Prevalence of HIV, Hepatitis B and C Virus Co-infections among Iranian High-Risk Groups: A Systematic Review and Meta- Analysis

@#Co-infection with hepatitis B and C among HIV infected patients are prevalent among high-risk populations. This meta-analysis aimed to estimate the prevalence of HIV, HCV and HBV co-infections among high-risk populations in Iran. We systematically searched the national and international electronic databases until 2016. The primary outcome was the prevalence of HIV, HBV, HCV and HIV co-infections in different high-risk populations in Iran. All English and Persian studies conducted on Iranian high-risk groups were included in the study. The review was reported based on PRISMA guidelines and data were analysed at 95% confidence level using random effect models.Overall, 916 relevant papers were recognised and 14 articles were included in the metaanalysis. The pooled estimates of HBV/HCV, HCV/HIV, HBV/HIV and HBV/HCV/HIV were 1.3% (95%CI: 0.5–2.1), 16.3% (95%CI: 1.1–31.6), 0.5% (95%CI: 0–1.4) and 0.5% (95%CI: 0.2–0.8), respectively. Based on subgroup analysis, there was a higher proportion of all co-infections from the years 2010–2016 as compared to that of the years 2003–2009. Our results highlighted that HCV/HIV co-infection in Iranian high-risk groups including injection drug users (IDUs) and prisoners is common. In addition, the increasing trend of coinfections should be considered alarming for policymakers.

Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome and Associations with Lipid Profiles in Iranian Men: A Population-Based Screening Program

PURPOSE: Metabolic syndrome (MS) is characterized by a collection of interdependent disorders, including abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia, hypertension, and diabetes. The current study aimed to estimate the prevalence of MS in Qom, Iran. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A population-based screening program was conducted in the city of Qom, in 845 urban adult men over 25 years old in 2014. Abdominal obesity, fasting blood glucose (FBG), blood pressure, and the serum lipid profile were measured in subjects after fasting for at least 8 hours. MS was defined according to the Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. Data were analyzed using the chi-square test, t-test, and multiple logistic regression. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of MS was 23.0%, and the most common prevalent metabolic abnormalities associated with MS were low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (102 cm in 33.9%, blood pressure ≥130/85 mmHg in 27.6%, fasting triglycerides (TG) ≥150 mg/dL in 25%, and FBG ≥110 mg/dL in 20.6%. A FBG level ≥110 mg/dL (odds ratio [OR]=4.85; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.14~8.24), dyslipidemia (OR=3.51; 95% CI, 2.10~5.89), and a fasting TG ≥150 mg/dL were the most important factors contributing to MS. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of MS in men in Qom was higher than has been reported in other countries, but it was lower than the mean values that have been reported elsewhere in Iran. FBG was the most important factor contributing to MS, and all elements of the lipid profile showed important associations with MS.

Dyslipidemia Prevalence in Iranian Adult Men: The Impact of Population-Based Screening on the Detection of Undiagnosed Patients

PURPOSE: Dyslipidemia has been established as one of the most important modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Due to the higher prevalence of dyslipidemia in males, this study aimed to estimate the prevalence of dyslipidemia in Iranian urban men. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A screening program was conducted in 845 Iranian men 25 years of age and older in 2014. A health interview survey was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of self-reported dyslipidemia and to collect demographic data, as well as serum lipid profile screening by a reference laboratory. Lipoprotein levels was categorized based on the Adult Treatment Panel III criteria and the data were analyzed using the chi-square test and analysis of variance. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of dyslipidemia was 51.8%, and the prevalence of various forms of dyslipidemia was as follows: hypercholesterolemia (> or =240 mg/dL), 11.4%; hyper-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (> or =160 mg/dL), 9.6%; hypertriglyceridemia (> or =200 mg/dL), 25%; and hypo-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (<40 mg/dL), 34.3%. With the exception of hypo-HDL, all forms of dyslipidemia were significantly less common in men over 65 years of age (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of hypo-HDL and hypertriglyceridemia was higher than expected in Iranian adult men, with half of men 25 years of age and older affected by at least one form of dyslipidemia. A large gap in primary and secondary care was observed, because nearly 80% of patients with dyslipidemia were unaware of their status. Urgent preventive programs and lifestyle changes are necessary to reduce the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors.

