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Scientometrics indicators are used to assess scientists, universities and research institutes for scientific policy-making. The aim of this research was to assess the status of top Iranian medical researchers using scientometric indicators. The study was carried out using scientometric methods. The statistical population included the top 500 Iranian researchers in the field of medicine who were ranked in the Iranian Scientometric Information Database (ISID) based on some scientometric indicators. The data were analyzed using SPSS 22 software and Pearson's correlation coefficient, stepwise regression analysis and Chi-square tests were applied for data analysis. Findings revealed that each researcher had an average h index of 24.04, g index of 40.15, and i10 index of 90.79. There was a positive significant relationship between the number of internationally-collaborated papers and the number of citations received (r = .606, p < .01). The stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that the three variables of paper number, citation counts and mean citation rate determined 72 % of the changes in the h-index. It can be concluded that researchers publishing more papers are more likely to be cited. However, their scientometric indexes are not always better than those of other scientists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hitherto, no instrumental research has been designed to measure the addiction potential for children in Iran. Therefore, the questionnaires designed to investigate addiction were examined in this systematic review article. Methods: In the present systematic review, all Iranian and foreign research on addiction potential for children were examined until March 2022. Using separate keywords and their Latin synonyms according to Mesh terms, an extensive search was conducted in databases: PubMed, Magiran, Iranmedex, Medline, Google Scholar, SID, and Irandoc. In total, 173 Farsi and English papers were included in the initial list, and after evaluation according to the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) checklist and acceptance criteria, 43 final papers were selected for systematic review. Findings: Through searching in Persian and English databases and using related keywords, 173 papers were found in the initial search and after removing duplicates and unrelated studies, 43 papers were selected for systematic review. In this research, papers related to the addiction potential between 1998 and 2019 were considered, and among these, 22 papers particularly dealt with addiction. In the conducted studies, the awareness, attitude, talent, and factors affecting addiction were mostly measured and in some papers, addiction potential was measured. Conclusion: Designing psychometrically appropriate tools is necessary to measure the addiction potential of children in Iran. Due to the unavailability of appropriate tools and the fact that the previous versions are not up to date and are not checked regularly, for better and more complete decision-making in the health policy-making process more investigation in this field is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Given Iran's recent shift towards pronatalist population policies, concerns have arisen regarding the potential increase in abortion rates. This review study examines the trends of (medical), intentional (illegal), and spontaneous abortions in Iran over the past two decades, as well as the factors that have contributed to these trends. Methods: This paper reviewed research articles published between 2005 and 2022 on abortion in Iran. The study employed the PRISMA checklist for systematic reviews. Articles were searched from international (Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, and Web of Science) and national databases (Magiran, Medlib, SID). Once the eligibility criteria were applied, 42 records were included from the initial 349 records. Results: Abortion is influenced by a variety of socioeconomic and cultural factors and the availability of family planning services. Factors that contribute to unintended pregnancy include attitudes toward abortion, knowledge about reproductive health, access to reproductive health services, and fertility desires, among others. In addition to health and medical factors, consanguineous marriage plays an important role in spontaneous and therapeutic abortion. A higher number of illegal abortions were reported by women from more privileged socioeconomic classes. In comparison, a higher number of medical and spontaneous abortions were reported by women from less privileged socioeconomic classes. Conclusion: Iranian policymakers are concerned about the declining fertility rate and have turned to pronatalist policies. From a demographic standpoint, this seems to be a reasonable approach. However, the new population policies, particularly, the Family Protection and Young Population Law, along with creating limitations in access to reproductive health services and prenatal screening tests as well as stricter abortion law could potentially lead to an increase in various types of abortions and their associated consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subfamily Alysiinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is one of the most peculiar and diverse groups of endoparasitoids of Diptera. The present paper provides additional information on the subfamily Alysiinae in Iran. The specimens were collected using Malaise traps during May - September 2010. The genus Grammospila Foerster, 1863, and four species of Alysiini were discovered for the first time from Iran: Grammospila fuscula Griffiths, 1968, G. rufiventris Nees, 1812, Dacnusa maculipes Thomson, 1895 and D. plantaginis Griffiths, 1966. Including our findings, the number of species of the genera Dacnusa and Grammospila are raised to 22 and 2 species in Iran, respectively. Diagnostic characters and distribution of the newly recorded species and an updated list of Dacnusa and Grammospila are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There are few reliable Iranian‑induced abortion data. The aim of this paper was to investigate the prevalence and socioeconomic characteristics of women and men who report having had or been a partner in an abortion. Materials and Methods: A cross‑sectional survey of women and men aged 15–49 years referred to the health center that randomly selected from 110 health center that was used. Results: Data from 1520 women and men surveys were analyzed. One in 10 women and one in 12 men had experienced or been a partner in an abortion. In adjusted analyses, women and men in the 34–49 age group [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 0.62, 95% (CI) 0.41, 0.96], the importance of religion in fertility (AOR = 0.42; 95% CI 0.26, 0.67), dissatisfied general health (AOR = 0.52; 95% CI 0.32, 0.87), and history of unwanted pregnancy for twice (AOR = 2.32; 95% CI 1.43, 3.77) and history of unwanted pregnancy for three‑time or more (AOR = 2.69; 95% CI 1.59, 5.49) were associated with significantly increased odds of abortion. Haven’t heard of medication abortion, that is, abortion with tablets (AOR = 0.43; 95% CI 0.29, 0.67) was associated with significantly reduced odds of abortion. Conclusions: The findings contribute to scarce information about abortion in Iranian. Due to the high prevalence of abortion and the country’s population growth policy, Iranian women need a full range of sexual and reproductive health services, including contraceptive counseling and accessible abortion care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the fifth of February 2022, a man gruesomely murdered his seventeen-year-old wife, Mona Heydari, in a city in a southern province of Iran. The man then shocked bystanders by strolling in public spaces while carrying his wife's severed head. This paper focuses on the case of Mona's killing and investigates the state, media, and online user-created reactions to the incident. The paper aims to (i) offer an in-depth exploration of himpathy with the perpetrator and (ii) investigate the role of the law and the state in the normalization and perpetuation of violence committed by men against women in the name of 'honor.' This paper extends the usage of the concept of himpathy (by Manne, 2017) as a cluster of biases that direct sympathy towards men who commit violence against women to the institutional and legal realms. It also draws on the traditional notion of gheirat, referring to protecting one's 'honor,' and explores its role in Iranian law to show that the Iranian legal system hinges upon it, therefore legitimating misogyny and femicide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iran is aging rapidly and is expected to see negative population growth rates later this century. This change is generating significant concern for policymakers, whose response is to seek 'demographic solutions' to these issues: raise the fertility rate, decrease the divorce rate, and promote marriage among young people. Part of these policies has entailed curtailing access to free family planning services. This 'call and response' approach is unlikely to succeed in its stated aim, as it over-simplifies the real challenges of population aging as well as the