مجله دانشگاه علوم پزشکی قم
سال شانزدهم شماره 11 (پیاپی 130، بهمن 1401)

Heart Failure (HF) can cause poor quality of life (QoL). Self-care can lead to desirable outcomes in health. Orem’s self-care model is one of the methods that include patients in care and emphasizes self-care. This study aims to review various studies used Orem’s self-care model to assess the QoL of HF patients.

This is a systematic review study that was conducted from October to December 2021. The search was conducted in Web of Science, MagIran, Irandoc, IranMedex, Information Database Scientific (SID), Scopus, Cochran, Google Scholar and PubMed databases for related studies in both Persian and English without time limit using the keywords heart failure, self-care, Orem, and QoL in Persian and English with “AND” and “OR” operators. The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme Checklist was used to check the quality of articles. Finally, of 865837 found articles,12 eligible articles were reviewed.

Based on Orem’s self-care model, the QoL of patients with HF was at a moderate level. QoL was significantly associated with age, gender, number of children, level of education, occupation, living in an urban area, ejection fraction, length of hospital stay, recreational activities, self-care behaviors, self-care education, management, self-confidence, functional capacity, underlying diseases, comorbidity, depression, anxiety, and personality type D.

Considering the positive effect of using Orem’s self-care model on the QoL of patients with HF, health care providers are recommended to use this model to improve the QoL of patients with HF.

Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) is one of the common liver diseases, characterized by excessive lipid accumulation (steatosis) and inflammation in the liver. Inflammation is one of main reasons for this disease which takes place from different pathways. Rosmarinic Acid (RA) is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory product with positive effects on the improvement of liver injuries. This study aims to evaluate protective effect of RA against liver inflammation caused by NASH in male mice through affecting cyclooxygenase-2/ Prostaglandin E2 (COX-2/PEG2) pathway and Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9).

In this study, 24 C57/BL6 male mice were used. They were divided into four groups of 6 including; Control, RA, NASH, and NASH+RA. The NASH was induced by a methionine/choline-deficient diet for 8 weeks. The RA was administrated intraperitoneally and daily for 8 weeks. After 8 weeks, the animals were sacrificed and their liver was removed. hematoxylin and eosin staining was preformed for histological evaluation and real-time PCR and ELISA assays were used for molecular studies.

The RA significantly reduced hepatic steatosis and inflammation as well as the expression of MMP-9 and COX-2 which led to the significant reduction of PEG2 level.

It seems that RA can reduce liver inflammation and thereby attenuate NASH in male mice by reducing the expression of COX-2 enzyme and MMP-9 and the concentration of PEG2.

Empathy is one of the most important concepts in patient care. This study aims to design and implement an early patient contact program and investigate its effect on the empathy of medical students in Qom, Iran.

This is a case-control interventional study. Sixty-four students from Qom University of Medical Sciences were recruited by a convenience sampling method and were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. The instrument was the Jefferson Scale of Empathy. First, empathy training was provided to the both groups. Then, the intervention group participated at three sessions of attending hospital. The collected data were entered into SPSS software, verion 22 and analyzed by chi-square test and paired t-test.

There was no significant difference between the two groups before the intervention. After the intervention, the empathy score was 74.04±10.32 in the intervention group and 68.31±8.14 in the control group; the difference between the groups was statistically significant.

Early patient contact before the start of the internship period increases the empathy of medical students.

Health system transformation plan (HSTP) of Iran, with three main goals of financial protection of patients, justice in access to health services, and improving the quality of services was implemented since 2014 which has had some achievements and challenges. Considering the large amount of financial resources used in this plan and the limitation of resources in Iran, this study aims to examine the performance of this plan in improving some health-related and financial indicators.

Econometric tools were used in this study. The data of health-related and financial indicators related to the performance of HSTP from 2004 to 2019 were first collected. Then, using the ordinary and generalized least squares estimation methods, the effect of the transformation of HSTP on the selected indicators was examined. Finally, by using the structural break tests of Perron, Zivot-Andrews and Lee-Strazicich, the success of the HSTP in causing positive changes in the indicators and creating structural breaks was examined.

According to the ordinary and generalized least squares regression models, the coefficients of all indicators was significant and the positive effect of the costs of HSTP on the improvement of these indicators were confirmed. The greatest effect was reported on the out-of-pocket payment rate with a coefficient of 0.7 and the lowest effect was on the total death rate with a coefficient of -0.006. According to the results of the structural break tests, all indicators had recorded structural breaks before implementing the plan, while only six indicators showed structural breaks after the implementation.

The HSTP was effective in improving the selected indicators at the beginning. All indicators showed structural break points before implementation of the HSTP, due to their reduction at the related time points, which emphasized the necessity of implementing the HSTP; however, after implementation, no positive structural break points are observed to indicate a considerable improvement in the indicators.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) report, 8 million maternal deaths occur in the perinatal period every year, 98% of which are seen in developing countries. In Iran, the prevalence of stillbirth is 9.19 per 1000 live births. It is possible to improve the health behaviors of mothers by education, increasing knowledge and modifying attitudes. The present study aims to develop and determine the psychometric characteristics of a questionnaire for measuring the health-related attitudes and behaviors of Iranian mothers in the postpartum period.

