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Early treatment of ischemic stroke is one of the most effective ways to reduce brains' cell death and promote functional recovery. This study was designed to examine the effect of aerobic exercise on post ischemia/reperfusion injury on concentration and expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) after inducing a neuronal loss in CA1 region of hippocampus in Male Wistar rats. Three experimental groups including sham(S), ischemia/reperfusion-control (IRC) and ischemia/reperfusion exercise (IRE) were used for this purpose. The rats in the IRE group received a bilateral carotid artery occlusion treatment. They ran for 45 minutes on a treadmill five days per week for eight consecutive weeks. Cresyl violet (Nissl), Hematoxylin (HE) and Eosin staining procedure were used to determine the extent of damage. A ladder rung walking task was used to assess the functional impairments and recovery after the ischemic lesion. ELISA and immunohistochemistry method were employed to measure BDNF and VEGF protein expressions. The result showed that the brain ischemia/reperfusion condition increased the cell death in hippocampal CA1 neurons and impaired motor performance on the ladder rung task whereas the aerobic exercise program significantly decreased the brain cell's death and improved motor skill performance. It was concluded that ischemic brain lesion decreased the BDNF and VEGF expression. It seems that the aerobic exercise following the ischemia/reperfusion potentially promotes neuroprotective mechanisms and neuronal repair and survival mediated partly by BDNF and other pathways.

Previous studies have reported that melatonin intake is inversely associated with reduced markers of atherosclerosis development such as carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT).This study was designed to assess the effects of melatonin administration on CIMT and pulse wave velocity (PWV) in patients with diabetic nephropathy (DN).This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted on 32 DN patients. Subjects were assigned to receive melatonin or placebo (starch) for 24 weeks. Individuals in the melatonin group (n = 19) received 10 mg/day. CIMT and PWV levels were taken at the study baseline and after 24 weeks of intervention.After 24 weeks of intervention, melatonin intake did not affect mean levels of left (P = 0.51) and right (P = 0.16) CIMT and maximum levels of left (P = 0.76) and right (P = 0.15) CIMT, and PWV (P = 0.55) compared with the placebo. In addition, within-group difference demonstrated a significant reduction in mean levels of right CIMT (P = 0.01) in the melatonin group. We did not observe any significant change in C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations after melatonin intake (P = 0.81).Melatonin intake did not affect mean levels of left and right CIMT and maximum levels of left and right CIMT, PWV, CRP levels compared with the placebo. In addition, within-group difference demonstrated a significant reduction in mean levels of right CIMT in the melatonin group. This trial was registered at www.irct.ir as http://www.irct.ir: IRCT20200527047584N2.

Background. Increased levels of inflammatory cytokines and oxidative damage may play crucial roles in the pathogenesis of brucellosis. The purpose of this trial was to evaluate the impact of probiotics administration on clinical status and biomarkers of oxidative damage and inflammation in pediatric patients diagnosed with brucellosis. Methods. This randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled trial was performed by recruiting 40 patients, 8–15 years of age, who had been diagnosed with brucellosis. Study participants were randomly allocated into two groups to receive either probiotics supplement or placebo (n = 20 each group) for 8 weeks. Blood samples were collected at the onset and after 8 weeks of intervention to quantify biochemical parameters. Clinical status was examined by a pediatric infectious disease specialist. Results. Following 8-week intervention, probiotics supplementation substantially improved total antioxidant capacity ( P < 0.001 ) and malondialdehyde ( P = 0.002 ). Furthermore, the difference between probiotics group and placebo group for the duration of fever ( P = 0.02 ) and musculoskeletal pain ( P = 0.001 ) was statistically significant, though probiotics administration had no significant effects on high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, total glutathione, and other clinical outcomes compared with placebo. Conclusion. Overall, probiotics intake had beneficial impact on clinical status and body antioxidative defense system in pediatric patients with brucellosis.

