Archives of Hygiene Sciences
Volume:5 Issue: 2, Spring 2016

Background & Aims of the Study: Heavy metals are ubiquitous in the environment, as a result of both natural and anthropogenic activities, and humans are exposed to them through various pathways, especially food chain. So, this study aimed to assess heavy metals (Cu, Pb and Zn) concentrations in different parts of the leek vegetable in Hamedan Province, Iran.
Leek samples were collected from 3 farms in Hamedan, Iran. Samples were digested, using wet digestion method (HNO3 solution) and the concentrations of total Cu, Pb, and Zn were determined by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AE).
The average concentrations of heavy metals in different parts of the root, stalk and leaf of the Leek were in order; Copper (0.34, 0.54, 0.71), Lead (0.03, 0.05, 0.16) and Zinc (1.42, 3.43, 4.5) mgkg-1; So, all samples concentrations were lower than the permissible limits which are recommended by FAO/WHO. Also, most of the heavy metals were positively correlated with each other in concentration.
Pearson correlation test showed that Cu, Pb and Zn are similar naturally and related to the anthropic activities especially chemical fertilizer, implies the same interactions and/or relationships among these metals. According to the results, there is no risk to consumers via consumption of the leek vegetable. Appropriate measures should be taken to an effective control of heavy metal levels in vegetable soils and protect the human health finally.

Background & Aims of the Study: Pharmaceutical wastewater is one of the major complex and toxic industrial effluents that contain little or no biodegradable organic matters.
In this study, H2O2/UV base advance oxidation process (AOP) was used to remove organic materials from pharmaceutical industry effluent. Experiments were conducted for the chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal using medium pressure mercury vapor UV lamp coupled with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2/UV).
Results indicated that the efficiency of COD removal depends on the concentration of initial H2O2, oxidation time and pH as well. The efficiency of COD removal in low H2O2 concentration was very low even in coupled with UV light, which can be attributed to the low hydroxyl radicals (•OH) generation. In high concentration of H2O2 (500 mg/L) and optimum pH (pH=4), 87.496% of removal efficiency could be achieved during 70 minutes of oxidation time.
For high concentration of H2O2 (500 mg/l) in pH 3 and 7, the maximum COD removal efficiency was 28.5% and 15.2% respectively, indicating significant roles of pH and H2O2 concentration in oxidation efficiency of H2O2/UV process in removing the COD.

Background & Aims of the Study: Malachite Green (MG) is the most commonly used substance for dying cotton, food & pharmacy industries, paper, leather and silk. On inhalation it can cause difficult breathing, while on the direct contact it may cause permanent injury of the eyes of human and animals, burning sensations, nausea, vomiting, profuse sweating, mental confusion and methemoglobinemia; also it can causes cancer in livers. The aim of this study is the removal of Malachite Green (MG) dye from aqueous solutions, using MnFe2O4/Al2O3 nanophotocatalyst by UV/H2O2 process which was used as a low cost method.
In this research, photocatalytic decomposition of malachite green in water was done by nanocatalyst MnFe2O4/Al2O3 in discontinuous photoreactor under UV light and the injection of H2O2. In order to identify and analyze the provided catalyst, SEM image and XRD diffraction pattern were used. The effect of operational factors in the photocatalytic decomposition of the desired pollutant such as pH, the initial thickness of the dye, the thickness of H2O2 and the quantity of the catalyst were investigated.
The finding showed that the right conditions for the elimination of the pollutant included pH equals 4, the initial thickness of the dye being 10 ppm, the thickness of H2O2 being 250ppm, the amount of catalyst being 50mg, the Correlation Coefficient being 0.998 and the dye removal was 94 percent at the end of the experiment. the reaction of Malachite green decomposition was in terms of kinetics investigated through integral method as well; also it showed the kinetic reaction is the first type and the constant speed rate is K=0.047 min-1 .
According to the results, because of the complexity of dye structure, biological system was not able to remove the dye as efficient as hybrid system of advanced oxidation processes UV/H2O2 with nanophotocatalyst as an efficient way to remove the Malachite green dye from water solution is obtained that increases the decomposability of organic materials. This way has proved to be able to decompose the hard compounds that are resistant to decomposition.

Background & Aims of the Study: Needle stick injuries (NSIs) are one of the most causes that expose health care workers (HCWs) to blood infectious diseases such as hepatitis B, C and HIV. HCWs can reduce the rate of NSIs by performing protective procedures. This study was conducted to evaluate the needle stick exposure among health care workers in Razi hospital, Ahvaz, in 2015.
This descriptive study was conducted on 600 HCWs at Razi Hospital, Ahvaz, Iran. The data collection tool was a questionnaire included health care workers’ type of NSIs, ward, and their activity. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and were processed by SPSS version 16.
Results showed that 21.35% of volunteers were male and 78.65% were female. The results indicated that recapping the needles was the most risk factor for NSIs. Based on the findings the most important reasons for NSIs were recapping needles were found in 40.82%, handling needle on tray in 22.45%, suturing in 14.29%, dissembling needle devices in 10.20%, passing needle in 8.16% and transit of disposal needle devices in 4.08% of cases, respectively.
Conclusions According to the findings of our study, it seems that establishment and performs of courses about prevention of needle stick is very necessary.