multiple dimensions of population change. Such policies derive from simple representations of demographic change, most notably using the old-age dependency ratio. Using a microsimulation model, this paper suggests that increasing Iran's currently low female labor force participation and translating educational gains into rising productivity is a more effective means of responding to the challenges of population aging, even under low fertility conditions. The advancement on previous such microsimulation exercises lies in the fact that this study explicitly considers the comparison between raising fertility and increasing female economic empowerment to offset population aging in a setting characterized by an overt pronatalist policy system. In tandem with reforming stressed institutional systems (such as the pension system), releasing the full potential of Iran's existing (and future) human capital—especially of its women—is a far more effective policy direction than fertility-promoting policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bringing rightist movement studies into the Iranian context, this study advances a generalizable understanding of the ideological, moral, and cultural activism of Islamist movements and their rightist counterparts. While numerous studies have discussed the economic explanation of rightist movements, I integrate Islamist movements in the Muslim world and rightist movements in the West to develop a generalizable cultural and moral explanation of rightist movements. Value and ideological conflicts, as well as moral outrage, drive this integrated understanding of rightist movements. The rise of innovative and contentious forms of millennialism in Iran—especially the increasing salience of the Jamkaran mosque, the rise of new media outlets and millennial discourses, and pertinent policies—provide evidence for proposing this generalizable understanding. I argue that the rise of performative contentions surrounding millennialism, known as Mahdaviat, within the pro-regime revolutionary rightist movement in Iran was Islamists' ideological response to liberal threat perceptions. These threat perceptions were activated before the liberal Reform era (1997–2005). After the ascent of Ahmadinejad to power in 2005, ideological millennialism became the dominant discursive field in Iran's state politics. Drawing on narratives of prominent Islamist figures and media personalities in Iran and events surrounding Mahdaviat, this paper advances a generalizable argument of the moral and cultural explanation of rightist movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the preparedness of Iranian nurses for potential pandemics. Background: Nurses play a critical role in managing pandemics. They require adequate training, proper equipment, and organizational support to be well-prepared. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Ardabil, Iran, from July to September 2023, involving 233 nurses from five hospitals. The number of nurses required for each hospital was calculated based on the proportion of nurses in each hospital. Data was collected through a paper-based form that included information about the participants' demographic characteristics and their level of pandemic preparedness in health services. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive statistics to determine the demographic characteristics and levels of pandemic preparedness. Pearson's test was also conducted to establish a relationship between different dimensions of pandemic preparedness. Results: Most participants relied on clinical measures and supported using human resources and environmental methods to curb the transmission of a pandemic. They felt assured in their ability to explain the preventive measures against the pandemic. However, fewer respondents had access to healthcare improvement programs, and only a few worked remotely from home. Conclusions: According to our study, 90.1% of nurses believe hand washing is the most effective way to prevent spreading infections. Additionally, healthcare professionals can use various tools to respond to the pandemic, including screening for COVID-19 at work, health and wellness programs, telecommuting, COVID-19 Safe programs, social media, and posters. Nurses need continuous education in hand hygiene, health programs, remote work options, and pandemic-safe programs to control infections, reduce risks, and optimize patient care during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the preparedness of Iranian nurses for potential pandemics. Background: Nurses play a critical role in managing pandemics. They require adequate training, proper equipment, and organizational support to be well-prepared. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Ardabil, Iran, from July to September 2023, involving 233 nurses from five hospitals. The number of nurses required for each hospital was calculated based on the proportion of nurses in each hospital. Data was collected through a paper-based form that included information about the participants' demographic characteristics and their level of pandemic preparedness in health services. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive statistics to determine the demographic characteristics and levels of pandemic preparedness. Pearson's test was also conducted to establish a relationship between different dimensions of pandemic preparedness. Results: Most participants relied on clinical measures and supported using human resources and environmental methods to curb the transmission of a pandemic. They felt assured in their ability to explain the preventive measures against the pandemic. However, fewer respondents had access to healthcare improvement programs, and only a few worked remotely from home. Conclusions: According to our study, 90.1% of nurses believe hand washing is the most effective way to prevent spreading infections. Additionally, healthcare professionals can use various tools to respond to the pandemic, including screening for COVID-19 at work, health and wellness programs, telecommuting, COVID-19 Safe programs, social media, and posters. Nurses need continuous education in hand hygiene, health programs, remote work options, and pandemic-safe programs to control infections, reduce risks, and optimize patient care during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay is a critical reading of a preface by an Iranian translator, Mahmud Nava’i, to his translation of a Freudian text. Drawing on the idea of “wild” analysis defined by Freud in 1910 as inappropriate psychoanalysis, the paper attempts to compare Freud’s idea to the translator’s commentary on Freudian psychoanalysis. It demonstrates how an inquisitive, if not erroneous, interpretation of psychoanalysis could result in an embodiment of wild analysis in Iran. Although psychoanalysis was not embraced in Iran as a psychotherapeutic method in the 1960s, such understandings of the method could play into the hands of the detractors of Freud, both in religious and Leftist quarters, who took Freudianism as a threat to Muslim morals and Marxist outlooks, respectively. Also, translating Freud’s theories into the Persian language cannot constitute an essential element in psychotherapy because this type of therapy cannot be learned from books, per Freud’s account of the ‘wild’ psychoanalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the Talyshi people, an Iranian ethnic group divided by the Araxes River between Azerbaijan and Iran. The division, a result of the Russo-Persian War (1804-1813), placed the Talyshis within two distinct political and cultural paradigms. The northern Talyshis, under the successive rule of the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union and Azerbaijan, were confronted with a Turkish political and cultural orientation that contrasted with their Iranian linguistic and cultural heritage. This orientation led to significant shifts in identity, with the Talyshis becoming minorities within a Turkic-speaking, Turkish-oriented Azerbaijan. Southern Talyshis who remained in Iran experienced a more consistent cultural development within the Iranian paradigm, despite political changes. This study examines the impact of these divisions on Talyshi identity, language preservation and socio-cultural adaptation. It discusses the challenges of assimilation and cultural preservation faced by the Talyshis, their linguistic characteristics, and the revival of Talysh self-awareness and nationalism in the face of external pressures. The paper uses a comprehensive analysis of historical, linguistic and ethnographic data to provide insights into the resilience of Talysh identity amidst political and cultural change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review paper investigates unprecedented recent investment and capital spending in cross-provincial water management and transfer infrastructure in Iran. Although numerous cross-provincial water transfer plans have been implemented in the country, the scale, approach, and stakeholders involved in this recent national plan are unprecedented. This notable national plan includes long water transfer pipelines that pass through seven provinces, aiming at transferring desalinated water from the Persian Gulf to the interior. Regarding the