Nous voudrions - à l'occasion de cet article - faire en quelque sorte le point sur la place et la conjonction possible de la sémiotique et de la pragmatiquem dans les sciences de l'homme à partir de la problématique très générale de l'énonciation. II ne s'agit donc pas ici d'un développement d'un "chapitre" de la pragmatique, mais bien plutôt d'une réflexion d'un point de convergence entre les approches sémiotique et pragmatique de la question de l'énonciation. Le constat est que la pragmatique s'est intéressée au départ au "reste" (même si la situation est un peu différente aujourd'hui) : ce que la sémantique et la syntaxe n'arrivaient pas à rendre compte - de ce fait, la pragmatique s'est posée en s'opposant, rcfusant en bloc le La sémiotique n'a pas eu à se poser une telle question puisque "l'objet pre- mier de la théorie sémiotique n'est pas, pour nous, l'analyse de la référence - ni même de l'illusion référentielle - mais la détermination des conditions et de la production et de la saisie du sens, à savoir, qu 'elle part d' une conception géné- rale des processus de génération de sens.

Violence et langage ont la meme origine: Ie desir d' exister, de mai'triser, de se proteger, de se reproduire, de se survivre. Le desir est violence ou tout au moins une fonne de violence puisqu'i] irnplique de s'integrer l'autre. de s' approprier I'objet convoit~, de se rendre pareil 11 un modele, done de se faire violence. Lecture des problemes d'un "quartier diffjcile" de Toulouse.

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the rate of attention to the scientific productions on COVID-19 in social media over a period of four months. The present research was an applied descriptive-analytical study that used Scientometrics analysis. The population study included research papers about the COVID-19 indexed in Dimensions platform from December 2019 to March 2020. Information of 20% of the articles with the highest citation count and 20% of the articles with the highest number of Altmetric Attention Score (AAS), including title, journal, citation and Altmetrics indicators for each article were extracted. These data were analyzed by SPSS 16.0. The results showed that 1910 scientific productions about the COVID-19 were indexed in the Dimensions platform. A considerable number of these articles were accessible via preprint services and were published in journals such as The Lancet, JAMA, BMJ and NEJM. Authors from China and Japan were the most active authors. All of the 382 articles had AAS, that is, all of these articles received attention at least in one of the social media. The highest and lowest AAS for these articles were 14030 and 6, respectively. These results show a high rate of attention by researches and users of social media to the articles presented on COVID-19. The result of this research also showed a significant positive relationship between the citations and Altmetric indicators. As the results of this research showed, the “information supply” in the field of COVID-19 was remarkably high. Also, the “information demand” by the social media audiences was high.

La problématique de l'oral, que nous envisageons de traiter ici dans le domaine de l'apprentissage dune langue étrangère, ne doit pas nous empêcher de considérer comme pertinents certains rapprochements avec le domaine de l'acquisition du langage, car il est des points communs entre langue maternelle (LM) et langue étrangère (LE) qu'il convient, lorsque cela s'avère utile, de souligner. La langue maternelle et la langue étrangère partagent les propriétés fonctionnelles du langage qu'elles expriment, à savoir une fonction représentative et une fonction communicative. Leur acquisition ou apprentissage, tout en obéissant à des processus et mécanismes fondamentalement différents, aboutissent de la même façon à la construction de compétences permettant à l'enfant ainsi qu'à l'adulte d'appréhender le monde environnant nouveau, auquel il va appartenir pour le premier, qu'il va partager pour le second.

Introduction: Resistin is an adipocyte-specific hormone secreted from adipose tissue which plays a significant role in the energy homeostasis and regulation of energy metabolism. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of eight weeks of aerobic training on the resistin levels and insulin resistance in sedentary middle-aged women. Methods: In this quasi-experimental research, 20 sedentary women were randomly selected and assigned to two groups: experimental group, n=10, aged 47.70±5.35; and control, n=10, age 41.30±3.02, respectively. The participants in the training group performed an exercise protocol three times per week with the goal of 55 to 65 per cent of maximum heart rate. Before and after the completion, the resistin, insulin, glucose and insulin resistance levels were measured after 12 h of overnight fasting. Data were analyzed before and after the intervention by t-test. The significant level was defined as P≤0.05. Results: Aerobic training in compared with the control group showed significant effect in decreasing resistin levels (P=0.012), BMI (P=0.01), insulin resistance (P=0.01), and increasing VO2 max (P=0.004). Conclusion: It appears that eight weeks of aerobic training significantly changes the level of resistin and the insulin resistance index in sedentary middle-aged women. Plasma resistin may be associated with insulin resistance in sedentary women. In general, according to the results, we may say that an eight-week aerobic training with a significant reduction in plasma resistin has a preventive effect as a new and effective training method on insulin resistance in middle-aged sedentary women.

Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent worldwide. 25-Hydroxy vitamin D (25(OH) vit D) is the major circulating source of vitamin D. Deficiency of vitamin D has been proposed as a new risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including stroke. We aimed to evaluate 25(OH) vit D (ng/mL) serum levels in patients with stroke according to severity and type in a cross-sectional study that out of 143 patients 78 were male and 65 were female. Serum concentration of 25(OH) vit D was measured at baseline by ELISA method. Stroke severity was assessed at admission using the NIHSS score. The mean of 25(OH) vit D serum level in male was 18.14 ng/mL and in female was 28.23 ng/mL. Data showed a significant difference between 25(OH) vit D serum level and sex (P = 0.009). At admission, 106 patients had ischemic stroke and 37 patients had hemorrhagic stroke with the mean of 22.52 and 23.31 ng/mL of 25(OH) vit D, respectively. Data presented no significant differences between 25(OH) vit D serum level and types of stroke. Furthermore, 40 patients (28%) had a minor stroke (0 ≤ NIHSS ≤ 5), 61 patients (42.7%) had a moderate stroke (6 ≤ NIHSS ≤ 14) and 42 patients (29.3%) had a severe stroke (15 ≤ NIHSS ≤ 42), with the mean of 21, 21.8, and 25.6 ng/mL of 25(OH) vit D, respectively. Data showed no significant difference between 25(OH) vit D serum level and severity (P = 0.61). This study showed that low 25(OH) vit D serum level is common in male but there was not any relation between serum level of 25(OH) vit D, type, and severity of stroke.

Introduction: Vitiligo is a common acquired depigmented systemic disorder influencing the entire pigmentary system including Cochlear melanocytes and vestibular system in the inner ear. Vitiligo can leads to social negative impact and poorer quality of life among these patients. This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between skin involvement severity and hearing loss severity among vitiligo patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 98 patients with vitiligo referred to the dermatology clinic of Shahid Beheshti Hospital of Kashan during 2012-2014. Using Vitiligo Area Severity Index (VASI), the skin involvement was evaluated by a dermatologist. Then, patients referred to an otolaryngologist, and after otoscopic examination, they underwent audiometric testing including Audiometry, Tympanometry and Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR tests. Patients aged 10-50 years old without any other underlying diseases, and after rule out of other causes of depigmentation and leukoderm were included. Patients with congenital hearing impairment and patients with history of ototoxic drugs intake such as aminoglycosides, vancomycin and thiazide were excluded. Results: No significant association was found between severity of Vitiligo with conductive hearing loss. Vitiligo has not been correlated with sensory neural hearing loss. Also, there was no relationship between the duration of clinical manifestations of vitiligo with conductive and sensory neural hearing loss. Conclusions: Our finding showed that there was no relationship between skin involvement severity and hearing loss severity in vitiligo patients. In addition, no relationship was found between the conductive and sensory neural hearing losses with the incidence duration of clinical manifestation and extent of skin involvement of vitiligo.

Objectives: The aim of this research was to determine the effect of two months of intermittent aerobic exercise on cortisol and testosterone hormones. Methods: Twenty healthy sedentary volunteer male subjects (age: 22.2 ± 3.2; height: 174.5 ± 4.6 cm) participated in this research. They were randomly assigned into two groups of experimental and control conditions. Fasting blood sample was drawn prior to the start of the exercise program from both groups. The experimental group participated in 8 consecutive weeks of intermittent aerobic exercise running 4 distances of 200 meter with rest interval between each run. The running distance increased 400 meter weekly. At the end of the program, fasting blood samples was obtained to measure the testosterone and cortisol hormone. Results: The results of analysis indicated that no significant changes occurred in the mean value of serum testosterone of both groups in the experimental and control group (P > 0.05). However, the exercise condition caused a significant change in the mean value of serum cortisol in the exercising group (P = 0.0001). Conclusions: The significant change in cortisol was associated with significant weight loss in the exercise group suggesting that this condition caused inflammation in addition to the fat catabolism in the exercised group.

