The Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders and its Predictors among Iranians’ Housewives

ABSTRACT Background and aims: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are common among housewives. Therefore, this study aimed to estimate the prevalence of MSDs and its predictors among a group of Iranian housewives. Methods: This cross-sectional study carried out on 600 Iranian housewives in 2014 that were selected using multistage random sampling from three cities including Karaj, Kashan and Yazd. The data were collected using Nordic questionnaire and were analyzed in SPSS software using chi-square and multiple linear regressions with Hosmer-Lemshow method. Results: The total prevalence of MSDs was 53 and was not different in three cities (P>0.05). The highest prevalence of pain was found to be in the back region (51.33), followed by neck (51) and shoulder (41.5) and least at wrist (40.5). The possibility of pain in neck was related to husband’s job (governmental compared to self-employed OR=1.6, CI 95:1.09-2.63), older age (OR=1.06, CI 95:1.01-1.11), higher height (OR=1.09, CI 95:1.03-2.09), and more marriage duration (OR=1.08, CI 95:1.01-2.05). The possibility of pain in back was related to educational level guidance (OR=0.38, CI 95%:0.15-0.95) and high school (OR=0.31, CI 95%:0.13-0.94) compared to primary school and heavier weight (OR=1.07, CI 95%:1.04-2.19), and finally the possibility of pain in shoulder was related to dominant hand right hand compared to both hand (OR=4.6, CI 95%:1.2-17.8). Conclusion: Present study showed that the prevalence of MSDs in Iranian housewives is high and the educational level, height, weight and having husband with governmental job are as important predictors of MSDs among housewives. However, ergonomic training and informing the housewives about the risk factors of MSDs could prevent and postponed the occurrence of these disorders

Comparison between the effects of hydroalcoholic extract of dill and statins on lipid profile

Background and Aims: A transient increase of blood concentration of lipids after meal is able to increase the risk of atherogenesis. This study aimed to determine the effects of Anethum graveolens L. (dill) consumption on atherosclerosis and hepatic risk factors. Methods: In an experimental study, 32 male New Zealand rabbits were randomly allocated to four groups to receive normal diet, a diet containing 1 cholesterol, a diet containing 1 cholesterol plus 200 mg/kg dill powder, and a diet containing 10 mg/kg lovastatin. Risk factors of atherosclerosis including glucose, total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), apolipoprotein B (ApoB), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), nitrite, nitrate, fibrinogen, and factor VII were measured and compared between different groups. Results: Consumption of dill caused a significant reduction in glucose compared to the hypercholesterolemic diet group. Dill powder significantly decreased LDL-C, TC, AST, ALT, and fibrinogen. No significant differences were found between dill group and hypercholesterolemic diet group in ApoB, factor VII, nitrite, and nitrate. Conclusion: According to our findings, postprandial consumption of dill may have beneficial effects on atherosclerosis and hepatic risk factors

The investigation of relationship between binocular vision status and migraine headaches

زمینه و هدف: با توجه به نتایج ضد و نقیض در مورد ارتباط بین سردردهای میگرنی و اختلالات دید دوچشمی، این مطالعه با هدف تعیین ارتباط بین برخی از پارامترهای دید دو چشمی با میگرن انجام شد. روش بررسی: در این مطالعه مورد- شاهدی، 30 نفر بیمار میگرنی که معیارهای ورود به مطالعه را داشتند به همراه 30 نفر بدون سردرد میگرنی مورد مطالعه قرار گرفتند. ابتدا بیماران با استفاده از پرسشنامه استاندارد سردرد غربال شده و تایید نهایی توسط نورولو‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍ژیست انجام شد. عیوب انکساری به روش رتینوسکوپی تعیین و سپس نقطه نزدیک تقارب، تقارب پرشی، استریوپسیس، ذخایر فیوژنی، انحراف دور و نزدیک در دو گروه تعیین شد. داده ها با استفاده از آزمون های من- ویتنی و رگرسیون لجستیک تک متغیره و چندگانه تحلیل شد. یافته ها: میانگین استریوپسیس در گروه مورد و شاهد به ترتیب 82/33±17/154 و 1/26±0/49 ثانیه بر کمان بود و به ترتیب در گروه مورد و شاهد میانگین فوریای نزدیک 72/6±3/8 و 85/2±5/6، ذخایر فیوژنی مثبت دور 76/2± 7/10 و 07/5±07/6، ذخایر فیوژنی منفی دور 7/4±2/18 و 37/7±0/11، ذخایر فیوژنی مثبت نزدیک 49/4±5/16 و 72/8±97/13 و ذخایر فیوژنی منفی نزدیک 22/5±7/22 و 25/9±67/14 پریزیوم دیوپتر بود. متوسط متغیرهای فوق و تقارب پرشی در دو گروه تفاوت معنی داری داشت (05/0>P) ولی متوسط سایر متغیرها در دو گروه معنی دار نبود. در رگرسیون لجستیک چندگانه فقط تقارب پرشی، تقارب فیوژنی مثبت در دور و نزدیک در مدل باقی ماند (05/0