scale, there have been a few cases of transferring water at the cross-provincial level, but mostly across two provinces. The approach has also changed in this plan. Long-term efforts to construct dams for electricity or farming with limited geographical impact have been shifted to desalinating water, long-distance pipe-laying, large-scale electric-powered water pumping, and long-distance underground tunnels. Stakeholders have become more diverse, from the council members of a small village to high-level decision makers at the national level. This paper elaborates on these extraordinary alterations by exemplifying a few other contemporary case studies of water transfer plans in Iran. It also examines the fundamental logic, bottlenecks, and future scenarios of this large-scale plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peer review is one of the most efficient ways to ensure the quality of papers for possible publication in scholarly journals. However, the process of peer review is not free of bias and disorders. Many reviewers are unaware of how their attitudes towards the evaluation of scholarly papers may violate Peer Review Ethics (PRE). This paper attempts to analyze the different ethical issues influencing the job of reviewing. The research sample for this study included 7 Iranian library and information journals, 124 Iranian peer reviewers, and 34 authors. Peer reviewers and authors were asked to evaluate the most important ethical elements of peer review in Iranian LIS journals through two different questionnaires based on Rajabali Beglou et al. (2019) research. Findings showed that there was no difference among authors and reviewers in terms of gender in most PRE elements. Also, the level of experience of the authors was not significant in terms of understanding and acceptance of the PRE among reviewers and authors. However, review experiences regarding some PRE elements were significant in respondents’ viewpoints. The experiences reviewers had already gained were influential on their views about PRE. In addition, results showed that there were significant differences among reviewers and authors about the PRE elements in LIS journals. Authorship experiences had not effect on the PRE elements and the dual role of peer reviewing and authorship had no impact on their views. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between September 2019 and December 2023, a total of 612 wild birds representing 16 orders, 33 families, 60 genera, and 78 species from nine provinces of Iran with different climates namely Hamedan (n = 54), Sistan-va-Baluchestan (n = 372), Kerman (n = 73), South Khorasan (n = 52), Mazandaran (n = 7), Chaharmahal-va-Bakhtiari (n = 2), Gilan (n = 2), Golestan (n = 18), North Khorasan (n = 9), and Razavi Khorasan (n = 23) were examined for chewing lice infestation. Naked eye examination revealed that 58 birds (9.5%) were infested with at least one chewing louse species. Collected lice specimens belonged to 28 species from the families Philopteridae, Menoponidae and Laemobothriidae including Strigiphilus strigis (n = 55, 15.6%), Falcolipeurus quadripustulatus (n = 41, 11.6%), Craspedorrhynchus platystomus (n = 40, 11.3%), Colpocephalum turbinatum (n = 36, 10.2%), Laemobothrion maximum (n = 25, 7.1%), Nosopon lucidum (n = 20, 5.6%), Degeeriella fulva (n = 18, 5.1%), Colpocephalum eucarenum (n = 16, 4.5%), Laemobothrion vulturis (n = 15, 4.2%), Anaticola crassicornis (n = 13, 3.7%), Craspedorrhynchus aquilinus (n = 9, 2.5%), Degeeriella fusca (n = 7, 2.0%), Aegypoecus trigonoceps (n = 7, 2.0%), Quadraceps obscurus (n = 6, 1.7%), Colpocephalum impressum (n = 6, 1.7%), Trinoton querquedulae (n = 6, 1.7%), Colpocephalum heterosoma (n = 5, 1.4%), Colpocephalum nanum (n = 5, 1.4%), Lunaceps holophaeus (n = 4, 1.1%), Quadraceps spp. (n = 4, 1.1%), Actornithophilus uniseriatus (n = 2, 0.6%), Nosopon chanabense (n = 2, 0.6%), Actornithophilus cornutus (n = 1, 0.3%), Cuclotogaster heterographus (n = 1, 0.3%), Falcolipeurus suturalis (n = 1, 0.3%), Laemobothrion atrum (n = 1, 0.3%), Colpocephalum gypsi (n = 1, 0.3%), and Rallicola cuspidatus (n = 1, 0.3%). All of these species except six, i.e., Trinoton spp., C. aquilinus, L. vulturis, L. maximum, C. impressum, C. turbinatum, and C. heterographus are recorded for the first time from Iran. This study is the largest epidemiological study to date performed in the country. Data reported herein contribute to our knowledge about diversity of avian chewing lice from wild birds in Iran. In this paper, an updated checklist of louse species reported from Iran according to their avian hosts is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, human geneticists have substantially embraced the concept of "biogeographical ancestry" to account for the racial, ethnic, and linguistic categories they use to analyze and interpret genetic difference. Understanding the ongoing role of these categories in human genetic research therefore requires attention to geneticists' representations of geography, particularly the geographic maps they use to illustrate gene distribution and migration. This article examines how the methods and imagery of international genetic geography and its major evolutionary narratives have reinforced or refashioned nationalist practices of geography in the Middle East. Geneticists simultaneously conceptualize the region's physical space as both a historical "crossroads" of human migration and the birthplace of distinct gene sequences and civilizations, alternately blurring and sharpening the boundaries between Europe and Asia. Focusing on genetic research in Turkey and Iran, this paper analyzes how geneticists draw and interpret geographic maps of the region while selectively erasing or highlighting state borders. These genetic maps negotiate between the idealized aims of international projects to reconstruct human evolutionary history, and the reality of practicing science under the constraints of nationstate politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Materiales para la Historia del Deporte is the property of Polytechnic University of Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Rabies is a prevalent endemic and zoonotic fatal disease, which is normally transmitted to humans by contact (scratches and bites) from infected animals. The present paper deals with the first documented evidence of rabies in the stone marten (Martes foina). Rabies symptoms were observed in a marten in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province. The animal with a strange demeanour approached people without fear, which was died after some while. Samples were taken from its brain (cerebellum, hippocampus, and hypothalamus), shortly after death. In this report, laboratory evidence of rabies by fluorescent antibody (FAT) was proved. The present work is valuable because of the environmental importance of the stone marten. Hence, sensitive surveillance and advanced reporting systems should be regularly monitored on suspected cases of rabies in animals and humans to control and prevent this deadly disease. This involves exposure history, clinical examinations, symptoms and experimental results. Rabies can be controlled by fast diagnostic tests and vaccination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Insect Biodiversity & Systematics is the property of Tarbiat Modares University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Small area estimation methods have been considered in various fields, especially medicine, agriculture, economics, social sciences, and political science. These methods have many applications in providing reliable statistics for smallsample or non-sample statistical areas. In estimating the small area, there are two approaches: the basic design and the basic model. In this paper, a model-based approach to labor force indicators is considered using a multinomial mixed Logit model. The practical application of the method proposed in this article is to estimate the total number of employees, unemployed and unemployment rate using household income and expenditure data for Semnan province by cities; Semnan, Shahroud, Damghan and Garmsar concerning the period 2011-2016. Finally, we have found the estimates of unemployment rate for Garmsar (9.14), Semnan (9.84), Damghan (11.29), and Shahroud (12.40) in 2016. The more distance from Tehran (the Iranian Capital), the more is the unemployment rate!. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determining the geophyte flora is of principal significance, not only for the conservation of plant diversity but also for its economic impact. Many geophytes hold economic value, serving as food sources, medicinal plants, and ornamental species. This paper presents the first comprehensive study of monocot geophytes in Isfahan province, Iran, focusing on their composition and species diversity. The study exposed a total of 187 taxa (including species and subspecies), covering 61 genera and 15 families among monocotyledonous geophytes in Isfahan province. Remarkable families comprise Poaceae (44 taxa; 23.52%), Amaryllidaceae (35 taxa; 18.72%), Liliaceae (27 taxa; 14.43%), Iridaceae and Asparagaceae (17 taxa; 9.09%). Moreover, the research identified that 66 species (35.29% of all taxa) belong to the Irano-Turanian region (monoregional), ten species (5.35%) are pluriregional, 14 species (7.48%) exhibit cosmopolitan distribution, while 97 taxa (51.87%) are shared across the Irano-Turanian region and other floristic regions. The study also determined 25 taxa as endemic to Iran, creating 13.36% of all monocotyledonous geophytes in Isfahan province. The conclusions highlight the critical need for the application of effective conservation strategies to conservation these valuable geophyte species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines, how the reformist attempts of some Iranian religious intellectuals—consciously or unconsciously—lead to the desacralization of Islamic concepts, using the Iranian jurist and activist Seddigha Wasmaghi as an example. The reformists are, as will be shown with reference to Wasmaghi, concerned with establishing that the normative as well as the theological assumptions in Islam are results of human cognition. Any idea that is qualified as a human assumption, i.e., not sacred and thus open to challenge, can be critically examined, re-read, and perhaps even changed or overruled. Such approaches include, for example, Mohammad Mojtahed Shabestari's understanding of the Qurʾan as a 'prophetic reading of the world' and ʿAbdolkarim Sorush's interpretation of revelation as 'prophet's dreams'. Among the most recent attempts of this kind is Seddigha Wasmaghi's perception of 'prophecy as a human construction'. This argument is presented and critically analyzed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the impact of diversification strategy on firm performance. The paper looks into three dimensions of diversification strategy in terms of staff, product and geographical presence, using return on asset (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) to proxy for financial performance. Using the fixed effects regression estimation method to analyze the data of 30 Iranian insurance companies in the period from 2012-2021, the article finds a significant positive impact of diversification in terms of staff education on ROA, while the relationships between staff diversification in terms of gender and experience with ROA are significantly negative. No significant relationship is found between diversification in terms of geographical presence, insurance policy, and premium with ROA. When ROE measures financial performance, the research reports significantly positive effects of diversification on ROE in terms of education and insurance policy. In contrast, the relationships between diversification in terms of gender and premium with ROE are found to be significantly negative. Meanwhile, the effects of diversification on ROE in terms of geographical presence and experience are insignificant. The paper contributes to the literature on diversification strategy by developing specific models to measure staff, geographic and product diversification strategies in the insurance industry. It also adds to the literature on the diversification-performance nexus by bringing fresh insight into the multiple dimensions of diversification strategies and their impacts on firms' profitability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores how the dimensions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) as defined by Carroll, along with environmental responsibility, impact business model innovation (BMI), competitive advantage, and firm performance in small- and medium-sized enterprises in Iran. This paper proposes a theoretical framework, based on past studies. Afterward, structural equation modeling was used to test the conceptual model. The data of this research were collected face-to-face, and 483 valid questionnaires were collected from small- and medium-sized businesses in Iran. The results show that all dimensions of CSR (except philanthropic) directly and significantly affect Business Model Innovation. Furthermore, the competitive advantage is significantly impacted by the economic, legal, and ethical aspects of CSR. Additionally, the findings demonstrate that both BMI and competitive advantage play a direct and substantial role in influencing a company's performance. This study represents one of the initial investigations to specifically analyze how each facet of corporate social responsibility influences Business Model Innovation and competitive advantage. It is worth noting that a new dimension, environmental responsibility, was incorporated into Carroll's original model due to the growing significance of environmental concerns. This paper gives managers a better insight into CSR and its effects on company performance. In addition, it shows managers which aspects of CSR can have an impact on BMI and competitive advantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The increase in the average age of the population, the decrease in the size of the household and rising in the number of working women impose an increasing burden on home caregivers in Iran. The aim of this study was to measure care burden of informal caregivers in Iran through systematic review and meta-analysis of existing literature. Materials and Methods: A systematic review was conducted by using national and international databases of Scopus, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, SID, Magiran, and IranDoc papers in English and Persian language up to the first half of 2020. In this meta-analysis, we calculated the pooled care burden and 95% confidence intervals in Statistical Software For Data Science (STATA) V.15. Results: Forty-four papers were included in the current study based on inclusion and exclusion criteria comprising of 8626 samples. Pooled mean of Burden of Care was 52.01 (95% CI: 48.21-55.82). Highest pooled mean(SD) of care burden (64.37) was related to caregivers of schizophrenia patients (95% CI: 56.09–72.64). Highest care burden (53.45) was observed in most deprived areas (95%CI = 47.05–59.86). A statistically significant relationship was observed between caregivers gender and care burden (p < 0.05). Conclusions: The reported care burden of informal caregivers requires the establishment of a support system to control mental and physical stress. Due to the dispersion and cultural diversity in Iran, more studies are needed to obtain more accurate data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: An increase in the number of free-roaming dogs and the related consequences (e.g., dog biting) has been observed across Iranian cities. So far, no clear scientific reasons for this increase were demonstrated, and a few existing domestic studies have only investigated the behaviours and frequencies of these animals in the cities. Based on online news articles, the on-the-ground reasons, challenges and dog-controlling activities mentioned by key urban and health authorities are examined in this paper. A scientific link is established between increased urbanisation, its features and its implications for dogs and humans. History has witnessed a long-term relationship between humans and animals. Historical documents and modern findings prove that humans' needs to use animals for companions or services are commonplace in many parts of the world, leading to the domestication of certain animals. Yet, modern societies have degraded many natural habitats for wildlife, confining them to small patches of landscapes or urban areas. Whether a domesticated/free-roaming animal or a wild species, their close contact with humans can create cumbersome situations for both species. This paper explores a link between online media content and on-the-ground efforts to manage free-roaming dogs as a rare case study. As indicated by news articles, the municipal costs of managing free-roaming dogs in Iranian cities have increased, and this can potentially derail the control of such dogs in the long run. This paper lays out pivotal factors for recent increasing human–animal encounters, which have led to many challenges (e.g., rabies) across cities in Iran. We show that some urban features (e.g., topography) can influence the presence and behaviours of free-roaming animals in the cities. The findings of this paper can be related to other developing countries where the plague of rabies is rising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the wake of the death of Jina (Mahsa) Amini, a powerful image emerged: women in Iran defiantly casting aside their hijabs and rallying under the slogan of "Woman, Life, Freedom." This paper explores and reflects upon what I call, following Verónica Gago, a feminist strike in Iran that organizes disorderly and cross-sectoral withdrawals of women from structures that exploit and assault them and restores their bargaining power and agency. Through the analytical perspective of intersectionality, this paper inquires into how the political underpinnings of the gendered apparatus in the Islamic regime of Iran have propelled the imagination of a common body among the diverse array of women. Further, it scrutinizes how the #WomanLifeFreedom uprising unveils a feminist strike and what it entails. This paper aims to show how the feminist strike in Iran expands the notion of strike as a tool against the conditions of work and showcases its all-encompassing basis against living conditions and restrictions on freedom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Considering