Survival rate of childhood leukemia in shiraz, southern iran.

OBJECTIVE: Leukemia is the most prevalent type of cancer in children. The aim of this study was to estimate the 5-year survival rates of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) and Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia (AML) as well as factors influencing them. METHODS: This is a nonrandomized retrospective study conducted on 280 patients with ALL and AML. They were all below 15 years old children admitted to Shahid Faghihi hospital, Shiraz, Iran from 2004 to 2008.The survival rates were estimated by applying the Kaplan-Meier method. In addition, the log rank test was used to estimate the statistical significance of differences in the survival probability. Cox regression model was applied to conduct multivariate analysis for adjusting confounding variable. All analyses were performed in SPSS statistical software (version 16). P-values less than 0.05 were considered as statistically significant. FINDINGS: The mean (± standard deviation) of the observation period was 28.2±16.1 months. In this period, 60 (24.7%) patients (47 ALL and 15 AML) passed away. The cumulative rate of survival in this study was 53.3±0.1 percent. This probability was 56.6±0.1% and 44.2±0.1% for ALL and AML patients, respectively, which indicates no statistically significant difference between them (P=0.8). According to Cox model, there was a significant relationship among the variables of platelet count and relapse with the survival rate. CONCLUSION: Platelet count was identified as a positive prognostic factor of the survival rate in ALL patients. However, on the base of our results and other studies, incidence of relapse and the number of relapses are significant factors of survival rates of leukemia.

Impact of glibenclamide versus Insulin on neurological and functional outcomes of hemorrhagic stroke in diabetic patients

Background & Objective: Stroke is one of the common leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Diabetes is one of the modifi able risk factors of stroke which is related to a higher mortality and a poorer outcome. We aimed to evaluate the protective effect of Insulin versus glibenclamide on the improvement of neurological and functional outcomes of hemorrhagic stroke. Methods: The present single blind clinical trial was conducted on 100 patients with stroke and diabetes who had referred to Neurology Emergency Department of Vali-e-Asr hospital, Arak, Iran. The patients were categorized into two groups according to the glucose control treatment before stroke. Without any randomization, glibenclamide was used in 45 patients, while others (55 ones) received insulin. National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and modifi ed Rankin scale (MRS) systems were used for evaluating the neurological and functional outcomes. Results: Hemiparesis was the most common sign of the patients. The mean of changes in NIHSS and MRS scores of the two groups were -29.69±21.4 and -17.24±21, respectively. Although Insulin group had a higher decrease in NIHSS and MRS scores, no signifi cant difference was found between the two groups. Both treatment methods had a signifi cant decreasing effect on NIHSS and MRS scores (p<0.001). Conclusion: Patients treated with both glibenclamide and insulin had similar decrease in their one week NIHSS and MRS scores with no signifi cant difference in the two treatment groups.

Comparison of treatment effect of sodium valproate, propranolol and tricyclic antidepressants in migraine.

This study was conducted to evaluate and compare the efficacy and treatment effect of sodium valprovate with propranolol and tricyclic antidepressive drugs. This piece is a rarandomized clinical trial conducted on 126 migraine patients admitted to brain and nerves clinic in Arak, Iran. Patients were divided in two groups then randomized to study treatments. Data were gathered using a checklist and a complete examination. They were analyzed by Chi square and exact test. In patients with normal and abnormal encephalogram the effectiveness rate of two treatments were 35, 61.9, 95.6 and 28.6%, respectively. This difference between two treatments was statistically significant (p<0.001). But didn't observe significant differences between two sex groups (p>0.05). For treatment and control of the migraine, in patients with normal encephalogram, propranolol with tricyclic antidepressive drugs advised and for abnormal encephalogram sodium valprovate can be the better treatment for management and reduction of headache attacks.