Patterns and outcomes of patients with abdominal injury: a multicenter study from Iran.

BACKGROUND: Injury is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and the abdomen is the most common area of trauma after the head and extremities. Abdominal injury is often divided into two categories: blunt and penetrating injuries. This study aims to determine the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of these two types of abdominal injuries in patients registered with the National Trauma Registry of Iran (NTRI). METHODS: This multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted with data from the NTRI from July 24, 2016, to May 21, 2023. All abdominal trauma patients defined by the International Classification of Diseases; 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes were enrolled in this study. The inclusion criteria were one of the following: hospital length of stay (LOS) of more than 24 h, fatal injuries, and trauma patients transferred from the ICU of other hospitals. RESULTS: Among 532 patients with abdominal injuries, 420 (78.9%) had a blunt injury, and 435 (81.7%) of the victims were men. The most injured organs in blunt trauma were the spleen, with 200 (47.6%) and the liver, with 171 (40.7%) cases, respectively. Also, the colon and small intestine, with 42 (37.5%) cases, had the highest number of injuries in penetrating injuries. Blood was transfused in 103 (23.5%) of blunt injured victims and 17 (15.2%) of penetrating traumas (p = 0.03). ICU admission was significantly varied between the two groups, with 266 (63.6%) patients in the blunt group and 47 (42%) in penetrating (p < 0.001). Negative laparotomies were 21 (28%) in penetrating trauma and only 11 (7.7%) in blunt group (p < 0.001). In the multiple logistic regression model after adjusting, ISS ≥ 16 increased the chance of ICU admission 3.13 times relative to the ISS 1-8 [OR: 3.13, 95% CI (1.56 to 6.28), P = 0.001]. Another predictor was NOM, which increased ICU chance 1.75 times more than OM [OR: 1.75, 95% CI (1.17 to 2.61), p = 0.006]. Additionally, GCS 3-8 had 5.43 times more ICU admission odds than the GCS 13-15 [OR:5.43, 95%CI (1.81 to 16.25), P = 0.002] respectively. CONCLUSION: This study found that the liver and spleen are mostly damaged in blunt injuries. Also, in most cases of penetrating injuries, the colon and small intestine had the highest frequency of injuries compared to other organs. Blunt abdominal injuries caused more blood transfusions and ICU admissions. Higher ISS, lower GCS, and NOM were predictors of ICU admission in abdominal injury victims.

The epidemiology of spinal fractures: A nationwide data-based study in Iran.

Background: Blunt trauma is a physical injury to a part of the body, mainly caused by road accidents, direct blows, attacks, sports injuries, and falls in elderly people. Spinal fractures are observed only in a small percentage of injured patients. Accordingly, the present study was conducted on collected data between 2018 and 2022 to determine the frequency of spinal fractures in blunt trauma in Iran while also considering the mechanism of injury as a secondary outcome of interest. Methods: In this retrospective study, blunt trauma patients with spinal fractures, regardless of age were included by the census sampling method. Data were obtained from the National Trauma Registry of Iran. Means and standard deviations were used for continuous variables, and the chi-square test was used to assess the relationship between the variables. Results: Among 25,986 cases of all-cause trauma patients, 1,167 cases (4.5%) of blunt trauma and spinal fracture were included in the study. Gender, the severity of injury, and the cause of trauma showed a significant difference among different age groups (p < 0.05). Significant differences were found in the injury mechanisms across various spine regions (p < 0.05). The majority of patients (68.2%) had lumbar spinal fractures. Road traffic collisions were the most common cause of spinal cord injuries, accounting for 58.3% of cases, followed by falls (36.1%). The injury severity score was higher in younger patients (under 18 years old), with a mean of 4.4 ± 3.5, and in patients with cervical injuries. The majority of injuries occurred in the lumbar area (68.2%), followed by the thoracic area. Furthermore, notable variations existed in Emergency Room (ER) stay duration, overall hospitalization, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) stay duration, and injury severity levels, all influenced by the spinal regions (p < 0.05). Distinctively, ICU stay durations and ER stay duration showed significant differences, particularly in relation to injuries in the lumbar and thoracic regions (p < 0.05). Conclusion: According to the results of the present study, trauma is more severe, and cervical injuries are more common in young people, which is a critical finding that underscores the need for targeted interventions to mitigate the severity of trauma in this age group. Additionally, the majority of cervical injuries occurred in young people, which is a particularly concerning finding given the potential for long-term disability and impact on quality of life. Our findings suggest that strategies to reduce cervical injuries, such as speed control, seat belt use, and phone-free driving, are crucial interventions for mitigating the severity of trauma and promoting patient outcomes in young people.