Background: Postural deformities are disabling complications emerging at the early years of life. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to study the frequency of scoliosis condition in guidance schools of the city of Kashan and compare their anthropometric characteristics with the normal counterparts. Methods: This was cross-sectional study including 604 females at guidance-school to determine the frequency of scoliosis in the city of Kashan. Adam's forward bend test was employed to identify the cases of disorder. Descriptive statistics and Independent t-test were used to analyze the data. Results: The result of examining 604 guidance school females showed that 108 (17.9%) female students had scoliosis deformity and 496 (82.1%) were normal. The result suggested that there was a significant difference between the height, weight, waist, waist/hip ratio (WHR) and Body Mass Index (BMI) of normal females compared to the scoliotic female student (P ≤ 0.05). Conclusions: It was concluded that a considerable proportion of females were suffering from scoliosis deformity and their anthropometric factors were in poorer condition compared to normal individuals. Therefore, early identification of scoliosis may significantly improve the effectiveness of treatment and rehabilitation.

One of the major traumas referring to the treatment centers are motor cycle riders. The purpose of this research was to describe characteristics of motor cycle traumas in the city of Kashan in year 2004. This descriptive retrospective research was conducted by referring to the data bank of Trauma Research Center of Kashan University of Medical Sciences and Health and Treatment Services. Statistical analysis was performed on data to extract the motor cycle accidents cases from the other existing records and analyzed by using SPSS:Pc 16.0. The result of analysis indicated that there was a significant difference between the proportions of injuries for the age groups (p=0.000). In addition, a significantly higher proportion of the injured cases had elementary education level. It was concluded that motor cycle accidents are more apprehensive than other types of traffic accidents so further studies are needed to identify different aspects of the event and overcome its mortality and morbidity.

In this study we investigated the effects of physical and mental practice in acquisition, retention, and transfer of a motor skill in individuals with cerebral palsy (CP). For this reason, 29 males diagnosed with CP type I (18.51 ± 5.03 years of age) were chosen and, according to a pretest, were assigned to three homogenous groups; physical practice (n = 10), mental practice (n = 10), and control (n = 9). The experimental groups practiced for 5 sessions (6 blocks of 5 trials in each session). The acquisition test was run immediately at the end of each practice session and the retention and transfer tests were run approximately 48 h following the acquisition phase. Analyses of variance with repeated measures and post hoc tests suggest individuals with CP have the ability to acquire and retain a new motor skill with either physical or mental practice. This finding replicates studies involving typically developing individuals and extends previous research by demonstrating the benefits of mental practice for people with CP. Implications for clinical practice and directions for future research are discussed.

Objective To help health authorities in adopting the ways to control pollution in the Kashan city and improve public health. Methods In descriptive epidemiologic research, 2 151 students were examined in 23 male and female schools. Their hair was examined for head louse infestation. Demographic data and related information were obtained by interview and observation. The data were recorded in the standard questionnaire and analyzed by SPSS statistical software by using Chi -square and fisher's exact tests. Results The prevalence of head louse infestation in students was 0.70%. This survey showed that 0.75% and 0.60% of the students in female and male schools were infected to head louse respectively. Statistical tests showed significant relation between pediculosis and, father's and mother's job, father's and mother's education, previous history of infection, itchy scalp and school health teachers ( P Conclusions The study indicated that the prevalence of pediculosis wasn't a major concern and health priority in Kashan's schools (2013). However, it was suggested that individual hygiene should be considered as a priority in the city to prevent the increase of infestation incidence, and also measures should be taken to increase the level of knowledge of individuals within the city.

