SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL OF KURDISTAN UNIVERSITY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES
Year:2018 | Volume:23 | Issue:5 (97) |Papers Count:14

Background and Aim: Strenuous endurance activities induce oxidative stress and influences important tissues such as kidney and lung. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of curcumin supplementation on glutathione peroxidase (GPX) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) level in the kidney and lung tissues during 8 weeks of strenuous endurance training in male wistar rats.Material and Method: In this experimental study, after one-week familiarization, 28 male Wistar rats (weight=256.11±19.24 g, age=8 weeks), were randomly divided into; Control (n=6), Curcumin (n=6), Endurance (n=8) and Endurance+curcumin (n=8) groups. Endurance training was carried out 5 sessions per week for 8 weeks by using an animal treadmill. The speed and duration of running increased to 35 m/min and 70 min in the last week. The animals received intraperitoneal injections of curcumin supplement 30 mg/kg, 3 times per week for 8 weeks. GPX activity and MDA levels were measured in the kidney and lung tissues by spectrophotometric method. Data were analyzed by one way ANOVA test.Results: There were no significant differences in GPX enzyme activity in the kidney (p=0.077) and lung (p=0.114) tissues between the groups. However, MDA levels in the kidney (p=0.029) and lung (p=0.037) tissues in endurance training group were significantly higher than those in the endurance+curcumin group.Conclusion: It seems that strenuous endurance training in spite of inducing lipid peroxidation, can not disturb final line of antioxidant defense in the kidney and lung tissues. Also, strenuous endurance training induces oxidative stress in the kidney and lung tissues and curcumin supplementation can prevent oxidative stress.

Background and Aim: Children with hematologic malignancy during the course of illness require diagnostic and therapeutic interventions which are associated with pain and stress. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the sedative and analgesic effects of propofol-ketamine and sufentanil-ketamine during diagnostic and therapeutic interventions in the children.Material and Methods: This randomized, double-blind clinical trial included children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, between 6 months and 14 years of age, who were candidate for lumbar puncture or bone marrow aspiration. Children were randomly assigned to two groups of 34, propofol-ketamine (PK) and sufentanil-ketamine (SK) groups. PK group received injections of propofol (1 mg/kg) and ketamine (0.7 mg/kg). SK group received injections of sufentanil (0.5 mg/kg) and ketamine (0.7 mg/kg) until the desired sedation level was reached. The two groups were compared with each other in regard to quality of sedation, analgesia and hemodynamic changes during the intervention and in the recovery room.Results: There was no significant difference between the two groups in relation to demographic characteristics, (P>0.05). The relative frequency of deep sedation levels in the SK group was greater than that in the PK group (P=0.09). The mean pain severity in the SK group was significantly lower than that in the PK group (P=0.02).Conclusion: The results of this study showed that use of ketamine with propofol or sufentanil in painful procedures can provide sedation and analgesia. Sufentanil-ketamine is preferred to propofol- Ketamine because of inducing superior quality of sedation and analgesia and also stability of hemodynamic parameters, in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Background and Aim: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of two types of resistance exercise training along with omega-3-6-9 supplementations on some risk factors of cardiovascular diseases.Materials and Methods: In this semi-experimental study, 60 healthy overweight young male students from Payame Noor University of Hamedan City were randomly assigned to 6 groups of 10 subjects, including circular resistance exercise+omega3-6-9 supplementation, progressive pyramidal resistance training+omega3-6-9 supplementation, circular resistance exercise+placebo, progressive pyramidal exercise+placebo, omega3-6-9 supplement and placebo. Exercise groups completed training programs for 12 weeks. Adiponectin levels and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) were measured before and after the 12-week period of physical training. Data were analyzed using paired t test, twoway ANOVA and ANCOVA.Results: Circular resistance exercise, but not progressive pyradimal exercise, with omega3-6-9 supplementation (P=0.000) and circular resistance exercise with placebo (P=0.007) resulted in significant increases in adiponectin levels, but not hsCRP levels. The difference between post-test mean values of the two types of exercise was significant for adiponectin, but not for hsCRP. The effect of supplementation on the level of hsCRP, independent of the type of exercise, was significant (P=0.031). There was no significant difference between the groups in relation to the hsCRP levels.Conclusion: Circular resistance exercise, but not progressive pyramidal, increased serum adiponectin levels independent of omega 3-6-9 supplementation.

