مجله تحقیقات نظام سلامت
سال هجدهم شماره 4 (زمستان 1401)

Muscular strength of the upper extremities is very important in the performance of athletes, which can be improved by using Kinesio tape. Kinesio tape is an elastic therapeutic tape used to enhance muscular strength and was first used in Japan in 1970. The use of Kinesio tape has increased significantly since the 2008 Olympics, and since then, questions have been raised about its various effects. The present systematic review evaluates the evidence for the effectiveness of Kinesio tape in improving muscular strength of the athletes’ upper extremities.

PEDro, Cochrane Library, Medline, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Scopus, UpToDate, and PubMed databases were searched from 2016 to 2020 for studies published only in English language. The combination of the terms “Kinesiotape”, “Tape”, “Athletic”, “Tape”, “Muscle”, “Tape”, “Elastic”, “Tape”, “Strength”, “Tape”, and “Kinesiology” was used in the search.

Among 47 obtained studies, 21 most-related studies were selected. Based on the results reported, these studies were divided into two groups: 1) the studies with the results suggesting that Kinesio tape increases the muscle strength of athletes, and 2) studies with the results suggesting that Kinesio tape is effective on other factors such as range of motion and fatigue and has no effect on muscle strength of athletes’ upper limbs.

Kinesio tape causes positive changes in athletes' performance and abilities. In addition, it can alter the timing of muscle activity and reduce the time to achieve maximum muscle activity. Moreover, the effect of Kinesio tape on different muscle activities depends on how the Kinesio tape is used and if used in the right conditions, it can be more effective.

Gastrointestinal cancers are one of the most dangerous and common cancers in Iran. This type of cancer is more common in the esophagus, stomach, colon, and rectum. The present study is aimed to determine the level of knowledge, attitude, and practice of employed health professionals about the risk factors of gastrointestinal cancers.

In the present cross-sectional study, all 175 male and female health workers in Isfahan Health Centers No. 1 and 2, Isfahan, Iran, were studied. Data were collected using a questionnaire, measuring the knowledge, attitude, and practice of health workers. Raw data of knowledge, attitude, and practice were converted to standard scores from 0 to 100 with a linear conversion and were described with mean, standard deviation (SD), 95% confidence interval (CI), median, and interquartile range. Data were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) at a significance level of 5% using SPSS software.

The mean scores of knowledge for all participants were 69.3%, the mean scores of attitude were 73.9%, and the mean scores of behavior were 35.3%. The difference between the mean scores of knowledge, attitude, and behavior of health workers according to gender, marital status, family history, income, and enteritis was not statistically significant. However, the mean scores of individuals’ behavior with educational levels of diploma and sub-diploma were statistically significant (P = 0.046). Attitude score increased in terms of age (P = 0.007). Additionally, there was a significant linear positive correlation between work experience and attitude score (r = 0.218, P = 0.004). The relationship between gender and nutritional behavior was significant (P = 0.039). The average knowledge score of people who needed periodic testing was 76.6, which was also significantly different from people who did not need periodic testing (P = 0.026).

With increasing age and the years of employment, the attitude score increased. Moreover, the average nutritional behavior of male health workers was lower than female ones. It was also found that people who needed periodic testing had higher knowledge ones. Therefore, in addition to developing appropriate training programs, adopting other health policies is needed, so that by overcoming the barriers to preventive behaviors, not only the performance of health workers can be increased but also by providing services to the covered populations, people's participation in colorectal cancer screening programs can be improved.

Considering the significant impact of youth deaths on life expectancy at birth and also the significant differences in such deaths at the provincial level, in this study, after estimating life expectancy at the national and provincial levels, the impact of youth mortality on life expectancy differences in Iran provinces was studied in 2016.

Mortality data at the national and provincial levels by age and sex were obtained from the Civil Registration Organization. After correcting the under-registration data, using standard life table technique, life expectancy at birth was estimated in national and provincial levels in 2016 by MortPak software. Then, the role of deaths between the ages of 15-34 years in life expectancy differences of the provinces of the country was calculated using the Arriaga decomposition method in Excel software.

Sistan and Baluchestan Province had the lowest level of life expectancy at birth for both men and women and Alborz and Isfahan provinces had the highest level of life expectancy in the country. Death at young age had the greatest impact on low life expectancy of men and women in Sistan and Baluchestan Province and has caused 2 and 2.5 years of difference in men and women life expectancy in this province compared to the country. On the other hand, youth mortality had the most positive impact on the life expectancy of men in Ardabil and Semnan provinces and women in Semnan and Qom provinces.