Background: New pieces of evidence show that the leptin released from adipose tissue is associated with obesity; however, leptin response to different types of exercise programs in humans is unknown. Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare the effects of aerobic versus resistance training on serum leptin and insulin resistance in sedentary men. Methods: Thirty male volunteers with a mean age of 23.2 ± 1.23 years, body mass index (BMI) 23.9 ± 0.95 kg.m-2, fat percent 18.28 ± 1.15, and waist-to-hip ratio 0.89 ± 0.02 were randomly assigned into three groups, including aerobic, resistance exercise, and control groups (n = 10). The resistance exercise program was performed for 60 minutes at 70% of one repetition maximum for 3 sets. Every set consisted of 10 repetitions per move (RPM) followed by a 30-second-rest interval between every station accompanied by a 2-minute-rest between every set. The aerobic exercise program consisted of running on a treadmill for 30 minutes at 60 to 70 percent of reserved heart rate (maximum heart rate-heart rate rest). Fasting blood samples were collected before and after 6 weeks after the termination of the exercise protocol in order to determine the plasma leptin level and insulin resistance. Results: The results of one-way ANOVA showed that body fat percentage and waist-to-hip ratio were significantly decreased in both experimental groups and maximum aerobic power and one repetition maximum of bench press plus leg press were significantly increased (P < 0.05). In addition, insulin resistance levels were significantly decreased in both exercises groups compared with the control group. However, the leptin level was significantly decreased in the aerobic exercise group compared with the other two groups (P < 0.05). Conclusions: According to these findings, both aerobic and resistance training without changes in body weight and body mass index appear to be a non-prescriptive therapeutic approach to lower the insulin levels and insulin resistance in sedentary men. However, aerobic versus resistance training may play a role in regulating systemic leptin.

Evaluation of students' academic achievement is an unavoidable task for all faculty members of universities. The majority of academic institutions use multiple choice exams to evaluate their students. The question items that make up these exams need to possess certain psychometric properties to measure the student achievements. The purpose of this research was to examine the item properties of multiple choice exams used in the college of health of Kashan University of Medical Sciences. In this cross sectional descriptive study, a number of multiple choice exams used by the instructors were randomly selected. The difficulty index, discrimination index, and Cronbach alpha was calculated for every exam by using LERTAP 5.0 software prepared by the Assessment Systems Corporation of the United States to perform an item analysis. A total of 1343 multiple choice question items presented to the students at the college of health for evaluating 37 different subjects was analyzed. The results of analysis showed that the mean values of difficulty index and discriminating index were0.68 and 0.20, respectively. The average value of difficulty )0.68( and discrimination index )0.21( were relatively within the recommended values. However, some of the tests had value less than the recommended range and need careful reexamination. It was concluded that a feedback delivered to the instructors may improve these indexes. Further research is needed to examine this subject.

Article history: Objective: To investigate the prevalence of cutaneous leishmaniasis in important endemic focus of Kashan district, central of Iran during 2007-2008. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study and 5 098 individuals were selected from thirteen rural and urban districts of Kashan city. Information of positive cases including age, sex, job, number and sites of ulcers or scars, date and place of the ulcer, and results of clinical examination and laboratory tests were recorded. Diagnoses of affected cases were based on clinical examination and microscopic observation of the ulcer parasite. The results were analyzed with statistical Chi-square test. Results: An infection prevalence rate of 6.4% was obtained among 5 098 individuals. Regarding to 326 affected cases, 103 (2.0%) and 223 (4.4%) persons were observed with active lesion and scars, respectively. The highest frequency of active ulcer rate (23.3%) was associated with age group of 20-29 years old, while the lowest rate was related to age group of 0-9 years old with 7.8% infection. About 49.5% of the infected cases were under 30 years old. This study showed 64.1% of cases with one and the rest of them with two or more ulcers. Hands (46.6%) were the most affected parts of body. Conclusions: There is a progressive increasing of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Kashan district and this is a warning to local health workers to provide prevention as well as control program of the disease.

