Middle East Journal of Rehabilitation and Health Studies
Volume:8 Issue: 3, Jul 2021

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a relatively common chronic inflammatory disease. The tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) is considered as a major mediator in inflammation reactions. No review articles have been done on evaluating TNF-α levels before and after performing standard treatments of OLP so far. This study aimed to provide a complete review on the association between this cytokine and OLP as well as determining the role of therapeutic agents in improving the OLP lesions by measuring the level of this cytokine. Some databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, and Embase (Ovid) with keywords of oral lichen planus, Nuclear Factor Kappa B (NF-κB), OLP, TNF-α, and Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha without time limit (2017 - 1900) were searched to collect the needed data from the related articles. For this purpose, 14 completely related articles were included in this study. Of them, 3 studies that assessed the effect of the standard treatment of oral lichen planus, were included in this meta-analysis. As a result, a significant effect of standard treatment on TNF-α levels in OLP patients has been shown (P-value = 0.02). TNF-α level in OLP patients was higher than in normal subjects, so it can be suggested that the TNF-α levels may be useful in determining prognosis and effectiveness of the treatment performed.

 Given that stroke is the cause of several neurological impairments, it is necessary to evaluate interventions that can improve patients' motor performance and functionality.

 This study aimed to evaluate the motor learning transfer of a training program using a virtual table tennis game. We hypothesized that playing the virtual game may improve the performance of stroke patients in a functional activity (drinking from a glass). Moreover, this virtual reality training may have different effects according to the brain injury side.

 A non-randomized controlled study was performed. Sampling was by convenience. Evaluation and revaluation of a drinking from a glass task were conducted through kinematic analysis (transfer test). The training was carried out with XBOX 360 table tennis game (20 attempts). Performance (number of hits) in the game and average angular velocity of the drinking task were analyzed by ANOVA.

 The study included 20 hemiparesis patients (10 left), mean age 50.6 (SD 9.2) years, and 20 healthy individuals, mean age 50.9 (SD 8.8) years. Patients showed worse performance than healthy subjects; however, they improved performance between the first and last attempts (P = 0.001). In the transfer test, left hemiparetic patients exhibited significant improvement in the shoulder (P = 0.0001) and elbow average angular velocity (P = 0.0001), but this did not occur in right hemiparetic patients (shoulder: P = 0.761; elbow: P = 0.666).

 The results suggest that the virtual game has clinical potential in the motor learning transfer process to a functional activity in the real world, mainly for patients with right brain injury.

 Lateral ankle sprain is a common injury resulting from a rapid supination moment that damages the lateral ligaments and cartilaginous surfaces and contributes to the deterioration of functional ankle stability and balance among individuals.

 This study aimed to investigate the immediate effect of Kinesio Taping (KT) on the balance performance of patients with chronic ankle sprains.

 This randomized, single-blind, parallel-group study was performed using the allocation concealment method. Sixty individuals (27 males and 33 females) with a history of ankle sprain were recruited and randomly assigned to one of the experimental (KT; n = 30) or control (non-KT; n = 30) groups. The intervention continued for two consecutive days, including four assessment sessions before and after taping on the first day and before and after removing KT on the second day. The mean and standard deviation (SD) of the center of pressure (COP) displacement and the velocity and SD of COP displacement were measured in the ant-post and med-lat directions following inversion and anterior perturbations. For data analysis, analysis of variance (ANOVA) test was performed using SPSS software version 22. This study was registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT2013110415262N1).

 The results of repeated measures ANOVA revealed an increase in the mean changes of COP displacement, velocity of COP displacement, and SD of COP displacement in the med-lat direction during inversion perturbation immediately after KT (P = 0.031, P = 0.005, and P = 0.011, respectively) and 24 hours after KT (P = 0.019, P = 0.002, and P = 0.009, respectively), compared to the control group. Moreover, during anterior perturbation, a significant increase was observed in the SD of COP displacement immediately and 24 hours after applying KT in the med-lat direction, compared to the control group (P = 0.022 and P = 0.016, respectively).

 Our findings revealed that KT might not improve the COP sway during perturbation in individuals with ankle sprains.

 One of the fundamental factors in infants’ readiness to discharge from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is attaining full oral feeding. Determining the infants’ development requires instruments to comprehensively assess the infants’ oral skills and the process of feeding.

 This study aimed to measure the validity and reliability of Early Feeding Skill assessment (EFS) and the subscales of the cue-based feeding (Oral Feeding Readiness scale (OFRS) and Oral Feeding Quality scale (OFQS)).

 Participants consisted of 30 preterm infants born at gestational age (GA) ≤ 34 weeks in Dr. Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Infants were enrolled by convenience sampling. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and Weighted Kappa were used to measure reliability, and Spearman and Pearson’s correlation coefficient were used to test convergent and discriminant validity.

 The inter- and intra-rater reliability of all dimensions of EFS were good (ICC ranged from 0.77 to 0.95) except intra-rater reliabiltiy for the ability to maintain physiologic stability and ability to coordinate swallowing was moderate. The inter-rater reliability of the cue-based feeding scales was excellent (Weighted Kappa of > 0.74). The intra-rater reliablity indicated good agreement for OFRS (Weighted Kappa = 0.73) and excellent agreement for OFQS (Weighted Kappa = 0.75). There was an inverse correlation between most subscales of EFS and cue-based feeding scales (P < 0.05), except the ability to maintain physiologic stability and ability to coordinate swallowing dimensions (P > 0.05). There was a significant correlation between the ability to maintain physiologic stability dimension and post menstrual age (PMA) (r = 38, (P < 0.05) and between the oral feeding recovery assessment and GA (r = 0.37, (P < 0.05). OFQS was inversely correlated with GA and PMA (P < 0.05).

 EFS and cue-based feeding scales are valid and reliable scales to assess the oral feeding skills of preterm infants; however, using only one of these scales solely to evaluate infants’ feeding process is not enough.

 In December 2019, the Chinese government declared the prevalence of a new epidemic belonging to the coronavirus family; later, this epidemic was called COVID-19.

 To determine the clinical and laboratory factors involved in the mortality of hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

 This descriptive-analytic study was performed in Kowsar Hospital of Semnan, Iran, using medical files of 107 patients hospitalized during February - April 2020 with COVID-19 diagnosis with the presence of chest CT findings. The patients' demographic information, vital signs, clinical symptoms, lab test results, the prescribed medicines during hospitalization, past medical history, and outcomes were analyzed. The relationship between each of the explanatory variables with death outcome was examined using univariate and multivariate logistic regression models, reporting crude and adjusted odds ratios (OR & Adj. OR).

 The mean age of the patients was 63.36 ± 16.43 years, 67 (62.6%) patients were male, and 85 (79.4%) patients were discharged. Low level of consciousness (Glasgow coma scale < 14) (discharged: 8.2% vs. expired: 40.2%, Adj. OR [95% confidence interval] = 17.9 [3.1, 102.7]), higher body temperature (37.1°C vs. 37.74°C, 3.62 [1.55, 8.43]), and higher blood alkaline phosphatase (177.6 vs. 247.6, 1.01 [1.00, 1.01]) at the time of hospitalization were associated with increased mortality. Also, having the symptom of fatigue or weakness at the time of hospitalization (61.2 vs. 36.4%, 0.06 [0.01, 0.46]), higher red blood cells count (4.67 vs. 4.15, 0.21 [0.08, .55]), and higher blood oxygen saturation levels (89 vs. 82%, 0.92 [0.85, 0.99]) were associated with a lower risk of mortality.

 Decreased level of consciousness at the time of admission was shown to be a critical and independent predictor of mortality. Several factors are associated with death in patients with COVID-19, which due to the complexity of the relationship between each of them, it is not practical and plausible to make a definite prediction of patients' prognosis only by noting few factors without considering all the clinical symptoms and laboratory findings. The results of individual studies like ours should be interpreted alongside the results of previous and future clinical studies and not alone.

 Chronic stress exerts negative effects on cognitive functions through inducing changes in the hippocampus. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is an essential factor in cognitive activities, which is considerably reduced under chronic stress. 1,25(OH)2 vitamin D plays neuroprotective roles partially by regulating the expression of various neurotrophic factors.

 Since few studies have studied the impact of vitamin D on BDNF level, we conducted this brief experiment to understand the role of vitamin D in maintaining hippocampal BDNF protein levels by using restraint as a model of chronic stress in rats.

 Rats underwent restraint stress 3 h/day for 28 days, during which they received vitamin D (5, 10 μg/kg) or its vehicle (IP, twice weekly). After the stress period, serum corticosterone (CORT) and hippocampus BDNF protein levels were measured.

 Restraint stress increased serum CORT (P < 0.001) and reduced BDNF protein levels (P < 0.001) as compared to the non-stress group. Vitamin D markedly maintained BDNF level close to normal (P < 0.001), but did not change CORT level significantly.

 This study demonstrated that 3h/day of chronic restraint stress for 28 days boosted serum CORT and declined hippocampal BDNF levels, similar to stronger restraint stress models. Vitamin D maintained BDNF level close to normal in the hippocampus, but it did not affect CORT level significantly.

 Effective treatment for COVID-19 is not available, and neither is an effective vaccine for its prevention. Drastic measures in the form of non-pharmaceutical interventions need to be applied to reduce transmission and flatten the curve.