This is a study with exploratory sequential design which was conducted using both qualitative and quantitative methods on 200 pregnant mothers referred to health centers in Qom, Iran. In the qualitative phase, the items were formulated based on the literature. Psychometric study of the questionnaire were done using face validity, content validity (using two indicators of CVR and CVI), factor structure (using exploratory factor analysis) and reliability (internal consistency and test-retest reliability).

In the validity assessment stage, 5 items were removed from 61 items based on the opinions of 10 experts. After assessing content validity and reliability, 56 questions were confirmed. The Cronbach’s alpha for the whole questionnaire was obtained 0.84 ​​and the Pearson correlation coefficient was reported 0.86.

The designed tool with 56 items and 6 subscales has acceptable validity, reliability and factor structure for measuring Iranian mothers’ health-related, nutritional, and infant-related attitudes and behaviors in the postpartum period.

Recently, the new Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused a lot of stress and anxiety around the world. The present study aims to determine the level of anxiety caused by COVID-19 in medical staff of selected hospitals in Khorramabad, Iran compared to their non-medical staff.

This is an analytical cross-sectional study that was conducted on 150 medical staff and 150 non-medical (administrative) staff working in Shohadaye Ashayer and Shahid Rahimi hospitals in Khorramabad in 2021 (coincided with the fourth and fifth waves of COVID-19). Data collection tools were a demographic information form and the Coronavirus Disease Anxiety Scale (CDAS). After collecting the data, they were entered into SPSS software, version 22 (statistical) and analyzed using one-way analysis of variance, chi-square test, and independent t-test.

The mean±SD total CDAS scores for the medical and non-medical staff were 9.31±0.188 and 9.10±0.188, respectively, but this difference was not statistically significant (P=0.459). In terms of anxiety dimensions, the mean scores of psychological and physical symptoms were higher in medical staff, but the difference was not statistically significant (P=0.426 and 0.617). In terms of age, gender, educational level, marital status, history of vaccination, previous history of infection with COVID-19, hospital, and type of employment, no significant difference in anxiety was found neither between the medical staff nor between non-medical staff (P>0.05).

There is no difference between medical and non-medical staff of hospitals in Khorramabad in terms of COVID-19-related anxiety. Considering the importance of mental health in both groups, it is recommended to take special measures to reduce their anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Diabetes is one of the determining factors in fertility that causes disturbances in spermatogenesis, ovulation and embryo formation. Achillea Millefolium (AM), as a medicinal plant with strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, is used to treat many diseases. This study aims to evaluate the protective effect of AM hydroalcoholic extract on sperm parameters and In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) rate in mice.

In this study, 40 mice were divided into five groups; control group, diabetic group, diabetic+low AM (receiving 37.5 mg/kg of AM extract daily), diabetic+moderate AM (receiving 75 mg.kg of AM extract daily) and diabetic+high AM (receiving 150 mg/kg of AM extract daily). After the 30-day treatment period, the mice were euthanized and the parameters of total sperm count, percentage of live sperms, percentage of immature sperms, percentage of sperms with damaged DNA, and IVF rate were evaluated. Statistical analysis was done by one-way analysis of variances and Tukey’s post hoc test.

The sperm count, percentage of live sperms, IVF rate, percentage of two-cell embryos, and percentage of blastocysts decreased significantly in the diabetic group compared to the control group. In all three groups received AM extract (37.5, 75, and 150 mg/kg), an increase in the number of sperms, percentage of live sperms, and the IVF rate was observed, but this increase was significant only in the diabetic group received 150 mg/kg AM extract compared to the control group. No significant difference was observed between the three groups received AM.

The AM hydroalcoholic extract can improve sperm parameters and IVF rate due to its antioxidant properties.

The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) not only threatened the physical health and caused death in some cases, but also caused psychological problems and unbearable pressures. This study aims to investigate the fear of COVID-19 and anxiety among people over 18 years of age in Kermanshah, Iran.

This is a descriptive cross-sectional study that was conducted in 2021 on 400 men and women aged >18 years in Kermanshah city. Data collection tools included a demographic form, a researcher-made fear of COVID-19 questionnaire, and the Beck Anxiety Inventory. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS v.19 software. The significance level was set at 0.05.

It was reported that 5.5% had low fear, 75.3% had moderate fear, and 19.2% had high fear of COVID-19, 60. Moreover, 1% had mild anxiety, 38.1% had moderate anxiety and 1.8% had severe anxiety. Fear of COVID-19 was higher in married people, people with a large household size, and those with higher educational level (P<0.001). Among the demographic variables, only the educational level was significantly associated with anxiety (P<0.001), where those with higher educational level had more anxiety. The results of correlation test showed that the fear of COVID-19 had a positive and significant relationship with anxiety.

The fear of COVID-19 has a positive and significant relationship with anxiety. To maintain the mental health of the society during the pandemic, it seems necessary to identify people prone to mental disorders and provide appropriate psychological interventions to them.