background and Aim: Leishmaniasis is a zoonotic disease which presents with a wide range of clinical features, including cutaneous and visceral forms in Iran. Leishmania (L) major is one of the agents responsible for cutaneous leishmaniasis transmitted by the bite of sand fly. In this study we assessed the antileishmania effect of pistacia Atlantica (alpha-pinene) in culture and also its therapeutic effects on Balb/c mice infected withL. Major.Material and Method: Certain amount of promastigots was challenged with increasing concentrations of pistacia atlantica extract. MTT test was used to assess promastigote survival after 24, 48 and 72 hours. For in vivo assessment, in the stationary phase, 0.1 ml solution containing 2×106 promastigotes were injected subcutaneously into the base of the tails of the mice. Four weeks after injection, cutaneous lesions appeared and different doses of the extract were applied daily in the form of an ointment for 3 weeks. Diameters of the lesions were measured at the end of each week and therapeutic effect of the extract on the lesions was assessed.Results: The results of MTT test revealed remarkable effect of the treatment on the growth of promastigots. IC50 values for glucantime andalpha pinene were found to be 10 mg/ml and 1.46 mg/ml respectively.30 % ointment of the extract decreased the lesion diameter significantly while 15% ointment and treatment for control group were ineffective.Conclusion: The results of the present study showed antileishmanial effect of alpha-pinene on Leishmania major promastigots, in vitro. Moreover, topical ointment of the extract can reduce size of the lesions caused by the parasite, in vivo.

Background and Aim: Pain is a common phenomenon of the labor process and use of nonpharmacological and complementary therapies to reduce labor pain has been on the rise. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of aromatherapy with rose extract and lavender on the pain in the active phase of labor in primipara women.Material and Methods: This clinical trial included 60 primiparous women referring to the maternity hospital of Amiral-Mo' menin in 1395. The women were divided into three groups. Aroma therapy with lavender and rose extracts was started at cervical dilatations of 5 to 4 cm, and repeated every 15 minutes. We used distilled water for the control group. The severity of pain was measured at cervical dilatations of 4-5, 6-7, 8-10 cm. We used an individual and a midwifery questionnaire, a check list of examination and a McGill pain questionnaire. Using spss 21 software, data were analyzed by descriptive and analytical statistics (ANOVA with repeated observations, one-way ANOVA, covariance, chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis test).Results: There were no significant differences among the three groups in relation to the mean pain intensity before the intervention (P=0.603). The severity of pain decreased significantly in the lavender and rose groups (P=0.001) compared to that in the control group after the intervention (P=0.001), and pain reduction in the lavender group was more than that in the rose group.Conclusion: Aromatherapy with lavender resulted in a more significant reduction in labor pain compared to that with rose essential oil.

Background and Aim: Multiple sclerosis is a chronic neurodegenerative disease which is accompanied by neurological disability. Curcumin can be effective in prevention of this abnormal condition because of its ability to cross the blood-brain barrier, its potent antioxidant effect and nerve protective effects. The aim of this study was to evaluate curcumin effects on improvement of muscle strength, prevention of degradation of oligodendrocytes cells and myelin in rat brain.Materials and methods: Twenty eight rats (wt: 200 g) were randomly divided into four groups: control, sham (DMSO), cuprizone and curcumin. Curcumin group, received cuprizone (0.6%) gavage and curcumin (200 mg / kg) simultaneously for four weeks. During the study we evaluated muscle strength by using a behavioral basket test, the percentage of cells expressing A2B5 and MBP markers by immunohistochemistry technique. Myelin density was evaluated by luxol fast blue staining. Using Image J and SPSS softwares, the results were analyzed by one-way ANOVA test.Results: Immunohistochemistry images showed that the percentages of mature oligodendrocytes and oligodendrocytes progenitor cells in the curcumin group were significantly higher than those in the sham and cuprizone groups (p≤0.05). In addition, myelin density and muscle strength were higher in the curcumin group compared to those in the cuprizone and sham groups (p£0.05).Conclusion: The consumption of natural compounds containing curcumin, can be effective in the prevention of oligodendrocytes and myelin destruction in people susceptible to MS.

Background and Aim: Procrastination, as a pervasive phenomenon in students is interwoven with emotional problems and failure in emotion regulation. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of group acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) on reduction of academic procrastination and improvement of difficulty in emotion regulation in the students of Zanjan University of Medical Sciences.Material and Method: This was a randomized controlled clinical trial. Statistical population included all of the students of Zanjan University of Medical Sciences in the academic year 2017-2018. After screening, among 500 people, 150 students were selected on the basis of evaluation scales, in the first step. Then, we selected 40 students based on the severity of procrastination and our inclusion and exclusion criteria and divided them into two intervention groups (each group included 10 students) and a control group (n=20) using random number generator 3.1.v software. During the treatment sessions, 7 students were excluded from the two intervention groups. We used Procrastination Assessment Scale for Students (PASS) and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) for evaluation of the results. The intervention groups received eight sessions of acceptance and commitment group therapy. Data were analyzed by SPSS software.Results: The results of repeated measure analysis of variance showed that acceptance and commitment therapy in the intervention group resulted in a significant reduction in: academic procrastination (42.1%), the total score of difficulty in emotion regulation (36.2%), difficulty in engaging in a goal-directed behavior (30.6%), impulse control difficulties (47.5%) and lack of emotional awareness (23.2%) (P<0.05). Also, the results of covariance analysis indicated that with pre-test control, acceptance and commitment therapy, explains 16.1% of the academic procrastination changes and 45.9% of the changes in emotional regulation total score in the intervention group in comparison to the changes in the control group in the long run (P<0.05).Conclusion: The results of this study have implicit and practical implications for the specialists in order to use long-term acceptance and commitment therapy for reduction of procrastination and emotion regulation difficulties.