Background & Aims of the Study: Heavy metals are the most important contaminants in the soil. Due to their non-biodegradable property, heavy metals can persist in the ecosystem for a long time. Therefore, this research focuses on heavy metal contamination in urban park soils in Asadabad, Hamedan, Iran.
Altogether 18 composite soil samples were collected at depths 0-20 cm from urban parks. The urban soil samples were digested in aqua regia according to 11466 ISO standard methods. Total concentrations of Cd and Pb were measured by Atomic Absorption Spectrometer.
Concentrations of Cd and Pb varied in the range of 0.15-0.22 and 7.5-27.5 mg/kg, with mean values of 0.18 and 20.72, respectively. The mean values of geo-accumulation index ( Igeo) were (-0.70) and (0.04) for Cd and Pb respectively. The urban soils in Asadabad, Iran, were uncontaminated by Cd and uncontaminated until moderately contaminate with Pb. There was no significant correlation between Pb and Cd (r2=0.16), it seems that these metals may have derived from different sources.
Findings showed that Cd was usually associated with parent material in the soils, while Pb was controlled by anthropogenic activities such as traffic and residential wastes. Also the results indicated that urban park's location affects the total metal contents of the analyzed soils.

Background & Aims of the Study: Spent filter backwash water (SFBW) consists of 1-5% of the total treated water typically and it has a high turbidity. Because of the scarcity of water resources and in order to prevent the environmental contamination, effluent treatment of rapid sand filter backwashing is unavoidable. One of the new technologies for removal of turbidity from the effluent is ElectroCoagulation (EC) processes. This study aimed to examine the efficiency of continuous electrocoagulation in turbidity removal from spent filter backwash water.
This study was non-continuous experiment. A rectangular cube electrocoagulation tank in 24 cm×17 cm×18 cm dimensions from Plexiglas with the volume of 7.35 liter was made. In this tank there were 4 metal plates (electrode) (15× 22× 0.1cm); two electrodes as cathode and anode which were made of aluminum and iron, respectively. All of the tests were done in continuous flow. According to the study criteria (Time, Turbidity and pH), 126 sample got with the turbidity 320, 350, 400 NTU from rapid sand filter backwashing water, so they were tested in current density; 1, 1.4, 1.8, 2, 2.4, 2.8 and 3.2 ampere in 3 selected detention times (10, 20 and 30 min). Each experiment was repeated two times. In this research the space of electrode and pH is fixed at 1.5 cm and 8.2.
In this case the highest turbidity removal for Al electrode from rapid sand filter backwashing occurred in the current density 3.2 ampere, 30 min detention time and 320 NTU turbidity. The percent of removal for Al was 95.12. The highest removal for Fe electrode from rapid sand filter backwashing occur in the current density 3.2 ampere, 30 min detention time and 320 NTU turbidity. The percent of removal for Fe was 87.40.
Regarding to the results of the tests, using electrocoagulation has an appropriate efficiency in turbidity removal.

Background & Aims of the Study: Nowadays, heat stress is one of the most harmful physical agents in workplaces. According to the consequences of heat stress and have no information about it in Qom dry cleaner units, Iran, this study have been designed to evaluate the heat stress among workers of dry cleaner units in Qom province of Iran, in Jul-Aug 2011.
This cross-sectional study was conducted in 113 units of active dry cleaner units. WBGT (Wet Bulb Globe Temperature) index was selected for heat stress evaluation. In order to measure the requisite parameters, WBGT meter made of Casella Company had been used according to ISO 7243. Data had been analyzed according to Occupational Exposure Limits (OELs) with SPSS V.16, using analysis of variance, independent T and LSD tests.
The average of WBGT index in Qom dry cleaner units of Iran were 28.98±1.64 °C. The average of WBGT index in 66.4% of units was up to 28°C. The average of relative humidity was 42.86%, the average of wet bulb temperature and globe temperature were 25.56°C and 36.72°C, respectively. The findings showed a significant correlation between the average of WBGT index and the standard recommendation level (p Heat stress in many dry cleaner units in Qom, Iran, was more than recommended OELs. Because of wet bulb and globe temperature in units were high value, the most important measures to heat controls, are technical engineering controls such as radiation shield, insulation on boilers and modify the cooling systems.

