The Prevalence of Allergic Rhinitis among Iranian Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of allergic rhinitis in the world is 10-15%, and it is currently the most common chronic disease among children. There is no comprehensive statistics about the prevalence of allergic rhinitis among Iranian children, therefore, this systematic review and metaanalysis was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of allergic rhinitis among the Iranian children. METHODS: The present study was conducted based on Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) checklist. The data was collected using key words including allergic rhinitis, prevalence, epidemiology, child OR children, pediatrics and Iran, in international databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane, Embase, and three national databases including Magiran, Iran Medex, and Scientific Information Databank (SID) till December 2018. The STROBE checklist was used for quality assessment. The data were analyzed using STATA software version 12.1. RESULTS: The prevalence of allergic rhinitis in children and adolescents were 18% (99.7% CI: 10-28% with publication bias of 0.174) and 25% (99.8% CI: 17-33 with publication bias of 0.617) respectively. The prevalence of allergic rhinitis in males was estimated to be 27% (99.4% CI: 17-36) with publication bias of 0.538 and in females was 23% (99.4% CI: 14-31) with publication bias of 0.926. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of allergic rhinitis is approximately high among Iranian children and adolescents; thus, educational strategies should be considered to decrease the prevalence of this disease in Iran.

Anti-Inflammatory and Immunomodulatory Effects of Barberry (Berberis vulgaris) and Its Main Compounds.

Berberis vulgaris is a well-known herb in Iran that is widely used as a medicinal plant and a food additive. The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects of Barberry and its main compounds. This narrative review was conducted by searching keywords such as B. vulgaris, Barberry, immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, medicinal herbs, plants, and extract, separately or combined in various databases, such as Web of Sciences, PubMed, and Scopus. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, just English language articles, which reported effective whole plants or herbal compounds, were included. 21 articles were reviewed in this study. In the in vivo models (mice, rats, and human cells) and in the in vitro models (some organ cells such as the spleen, kidney, blood, and brain), B. vulgaris and its main components showed anti-inflammatory effects in both models. The main mechanisms were the shift of cell immune response to Th2, T reg induction, inhibition of inflammatory cytokines (IL-1, TNF, and IFN-γ), and stimulation of IL-4 and IL-10. The induction of apoptosis in APCs and other effector cells was another important mechanism.