فصلنامه ابن سینا
سال پانزدهم شماره 3 (پیاپی 44، پاییز 1392)

The functional treatments of sprained ankle are widely used and accepted by physicians. However, reviewing the literature was not conclusive regarding the effectiveness of different kinds of functional treatments. The present study was an attempt to compare orthotic taping with ankle bracing in the treatment of sprained ankle at one of the military schools. All injured patients with acute sprained ankle received standard treatments (rest, ice, compressive bandage and elevation) at the clinic. After 5-7 days, 150 patients with grade II and III injury were randomly assigned to two different groups: one group was treated with taping and the other one with bracing for 4 weeks. Standard post-injury training was performed for both groups in the same way. Patients’ satisfaction and their skin complications were assessed using a questionnaire and a numerical scale for outcome evaluation. Then, the functioning of the ankle joint was examined using Karlsson’s scoring scale and its range of motion (ROM). Those treated with bracing reported much more comfort and satisfaction than those treated with taping, and skin complications were significantly lower in them (16.4% vs. 51.9%). However, the ankle joint functioning and the perceived pain were the same for both groups. Treatment of sprained ankle with bracing was more eligible from patients’ point of view, but in the case of the functional aspects, both treatments were found to be the same.

Prevalence determination of musculoskeletal disorders in high risk jobs has a significant role in early diagnosis of these disorders, identification of the related risk factors, and their effective prevention and treatment. The present study was an attempt to determine the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders among the military hospital nursing staff. 200 nursing staff working in AJA hospitals (74% female and 26% male; mean age 33.06±7 years) took part in this study by completing the Nordic questionnaire. Also demographic information on participants’ BMI, age, marital status and job experience was collected. Paired samples t-tests were run in order to analyze the data. Descriptive statistics were also used for examining the distribution of musculoskeletal disorders. The relationship between such disorders and participants’ BMI, age, and job experiences was also checked. According to the results, the musculoskeletal disorders in nurses were: low back pain (LBP) 47.8%, neck pain 45.8%, knee pain 43.8%, shoulder pain 43/8%, back pain 37.3%, foot pain 29.4%, wrist pain 22.4%, hip pain 15.9%, and elbow pain 14.4%. The prevalence of leg pain significantly increased as body mass index (BMI) and age (p<0.05) increased. Also pain in shoulder, back, elbow, wrist, hip, and knee increased as participants’ job experience increased (p<0.05). The prevalence of low back pain and wrist pain in married staff was more than single ones (p<0.05). The results showed that the most common areas of musculoskeletal pain in military nursing staff were the low back, neck, knee and shoulder. It is suggests that avoiding exposure to risk factors and using protective methods be used in order to prevent such disorders.

Human resources play an important role in the success or failure of an organization, and the society’s development largely depends on improving its human resources. Job satisfaction and employees’ psychological empowerment are two concepts in line with the development of human resources. In this regard, we aimed to investigate the relationship between psychological empowerment and job satisfaction in the military forces. Totally, 300 armed force personnel (Sepah, Army, and Police) were selected using convenience sampling method, and the standardized questionnaires of job satisfaction (Job Descriptive Index: JDI) and psychological empowerment (Spreitzer) were used for data collection. Descriptive statistics as well as Pearson’s correlation and stepwise regression analysis were run using SPSS 16 for data analysis. The results showed that job satisfaction and psychological empowerment had a significant positive relationship (p=0.001). Also stepwise regression analysis showed that total psychological empowerment was the first and most important variable for predicting job satisfaction among the predictor variables, explaining %78 of the criterion variance. The variables of Influence, Competence, and Meaningfulness were respectively entered into the equation and were observed to explain 82%, 83%, and 81% of the criterion variance, respectively. It was observed that higher psychological empowerment was associated with higher levels of job satisfaction among armed force personnel.

Seminars and congresses provide an academic atmosphere to present unpublished data and new scientific achievements. In this regard, assessing the quality of such academic events can play an important role in developing their scientific values and identifying their weaknesses. In this descriptive, cross-sectional study, the abstracts of the two recently held aerospace and submarine medicine congresses were evaluated. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis. Results showed that the majority of the presented articles (about 90%) were review articles and only about 10% of contributors had submitted original research studies. In addition, the affiliation of the corresponding author in most articles was AJA University of Medical Sciences (64% and 86.7% in the first and the second congress, respectively). Toxicity and occupational medicine were the most frequent subjects (40% and 28.2%, respectively). The results indicated that the quality of abstracts presented in both congresses was not satisfactory. It seems necessary to find a proper strategy to improve the scientific and research quality of such events in future.

