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Introduction: COVID-19, which appeared in December 2019, has impressed the whole world. The corona virus had far-reaching effects on all health care systems and has had a direct impact on almost all areas of human life in all countries of the world, which has led countries to take various public and social health measures. Making decisions during the coronavirus pandemic has numerous challenges. In this study, a multi-criteria decision-making method called DEMATEL was used to identify and prioritize effective interventions in the control of the COVID-19 pandemic. Material & Methods: Effective interventions to control COVID-19 were identified using literature review, and these factors were then ranked employing DEMATEL. Furthermore, three experts specialized in DEMATEL methodology were requested to rank 21 influential factors identified based on the relative importance. Findings: The results of this study showed that prompt and timely public health measures (20/238), home quarantine for patients and carriers (20/130), appropriate patient tracking with the implementation of Shahid Soleimani plan (19/383), the availability of health services and social services during the quarantine (19/239), and educational interventions regarding public acceptance of the vaccine (19/161) are the most important effective interventions in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. Discussion & Conclusion: The results of the study showed that 21 interventions were effective in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the identification and prioritization of effective interventions obtained from this study, using DEMATEL method, it is possible to control coronavirus infection in the community with high accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. In December 2019, a new disease was reported in China that spread rapidly worldwide. This disease is called COVID-19, a viral infection of the coronavirus family. COVID-19 has caused health, social and economic problems around the world. In Iran, the first disease cases were reported in February 2020. This article aimed to describe the results of the fourth step of the National Mobilization Plan against COVID-19 pandemic. Methods.The information used in this cross-sectional-descriptive study is based on the data recorded in the computer program (Portal) of the Network Management Center of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education.The fourth step was devised to manage and control the COVID-19 pandemic with public participation and coordination between departments. It was formed of four teams, including contact tracing, home care, supervisory, and support teams. Excel 2016 software was used to analyze the present study's data, and ArcMap software version 10.8 was applied to draw thermal maps. Results. In this study, there were 3.2 members per contact tracing team. This number was equal to 3.2, 2.9, and 3.8 people per team for supportive, home care, and supervisory teams, respectively. Also, on average, the contact tracing teams tracked 135.9 cases per team. This number was 518.6 visits per team for supervisory teams, 75.3 for home care teams, and 52.2 households for support teams. During the program's implementation, 3065.3 PCR tests and 3596.7 rapid tests were taken per 100,000 population, of which 15.5% were positive. The average contact tracing in people with close contact with the infected people was 4.87 per patient with a positive test. Conclusion. The COVID-19 pandemic challenged all political, economic, social, and health policies and exposed the weaknesses of the governments. According to statistics and information, the measures taken to manage and control COVID-19 in Iran have been valuable and effective. Still, the continuation of this process depends on the persistence of policies and protocols by the government and people in the society.

Aims: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is one of the most important endemic diseases in Meshkinshahr. The present study was aimed to molecular detect of VL and babesiosis in clot blood samples taken from dogs. Materials & Methods: In this experimental study, a total number of 148 blood samples were collected from dogs with clinical signs of visceral leishmaniasis from Meshkinshahr area. All serum samples were examined by direct agglutination test (DAT). DNA was extracted from the blood clot with the DNGplus Extraction Kit. The ITS1 and kDNA genes of L. infantum were amplified by the PCR method. To identify and confirm the existence of Babesia parasites, 2 pairs of Babesia-specific primers were used. Results: All of 148 dogs (100%) showed titers more than 1:320 of L. infantum infection in the serological test. L. infantum kDNA was detected by PCR in all samples. No cases of infection with Babesia parasite found in the samples. Conclusions: The dog owners in Meshkinshehr are in close contact with dogs which are positive for VL, so, the implementation of health care in this region is highly recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]