Background and Aim: Peripheral and central nervous system neuropathy occur in chronic diabetes with uncontrolled hyperglycemia. Beneficial effects of sodium valproate have been demonstrated in neurodegenerative diseases. Sodium valproate has neuroprotective and regenerative effects via modifications in gene expression. In this study, we investigated effects of sodium valproate on the modifications in the hippocampal levels of NF-KB, AP-1, S100B and GFAP as a consequence of alloxan induced diabetes.Material and Methods: This experimental study included 24 adult male C57B15/J mice. Diabetes was induced by injection of alloxan (150 mg/kg; i.p.). Sodium valproate was administrated (100 mg/kg; i.p) every 72 hours for two months. Fasting blood sugarlevels were measured at the beginning and at the end of the experiment. Then animals were killed, their hippocampuses were extracted and prepared for measurement of biochemical factors by ELISA kits.Results: Increased blood glucose levels due to alloxan induced diabetes were significantly reduced following sodium valproate administration (P<0.05). Also, chronic sodium valproate administration in diabetic animals significantly reduced elevated levels of hippocampal NFKB, S100B and GFAP (P<0.05).Conclusion: It seems that sodium valproate can adjust diabetes induced modifications in the biochemical factors of the hippocampus which are indicators of cell damage, and maybe effective in prevention of diabetic neuropathy.

Background and Aim: Ischemic heart diseases are the most common cause of mortality and morbidity in developed countries. The incidence of these disorders are increasing and the age of onset is on the decrease. The prevalence of risk factors such as obesity and hyperlipidemia is on the increase among children and adolescents. Various maternal and fetal factors can affect fetal fat levels. Therefore, the present study was designed to determine the relationship of the level of umbilical cord blood lipids with gestational age and birth weight in the newborns born in Mahdieh Hospital in 2017.Material and Method: In this descriptive-analytical study we measured cord blood lipids levels of 375 newborns, born in Mahdieh Hospital in 2017. Newborns with known maternal or fetal complications were excluded from the study. Demographic, clinical and paraclinical data of the newborns and mothers were recorded in the questionnaire for every newborn and the relationship of the level of umbilical cord blood lipids (total cholesterol, VLDL, HDL, LDL, and triglyceride) with gestational age, birth weight, sex of the newborn, maternal age and BMI was evaluated. We used chi-square test to compare qualitative data and T-test, ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis and Spearman correlation coefficient to compare quantitative data.Results: This study included 375 single-birth infants (191 girls and 184 boys). The mean umbilical cord serum values for triglyceride in the preterm and term infants were 122.2±31.2 and 97.6±31.7 (p<0.001), and for VLDL were 24.2±6.0 and 19.5±6.6 (p<0.001) respectively. The respective values for mean serum triglyceride and VLDL levels in umbilical cord blood were 126.6±34.6 and 100.1±32.6 (p=0.011) in the newborns with birth weight of less than 2500 grams. Also mean serum triglyceride and VLDL levels in umbilical cord blood were 24.9±6.7 and 19.9±6.7 (p=0.020) in the newborns with birth weight of more than 2500 gram (2500-4000 grams and higher) respectively. The respective mean levels of umbilical cord blood triglyceride were 90.8±33.0, 101.6±32.8 and 110.2±31.6 (p=0.047) for SGA, AGA and LGA newborns. Newborns of the mothers with BMI≥25 had higher levels of triglyceride, VLDL and LDL compared to the newborns of the mothers with BMI<25. The lipid levels of umbilical cord blood had no relationship with mother’s age. We used t-test, ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis and Spearman correlation for quantitative and chi-square test for qualitative data analysis.Conclusion: The results of this study showed that mean serum levels of triglyceride and VLDL of the umbilical cord blood is higher in the preterm newborns and newborns with birth weights of less than 2500 grams. SGA newborns had lower umbilical cord blood triglyceride levels compared to the other newborns. Newborns of the mothers with pre-pregnancy obesity had higher umbilical cord blood levels of triglyceride, VLDL and LDL. We did not find any relationship between the levels of umbilical cord blood lipids and age of the mothers.