Introduction: Leishmaniasis is a parasitological disease, which is common between human andanimals. This disease cause always serious health problems for the human communities. This diseaseis prevalent in many parts of the world. Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a prevalent parasitologicaldisease with diverse clinical manifestations in Iran. It is an important health problem in many parts ofIran as well and its incidence has doubled over the last decade. This study was designed to determinethe epidemiology of CL in Kashan during 2007- 2008.Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study in which 5098 persons were randomlyselected in thirteen rural and urban districts of Kashan. The disease was diagnosed based on clinicalexamination and microscopic observation of the parasite in the ulcer site. The patient's informationsuch as age, sex, job, number and sites of ulcer(s) or scar(s), date and place of the ulcer, and results ofclinical examination and laboratory tests were recorded. Data analysis was performed using statisticalKi-square test.Results: The prevalence rate of disease in 5089 inhabitants studied was 6.4%. One hundred andthree persons (2%) had active ulcers and 223 persons (4.4%) had scar. Fifty three out of 200(26.5%)infected male suffering from CL, and fifty out of 126 (39.7%) infected female had active ulcer(P=0.013) The highest frequency and the least infected age groups were observed in 20-29 years oldpatients with a rate of 23.3% and 0-9 years old with the rate of 7.8%, respectively. 49.5% of theinfected cases were under 30 years old. 64.1% of the patients had one and 35.9% had two or moreulcers. The most common location of ulcers were on hands (46.6%) and then on feet, on face and onthe other parts of the body. 75.8% of the patients were infected in Kashan city. The estimated rate forCL incidence was approximately 37.6 cases in 100000 people in Kashan during 2007-2008Conclusion: The prevalence and incidence rate of CL are higher than expected rate in Kashan city.Such a high prevalence and incident rate is alarming and require control and prevention measures.Further epidemiological investigations of disease particularly CL are suggested .

INTRODUCTION: Postural deformities are commonly acquired disorders that occur throughout the life. The purpose of this research was to determine and compare the frequency of scoliosis disorder and anthropometric characteristics of normal versus the disordered Students.MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study that was performed on 1416 girls and boys of elementary school students in the city of Kashan in education year 2010-2011. Adams bending test was employed to examine 1416 students to identify the disorder. Seca scale was employed to measure weight and inflexible tape was used to measure the height of students. SPSS software was employed to analyze the data. RESULTS: The result of analysis showed that 63.8 percent of students were boys and 36.2 percent were girls. The frequency of scoliosis in boys and girls was 29.8 and 24.2 percent, respectively. Independent t-test result showed that there was a significant difference between the height and weight of normal versus the scoliosis identified boys and girls student (P=0.004, 0.031; 0.0001, 0.041).CONCLUSION: These types of studies are conducted regularly to identify poor postural cases at an early stage. The identification of acquired deformities at an early stage is important since it provides the opportunity to take the appropriate measures to correct them. Early identification of scoliosis is vital to maximize effectiveness of treatment.

Among the injury types, sports ones constitute a considerable proportion of patients who refer to the medical centers. This research was conducted to examine the frequency of sports-related injuries referring to Kashan University of Medical Sciences Trauma Research Center from 2005 to 2011.This was a retrospective research in which existing data from the data bank of Kashan University of Medical Sciences Trauma Research Center were employed. The data were extracted from the main source by SPSS version 16.0. Variables such as age, education, occupation and gender were analyzed.The highest proportion of injuries was observed in students (59.4%) followed by workers (11.8%). Upper and lower extremities were most commonly injured. The most frequent injury was strain (35.4%), followed by sprain (27.7%).The results of this research showed that the majority of the sports trauma occurrs in students; therefore, they need more attention in regard to sports injuries. Preventive measures such as informing the coaches and teachers as well as increasing the students'awareness about the injury risk can decrease the incidences of sports injuries.

Background: Trauma is an inescapable part of sports competitions. It occurs more frequently in contact sports such as wrestling. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency of injury in GrecoRoman style wrestling competitions at national level. Patients and Methods: This descriptive epidemiological research included 50 GrecoRoman style wrestlers who participated in national level competitions between the years 2003 and 2008. A questionnaire was completed by each participant, itincluded; the number of injuries to skin, muscle tissue, bones and joints. The reliability of the instrument was evaluated by a test – retest method (r = 0.83, P = 0.0001). Results: The most frequent injuries encountered by the wrestlers were; skin lesions (62%), followed by muscle (22%), bone (9%) and joint (7%) injuries, respectively. Conclusions: Greco-Roman style wrestlers are at high risk of skin injuries.Therefore, they need appropriate instructions on how to avoid injuries and adequate care after their competitions.

