مجله دانشگاه علوم پزشکی رفسنجان
سال چهاردهم شماره 6 (پیاپی 77، شهریور 1394)

Moral distress is one of the major problems of nurses, which may happen due to various reasons. Moral distress has several consequences such as, low self-esteem, job dissatisfaction and depression. Nurses in critical care units and emergency departments experience more moral distress situations because of their special work. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between moral distress and self-efficacy among nurses in critical care units and emergency department. This is a cross-sectional study in type of descriptive-analytic that was conducted on 185 critical care units and emergency nurses in Ahvaz educational hospitals that were selected by survey method in 2015. Data was collected by demographic questionnaire, Corley moral distress scale and Riggs self-efficacy questionnaire. Data was analyzed by using descriptive statistics and Pearson’s correlation test. Findings showed that moral distress and self-efficacy levels in critical care and emergency nurses were moderate. There was a significant relation between intensity of moral distress (p=0.04, r= - 0.14) and frequency of moral distress (p=0.01, r= - 0.19) with nurses’ perceived self-efficacy. Regarding the reverse significant relationship between moral distress with perceived self-efficacy in nurses, developing some strategies to control nurses moral distress can probably improve their self-efficacy and professional competencies.

In orthodontic treatment,the various alloys are widely used. These materials are placed in contact with the oral tissues for months or even years. Microbiological and enzymatic properties of the oral cavity provide appropriate conditions for metals corrosion, causing the release of elements such as nickel, chromium, copper and silver from wires, bands and orthodontic brackets. The purpose of this study is to measure the amount of nickel ions released from the simulated appliance in orthognathic patients and compare the amount of releasing nickel with its safe level. In this semi-experimental study, 60 stimulated appliances in three different types (groups of 20) were studied. Theses three groups examined by spectophotometer to measure free nickel in artificial saliva using atomic absorption after 3, 6 and 2 months respectively and then calculated the rates of three groups, after that compared to safe nickel’s level. Statistical analysis was done by one sample t-test The mean and standard deviation rates of the released nickel in four quadrants of the oral cavity were 1198±533.45 in first group and 825.5±390.40 and 1290.5±455.47 microgram per picoliter in second and third groups, respectively. The mean amount of released nickel in all groups were less than the safe threshold (2500) and statistical analysis showed a significant difference (p<0.001). The amount of released nickel in the whole oral cavity (four quadrants) in each group was less than the toxic dose so this appliance may be safe.

The natural products are considered promising candidates for cancer treatment. Brittle stars are echinoderms that biologically include active compounds. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the Persian Gulf brittle star (Ophiocoma erinaceus) dichloromethane extract on induction of apoptosis in the EL4 cell line. In this laboratory study, the lymphoma cells were cultured in RPMI 1640 medium. After 24 h, cells were treated with different concentrations (7.5, 15, 31, 62, 125 and 250 µg/ml) of brittle star dichloromethane extract. Then, cytotoxic effect and effective dose were studied using MTT assay (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide), further, cell death was induced by the relevant tests and apoptosis induction pathway was investigated by caspase 3 and 9 assay. Data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA followed by TUKEY's multiple comparisons test. The findings showed that the brittle star extract had a cytotoxic effect on Lymphoma cell line. So that lower concentrations of 31 µg/ml inhibited cell proliferation and higher concentrations of 31 µg/ml caused lysis of cells and the IC50 concentration was 31 µg/ml (p<0.05). The caspase colorimetric assay showed that apoptosis induced by brittle star extracts was caspase-dependent via intrinsic pathway on lymphoma cell line. Brittle star dichloromethane extract promoted apoptosis in EL4 cells that proposed an innovative candidate for treatment of leukemia, altogether

One in every five children in developing countries are malnourished, and the poor nutrition is associated with half of all children deaths worldwide. The aim of current study was to assess the nutritional status of less than five-year children in Salmas district, using ENA (Emergency Nutrition Assessment) software. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 902 under-five-year children in urban and rural regions of Salmas district in 2011. The required data were collected by completing the questionnaire and measuring the anthropometric indices. The percentages of underweight, stunting, wasting, overweight and obesity were determined using ENA software. Chi-square test was used for data analysis. In this study, 50.4% (455 children) of children were girls and 83.8% (756 children) and 16.2% (146 children) were normal and malnourished, respectively. Among malnourished children the percentages of underweight, stunting, wasting, overweight and obesity were 14.4% (21 children), 45.2% (66 children), 8.9% (13 children), 24.7% (36 children) and 6.8% (10 children), respectively. Overweight and obesity among boys and in urban areas were more prevalent but these differences were not statistically significant (p>0.05). Stunting in rural areas was more prevalent and this difference was statistically significant (p<0.001). The results of this study showed that the stunting which represents chronic malnutrition among children, among both boys and girls was more frequent than underweight and wasting. In addition, the method used in this study was a simple, rapid, and accurate method and it is suggested using it as a convenient tool for other epidemiological studies and crisis in the country.

