aioub sofizadeh

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is a widespread parasitic infectious disease in the tropics and subtropics. This disease is endemic in parts of Qom province in central Iran. The aim of this study was to determine the epidemiological characteristics and endemicity of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Qom province.

In a cross-sectional study, out of 45 villages located in endemic areas of cutaneous leishmaniasis in central and Kahak districts of Qom province, 8 villages were randomly selected. At the end of each seasons, each household was visited and demographic information, infection or history of getting leishmaniasis among people living in these households were recorded in the standard forms.

Out of 4228 people living in 8 endemic leishmaniasis villages in Qom province, 1920 (45.41%) had scars and a history of getting disease. 165 new cases with active lesions were reported. The incidence of the disease in the studied population was 71.49 per 1000 persons. In the present study, 13.33% of patients were under 7 years old and 67.87% were patients over 15 years old. With this description, the study areas were generally classified as hypoendemic areas.

Due to the fact that the condition of the disease in the study areas is hypoendemic. Therefore, personal protection methods against sandfly bites such as the use of mosquito nets, especially mosquito nets impregnated with insecticides, using the nets for doors and windows in residential areas and the use of insect repellent compounds to control the disease in these areas are recommended.

Malaria resurgence has occurred in the northern half parts of Iran. Factors such as the continual move ment of local people from problematic malaria foci in southeastern Iran toward the Caspian Littoral and wide use of pesticides in the agriculture sector were led to establish the diseases in the prone area. There are no new data on the re sistance status of main malaria vectors in the Caspian Littoral, and this study was aimed at renewal data on conventional insecticides.

The field strain of adult Anopheles superpictus and Anopheles maculipennis were collected using the hand catch method and transferred to the laboratory. The susceptibility tests were carried out against DDT 4%, Malathion 5%, Permethrin 0.75%, Deltamethrin 0.05%, and Lambda-cyhalothrin 0.05%, followed by the WHO’s procedure.

The primary malaria vector in Caspian Littoral is An. maculipennis, which still resistance to DDT and mortali ty rate, LT50 and LT90 of female mosquitoes were 75.0%, 54.2, minutes and 111.3 minutes. The under ’verification re quired’ status of An. maculipennis was also revealed to Lambda-cyhalothrin based on recent WHO’s criteria. The ma laria vector An. superpictus is also considered the second malaria vectors in the west parts of the studied area, which shown to be susceptible to all insecticides tested.

DDT resistance is persisted in An. maculipennis despite stopping residual spraying with DDT since 1978 in the Caspian Littoral, but the occurrence of pyrethroid under ’verification required’ status is a progressive threat to the possible development of cross-resistance in the future.

Leishmaniasis is one of the most important parasitic diseases in the Golestan Province, northeastern Iran. In this study, we summarize the results of studies on the disease and its causative agent Leishmania in humans, vectors and reservoirs in the Golestan Province, Iran.

We retrieved all articles related to leishmaniasis in the Golestan Province, northern Iran from 1994 to 2018 in various databases including PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science. Articles in Persian were retrieved from the IranMedex, SID and Magiran. Reference lists of relevant articles were also hand-searched. Local active researchers in the field of leishmaniasis were contacted to avoid missing any relevant articles. Overall, 54 papers were extracted, later evaluated by two research team members based on inclusion criteria. All analyses were performed using the Stata 14 software. Pooled prevalence was calculated using the metaprop command and a random-effect model. The I² statistic was used for measuring heterogeneity of studies.

Ten articles in the province were related to detection of Leishmania species in patients with suspected cutaneous or visceral leishmaniasis. Fifteen articles were dedicated to identification of Leishmania species in disease reservoirs and five articles were about detection of the parasite in sand flies. The pooled prevalence of L. major in patients with acute ulcer, wild rodents and sandflies was 83%, 29% and 11%, respectively.

Our findings highlight the need for implementation of control measures among the reservoirs of both cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis in the Golestan Province, Iran.

zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL) is one of the most important health problems in Golestan Province, northeastern Iran. Several studies have investigated various aspects of the disease in this province. Herein, we provide a detailed review of the results of all studies related to leishmaniasis to give a reliable insight into the state of the disease in this province.

The search for articles was performed in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science without language restriction until the beginning of 2019.  Articles in Persian were retrieved from the Magiran, Scientific Information Database, and IranMedex. Overall, 41 articles were subjected to content analysis under the different themes.

