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J Savari, N Jaafazadeh, A Hassani, G Shams Khoram Abadi,
Volume 5, Issue 4 (5 2008)
Abstract
Background and Aims: In this study we measured the quality, corrosiveness, Ryznar stability index, and heavy metal leakage in the drinking water distribution networks of Ahvaz.
Materials and Methods : A total of 76 sampling sites were selected for this purpose the sites included inlet and outlet points in water treatment plants as well as consumers taps. We collected 456 samples in six stages and over a period of six month, following the procedures outlined in the Standard Method. Data were analyzed using the SPSS 11.5 software package.
Results: The average values obtained from the specimens were as follows: temperature (19 0C), turbidity (1.97NTU), pH (7.31), pHs (7.88), EC (1678µs/cm), TDS (1006mg/l), Alkalinity (129mg/l), Calcium (109mg/l), DO (6.78mg/l), Cl- (293mg/l), SO4-- (264mg/l), Ryznar stability index (8.43). Average heavy metal levels in tap water were as follows: Pb (8.48µg/l), Cd (0.972 µg/l), Zn (3.18 mg/l), Cu (0.168 g/l), Fe (0.257 mg/l), and Mn (0.031mg/l).
Conclusion: The results showed that the water quality has been affected in such a way as to cause corrosiveness, heavy metal leakage and aesthetic problems. We also showed that in comparison with USEPA and Iranian standards, the quality indices of the drinking water in Ahvaz were at an acceptable level, with the notable exception of a few indices such as TDS, EC, and hardness. The Ryznar stability index indicated that the drinking water in Ahvaz has corrosive properties and this could be one of the reasons behind the high rates of heavy metal leakage detected in this area.
M Alavi, A Albaji,
Volume 7, Issue 1 (23 2009)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public-health problem in Iran, despite employing the DOTS (directly observed treatment short course) strategy in the National Tuberculosis Program (NTP). The aim of this study was to determine the role of teaching hospitals in improving NTP indices.
Materials and Methods: In a retrospective cross-sectional study, the medical files of treated TB patients in Tehran Razi Teaching Hospital and the Khuzestan Provincial Health Center were reviewed. Diagnosis, treatment and follow-up were based on the NTP procedures. The patients hospitalized for at least the first 2 weeks of treatment were placed in the hospitalized TB (HTB) group and the outpatients in the outpatient TB (OTB) group. The NTP indices (the sputum smear positive, fully cured, treatment failure, defaulted, and death rates) and pre-treatment counseling were compared between the 2 groups. Data related to demographic characteristics, risk factors, and the treatment outcome were compared by SPSS 11.5 using the chi square and fisher's tests
Results: A total of 235 patients (mean age 38 years), 67 of whom were hospitalized TB patients, were studied. 122 men (51.9 %) and 42 women (17.9%) had a history of imprisonment, among whom 20 (47.6%) were positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), 53 (22.5%) injection drug users, and 120 (51.1%) smear-positive for pulmonary TB. The rates of cured cases, treatment failures, defaulted and death were, respectively, 80.6%, 8.9%, 4.5%, and 5.9%, in the HTB group, and 66.6%, 17.3%, 10.1%, and 5.9% in the OTB group. Pre-treatment counseling had been done in 75% of the HTB and 52% of the OTB cases.
Conclusion: Teaching hospitals can have an important role in improving pre-treatment counseling and NTP indices, such as increased sputum positivity, cured rate, and, probably, decreased treatment failure and defaulted rate.
S Jorfi, N Jaafarzadeh, R Rezaei Kalantary, Y Hashempur, M.m Mehrbani Ardakani,
Volume 7, Issue 3 (7 2009)
Abstract
Background and Aim: High concentrations of organic compounds and ammonia and entry of toxic pollutants lead to a low efficiency of direct biological treatment of landfill leachate. The aim of this study was to determine the efficiency of a repeated fed-batch biological reactor with powdered active carbon (PAC) for landfill leachate treatment.
