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Fishes are a valuable source of dietary protein and minerals for seafood consumers and are also used in pharmaceutical products (Mozaffarian, 2009). Over the past several decades aquatic ecosystems have been extensively contaminated with pollutants released from domestic and industrial waste waters and other anthropogenic activities in Khuzestan, Iran. Heavy metals such as mercury are considered as one of the four most important pollutants of aquatic life because of their high toxicity and ability to bioaccumulate in tissue of aquatic organisms (Hajeb et al., 2009). The toxicity of Hg is highly dependent on its chemical form. Organic mercury compounds are more toxic than inorganic mercury salts which may bioaccumulate to levels that could increase health risks to seafood consumers (Syversen and Kaur, 2012). Since most mercury in fish tissue is present as methyl mercury (Me-Hg), it has been recommended that T-Hg in tissues can serve as a surrogate for Me-Hg (Kannan et al., 1998).

Patients on maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) experience decreased quality of life (QoL) and significantly higher rates of malnutrition, inflammation, hospitalization and mortality when compared with the normal population. The dietary approach in the different phases of chronic renal failure is one of the most important, and yet controversial, topics in the whole history of nephrology, even when dialysis facilities were not easily available. Although much progress has been made in recent years in recognizing the link between malnutrition, different diseases and increased mortality, no consensus has yet been reached concerning the ideal assessment and management of nutritional status in dialysis patients in Iran. In this study, 70 patients on MHD in the teaching hospitals in Urmia were divided into two groups and were requested to fill in the validated SF-36 QoL questionnaire. One group of 35 patients received dietary counseling while the other did not and acted as controls. The SF-36, a short-form QoL scoring system consists of 36 questions that are compressed into eight multi-item scales covering all aspects of QoL. The two groups studied were similar in age, level of education, gender and duration of dialysis treatment; 46.8% of the patients were female and 52% were male. The total SF-36 score was slightly higher in males compared with females, but this difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.05). The scores were higher in the group counseled about diet. Overall, the difference in physical health, in work activities and QoL as a whole, between the two groups, was statistically significant (t = 2.04, df = 34, P = 0.049; t = 2.04, df = 34, P = 0.049; t = 2.28, df = 1.96, P = 0.043, respectively). The QoL was considerably diminished in HD patients, but less so in the group that was educated about their nutrition. Improvement in QoL is achievable in patients if their discomfort is more effectively treated medically. One of the methods for this is education about their nutritional program, which can be used for other chronic diseases too. More research is needed to assess whether interventions help to improve QoL and lower heath risks among patients on HD.

Objective: A depressive disorder is an illness that involves the body, mood, thoughts and behaviors. This study was performed to identify the presence of depression among medical students of Urmia University of Medical Sciences. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 700 undergraduate medical and basic sciences students. Beck depression inventory (BDI) used for data gathering. Results: Mean score of BDI was 10.4 ± 0.8 and 52.6% of students scored under the depression threshold. Four of them had severe depression. Results showed no significant relationship between depression and age, education, sex, rank of birth or duration of education. Conclusion: Prevalence of depression that can affect the students’ quality of education and social behavior was high in Urmia University of Medical Sciences.