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Introduction. COVID-19, an epidemic of coronavirus infection, has become a major global threat. The coronavirus mainly targets the human respiratory system, followed by cytokine storm, and altered immune responses associated with disease progression and adverse outcomes. Sumac and pomegranate juice are rich in bioactive compounds, which potentially have antiviral activities. This study is aimed at investigating the effect of a diet based on the use of sumac and pomegranate juice on the treatment of outpatients with COVID-19. Methods. In this study, 182 outpatients with COVID-19 were randomly divided into two groups receiving a diet containing pomegranate juice and sumac along with standard treatment and the control group (group 2) receiving standard treatment. Results. Consumption of a diet containing pomegranate juice and sumac in outpatients with COVID-19, who were receiving standard-of-care treatment, led to a significant decrease in fever, chills, cough, weakness, smell and taste disorders, shortness of breath, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, and abdominal pain compared with outpatients with COVID-19 who received only standard treatment. Conclusion. Clinical trials of outpatients have limitations such as patients’ resilience to post-COVID-19 follow-up. However, the use of pomegranate juice and sumac can be efficacious in reducing COVID-19 symptoms. This trial is registered with IRCT20190406043175N3.

Background Stroke is the second leading cause of death in adults worldwide. There are remarkable geographical variations in the accessibility to emergency medical services (EMS). Moreover, transport delays have been documented to affect stroke outcomes. This study aimed to examine the spatial variations in in-hospital mortality among patients with symptoms of stroke transferred by EMS, and determine its related factors using the auto-logistic regression model. Methods In this historical cohort study, we included patients with symptoms of stroke transferred to Ghaem Hospital of Mashhad, as the referral center for stroke patients, from April 2018 to March 2019. The auto-logistic regression model was applied to examine the possible geographical variations of in-hospital mortality and its related factors. All analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS, v. 16) and R 4.0.0 software at the significance level of 0.05. Results In this study, a total of 1,170 patients with stroke symptoms were included. The overall mortality rate in the hospital was 14.2% and there was an uneven geographical distribution. The results of auto-logistic regression model showed that in-hospital stroke mortality was associated with age (OR = 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01–1.04), accessibility rate of ambulance vehicle (OR = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.94–0.99), final stroke diagnosis (OR = 1.60, 95% CI: 1.07–2.39), triage level (OR = 2.11, 95% CI: 1.31–3.54), and length of stay (LOS) in hospital (OR = 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01–1.04). Conclusion Our results showed considerable geographical variations in the odds of in-hospital stroke mortality in Mashhad neighborhoods. Also, the age- and sex-adjusted results highlighted the direct association between such variables as accessibility rate of an ambulance, screening time, and LOS in hospital with in-hospital stroke mortality. Thus, the prognosis of in-hospital stroke mortality could be improved by reducing delay time and increasing the EMS access rate.

Background Biguanides and sulfonylurea are two classes of anti-diabetic medications that have commonly been prescribed all around the world. Diagnosis of biguanide and sulfonylurea exposures is based on history taking and physical examination; thus, physicians might misdiagnose these two different clinical settings. We aimed to conduct a study to develop a model based on decision tree analysis to help physicians better diagnose these poisoning cases. Methods The National Poison Data System was used for this six-year retrospective cohort study.The decision tree model, common machine learning models multi layers perceptron, stochastic gradient descent (SGD), Adaboosting classiefier, linear support vector machine and ensembling methods including bagging, voting and stacking methods were used. The confusion matrix, precision, recall, specificity, f1-score, and accuracy were reported to evaluate the model’s performance. Results Of 6183 participants, 3336 patients (54.0%) were identified as biguanides exposures, and the remaining were those with sulfonylureas exposures. The decision tree model showed that the most important clinical findings defining biguanide and sulfonylurea exposures were hypoglycemia, abdominal pain, acidosis, diaphoresis, tremor, vomiting, diarrhea, age, and reasons for exposure. The specificity, precision, recall, f1-score, and accuracy of all models were greater than 86%, 89%, 88%, and 88%, respectively. The lowest values belong to SGD model. The decision tree model has a sensitivity (recall) of 93.3%, specificity of 92.8%, precision of 93.4%, f1_score of 93.3%, and accuracy of 93.3%. Conclusion Our results indicated that machine learning methods including decision tree and ensembling methods provide a precise prediction model to diagnose biguanides and sulfonylureas exposure.

