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Background: The trend of chronic diseases is increasing globally. Socioeconomic status (SES) is a major factor underlying many chronic diseases. This study was conducted to investigate the socioeconomic inequalities in distribution of chronic diseases in Iran, as a middle-income country. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted using the baseline data of the Kharameh cohort study, that were collected between 2014 and 2016. The number of participants in this study was 10 663 people in the age range of 35 to 70 years. Principal component analysis was used for calculating the SES of the people under study. In addition, we used concentration index and concentration curve to measure socioeco nomic inequality in chronic disease. Results: The mean age of 10,663 participants in our study was 52.15 ± 8.22 years and the male to female ratio was 1.26. Recurrent headache (25.8%( and hypertension (23.5%) were the most prevalent diseases. The concentration index showed that the distribution of movement disorder, recurrent headaches and gastroesophageal reflux diseases is significantly concentrated among people with low SES, and obesity among people with high SES. The results of the analysis by gender were similar to the results seen in all participants. Conclusion: The findings of this study show that socioeconomic inequality is the cause of the concentration of non-communicable diseases among people with low socio-economic status. Therefore, health policy makers should pay special attention to identifying vulnerable subgroups and formulate strategic plans to reduce inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality and a major public health problem all over the world. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the years of life lost (YLLs) due to COPD between 2011 and 2019 in Khuzestan province, southern Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study evaluated a total of 715 COPD-related deaths during 2011–2019 in Khuzestan, Southern Iran. Required information comprised of age, gender, and number of deaths were collected. First, crude and age-standardized mortality rates were calculated, and then the joinpoint regression was used to evaluate the trend of YLLs. Results: The highest number of deaths during the study period was observed in males (65%) and in the age group of over 70 years (52.6%). There was also a decreasing trend in crude and age age-standardized mortality rates in both genders. The total number of YLLs in both genders was 8650, 5747 in men and 2903 in women. Based on the results of joinpoint regression, the percentage of annual YII changes was −1.5% in men, −10.7% in women, and −6.6% in both genders. Conclusion: Estimating the trend of YLLs due to COPD can effectively help and lead the way of health policymakers and provide useful information to estimate the economic burden of the disease and assess health needs and priorities of a population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Multimorbidity is one of the problems and concerns of public health. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and identify the risk factors associated with multimorbidity based on the data of the Kherameh cohort study. Methods: This cross‐sectional study was performed on 10,663 individuals aged 40–70 years in the south of Iran in 2015 to 2017. Demographic and behavioral characteristics were investigated. Multimorbidity was defined as the coexistence of two or more of two chronic diseases in a person. In this study, the prevalence of multimorbidity was calculated. Logistic regression was used to identify the predictors of multimorbidity. Results: The prevalence of multimorbidity was 24.4%. The age‐standardized prevalence rate was 18.01% in males and 29.6% in females. The most common underlying diseases were gastroesophageal reflux disease with hypertension (33.5%). Multiple logistic regression results showed that the age of 45–55 years (adjusted odds ratio [ORadj]] = 1.22, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.07–1.38), age of over 55 years (ORadj = 1.21, 95% CI, 1.06–1.37), obesity (ORadj = 3.65, 95% CI, 2.55–5.24), and overweight (ORadj = 2.92, 95% CI, 2.05–4.14) were the risk factors of multimorbidity. Also, subjects with high socioeconomic status (ORadj = 1.27, 95% CI, 1.1–1.45) and very high level of socioeconomic status (ORadj = 1.53, 95% CI, 1.31–1.79) had a higher chance of having multimorbidity. The high level of education, alcohol consumption, having job, and high physical activity had a protective role against it. Conclusion: The prevalence of multimorbidity was relatively high in the study area. According to the results of our study, age, obesity, and overweight had an important effect on multimorbidity. Therefore, determining interventional strategies for weight loss and control and treatment of chronic diseases, especially in the elderly, is very useful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The trend of suicide attempt by medication overdose has shown an increasing trend in recent years. The present study was conducted to investigate the epidemiology of suicide attempts and completed suicide by medication overdoses in Fars's province between 2011 and 2019. This cross-sectional study was performed on 40334 suicide attempts by medication overdose. First, fetal rate, and crude and aged-standardized mortality rate (ASR) were calculated. Then, χ2 test was used to calculate the trend of rates of suicide attempt and completed suicide, also to explore differences between qualitative and outcome variables. Finally, logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with suicide outcome. The mean age of the participants was 26.66 ± 11.03 years. The highest ASR for suicide attempt by medication overdose was observed in the age range of 15–24 years. The rate of completed suicide by medication overdose was estimated as 1.22%. The odds of completed suicide were 2.7 times higher in men than in women, 2.7 times higher in people with a family history of suicide, and 1.7 times higher in people with a previous history of suicide. The results of our study may help health policymakers to effectively prevent recurrence of suicide attempts through establishing effective strategies for timely identification and appropriate intervention among high-risk individuals with previous history of suicide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Statement of the Problem: Oral health is one of the most important public health problems. The DMF index is used to assess oral health status. Purpose: This study was performed to evaluate oral health status based on DMF index in adults in Fars province. Materials and Method: This cross-sectional study was performed on 8911 people aged 40 to 70 years under the Kharameh cohort study in 2020. Demographic and oral health factors were collected during interviews and clinical evaluation. T test, ANOVA, and linear regression tests were used for data analysis. Results: The mean and standard deviation of DMF index was 18.06±8.7in all individuals under study. Multiple linear regression results showed that diabetes (OR=1.1 95%CI: 0.9- 1.9 p= 0.0001), smoking (OR=4.4 95%CI: 4-4.9 p= 0.0001) and underweight (OR=2.1 95%CI: 1.1-3.1 p= 0.0001) are the factors affecting the increase in DMF index. Other factors such as high level of education, economic and social class, flossing, and living in a village have been inversely related to the DMF index. Conclusion: The results of this study are a warning about the importance of reducing dental costs to increase the level of access of people with low economic and social levels and increase health literacy in relation to oral health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]