Geographical distribution of at fault drivers involved in fatal traffic collisions in Tehran, Iran / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES@#According to Traffic Police, about 35% of deaths and more than 50% of injuries caused by traffic collision in the roads of Tehran are among drivers and car occupants. This study was conducted to determine areas with the highest number of traffic collisions and perform spatial analysis of traffic collisions involving drivers in Tehran during April 2014 to March 2017. @*METHODS@#The present study was a cross-sectional and descriptive-analytic research. In this study, all traffic collision that driver was accounted (100 percent or less) for crash occurrence which resulted in the death of at least one person (driver, pedestrian or passenger) were included in the analyses. Geographic information system software was used to show spatial distribution of events from zoning maps. Moran index was used in the mathematical analysis in order to determine the distribution pattern of the events from and Getis-Ord G statistics was applied to analyze the hot spots (high risk points). @*RESULTS@#A total number of 519 traffic collisions were investigated in this study. Moreover, 283 cases (54.5%) of the incidents took place in direct routes and 236 cases (45.5%) occurred at intersections. The most frequent events were in the region 4 (57 cases) and the least frequent events were reported in the region 10 (6 cases). Moran statistics show that the distribution of the studied events significantly follows the cluster pattern (p<0.001). @*CONCLUSIONS@#The northeastern and northwest margins of Tehran are the most prone areas for drivers involved with traffic collisions leading to death. Most traffic collisions leading to death take place at highways located at the entrance and exit points of Tehran and highways in regions 2 and 5.

Temporal trend and spatial distribution of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Iranian children during 2006-2014: a mixed ecological study / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES@#The present study investigated the spatiotemporal epidemiological status of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most common childhood cancer, in Iran. @*METHODS@#Using an exploratory mixed design, this ecological study examined 3,769 under-15 children with ALL recorded in the National Cancer Registry of Iran during 2006-2014. Data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test, the Getis-Ord general G (GOGG) index, optimized hot spot analysis, and Pearson correlation coefficients (PCC) at a significance level of 0.05. @*RESULTS@#The average annual incidence of the disease was 2.25 per 100,000 under-15 children, and the cumulative incidence rate (CIR) was 21.31 per 100,000 under-15 children. Patients’ mean age was 5.90 years (standard deviation, 3.68), and the peak incidence was observed among 2-year to 5-year-olds. No significant difference was found in mean age between boys and girls (p=0.261). The incidence of ALL was more common during spring and summer than in other seasons. The GOGG index was 0.039 and significant (p<0.001). Hot spots were identified in south, central, and eastern Iran and cold spots in the north and west of Iran. The PCC between the CIR and latitude was negative (r=-0.507; p=0.003) but that between the CIR and longitude was positive (r=0.347; p=0.055). @*CONCLUSIONS@#The incidence of ALL in Iranian children was lower than that observed in developed countries, but showed an increasing trend. It can be argued that the incidence of ALL is due to synergistic interactions between environmental, infectious, geographical, and genetic risk factors.

Geographical distribution of at fault drivers involved in fatal traffic collisions in Tehran, Iran / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES@#According to Traffic Police, about 35% of deaths and more than 50% of injuries caused by traffic collision in the roads of Tehran are among drivers and car occupants. This study was conducted to determine areas with the highest number of traffic collisions and perform spatial analysis of traffic collisions involving drivers in Tehran during April 2014 to March 2017. @*METHODS@#The present study was a cross-sectional and descriptive-analytic research. In this study, all traffic collision that driver was accounted (100 percent or less) for crash occurrence which resulted in the death of at least one person (driver, pedestrian or passenger) were included in the analyses. Geographic information system software was used to show spatial distribution of events from zoning maps. Moran index was used in the mathematical analysis in order to determine the distribution pattern of the events from and Getis-Ord G statistics was applied to analyze the hot spots (high risk points). @*RESULTS@#A total number of 519 traffic collisions were investigated in this study. Moreover, 283 cases (54.5%) of the incidents took place in direct routes and 236 cases (45.5%) occurred at intersections. The most frequent events were in the region 4 (57 cases) and the least frequent events were reported in the region 10 (6 cases). Moran statistics show that the distribution of the studied events significantly follows the cluster pattern (p<0.001). @*CONCLUSIONS@#The northeastern and northwest margins of Tehran are the most prone areas for drivers involved with traffic collisions leading to death. Most traffic collisions leading to death take place at highways located at the entrance and exit points of Tehran and highways in regions 2 and 5.

Temporal trend and spatial distribution of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Iranian children during 2006-2014: a mixed ecological study / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES@#The present study investigated the spatiotemporal epidemiological status of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most common childhood cancer, in Iran. @*METHODS@#Using an exploratory mixed design, this ecological study examined 3,769 under-15 children with ALL recorded in the National Cancer Registry of Iran during 2006-2014. Data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test, the Getis-Ord general G (GOGG) index, optimized hot spot analysis, and Pearson correlation coefficients (PCC) at a significance level of 0.05. @*RESULTS@#The average annual incidence of the disease was 2.25 per 100,000 under-15 children, and the cumulative incidence rate (CIR) was 21.31 per 100,000 under-15 children. Patients’ mean age was 5.90 years (standard deviation, 3.68), and the peak incidence was observed among 2-year to 5-year-olds. No significant difference was found in mean age between boys and girls (p=0.261). The incidence of ALL was more common during spring and summer than in other seasons. The GOGG index was 0.039 and significant (p<0.001). Hot spots were identified in south, central, and eastern Iran and cold spots in the north and west of Iran. The PCC between the CIR and latitude was negative (r=-0.507; p=0.003) but that between the CIR and longitude was positive (r=0.347; p=0.055). @*CONCLUSIONS@#The incidence of ALL in Iranian children was lower than that observed in developed countries, but showed an increasing trend. It can be argued that the incidence of ALL is due to synergistic interactions between environmental, infectious, geographical, and genetic risk factors.