 This study aimed at analyzing the knowledge of the study population about social distancing and their attitude towards the use of face masks in a bid to flatten the curve of COVID-19 pandemic in the state and Nigeria as a whole.

 This study, which was conducted in the central business district of Ilorin in Kwara State, Nigeria, investigated the knowledge of social distancing and attitude toward the use of face masks in a metropolis. A total of 300 participants were randomly selected, and their information was retrieved through the administration of a self or interviewer-administered questionnaire. The primary data was analyzed using SPSS. Variables were tested with chi-squared test, and data was presented in frequency tables and simple percentages. Attitude of the participants was evaluated using a five-point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree.

 Most of the participants (93.3%) had heard about social distancing. What the term means was not known to 68 (22.7%) of the participants and not practiced by 106 (30.7%) of them. The consistent use of face masks was reported by 30 (10%) participants, while 164 (54.7%) used face masks irregularly, and 106 (35.3%) did not use them at all. Face masks are perceived to be uncomfortable by 165 (55%) respondents, 134 (44.7%) believed it disturbs normal breathing, 103 (34.3) thought it disfigures the face, and its effects on dressing was pointed out by 95 (31.7) respondents.

 In general, the participants demonstrated a good knowledge of social distancing though not widely practiced it. They also had a positive attitude towards the use of face masks, though it was not correctly and consistently worn. Intensified efforts in education on the right use and essence of these non-pharmaceutical interventions are strongly recommended.

 There is a folk belief that drinking Ramsar spring mineral water (RSW) is a remedy for renal stones.

 This study aimed to evaluate the effect of RSW on prevention or treatment of nephrolithiasis in male Wistar rats and identify the constituents of the water.

 Nephrolithiasis was induced by providing drinking water containing 1% ethylene glycol (EG) for two weeks in male Wistar rats. The animals were divided into prevention and treatment groups, each contained five sub-groups (10 rats for each). Prevention groups were treated for two weeks: control group (without treatment), EG group (1% ethylene glycol in drinking water), RSW 5, 10, and 15% groups (1% ethylene glycol + RSW 5, 10, and 15% in drinking water). The treatment groups received 1% EG for two weeks, then it was discontinued, and the RSW (10, 15, and 20%) was added to the drinking water for the next two weeks. The calcium oxalate (CaOx) depositions in the kidneys' tubules were evaluated by Hematoxylin and Eosin staining. The spring water was analyzed for its constituents.

 Calcium oxalate crystals were significantly increased in EG group as compared to the control group (P < 0.05). Moreover, RSW did not significantly prevent CaOx crystals but alleviated CaOx crystals at 15 and 20% concentrations in the treatment protocol (P < 0.001).

 The hard water of Ramsar spring reduced CaOx crystals in nephrolithiatic rats, which may be due to its high calcium and magnesium content.

Forward head posture (FHP) of the craniocervical region is one of the most common poor postures. The craniovertebral angle (CVA) is one of the most common methods to evaluate this posture. The longus colli (LCo) muscle is an important muscle to control head posture.

This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between CVA and thickness of LCo in women with FHP.

This case-control research included 35 women with FHP and a control group. Sagittal view photography of the cervical spine was used for measurement of CVA. An ultrasonography device measured the thickness of the LCo. Correlation between CVA and thickness of LCo was determined using correlation coefficient in both groups.

Our findings showed a non-significant correlation between the CVA and thickness of LCo in case and control groups.

According to the results of this study, there was no significant correlation between a lower CVA and smaller thickness of LCo.

It is necessary to develop a functional and evidence-based model to meet the various care needs of elderly individuals.

The present study was conducted to propose a national residential care model for Iranian elderly individuals.

A systematic review was designed to identify common models of residential care centers in developed countries. A tworound Delphi survey consisting of 48 potential and eligible experts was also conducted to make a consensus on the standards of residential care applicable to the Iranian model. The study experts were the professors and officers with at least 5 years of academic and executive experiences in geriatric health.

The primary questionnaire was prepared with 305 care standards which were obtained from well-developed elderly care models. In the first round, 40 questionnaires were given back and analyzed, and 232 care standards were approved by the experts. In the second round, 38 questionnaires were returned from 40 distributed questionnaires, and 40 consensus standards were approved (from 73 standards). Moreover, others failed to enter the ultimate model. In the final model, out of the 275 accepted standards, 102 (37.09%), 75 (27.27%), 42 (15.27%), 42 (15.27%), 9 (3.27%), and 5 (1.81%) standards were related to health-related services, service providers, public services, facilities of care centers, eligibility criteria, and financing, respectively.

Given the high consensus of experts on developed standards and the unique comprehensiveness of criteria, the obtained model can be implemented after conducting a pilot study in the Iranian elderly care centers. It seems that the implementation of the model will improve the provided care leading to higher levels of life expectancy and quality of life among elderly individuals.