Middle East Journal of Rehabilitation and Health Studies
Volume:9 Issue: 4, Oct 2022

Context:

 With a key role in normal shoulder function, scapular kinematics have been investigated in shoulder impingement syndrome (SIS).

This systematic review aimed at determining scapular kinematic patterns in patients with SIS compared to in asymptomatic individuals.

Data Sources: 

Databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Ovid, Embase and PEDRO were searched from January 1995 to June 2021. Study Selection: Articles in English published in peer-reviewed journals and using motion analysis systems to compare scapular kinematics between patients with SIS and asymptomatic subjects during arm elevation were included. Data Extraction: A modified Downs and Black checklist was used to assess the risk of bias of the included studies. A random-effects model was employed to perform a meta-analysis.

Nine out of 1650 screened abstracts were included for data extraction. Scapular upward rotation significantly decreased during arm elevation in SIS (SMD = -0.13, 95% CI = -0.23 to -0.02) with a low effect size (I2 = 46%). No differences were observed in scapular posterior tilt (SMD = -0.07, 95% CI = -0.18 to 0.03) and external rotation (SMD = 0.02, 95% CI = -0.06 to 0.09) between patients with SIS and asymptomatic subjects.

This review revealed that except for scapular upward rotation, scapular movement was generally insignificantly different between the subjects with and without SIS during arm elevation. Between-group differences might have been overlooked as a result of the high risk of bias in the included studies. The high-quality studies addressing confounders are required to provide a definitive conclusion on the relationship between SIS and scapular kinematics.

Context: 

One aspect of spoken language skills is vocabulary, which provides a basis for acquiring other language aspects. Assessing a child's vocabulary knowledge aids in identifying the child's language strengths and weaknesses and predicts reading ability and academic success. Speech-language pathologists frequently employ various procedures in clinical and research settings to assess the children's language skills and help make decisions about diagnosis, eligibility for services, and intervention.

This systematic review investigated currently available vocabulary tests developed or adapted for Iranian Persian-speaking children.

Data Sources: 

Based on the PRISMA guideline, electronic searches of three national (SID, Irandoc, and Magiran) and four international (ScienceDirect, ProQuest, PubMed, and Google scholar) databases were carried out from 2000 to 2022 to identify Persian vocabulary assessment tools. Study Selection: Search in the reference lists of papers, unpublished theses, and content of related journals also supplemented the database searches. Data Extraction: The psychometric properties of these tests were reviewed based on specific criteria used in the literature. The papers and test manuals were examined according to these criteria.

Eight tools have been developed or adapted for assessing vocabulary knowledge in Iranian Persian-speaking children. Reviewing the content and psychometric properties of the included tools indicated that the Test of Language Development- Primary:3 (TOLD-P:3) is the only accessible published tool with the most reported psychometric evidence. It measures language development in children; however, it is a multi-modal test that includes vocabulary subtests.

This review revealed that most of the reviewed tools were in the primitive stages of test development or adaptation procedures and did not examine many psychometric properties. As a result, vocabulary is a field that requires more attention because there is no accessible, standardized tool with adequate psychometric properties.

Intoxication by heat-resistant Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxins (SEs), particularly SEA and SEE, is one of the most common causes of food poisoning in the world.

This study aimed to identify enterotoxin-encoding genes (see, sed, sec, seb, sea) in S. aureus isolates from different restaurant employees.

Ninety-one samples from the hands and noses of employees of several restaurants in the Golestan Province (North of Iran) were examined for detection of S. aureus strains by the phenotypic and microbiological genotyping methods. After determining the susceptibility of the isolates to ten antibiotics by the Kirby-Bauer method, the enterotoxin-producing genes were detected using the polymerase chain reaction method.

S. aureus was detected in 29 (31.9%) samples. The frequency of S. aureus isolates was highest in waiters (65.5%) with the age range of 34 - 49 years (41.4%) and nasal samples (55.1%). The highest and lowest susceptibility rates were observed against linezolid (100%) and cefoxitin (17.24%). Of 19 methicillin-resistant S. aureus strains, 89.47% were identified as multi-drug resistant and 10.52% as extensively-drug resistant. Of 29 S. aureus isolates, 24.13% were enterotoxigenic, with the highest frequency belonging to SEA (57.1%).

In this study, we isolated multi-drug resistant, enterotoxigenic S. aureus from different restaurant employees, which can have important public health implications. Therefore, it is recommended to closely monitor the health, sanitation, and hygiene of people involved in food preparation to reduce the spread of bacteria in the food chain.