Background & Aims of the Study: Free-living amoebae (FLA) are opportunistic and ubiquitous protozoa that are widely found in various environmental sources. They are known to cause serious human infections including a fatal encephalitis, a blinding keratitis, and pneumonia. So, due to their medical importance, the identification of free living amoeba in water resources, as a source of human infection, is necessary. The objective of this study was to isolate the Acanthamoebaspp from the surface waters of Birjand, Iran, during 2014-2015 by Morphological and molecular method.
In a cross-sectional study, 50 samples were collected from different localities of Birjand city including the surface waters, pools and fountains in parks,squares and water stations from the October 2014 to the January 2015.Each sample was filtered through a nitrocellulose membrane filters and cultured on non-nutrient agar (NNA) with Escherichia coli suspension and incubated for 1 week to 2 months at room temperature.The plates were examined by the microscopy to morphologically identify Acanthamoeba species. Following DNA extraction, PCR specific primers was used to confirm the identification morphologically.
Out of 50 water samples, 19 (38%) were positive for Acanthamoebatrophozoites and cysts according to the morphological criteria. In addition, Acanthamoebaspp was identified by PCR method, using genus specific primers pairs in 15 (78.9%) cases of positive cultures, showing anearly 500bp band.
According to the prevalent of Acanthamoebaspp in the surface stagnant waters of Birjand, more attention to the potential role of such waters in transmission of infection by the regional clinicians and health practitioners is necessary.

Background & Aims of the Study: Due to the rapid industrial development in Khuzestan province of Iran during recent years, this study was performed to analyze the variation of metals concentrations (Mg, Mn, Ni, and Sn) in soil samples of Ahvaz II Industrial estate during the spring season of 2013.
In this experimental study, 27 topsoil samples were collected from nine stations. The intensity of the soil contamination was evaluated, using a contamination factor (Cf) and geo-accumulation index (I-geo).
The mean soil concentrations (in mg kg-1 (dry weight)) were in ranged within 870-1144 (Mg), 188-300 (Mn), 93-199 (Ni) and 9-15 (Sn). The data indicated that the I-geo value for all metals falls in class ‘1’. Also the Cf value for Mg and Mn falls in class ‘0’, the Cf value for Sn falls in class ‘1’ and the Cf value for Ni falls in the classes of ‘1’ and ‘2’. The result of the Pearson correlation showed that there were significant positive associations between all metals.
According to the results which were achieved by a cluster analysis, there were significant positive associations among all metals based on Pearson correlation coefficient, especially between Ni and Sn; also both of them with Mn. Because the Ni originates from oil sources it can be resulted that Mn and Sn originate from oil sources, too. Therefore, industrial activities and exploitation of oil reservoirs are the main cause of pollution in that area. Also, it can be concluded that, with increasing the distance from the source of pollution, the accumulation of contaminants in the soil samples decreased.

Background & Aims of the Study: Studying the phasic process of the biogas yieldis required to optimize the design and operations; it also helps to lower energy production costs by decreasing the capital investment and operational costs. Here we determine the biogas process by measuring pH, ORP, electrical power and make compatibility to the biogas production trend.
In this research, one 1150 ml single chamber reactor is used. Biogas production trend was precisely followed by a probable compatibleness with pH, Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP), electrical Power at a temperature of 37 0.5˚C with the substrate of cattle manure. The experiment was followed for 120 days approximately.
As a result, the phases of biogas yield could be determined by the measuring of pH, ORP and its compatibility to gas production. In the reactor, hydrolytic, acetogenic and methanogenic phases were occurred in the days 1-7, 8-16 and 17-104, respectively. Also the electrical power at first showed to be produced at high range but by increasing, the production of biogas decreased and then by decreasing the biogas production gradually, it increased slightly.
Our results indicated that the phases of biogas production can be separated completely and by diffracting the phases, the efficiency of biogas production could be increased.

Background & Aims of the Study: Among the Iranians, scorpion is considered as one of the most important natural hazards and introduced as a dangerous animal. The outcome of this confrontation is to create stories and different beliefs about them .The primary aim of this study is to investigate and deliberate on the validity and fraudulence of these beliefs in how Iranian looked upon scorpions.
The study is a review of descriptive analysis. In other words, the study was conducted, considering the key terms such as: treatment of scorpion venom, motifs of humans and scorpions in internet and related websites; moreover, the study was carried on by professional journals, articles and researches as well as related published books in this filed. By considering the situation and its requirements, the references were chosen to be analyzed.
Owing to the fact that scorpions have poisonous, painful and sometimes mortal venoms, they have attracted more attention compared to other creatures in the history and culture of Iran. Such creatures are regarded as the symbol of power and sentry in several references as they can be found in the works and studies remained from ancients throughout Iran.
Due to the medical importance of scorpions and Iranian’s cultural beliefs, scorpion motifs has been regarded as a significant symbol of Iran’s history. Moreover, in creating the scorpion motifs about the dangers of this creature, beliefs, the realities and the analysis of customs have been playing the great roles.