Which Demographic and Clinical Characteristics Can Better Predict the Length of Hospital Stay among Traumatic Patients? A Retrospective Single-Center, Registry-Based Study.

Background: Lengthy hospitalization may lead to an increased hospital-acquired patient complication, including infections, as well as increased costs for both healthcare systems and patients. A few studies evaluated the impact of various clinical and demographic variables on patients' length of stay (LOS). Hence, in this study, we aimed to investigate the impact of various variables on traumatic patients' LOS. Methods: This is a retrospective single-center, registry-based study of traumatic patients admitted to Taleqani, a major trauma center in Kermanshah, Iran. A Minimal Dataset (MDS) was developed to retrieve traumatic data on demographic and clinical aspects. We used univariable and multiple quantile regression models to evaluate the association between independent variables, including ISS, GCS, and SBP, with LOS. LOS is practically defined as the time interval between hospital admission and discharge. The LOS durations have been presented as median (Q1 to Q3) hours. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 2708 cases were included in this study, with 1989 (73.4%) of them being male. The median LOS was 87.00 (48.00 to 144.00) hours. When adjusted for systolic blood pressure (SBP), Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), Injury Severity Score (ISS), and cause of injury, the two characteristics of spine/back and multiple trauma were significantly associated with the higher LOS, with 43 (20.5 to 65.48) and 24 (10.39 to 37.60) hours more than extremities (P < 0.001 and P = 0.005). Besides, the patients admitted due to road traffic injuries (RTI) were discharged 16 and 41 hours later than falling and cutting/stabbing (P = 0.008 and < 0.001, respectively). Moreover, the patients with ISS≥16 and 9≤ISS≤15 had a median of 51 (21 to 80) and 34 (22 to 45) LOS hours more, compared to 1≤ISS≤8, respectively (P < 0.001). The trauma cases experiencing SBP ≤ 90 mmhg on admission had a median of 41 (20 to 62) hours more hospitalization period than those with SBP> 90 mmhg (P < 0.001). At last, the patients with GCS of 9 to 12 and GCS of 3 to 8 were hospitalized for 39 and 266 hours more than GCS of 13 to 15 (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Determining independent determinants of prolonged LOS may lead to better identifying at-risk patients on admission. Trauma care providers should consider the following risk factors for increased LOS: higher ISS, Lower GCS, and SBP, multiple trauma or spine injury, and trauma resulting from falling or cutting/stabbing. As a result, the impact of extended LOS might be reduced by intervening in the related influencing factors.

Insurance status and traumatized patients' outcomes: a report from the national trauma registry of Iran.

BACKGROUND: Trauma care is one of the most expensive medical procedures that is significantly affected by factors like insurance status. Providing medical care to injured patients has a significant impact on patients' prognosis. This study examined whether insurance status was associated with different outcomes, including hospital length of stay (HLOS), mortality, and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission. METHODS: This prospective study analyzed the data of traumatized patients who had been registered in the National Trauma Registry of Iran (NTRI), and hospitalized at Sina Hospital, Tehran, Iran, from March 22, 2016, to February 8, 2021. Given the type of insurance, the insured patients were classified as basic, road traffic, and foreign nationality. The outcomes of in-hospital death, ICU admission, and HLOS between insured and uninsured patients, and then different insurance statuses, were compared using regression models. RESULT: A total of 5014 patients were included in the study. 49% of patients (n = 2458) had road traffic insurance, 35.2% (n = 1766) basic insurance, 10.5% (n = 528) were uninsured, and 5.2% (n = 262) had foreign nationality insurance. The mean age of patients with basic, road traffic insurance, foreign nationality, and uninsured patients was 45.2 (SD = 22.3), 37.8 (SD = 15.8), 27.8 (SD = 13.3), and 32.4 (SD = 11.9) years, respectively. There was a statistically significant association between insurance status and mean age. Based on these results, the mean age of patients with basic insurance was higher than other groups (p < 0.001). Additionally, 85.6% of the patients were male, with male to female ratio of 9.64 in road traffic insurance, 2.99 in basic insurance, 14.4 in foreign nationality, and 16 in uninsured patients. There was no statistically significant difference between in-hospital mortality in insured and uninsured patients, 98 (2.3%) vs. 12 (2.3%), respectively. The odds of in-hospital mortality in uninsured patients were 1.04 times the odds of in-hospital death in insured patients [Crude OR: 1.04, 95%CI: 0.58 to 1.90]. Multiple logistic regression showed that after adjusting for age, sex, ISS, and Cause of trauma, the odds of in-hospital death in uninsured patients were 2.97 times the odds of in-hospital death in insured patients [adjusted OR: 2.97, 95%CI: 1.43 to 6.21]. CONCLUSION: This study shows that having insurance can change the ICU admission, death, and HLOS in traumatized patients. The results of this study can provide essential data for national health policy for minimizing the disparities among different insurance statuses and proper use of medical resources.