Short and long birth spacings have negative effects on the health of mothers and children and consequently on the level of mothers’ employment.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of first and second children spacing on mothers’ labor force participation in Iranian urban households.

This descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study was performed using econometric methods as a probit and probit model with an instrumental variable in Stata version 16 in 2021. The sample size included 8920 urban households in all provinces of Iran, and the data were extracted from the cost and income questionnaire of urban households.

The birth spacing of the first and second child had a positive effect equal to 0.16 on the probability of employment of mothers in households with 2 children, which was equal to 0.22 for households with 2 or more children. The coefficients of maternal age, having a private home, father’s education, and father’s age on mothers’ employment were -0.02, -0.09, -0.06, and 0.02 in households with 2 children, respectively.

Increasing the birth spacing, especially for the first and second child, led to an increase in the probability of the mother’s employment in the labor market. Therefore, optimal birth spacing is recommended, which improves both the health of the mother and the child and does not reduce job opportunities. In this regard, policies to promote optimal birth spacing through raising awareness, the use of contraceptive methods, and the importance of breastfeeding are also proposed.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) need a variety of services. One of the most essential needs of these children with ASD is the use of rehabilitation services. However, these services pose many challenges for these individuals. Providing strategies to solve these barriers is essential.

The purpose of this study was to identify strategies to overcome barriers to using rehabilitation services and improve them based on the perceptions and experiences of rehabilitation service providers and parents of children with ASD.

This study was conducted with a conventional qualitative approach. Twenty-seven participants were selected from rehabilitation service providers and parents of children with ASD based on purposive sampling with maximum diversity. Data were collected through semi-structured face-to-face interviews. The interviews lasted from July to December 2020 for 20 to 60 minutes and continued until the data was saturated. Data were analyzed with MAXQDA 10 software.

After the interviews, 1057 initial codes were extracted by deleting similar codes. Strategies for using rehabilitation services for these children with ASD were classified into 5 main categories and 20 subcategories, which are: Improving the level of knowledge and attitude, creating and strengthening a systematic support system, systematic rehabilitation policies, developing a comprehensive autism rehabilitation management program and facilitating access.

In previous studies, many challenges have been identified for all services for children with ASD. The findings of this study showed that considering facilitators to solve the existing challenges in order to use of rehabilitation services for these children with ASD and their families. Therefore, policy makers, service providers and managers need to be aware of the strategies collected and pay special attention to these issues. To achieve a more favorable situation, they should adopt and implement the necessary mechanism in the field of policy and planning, so that finally lead to fundamental steps to improve the rehabilitation services needed by children with ASD.

Osteoarthritis is a common musculoskeletal disorder in elderly people, and the most common form appears in the knee joint. These patients suffer from pain, joint stiffness, and problems with functional activities. So, it is essential to offer a proper treatment plan for these patients.

The goal of this research is to compare the effect of high- and low-intensity transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) therapy on reducing pain and improvement of functional activity.

Using simple randomization method, a total of 36 patients were divided into two groups receiving high- and low-intensity TENS therapy. All patients received ten sessions of physiotherapy (three sessions per week). Pain and functional activities were measured and compared before and after the study.

Although there was a significant difference between the two groups in pain index (P < 0.05), no difference in functional activity was observed between the two groups.

Using both high- and low-intensity techniques can be effective in reducing the pain and improving the knee joint function. However, pain decreased more significantly in the high-intensity group compared to low-intensity group.

 The International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) can identify body function, structure impairment, activity limitation, participation restriction, and contextual factors.

 Considering the importance of the role of environmental barriers in disability and function, this study aimed to investigate the environmental barriers affecting the function of individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) based on the Comprehensive ICF Core Set for MS.

 This cross-sectional study was conducted on individuals with MS who are registered in the ICF Medical Commission. The participants completed the consent form, the Persian version of the Craig Hospital Inventory of Environmental Factors, Functional Independence Measure (FIM), and a demographic questionnaire based on the ICF Core Set for MS. The data were analyzed using SPSS software (version 25).

 A total of 140 individuals with MS (34 males and 106 females) participated in this study. The most frequently reported environmental barriers were structural and physical, and the least frequently reported barriers were related to work and school. The barriers related to attitudes and support were significantly associated with the motor function (P = 0.003) and total FIM score (P = 0.002). The variables of attitudes and support and policies were the main predictors of motor function (RS = 0.093, P < 0.001) and the total FIM score (RS = 0.109, P < 0.001), respectively. None of the barriers was significant and predictive of cognitive function.

