Journal of Research and Health
Volume:13 Issue: 4, Jul-Aug 2023

Fluoride is currently accessible in various forms, including water, toothpaste, mouth rinses, and professional fluoride therapy at dental clinics. A body of data supports the use of systemic and topical fluoride from various sources to prevent dental caries. Fluoride ions are absorbed by the enamel before tooth eruption and produce fluorohydroxyapatite, which is more resistant to acid attack than hydroxyapatite crystals [1]. Fluoride ions also aid in the early caries lesion remineralization process. As a result of the two mechanisms outlined above, fluoride strengthens enamel teeth against organic acids and dental caries.

This article focused on career transition issues of students with visual impairments (SVIs). This article utilized a narrative-integrative research design.  The literature review shows that many educators and other stakeholders in the transition process are still unaware of the difficulties experienced by SVIs. The literature shows a mixed attitude from some educators towards students with disabilities in general, and students with VIs in particular. Most employers often do not want to hire people who are visually challenged. Literature also suggests that it is somewhat difficult to find common ground to support full inclusion to promote career transition for SVIs due to conflicting viewpoints among parents and educators of students with and without VIs. While some visually impaired students equipped with valuable job skills can find work in competitive jobs, a concerted effort should be made to overcome some employment hurdles they face. For SVIs to experience successful career transition, they need to be well-equipped with valuable job skills and assisted in job search and placement by career transition agencies.

Problems arising during menstruation include pain before or during menstruation. Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) techniques and endorphin massage (EM) therapy are effective in controlling menstrual pain. This study aims to determine the difference in the effectiveness of pain intensity carried out by PMR therapy and EM therapy. 

This study was a quasi-experimental research with a two-group pretest and posttest design. Respondents were selected using a purposive sampling technique with inclusion and exclusion criteria. The inclusion criteria included students who experienced dysmenorrhea and do not have a genetic abnormality. The respondents who met the criteria were 80 respondents. The respondents were randomly selected using computerized to divide them into two groups. Forty respondents received PMR intervention and another 40 respondents received EM intervention. Bivariate analysis was performed using Wilcoxon test. Identification of respondents who fit the criteria, i.e. adolescents aged 13-14 years who experience menstrual pain, and do not have genetic abnormalities. Pain measurement was performed with a Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) and analyzed using the Mann-Whitney test. 

PMR is more effective in lower intensity painful menstruation compared to EM proven that the average painful menstruation after PMR was 2.42±0.675, while the average painful menstruation after EM was 2.90±0955 with a difference of 4.8 points with a significance level of 0.000. Menstrual pain can be reduced by blocking nerve impulses from reaching the brain, including PMR therapy to control tension and anxiety. 

PMR therapy is more effective for controlling menstrual pain. PMR therapy can be done alone by adolescents when menstrual pain appears.

Substance dependence in families can have a wide range of negative effects on the lives of those close to the dependent person, in addition to causing pain to the dependent person. The present study aims to investigate the effect of cognitive behavioural intervention on depression and quality of life (QoL) in wives who cared for husbands with substance use disorders.

The research was conducted using a quasi-experimental design with pre- and post-tests. Purposive sampling was used to select 60 spouse carers of male inpatients with substance use disorders, who were randomly assigned to the intervention (n=30) and control (n=30) groups. At baseline and post-intervention, all participants completed the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21) and the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Bref (WHO QoL-BREF). The intervention group received eight sessions per week of individual cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for 45 to 60 minutes, while the control group did not. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) in SPSS software, version 26. In statistical tests, the significance level was 0.05. 

The results showed significant differences between the pre-test and post-test scores of the experimental group; therefore cognitive behavior intervention can significantly reduce depression and improve the QoL of substance dependent’s wife.

These results have crucial implications for clinical practice in terms of improving mental health and well-being in the context of male substance use disorder spouse caregivers.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the critical diseases due to its adverse clinical, social, and economic consequences for affected people. This study aims to assess the quality of life (QoL) of patients with MS in East Azerbaijan, Iran. 

This cross-sectional study was conducted using the multiple sclerosis quality of life-54 (MSQoL-54) questionnaires to interview 300 randomly selected MS patients in East Azarbaijan Province, Iran. The independent t-test, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Tukey post hoc test were used to examine the relationship between demographic variables, and QoL, and all analyses were performed using SPSS software, version 19. 

The QoL score in MS patients is 48.22±22.48. The “life satisfaction” is the best and “physical role limitation” is the worst QoL aspect. Significant relationships were observed between marital status, education level, employment status, age of symptoms onset, and years of illness with QoL (P<0.05). 

The QoL of the MS patients in East Azarbaijan Province is lower than in other parts of Iran and much lower than in Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries.

The high prevalence of hypertension worldwide and its severe effects on various body organs are major health concerns in every community. The present study aims to evaluate the effects of telenursing on the management of self-care behaviors in patients with chronic hypertension.