Counties of Gonbad-e-Kavus and Maraveh Tappeh are endemic areas of ZCL with an incidence rate 99.4-379.1 in 100000 population and has mesoendemic situation in these counties. Leishmania major is the dominant (99.1%) agent of leishmaniasis. Among 18 sandflies species detected in the province, Phlebotomus papatasi was the main vector of the disease with a mean infection rate of 9.2%. Peak of sandflies activity was recorded in the mid-July and mid-September. Rhombomys opimus and Meriones libycus were the main reservoirs of this disease with a mean infection rate of 25.3 and 31.8%. The density of sandflies and wild rodents were highest in the endemic areas for ZCL.

In Golestan Province, ZCL has been in a hypoendemic situation and in some areas in a mesoendemic situation and has increased significantly in recent years, so it is recommended to investigate the reasons for this increase.

Head lice are obligatory human and animal ectoparasites that are considered one of the most important health problems around the world. The aim of this study was to estimate the economic burden associated with head louse infestation in Qom province using Activity Based Costing.

In a cross-sectional census study, all schoolchildren in census form Qom province were investigated for head lice infestations in the year 2018. Also, all individuals who had complained of head lice infestation were examined and the confirmed cases were entered to the study for evaluating of economic burden of head lice. The two financial soft wares (Azarakhsh and Roozamad) in Excel were used to costs analysis of government expenditures (direct and indirect costs) and out of pocket costs.

Economic burden of head lice infestation was estimated 14,985,409,572 rials (299,709$). The direct and indirect costs; governmental cost, out of pocket and total costs (governmental +out of pocket) of head lice infestation were included 157,337 rials (3.14$), 141,675 rials (2.84$), 299,012 rials (5.98$), 280,000 rials (5.60$) and 579,012 rials (11.58$) per case respectively.

Head lice infestation impose high costs on government healthcare systems, and in particular on households. Therefore, it is recommended that, while prioritizing lice-prevention programs, a larger share of the health care costs to pay by the government healthcare systems. It makes the out-of-pocket payments will be minimized.

Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) are medically considered as one of the most important species of insects in terms of disease transmission to human beings; hence, they can be vectors of remarkable diseases such as malaria, West Nile, dengue fever, yellow fever, and filariasis. This study aimed to determine the species diversity and larval habitat characteristics of mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) in Golestan Province in 2016. In this descriptive cross-sectional study, larval habitats of mosquitoes were investigated in 14 counties of Golestan Province. Samples were collected by a standard ladle used for entomology. The collected larvae in lactophenol solution were transferred to a medical entomology laboratory in Gonbad-e Qabus County, and then microscopic slides were prepared. Mosquitoes species were identified based on their morphologic attributes and authentic identification keys. Larval habitat characteristics were studied in terms of the habitat type (permanent or temporary), water conditions (clear or turbid, stagnant or running), vegetation (with or without vegetation), sunlight exposure (full or partial exposure), and others. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS software version 18. On the basis of analysis, 2891 third and fourth instars larvae, 4 genera (Anopheles, Culex, Culiseta, and Ochlerotatus), and 9 species (Anopheles superpictus, Culex mimiticus, Culex perexiguus, Culex pipiens, Culex pusillus, Culex theileri, Culex tritaeniohynchus, Culiseta longiareolata, Ochlerotatus caspius) of mosquitoes were detected, with the Culex pipiens being recognized as the dominant species of this family in Golestan Province. Due to the high species diversity of Culicidae in Golestan Province, further studies are of essence to investigate the ecology of medically important species such as Culex pipiens, Culex tritaeniorhynchus, and Anopheles superpicts, which are the vectors of many diseases in Golestan province.

Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) is one of the most medically important families of Diptera. The aims of this study were to determine fauna and larval habitat characteristics of mosquitoes in Golestan Province, during 2014–15. This study was conducted in larval habitats of mosquitoes and installed ovitraps in 14 districts of Golestan Province, Northern Iran in 2015. Samples were collected with a scoop by ladle handling for entomology. The col lected larvae were transferred to Laboratory of Medical Entomology in lactophenol solution. Then microscopic slides were prepared using de Faure's formula. Species of each sample was recognized using diagnostic criteria to identify the Culicidae species. Characteristics of larval breeding places were studied based on the habitat type (Permanent or temporary), water conditions (Clear or turbid, stagnant or running), vegetation (out, in, underwater vegetation or without vegetation), sunlight exposure (Full or partial sunlight) and so on. Data were analyzed using SPSS. Overall, 5661 third- and fourth- instars larvae of mosquitoes were collected and 5 genera and 14 species were identified: Anopheles hyrcanus, An. maculipennis, An. pseudopictus, An. superpictus, Culex hortensis, Cx. mimiticus, Cx. perexiguus, Cx. pipiens, Cx. pusillus, Cx. theileri, Cx. tritaeniohynchus, Culiseta longiareolata, Och lerotatus caspius, Uranotaenia unguiculata. Culex pipiens was recognized as predominant species of the family. Among the detected species, Cx. pusillus reported for the first time from Golestan Province. Due to the high species diversity of Culicidae, ecology of medical important species such as Cx. pipiens and Cx. tritaeniorhynchus needs more investigations.

