Mohsen Rezaei Hemami

Life quality assessment among patients with vitiligo: comparison of married and single patients in Iran.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Vitiligo is known to affect the quality of social and personal life in some countries. This study aims to assess the quality of life (QOL) in vitiligo sufferers among the Iranian population and to evaluate its relation with different variables. METHODS One hundred vitiligo patients answered a questionnaire based on the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI). RESULTS The mean DLQI score was 8.16. There were statistically significant relationships between DLQI scores and marital status, skin phototype, and disease extension independently. CONCLUSIONS This study shows that vitiligo has a major impact on the QOL of patients in Iran. Hence dermatologists should pay attention to the psychological effects of this cosmetic disease and try to decrease its extension and disfiguring effects by various treatments.

The reliability and validity of the persian version of sinonasal outcome test 22 (snot 22) questionnaires.

Background The quality of life (QOL) is an important indicator for disease-severity classification and outcome measurement in obtaining treatment sinonasal diseases. The sinonasal outcome test 22 (SNOT 22) questionnaire has been introduced as the best specific sinonasal instrument for QOL measurement. Objectives To prepare a valid and reliable Persian language version of SNOT 22 questionnaire. Patients and Methods After forward and backward translation of the original version of SNOT 22 questionnaire from English to Persian, a group of patients with nasal septal deviation who need septal surgery and another group of healthy volunteers answered the Persian version of the questionnaire. The responsiveness rate, validity (Pearson correlations and differential validity) and reliability (internal consistency and test-retest reliability) of the 22 items of the questionnaire was calculated. P value < 0.05 was considered significant. Results Thirty adults with nasal septal deviation need surgical correction and 30 healthy volunteers were included (mean age 30.4 ± 7.1 vs. 33 ± 6.7, P value = 0.148). The questionnaire was introduced to subjects two times with a two-week-period gap. Total responsiveness rate for 22 items was more than 97%. The total Cronbachs Alfa coefficient was 0.898 (ranging 0.890-0.903). The Pearson correlations were 0.85 and 0.96 for patients and healthy volunteers, respectively. The mean total score were 25.6 ± 13.3 (range 6-52) and 7.6 ± 9.1 (range 0-45) in patients and healthy volunteers, respectively (P < 0.0001). The subscales scores were also significantly different between two groups. Conclusions The Persian version of SNOT 22 questionnaire is a valid and reliable instrument for accessing sinonasal diseases in Persian-speaking people.

Atorvastatin for the Treatment of Plaque‐Type Psoriasis

Study Objective. To explore the efficacy and safety of oral atorvastatin for the treatment of plaque‐type psoriasis.

Nutritional knowledge, attitude and practice of Iranian households and primary health care staff: NUTRIKAP Survey

The aim of this study is to determine knowledge, attitude and practice of Iranian households and health staff on nutrition at province level. The sampling method in NUTRIKAP survey for households in each province is single-stage cluster sampling and the size of clusters is equal. The sampling method for health staff in each province is stratified random sampling. Samples are selected from physicians, health experts, health technicians, nutritionists and health assistants (Behvarz). Overall, 14136 people in 57 clusters in each province and 480 health staff over the country participate in this survey. The necessary data will be gathered by the structured questionnaire and the interview with the eligible person in each household. Data gathering from health staff will be carried out by self-administered questionnaire. The results of this study can help the bureau of community nutrition to provide the proper interventions to improve nutritional health of households.

Cost-Effectiveness of Different Cervical Screening Strategies in Islamic Republic of Iran: A Middle-Income Country with a Low Incidence Rate of Cervical Cancer.

Objective Invasive cervical cancer (ICC) is the fourth most common cancer among women worldwide. Cervical screening programs have reduced the incidence and mortality rates of ICC. We studied the cost-effectiveness of different cervical screening strategies in the Islamic Republic of Iran, a Muslim country with a low incidence rate of ICC. Methods We constructed an 11-state Markov model, in which the parameters included regression and progression probabilities, test characteristics, costs, and utilities; these were extracted from primary data and the literature. Our strategies included Pap smear screening and human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing plus Pap smear triaging with different starting ages and screening intervals. Model outcomes included lifetime costs, life years gained, quality-adjusted life years (QALY), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs). One-way sensitivity analysis was performed to examine the stability of the results. Results We found that the prevented mortalities for the 11 strategies compared with no screening varied from 26% to 64%. The most cost-effective strategy was HPV screening, starting at age 35 years and repeated every 10 years. The ICER of this strategy was

Prognostic validity of dichotic multiple frequencies auditory steady-state responses versus distortion product otoacoustic emissions in hearing screening of high risk neonates

8,875 per QALY compared with no screening. We found that screening at 5-year intervals was also cost-effective based on GDP per capita in Iran. Conclusion We recommend organized cervical screening with HPV DNA testing for women in Iran, beginning at age 35 and repeated every 10 or 5 years. The results of this study could be generalized to other countries with low incidence rates of cervical cancer.