Comparing epidemiologic features, outcomes, and diagnostic and therapeutic procedures of traumatic patients before and during COVID-19 pandemic: Data from the National Trauma Registry of Iran.

PURPOSE: To prepare for future possible communicable disease epidemics/pandemics, health care providers should know how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced injured patients. This study aimed to compare epidemiologic features, outcomes, and diagnostic and therapeutic procedures of trauma patients admitted to a university-affiliated hospital before and during the pandemic. METHODS: This retrospective study was performed on data from the National Trauma Registry of Iran. All injured patients admitted to the hospital from July 25, 2016 to March 10, 2021 were included in the study. The patients were excluded if they had hospital length of stay less than 24 h. The injury outcomes, trauma mechanisms, and therapeutic and diagnostic procedures of the 2 periods: before (from July 25, 2016 to February 18, 2020) and during (from February 19, 2020 to March 10, 2021) COVID-19 pandemic were compared. All analyses were performed using STATA version 14.0 software (Stata Corporation, College Station, TX). RESULTS: Totally, 5014 patients were included in the registry. Of them, 773 (15.4%) were registered after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic on February 19, 2020, while 4241 were registered before that. Gender, education level, and cause of injury were significantly different among the patients before and after the beginning of the pandemic (p < 0.001). In the ≤ 15 years and ≥ 65 years age groups, injuries decreased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic (p < 0.001). The frequency of intensive care unit (ICU) admission decreased from 694 (16.4%) to 88 (11.4%) (p < 0.001). The mean length of stay at the hospital (days) and at the ICU (days) declined as follow: 8.3 (SD = 17.2) vs. 5.5 (SD = 6.1), p < 0.001 and 7.5 (SD = 11.5) vs. 4.5 (SD = 6.3), p < 0.022. The frequency of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures before and during the pandemic was as follows, respectively: ultrasonography 905 (21.3%) vs. 417 (53.9%) (p < 0.001), echocardiography 313 (7.4%) vs. 107 (13.8%) (p < 0.001), angiography 1597 (37.7%) vs. 534 (69.1%) (p < 0.001), MRI 166 (3.9%) vs. 51 (6.6%) (p < 0.001), surgery 3407 (80.3%) vs. 654 (84.6%) (p < 0.001), and internal/external fixation 1215 (28.6%) vs. 336 (43.5%) (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The pandemic affected the epidemiology of traumatic patients in terms of gender, age, educational level, and trauma mechanism. It changed the outcomes of injured patients: ICU admission, length of stay at the hospital and ICU decreased. The patients received more diagnostic and therapeutic procedures during the pandemic. To be more precise, more research is needed on the details.

Comparison of epidemiologic features between upper and lower limb injuries and risk factors for intensive care unit admission in a university hospital affiliated with the National Trauma Registry of Iran.