Antioxidant activity and the lowering effect of hydroalcoholic extract of Allium hirtifolium boisson some haemostatic factors in hypercholesterolemic rabbits

Background and purpose: Hypercholesterolemia and the activity of haemostatic factors may trigger cardiovascular diseases. Allium hirtifolium Boiss (Persian shallot) has been shown to have cardioprotective effects. This study evaluated the effects of A. hirtifoliumon on factor VII and serum fibrinogen levels in hypercholesterolemic rabbits. Also, the antioxidant capacity of A. hirtifolium was measured. Materials and methods: In an experimental study, 24 NewZealand male rabbits were randomly assigned into three groups of eight. The groups' diet which was followed for 60 days included normal diet, hypercholestrol diet (1%) or hypercholestrol diet (1%) + A. hirtifolium. The blood fibrinogen and factor VII were measured pre and post study in all groups. The A. hirtifolium antioxidant capacity was measured using beta-carotene linoleate. Results: The study showed that serum fibrinogen level and factor VII increased significantly in hypercholesterolemic group (329.22 ± 26.7 and 277.7 ± 17.1 mg/dl) compared to normal diet group (287.25 ± 13.7 and 230.0 ± 18.2 mg/dl), respectively (P<0.05). The amount of serum fibrinogen and factor VII decreased in hypercholesterol+A. hirtifolium group (180.0 ± 23.9 and 237.0 ± 53.3 mg/dl) compared to hypercholesterol diet group (P<0.05). The antioxidant capacity of A. hirtifolium extract was 52.1 ± 3.3% in 0.2 g/L. The plasma antioxidant capacity in the group fed with hypercholesterol + A. hirtifolium was 943.907 ± 249.51 µM which was higher compared to that of the normal diet group (629.675 ± 130.73 µM). Conclusion: A. hirtifolium decreases serum fibrinogen level and factor VII, therefore, it might be helpful in reducing risk factors of cardiovascular diseases. These influences are of great importance in patients with haemostatic disorder

The Hepatotoxic Effects of Stachys Lavandulifolia Vahl on Wistar Rat

Background and purpose: Stachys lavandulifolia is a plant commonly used for many diseases. But so far there is no report indicating its toxicity. The aim of this study was to investigate the probable hepatoxicity of S. lavandulifolia extract on Wistar rats. Materials and methods: In this experimental study, 100 Wistar rats (about 250gr, 8-12 weeks old) were randomly divided into 10 groups (8 groups as case and 2 groups as control). They were intraperitoneally injected with S. lavandulifolia extract with doses of 50, 100, 150 and 200mg/kg per day for 28 days. Afterwards, the serum parameters level (ALP, AST, ALT) and pathological samples were evaluated and compared in four case group and one control group after 28 days and other groups after one month. Results: On the first month there was significant increase on AST level only in 200mg/kg dose while ALP level significantly increased in all doses (P<0.05). There was no significant difference among all doses regarding their effects on the increase of liver enzymes (P>0.05). On the second month, the changes in liver enzymes were almost the same as first month, except 150mg/kg dose that significantly increased the AST level compared to control group and also this dose significantly increased the ALP level compared to 100mg/kg dose (P<0.05). In examining liver samples obtained from rats in the first and second months, necrotic inflammatory reactions and fibrotic lesions significantly increased compared to control group (P<0.001). In the first month we also found that there was significant difference between higher doses (150 and 200mg/kg) and lower doses (50 and 100mg/kg) regarding their effects on hepatic lesion (P<0.05). Conclusion: Since the extract of S. lavandulifolia causes toxicity it should be consumed with caution in people with underlying cholestatic diseases

Sensitivity to Antibiotics of Bacteria Exposed to Gamma Radiation Emitted from Hot Soils of the High Background Radiation Areas of Ramsar, Northern Iran