ObjectiveGiven the recession and crises such as the Covid-19 Pandemic, tourism destinations and related businesses are attempting to continue to expose their tourism destinations and capacities to potential tourists. They also aim to encourage them by providing extra facilities to visit these tourism destinations once the crisis is over. Virtual reality technology seems to be an effective instrument for this purpose, which highlights the significance of using this technology in the present situation. Virtual reality is regarded as an ICT-enabled technology with the potential to provide a highly interactive experience for potential tourists and inspire them to visit these destinations in the future. This study aims to investigate the impacts of virtual reality technology on tourists’ behavioral intentions and the image of the tourism destination. MethodologyThe present study is descriptive-applied in nature. The required data will be collected using online questionnaire and available sampling method. The statistical population of the study includes all the tourists who usually use various mobile applications for their travels. For this purpose, a 360-degree virtual video from three popular tourism destinations in Khuzestan province were selected. The sample of this research includes 267 visitors. The reliability and validity of the research constructs were confirmed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient and mean extraction variance. Besides, research hypotheses were also tested using Smart-PLS3 software. FindingsThe results illustrate that “sense of presence” and “aesthetic experience” are the two the variables with a significantly positive impact on satisfaction with virtual reality. Moreover, satisfaction with virtual reality has a positive and significant effect on behavioral conflict and behavioral conflict has a significantly positive effect on the intention to visit the destination, verbal recommendation, and the destination image. ConclusionBased on the results of this study, virtual reality technology has a positive effect on tourist behavior and destination image. Accordingly, if virtual reality applications and programs can provide their users with a sense of presence in the scene, a more realistic experience, a more unique instances of aesthetic effects and principles, these users will experience greater satisfaction with the virtual travel experience. While attracting and motivating the users, this can lead to more engagement and interaction with the tourism experience. In addition, the higher the users are engaged with the experience and the more time and energy they spend interacting and participating in the virtual experience, the greater the likelihood of observing behavioral reactions. Therefore, higher engagement with the experience of visiting a destination virtually can help increase their intention to actually visit that destination in the future. Moreover, users who have had a more rewarding experience based on their engagement with the destination, will be more likely to share their experiences with others and recommend them. In addition, such a unique experience of interaction and engagement with the tourism destination and its attractions can creates a more desirable feeling toward the destination and increase the credibility and desirability of the destination. Eventually, it can also help improve the brand image of that tourism destination.

Lead (Pb) is a prevalent environmental toxic metal that may harmfully affect the function of the thyroid gland. Our information about the effects of lead on thyroid function in lead poisoning is limited. The present study aimed to evaluate thyroid function in lead-poisoned patients compared with the healthy group. In this study, two groups of lead poisoning subjects (lead concentrations ≥ 25 μg/dL) (n = 56) (HBLC group) and randomly selected age and gender-matched healthy individuals with lower blood lead concentrations (BLC

Background and Objectives: The Covid-19 epidemic began in Wuhan, China in the late 2019 and became a global epidemic in March 2020. In this regard, one of the most important indicators of the healthcare systems is the in-hospital mortality rate, which occurs with a time lag of one to two weeks after hospitalization. The aim of this study was to investigate the relative risk of Covid-19 mortality considering this time lag according to the number of daily hospitalizations. Methods: The data included the number of daily hospitalizations and deaths from Covid-19 from 15 May 2020 to 10 February 2021 in Iran, which was obtained from the Github database. A log-linear distributed lag model was used to evaluate the relationship and lag effect between daily hospitalization and relative risk of death. Results: The mean number of daily hospitalizations and deaths were 1342.2 ± 7 731.5 and 190.6 11±118.6 in the study period, respectively. It was found that an increase in the number of daily hospitalizations had a significant relationship with an increase in the relative risk of death on the same day and in the following days. As the number of hospitalizations exceeded 2000 patients per day, the cumulative relative risk of death increased to more than one. Conclusion: The results showed that the number of hospitalizations exceeding 2000 people per day was an alert for the countrychr('39')s healthcare system. Overall, prevention and observance of health protocols in the first level followed by early diagnosis of the disease, improving the hospitals facilities and preparedness of healthcare staff can reduce the relative risk of death in the possible future peaks.