Planning to reduce youth mortality in less developed provinces with lower life expectancy through more equitable distribution of health and welfare facilities, in addition to reducing provincial differences in life expectancy, helps to improve life expectancy at national level.

Physiological parameters are influenced by various factors, including ambient temperature. This study aimed to investigate the effect of in-vehicle temperature indices on the physiological parameters of taxi drivers in winter and summer.

This prospective cohort study was performed on 29 taxi drivers in the morning and evening in winter and summer. Temperature indices including wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT), dry bulb temperature, glob temperature, and relative humidity and physiological parameters including heart rate, blood oxygen, neck temperature, and finger temperature were measured. Data analysis was done using the Wilcoxon test and paired t-test via SPSS software.

The average age of drivers was 52.2 years. The average dry bulb temperature and WBGT in winter were 32.2 ºC and 15.6 ºC in the morning and 22.3 ºC and 14.2 ºC in the evening, respectively, and in summer, 34.2 ºC and 22.6 ºC in the morning and 38.4 ºC and 24.5 ºC in the evening, respectively. There was a significant difference between the parameters of dry bulb temperature, glob temperature, WBGT, relative humidity, blood oxygen, heart rate, neck temperature, and finger temperature between winter and summer (P < 0.050).

The physiological parameters of drivers are affected by changes in ambient temperature, and although the temperature inside the cabin is within the standard range, people generally have a higher heart rate in winter. Moreover, the temperature of the skin of the fingers is strongly affected by the ambient temperature compared to the temperature of the neck.

Emotional divorce is an unpleasant event in married life that involves emotional, cognitive, behavioral, social, and even economic changes. In this regard, the use of new therapeutic approaches to improve and repair emotional divorce is increasing. The present study aims to compare the effectiveness of group therapy of enriching marital relationships and forgiveness on interpersonal motivations related to the wrongdoing of women involved in emotional divorce.

The method of the present study was experimental with pre-test, post-test design and follow-up with a control group. The statistical population of the study included all women with emotional divorce who were referred to clinics affiliated to Isfahan Welfare Organization to receive family counseling services in 2020-2021. Using purposive sampling method, 60 women were selected and randomly divided into three groups of first experiment (n = 20), second experiment (n = 20), and control (n = 20). The experimental groups received the marital relationship enrichment intervention in seven sessions and forgiveness intervention in nine sessions over two months. Guttman Emotional Divorce Questionnaire and McCullough et al. Transgression-Related Interpersonal Motivations (TRIM) scale were used to collect data. Data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA).

Training in enrichment of marital relationships and forgiveness was effective on revenge and avoidance of women involved in emotional divorce. Moreover, a significant difference was found between the two educational interventions in the post-test and follow-up stages, so that the relationship enrichment treatment was more effective on the avoidance component and the forgiveness intervention was more effective on the revenge component.

Based on the results of this study, the interventions can be used as an effective solution to improve the psychological performance of couples with emotional divorce in family counseling centers, specialized clinics, and premarital educational centers.

The family is the place to satisfy various physical, intellectual, and emotional needs, and having awareness of biological and psychological needs, knowing how to satisfy them, being equipped with techniques, and recognizing biological and psychological tendencies is an undeniable necessity. The present study was conducted with the aim of comparing the effectiveness of teaching emotion management strategies based on emotionally focused therapy (EFT) and schema-based couple therapy on sexual satisfaction and family functioning of couples.

The present study was a semi-experimental study with a pre-test and post-test design and follow-up with a control group. The study population included all couples with marital dissatisfaction who referred to the psychological clinic of Isfahan City, Iran, to solve their problems. The research sample included 45 couples who were selected by purposeful sampling and were randomly divided into three experimental groups: 1 (15 couples), 2 (15 couples), and control (15 couples). For the statistical analysis of the data, mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) between and within subjects was used with the help of SPSS software.

Training emotion management strategies based on EFT and schema-based couple therapy increased sexual satisfaction and family functioning compared to the control group (P < 0.050). There was a statistically significant difference between the effectiveness of teaching emotion management strategies based on EFT and schema-based couple therapy on sexual satisfaction and family performance of couples in the post-test and follow-up stages (P < 0.050), and teaching emotion management strategies based on EFT approach was more effective than schema-based couple therapy in sexual satisfaction and family functioning of couples.

Emotion and self-awareness training is an effective method in increasing sexual satisfaction and family functioning of couples.