Methods and Materials: Raw leach ate was pretreated by coagulation and flocculation processes and, then, the ammonia was removed by air stripping at a high pH, before biological treatment. The pretreated leach ate was treated bio-treated in an aeration tank by the repeated fed-batch method. Three cycles of 1×40, 5×8, and 4×10 hours were attempted in the absence and presence of 2 g PAC /L.
Results: Results indicate that the presence of PAC increased the COD removal efficiency significantly. The initial COD effluent was 3900 mg/L. Its values were 169 mg/L and 622 mg/L in the presence and absence of 2 g/L PAC, respectively, for the cycle of 5×8 h.
Conclusion: Based on the results of this study and findings of other investogations in this field, it can be concluded that repeated fed-batch bio-reactor has is quite effective for treatment of pretreated leachate.
Sahand Jorfi, Abbas Rezaee, Nemat Allah Jaafarzadeh Haghighi Fard, Ghasem Ali Mohebali,
Volume 10, Issue 4 (18 2013)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Problems related to conventional Fenton oxidation, including neccesity of having a low pH and production of considerable amounts of sludge, have prompted researchers to consider chelating agents to improve the pH operating range and iron nano-oxide particles to reduce excess sludge. The main objective of this study was to remove pyrene from contaminated soils by a modified Fenton oxidation method at neutral pH.
Materials and Methods: Experiments were conducted using various concentrations of H2O2 (0-500 mM), iron nano-oxides (0-60 mM), reaction times (0.5-24 hours) and several chelating agents, namely, sodium pyrophosphate, ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid, sodium citrate, fulvic and humic acids, to eliminate pyrene from soil (concentrations of 100-500 mg/kg).
Results: The efficiency of removal of pyrene at an initial concentration of 100 mg/kg was 99 % at the following reaction conditions: H2O2 and iron nano-oxide concentrations of 300 mM and 30 mM, respectively pH=3 and a reaction time of 6 hours. The initial pyrene concentration of 100 mg/kg decreased to 7 mg/kg at optimum conditions using sodium pyrophosphate as the chelating agent at pH 7.
Conclusion: The modified Fenton oxidation method, using iron nano-oxide at optimum conditions as defined in this research, is an efficient alternative for chemical remediation or pre-treatment of soils contaminated wih pyrene at neutral pH.
Ahmad Ali Hanafi Bojd, Hassan Vatandoust, Mahyar Soltani, Zabih Allah Charrahi, Homa Nasseh,
Volume 10, Issue 4 (18 2013)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Arthropod-borne diseases are one of the major causes of human mortality. Since launch of the first meteorological satellites in 1960s, remote sensing has been increasingly implicated in the field of human health research and the data from satellites and their sensors with different spatial and temporal resolutions opened a new field of research in human health for scientists.
Material and Methods: Search engines and national/international scientific databanks were used to search keywords of remote sensing, satellite, tick, mosquito and sand fly and obtained articles were analyzed.
Results: Some ecological indices were used more in remote sensing of arthropod-borne diseases, including NDVI, SST, LST and CCD.
Conclusion: Data of environmental factors such as temperature, relative humidity, land use/ land cover help us to detect the habitats of vectors of diseases regard to their ecology. However, the scope of applications, beyond theoretical large potentialities, appears limited both by their technical nature and the related models developed. The main problem for application of remote sensing in health science and epidemiology of diseases, is the costs of satellite images as well as the availability in the studied times to monitor a specific subject like vector or agent of the disease. Although the majority of health studies and diseases monitoring need to application of high spatial resolution images.
Mohammad Saleh Koushki, Ali Akbari Sari, Mohammad Arab, Kambiz Ahmadi Engali,
Volume 10, Issue 4 (18 2013)
Abstract
Background and Aim: The quality of working life is a very important variable in connection with human resources. Therefore, it should be taken into consideration by managers if they aim to improve the capabilities and efficiency of their staff, which will, in turn, lead to improved productivity and economic growth. Productivity is an important factor in the success of hospital nurses too. The objective of this study was to determine the association between the quality of working life and productivity of nurses. Knowledge of this relationship can help plan to improve the nurses' quality of working life and, subsequently, improve their productivity and, ultimately, productivity of a hospital.
Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional correlation study conducted in 2011. The study population was nurses of the Shahid-Beheshti University of Medical Sciences hospitals in Tehran, Iran. Using the randomized stratified multistage sampling method, 380 nurses were selected as the study sample. Data on the nurses' quality of working life and productivity were collected using two questionnaires and analyzed using SPSS-17, the statistical tests being Chi-2, ANOVA, T-test, and the Pearson correlation test.
Results: The findings showed that nurses' quality of work life and productivity were at the middle level, with a mean of 2.47 and 3.07, respectively. A very small number (1.55%) of the nurses reported that their quality of work life was at a high level, while the majority (82.4%) believed their quality of work life to be at a moderate level. The Pearson correlation test showed a significant positive relationship between the quality of work life and productivity of the nurses (r = 0.66, p-value = 0.001).
Conclusion: Only a low proportion of the nurses report their quality of working life and productivity to be at a high level. Therefore, bearing in mind that a statistically significant relationship exists between the quality of working life and productivity, authorities should atempt to promote the nurses' quality of work life in order to increase their productivity.
Hashem Mohammadian, Seyed Gholam Abbas Mousavi, Hasan Eftekhar Ardebili, Jafar Kord Zanganeh,
Volume 12, Issue 4 (3-2015)
Abstract
Background and Aim: It is known that personal behavior influences one’s health. The present study was designed to investigate lifestyle of non-medical students of governmental and private (Azad) universities in Kashan, Iran and factors affecting it.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out on 520 non-medical students in Kashan, Iran, selected by convenience sampling, in academic year 2013-14. Data on demographic characteristics and health behaviors were collected using standard valid questionnaires, for the latter the questionnaire being the Pender’s Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLP II). The data were analyzed using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, followed by t-test, and U Mann-Whitney test to compare the means of the two populations.
Results: The m ean age of the students was 21.75 ± 2.5 years. Their overall health-promoting lifestyle score was of 2.43 (SD = 0.38). This score, as well as scores for the subcategories ─ nutritional behavior, spiritual development, physical activity, health responsibility, and stress management ─ were lower for the subjects with an experience of stressful events. Further analysis of the data showed that t here were significant differences between boys and girls as regards physical activity (P = 0.000), between single and married students as regards nutritional status (P = 0.032), and between working and non-working students as regards spiritual development (P = 0.014).
Conclusion: The findings indicate that experienced stressful events lay the ground for the adoption of risky behaviors in university students. Therefore, universities should design and implement programs aiming at improving lifestyle of the students and promoting their health.
Hashem Mohammadian, Jafar Kord Zanganeh, Parvaneh Kiani, Farzaneh Sharifat,
Volume 14, Issue 4 (3-2017)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Children are one of the most vulnerable groups in the population. Child abuse is a complex phenomenon with multiple causes. The purpose of this study was to do a confirmatory factor analysis of child abuse potential inventory among Ahvazi children in Ahvaz, Iran.
Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive-analytical study, including all Ahvazi primary school pupils aged 8-13 years in the academic year 2015-2016.
The sample size for confirmatory factor analysis was determined based on the number of questions per parameter.The variance was extracted on the basis of mean scores and
composite reliability for structural equation modeling was determined based on the first-order and second-order confirmatory factor analysisusing the LISREL software.
Results: Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a short form of the child abuse's original 3-actor structure, including the psychological, physical and neglect scales. The outcomes indicated that the firstorder model was a better fit for the data than the second.
Conclusion: It can be concluded that the Ahvazi version of the child abuse potential inventory questionnaire is acceptable from a psychometric point of view. We think it is essential to take into consideration the diversity of perspectives between parents and children in future research in this area.