Background: Over the past two years, the COVID-19 disease has become a global problem, affecting the health systems and economies of countries throughout the world. New cases and hospitalizations associated with the disease appear to affect the number of deaths caused by coronavirus infection. COVID-19 causes a variable number of hospital deaths each day, and the projected mortality rate fluctuates according to the daily tally of new cases. Using a distributed-lag model, this study tries to quantify the influence of COVID-19 new cases on death rates in Europe.Material and method: The "European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control" database was used to gather information on daily Covid-19 cases and deaths in 49 European nations. In the first half and second half of 2020, each of the 49 countries was fitted with the Distributed Lag Model (DLM).Results: The European continent saw an average of 13.5 days between daily Covid-19 new cases and mortality. For the first half and second half of 2020, results from the fitting of the Distributed Lag Model showed that there was a wide range of values for mean delay and long-term effects in Europe.Conclusion: European countries differ in terms of the mean delay and long-term impacts for the first and second half of 2020, according to the findings of the study. Understanding the time lag between new cases and deaths in the COVID-19 pandemic will help policymakers and governments use medical resources more effectively and provide better healthcare interventions that are more impactful.

Biguanides and sulfonylureas are anti-hyperglycemic drugs commonly used in the United States. Poisoning with these drugs may lead to serious consequences. The diagnosis of biguanide and sulfonylurea poisoning is based on history, clinical manifestations, and laboratory studies.This study is a six-year retrospective cohort analysis based on the National Poison Data System. Clinical effects of 6183 biguanide and sulfonylurea exposures were identified using binary logistic regression.The mean age of patients with biguanide and sulfonylurea exposure was 39.27 ± 28.91 and 28.91 ± 30.41 years, respectively. Sulfonylurea exposure is most commonly seen via unintentional exposure, while biguanide exposure frequently occurs as a result of intentional ingestion. Minor and moderate outcomes commonly developed following biguanide and sulfonylurea exposure, respectively. Sulfonylurea exposure was less likely to develop clinical effects abdominal pain, metabolic acidosis, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and elevated creatinine than patients ingesting biguanides. However, sulfonylurea exposure was more likely to cause dizziness or vertigo, tremor, drowsiness or lethargy, agitation, diaphoresis, and hypoglycemia.Our study is the first to use a wide range of national data to describe the clinical characteristics that differentiate the toxicologic exposure to biguanides and sulfonylureas. Sulfonylurea exposure is commonly seen via unintentional exposure, while metformin exposure is frequently seen via intentional exposure. Sulfonylurea toxicity is more likely to cause agitation, dizziness or vertigo, tremor, diaphoresis, and hypoglycemia, while metformin exposure induces abdominal pain, acidosis, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and elevated creatinine.

Acetaminophen is a frequently used over-the-counter or prescribed medication in the United States. Exposure to acetaminophen can lead to acute liver cytolysis, acute liver failure, acute kidney injury, encephalopathy, and coagulopathy. This retrospective cohort study (1/1/2012 to 12/31/2017) investigated the clinical outcomes of intentional and unintentional acetaminophen exposure using the National Poison Data System data. The frequency of outcomes, chronicity, gender, route of exposure, the reasons for exposure, and treatments as described. Binary logistic regression was used to estimate the prognostic factors and odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for outcomes. This study included 39,022 patients with acetaminophen exposure. Our study demonstrated that the likelihood of developing severe outcomes increased by aging (OR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.08–1.015) and was lower in females (OR = 0.88, 95% CI: 0.78–0.99). Drowsiness/lethargy (OR = 1.48, 95% CI: 1.22–1.82), agitation (OR = 1.66, 95% CI: 1.11–2.50), coma (OR = 23.95, 95% CI: 17.05–33.64), bradycardia (OR = 2.29, 95% CI: 1.22–4.32), rhabdomyolysis (OR = 8.84, 95% CI: 3.71–21.03), hypothermia (OR = 4.1, 95% CI: 1.77–9.51), and hyperthermia 2.10 (OR = 2.10, 95% CI: 1.04–4.22) were likely associated with major outcomes or death. Treatments included intravenous N-acetylcysteine (61%), oral N-acetylcysteine (10%), vasopressor (1%), hemodialysis (0.7%), fomepizole (0.1%), hemoperfusion (0.03%), and liver transplant (0.1%). In conclusion, it is important to consider clinical presentations of patients with acetaminophen toxicity that result in major outcomes and mortality to treat them effectively.