Intestinal parasite infection is one of the major health problems in the world especially in the developing countries.
This study was an attempt to examine the prevalence of intestinal parasite infection in the day care centers in Gonbad-e Kavus.
In this cross sectional study, 932 children were recruited from 45 day care centers in Gonbad-e Kavus in Iran, through a survey and their stool samples were examined using direct wet mount, formalin-ether concentration and Trichrome staining techniques. Also, scotch tape slides were microscopically analyzed. Data were analyzed using percentage, frequency and Chi-square test using SPSS ver.16. Odds Ratio was used show the effect size of socio-demographic variables on the rate of intestinal parasite infection.
The prevalence of intestinal parasite infections among the children was 26.6%. This study found a significant relationship between the children age, parent education and the place of residency with the rate of intestinal parasite infection (P Due to the high rate of intestinal parasite infections among children, parents and child care workers need to learn about the various means by which parasites can be transmitted in day care centers.

Aquatic insects are very abundant and divers groups of insects that are associated with an aquatic or semiaquatic environment in one or more of their life stages. These insects have been, in some cases, well studied because they are vectors of several diseases. This is the first comprehensive faunistic study of aquatic insects from Babol County. The results may provide basic data for further taxonomic and ecological studies of aquatic insects as biological control agent or classification of water quality for the country.
The specimens were collected using different methods including: D-frame net collector, standard mos­quito dipper (350ml), Sweep-Netting and plastic pipette. Sampling carried out in different part of breading places in several times.
During this study a total of 196 aquatic specimens were collected from different habitats and were mor­phologically identified including 18 families classified in 6 orders: Diptera, Trichoptera, Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Hemiptera and Odonata. Babol and Amol district in Mazandaran Province are located in humid climate regions with suitable ecological factors of humidity, moderate temperature and the variety of plant species. There are different species of aquatic insects in different habitats.
The results will provide information for biodeveristy, species richness, their role for biological control as well as calcification of rivers based on abundance of aquatic insects. Therefore the understanding of ecological specifications of aquatic insects could provide a clue for further Arthropod-borne disease control. Additionally aquatic insect could be used for classification of water bodies.

There are unorganized, published documents about the ecology of mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) in northeastern part of Iran. The purpose of this study was to determine the distribution and characteristics of larval habitats of Culicidae in Kalaleh County.
Larvae were collected using dipping method and adults by human landing catch technique during April–October, 2012. Larval habitat characteristics were recorded such as vegetation status, and sunlight, water situation. Lacto-phenol and de Faure’s media were used for conserving and mounting samples. Data were analyzed using SPSS statistical software, version 11.5.
Out of the 395 larvae collected, 332 were adult mosquitoes comprising; Culiseta, Culex, Anopheles and Ochlerotatus genera and 14 species including An. superpictus, An. maculipennis s.l., An. hyrcanus, An. psudopictus, An. claviger, Culex pipiens, Cx. theileri, Cx. perexiguus, Culiseta longiareolata, Cs. subochrea, Ochlerotatus cas­pius, Oc. echinus and Oc. geniculatus. Culex pipiens larvae were predominant (27.6%) and Cs. subochrea (1%) was found as the lowest species in terms of number. In the adult form, Cx. pipiens (28.9%) was predominant whereas, Cs. subochrea and Cx. perexiguus were reported to have had the lowest frequency.
The larvae of An. superpictus and An. maculipennis species as the main vectors of malaria in north of Iran were reported in permanent habitats with clear water and vegetation, full and partial sunlight situations and muddy as well as sandy substrates that are important in larvicide application programs. Exclusive studies are neces­sary to diagnose An. maculipennis species complex using molecular and morphological analysis in the future.

Zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL) is one of the most important vector-borne diseases in Iran. Wild Rodents play as a reservoir. The main aim of this study was to determine spatial analyses of the relationship between rodent’s active burrows and Incidence of ZCL in Golestan Province, north east of Iran.
The cross-sectional study was conducted in 59 rural districts in Golestan Province. Spatial distribution of rodent’s active burrows, human cases of ZCL and Incidence of disease were collected, using Geographical Infor­mation Systems (GIS). The relationship of them were analyzed by Sperman test, SPSS software version No.13.
The most number of rodents’ active burrows, human positive cases (100 persons) and high Incidence of disease (35/1000) were observed in Korand rural district of Gonbad-e Kavoos County. There was significant corre­lation between the number of rodents active burrows with Incidence rate of disease (0.470, P Vicinity of wild rodents’ burrows to villages plays an important role in transmission of ZCL to humans.

