone (PCL)] with the potential for sustained localized cancer drug release. Porous drug-loaded 3D degradable PLGA-PEG and PLGA-PCL scaffolds were fabricated using a multistage process that involved solvent casting and particulate leaching with lyophilization. The physicochemical properties including the mechanical, thermal and biostructural properties of the drug-loaded microporous scaffolds were characterized. The release of the encapsulated prodigiosin (PG) or paclitaxel (PTX) drug (from the drug-loaded polymer scaffolds) was also studied experimentally at human body temperature (37 °C) and hyperthermic temperatures (41 and 44 °C). These characteristic controlled and localized in vitro drug release from the properties of the microporous scaffold were analyzed using kinetics and thermodynamic models. Subsequently, normal breast cells (MCF-10A) were cultured for a 28-day period on the resulting 3D porous scaffolds in an effort to study the possible regrowth of normal breast tissue, following drug release. The effects of localized cancer drug release on breast cancer cells and normal breast cell proliferation are demonstrated for scenarios that are relevant to palliative breast tumor surgery for 16 weeks under in vivo conditions. Results from the in vitro drug release show a sustained anomalous (non-Fickian) drug release that best fits the Korsmeyer-Peppas (KP) kinetic model with a non-spontaneous thermodynamic process that leads to a massive decrease in breast cancer cell (MDA-MB-231) viability. Our findings from the animal suggest that localized drug release from drug-based 3D resorbable porous scaffolds can be used to eliminate/treat local recurred triple negative breast tumors and promote normal breast tissue regeneration after surgical resection.

The genetic background of Southern Iranian couples before marriage.

Genetic service for couples plays an increasingly important role in diagnosis and risk management. This study investigated the status of consanguinity and the medical genetic history (effectiveness and coverage of medical genetic services) in couples residing in a city in southern Iran. We questioned couples who were referred to Behbahan Marital Counseling Center, Behbahan, Iran, during the period from January to November 2014, to obtain information on consanguinity, disease history, and previous referral to a medical genetics center. For the collected data was obtained descriptive statistics with STATA 11.0 software. A total of 500 couples were questioned. Mean age was 24.8 ± 5.2 years. Almost one quarter (23.4%) of the couples were consanguineous. Consanguinity was almost twice as common in rural areas as in urban areas (33.9 vs. 19.2%, p = 0.001). Only a few couples (~3.0%) had ever been referred for genetic counseling. The main reason for previous genetic counseling was consanguinity (85.7%). The majority of the participants (96.3%) had never been tested for any genetic conditions. Our findings suggest that only a small proportion of couples in Khuzestan Province, Iran (Behbahan City) were receiving adequate genetics care. This may reflect the limited accessibility of such services, and inadequate awareness and education among the care providers.

Restoring elbow flexion by pectoralis major transplantation in war-injured patients.

In seven war victim patients, five with brachial plexus palsy, one with biceps brachii muscle loss and one with pure injury of the musculo-cutaneous nerve and atrophic muscle, we modified Carroll and Kleinman's original pectoralis major muscle technique and then adopted it for use in all seven patients to restore elbow flexion (Carroll and Kleinman, Journal of Hand Surgery, 4:501, 1979). The entire pectoralis major muscle with the rectus sheath was transplanted to the tendon of the biceps near the insertion. Motion and power were well restored in five patients, satisfactorily in one patient, and unknown in the other case because the patient was lost to follow-up.