the importance of internal medicine and the lack of sufficient scientometric data on the research status of the field in Iran, the study aimed at investigating the state of scientific output in the country compared to the countries in the world. Methods: This applied research used a scientometric approach. The related MeSH-driven terms in "internal medicine" were selected as search phrases and searched in the SCImago database. SPSS and Excel software packages were used for statistical analysis. Geographical mapping was done with Google Maps for depicting country geographical distribution. Results: Out of all 4,972,258 papers published by 230 countries worldwide in the field, about 60% belonged to the USA and Western European countries. These countries were at top of citation and self-citation counts as well as the h-index indicator. The citations per paper indicator were 27.1 and about 25.1% of total citations were self-citations. A significant positive correlation was found between the number of papers, citation count, and selfcitation rate, and h-index in the field (p<0.001). Conclusion: The research status of internal medicine in developed regions and countries was quantitatively and qualitatively better than that of developing countries, including Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iran has different environmental conditions due to its specific geographical location. Therefore, exploring essential oil and flavonoid components among medicinal plants in different areas may result in discoveries about valuable bioactive compounds. The present investigation aimed to study flavonoids profile and essential oils composition of four Lamiaceae species i.e., Stachys lavandulifolia, Teucrium polium, Thymus daenensis and Ziziphora clinopodioides from Oshtorankoh located on Zagros Mountains, Iran. A chemical study using two dimentional paper chromatography (2-DPC) and thin-layer chromatography (TLC) showed that the four studied species contained flavone C and C-/O glucosides and flavonoid sulphates. The present study revealed that T. polium had high levels of many flavonoids such as apigenin, genistein, isorhamnetin, kaempferol, quercetin, rutin, and vitexin compared to the other studied plants. The results of GC/MS analysis showed that S. lavandulifolia was rich in a-pinene (21.16 %) and 1,8-cineol (16.95 %), T. polium in a-pinene (12.21 %) and sabinene (9.55 %), T. daenensis in α-Terpinene (36.98 %) and p-Cymene (26.87 %), and Z. clinopodioides in piperitone (16.84 %) and 1,8-cineol (16.11 %) components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last two decades, all branches of science and technology have rapidly progressed, including the medical area. In Middle Eastern countries, including Iran, the increased growth of technology and science production has led to this rapid medical progress. Recent evidence has revealed that the increase in the number of scientific papers generated in Iran after the Iraqi imposed war against Iran has been eight times that in six main countries in the Middle East, including Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Syria. Although Iran's output in sciences has been still small in comparison to developed countries, it has significantly grown in the last decade, which is hoped to continue to increase and improve. The current paper shows a portion of the science production in Iran over the past two years based on papers published in the European Journal of Translational Myology in 2020 and 2021. Although the Issue 32 (1), 2022 in a special section contains several typescripts from Iran, they were not included in our analysis since they have not been yet indexed in the Scopus database. However, our report would encourage researchers of diverse nationalities to take part in research works and author joint papers. Further, this paper can be used to rate the universities and research centers regarding their science output, as well as being beneficial to university students, lecturers, and governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The prevalence of osteoporosis increases as the population ages. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the prevalence of osteoporosis among the general population ≥ 50 years old in Iran. Methods: Multiple databases including Scopus, WOS, Medline, Embase, and Persian databases (SID and Magiran) were systematically searched to identify relevant research papers. All population-based studies estimating the prevalence of osteoporosis in the Iranian population were included and imported into Endnote software. Two authors independently reviewed the articles. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to assess the risk of bias. Statistical analysis was performed using Stata software, and a significance level of 0.05 was applied to the analyses. Results: Totally 2117 documents were retrieved from the databases up until October 11, 2022. After reading the full texts, 10 documents were included in the study. Our results indicated that the pooled prevalence of osteoporosis in the femoral neck region was 0.19 (95%CI: 0.12–0.26) and 0.19 (95%CI: 0.13–0.25) for women and men, respectively. Pooled prevalence of spinal osteoporosis was 0.29 (95%CI: 0.21–0.38) among women and 0.16 (95%CI: 0.12–0.19) among men. The total pooled prevalence of osteoporosis was 0.38 (95%CI: 0.29–0.48) for women and 0.25 (95%CI: 0.22–0.29) for men. Conclusion: Our study highlights the elevated prevalence of osteoporosis among individuals aged 50 years and older, with females exhibiting higher rates. Notably, osteoporosis in the femoral neck region demonstrated the lowest prevalence in both sexes. The implementation of comprehensive strategies is imperative to address osteoporosis problems effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's world, it is unavoidable for older adults to use technology, which causes some challenges for them. In this qualitative study, we used grounded theory to evaluate information and communication technology (ICT) adoption strategies among Iranian older adults. The participants included 18 older adults, five experts, and five family members of older adults. The data collection method included conducting semi-structured interviews, taking field notes, and observation. The data were analyzed using the Corbin and Strauss approach. Three main themes were extracted as follows: support from others, effort for learning, and smart choice. The subthemes of support from others included creativity in educating older adults; having access to an educational supporter; and receiving informational, emotional, and financial support. The subthemes of effort for learning included utilizing aids, adaptive measures, shortcut techniques, and self-learning. The subthemes of smart choice included physical characteristics, technical features, price sensitivity, and availability of an active sales representative. Accordingly, it is essential to teach older adults to increase their ICT adoption rate and continued use of technology. In this respect, developing a standard ICT manual for older adults can be beneficial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Avian Influenza is a contagious zoonotic disease that can be transmitted from birds to mammals. In this study, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate and summarize the occurrence of avian influenza H9N2 in humans and other mammals in Iran. Data were collected systematically until July 1 2023 from four English and two Persian databases. According to the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) and inclusion criteria, 14 eligible studies were obtained. Occurrences of AI H9N2 are reported in humans, dogs, and water buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) in Iran. The pooled prevalence of AI H9N2 using a random model among humans was 0.15 (95% CI, 0.12-0.18). Pooled prevalence using the HI test was 0.16 (95% CI, 0.13-0.20). The pooled prevalence by different cut-offs for the HI test was equal to 0.34, 0.11, 0.02, and 0.01, respectively for cut-offs 1:20 to 1:160. Pooled prevalence using the HI test, among persons with possible exposure, hospitalized persons and hospital staff (0.20, 0.31, and 0.30) was higher than the prevalence in apparently healthy individuals (0.01). The group of individuals with possible exposure revealed the highest pooled prevalence of 0.25 (95% CI, 0.17-0.33) using the HI test. This was observed predominantly in slaughterhouse workers. The pooled prevalence using the ELISA test was 0.27 (95% CI, 0.23-0.31). These results can help policymakers to create prevention and control programs for possible epidemics in the future and can help researchers to tailor the design and objectives of future studies in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimation of ground response during earthquake is gaining much attention in recent years. One of the most important parameters needed to achieve this goal is the shear wave velocity and its related parameters in the surface layers obtained by seismic geophysical tests in place or by laboratory measurements on intact soil samples. Field measurement of such parameter is accurate, but expensive as well as time consuming. Therefore, the need to estimate shear wave velocity using other soil parameters