Journal of Archives in Military Medicine
Volume:2 Issue: 4, Nov 2014

Military service constitutes a stressful phase of an individual’s life, which can have psychological consequences and affect both their mental and physical health. Different variables in this regard have been examined so far, but the role of average length of service has gone unnoticed to a great extent.. As a result, the present study was an attempt to examine the effect of military service length on soldiers’ mental health assessed by the use of the four subscales present in the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ- 28)..Patients and Seven-hundred soldiers from three different randomly selected military bases in the North, Center, and South of Iran took part in the present study. Data were collected on the participants’ demographical information as well as their general health condition using GHQ-28.. Nearly 11 percent of the participants were diagnosed as having psychological disorders. The average service length for those diagnosed with psychological disorders was found to be 14.36 months (SD = 2.93), while it was only 8.5 months (SD = 1.89) in the case of healthy soldiers. Depressive symptoms were the most common problem among soldiers, with anxiety and social dysfunction standing second and third, respectively. The difference between the two groups’ length of service was found statistically significant in the case of all the three constructs being examined (p depression = 0.00, p anxiety = 0.03, p social dysfunctioning = 0.01).. Soldiers represent a major proportion of the male population in the society in Iran, and their health condition can indicate the society’s general health condition. However, it seems that as one’s length of service increases, the risk of suffering from psychological disorders is raised, which threatens the whole society’s psychological health conditions. The results of the present study imply that in order to have healthier individuals in the army and the society as a result, authorities need to take action..

Hospitals are regarded as the most important part of each healthcare system. At present, all hospitals are using hospital information system (HIS) as an infrastructure in recording, retrieval, and transmission of data, facilitation of decision-making processes, and other healthcare-related domains. However, its position, maturity, and boarder of its coverage are not quite clear. The hospitals affiliated with military healthcare in Iran are facing the same challenges. On the other hand, Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM) is a worldwide-recognized stage-based model that is used to assess the maturity of HISs in the hospitals.. This study aimed to assess the maturity and applicability of HISs in Iranian hospitals.. Two Iranian military hospitals were selected for HIS maturity assessment. Data were collected through interviewing related experts and the use of some software and documentation analysis. Then the data were compared with the EMRAM.. The results revealed that the HISs in these military hospitals had reached different stages of EMRAM while they could reach upper HIS maturity stages.. The maturity of HISs in Iranian military hospitals was almost the same as that of Iranian nonmilitary hospitals. The HISs in these hospitals did not utilize full potentials advantages of HIS and were placed at up to third stages of EMRAM..

Imagery technic is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy.. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of imagery therapy on patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP).. This study was a randomized clinical trial. During three months, 78 participants aged 18-61 with CLBP at least for one year were enrolled. The patients were randomized in two groups. The low back pain intensity (VAS) and the disability index (Oswestry questionnaire) were assessed at the admission time and 12 weeks after the treatment.. Of the participants, 36 (46.2%) were female. The mean of pain intensity changed favorably from 7.53 ± 1.07 to 4.2 ± 1.4 in the control group and from 7.45 ± 1.1 to 2.44 ± 1.09 in the case group. The estimated mean difference between the groups was in favor of imagery technic (95% confidence interval (CI), P < 0.001). The mean Oswestry disability index changed favorably from 24.54 ± 1.45 to 7.77 ± 2.05 in the control group and from 24.79 ± 1.52 to 4.51 ± 1.17 in the case group. The estimated mean difference between the groups was in favor of imagery technic (95% CI, P < 0.001).. With regard to the low cost of imagery technic and its effectiveness in our study, it is recommended to add this technic to our practice for patient with CLBP..

The type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) may alter the function of immune cells and produce inflammation, which is chronic, low grade and associated with insulin resistance. The aim of this study was to compare interleukin 17 (IL-17) level in T2DM and healthy control, and evaluate the relationship between IL-17 and anthropometric and laboratory characteristics of diabetic patients..Patients and A case-control study was carried out on 32 patients with T2DM (16 males and 16 females, aged 52.1 ± 8.0 years) who were hospitalized in Imam Reza hospital of AJA University of Medical Sciences for diabetes side effects, and 29 healthy control individuals (15 males and 14 females, aged 48.0 ± 8.6 years). Fasting blood sugar (FBS) was assessed colorimetrically by the GOD-POD method, and serum insulin and IL-17 levels were measured by ELISA method. Statistical analysis of the Student''s t-test and Pearson correlation coefficient were used.. The serum concentration of IL-17 was significantly higher in the patients with T2DM than in the controls (P = 0.002). It was also significantly higher in both male (P = 0.048) and female (P = 0.003) patients with T2DM than in their related controls. It was also significantly higher in the female than the male T2DM patients (P = 0.001). IL-17 level significantly correlated with age (r = 0.495, P = 0.001), body max index (BMI) (r = 0.347, P = 0.014), fasting blood sugar (r = 0.335, P = 0.043), insulin resistance (r = 0.338, P = 0.043), waist circumference (r = 0.329, P = 0.029) and insulin (r = 0.36, P = 0.025).. It seems that patients with T2DM - especially females - have significantly higher IL-17 level and it correlates with age, insulin resistance, FBS, BMI and waist circumference..

Context: The recent deadly Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak is an international alarm that desires a global action including military organizations..Evidence Acquisition: The evidence for and against the potential roles of military units in the current war against Ebola outbreak were searched and critically appraised.. The high infectivity and fatality rate of EVD and significant involvement of healthcare workers have pronounced the worst ever EVD outbreak. Furthermore, the widespread fear of transmission necessitates proper education to the communities in order to preserve the mental preparedness against EVD. Furthermore, Ebola had been investigated as a biologic weapon; however, no official report of its use has been documented. Nevertheless, even the natural spread has major impact on the global health and security. The current epidemic occurs in a region with limited resources, civil wars, bioterrorist threat and violated security. Then, military intervention may facilitate the outbreak control. However, there are some essential conditions for this interference to avoid possible disadvantages.. While military units could play major role in the context of a global action against this epidemic, there are criticisms about the way of action and the potential roles that armed force should take. This must be discussed by the military medicine authorities and requires an integrated responsive network of international community..