Masoumeh Majdpour, Mohsen Shams, Saadat Parhizkar, Ali Mousavizadeh, Zahra Rahimi,
Volume 15, Issue 3 (12-2017)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Sexuality education is one of the most important educational needs of adolescents, and mothers can have a key role in sex education of their daughters. This study aimed at developing, implementing and evaluating a skill-based training program for mothers for sexuality education of adolescent girls in Mahshahr, Iran.
Materials and Methods: This was a field trial conducted on 140 mothers having 12- to18-year-old girls between September and March 2012. Data were collected using two reliable questionnaires developed by the investigators ─ a "Parent-Child Relationship: Mother" questionnaire for assessing the mothers’ communication skills completed by the adolescent girls, and a "Knowledge and attitude about sexuality education of adolescents" questionnaire for assessing the mothers’ knowledge and attitude about sex matters and communication, skills completed by the mothers themselves. Based on the results, an educational intervention for mothers was designed consisting of three training sessions and implemented. The mothers’ knowledge, attitude and communication scores after a period of three months were compared with the respective baseline scores.
Results: Three months after the intervention, the mean scores of mothers’ knowledge and attitude about sexuality matters increased significantly (in both cases p <0.01). However, there was no statistically significant difference between the initial and final scores of mothers’ communication skills (p = 0.37).
Conclusion: Based on the findings it can be concluded that the designed educational program was effective in improving the knowledge and attitudes of the mother about sexuality matters although it did not affect their communication skills. Promoting communication skills of mothers as an important factor for sexuality education of their daughters requires regular, continuous educational sessions, as well as practice and experiences.
Hashem Mohamadian, Mohammad Reza Jafari, Kambiz Ahmadi Anghali,
Volume 15, Issue 4 (3-2018)
Abstract
Background and Aim: The prevalence of chronic diseases can be reduced by correcting people's food habits. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the explanatory power of the Expectation-Confirmation Model for the intention to continue fruit and vegetable consumption.
Materials and Methods: This descriptive-analytic study included 332 elderly people with a history of receiving health care services from 8 rural health centers and 40 health houses in Abadan city, Iran in the second half of 2015. Data were analyzed by path analysis and the multicolinearity test using LISREL8.8 and SPSS16 software, respectively.
Results: Less than half (48%) of the subjects consumed 1 to 3 servings of fruit and vegetable daily. The model used could explain 79% of the intention to continue fruit and vegetable consumption. Analysis of the data also showed positive associations between the intention to continue fruit and vegetable consumption and the following variables: self-efficacy (β = 0.09, P <0.01), perceived ease of use (β = 0.15, P <0.01), perceived benefits (β = 0.37, P <0.01), and satisfaction (β = 0.35, P <0.01); however, the perceived barriers had an inverse relationship with that intention (β=-0/2, P <0.01). From among the constructs of the mode, perceived benefits were the most effective factor influencing the intention to continue fruit and vegetable consumption (β=0.85, P <0.01).
Conclusion: The model used in this study is suitable for explaining the elderly people’s intention to continue fruit and vegetable consumption. It is recommended that policy-makers use appropriate strategies to increase the understanding of the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables by the elderly and, thus, sensitize them to increase their consumption through public campaigns and communication with the relevant organizations, families, etc.
Asiyeh Molaeifard, Mohammad Hossein Haghighi Zadeh, Hashem Mohammadian,
Volume 16, Issue 1 (6-2018)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Considering the lack of attention to the health promotion of adolescents due to their perception of being healthy in most countries of the world, we aimed to evaluate the predictors of adolescent health promoting lifestyle through path analysis based on IMB model.
Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive-analytic study on 400 high school students in Andimeshk city in two urban and rural areas. The sample size was obtained using the Cochran formula.They were selected by classified random sampling. In this study, demographic data, information about IMB model structures and student adherence to healthy lifestyle were collected in four areas nutrition, physical activity, stress control and responsibility. Correlation between total structures was analyzed using SPSS-23 software. Lisrel 8.5 software. Meanwhile, the relationships between variables were analyzed using Path analysis to fit and approve model fit model using LISREL8.8 software.