BACKGROUND: Toxic alcohol exposures are an ongoing concern in the United States. In the US, few studies characterize the local epidemiology of toxic alcohols over time. OBJECTIVES: The objective was to examine the incidence of toxic alcohol ingestions and changes in management over time. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study evaluates toxic alcohol ingestion phone calls to a regional poison center in the United States covering four states. Data were queried for this poison center from the National Poison Data System (NPDS) using generic codes for each toxic alcohol. Inclusion criteria were ingestion of toxic alcohol, age ≥ 13 years, from January 1, 2000 to Dec 31, 2017. Exclusion criteria were unrelated effects coded in the medical outcome, duplicate data, or incomplete demographic data. RESULTS: Of 926 subjects (adults and teenagers), 71.5% were male, and the mean age was 34.5 years. Toxic alcohol ingestion was more common in individuals younger than 40 years, with a significant relationship between age and intentional abuse or misuse (p = 0.001). There was also a significant relationship between age and reason for ingestion, with younger patients more likely to be suicidal (p

Background: Stroke is the second leading cause of death in adults worldwide. There are remarkable geographical variations in the accessibility to emergency medical services (EMS), and transport delays have been documented worldwide to affect stroke outcomes significantly. Therefore, this study examines whether there are spatial variations in in-hospital mortality among suspected stroke patients transferred by EMS and attempts to determine its related factors using the auto logistic regression model.Methods: In this historical cohort study, suspected stroke patients transferred to Ghaem Hospital of Mashhad by the EMS from March 2018 and March 2019 were included. Using emergency mission IDs, the baseline EMS data were integrated with the follow-up hospital records. The autologistic regression model was applied to examine the possible geographical variations in in-hospital mortality and its related factors. All analysis was carried out by SPSS version 16 and R 4.0.0 at the significant level of 0.05. Results: 1,222 suspected stroke patients were included in this study, and the in-hospital mortality rate was 14.2%. Overall in-hospital stroke mortality was related to age, accessibility rate of an ambulance, screening time, and length of stay (pConclusion: Our results showed considerable geographical variations in in-hospital stroke mortality in Mashhad neighborhoods. Also, age- and sex-adjusted results from this study highlight the direct association between accessibility rate of an ambulance, screening time and length of stay, and in-hospital stroke mortality. The prognosis of in-hospital stroke mortality could be improved by reducing delay time and increasing the EMS access rate.

Background and Objectives: Burns are tragic events with considerable mortality rates. This study was conducted to analyze the spatial pattern of burns and identify the factors associated with the burn injuries in Mashhad, Iran. Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in patients hospitalized in Imam Reza Hospital Burn Center, Mashhad, which is the only referral burn center in the northeast of Iran. Spatial generalized linear models (Poisson and negative binomial) were used to model the association between socio-economic characteristics and the incidence of burn injury. Results: A total of 1044 acute burn patients (69.9% male, 30.1% female) were reviewed. Most of the burned patients were in the age group 20-29 years (41.4%). The most common cause of burn injury was flame (64.6%). The local test of spatial autocorrelation confirmed that the burns had cluster pattern in the central areas of the city and the worn-out urban texture was at higher risk of burns. The results of model showed that the percentage of worn-out urban texture (IRR =1.007; 95%CI 1.005-1.008), literacy (IRR =0.98; 95% CI 0.95-0.99), percentage of employed women (IRR =0.96; 95%CI 0.92-0.99), unemployment rate (IRR =0.92; 95%CI 0.85-0.99) and percentage of margination (IRR =1.006; 95%CI 1.005-1.008) were associated with burns. Conclusion: Based on the findings, socio-economic and environmental characteristics are associated with the incidence of burn injuries in different areas. The results of this study could be used to design burn prevention strategies, especially in the high-risk areas and groups.