Leishmaniasis is a vector borne disease, which is transmitted by sandflies. This study aims to determine the epidemiological status of leishmaniasis and ecological characteristics of sandflies in Maraveh-Tapeh County, Golestan province. In this study, incidence rate of the disease was calculated and its distribution in different rural district was determined using GIS method. Then, 3 villages were randomly selected, and sampling of sandflies was performed in July, August, and September. Ten sticky traps were installed once a month in living places of human, livestock, and birds, rodents’ burrows, and unroofed places. All captured sandflies were collected and their species were identified. A total of 159 cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis were reported in 2011-2012, of which the highest incidence rate was in Maraveh-Tapeh district. Furthermore, a total of 1983 sandflies were collected and 13 species of sandflies were identified. Ph. papatasi (31.6%) was the predominant species in the district, and also predominant species in rodent burrows, and human and livestock indoor living places. S. sintoni was the predominant species in bird indoor living places and unroofed places. There was a significant association between different species of sandflies and various capture areas (p<0.001). In this study, the sandflies capture rate per trap was 7.93, of which the highest rate was in rodent burrows and lowest rate was in human indoor living places, which were 17.94 and 2.3 sandflies per trap, respectively. The results of the present study showed that rodent burrows are suitable places for rest and reproduction of sandflies.

A survey on tick species composition was carried out in Golestan Province Iran during year 2010–2011.The aim was to determine tick species parasitizing domestic ruminants and their seasonal population dynamics. A total of 124 sheep, 92 goats, 84 cattle, 74 camels and 12 horses in several villages were inspected for tick infestation. The collected ticks preserved in 70% alcohol and then were identified. The overall 1059 ticks (453 female, 606 male) were collected. The ticks occur on sheep, goats, cattle, cam­els and horses as 72.1%, 77.3%, 75.8%, 69.3%, and 50% respectively. The frequency of ticks in spring was more than other seasons and the least was observed in winter. In the spring and summer, infestation rate in domestic rumi­nants were calculated as 100%. Six genus and fourteen hard and soft tick species were identified including Rhipicephalus sanguineus, R. bursa, Ixodes ricinus, Haemaphysalis punctata, H. sulcata, H. erinacei, H. inermis, Hyalomma marginatum, Hy. asiaticum, Hy. dromedarii, Hy. excavatum, Hy. anatolicum, Hy. detritum, Boophilus annulatus and Argas persicus. Rhipicephalus sanguineus was the most abundant species in the study area. The larg­est number of ticks was collected from animal ears and tails. Haemaphysalis, Hyalomma, Rhipicephalus and Boophilus occurred in mountainous, forest and plateau areas of Golestan Province but Ixodes occurred only in mountainous and forest areas, whereas Rhipicephalus and Hyalomma were present in coastal areas of Golestan Province. The result of this study is a survey on tick species from domestic animals in Iran and implication of possible prevention measures for diseases transmitted by ticks.

leishmaniasis is a Zoonotic disease that is transmited by sandfly to human. This study were carried out in order to demonstrate some ecological characters of leishmaniasis vectors in Kalaleh district, Golestan province, Iran, during 2006-07. In present study 6 villages were selected. Sandfly were collected by sticky traps. 3 places were sampled in each village and in each places 20 traps were installed. After sampling collection, we used diagnostic criteria to identify the Sandflies, also confirmed human cases were recorded according to the months of identification. 4900 sandflies were detected in 6 villages and 12 species of sandflies were identified, which including P.papatasi, P.mongolensis, P.caucasicus, P.caucasicus group, P.sergenti, P.alexandri, P.kazeroni, P.brevis, P.(adlerius) sp, S.sintoni, S.clydei, S.sogdiana). P.papatasi was predominant species in indoor places (46.1%) and S.sintoni was in outdoor places (36.7%). Sandflies activities extended from early May through mid October with two peaks in mid June and September. Human infection had a important peak in January. During the collection of sandflies, the species of P.alexandri, P.kazeroni, P.brevis, P.(Adlerius sp.), S.clydei and S.sogdiana were collected for the first time from this area. In this study, P.papatasi was the predominant species in this area. Sandflies second activity peak occured in September that is crucial for transmission of disease. The incubation period for this disease was four months.