Results: All structures of IMB model had a Significant relationship with adolescent healthy lifestyle. Self-efficacy structure had the most predictive power. In general, self-efficacy variables, 75%, motivation 66%, and 50% knowledge had a positive and significant effect on behavior. This model was able to explain 71% of the variance in adolescent lifestyle behavior. Also, in this model, the level of self-efficacy variance (behavioral skills), 52%,, And motivation variance was explained 57%. Motivation and knowledge indirectly influenced the lifestyle behavior (behavior) by 55% and 50%, respectively.
Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that the IMB model has a good application for explaining and predicting the healthy lifestyle of adolescents. Accordingly, it is recommended that health planners apply the IMB model in order to promote adolescent lifestyle in this population.
Mehrasa Mohammadsadeghi, Niaz Mohammadzadeh Honarvar, Mostafa Qorbani, Anahita Mansouri, Fariba Kouhdani,
Volume 16, Issue 2 (9-2018)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Lipoprotein disorders are an integral component of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment of lipid disorders can be beneficial in prevention and treatment of many complications associated with T2DM.The aim of this study wasto determine the effect of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation on the serum levels of apolipoproteins (Apos) A1, A2, B48 and C3 in patients withT2DM.
Materials and Methods: In this 8-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 44 T2DMpatients were randomly assigned to either an experimental group (n=22, receiving daily 2.4 g DHA) or a placebo group (n = 22, receiving paraffin). The serum levels of AposA1, A2, B48 and C3 were measured in all the patients at the beginning and at the end of the period.
Results: There was a statistically significant increase in the mean serum level of ApoA1 in the DHA group (p = 0.014). In addition, a significant difference was observed in the serum level of ApoC3 after intervention between the DHA and placebo group (p=0.031). There were no significant differences between the two groups as regards the mean changes in serum levels of ApoA1, ApoA2, ApoB48 and ApoC3.
Conclusions: Dietary supplementation with docosahexaenoic acidhasno effects on the serum levels of apolipoproteins in patients with type-2 diabetes.
Jafar Kordzanganeh, Hashem Mohamadian,
Volume 17, Issue 1 (6-2019)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Delays in childbearing, in addition to creating health risks for the mother and the child, may lead to permanent parental bereavement. The purpose of this study was psychometric assessment of the validity and reliability of the Iranian version of attitude toward reproductive and childbearing inventory (ATRCI) in women without a history of pregnancy.
Materials and Methods: This study was done on 235 women without a history of pregnancy selected by multi-stage sampling in the South of Iran. They completed a fertility and childbearing attitude questionnaire. The validity and reliabilty of the ATRCI were determined using SPSS-16 software, the statitical tests being Cronbach's alpha coefficient and exploratory factor analysis.
Results: The mean age of the women was 24.47 ± 4.1 years, and the Cronbach's alpha total coefficient was 0.888. The KMO and Bartlett's test of sphericity value (0.890) was significant.
In this study, in addition to the main components of the questionnaire, the childbirth postponement component was also extracted; they explained 63.01% of the total variance related the attitude toward fertility and childbearing.
Conclusion: The 4-component Iranian version of the attitude toward fertility and childbearing inventory was found to have acceptable psychometric validity and reliability. It is recommended that in the future studies this inventory be used in intervantional studies and heath and demographic programs for women without a history of pregnancy.
Soodabeh Bassak Nejad, Mahtab Rahimi, Sasan Razmjo,
Volume 18, Issue 1 (5-2020)
Abstract
Background and Aim: The family relationships of parents suffering from cancer change following the onset of physical problems, the experience of depression and the lack of emotional access. This study aimed to compare the negative orientation of adolescent girls with mothers with and without breast cancer toward the problem, hopelessness and perceived stress.
Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. The statistical population was all the adolescent girls 13-18 years old referring to the oncology ward of Golestan Teaching Hospital in Ahvaz, Iran during a 6-month period accompanying their mothers suffering from breast cancer. The girls for the group with mothers with cancer (n=57, mean age 16.31 ±4.65 years) and the group with mothers without cancer (n=57, mean age 16.02 ±3.27 years) were selected using convenient and multistage sampling, respectively. Both groups completed the Robichuad and Dogus negative orientation to problem questionnaire, Beck Hopelessness Scale and Chohen Pecieved Stress Scale. Data were analyzed using the one-way and multivariate analysis of variance (with a p<0.05 to show statistical significance) with the software SPSS-22.
Results: There were significant differences between the two groups as regards the variables of negative orientation toward the problem and hopelessness (F= 4.21; p<0.05), while no significant difference was found between them as regards perceived stress (F= 0.015 P= 0.90).
Conclusion: The children of cancer patients have psychological problems and, therefore, need guidance and support. Improvements in the psychological conditions of children will improve their relationship with their mothers, who will then feel more relieved.
Saeed Motesadi Zarandi, Rasul Nasiri, Mohammad Esmaeil Motlagh,
Volume 19, Issue 1 (6-2021)
Abstract
Background and Aim: High concentrations of particulate matter-25 (PM2.5) have been the cause of the unhealthiest days in Tehran, Iran in recent years. This study was conducted with the aim of the spatio-temporal analysis of traffic volume and its relationship with PM2.5 pollutant concentrations in Tehran metropolis, Tehran during 2015-2018, using the Geographic Information System (GIS).
Materials and Methods: In this study in different regions of Tehran, the Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) model was used for prediction and zoning of the PM2.5 concentrations and traffic volume during the period 2015-2018. In addition, the association between the PM2.5 concentrations and traffic volume was determined based on the Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) model.
Results: The findings showed that the southern and southwestern regions of Tehran had the highest PM2.5 pollutant concentration (annual average more than 40 μg/m3), while the eastern and northern regions had the highest traffic volume. In addition, based on the GWR model, the eastern regions were found to have the highest local R2 values (between 0.36 and 0.70).
Conclusion: In most regions of Tehran, no strong association can be found between high concentrations of PM2.5 and traffic volume. However, based on the findings of this study we cannot reject the relationship between traffic volume and PM2.5 pollutant but postulate other sources to be the main reason for the high concentrations of PM2.5. Thus, in the first step, these sources should be identified, followed by adopting strategies for traffic volume control and reduction aiming at having a cleaner air in Tehran.
Rasul Nasiri, Saeed Motesaddi Zarandi, Mohammad Esmaeil Motlagh ,
Volume 19, Issue 3 (3-2022)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Climate change on the earth is changing faster than ever before in the history. Cities are highly vulnerable to this climate change. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate climate change in the metropolis of Tehran during the period 1991-2020 and help understand the limitations that cities may have in confronting climate change.
Materials and Methods: This descriptive-analytical study was performed based on the information obtained from the synoptic stations in the Tehran metropolis. First the relevant indicators were determined based on the opinions of experts and the existing literature, followed by analyzing the descriptive and analytical data on climate using the EXCEL-2016 software. Finally, based on reviewing the studies in the literature and analysis of climate data in the metropolis of Tehran, a single protocol was arrived at to study climate change in the city (microclimate) and how to reduce, and adapt with, the impacts of climate change in cities.
Results: Analysis of the data showed that the metropolis of Tehran had been facing an increase in temperature and a decrease in humidity over the preceding 30 years. The average monthly temperature increase and humidity decrease had been about 1.5° C and nearly 15%, respectively.
Conclusion: Tehran metropolis is faced with an increase in temperature and a decrease in humidity levels, the intensity of both of which will further increase in the future. Dense urban population areas will experience more intense climate change due to the formation of heat islands. To deal with this problem urban planners must consider urban socio-economic development in the context of adapting to climate change and reducing its impacts in various urban areas.
