Background:Intestinal parasitic infections, particularly in the rural areas, are one of the most important indices of the hygiene status and sanitation level of the society. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of the intestinal parasitic infections among rural inhabitant of Hamadan City, Iran, 2012. Patients and Methods: A total of 228 fecal samples were collected from 50 families in seven villages that were directly and indirectly involved in raising livestock and other domestic animals in spring of 2012. The demographic data were collected by interview and included age, sex, educational level, place of keeping animals, direct or indirect contact with animals, and occupation. Fecal samples were concentrated using formol-ether sedimentation technique and examined by iodine-stained wet mount method. Indistinguishable samples were assessed by trichrome staining method. Results: Among 228 samples, 80 (35.1%) were diagnosed with parasitic infection, which separately included 43 cases of Entamoeba coli (18.9%), 32 Blastocystis hominis (14%), 16 Endolimax nana (7%), nine Iodamoeba butschlii (3.9%), five Giardia lamblia (2.2%), two Taenia species (0.9%), two Hymenolepis nana (0.9%), one Chilomastix mesnili (0.4%), one Trichuris trichiura (0.4%), and one Entamoeba histolytica/dispar (0.4%). No significant difference in infection rate was observed with regard to indirect or direct contact with livestock. Coinfection of E. coli and B. hominis, E. coli and I. butschlii, and E. nana and G. lamblia were statistically significant. Interestingly, no Ascaris lumbricoides ovum was seen in this population. Conclusions: According to the results of the present study, the prevalence of some infections with intestinal parasites is high in the Hamadan City. Considering that most of the parasites are nonpathogenic, pathogenic ones have been reduced generally in comparison to the previous reports. Nevertheless, the existence of Taenia species and H. nana could not be ignored.
Introduction: This study was aimed at determining the effects of a 12-week aerobic exercise program on markers of hypertension in men. Methods: The study was of a semi-experimental design featuring repeated measurements. A total of 40 men (age range=37.9 ± 2.68) with primary hypertension were divided into two groups, namely, the exercise group (n=20) and the control group (n=20) (systolic blood pressure [SBP]: 140.531 ± 0.23, diastolic blood pressure [DBP]: 90.71 ± 0.05). The exercise group participated in a 12-week aerobic exercise program (55% to 70% of HRmax). Blood samples were taken from both groups at the baseline and at the 4th, 8th, and 12th weeks of the training program for the assessment of adiponectin, paraoxonase-1 (PON-1), and hydrogen peroxide (H2 O2 ) levels as the markers for investigation. A linear mixed model was also used to evaluate the association among the markers. Results: In the exercise group, exercise reduced the SBP and DBP at week 12 (P=0.031 and 0.023, respectively), and adiponectin increased at weeks 8 and 12 (P=0.014 and 0.001, respectively). The plasma PON-1 level showed a significant increase in all the three stages of measurement (P=0.007, 0.004, and 0.002 at weeks 4, 8, and 12, respectively), whereas the H2 O2 levels showed a significant decrease at weeks 8 and 12 (P=0.013 and 0.011, respectively). The control group exhibited significantly decreased PON-1 (P=0.003) and adiponectin (P=0.025) levels but significantly increased SBP at week 12 (P=0.032). Conclusion: The exercise-induced reduction of oxidative stress exerts a considerable effect on the reduction of blood pressure in hypertensive patients. According to our results increase in oxidative stress has the great impact on the of blood pressure.
Toxoplasmosis is mostly asymptomatic infection in immunocompetent individuals while it can cause a severe infection in human fetus during pregnancy and immunocompromised patients. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of anti-Toxoplasma IgM and IgG seropositivity and potential risk factors of the infection in humans referred to Urmia City main diagnostic laboratories, Urmia, Iran. Totally 195 blood samples were collected from the individuals referred to main diagnostic laboratories of Urmia City, 2013. Serum concentration of anti-Toxoplasma IgG and IgM were determined using ELISA method. Demographic variables of the participants were collected by interviewing, which are including sex, age, occupation, educational and residential status, eating undercooked meat, consumption of raw vegetable and the method of washing raw vegetables. None of all 200 serum sample were anti-Toxoplasma IgM positive, but different concentrations of anti-Toxoplasma IgG were observed in 88 (45.12 %) of samples. The significant higher rate of anti-Toxoplasma IgG seropositivity were observed in people with soil related jobs (P = 0.005, OR = 2.266; 95 % CI 1.260, 4.078) and history of eating raw vegetables at restaurant (P = 0.036, OR = 1.985; 95 % CI 0.991, 3.978). Also anti-Toxoplasma IgG concentration mean was significantly higher in people who were commonly eaten raw vegetable at restaurants (P < 0.001, t = 7.918). The prevalence of chronic toxoplasmosis is considerably high while the acute infection is very low in the studied area. Having soil related jobs and eating raw vegetables at restaurants increases the risk of acquiring the infection.
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