Background: Over the past several years our laboratories have investigated different aspects of the challenging issue of the alterations in bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics induced by physical stresses. Objective: To explore the bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics in samples of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. typhimurium), Staphylococcus aureus, and Klebsiella pneumoniae after exposure to gamma radiation emitted from the soil samples taken from the high background radiation areas of Ramsar, northern Iran. Methods: Standard Kirby-Bauer test, which evaluates the size of the zone of inhibition as an indicator of the susceptibility of different bacteria to antibiotics, was used in this study. Results: The maximum alteration of the diameter of inhibition zone was found for K. pneumoniae when tested for ciprofloxacin. In this case, the mean diameter of no growth zone in non-irradiated control samples of K. pneumoniae was 20.3 (SD 0.6) mm; it was 14.7 (SD 0.6) mm in irradiated samples. On the other hand, the minimum changes in the diameter of inhibition zone were found for S. typhimurium and S. aureus when these bacteria were tested for nitrofurantoin and cephalexin, respectively. Conclusion: Gamma rays were capable of making significant alterations in bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics. It can be hypothesized that high levels of natural background radiation can induce adaptive phenomena that help microorganisms better cope with lethal effects of antibiotics

Selection of Efficient Inhibitors for Caspas-9 according to Structure-Based Pharmacophore Screening Strategy and Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Caspases are enzymes which are the main pathways for apoptosis. Any irregulation in their functions causes increase or decrease in cell death, which result in autoimmune disease or cancer, respectively. In this study, structure-based pharmacophore drug discovery method as a virtual screening was used to discover selective inhibitors for caspase-9. This enzyme is an initiator caspase that is the main pathway in Alzheimer’s disease. A pharmacophore model was developed by investigating essential interactions among the reported potent inhibitors employing a docking analysis methodology. Applying pharmacophore virtual screening, nine compounds from both National Cancer Institute (NCI), and ZINC databases were filtered as potent inhibitors of caspase-9. The efficiency of the discovered compounds was further investigated by docking studies.HIGHLIGHTS•Caspase-9 is an important enzyme for apoptosis and its activity is pivotal in cell death.•A computational design of small molecular inhibitors for caspase-9 performed by structure-based pharmacophore model.•9 compounds from both National Cancer Institute (NCI) and ZINC databases were discovered as potent inhibitors

An investigation into the effect of eight weeks of aerobic exercise with orange juice consumption on antioxidant capacity and inflammatory factors in overweight middle-aged women

Objective: Overweight and obesity are among the most important public health concerns associated with several negative health outcomes. Several studies have found that the positive impact of orange juice may be due to the presence of its antioxidants, especially flavonoids and vitamin C. Vitamin C as an antioxidant is capable of neutralizing water-soluble ROS. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of eight weeks of aerobic exercise with orange juice extract on antioxidant capacity and inflammatory factors in overweight women. Materials and Methods: A total of 60 overweight women participated in this study voluntarily. The research sample was selected using a random sampling method. They were then randomly divided into 4 groups. The treadmill endurance training protocol was carried out with a run-walk program for eight weeks, three sessions per week. All data were then entered into SPSS 24 to be analyzed. Results: The results obtained by this study showed that eight weeks of aerobic exercise with orange juice consumption had no significant effect on high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels and total antioxidant capacity in overweight middle-aged women, but eight weeks of aerobic exercise with orange juice consumption had a significant effect on malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and VO2max amount in overweight middle-aged women (P= 0.001). Conclusion: Statistical studies showed that eight weeks of aerobic exercise with orange juice consumption causes a reduction in MDA levels, and orange juice consumption combined with aerobic exercise can have a synergistic effect compared to aerobic exercise alone and increase the effect of exercise on the oxidative stress suppressio

Effect of Date Fruit Consumption in Labour Progress: A Case Report

Objective: To investigate date fruit\u27s potential benefits on maternal and fetal outcomes in pregnancy, focusing on labor progression, maternal nutritional needs, and reduced medical interventions. Case Report: A 35-year-old primigravida patient consumed six date fruits daily for four weeks prior to her estimated delivery date. She presented with spontaneous labor at 39 weeks, experiencing normal latent phase duration of 12 hours, and delivered a healthy male baby weighing 2.9 kg. Her pregnancy course was uncomplicated, with no significant abnormalities in antenatal scans or laboratory results. Conclusion: This case report suggests date fruit consumption supports maternal and fetal well-being, facilitating a smooth labor process and potentially reducing labor induction and medical interventions. Aligning with existing research, dates\u27 nutritional and therapeutic benefits may enhance cervical ripening and shorten labor duration. Larger-scale trials are necessary to confirm these effects and establish standardized guidelines. Keywords: primigravida, date fruit\u27s, smooth labor process, 3rd trimeste