PURPOSE: Upper extremity injuries (UEIs) and lower extremity injuries (LEIs) constitute a considerable component of traumas. However, their epidemiologic differences and short-term in-hospital outcomes are not fully elucidated. This study aims to compare such discrepancies in a large-scale study. METHODS: In this retrospective study, all patients with UEIs and/or LEIs hospitalized from 24th July 2016 to 16th May 2020 in Sina Hospital, Tehran, Iran, and registered at the National Trauma Registry of Iran were enrolled in the study. Relevant demographic and clinical characteristics were extracted from the National Trauma Registry of Iran database. Patients were grouped into either UEI or LEI. For those with concomitant UEIs and LEIs, the more severe one based on the abbreviated injury scale was defined as the principal diagnosis. In addition, cases with the abbreviated injury scale > 3 for both UEI and LEI or concomitant injuries to body areas other than the limbs were excluded. Independent samples t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, Chi-square test, quintile regression models, and logistic regression models with "margins" command were used for statistical analyses, as indicated. RESULTS: In this research, 3170 eligible cases were identified. For the LEI group, there was a much higher proportion of male patients (86.7% vs. 82.0%) and higher mean age (years, 42.9 vs. 35.3) compared to the UEI group (both p < 0.001). Patients with an injury severity score (ISS) of 9 - 15 were outnumbered in the LEI group (22.9% vs. 1.6%, p < 0.001), while the proportion of those with an ISS < 9 was higher in the UEI group (98.1% vs. 76.8%, p < 0.001). The multiple logistic regression model showed a statistically significant association between intensive care unit (ICU) admission and ISS (odds ratio (OR) = 4.01 for ISS 9 - 15 vs. ISS <9, 95% confidence interval (CI)|: 3.01 - 5.35; OR = 17.65 for ISS ≥16 vs. ISS < 9, 95% CI: 4.03 - 77.27), age (OR = 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01 - 1.03), cause of injury (OR = 0.27 for blunt trauma vs. road traffic crash, 95% CI: 0.08 - 0.90; OR = 0.49 for cut/stab injuries vs. road traffic crash, 95% CI: 0.28 - 0.84) and body region (OR = 1.65 for lower extremity, 95% CI: 1.19 - 2.29). Having adjusted for other covariates, the odds of ICU admission in patients with LEIs was 1.65 times the odds in patients with UEIs. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with LEIs were older and suffered from more severe injuries. In addition, the age- and ISS-adjusted ICU admission and length of hospital stay were significantly higher in LEI patients. The chance of ICU admission was associated with age, cause of injury, ISS, and body region. The findings of this study can aid in the meticulous selection of ICU-candidate patients. In addition, the role of factors other than ISS and age in ICU admission and prolongation of hospitalization should be addressed by prospective studies.

Comparison of empathy with patients between first-year and last-year medical students of Tehran University of Medical Sciences.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to assess the developmental factors of empathy among medical students of Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS). METHODS: To assess the empathy levels, 42 first-year and an equal number of last-year medical students were randomly selected. They answered a questionnaire including the medical student version of the Jefferson Scale, demographic, and some related variables. Statistical analyses were performed using the Chi-square test, T-test, univariate, and multivariate regressions. RESULT: The study population consisted of 51 (60.7 %) men and 33 (39.3 %) women with a mean (SD) age of 22.24 (4.10) years. The Jefferson score was 110.19 ± 13.61 and 103.52 ± 20.00 in first- and last-year medical students, respectively. Moreover, medical students who completely passed at least one of the considered empathy courses of the TUMS curriculum had higher empathy scores compared to their counterparts (109.83 ± 15.54 vs. 103.68 ± 19.02). There was no significant association between empathy and gender, self-experience of illness, marital status, family history of chronic disease, and parents' education (all P-values > 0.05). After adjusting for the effects of confounders, the empathy scores were significantly associated with the academic year level (p = 0.04), level of interest in medicine (p = 0.001), and passing the empathy courses (p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: The data provided from a top Iranian medical school indicated that the academic year level, level of interest in medicine, and passing the empathy courses were significantly associated with the empathy level. Further studies are recommended.

Evaluating mechanism and severity of injuries among trauma patients admitted to Sina Hospital, the National Trauma Registry of Iran.

PURPOSE: Injuries are one of the leading causes of death and lead to a high social and financial burden. Injury patterns can vary significantly among different age groups and body regions. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between mechanism of injury, patient comorbidities and severity of injuries. METHODS: The study included trauma patients from July 2016 to June 2018, who were admitted to Sina Hospital, Tehran, Iran. The inclusion criteria were all injured patients who had at least one of the following: hospital length of stay more than 24 h, death in hospital, and transfer from the intensive care unit of another hospital. Data collection was performed using the National Trauma Registry of Iran minimum dataset. RESULTS: The most common injury mechanism was road traffic injuries (49.0%), followed by falls (25.5%). The mean age of those who fell was significantly higher in comparison with other mechanisms (p < 0.001). Severe extremity injuries occurred more often in the fall group than in the vehicle collision group (69.0% vs. 43.5%, p < 0.001). Moreover, cases of severe multiple trauma were higher amongst vehicle collisions than injuries caused by falls (27.8% vs. 12.9%, p = 0.003). CONCLUSION: Comparing falls with motor vehicle collisions, patients who fell were older and sustained more extremity injuries. Patients injured by motor vehicle collision were more likely to have sustained multiple trauma than those presenting with falls. Recognition of the relationship between mechanisms and consequences of injuries may lead to more effective interventions.