Congenital heart diseases are described as structural abnormalities of the heart and large vessels which are very important in the heart function and are differently prevalent in many societies. Few studies have been carried out on the prevalence of the congenital heart diseases and the condition of such patients within the first year of their life. In this investigation, the frequency of the neonates suffered from congenital heart diseases and the necessity to do interventional treatment within the first year after their birth have been studied. Methods: In this cohort study, all infants born in 2014 in Kashan city are examined for possible congenital heart diseases through physical and paraclinical examinations. The infants suffering from congenital heart disease were followed up for the necessity of interventional treatment during their first year of life. Findings: The frequency of the congenital heart disease was 1.09 percent. Valvular abnormalities and tetralogy of fallout with 23.1 and 21.8 percent respectively, were the most common congenital heart diseases. Among 78 patients, only 16 infants (20.5%) required early interventional treatment during the first year. Conclusion: In this study, it was found that congenital cardiac diseases are rarely common. Tetralogy of fallout as well as valvular defect was mostly common abnormality that needs early interventional treatments.

Asthma is the most common chronic childhood disease, and many of its risk factors have been identified. Although various studies on the link between vitamin D and asthma have been conducted, the role of vitamin D in the onset of asthma as an environmental health problem has not been well identified. This study aims to investigate the link between serum vitamin D level and asthma in children in Kashan, Iran. This case-control study was conducted on the asthmatic (n=99) and non-asthmatic (n=99) children. Asthma was monitored and examined using spirometry and by an allergy and asthma specialist. The patients were divided into three groups (mild, moderate, or severe) in terms of asthma severity. The age-matched children in the control group were selected from among non-asthmatic children. Serum vitamin D level was measured using radioimmunoassay (RIA) technique. Results: The mean serum vitamin D level of asthmatic children and the children in the control group was 14.76±14.19 ng/ml and 30.47±9.7 ng/ml, respectively (p < 0.001). The mean serum vitamin D level of the children with mild, moderate, and severe asthma was 17.6±14.2 ng/ml, 14.6±6.99 ng/ml, and 11.9±4.6 ng/ml, respectively, which was significantly less than the control group (p < 0.001). Serum vitamin D levels were not significantly different in terms of asthma severity. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that serum vitamin D level in asthmatic children is significantly less than in non-asthmatic children.

Objective: To determine the prevalence rate of head louse infestation among elementary students, and examine the associated factors with infection in the city of Aran and Bidgol. Methods: A total of 19 boys’ and girls’ primary schools were selected by multistage, systematic random sampling. Overall, 3 590 students were examined for head lice infestation in urban areas of Aran and Bidgol during 2008. The diagnosis was based on live louse or nit on the scalp of students. The students were screened by standard questionnaire and demographic data in addition to related information were obtained by interview and observation. The data were analyzed by SPSS software using chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests. Results: The mean age of students was (8.68依1.58) years ranging between 6-12 years. The total prevalence of head louse infestation was 0.47%. This rate was 0.42% and 0.05% in female and male, respectively. There was a significant association between pediculosis and sex, father’s job, mother’s education, access to bathroom in home, prior infection, drug use and nationality, respectively (P

Context: Infectious diseases including HIV and viral hepatitis constitute a major health issue, with high prevalence among injecting drug users (IDUs). Aims: The present study assessed the frequency of HIV, and hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and HCV) among 200 IDUs, hospitalized between 2001 and 2006, in Shahid Beheshti Hospital of Kashan, Iran. Setting and Design: A population-based cross-sectional study in Iran. Materials and Methods: A total of 200 subjects participated in this study. Serological markers including HBsAg, anti-HCV antibodies and HIV were assessed by ELISA method using Monobid kits made in US. Demographic data was collected by using a questionnaire, which was designed by a researcher. Statistical Analysis Used: Frequencies were determined by employing SPSS:PC version 15.0, and Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were used to compare proportions. Results: The mean age of subjects was 36.5 ± 10.2 years. Approximately 88.5% (177 cases) were male and 11.5%. (23 cases) were female. The frequency of positive infection test results for males with respect to HBV, HCV, and HIV was 4% (8 cases), 10.5% (21 cases), and 1.5% (3 cases); and for females it was 0.5% (1 case), 1.5% (3 cases), and 0% (0 case), respectively. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that the frequency of HBV, HCV, and HIV infection in the IVD user in Kashan, Iran, is relatively high and this condition is more serious in male than female drug addicts. It is very important, especially for health providers and policy makers, to recognize the risk factors of HBV, HCV and particularly HIV infection in this area and design effective preventive programs.