Association of serum retinol-binding protein 4 with insulin resistance and metabolic parameters during olanzapine therapy.

OBJECTIVE To determine the validity of dichotic multiple frequencies auditory steady-state responses (ASSR) as a hearing screening technique versus using distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) among high-risk neonates. METHODS A cross sectional study was performed on 118 high-risk neonates by means of dichotic multiple frequencies ASSR and DPOAE for hearing screening. DPOAE results were used as the standard for hearing screening in parallel with ASSR. Dichotic multiple frequencies ASSR results were analyzed by means of F-value of less or greater than 0.05 criteria as a pass-fail for the responses. Dichotic multiple ASSR hearing screening technique was considered in two intensity levels at 40 and 70 dB HL. The ASSRs thresholds were measured in high risk neonates with and without hearing deficits as determined by DPOAES. The results of ASSR and DPOAE were compared to be gathered by contingency table in order to obtain sensitivity, specificity and other different statistical values. Average performing times for the tests were analyzed. RESULTS The specificity of dichotic multiple ASSR was 92.6%, 93.8% and the sensitivity was 71.6%, 62.2% at the 70 and 40 dB hearing levels, respectively. Mean ASSR thresholds for normal-hearing infants at an average corrected age of 6 days were 32.2 ± 12.2, 29.8 ± 10.2, 26.2 ± 11.4 and 30.4 ± 10.8 dB HL for 0.5, 1, 2 and 4 kHz, respectively. The average times for performing the tests were 18.7 and 32.9 min respectively. CONCLUSIONS ASSR with this special paradigm is a fairly desirable method for hearing screening of high-risk neonates. There is good concordance between ASSRs and DOPAEs results among high risk neonates referred for hearing screening. The sensitivity and specificity of this test is sufficient for hearing screening in high risk neonates. This test could be valuable for rapid confirmation of normal thresholds. As long as further research have not been conducted on ASSR, great caution should be made to interpret the results of ASSR as a hearing screening technique in young infants and also additional techniques such as the tone-evoked ABRs should be used to cross-check results. Its still too soon to recommend ASSRs as a standalone electrophysiologic measure of hearing thresholds in infants.

A Cost-Utility Analysis of Different Antiviral Medicine Regimens in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 1 Infection

Objective  Retinol‐binding protein 4 (RBP4) has been shown to be associated with insulin resistance (IR), metabolic indices and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in various patient populations and in obesity. We investigated the association between metabolic parameters, IR and RBP4 during olanzapine therapy.

Is a Low Sacral Ratio Associated with Primary Vesicoureteral Reflux in Children

Background Despite the introduction of new drug regimens with high effectiveness for the hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients, especially in HCV genotype 1, no cost-effectiveness study on the selection of the superior drug strategy in Iran has been conducted yet. Objectives This study is aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of the three drug regimens of pegylated interferon and ribavirin (PR), sofosbuvir (SOF) + PR and ledipasvir and sofosbuvir (LDV/SOF) in patients with HCV genotype 1 in Iran in the year 2014. Methods A Markov micro-simulation model was used to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the three drug strategies for a cohort of 10000 patients. Quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) were extracted from published studies. Cost data was estimated through the review of medical records and obtaining experts opinion. Results The results showed that the SOF + PR drug compared with PR had a lower cost and was more effective, but compared with the LDV/SOF, in spite of its lower cost, it was less efficient. The QALY values obtained for PR, SOF + PR and LDV/SOF, respectively, were 10.98, 12.08 and 12.28 and their costs were

A Cost-Utility and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Different Oral Antiviral Medications in Patients With HBeAg-Negative Chronic Hepatitis B in Iran: An Economic Microsimulation Decision Model

41,741,