Paraclinical findings in Iranian veterans exposed to sulfur mustard gas: A literature review.

OBJECTIVE: Sulfur mustard (SM) causes various systemic disturbances in human beings. This study aimed to assess paraclinical changes caused by exposure to SM gas in Iranian veterans during the war between Iraq and Iran. METHODS: A literature review was carried out in international and national medical databases including ISI, Medline, Scopus, Iranmedex and Irandoc. Both Farsi and English literature were searched. RESULTS: Search of the literature yielded 422 medical articles related to SM poisoning. Among them, 30 relevant articles were thoroughly reviewed. The most important reported complications were leukopenia, neutropenia, lymphopenia, eosinophilia, thrombocytopenia, increased bleeding time, positive C-reactive protein (CRP), rheumatoid factor (RF), antinuclear antibody (ANA), decreased T helper cells, natural killer cells, IL6, and IL8 levels, elevation of serum immunoglobulins, decreased levels of T3, T4 and cortisol, increased level of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), proteinuria, hematuria, and elevated liver enzymes. Also, there were some changes in chest assessments. CONCLUSIONS: SM causes profound systemic complications in victims, even years after exposure. The paraclinical changes can be observed in hematology, immune system, biochemistry, hormonal profile and some imaging studies.

Alcohol consumption for simulated driving performance: A systematic review.

PURPOSE: Alcohol consumption can lead to risky driving and increase the frequency of traffic accidents, injuries and mortalities. The main purpose of our study was to compare simulated driving performance between two groups of drivers, one consumed alcohol and the other not consumed, using a systematic review. METHODS: In this systematic review, electronic resources and databases including Medline via Ovid SP, EMBASE via Ovid SP, PsycINFO via Ovid SP, PubMed, Scopus, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINHAL) via EBSCOhost were comprehensively and systematically searched. The randomized controlled clinical trials that compared simulated driving performance between two groups of drivers, one consumed alcohol and the other not consumed, were included. Lane position standard deviation (LPSD), mean of lane position deviation (MLPD), speed, mean of speed deviation (MSD), standard deviation of speed deviation (SDSD), number of accidents (NA) and line crossing (LC) were considered as the main parameters evaluating outcomes. After title and abstract screening, the articles were enrolled for data extraction and they were evaluated for risk of biases. RESULTS: Thirteen papers were included in our qualitative synthesis. All included papers were classified as high risk of biases. Alcohol consumption mostly deteriorated the following performance outcomes in descending order: SDSD, LPSD, speed, MLPD, LC and NA. Our systematic review had troublesome heterogeneity. CONCLUSION: Alcohol consumption may decrease simulated driving performance in alcohol consumed people compared with non-alcohol consumed people via changes in SDSD, LPSD, speed, MLPD, LC and NA. More well-designed randomized controlled clinical trials are recommended.

Effects of neurofeedback on the short-term memory and continuous attention of patients with moderate traumatic brain injury: A preliminary randomized controlled clinical trial.

PURPOSE: There are some studies which showed neurofeedback therapy (NFT) can be effective in clients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) history. However, randomized controlled clinical trials are still needed for evaluation of this treatment as a standard option. This preliminary study was aimed to evaluate the effect of NFT on continuous attention (CA) and short-term memory (STM) of clients with moderate TBI using a randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT). METHODS: In this preliminary RCT, seventeen eligible patients with moderate TBI were randomly allocated in two intervention and control groups. All the patients were evaluated for CA and STM using the visual continuous attention test and Wechsler memory scale-4th edition (WMS-IV) test, respectively, both at the time of inclusion to the project and four weeks later. The intervention group participated in 20 sessions of NFT through the first four weeks. Conversely, the control group participated in the same NF sessions from the fifth week to eighth week of the project. RESULTS: Eight subjects in the intervention group and five subjects in the control group completed the study. The mean and standard deviation of participants' age were (26.75 ± 15.16) years and (27.60 ± 8.17) years in experiment and control groups, respectively. All of the subjects were male. No significant improvement was observed in any variables of the visual continuous attention test and WMS-IV test between two groups (p ≥ 0.05). CONCLUSION: Based on our literature review, it seems that our study is the only study performed on the effect of NFT on TBI patients with control group. NFT has no effect on CA and STM in patients with moderate TBI. More RCTs with large sample sizes, more sessions of treatment, longer time of follow-up and different protocols are recommended.

