Citrus aurantium blossom may be effective in terms of reduction in preoperative anxiety before minor operation.

This study is aimed to assess the heavy metals contamination and health risk in Shrimp (Macrobrachium rosenbergii and Penaeus monodon) collected from Khulna-Satkhira region in Bangladesh. The results showed that the Pb concentrations (0.52–1.16 mg/kg) in all shrimp samples of farms were higher than the recommended limit. The Cd levels (0.05–0.13 mg/kg) in all samples and Cr levels in all farms except tissue content at Satkhira farm were higher than the permissible limits. The individual concentration of Pb, Cd, and Cr between shrimp tissue and shell in all rivers and farms were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Target hazard quotient (THQ) and hazard index (HI) were estimated to assess the non-carcinogenic health risks. Shrimp samples from all locations under the current study were found to be safe for consumption, the possibility of health risk associated with non-carcinogenic effect is very low for continuous consumption for 30 years.

Aim: People with schizophrenia tend to experience difficulties in social and cognitive function, self-care, residual negative symptoms, high rates of unemployment, and social exclusion. Occupational therapy has contributed to the treatment and rehabilitation of people with severe mental health problems. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of occupational therapy on symptoms of patients with schizophrenia. Methods: This survey was an experimental study in which positive and negative symptoms of patients with schizophrenia were assessed with a scale for the assessment of positive and negative symptoms (SANS, SAPS, respectively). The study was conducted in Sina Hospital, Shahrekord, Iran. The samples consisted of patients with schizophrenia who were divided randomly into intervention and usual treatment groups (30 patients in each group). The occupational therapy was performed in the intervention group for 18 h/week for 6 months. SANS and SAPS were assessed at the beginning and after 6 months of treatment. Results: The groups were homogeneous in demographic variables, SANS and SAPS scores at baseline. The occupational therapy group showed significant improvement in the total score for the SANS and SAPS at 6 months (P < 0.001), but the control group did not show any significant improvement. Conclusion:The results of this study indicated that occupational therapy combined with medications can improve the symptoms of schizophrenia.

BackgroundMany herbs have been used to treat psychiatric disorders including anxiety and depression in traditional medicine.ObjectivesThis study was carried out to determine the effect of using Lavandula angustifilia infusion on depression in patients taking Citalopram.Patients and MethodsAmong all patients referred to the Hajar Hospital psychiatric clinic, Shahrekord, Iran, 80 patients who met the criteria of major depression according to the structured interviews and the Hamilton questionnaire for Depression were included in the study. They were randomly assigned into two groups of experimental treatment group and standard treatment group at this study. In standard treatment group, the patients were given Citalopram 20 mg. In experimental treatment group, the patients took 2 cups of the infusion of 5 g dried Lavandula angustifilia in addition to tablet Citalopram 20 mg twice a day. The patients were followed up for four and eight weeks of the study onset using Hamilton Scale questionnaire and treatment side effects form. Data were analyzed using student t-test, pair t-test and chi square.ResultsAfter four weeks of the trial onset, the mean depression score according to the Hamilton Scale for Depression was 17.5 ± 3.5 in the standard treatment group and 15.2 ± 3.6 in the experimental treatment group (P < 0.05). After eight weeks, it was 16.8±4.6 and 14.8±4 respectively (P < 0.01). In addition, the most commonly observed adverse effects were nausea (12.8 %) and confusion (10%). In terms of side effects, there were no significant differences between two groups.ConclusionsConsidering the results of this study, Lavandula angustifilia infusion has some positive therapeutic effects on depressed patients most importantly decreases mean depression score and might be used alone or as an adjunct to other anti-depressant drugs.

Clostridium difficile is recognized as a major cause of nosocomial acquired antibiotic-associated diarrhea and pseudomembranous colitis. It is a significant financial burden on modern healthcare resources. This study aimed to assess the molecular characterization of C. difficile strains isolated from children under 5 years old suffered from nosocomial diarrhea. One hundred diarrheic and 130 non-diarrheic fecal samples were collected from pediatrics less than 5 years old. Samples were cultured and C. difficile isolates were subjected to the PCR technique to study the distribution of ribotypes of C. difficile using P3 and P5 primers. Fifty-two out of 100 samples (52 %) were positive for C. difficile. The prevalence of bacterium in healthy children was 4.61 %. Total prevalence of C. difficile in diarrheic girls and boys were 48.9 and 54.7 %, respectively. Thirteen to twenty-four month age children had the highest prevalence of C. difficile. The most commonly detected ribotypes in the C. difficile isolates of Iranian pediatrics were RT027 (11.52 %), R1 (9.61 %) and R13 (7.68 %). The ribotypes of all of the six bacterial isolates of healthy children was not diagnosed. According to the presence of C. difficile and R27 ribotype, a continued genotype surveillance of this bacterium is necessary to monitor changes in the prevalence of certain strains and to identify the emergence of new strains that could affect future vaccine strategies.