Background and Aim: Abortion is one of the most important medical problems which imposes a high cost on the households. Listeria monocytogenes is one of the most important causes of abortion and postpartum infection in the newborns. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes in the pregnant women and compare its prevalence rates between women with and without a history of abortion in Tehran and also prevalence of hlyA virulence gene.Materials and Method: In this cross sectional study, from May 2016 to December 2016 clinical samples of vaginal discharge were taken from pregnant women with and without a history of abortion. All of the samples (100 sample) were collected from the patients referring to Arash Hospital in Tehran, by a gynecologist. The women filled out a questionnaire. The pregnant women who had received antibiotic were excluded from the study. All samples were transferred to the microbiological lab, rapidly.Results: After culture and differential tests, among 100 sample we isolated Listeria from 7 % (7 strains) of the samples (4 strains of L.monocytogenesis and 3 strains of Listeria seeligeri). In the samples taken from pregnant women with a history of abortion we found 3 stains of L.monocytogenes and one strain of Listeria seeligeri. In the samples obtained from pregnant women without a history of abortion one stains of L.monocytogenes and 2 strains of Listeria seeligeri were detected.Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes in the pregnant women with a history of abortion is more than that in the pregnant women without a history of abortion. Despite the fact that this bacterium was not confirmed as a major cause of abortion in our study, but it may expose pregnant women to the risk of this problem.

Background and Aim: Acinetobacter baumannii is one of the important caues of nosocomial infection. Resistance to antibiotics specially carbapenem antibiotics is on the increase which can be an alarming sign for healthcare managers and personnel. The aim of this study was to investigate phentypic and genotypic characteristics of carbapenem resistant A. baumannii in the samples obtained from the patients in Imam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran city.Material and Methods: 100 strains were identified as A. baumannii by biochemical tests and molecular methods. Multiplex PCR method was used for identification of the genes of bla OXA family. Drug susceptibility pattern was determined by disk diffusion method.Result: Among 100 isolates, 95 (95%) were resistant to carbapenem antibiotics (imipenem and meropenem). PCR method was performed to identify blaOXA family genes.9 isolates had blaOXA-51 gene while 38 had both blaOXA-51 and blaOXA-23 genes.20 isolates were positive for blaOXA-51 and blaOXA-24 genes, 6 isolates had blaOXA-51 and blaOXA-58, and 8 isolates had blaOXA-51, blaOXA-24 and blaOXA-23 genes.7 isolates were positive for blaOXA-51, blaOXA-23 and blaOXA-58.4 isolates had blaOXA-51and blaOXA-24 and blaOXA-58 genes. We detected blaOXA-51 and blaOXA-24 and blaOXA-23 and blaOXA-58 genes in three isolates.Conclusion: According to our results carbapenem resistant Acinetobacter baumannii strains spread increasingly among hospital units. We found that carbapenem resistant Acinetobacter strains with a high resistance rate are common in the hospitals in Iran.

Background and aim: Unstable shoes usually are used in work environments to reduce work-related disorders. The purpose of this study was to investigate the immediate effects of using unstable shoes on the activity of trunk muscles during load lifting.Material and Methods: This semi-experimental study included 15 able-bodied men. Activation of rectus abdominis, external oblique, internal oblique, multifidus, erector spinae, latissimus dorsi, quadratus lumborum, and gluteus medius muscles in the dominant side of the body was recorded during load lifting in barefoot condition and with typical shoes, and unstable shoes on. We used analysis of variance with repeated measure test for data analysis (a=0.05).Results: The results of this study showed significant decrease in the mean normalized muscle activation of the rectus abdominis, internal oblique, and quadratus lumborum during load lifting and also decreased normalized peak muscle activation of the rectus abdominis, quadratus lumborum, and erector spinae as well as an increase in the normalized peak muscle activation of multifidus with unstable shoes on (P<0.05). Morover, with unstable shoes on, we found significant increases in the mean frequency values of external oblique, internal oblique, multifidus, and erector spinae muscles, compared to barefoot condition and with typical shoes on (P<0.05). Also, use of unstable shoes compared to the two other conditions decreased cocontraction level of the rectus abdominis/ erector spinae, rectus abdominis/ multifidus, internal oblique/ erector spinae, and external oblique/ multifidus muscles (P<0.05).Conclusion: Considering decreased activation and co-contraction levels of the selected trunk muscles use of unstable shoes may have some beneficial effects such as reduction of stress on the lumbar vertebrae and prevention of various injuries to the lumbar region such as low back pain. However, more investigations are needed in order to provide more precise results.