L - Arginine is a semi-essential amino acid that affects some blood indices. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of supplementation of L - Arginine on plasma lipids, blood sugar and blood pressure in healthy subjects. This study was a randomized double-blind controlled clinical trial. A lot of, 56 male athletes with an average age of 20.85±4.29 were selected from Isfahan University of Medical Sciences clubs in the winter, in 2014. Athletes received L- Arginine supplementation with a dose of 2 g daily for 45 days in the intervention group and the same amount of placebo (maltodextrin) in the control group. At the beginning and the end of the study serum levels of blood lipids, blood glucose and blood pressure were measured. Data were analyzed by using SPSS software version 19. At the end of this study, levels of fasting blood sugar, lipid profile in subjects received the L – arginine supplementation significantly improved in comparison to the control group (p value<0.05). However, no significant changes were observed in systolic and diastolic blood pressures (p value> 0.05). This study showed that a daily intake of 2 g dietary supplements of L- Arginine for 45 days in healthy subjects can improve levels of lipid profiles and fasting blood sugar and it can be used as a health-promoting supplements in healthy people.

Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan that infects at least 30-60 percent of human beings in many countries including Iran. The present study was aimed to determine the seroprevalence of anti-toxoplasma IgG and IgM immunoglobulins in pregnant women and their newborns, as well as to investigate its association with some potential epidemiological factors. Sera of 333 blood samples of pregnant mothers and their infant's umbilical cords were examined for IgG and IgM immunoglobulins against toxoplasma gondii using commercial ELISA kits. Data on some potential epidemiological parameters of infection were recorded. only 73 cases out of 240 (30.4%) mother blood samples and 83 cases out of 254 (32.7%) umbilical cords samples had detectable IgG antibodies against toxoplasma gondii. On other hand, only one (0.3%) umbilical cord sample were positive for IgM Immunoglobulins. Positive IgG results had statistically significant associations with job, educational levels, residence in rural or urban area and close contact with cats. Odds ratio of infection in housewives was 3.8 times of non-housewives, in rural women was 2.24 times of urban women, and in those with close cat contacts was 1.84 times of those without contact. Despite unfavorable environmental conditions, Kerman province is suitable for toxoplasma infection. Living in rural area, close contact with cats, being housewife and lower literacy are the main risk factors for infection acquisition.

Urinary tract infection is one of the most nosocomial infections with different antibiotic resistance pattern. This study was aimed to investigate the pattern of susceptibility and resistance of uropathogenic E. coli strains that had been isolated from those who referred to the private laboratories in Khorram-Abad city. This empirical study was conducted on 253 urinary strains. After identification of the strains. by standard biochemical tests, the pattern of the susceptibility of bacterial strains was investigated by Kirby - Bauer Disk Diffusion Susceptibility Test according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute,(CLSI). The most resistant strains were for co-trimoxazole (61.26%), ampicillin (52.57%), cephalexin (49.01%), nalidixic acid (44.26%), respectively. On the other hand, the most sensitive to antibiotics were nitrofurantoin (83.79%), amikacin (79.05%), enrofloxacin (68.77%) and ciprofloxacin (65.61%), respectively. Based on the results of this study, it is suggested using nitrofurantoin and amikacin as the first antibiotics for the treatment of uropathogenic E.coli infections and co-trimoxazole and ampicillin should be avoided.

Computer is one of the most common office equipment that spends around 25% energy consumption in an administrative building. As an action toward resistive economy policy in saving energy, we conducted a study on affecting factors on personal computers (PCs) power consumption in an academic center. This research was a cross-sectional study among a group of staff in Babol University of Medical Sciences in 2014. The research population included all PC users in main part of Babol University of Medical Sciences. The data were collected by means of a researcher made data checklist through visiting, interviewing and observation. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics indexes and chi-square test. Among 232 PC users, 212 (91.4%) were educated. Almost 94% of computers were connected to internet, and 56.5% were used more than 5 hours per day. 73%, 61%, and 25% of computers were equipped with printers, speakers and scanners, respectively. Only 63 (27.2%) of the users were familiar with the existing mechanisms of reducing power consumption in a computer. Finally, more than half of users (56%) were fully unplugging the computer and accessories at the end of work shift. Despite frequent and prolonged computer use by the users, it seems that an academic center staff knowledge about the mechanisms for reducing the power consumption is inadequate. Thus, implementation of resistive economy policies requires staff training and their cooperation.