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ABSTRACT Recent interest has been focused on extracellular matrix (ECM)–based scaffolds totreat critical‐sized bone injuries. In this study, urea was used to decellularize and solubilize human placenta tissue. Then, different concentrations of ECM were composited with 8% alginate (Alg) and 12% silk fibroin (SF) for printing in order to produce a natural 3D construct that resembled bone tissue. The physical and biological features of the printed structures were evaluated entirely in vitro. Finally, a rat model was employed to examine the optimal 3D printed scaffold (5% ECM) as a bone transplant for the healing of cranial bone lesions. The present investigation demonstrated that decellularizing placental tissue fragments led to efficient removal of cell debris. In addition, a remarkable improvement in the printed scaffolds' mechanical and biological properties was observed by increasing the ECM concentration. The histology studies and real‐time PCR results demonstrated the acceleration of bone regeneration in the bone lesions treated with 5%ECM‐SF/Alg at 4 and 8 weeks after implantation. Overall, these results proved that the placental ECM‐printed scaffolds could potentially construct biomimetic grafts to reconstruct significant bone defects and now promise to proceed with clinical studies.

Background: In recent years, with the rapid expansion of Internet use, Internet addiction has increased. Internet addiction will be considered as a disorder worldwide in the near future and it is very important to prevent it from becoming an acute problem in the new era. Objectives: The current study was planned to assess changes in the state of internet addiction, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. Materials & Methods: The current cross-sectional study was done on university students (Medical Sciences and Islamic Azad) in southern Iran in October 2021. Standard Kimberly Young questionnaire was used to measure the status of internet addiction. A total of 379 students was selected through convenience sampling method. The link to the online questionnaire was provided to the study participants through the official educational programs, websites and official social networks of the universities. Paired t-tests, chi-square and ANOVA were used for analysis. Logistic regression model was used to measure predictive variables. Results: More than 65% of the people were women and 83.6% were single. Analysis of the standard internet addiction questionnaire showed that the average score of Internet addiction had increased from 34.44±14.10 to 48.47±17.72, which was significant (P

BACKGROUND: Psychological distress, as a key indicator, describes a person’s emotional problems and psychological reactions to adapt to the environment. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between psychological distress and coping strategies used by individuals during the crisis caused by COVID-19. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The current research is an analytical cross-sectional study that was designed in 2021. The sampling area included the three cities of Lar, Gerash, and Evaz in the south of Fars province in the south of Iran. The study population was the residents of these three cities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The final sample size in the present study was 384 people. Individuals were selected through available sampling. By answering questions from the self-assessment system of COVID-19 disease, the Ministry of Health and Medical Education filled out the necessary information for individual screening and registration of the symptoms of COVID-19 disease. Then, they completed the Coping Methods Questionnaire and the Psychological Distress Questionnaire. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 40.90 years. One hundred sixty-seven (43.5%) participants were male, and 217 (56.5%) were female. The mean score of problem-oriented coping style was significantly different between the levels of education (P = 0.001). The mean score of problem-solving coping style for the participants suspected of being infected with COVID-19 was 6.18 scores lower than others, and the difference was statistically significant (P = 0.001). Multiple regression with a forward selection also showed that among the studied variables, age, problem-oriented, and emotion-oriented coping strategies were important variables affecting mental distress. CONCLUSION: People who were not suspected of having COVID-19 symptoms had a higher mean problem-oriented coping score than those who were suspected of having COVID-19. Therefore, early identification of suspects and the implementation of counseling and training programs can be very effective.

Background and aims: Since one of the most important methods of preventing the transmission of COVID-19 is wearing a mask, the present research was conducted to clarify the reasons for avoiding wearing a face mask by some people during the coronavirus outbreak. Methods: This is a qualitative content analysis study. In this study, 45 people from the cities of Evaz, Lar, and Gerash participated and were interviewed. The interview method was semi-structured, and the participants were selected based on purposive sampling. The collected data were analyzed by the conventional approach of the qualitative study. Results: The participants of this study consisted of 45 individuals. The mean age of the samples was 41.89±12.88 years. A total of 30 themes were extracted during the qualitative content analysis and then divided into 6 categories, including personal, social, cultural, environmental, economic, and physical factors. Conclusion: According to the findings of this study, the factors influencing the lack of tendency to wear masks by people in the COVID-19 epidemic period are numerous and interact with each other. Therefore, for encouraging people to perform such protective behavior during the coronavirus epidemic, it is necessary to consider individual, social, environmental, economic, and physical factors together.

Background: On 30 January 2020, the WHO declared the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 as a public health emergency. In the present study, we compared the preventative and therapeutic strategies and the success rates of Iran and Switzerland during the COVID-19 outbreak. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted using electronic databases such as PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. In addition, the official documents of developed countries and WHO from 1st February until 15th May 2020 were studied. Relevant documents were reviewed in detail, and vital data were extracted. Results: Both countries have restriction policies to reduce the infection rate in the prevention setting. These policies, such as the recommendation to all citizens to stay home unless necessary, army participation, and non-face-to-face counseling, were surveyed by similar techniques in both countries. Some policies were implemented in both countries with different protocols. These policies, including social distancing practices, smart distancing methods, business activities, border closures, border controls, and restrictions, travel restrictions, testing and screening for infection and fever, and decreased working hours, were performed in both countries. In the treatment setting, the therapeutic strategy used in Iran consisted of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine phosphate and anti-viral drugs. Switzerland followed the guidelines of the European countries. The infection rate, recovery rate, and death rate were 0.139%, 78.73%, and 5.91% in Iran, while these rates were 0.352%, 88.81%, and 6.15% in Switzerland, respectively. Conclusion: Due to the lack of special treatment for the disease, prevention must be considered the most important factor in policymaking. Importantly, observing social distance is the most effective method among the preventative strategies. The capacity of the health care systems to provide optimal services and facilities is an important factor for patients recovery.