 Since environmental barriers can affect the function of MS patients, authorities should implement the necessary strategies to eliminate these barriers and facilitate participation.

Thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP) is a possible factor in the relationship between metabolism and cellular redox state and plays a key role in the regulation of glucose and lipid metabolism.

The present study aimed at evaluating the effects of combined training in the gym and at home on TXNIP plasma level, insulin sensitivity, and lipid profile in men with primary hypertension.

In this randomized controlled trial, forty-six hypertensive men (age 48 ± 9 years, BMI 30 ± 4 kg/m2) were randomly assigned to the gym-based training (GBT: ten weeks, four days/week of moderate-intensity resistance and aerobic training followed by stretching training), home-based training (HBT: the type, duration, and intensity were similar to the GBT), and control groups. Selected blood biochemical parameters were measured at baseline and after ten weeks of training programs.

The plasma levels of TXNIP in the GBT (P = 0.04) and HBT (P = 0.005) groups decreased significantly compared to the control group. Moreover, the levels of plasma total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol decreased and insulin sensitivity increased following GBT compared to the control group (P = 0.03, P = 0.02, and P = 0.01, respectively), with no significant difference observed between GBT and HBT (P = 0.47, P = 0.36 and P = 0.14, respectively).

GBT was more effective compared to HBT in positive changes in blood glucose and lipid profile. However, HBT improved some important biochemical parameters and can be an alternative to complementary strategies strategy instead of GBT. Our data manifest that combined training has a positive effect on reducing the protein level, which negatively affects glucose and lipid metabolism in hypertensive men.

 Because peptic ulcer patients have maladaptive coping responses, this research investigated the emotion regulation training efficacy on coping responses in attenuating the stress of life events in these patients.

 The effectiveness of emotion regulation training on coping responses in attenuating the stress of life events in patients with peptic ulcer disease (PUD) was investigated.

 This was a semi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design and a control group, in which participants were followed for three months. Forty-six participants were selected by the purposeful sampling method from March 2021 to June 2021. Assignment in experimental and control groups was done by simple random method. The Persian form of the Coping Style Scale (CSS) was filled out as the pretest. The emotion regulation training protocol was delivered in eight sessions during eight weeks. Afterward, both groups were followed for three months. The ANCOVA test was run in SPSS 22 to analyze the data.

 Findings suggested that emotion regulation training significantly decreased avoidance coping strategy (P < 0.01), active behavioral coping strategy (P < 0.01), and enhanced active cognitive coping strategy (P < 0.01). These changes persisted in the experimental group after three months of the post-test (P < 0.01).

 Emotion regulation training can affect coping responses in patients with PUD and improve their adaptive coping strategies and emotional functioning. Therefore, this short-term protocol can be added to the treatment protocol of these patients.

 The physical problems associated with burns can cause patients various difficulties and negatively affect their independence as well as participation in daily life activities.

 This study aimed to evaluate the effect of a rehabilitation nursing program on hand burn patients’ daily functioning.

 The present randomized clinical trial was conducted to examine 60 hand burn patients referred to the Shahid Motahari Hospital of Tehran, Iran, between November 4, 2020, and April 19, 2021. The patients were randomly divided into two groups using the block randomization method (n = 30 per group). The intervention group received a 5-week rehabilitation nursing program in two steps: during the acute stage of the disorder (i.e., the time of admission) and during the recovery stage (i.e., before discharge). Data were collected in each step using the General Activities of Daily Living (GADL) questionnaire. The control group received routine care. Inferential and descriptive statistics, such as the independent and paired t-test, as well as the chi-square test and analysis of covariance, were used to analyze the data.

 The results showed no significant difference in the daily performance of the individuals assigned to the study groups prior to the rehabilitation program (P = 0.29). According to the results of covariance analysis, the overall performance mean scores of the two groups were significantly different after implementing the nursing rehabilitation program, with a significantly higher score (i.e., better performance) recorded for the intervention group (P < 0.001). Also, the means of pre- and post-intervention performance scores were significantly different in the rehabilitation group (P < 0.001), but they were not significantly different in the control group.

 It was concluded that implementing a rehabilitation nursing program improved the daily performance of patients with hand burns, which offered a valid ground for accelerating the rehabilitation of these patients and shortening the period they needed to return to society.