Due to the prevalence of coronavirus infection in Iran and the greater susceptibility of pregnant women to the disease, this study aimed to investigate the predictors of pregnant women's self-care behavior in coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) epidemic using the Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM).

This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 309 pregnant women in Isfahan City, Iran. The samples were selected using two-stage cluster sampling method from 14 health centers in Isfahan City. In order to collect data, participants completed a researcher-made questionnaire based on EPPM constructs online. The collected data were analyzed using Spearman correlation coefficient and hierarchical linear regression tests via SPSS software.

The mean age of the participants was 29.00 ± 6.25 years. Overall, the four variables of “perceived sensitivity, perceived severity, self-efficacy, and response efficiency” constituted about 44% of the total variance of protective behaviors in pregnant women (adjusted R2 = 0.42%, P = 0.030). Among them, the constructs of self-efficacy (β = 0.41) and response efficiency (β = 0.15) had the greatest power in predicting self-care behavior (P < 0.050).

Self-efficacy and response efficiency constructs have been the main determinants of self-care behaviors of pregnant women during COVID-19 disease. Therefore, in order to promote self-care behaviors in pregnant women, more emphasis can be placed on strategies of improving the mentioned constructs.

Today cancer is one of the most important causes of death in the world. This disease, depending on its degree of development, causes abnormalities in the normal functioning of the individual. Generally, diagnosing of cancer comes along with a lot of anxiety and it evinces different reactions in the patients including increase in rumination and decrease in resilience. This study tries to compare mindfulness and health anxiety in women with breast cancer and healthy individuals.

This was a descriptive causal-comparative study. The statistical population included all women with breast cancer who were treated at Valiasr Hospital, Zanjan, Iran, and normal people. The sample of this study included 200 patients with cancer and 200 healthy subjects who were matched and selected by convenience sampling. Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) and Health Anxiety Inventory-18 (HAI-18) were used for the purpose of collecting the data. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to analyze the data in SPSS software.

There was a significant difference between mindfulness in both groups of patients with cancer and healthy individuals (P < 0.050). Findings also showed significant differences between health anxiety in both groups (P < 0.050).

It can be concluded that patients with cancer have lower mindfulness and higher health anxiety than healthy individuals due to negative self-beliefs and high level of anxiety caused by physical, psychological, and social issues.

One of the most important issues in today's world is cleaning soil contaminated with mineral pollutants. Phytoremediation is one of the methods that has received a lot of attention in recent decades due to its economic and environmental compatibility. This study aims to investigate the effect of salinity and polluted soils on cadmium absorption by hawthorn species.

This study was a completely randomized design with two factors of cadmium and salinity which was carried out in factorial form with 3 replications. Cadmium factor had five different levels including zero (control), 50, 100, 200, and 400 mM and salinity factor had three different levels of zero (control), 50, and 100 mM sodium chloride.

With the increase of salinity and cadmium concentration, the amount of photosynthetic pigments, i.e., chlorophyll a and b, carotenoid, and total chlorophyll decreased significantly which was related to 50 mmol of salinity and 100 mmol of cadmium.

Based on the obtained results, hawthorn seedlings can be suggested as stabilizing species for cleaning soils contaminated with the heavy metal cadmium.

Otitis media is the second most common pediatric disease in the world and family, especially mothers, play an important role in prevention of this disease in children. The present study aimed to determine the knowledge, attitude, and performance of mothers regarding preventive behaviors of otitis media in infants.

This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted by random sampling method on 240 mothers of infants referring to health centers of Arak City, Iran, in 2021. Data were collected by a questionnaire whose reliability and validity were previously confirmed and were analyzed with SPSS software using descriptive and analytical statistical tests including Spearman correlation coefficient and independent t-test. P < 0.05 was considered as the significance level.

The mean age of children was 11.40 ± 6.05 months and 194 (80.8%) mothers were housewives. 16.2% of mothers had desirable knowledge about otitis media and 67.1% had moderate knowledge. 92.5% of mothers had desirable attitude and 7.5% had moderate attitude. Besides, performance score was desirable in 58.3% of mothers, moderate in 39.2%, and weak in 2.5%. There was a significant relationship between knowledge score with attitude of mothers (r = 0.320, P < 0.001) and performance (P < 0.050). The demographic variables including mother’s education, number of children, family income, knowledge, and attitude predicted 0.118% of maternal performance variance in prevention of otitis media in infants.

Most mothers had weak or moderate knowledge and performance about prevention of otitis media in infants. Mother's background factors including education and household income are effective in this field. Therefore, educational planning is necessary to improve the knowledge and performance of mothers.