Personal autonomy in health settings and Shi'i Islamic Jurisprudence: a literature review.

Respect for personal autonomy in decision-making is one of the four ethical principles in medical circumstances. This paper aims to present evidence that can be considered good exemplars in the clarification of the ethical viewpoints of the western and Shi'i Islamic perspectives on this issue. The method followed was originally a search in international indexing services in April 2016. Our findings point towards various controversies on individuals' autonomy lead to different decision making outcomes by health workers in both different traditions. We concluded that although Shi'i Islamic jurisprudence does not seem to allow for personal autonomy in the sense it is understood in a western context, evidence indicates that Shi'i Islamic jurisprudence respects personal autonomy.

Social network analysis of Iranian researchers in the field of violence.

PURPOSE: The social network analysis (SNA) is a paradigm for analyzing structural patterns in social re- lations, testing knowledge sharing process and identifying bottlenecks of information flow. The purpose of this study was to determine the status of research in the fleld of violence in Iran using SNA. METHODS: Research population included all the papers with at least one Iranian affiliation published in violence fleld indexed in SCIE, PubMed and Scopus databases. The co-word maps, co-authorship network and structural holes were drawn using related software. In the next step, the active authors and some measures of our network including degree centrality (DC), closeness, eigenvector, betweeness, density, diameter, compactness and size of the main component were assessed. Likewise, the trend of the published articles was evaluated based on the number of documents and their citations from 1972 to 2014. RESULTS: Five hundred and seventy one records were obtained. The five main clusters and hot spots were mental health, violence, war, psychiatric disorders and suicide. The co-authorship network was complex, tangled and scale free. The top nine authors with cut point role and top ten active authors were identified. The mean (standard deviation) of normalized DC, closeness, eigenvector and betweeness were 0.449 (0.805), 0.609 (0.214), 2.373 (7.353) and 0.338 (1.122), respectively. The density, diameter and mean compactness of our co-authorship network were 0.0494, 3.955 and 0.125, respectively. The main component consisted of 216 nodes that formed 17% of total size of the network. Both the number of the documents and their citations has increased in the field of violence in the recent years. CONCLUSION: Although the number of the documents has recently increased in the field of violence, the information flow is slow and there are not many relations among the authors in the network. However, the active authors have ability to influence the flow of knowledge within the network.

High crash areas resulting in injuries and deaths in Tehran traffic areas from november 2011 through february 2012: a geographic information system analysis.

BACKGROUND: Evaluation of intra-city roads in terms of environmental factors of motor vehicle injuries can help us to better identify these factors and the share of each of the factors in injuries. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the high injury areas and the risk factors of motor vehicle crashes resulting in injury and death in Tehran, the capital city of Iran, from November 2011 through February 2012. METHODS: In this cross sectional study, the locations of the motor vehicle injuries resulting in injuries and deaths were obtained from police stations in Tehran. The coordinates of the injuries locations were extracted and entered into the Arc-GIS software to overlay the different layers of geographical data and extract the risk map. RESULTS: A total of 4257 motor vehicle injuries were evaluated in this study. Forty-two injuries (1%) resulted in death and 4215 injuries (99%) resulted in injury. The traffic districts 5 and 21 had the highest frequency of injuries resulting in death. The type of the motor vehicle resulting in injury or death was motorcycle in 2330 injuries (54.73%). CONCLUSION: The frequency of traffic injuries is more in the west and northwest areas of Tehran, and it is caused more by motorcycles in terms of traffic and motor injuries resulting in injury and death. It is useful to conduct more studies to better identify these factors considering their importance in traffic injuries.

Comparison of health related quality of life between two groups of veteran and non-veteran spinal cord injured patients.