is justified. For example, the numbers of blows (N) from standard penetration test (SPT) are readily available for many sites where geotechnical investigations are carried out. This paper presents a development of reliable correlation between Vs measured by using other soil parameters such as density and shear modulus of soil and N measured using SPT at various sites in Chalus and Nowshahr regions in Mazandaran Province. For this purpose, the results of standard penetration tests conducted in 31 different sites in Chalus and Nowshahr areas were used. Correlation relations were obtained separately for all soils, cohesive and non-cohesive soils. The relationships obtained are within the range of those obtained worldwide for other sites and are comparable to them. Moreover, present correlations, having regression coefficients (R2) almost 0.92, indicated good prediction capability. The proposed relations obtained are useful for assessment of seismic microzoning of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nearly ninety years have passed since the beginning of modern higher education in Iran. During this period, engineering education in the country, along with a large quantitative expansion, has gone through many ups and downs. Improving engineering education depends on identifying its challenges and providing solutions to overcome them. And this is possible only with organized research. One of the envisaged measures in this field is to create a center for communication between the activities carried out in the engineering education of the country and the educational centers of other countries and international organizations. In this connection, following the approval of the United Nations Scientific, Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the UNESCO Chair on Engineering Education was established at the University of Tehran. The UNESCO chair, as a think tank, has put research and futures studies in various fields of engineering education, at the top of its goals. In this paper, while introducing the objectives and scope of activities of the UNESCO Chair on Engineering Education, the achievements of a decade of its activities have been reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, the relationship between risk premium spending and important financial and macroeconomic variables in Iran in the years 2013-2014 has been investigated. In this regard, standard OLS regression and the Hodrick-Prescott filter were used. The results of the research showed that there is a positive and significant relationship between the change and evolution of the money supply process and the variable of risk premium. This is while the variables of the gap between private consumption and its trend, exchange rate and stock index of the 50 largest companies in the stock market have a negative and significant effect on the amount of risk premium i.e. ERP in Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study was conducted to evaluate a smartphone-based online electronic logbook used to assess the clinical skills of nurse anesthesia students in Iran. Methods: This randomized controlled study was conducted after tool development at Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences in Ahvaz, Iran from January 2022 to December 2022. The online electronic logbook involved in this study was an Android-compatible application used to evaluate the clinical skills of nurse anesthesia students. In the implementation phase, the online electronic logbook was piloted for 3 months in anesthesia training in comparison with a paper logbook. For this purpose, 49 second- and third-year anesthesia nursing students selected using the census method were assigned to intervention (online electronic logbook) and control (paper logbook) groups. The online electronic logbook and paper logbook were compared in terms of student satisfaction and learning outcomes. Results: A total of 39 students participated in the study. The mean satisfaction score of the intervention group was significantly higher than that of the control group (P=0.027). The mean score of learning outcomes was also significantly higher for the intervention than the control group (P=0.028). Conclusion: Smartphone technology can provide a platform for improving the evaluation of the clinical skills of nursing anesthesia students, leading to increased satisfaction and improved learning outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between the political and ethno-national identity of Kurdish university students in Iranian Kurdistan, also known as Eastern Kurdistan or Rojhelat. It aims to investigate the ways in which the Kurdish identity contributes to and influences the formation of political identity among these students within the legal and political context of Rojhelat. The findings reveal a significant correlation between the Kurdish identity and the political identity of the students. However, despite the strong presence of Kurdish identity in the social sphere of Rojhelat, it remains largely invisible in the official or legal-political sphere of Iran. The paper argues that the existence of a non-democratic political regime in Iran, which has prioritized Farsi and Shiite identities, has imposed limitations and restrictions on the visibility and representation of other identities, including the Kurdish ethno-national identity, in the legal and political domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses two questions: first, that of the nature of multiple religious identities in a traditional society; second, that of who can be identified as Bahā'īs in the upper echelons of Qājār Iran. The paper identifies five criteria by which individuals can be identified as having been Bahā'īs and suggests that, since none of these are usually conclusive by themselves, more than one of the criteria should be fulfilled before we label someone as a Bahā'ī. The various grades of being a Bahā'ī are also examined. The paper lists a number of examples of people from the Qājār royal family and from among the highest echelons of the Qājār administration who fulfill these criteria. It also looks at two individuals who have not been claimed to be Bahā'īs in the usual Iranian and Bahā'ī histories, and yet, if a close study of their lives is made, considerable evidence can be accumulated that they may have been crypto-Bahā'īs. In all, this paper indicates that there may have been many Bahā'īs in the upper strata of Qājār society, that this is a factor that has not previously been sufficiently recognized and needs to be examined for the light that it may shed on other matters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reverse migration is one of the main flows of rural-urban linkages. This flow is formed by some pushing forces in cities, such as high living costs and air pollution, as well as some pulling factors in rural areas, such as low living costs, pleasant weather, and the opportunity to spend leisure time. It also has various effects on both the origin and the destination of the migration. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the status of reverse migration in terms of both spatial and temporal dimensions. This research is applied research and in terms of the method is exploratory, descriptive and analytical. The data used in this research has been obtained from the Statistical Centre of Iran and has been analyzed during two 5-year periods: 2006-2011 and 2011-2016. Data analysis was performed using spatial statistics techniques in the Arc Map software environment. Research findings at the national level show a relative decrease in reverse migration over five years from 2011 to 2016. At the provincial level, 28 provinces of Iran have experienced negative growth and a relative decrease in reverse migration, and only 3 provinces have experienced positive growth. Findings from spatial analysis at the county level of Iran also show the spatial concentration of a large number of reverse migrations around the two metropolises of Tehran and Mashhad. Also, high values of the ratio of reverse migration to the total number of immigrants are concentrated in the central and northern regions of Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Being engaged in multiple roles can affect a person's health and well-being and the middle-aged people are usually exposed to this situation more than other age groups. Most of the western studies that have looked at this issue with a demographic lens have introduced middle age as a situation of being caught or sandwiched between the needs of two generations (children and parents). On the other hand, increasing women's participation in paid work means that more middle-aged women are faced with a conflict between their work and family responsibilities, a phenomenon often characterized by the term "double burden" or "second shift" (Bratberg et al., 2002; Hochschild & Machung, 2012). According to the demographic changes of the family in recent years, living arrangements in mid-life have become more complex and heterogeneous (Demey et al., 2011) so that some researchers have used the term "cluttered nest" to describe this period of life, which is in contrast to the "empty nest" stage, that is, when all children leave the parental home (Lingren & Decker, 1992). The available data in Iran showed that the age transition of population has entered the middle-age phase since 2015 (the population aged 30-64) and will remain in this phase for several decades. It is predicted that the share of middle-aged people in Iran will reach more than 50% between 2026 and 2031 (Abassi Shavazi and Sadeghi, 2017: 46). This research aimed to expand the information about the role behaviors of this group by exploring the pattern of multiplicity of roles and its relationship with some of their social and demographic characteristics in the context of the urban society of Iran. The paper tried to answer the following questions: 1) What proportion of middle-aged women and men participate in multiple roles? 