Background:Hemodialysis patients usually experience high levels of psychological stress, anxiety, and depression. Reducing these matters in patients provides more psychological resources to cope with their physical situation.Aim:The present study aimed to explore the efficacy of Benson's relaxation technique for stress, anxiety, and depression of patients with hemodialysis.Materials and Methods:Eighty hemodialysis patients were selected from two hospitals as an intervention and control groups. Then Benson relaxation training was implemented in the intervention group for 15 min twice a day during 4 weeks. The patients were assessed by depression, anxiety, and stress scale; which was completed before and after the intervention.Results:There were significant differences between stress and anxiety levels in case group before and after intervention (P > 0.001) and there is no meaningful difference between the mean of depression value in case group before and after intervention (P > 0.22).Conclusion:Instructing Benson's relaxation technique is accompanied by reducing stress and anxiety level of hemodialysis patients. Reducing stress and anxiety levels can provide more calmness for the patients so that pursuing medical therapy would be accompanied with more tranquility. Authors have suggested to improve and prevent the patients’ psychological problems as well as other chronic disorders by applying this practice.

Prophylactic use of carvedilol may inhibit the development of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity, even at low doses.

Anthracycline (ANT) is a topoisomerase-interacting agent that is used in most malignancy treatments. We investigated the efficacy of enalapril (angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor) in the prevention of ANT-induced cardiomyopathy. In this randomized, single-blind, and placebo-controlled study, 69 patients with a newly diagnosed malignancy for which ANT therapy was planned were randomly assigned to either a group receiving enalapril (n = 34) or placebo (n = 35). Echocardiography studies were performed before chemotherapy and at 6 months after randomization. Additionally, troponin I and creatinine kinase-MB (CK-MB) were measured 1 month after the initiation of chemotherapy. In the enalapril group, the mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (p = 0.58) was the same at baseline and 6 months after randomization. Conversely, LVEF significantly decreased in the control group (p < 0.001). Additionally, LV end systolic volume and left atrial diameter were significantly increased compared with the baseline measures in the control group. According to the tissue Doppler study, the mitral annuli early diastolic (e') and peak systolic (s') velocities were significantly reduced, and the E (the peak early diastolic velocity)/e' ratio was significantly increased in the control group. Furthermore, the TnI and CK-MB levels were significantly higher in the control group than in the enalapril group. Enalapril appears efficacious in preserving systolic and diastolic function in cancer patients treated with ANTs.

The aim of this study was to assess the candidal colonization and specific humoral responses against Candida albicans in patients with atopic dermatitis. One hundred patients with atopic dermatitis and 50 healthy individuals were enrolled in the study. Skin and oral specimens from all participants were cultured on CHROMagar Candida medium. Isolated yeasts were identified by using the sequence of the D1/D2 domain of the 26S rRNA gene. ELISA was used for detection of IgM, IgA, and IgG antibodies against C. albicans in sera of participants. Candida species were isolated from the skin and oral cavity of 31% of the patients and 12% of the controls. There was no significant difference between Candida colonization in patients and controls (P>0.05). Candida albicans was isolated from the skin and oral cavity of 23% of the patients and 6% of the controls (P< 0.05). There were no significant differences between serum levels of IgM and IgA in patients and controls (P>0.05). Serum level of IgG was significantly lower in patients than in controls (P<0.05). Type of Candida colonization can change in patients with atopic dermatitis. In addition, these patients have abnormalities in the production of antibodies against Candida albicans that may have a role in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis.

Objective: Chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity is a major and leading cause of death in breast cancer survivors. It can present decades after chemotherapy and can manifest in different ways; some chemotherapeutic agents have a powerful dose-dependent relationship with cardiotoxicity. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of rosuvastatin on preventing chemotherapyinduced cardiotoxicity in patients with breast cancer. Methods: Our study was a randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled trial that involved 89 women with newly diagnosed breast cancer who were scheduled to receive chemotherapy. Patients were randomly assigned to receive rosuvastatin or a placebo in a 1:1 ratio for 6 months. Echocardiography, using 2-dimensional (2D) Doppler, tissue Doppler, and speckle-tracking methods, was used to determine the absolute changes in the left ventricular systolic ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV), left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV), left atrial (LA) diameter, transmitral Doppler early diastolic velocity (E wave), tissue Doppler early diastolic (e 0) and peak systolic (s 0) mitral annular velocities, E/e 0 ratio, and global longitudinal systolic strain. Results: The LVEF was significantly reduced in the placebo group at the end of the study when compared with the baseline value. However, there was no significant difference in the LVEF in the intervention group (intergroup P ¼ .012). Furthermore, compared with the intervention group at the end of the study, there was a significant increase in the 4-and 2-chamber LVESV, LA diameter, and E/e 0 ratio in the placebo group (intergroup P ¼ .019, P ¼ .024, P < .001, and P ¼ .021, respectively) and a significant decrease in the e 0 and s 0 velocities in the placebo group (intergroup P < .001 and P < .006, respectively). Conclusions: The present study showed that the prophylactic use of rosuvastatin may prevent the development of chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity.