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Background:In developing countries it is important to the exploration of available and safe regimens for medical abortion. The present study was designed to assess the effect of letrozole compared to placebo pretreatment followed by sublingual misoprostol for therapeutic abortion in eligible women with gestational age less than 17 weeks.Materials and Methods:In this randomized control trail, 130 women eligible for legal abortions were randomly divided into two groups of case and controls. Cases received daily oral dose of 10 mg letrozole 10 mg letrozole for three days followed by sublingual misoprostol. Controls received daily oral dose of placebo followed by sublingual misoprostol. The dose of misoprostol was administrated according to ACOG guidelines based on patients’ gestational age. The rate of complete abortion, induction-of-abortion time, and side-effects were assessed as main outcomes.Results:Complete abortion was observed in 46 (76.7%) letrozole group and 26 (42.6%) controls (P < 0.0001). Also, in 14 subjects of letrozole group and 35 subjects in placebo group, the placenta was not delivered during follow-up and curettage was performed. The mean interval induction-to-abortion was 5.1 h in letrozole group and 8.9 h in control (P < 0.0001). The cumulative rates of the induction-of-abortion time were a significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.0001). The incidence and severity of side-effects was comparable for the two groups (P = 0.9).Conclusion:Letrozole could be a quite beneficial adjuvant to misoprostol for induction of complete abortion in those who are candidates for legal medical abortion.

Purpose: This study has investigated the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of DBT for Marijuana cessation and craving reduction as a pilot RCT.Methods: sixty-one participants were randomly assigned to one of the DBT or psycho-education as active control-group with two-month follow-up. Patients completed measures at pre-interventions, post-interventions, and a two-month follow-up.Results: feasibility in DBT is significantly higher than the control group. In the DBT group 29/30 (96% retention) and in control group 24/31 (77% retention) completed all sessions (χ2= 4.95, p = 0.02). Moreover, 29/30 (96%) in the DBT group and 20/31 (64.5%) in the control group completed the two-month follow-up (χ2= 9.97, p = 0.002). For the acceptability of the intervention, results showed 16.57 (agree) in DBT and 9.6 (neither agree nor disagree) in control groups for p < 0.05. For appropriateness, results showed 17.03 (completely agree) in DBT and 10.7 (neither agree nor disagree) in control-groups for p < 0.05. for craving, results confirmed that there is no significant difference between groups (F = 3.52, p > 0.05); however, in “emotionality,” subscale DBT showed a significant reduction rather than the control group (F = 19.94, p < 0.05). For cessation rates, DBT was compared with the control group at the posttest (46% vs. 16%) and follow-up (40% vs. 9.5%), and results proved higher effectiveness in the DBT group for p < 0.05. Furthermore, among those who have lapsed, participation in the DBT group had fewer days than consume for p <0.05. Conclusions: DBT shows feasibility, acceptability, and promise in improving cessation rate in Marijuana use disorder and warrants further investigations.

Purpose: This study has investigated the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of DBT for Marijuana cessation and craving reduction as a pilot RCT.Methods: Sixty-one participants were randomly assigned to one of the DBT or psycho-education as active control-group with two-month follow-up. Patients completed measures at pre-interventions, post-interventions, and a two-month follow-up.Results: feasibility in DBT is significantly higher than the control group. In the DBT group 29/30 (96% retention) and in control group 24/31 (77% retention) completed all sessions (χ2= 4.95, p = 0.02). Moreover, 29/30 (96%) in the DBT group and 20/31 (64.5%) in the control group completed the two-month follow-up (χ2= 9.97, p = 0.002). For the acceptability of the intervention, results showed 16.57 (agree) in DBT and 9.6 (neither agree nor disagree) in control groups for p < 0.05. For appropriateness, results showed 17.03 (completely agree) in DBT and 10.7 (neither agree nor disagree) in control-groups for p < 0.05. for craving, results confirmed that there is no significant difference between groups (F = 3.52, p > 0.05); however, in “emotionality,” subscale DBT showed a significant reduction rather than the control group (F = 19.94, p < 0.05). For cessation rates, DBT was compared with the control group at the posttest (46% vs. 16%) and follow-up (40% vs. 9.5%), and results proved higher effectiveness in the DBT group for p < 0.05. Furthermore, among those who have lapsed, participation in the DBT group had fewer days than consume for p <0.05.Conclusions: DBT shows feasibility, acceptability, and promise in improving cessation rate in Marijuana use disorder and warrants further investigations.

Objective: To conduct a pilot RCT investigating the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) for marijuana cessation and craving reduction. Methods: Sixty-one patients with marijuana use disorder diagnoses were randomly assigned to a DBT group or a control group (psycho-education). Patients completed measures at pre-intervention, postintervention, and at two-month follow-up. The Marijuana Craving Questionnaire (MCQ) and marijuana urine test kits were used to assess craving and abstinence respectively. Results: The feasibility of DBT was significantly higher than control group feasibility. In the DBT 29/30 participants completed all sessions (96% retention) and 24/31 control group participants completed all sessions (77% retention) (χ2 = 4.95, p = 0.02). Moreover, 29/30 (96%) participants in the DBT group completed the two-month follow-up and 20/31 (64.5%) control group members completed the two-month follow-up (χ2 = 9.97, p = 0.002). The results showed that patients in the DBT group had significantly higher intervention acceptability rates (16.57 vs. 9.6) than those in the control group. This pattern was repeated for appropriateness rates (p < 0.05). The overall results for craving showed that there was no significant difference between the groups (F = 3.52, p > 0.05), although DBT showed a significant reduction in the "emotionality" subscale compared to the control group (F = 19.94, p < 0.05). To analyze cessation rates, DBT was compared to the control group at the posttest (46% vs. 16%) and follow-up (40% vs. 9.5%) and the results confirmed higher effectiveness in the DBT group for cessation (p < 0.05). Furthermore, among those who had lapsed, participants in the DBT group had fewer consumption days than those in the control group (p < 0.05). Conclusions: DBT showed feasibility, acceptability, and promising efficacy in terms of the marijuana cessation rate. Clinical trial registration: Thailand Registry of Clinical Trials, TCTR20200319007.

Attitude toward dying and death is a conceptual response to the various aspects of death, which is based on an individual's psychosocial and cultural experiences. The present study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Multidimensional Orientation toward Dying and Death Inventory (MODDI-F) among Iranian students. Methods: A total of 320 subjects were selected from students in universities of Tehran in the academic year 2016-2017, using the convenience sampling method. The study data were collected using the following instruments: the MODDI-F, the Existential Anxiety Scale (EAS), the Oxford happiness questionnaire, the general health questionnaire, and the Death Anxiety Scale (DAS). Data analyses were performed by factor analysis, Pearson correlation, and Cronbach's alpha coefficient in SPSS V. 22. Results: Factor structure was assessed using the confirmatory factor analysis. The proposed model for the MODDI-F with 8 factors had a good fit to the data. Besides, the reliability of the MODDI-F was assessed using Cronbach alpha and test-retest reliability coefficients. The Cronbach alpha values of higher than 0.7 were found for all of the subscales, except for death denial. Moreover, using the Pearson correlation coefficient, significant relationships were found between the scores on the factors of the MODDI-F and scores on convergent and divergent factors of other questionnaires, indicating the convergent and divergent validity of the inventory. Conclusion: MODDI-F enjoys acceptable psychometric properties regarding the ease of administration, scoring, and interpretation, as well as the suitable validity and reliability of the questionnaire. Thus, researchers can safely use it in their studies.

Background: Epidemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and quarantine implementation have had various effects on the psychological aspects of society. One of the psychological effects of COVID-19 is the fear of getting the disease. Objectives: The present study aimed to predict health anxiety based on spiritual well-being and cognitive emotion regulation strategies during COVID-19 in Iranian individuals. Methods: The present descriptive-correlational study was conducted on the statistical population of all 19-to-79-year-old individuals participating in the study online. A total of 545 subjects were selected by the convenience sampling method. These participants completed short-form health anxiety questionnaires, spiritual well-being scales, and short-form emotion regulation strategies online. The data were analyzed by the Pearson correlation coefficient and stepwise regression analysis using SPSS software (version 23). Results: The results showed that health anxiety had a significant negative relationship with spiritual well-being (r = -0.339**) and adaptive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (r = -0.308**). Furthermore, health anxiety had a significant positive relationship with maladaptive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (r = 0.390**). Overall, the aforementioned three variables explained 26.1% of changes in health anxiety. Conclusions: The results of the present study showed the impacts of spiritual well-being and cognitive emotion regulation strategies on health anxiety. Therefore, it is recommended that training based on spiritual teachings and emotion regulation strategies reduces health anxiety during the outbreak of COVID-19.