Spatial inequalities and predictors of HIV/AIDS mortality risk in Hamadan, Iran: a retrospective cohort study / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES: Understanding the geographic variation of HIV/AIDS mortality risk and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection could help identify high-burden areas. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of predictors of the time interval between HIV diagnosis to death, while accounting for spatial correlations across counties, and to assess patterns of spatial inequalities in the risk of HIV/AIDS mortality in Hamadan Province, Iran.METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted on 585 patients. The outcome in this study was the time period between the date of HIV/AIDS diagnosis and the date of death. A Weibull regression model with spatial random effects was used.RESULTS: According to multivariate analysis, there were significant associations between age, tuberculosis co-infection, and marital status and the risk of death. In terms of spatial inequalities, a cluster of counties was identified with a somewhat higher death hazard in the north, northwest, northeast, and central regions. Additionally, a cluster with a somewhat lower hazard was identified in the south, southwest, southeast, and west regions.CONCLUSIONS: The spatial pattern of HIV/AIDS death risk could reflect inequalities in access to antiretroviral therapy and public health services. Our results underscore the importance of attention to vulnerable groups in urban areas.

Spatial inequalities and predictors of HIV/AIDS mortality risk in Hamadan, Iran: a retrospective cohort study / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES: Understanding the geographic variation of HIV/AIDS mortality risk and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection could help identify high-burden areas. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of predictors of the time interval between HIV diagnosis to death, while accounting for spatial correlations across counties, and to assess patterns of spatial inequalities in the risk of HIV/AIDS mortality in Hamadan Province, Iran. METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted on 585 patients. The outcome in this study was the time period between the date of HIV/AIDS diagnosis and the date of death. A Weibull regression model with spatial random effects was used. RESULTS: According to multivariate analysis, there were significant associations between age, tuberculosis co-infection, and marital status and the risk of death. In terms of spatial inequalities, a cluster of counties was identified with a somewhat higher death hazard in the north, northwest, northeast, and central regions. Additionally, a cluster with a somewhat lower hazard was identified in the south, southwest, southeast, and west regions. CONCLUSIONS: The spatial pattern of HIV/AIDS death risk could reflect inequalities in access to antiretroviral therapy and public health services. Our results underscore the importance of attention to vulnerable groups in urban areas.

Spatial inequalities and predictors of HIV/AIDS mortality risk in Hamadan, Iran: a retrospective cohort study / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES@#Understanding the geographic variation of HIV/AIDS mortality risk and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection could help identify high-burden areas. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of predictors of the time interval between HIV diagnosis to death, while accounting for spatial correlations across counties, and to assess patterns of spatial inequalities in the risk of HIV/AIDS mortality in Hamadan Province, Iran.@*METHODS@#This retrospective study was conducted on 585 patients. The outcome in this study was the time period between the date of HIV/AIDS diagnosis and the date of death. A Weibull regression model with spatial random effects was used.@*RESULTS@#According to multivariate analysis, there were significant associations between age, tuberculosis co-infection, and marital status and the risk of death. In terms of spatial inequalities, a cluster of counties was identified with a somewhat higher death hazard in the north, northwest, northeast, and central regions. Additionally, a cluster with a somewhat lower hazard was identified in the south, southwest, southeast, and west regions.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The spatial pattern of HIV/AIDS death risk could reflect inequalities in access to antiretroviral therapy and public health services. Our results underscore the importance of attention to vulnerable groups in urban areas.

Area-to-Area Poisson Kriging analysis of mapping of county- level esophageal cancer incidence rates in Iran.

BACKGROUND: Esophagus cancer, the third most common gastrointestinal cancer overall, demonstrates high incidence in parts of Iran. The counties of Iran vary in size, shape and population size. The aim of this study was to account for spatial support with Area-to-Area (ATA) Poisson Kriging to increase precision of parameter estimates and yield correct variance and create maps of disease rates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study involved application/ecology methodology, illustrated using esophagus cancer data recorded by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education (in the Non-infectious Diseases Management Center) of Iran. The analysis focused on the 336 counties over the years 2003-2007. ATA was used for estimating the parameters of the map with SpaceStat and ArcGIS9.3 software for analysing the data and drawing maps. RESULTS: Northern counties of Iran have high risk estimation. The ATA Poisson Kriging approach yielded variance increase in large sparsely populated counties. So, central counties had the most prediction variance. CONCLUSIONS: The ATAPoisson kriging approach is recommended for estimating parameters of disease mapping since this method accounts for spatial support and patterns in irregular spatial areas. The results demonstrate that the counties in provinces Ardebil, Mazandaran and Kordestan have higher risk than other counties.