Search

Objective Auditory processing disorder (APD) tests, based on the deviation of results from standard benchmarks, can distinguish children suspected of having APD. Some of these tests directly relate to the ability to discriminate sound pitch, while others may be indirectly affected. Accordingly, this study investigates the impact of pitch discrimination-based rehabilitation on diagnostic indices of APD tests. Materials & Methods In this study, we selected 19 children suspected of APD who were identified based on tests of pitch pattern, dichotic digits, and monaural selective auditory attention as the intervention group. These children received pitch discrimination-based training, for about three months, two to three sessions a week, each session up to 1 h. After completing the rehabilitation phases, diagnostic tests were administered again. We also selected 26 children with similar diagnostic criteria for APD as the control group. No intervention was applied to this group, and after a comparable period to the intervention group, diagnostic tests were re-administered. The results before and after the interventions were compared within the intervention group and with the 26 children in the control group. Results The rehabilitation showed significant improvements in the pitch pattern and monaural selective auditory attention tests. In the monaural selective auditory attention test, significant improvements were observed in both ears (P=0.001). In the pitch pattern test, effective improvements were also observed for both ears (P=0.001). The effects were such that nearly 37% of children suspected of APD, based on the diagnostic criteria used in the study, no longer met the criteria for this disorder. Hence, if the same tests are re-administered to them, these children will be diagnosed as having no auditory processing disorder. Conclusion Discrimination-based rehabilitation impacts the results of APD tests. Accordingly, some children who are classified as suspected auditory processing disorder with such tests, are removed from this subgroup after the intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Postoperative rehabilitation protocols, such as immobilization and non-weight-bearing periods during the acute phase after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgery vary depending on the surgeon or the institution and lack clear standardization. Weight bearing (WB) after ACL reconstruction (ACLR) is critical. This study compares the results of WB immediately after surgery and partial WB with a brace after ACLR. Materials & Methods In this randomized clinical trial, the block random sampling method was used to select 84 patients who were divided into two groups. Group 1 was allowed to have full WB after surgery and Group 2 was asked to use braces after surgery, and they were divided into partial WB for one month and then full WB. Meanwhile, demographic information was recorded. The Lachman test, anterior knee pain, and kneeling pain before and one month after the surgery were also recorded. Knee function was evaluated using the international knee documentation committee, knee injury and osteoarthritis out-come score, and Lysholm scales before surgery and 1, 3, and 6 months after surgery. The data were analyzed using the SPSS software, version 20, and the Fisher exact test, the chi-square test, the Friedman test, and repeated measures analysis of variance. Results Most of the patients were men under 30 years of age. There was no statistically significant difference in the demographic information of the patients in the two groups. Kneeling pain, anterior knee pain, and the Lachman test did not differ between the two groups one month after the surgery. There was no difference between the two groups in the scores using the international knee documentation committee, knee injury and osteoarthritis outcome score, and Lysholm score in the 6-month follow-up. All the examined indicators in each group improved over time. Conclusion WB immediately after surgery compared to partial WB at 1, 3, and 6 months after ACLR do not differ; therefore, patients can bear full weight if they tolerate it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim Fibromyalgia syndrome is a chronic disease that causes widespread musculoskeletal pain. It primarily affects women and negatively impacts many aspects of a person’s psychological and social life. This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of cognitive therapy based on mindfulness and compassion therapy on automatic negative thoughts, psychological symptoms, pain intensity, and quality of life in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome. Methods & Materials This research is a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design with two experimental and one control group. The statistical study population consisted of all individuals with fibromyalgia syndrome referred to Mehregan Pain Clinic in Mirdamad (District 3), Seyed Khandan Clinic (District 4), and Taleghani Hospital Pain Clinic (District 1) in Tehran City, Iran. Of them, 30 patients were randomly selected and divided into three groups of experimental 1, experimental 2, and control; each group will include 10 people. The instruments used in this study included the World Health Organization quality of life questionnaire (WHOQOL BREF), pain intensity questionnaire (PIS), psychological symptoms questionnaire (Anxiety, Stress and Depression [DASS]), and automatic negative thoughts (QNS). Ethical Considerations This study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of Arak Branch, Islamic Azad University (Code: IR.IAU.ARAK.REC.1400.005). Results The analysis of covariance showed the effectiveness of both cognitive therapies based on mindfulness and compassion therapy on four variables of pain intensity, psychological symptoms, automatic negative thoughts, and quality of life (P<0.05). Comparing the two intervention methods showed that both therapies had almost the same effect on pain intensity, psychological symptoms, and automatic negative thoughts (P<0.05) but the effectiveness of mindfulness intervention on the quality of life was significantly higher than compassion intervention (P<0.05). Conclusion The results indicate that cognitive therapy based on mindfulness and compassion therapy are suitable for people with fibromyalgia under appropriate treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim Moral stress happens when a person makes a moral decision but cannot accomplish it, mainly due to internal and external organizational limitations. Problem-solving skills training as one of the principles of stress management may be effective in controlling nurses’ moral stress. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of problem-solving skills training on the moral stress of novice nurses. Methods & Materials This study was a clinical trial performed on 70 novice nurses working in Shohaday Khorramabad Hospital, Khorramabad City, Iran. The samples were selected by convenience sampling and randomly divided into intervention (n=36) and control (n=35) groups. The study data were collected by demographic questionnaire and Corley’s moral distress scale. Before the intervention, participants of both groups completed those questionnaires. Then for the intervention group, a problem-solving skills workshop was held in six 2-hour sessions. After training, the Corley moral distress scale was completed again by participants of both groups. Finally, the data were analyzed by the Chi-square test, paired, and independent t tests in SPSS software v. 16. Ethical Considerations This study has been approved by the Research Ethics Committee of Arak University of Medical Sciences with the ethical code IR.ARAKMU.REC.1395.449. Informed consent was taken from all participants, and they were assured of keeping their information confidential. ResultsIn this study, most participants were around 25 years old. Also, 98.5% had Bachler’s degrees, and 1.5% had Master’s degrees. The study results showed that the mean of moral distress in the intervention was significantly different from before the intervention (P<0.05). Conclusion This study showed that applying problem-solving skills has a significant effect in decreasing the moral distress of novice nurses in the clinical setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Alcoholism & Drug Addiction / Alkoholizm i Narkomania is the property of Termedia Publishing House 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.)

Objective Social isolation is one of the important concerns in the elderly population which can negatively affect their quality of life and health. The present study aims to determine the prevalence of social isolation among older adults aged 60 years and older in Tehran, Iran and find its associated factors. Materials & Methods This is a secondary analysis study on data obtained from a large cross-sectional study conducted on older adults in Tehran in 2020. The Persian version of lubben social network scale (LSNS-6) was used to measure social isolation. The demographic characteristics (age, gender, marital status, living arrangements, and number of children), socio-economic status (educational level, employment status, and household income) and health-related information (history of chronic diseases and use of assistive devices) were collected using a checklist. Data were analyzed in SPSS v. 23 software using multivariate logistic regression analysis. The significance level was set at. Results The data were related to 1280 older adults aged 60 years and older (Mean±SD age=70.97±8.07 years). The prevalence of social isolation was 30.8%. The results of chi-square test revealed that living arrangement (P<0.001, X²=46.93), marital status (P<0.001, X²=26.91), household income (P<0.001, X²=67.44), level of education (P<0.05, X²=20.26), employment status (P <0.001, X²=29.21), musculoskeletal problems (P<0.001, X²=15.47), respiratory problems (P<0.05, X²=10.43), vision problems (P<0.05, X²=4.4), hyperlipidemia (P<0.001, X²=13.53), and wearing glasses (P<0.05, X²=3.92) had significant association with social isolation. The regression analysis model could significantly predict social isolation (X²=188.35, P<0.001). The model revealed that being male (P<0.05, OR=1.7), living with spouse (P<0.05, OR=0.4), musculoskeletal disease (P<0.05, OR=1.42), diabetes (P<0.05, OR=1.41), household income (P<0.001, OR=5.82), being unemployed (P<0.001, OR=2.13), having hyperlipidemia (P<0.001, OR=0.58), and living in developed areas (P<0.001, OR=2.02) significantly predicted the social isolation. Conclusion There is a strong association between social isolation and some socio-economic, demographic-health related factors in older adults. Health policymakers and healthcare experts can develop the screening and prevention programs related to the mental and social health of older adults in Tehran, Iran in order to moderate and control these factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Stuttering is not just a speech disorder. It can cause negative feelings and emotions in a person especially in children. Therefore, we need a standard tool to identify, study and measure these negative effects and then try to eliminate or reduce them. Considering the increased clinical and research needs for a valid and reliable tool to assess the negative effect of stuttering in Iran, this study aims to design and validate a questionnaire (parents form) for assessment of social/emotional/behavioral disorders in preschool children with stuttering. Materials & Methods This is a methodological study that was conducted in three steps in spring and summer of 2018 in Isfahan, Iran. Participants included 60 parents of preschool children with stuttering aged 3 to 5 years and 11 months (36 boys and 24 girls), who had referred to speech therapy clinics in Isfahan. In the first stage, 10 parents received in-depth and open-ended interviews to collect information about social, emotional and behavioral disorders in children with stuttering. Afterwards, based on these information and the opinions of experts in psychology and speech therapy, the main constructs of the questionnaire were identified: "uncompromising/hyperactive behavior", "social skills", "communication skills", "aggression", "fear", and "separation anxiety". In the second stage, in order to determine the face validity, 10 experts were interviewed face to face. In order to determine the content validity, 15 other experts were asked to examine each item according. Content validity was determined by calculating the content validity ratio (CVR), content validity index (CVI), and total content validity (Lawshe method). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine the construct validity. In the last step, the internal consistency was determined by calculating Cronbach's alpha coefficient, and the relaibility was determined by test-retest method and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Results The initial version consisted of 61 items and 6 subscales. According to the experts, by merging items with overlapping concepts, the number of items were reduced to 40. In the face validity assessment stage, items were examined based on difficulty, relevance, and ambiguity. The phrases were read several times, and the opinions of experts were applied. Then, it was reviewed by two experts in Persian literature and finally was approved. The CVR and CVI vaues were obtained 0.76 and 0.90, respectively. For its internal consistency, the Cronbach's alpha coefficient was obtained 0.89 and ICC was more than 0.7 and significant (P<0.001). For the construct validity assessed in AMOS software, the calculated X2 was 631.25. The low number of X2 indicated a good fit of the model (P<0.000). Conclusion The designed questionnaire has acceptable validity and reliability and can be used as a reliable and valid tool for assessing social/emotional/behavioral disorders in Iranian preschool children with stuttering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Specific learning disorder is a type of neurodevelopmental disorder, in which children with disabilities have difficulty understanding, or using spoken and written language. The disorder diagnoses when children have significant reading, writing, and math skills lower than expected. One of the characteristics of children with a learning disorder is the presence of anxiety symptoms, which are often chronic, and failure to address them can negatively affect the child's growth and academic performance. Assertiveness training is a structured intervention that uses to reduce the symptoms of anxiety. The present study aimed to determine the effectiveness of assertiveness training on anxiety symptoms of male school-age children with special learning disorders in Tehran City, Iran. Materials & Methods: The present study was a quasi-experimental research in which a pretest in addition post-test design with a control group used along with a five weeks follow-up. The population included 8-11 year-old male children who were studying in the Learning Disorders Centers in Tehran City in the school year 2019-2020. The sample consisted of 130 male school-age children who were in convenient selected from the five educational districts (2, 13, 12, 18, and 15). At first, the Colored Progressive Matrices (CPM) assessed all subjects and 72 children who got a normal intelligence quotient (≥85) completed the Child Spence Anxiety Scale (SCAS-C). The studied sample was selected according to the formula for the determining the sample size and the probability of its drop-out (34 people). After scoring the SCAS-C, 45 children received a moderate anxiety (44-88 points). Thirty-four students (19, 10, and 5, respectively with dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia) were randomly selected among them and matched based on their age, school grade and socio-economic status. They randomly assigned to the experimental and control group with Mean±SD of age 10.45±2.25 and 8.87±1.89 respectively. The experimental group divided into three subgroups (six people in two groups and five people in one) due to the efficacy of training in small groups and participated in 10 assertiveness training sessions (twice a week and 90 minutes for per session) while the control group received only the mainstream programs in the Learning Disorder Center. All subjects assessed by the SCAS-C at the end of the training sessions and five weeks follow-up. The obtained data from pretest-post-test situations analyzed by using univariate and multivariate analysis of covariance. In addition, the data were analysed by the analysis of variance with repeated measure to determine the stability of the assertiveness training after the five weeks follow-up. Results: The results of univariate and multivariate analysis of covariance showed that there was a significant difference between the mean scores of anxiety symptoms and its components in the experimental and control groups before and after the assertiveness training sessions (P<0.01). The results based on the eta quotient show that the values of 66%, 66%, 32%, 63%, 63%, 71%, and 73% respectively of the variance of total anxiety symptoms, generalized anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, personal injury fears, social phobia, separation anxiety and panic disorder/agoraphobia in students with special learning disorder can be explained by participation in assertiveness training intervention. The results of analysis of variance with repeated measure showed that the effect of assertiveness training has only lasted on reduction of generalized anxiety, personal injury fears, anxiety phobia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder after five weeks follow-up. However, the effectiveness of the intervention program not found for the total anxiety symptoms, separation anxiety and panic/agoraphobia after follow-up study. Conclusion: The results indicate that the assertiveness training can reduce the symptoms of anxiety and its components in school-age male children with specific learning disorder. Therefore, we conclude that the design and implementation of similar training programs help students to strive to establish interpersonal relationships, reduce the frustration of academic failure, express their feelings, think of possible ways to deal with anxious situations, manage their negative behaviour, and be prepared to accept multiple roles in adulthood. Thus, by providing assertiveness training, maladaptive behaviors and mental health problems (especially anxiety symptoms) can be preventive in students with special learning disorder in addition to prevent ongoing problems in the fields of education and occupation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]