2) How does the pattern of mid-life multiple roles change based on people's socio-demographic characteristics? Materials & Methods Using the data from the latest Time Use Survey of Iran, this article examined the prevalence of occupancy and intensity of multiple roles, namely paid work, domestic work, and parenting, as well as the socio-demographic characteristics related to it. The statistical population of this survey included all people aged 15 and older living in urban households across the country and the data included all the daily activities of individuals, as well as demographic, economic and social variables, at the individual and household levels. The impacts of socio-demographic variables on people's intersectionality of roles were assessed using the Poisson regression in the STATA statistical package (version 17). The dependent variable was defined as the number of intense roles, which ranged from zero to three roles. The independent variables included gender, age group, marital status, education, and household size. Discussion of Results & Conclusion The findings showed that (1) multiple roles were more common in the middle age than in other age periods; (2) multiple roles were more prevalnent in men due to the low employment of women; (3) women were more involved in intense multiple roles than men and this pattern was due to the large amount of time that women spent on domestic activities. The results of Poisson regression analysis revealed that the household size reduced the number of intense roles for men and women. This situation indicated a wider division of labor in large households, which alleviated participation in intense multiple roles, especially for women. On the flip side of the coin, the findings showed that middle-aged people in smaller households faced more intense roles and therefore needed interventions to reduce this potentially traumatic experience. With increasing age, the number of women's intense roles increased. This is in line with the hypothesis of role density in late mid-life and near retirement age (Patterson & Margolis, 2019). Married women were more likely to be engaged in intense roles than their widowed or divorced counterparts and college education reduced the number of intense roles for men, but a similar effect was associated with a lower confidence interval for women. Thus, midlife could be a difficult time for married women, who had multiple responsibilities, while being a wife and a housewife. Meanwhile, their physical abilities decreased with age, making this period stressful and unfavorable. In fact, the important finding of this article was the noticeable difference in the pattern of experiencing intense roles between men and women, which showed that the tasks related to the domestic role alone put a heavy burden on the shoulders of middleaged women living in the urban areas of Iran so that its prevalence was more than 4 times that of the men's heavy occupational role. Our results highlighted the need for investigating the impact of multiple-role occupancy on the health and wellbeing of middle-aged people at the national level and designing evidence-based interventions to improve their conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clean solar energy is one of the best sources of energy. Solar power plants can generate electricity in Iran due to their large number of sunny days. This paper presents a short-term forecasting approach based on artificial neural networks (ANNs) for selected solar power plants in Iran and ranks the input variables of the neural network according to their importance. Two solar power plants in Hamadan province (Amirkabir and Khalij-Fars) were selected for the project. The output of solar power plants is dependent on weather conditions. Solar radiation on the horizontal plane, air temperature, air pressure, day length, number of sunny hours, cloudiness, and airborne dust particles are considered input variables in this study to predict solar power plant output. Forecasting model selection is based on considering zero and nonzero quantities of target variables. The results show that solar production forecasting based on meteorological parameters in the Khalij-Fars is more accurate than Amirkabir. The global solar radiation, air temperature, number of sunny hours, day length, airborne dust particles, cloudiness, air pressure, and dummy variables1 are the order of the most important inputs to solar power generation. Results show simultaneous influences of radiation and temperature on solar power plant production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Anopheles stephensi is the main vector of malaria in Iran. This study aimed to determine the susceptibility of An. stephensi from the south of Iran to bendiocarb and to investigate biochemical and molecular resistance mechanisms in this species. Methods: Wild An. stephensi were collected from Hormozgan Province and reared to the adult stage. The susceptibility test was conducted according to the WHO protocols using bendiocarb impregnated papers supplied by WHO. Also, field An. Stephensi specimens were collected from south of Kerman and Sistan and Baluchistan Provinces. To determine the G119S mutation in the acetylcholinesterase (Ace1) gene, PCR-RFLP using AluI restriction enzyme and PCR direct-sequencing were performed for the three field populations and compared with the available GenBank data. Also, biochemical assays were performed to measure alpha and beta esterases, insensitive acetylcholinesterase, and oxidases in the strains. Results: The bioassay tests showed that the An. stephensi field strain was resistant to bendiocarb (mortality rate 89%). Ace1 gene analysis revealed no G119S in the three field populations. Blast search of sequences revealed 98–99% identity with the Ace1 gene from Pakistan and India respectively. Also, the results of biochemical tests revealed the high activity of non-sensitive acetylcholinesterase, alpha and beta-esterase in the resistant strain compared to the susceptible strain. No G119S was detected in this study additionally the enhanced enzyme activity of esterases and acetylcholinesterase suggesting that resistance was metabolic. Conclusion: The use of alternative malaria control methods and the implementation of resistance management strategies are suggested in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dietary diversity refers to the consumption of a variety of foods or food groups over a given reference period, which is crucial for improving nutrition and overall health. This longitudinal study aimed to investigate the association between dietary diversity and anthropometric indices in community-dwelling older adults living in Tehran in 2017 and 2021. Methods: The current study was conducted on 368 older adults [204 (55.4%) women and 164 (44.6%) men] over 60 years of age living in Tehran, who were selected by a systematic cluster sampling method at two-time points, 2017 and 2021. Anthropometric measures (weight, height, hip circumference, and waist circumference) were assessed with standard methods. The participants' dietary intake was assessed by completing two non-consecutive 24-hour recalls, and dietary diversity score (DDS) was calculated based on Kant's method. Statistical analysis was performed using R software by the mixed effect model method. Results: The mean DDS of the participants in 2017 (5.07 ± 1.20) was higher than that in 2021 (4.94 ± 1.09) (p < 0.05). DDS and dairy diversity score decreased significantly over time. After adjusting for confounders, there was an inverse relationship between the DDS and Body Mass Index (BMI) (B = -0.22; SE = 0.09), but the interaction effect of year × DDS (B = 0.19; SE = 0.10) was not significant (p = 0.06). However, there was a positive relationship between the DDS and A Body Shape Index (ABSI) (B = 0.00; p = 0.022), after adjusting for confounders, this relationship was no longer significant. Additionally, the interaction effect of year and DDS on the ABSI was not significant. Conclusion: The dietary intake and dietary diversity of older adult residents of Tehran declined dramatically with age, and a higher DDS was associated with improved anthropometric indices. DDS had an inverse relationship with general obesity in the studied participants, and the passage of time did not affect this relationship. The DDS can be used as a predictive index and is a powerful tool for investigating changes in nutritional status in longitudinal studies of old age. However, longer-duration studies are needed to obtain more conclusive