This study aimed to assess the role of personality traits (five major factors of personality) to predict military students’ resilience level. 353 randomly selected students studying at a military university in Iran took part in this correlational study. Two questionnaires were used to collect data on the research variables: NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) with 60 items and Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis were run using stepwise method. It was observed that such personality traits as Conscientiousness, Extraversion and Agreeableness were positively and significantly related with Resilience in participants. Only Neuroticism had a significant inverse relation with Resilience, with Openness to experience showing no significant relationship with Resilience. Regression analysis showed that Conscientiousness was the most powerful factor in predicting Resilience. It could predict 34% of the change in Resilience. Also Neuroticism could explain 5% of the variance in the standard variable (i.e. resilience). Totally, two predictor variables could explain 39% of the variance in resilience. Given the results, understanding the personality characteristics can help predict individuals’ resilience in stressful situations.

Reviewing hospital performance not only can identify the strengths of that organization but can also improve our understanding of hospital management. This study aimed to analyze the functional aspects of hospital management in selected military hospitals using Weisbord's six-box model. The present study, which was a descriptive and analytical one, was carried out in 5 selected military hospitals in 2013. Data collection was done using a standardized questionnaire whose validity and reliability had already been confirmed (α =%88). 280 randomly selected employees, determined using Cochran’s formula, took part in this study. The results showed that having a clear organizational structure with a mean of 4.08±0.27 achieved the highest score while having a clear rewarding mechanism with a mean of 2.98±1.25 received the lowest rating in the Weisbord's six-box model. Generally, the functional aspects of management in the studied hospitals were acceptable. Significant relationships were observed between the inter-organizational communication and the organization's rewarding mechanism (p=0.04), the organizational structure index and the rewarding mechanism (p=0.03), and the existing job coordination and having pre-specified organizational goals (p=0.01). The focus of the senior management team on the functional aspects of management in hospitals can improve their performance. Due to the significance and diversity of military hospital performance and missions, the assessment of the organization’s internal environment, present conditions, and performance as well as the identification of its problems and potentials seem to be quite necessary.

According to the sociological analyses, in today’s societies, terrorism is one of the dire threats of the 21st century. The use of biological weapons, while rare, has a long history. Recently, the use of anthrax has been considered as one of the most dangerous biological threats. This study was carried out by searching ‘bioterrorism,’ ‘anthrax,’ and ‘biological weapon’ as keywords in Google and PubMed data bases from 1990 to 2013. Anthrax, a gram-positive bacterium, has typically been associated with three forms: cutaneous, gastrointestinal, and inhalational infection. Currently a fourth disease form has been reported (i.e. injectional anthrax) which is characterized by severe soft tissue infection and is prevalent among injection drug users. While cutaneous anthrax is the most common form of disease, vivid clinical scenarios and well-timed diagnosis can provide satisfactory outcome. Inhalational anthrax is the most fatal type of the disease. However, due to the similarity of the symptoms among patients with gastrointestinal, inhalational or injectional anthrax, they may have advanced infection at presentation. Once anthrax is suspected, the diagnosis can usually be made with gram staining and blood or tissue culturing followed by confirmatory testing (e.g. PCR). Although antibiotics are the mainstay of anthrax treatment, use of adjunctive therapies such as anthrax toxin antagonist, corticosteroids, mechanical ventilation and vaccination should be taken into consideration as well. Progress in detection, suitable vaccines, post exposure prophylaxis, infection control and decontamination are serious tools in fighting against the most powerful biological weapons. To assure that the public health and health care systems can respond to emergencies, the governments should provide medication stockpiles and improve the public health infrastructures in order to strengthen the emergency response system.

Documentation of the armed forces’ health information especially during the crises is essential to optimize health care delivery and management of wounded soldiers’ evacuating process. In this regard, developing the documentation systems in order to increase functionality, efficiency, and veterans’ satisfaction as well as the quality of the care is an undeniable necessity. In this research, a comparative study has been conducted on selected countries to provide recommendations for the improvement of Iran's military medical documentation systems. The present study was a descriptive-comparative study aimed to assess military medical documentation systems in selected countries using books, articles, journals, and electronic resources of information. Findings indicated that the USA, Australia and the UK, in contrast with Iran, have their own specific military inpatient and outpatient electronic health records, and they use classification, storage, retrieval, and transmission information systems in order to support the documentation of armed forces’ health data in times of disasters. Based on the obtained results, implementation of a military electronic health record which collects all the primary, secondary, dentistry, rehabilitation, and other healthcare data of our country’s armed forces from recruitment to retirement is necessary. Also as part of this record, electronic documentation of the armed forces’ health information in times of crises and in operational areas must be conducted.