JOURNAL OF ISFAHAN MEDICAL SCHOOL (I.U.M.S)
Year:2017 | Volume:34 | Issue:410|Papers Count:5

Background: Self-immolation is among the most damaging types of injuries from burns, causes serious physical injuries and has psychological and economic effects on the person and his or her family. This study assessed the epidemiological characteristics of patients hospitalized in Imam Musa Kazim hospital, Isfahan, Iran, due to selfimmolation during a 5-years period.Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, all records of the patients hospitalized due to selfimmolation during the years 2010-2014 were assessed. Then, information such as age, sex, marital status, employment, etc. was extracted by using a researcher-made checklist. The data were analyzed using SPSS software in both descriptive and analytic aspects.Findings: Out of 450 participants, who had self-immolation during the studied 5 years, 373 patients (82.9%) were women and 77 patients (17.1%) were men.366 patients (74.7%) were married and 114 (25.3%) were single. Most of the studied patients (68.4%) were in the age category of 20-39 years old.74.0 percent of the patients were housewives. Self-immolation was more prevalent in spring than in other seasons. About half of the patients (49.1%) died of self-immolation. The hospitalization duration of 10 to 15 days and the burning level of 31 to 70 percent (32.2% and 47.5%, respectively) were more prevalent.Conclusion: According to the results of this study and most of the similar studies, housewife married women in the age category of 20-29 years, are subject to eliminate their lives via self-immolation more than any other people.

Background: This study aimed to evaluate possible predictors for postoperative outcome in patients with tumorassociated epilepsy.Methods: In this study, patients with tumor-associated epilepsy who were candidates for epilepsy surgery were included. After required presurgical evaluations, they underwent surgical resection of the tumor. Patients were followed 24-57 months after the surgery and were divided to two groups of seizure-free and not-seizure-free.Demographic data, medical history, seizure characteristics and tumor features were compared between the two groups to find possible predictors.Findings: Thirty-five patients (17 men and 18 women) with the mean age of 22.8 years (8 to 45 years) were enrolled this study. Most of the patients had temporal lobe tumors (68.0%) followed by frontal and parietal lobe tumors. Ganglioglioma was seen in 62.9% of the patients, followed by astrocytoma and dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumour (DNET). We found a non-significant positive correlation between better surgical outcome and being male, younger age at epilepsy onset, longer duration of epilepsy, more seizure frequency, tumors in right hemisphere, tumor type of ganglioglioma, and seizures with secondary generalization.Furthermore, we found that history of head trauma, infection of centeral nervous system (CNS), febrile convulsion, natural vaginal delivery, familial history of epilepsy, tumors in temporal lobe, having auras, developing more seizure types and ipsilateral temporal spikes on preoperative electroencephalogram (EEG) were associated with worst surgical outcome (P>0.05 for all).Conclusion: In this study, we found no statistically significant predicting factor for surgical outcome; however, we found that being male, smaller ages at seizure onset, longer duration of epilepsy, higher seizure frequency before surgery, involvement of right hemisphere, ganglioglioma, and secondary generalization are more seen in patients with better surgical outcome while history of head trauma, CNS infection, family history of epilepsy, temporal lobe tumors, presence of aura, having multiple types of seizures, and epileptic discharges from temporal lobe in preoperative EEG were seen more in patients with poor outcome. Studies with larger sample sizes are suggested to confirm these findings.

Background: Nowadays, investigation of the biological effects of mobile phones is important due to increasing use of these devices. This study aimed to assess the effects of exposure with 900-MHz mobile phone radiation on survival and proliferation of breast cancer Michigan cancer foundation-7 (MCF-7) cells.Methods: Breast cancer MCF-7 cells was used and divided into 3 radiation groups which located at 10 and 20 cm from Global System Mobile Communication (GSM) antenna signal simulator that is able to produce electromagnetic waves with a frequency of 900 MHz. The cells were exposed 6, 15 and 30 minutes per day with an interval of 10 minutes during exposure time for 3 and 5 days, respectively. After 3 and 5 days, MTT assay [3- (4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl) -2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] was used to evaluate the growth and viability. Trypan blue test was done to assess the rate of cells proliferation. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software.Findings: Irradiation times and periods of 3 and 5 days had a significant impact on viability of MCF-7 cells (P<0.05); but radiation intervals at distances 10 and 20 cm showed no significant effect on viability of MCF-7 cells (P>0.05).Conclusion: The results showed that 900-MHz radio-frequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) signal radiation may reduce cell viability and proliferation rates of the MCF-7 cells regarding to the duration of exposure.

Background: Given the importance of pain control after the surgery, and the wide variety of the results of previous researches, this study aimed to compare two methods of intravenous lidocaine and intramuscular piroxicam on postoperative pain in lower abdominal surgery was performed.Methods: In a clinical trial study, 96 patients who were candidates for lower abdominal surgery were randomly divided in three equal groups receiving 2 ml intramuscular normal saline and 5 ml intravenous lidocaine 2%, 2 ml intramuscular piroxicam and 5 ml intravenous normal saline, or 2ml intramuscular and 5 ml intravenous normal saline.24-hours postoperative pain, the first time of receiving analgesia and the doses of analgesia were compared between the groups.Findings: There was significant difference between the three groups regarding the pain intensity during the first 24 hours after the surgery (P<0.001). The mean dose of used analgesia showed significant difference between the normal saline (92.19±42.20 mg), lidocaine (89.69±45.00 mg) and piroxicam (80.00±40.60 mg) groups (P<0.001). The first time of receiving analgesia and duration of staying in the recovery room were significantly difference between the groups. Normal saline group had the shortest first time of receiving analgesia and the longest time of recovery staying. The first time of receiving analgesia was shorter in lidocaine group than the piroxicam group.Conclusion: The results prescribe piroxicam in patients undergoing lower abdominal surgery to reduce the severity of pain after the operation. It can be suggested to use piroxicam as a safe medication to reduce pain after lower abdominal surgeries.

Background: Quality of life is a multidimensional construct including physical health, psychological state, level of independence, and social relationships, as well as psychological symptoms, somatization, interpersonal sensitivity, and obsessive-compulsive, depression, and anxiety disorders, aggression, phobic anxiety, and paranoid ideation. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) on increasing the quality of life and reducing psychological symptoms in patients with multiple sclerosis.Methods: In this clinical trial study, in a pre and post design, 30 patients were randomly selected and located in equal experimental and control groups. Participants in the experimental group received treatment of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for eight 90-minutes sessions. Quality of life questionnaire (QLQ) and Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) were used to collect the data. Analysis of covariance test was used for data analysis via SPSS software.Findings: With the implementation of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in patients with multiple sclerosis, the level of quality of life scores for physical health, and mental health changed as 40.40 and 44.01, respectively.In addition, the changes of aggression, anxiety, interpersonal sensitivity, physical complaints and depression components were 3.20, 3.60, 3.00, 3.20 and 2.40, respectively.Conclusion: The results showed that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy is an effective and evidence-based approach for psychological intervention in patients with multiple sclerosis.