results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Doctoral programs have consistently garnered the attention of policymakers in medical education systems due to their significant impact on the socio-economic advancement of countries. Therefore, various doctoral programs have been implemented with diverse goals. In Iran, a research doctorate program, known as PhD by Research, was introduced primarily to engage in applied research related to healthcare needs. Nevertheless, the achievement of the program's goals has been questioned. This study aimed to identify the implementation challenges of the Research Doctorate Program and its solutions in Iran. Method: This descriptive qualitative study followed the Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research: A Synthesis of Recommendations and was conducted in two steps. Firstly, the challenges of the Iranian Ph.D. by research program were identified through the perspectives of the program's students and graduates. In the second step, relevant solutions to these challenges were determined by focus groups of key informant experts. The transcripts were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: Five students and six graduates were interviewed in the first step and seven experts participated in the second one. The challenges and related solutions are explored in four main themes, including: (1) admission criteria, (2) program goals and expected outcomes, (3) curricula, and (4) financial and human resources. The study showed that various dimensions of the doctoral program are not aligned with each other and how to adapt the program in these dimensions. Conclusion: The study revealed the importance of a systematic approach in defining various dimensions of doctoral programs according to program goals and provided specific solutions for defining a research doctorate program in the context of a low- and middle-income country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Poor sleep quality is a significant issue among people who inject drugs (PWID). This study aimed to evaluate sleep quality and associated factors among PWID in Iran. Methods: Using respondent-driven sampling, 2,652 PWID (2,563 male) were recruited in 11 major cities in Iran between 2019 and 2020. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index was utilized to measure sleep quality, and logistic regression was used to assess associations in RDSAnalyst, a software designed for respondent-driven sampling. Results: The overall prevalence of poor sleep quality was 68.4% (68.3% among males and 70.2% among females). Married PWID had higher odds of poor sleep quality (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR): 1.41; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.91). Lack of access to sufficient food in the past 12 months was also associated with poor sleep quality (AOR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.17, 2.57 for sometimes having no access, and AOR: 2.95; 95% CI: 1.93, 4.52 for always having no access compared to always having access). Additionally, good self-rated health was significantly associated with lower odds of poor sleep quality (AOR: 0.19; 95% CI: 0.11, 0.31). Conclusion: Poor sleep quality is prevalent among PWID in Iran. It is recommended to mitigate the adverse effects of this issue and enhance the overall quality of life for PWID. Supportive interventions aimed at preventing and treating poor sleep quality, as well as improving overall health outcomes, are essential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background & aims: Missed nursing care is a global challenge that can have many consequences and it's known as a common threat to the patient safety and quality of nursing care. The nurses' professional commitment plays the final role in the occurrence of this issue. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between nurses' professional commitment and missed nursing care in Iran. Materials & methods: This cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 270 nurses working in two hospitals affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences (Sina & Shariati) from September to December 2023. The research community included all nurses working in medical-surgical wards in the designated hospitals. The research samples were included in a targeted and quota method after obtaining organizational permits, ethical approval and informed consent. Data collection was done using three questionnaires including demographic information form, Nursing Professional Commitment Scale, and MISSCARE Questionnaire. The collected data was analyzed in SPSS software, version 25. Results: The results of Pearson's correlation test showed that there is a significant negative relationship between nurses' professional commitment and missed nursing care scores (r=-0.23) (p < 0.001). The mean score of nurses' professional commitment was reported at a moderate to high level (83.72 ± 16.02) and the mean score of missed nursing care was reported at a low level (47.84 ± 16.48). Nurses over 40 years old, morning shift and employed nurses showed higher professional commitment. Also, nurses under 29 years old and male nurses had more missed nursing care other than their participants. No relationship was observed between other demographic variables with nurses' professional commitment and missed nursing care. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that higher nurses' professional commitment leads to higher quality of care and less missed nursing care. Based on findings of this research, it is recommended for health care providers and nursing managers to adopt programs to increase nurses' professional commitment and consequently reduce missed nursing care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Up to now several studies estimate the prevalence of HBV, HCV, and TB among people living with HIV (PLWH) in Iran; however, their results are inconsistent. This study aimed to estimate the overall prevalence of HBV, HVC, and TB among Iranian PLWH. Methods: In this systematic review and meta-analysis six databases including Medline, Web of Science, Scopus, MagIran, Scientific Information Database (SID), and Barakat Knowledge network system were searched up to October 2023 with no language restriction. All studies estimated the prevalence of HBV, HCV, and TB among PLWH in Iran were included. The random-effects model was used to report the study estimates. Results were reported at a 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: Out of 1050 retrieved references, 58 articles met the eligibility criteria. Overall among PLWH, HBV prevalence was 13.0% (95% CI: 11.0, 15.0), HCV prevalence was 54% (95% CI: 45.0, 64.0), and TB prevalence was 19% (95% CI: 13.0, 24.0). The results from multivariate meta-regression analysis showed no statistically significant association between HBV and TB prevalence with the year of study, quality of studies, age, gender, and persons who inject drugs (PWID). HCV prevalence was significantly associated with PWID. Conclusion: We found HBV, HCV, and TB infections are common among PLWH in Iran and required to be screened and treated with effective and timely services. Key messages: The prevalence of HBV, HCV, and TB was high among Iranian PLWH The prevalence was higher among at-risk groups such as PWIDs and homeless people The prevalence of HCV was more than HBV and TB among PLWH [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Despite the critical role of empathy in medical students, various studies have provided conflicting evidence regarding changes in empathy during medical study. The present study was designed to investigate changes in cognitive empathy during the internship. Method: A study was conducted at the Afzalipour School of Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences. All medical students at the beginning of their internship were entered the study as a cohort and asked to complete a two-part questionnaire including demographic characteristics and the Persian version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy-Student Version (JSE-S). The questionnaire was completed again at the end of the internship. Data were analyzed using SPSS software using paired t- test and one-way repeated measures. Results: A total of 108 interns participated with a mean age of 23.85 ± 1.47 years, and a female majority (61.1%). The mean score of standing in the patient's shoe increased significantly (P < 0.001) during the internship, whereas the mean score of compassionate care decreased (P < 0.001). The overall score of empathy decreased during the internship, but the difference was not statistically significant. (P = 0.105). No statistically significant difference was found in the mean score of empathy and its subscales based on demographic characteristics in the two phases of the study. Conclusion: our results revealed that the level of cognitive empathy in the current study was higher than that in previous studies. The changes were consistent with some studies and contradictory to others. Considering that similar changes were observed in the subgroup analysis, it is necessary to focus more on the factors that cause this feeling to fade during the internship through appropriate assessment and timely intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]