This randomized clinical trial was conducted on two groups with a pretest-posttest. The sample population included 82 patients with hypertension referred to comprehensive urban and rural health service centers in Garme City, Iran who were initially selected via two-stage cluster sampling and allocated into two groups of intervention and control by permuted block randomization (six patients in each block). Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire, the hypertension self-care profile, and phone follow-up, which were completed at the beginning of the study. The patients received a two-hour training session. The intervention group was followed up (telenursing) for three months, and the control group received routine care. After the intervention, the self-care questionnaire in patients with chronic hypertension was completed by both groups. Data were analyzed with SPSS software, version 25 using the Mann-Whitney U test, paired t-test, and the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA).

Telenursing increased the mean score of a healthy diet by 1.3 units (P=0.04) and the score of disease management by 1.19 units (P=0.004). However, the intervention had no significant effects on weight (P=0.09), supervision of the awareness of food labeling (P=0.38), and medication regimen (P=0.62). 

According to the results, it is recommended to use this method to manage the disease and dietary habits of patients with chronic hypertension.

Given that COVID-19 spreads worldwide, it has become a public health priority. This study aims to investigate the correlation between social capital and the epidemiological indicators of COVID-19. 

This survey is an ecological study, so all studied variables are aggregated. To collect the variables in the study, a data set was provided, which included the information of each country based on the cumulative deaths, case fatality rate, recovery rate, and the number of performed COVID-19 tests. We drew scatter plots of the social capital for the studied countries based on COVID-19 indices. 

In all the studied countries, the highest cumulative incidence rate of COVID-19 cases was in Montenegro (60310.56 per million), while the lowest cumulative incidence rate of cases was in Tanzania (8.42 per million). The highest and lowest cumulative incidence rate of death due to COVID-19 was in Belgium (1425.15 per million) and Burundi (0.08 per million), respectively. Also, social capital has a significant direct correlation with the cumulative incidence rate of cases (r=0.42, P<0.001), the cumulative incidence rate of death (r=0.31, P<0.001), and the number of performed COVID-19 diagnostic tests per million. Social capital was correlated with recovery and mortality rates (r= -0.21, P=0.007).

Considering that social capital has a statistically significant relationship with the indices of case fatality and recovery rates, it is possible to increase social capital with appropriate interventions by relevant individuals and organizations to improve the pandemic management in different countries.

Since a significant part of deaths due to traffic accidents are preventable in the pre-hospital phase, therefore it seems necessary to have an instrument to identify and measure the factors affecting it. This study aims to develop and psychometrically assess an instrument to measure preventable prehospital mortality due to traffic accidents.

The study is a mixed qualitative-quantitative study, including systematic review, interviews, Delphi, and psychometrics. In the systematic review phase, using database searches, and in the qualitative phase, the factors affecting preventable mortality were extracted via interviews with 24 experts (fire-fighting organizations, traffic police, the Red Crescent, emergency medical services [EMS], emergency medicine, hospital emergency nurses and traffic accident victims) in Ministry of Health, Treatment and Medical Education and Yazd Province, Iran, 2020. The codes were classified with MAXQDA10 Software. The results were collected in the format of the primary instrument and the Delphi study (3 rounds) was conducted by experts. Finally, the reduction of the items and the psychometrics of the instrument, including the determination of face and content validity, and then the determination of the reliability using Cronbach’s alpha were performed.

The developed instrument had acceptable validity and reliability to be used in measuring preventable traffic-related pre-hospital mortalities. The final instrument to measure preventable pre-hospital mortality was developed with 5 dimensions, including “scene and casualty assessment, coordination and communication, time management, training performance, and support”. 

Using this instrument, preventable deaths can be detected, the present challenges can be identified, and the preventable deaths may be diminished.

Coronavirus disease 2019 is a new viral disease and in a short period, it has affected the world in various economic, social, and health aspects. This disease had a high mortality rate at the time of its occurrence. This article aims to determine the related factors to the survival time of inpatients with COVID-19 in northern Iran.

In this retrospective study, the data of 3480 patients with laboratory confirmation of the virus caused by COVID-19 infection in 17 hospitals covered by Golestan University of Medical Sciences from February 20 to July 20, 2020 were used. For all patients included in the study, until the end of the study, the follow-up has been done through the hospital information system unit. Statistical analysis was performed using R statistical software version 3.6.2 with a survival package. 

Out of 3480 definitive patients with COVID-19, the average age of the patients was 52.93±19.20 years and 51.1% of them were women. A total of 77.6% of patients recovered and 22.4% died at the end of the study (781 patients, 22.4%). The median survival time among deceased patients was less than one day (interquartile range [IQR]: 0–5) days. Patients with an age group above 49 years had a 2.1 times higher chance of death than other patients. Patients who had no history of hospitalization in the intensive care unit (ICU) had a 1.77 times higher chance of death than other patients. Patients who did not use ventilators had a 1.21 times higher chance of death than other patients.

Finally, according to the results of this study, in the early days of hospitalization, it is necessary to investigate the spread of COVID-19 in people younger than 49 years, hospitalized in intensive care unit (ICU), and hospitalized in other cities.