Background: Geospatial distribution analysis is a highly useful tool, especially in the field of health research and health economics. We aimed to study the geospatial distribution of poisoned patients and the risk factors in Mashhad, Iran. Methods: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study of patients treated at the Medical Toxicology Center, Imam Reza Hospital, Mashhad, Iran, which is the only referral center in northeast of Iran, in 2013. Negative binomial and Poisson approach via generalized linear mixed models were performed to investigate the association between socio-demographic characteristics with the number of reported cases of poisoning. Results: A total of 5064 poisoned patients (52% females) were included. Most of the poisoned patients were within the age group of 20-29 years old (41.4%). Pharmaceutical agents were the most common cause of poisonings (64.6%). The local test of spatial autocorrelation (Moran’s I) confirms that the poisoning had cluster pattern in Mashhad. Number of poisoning events were found to be associated with population density (RR= 1.00011; 95% CI 1.0001-1.00013), and the frequency of people with less than high school education (RR=1.49; 95% CI 1.32-1.68). Conclusion: The geospatial factors may have impact on the number of acute poisoning events in a city. Some parts of a city may exhibit spatial clustering in poisoning events. Once clusters are found, interventions can be focused to specific geographic locations and would be helpful for healthcare policymakers to focus on prevention programs.

Lead (Pb) is a prevalent environmental toxic metal that may harmfully affect the function of the thyroid gland. Our information about the effects of lead on thyroid function in lead poisoning is limited. The present study aimed to evaluate thyroid function in lead-poisoned patients compared with the healthy group. In this study, two groups of lead poisoning subjects (lead concentrations ≥ 25 μg/dL) (n = 56) (HBLC group) and randomly selected age and gender-matched healthy individuals with lower blood lead concentrations (BLC 10 μg/dL) (n = 58) (LBLC group) were included. Thyroid function tests, including thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine (T3), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) concentration, were measured for each patient in both groups (for the HBLC group, it was taken on admission). The linear regression model was used to investigate the effects of lead poisoning on thyroid function tests. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered significant. Our study showed no significant difference between the two groups in terms of age and gender. The mean concentration of T3 and TSH in the HBLC group was significantly lower than the LBLC group, but the mean levels of T4 were significantly higher in the HBLC group (p 0.05). Based on the linear regression model results, the T3 and TSH levels in the LBLC group were significantly higher by 13.86 and 0.43 units than the HBLC group, respectively. The current study results showed that lead poisoning affects thyroid function, reduces TSH, and increases T4.

Background Public health policies with varying degrees of restriction have been imposed around the world to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effects of the implementation of government policies and the Nowruz holidays on the containment of the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran, using an intervention time series analysis. Methods Daily data on COVID-19 cases registered between February 19 and May 2, 2020 were collected from the World Health Organization (WHO)’s website. Using an intervention time series modeling, the effect of two government policies on the number of confirmed cases were evaluated, namely the closing of schools and universities, and the implementation of social distancing measures. Furthermore, the effect of the Nowruz holidays as a non-intervention factor for the spread of COVID-19 was also analyzed. Results The results showed that, after the implementation of the first intervention, i.e., the closing of universities and schools, no statistically significant change was found in the number of new confirmed cases. The Nowruz holidays was followed by a significant increase in new cases (1,872.20; 95% CI, 1,257.60 to 2,476.79; p Conclusion The Nowruz holidays and the implementation of social distancing measures in Iran were related to a significant increase and decrease in COVID-19 cases, respectively. These results highlight the necessity of measuring the effect of health and social interventions for their future implementations.

Aim: Stroke is the third prevalent cause of disability worldwide. This study aimed to evaluate the role of Dorema ammoniacum and acupuncture in the management of patients with stroke.Methods: In this randomized controlled clinical trial, patients with a recent ischemic stroke (within the first month of stroke) were investigated. The patients were divided into three groups. The first group was managed by acupuncture, while the second group received 1 g of Dorema ammoniacum (two 500 mg capsules per day) from ammoniacum gum. The two intervention groups also received standard treatment with routine medical therapy and physiotherapy. The final group was the control, which only received conventional treatment and physiotherapy. The patients were evaluated immediately before the interventions, and one month after the interventions, using the Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and Modified National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (mNIHSS).Results: There was a significant difference in the mean score of mNIHSS at the beginning and end of the study in all of the three studied groups (PDorema ammoniacum and control groups (PDorema ammoniacum groups (PDorema ammoniacum groups were 1.82 and 1.04 lower than the control group's mean score, respectively. There was a significant difference in the mean mRS score at the beginning and end of the study in all three groups (PConclusion: Acupuncture and Dorema ammoniacum may be beneficial if started within the first month of stroke incidence. However, acupuncture can cause a greater reduction in the mNIHSS score of stroke patients. Trial registration: Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT20170227032797N2).Registered 5 March 2018 - Retrospectively registered, https://www.irct.ir/trial/25469

Background: Depression is one of the most common mental disorders and it has the third rank of the cause of disability and has been considered to increase the years of life with disability in Iran. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to map the geographical distribution and find hot spots of depression and its relation to demographic and socioeconomic factors in Mashhad. Methods: A population-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Mashhad in 2010. In this study, 9704 individuals aged 35 to 65 years old were evaluated using Beck’s depression inventory-II. A generalized linear mixed model with a logit link was fitted for the spatial modeling of depression. R and GIS software was used for spatial analysis and disease mapping, respectively. Results: The prevalence of depression was different in geographical areas, ranging from 13.29% to 26.67%. The spatial correlation in the prevalence of depression was significant. The fitted spatial model showed that the spatial adjusted associations between gender (P < 0.001), marital status (P < 0.001), socioeconomic status (P < 0.001), and depression were significant. Conclusions: The significant spatial correlation shows that depression is spatially contagious and it is important to find its hot spots in the population. Thus developing health policy for prevention, early diagnostics, and treatment programs is preferred in these resource-limited areas.

Background and Purpose: Shoulder pain is a common complication from stroke that may cause some rehabilitation limits to achieve functional goals. The information regarding its prevalence and associated factors is limited. This study was conducted to investigate further details pertaining to its associated factors.Materials and Methods: This study was performed on 191 stroke patients at the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Ward at Shiraz-Medical School from 2001 to 2004. Each patient was followed up for one year. A questionnaire was prepared containing information about shoulder pain compliant, thorough history and physical examination, previous history of open heart surgery, scoliosis, limited neck range of motion, type of stroke (based on MRI and brain CT), osteoporosis (based on bone mineral density and X ray), shoulder adductor muscles and biceps spasticity (based on ashworth scale). In follow-up visits bi-monthly for one year, the questionnaire was filled out again and if present, shoulder pain was recorded.Results: Most patients developed shoulder pain between 2 and 6 months following their stroke. Forty-nine patients (32.2%) developed shoulder pain, 39(79.6%) of whom had spastic tone and 8 (16.3%) had flaccid tone. In both groups, with shoulder pain and without shoulder pain respectively, 6.7% and 1.9% had a history of open heart surgery, 6.1% and 1% had scoliosis, 67.3% and 35.1% had Intracranial hemorrhage, 73.5% and 23.3% had limited neck range of motion, and 24.5% and 35% had osteopenia.Conclusion: Spasticity was significantly more common in the shoulder pain group, which can be due to capsulitis, soft tissue inflammation (especially ligament and rotator cuff muscle) and anteroinferior subluxation of the shoulder. There was a significant statistical correlation between intracranial hemorrhage, reduced neck range of motion, and hemiplegic shoulder pain. It appears that treatment and rehabilitation of spasticity and underlying cervical area problems are helpful in preventing hemiplegic shoulder pain.J Mazand Univ Med Sci 2008; 18(65): 28-33(Persian)

Background: Vitamin D has been shown to have immunomodulatory effects, and previous studies have proposed a role of vitamin D deficiency in multiple autoimmune diseases, including psoriasis. Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate serum vitamin D levels in psoriatic patients and compare them with levels in controls. Methods: This study was carried out in 50 psoriasis patients. Serum vitamin D was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The mean serum vitamin D levels in psoriatic patients and controls were 14.92 ± 6.31 and 12.52 ± 4.54 ng/mL, respectively. The difference was not statistically significant ( P = .06). The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (Conclusions: Most of the patients with psoriasis had vitamin D deficiency, which may have contributed to the evolution of their psoriasis. However, considering the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in Iran, no difference was noted between the psoriatic patients and the controls.