BACKGROUND: Patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) have a lower health related quality of life (HRQOL) compared to both healthy controls and the normal population. The aim of this study was to compare HRQOL between two groups of veteran and non-veteran SCI patients. METHODS: All male paraplegic non-veterans who had sustained complete SCI before 1988 and were residents of Tehran province (Iran), and a similar group of SCI veterans who consecutively participated in a health screening program were enrolled in this study. Patients fewer than 35 and older than 65 years of age were not included in this study. The participants were interviewed based on the Persian version of SF-36 questionnaire by two psychologists. Eight sub-scales and two physical and mental component summaries of the instrument were assessed. We used chi-square, odds ratio, Mann-Whitney U, independent t-test and linear regression for analysis. RESULTS: Overall, 25 veterans and 22 non-veterans were enrolled in the study. The mean age, time since injury and the presence of comorbid illnesses were not significantly different between the two groups (P>0.05). A greater number of veterans were married (p= 0.003) and employed (p= 0.047). On average, veterans had more years of formal education than non-veterans (p= 0.001). The mean (SD) bodily pain sub-scale was 72.73(31.253) for non-veterans and 49.7 (28.287) for veterans (p=0.011). Absence of comorbid illnesses was associated with a better physical component summary (p< 0.001). Employment was associated with a better mental component summary (p= 0.022). CONCLUSION: We did not find any differences in HRQOL between the two groups except for the bodily pain sub-scale. Further studies with larger sample sizes are recommended.

Iraq-Iran chemical war: calendar, mortality and morbidity.

OBJECTIVES: To review the calendar, mortality and morbidity of Iraq-Iran chemical war among Iranians based on researchers'reports. METHODS: We used national and international databanks such as PubMed, ISI, Scopus, Irandoc and Iranmedex and studied 350 articles related to chemical agents and their effects on different organs. The main criteria for qualification of articles were relevancy orientation and being published in approved medical journals. RESULTS: The Iraqi army invaded to west and southwest Iran using chemical weapons such as nerve agents (NAs) and sulfur mustard (SM). Most victims were civilians including women and children. These attacks had imposed more than 150 types of diseases and complications on Iranians and the frequency of death was 2%-3%. Most reports were about respiratory problems and a few were in the domain of socio-economic damages. CONCLUSION: At present, 25 years after the end of war, the victims are faced with different complications induced by chemical agents and it is estimated that they will be continuously troubled by these problems in future.

Treatment and prevention of acute respiratory infections among Iranian hajj pilgrims: a 5-year follow up study and review of the literature.

UNLABELLED: Background Respiratory diseases/syndromes are the most common causes of referring to physicians among pilgrims in Hajj. They lead to high morbidity, impose high costs on the health system and are among the major obstacles for pilgrims to perform Hajj duties. The main aim of our study was to determine types, frequencies, etiologies, and epidemiologic factors of respiratory diseases among Iranian Hajj pilgrims and to suggest some preventive and treatment strategies. METHODS: To determine the types and frequencies of respiratory syndromes, we implemented a syndromic surveillance method in Iranian health care system for Hajj during 5 consecutive years. To achieve the etiology of these diseases, we performed 4 concurrent before and after studies. We also evaluated efficacy of the flu and pneumovax vaccines among Iranian Hajj pilgrims in 2 studies. To determine some other epidemiological factors, we conducted 4 additional studies. RESULTS: The most common problem was common cold like syndrome. Origins of the most upper respiratory problems were infections, and allergies were less involved. Among infectious agents, viruses were the most common agents and their frequencies were as follows respectively: Adenoviruses 38 (36.2 %), Rhinoviruses 31 (30%), Influenza type B virus 21 (20%). Bacteria were often the secondary causes and their frequencies were as follows respectively: Intestine bacillus 69 (19.4%), Chlamydia pneumonia 20(15.8%), Haemophiluses 32 (9.1%) and Streptococcus (A,C and G) 30 ( 8.5%). We introduced some epidemiological factors as effective in creating respiratory diseases. CONCLUSION: In this paper, we suggested some applied points for prevention, treatment, and correction of common malpractices in the treatment of respiratory diseases of the pilgrims.

Trauma Profile in Shahroud: An 8-Year Report of a Hospital-Based Trauma Registry.

BACKGROUND: Trauma is a significant public health concern in Iran, with high mortality and morbidity rates. This study aimed to assess trauma patients' profiles in Shahroud, Iran. Study Design: A cross-sectional study. METHODS: The study involved trauma patients who met specific criteria at Imam Hossein hospital in Shahroud, Iran, between 2016 and 2023, using the National Trauma Registry of Iran (NTRI). The relationship between injury characteristics and the cause of injury was analyzed using chi-square test and post hoc analysis. Quintile regression models assessed the association of demographic and clinical variables with length of stay. RESULTS: Among 3513 trauma patients, road traffic crashes (RTCs) had a higher percentage of injuries with the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) between 9 and 12 (1.7%) compared to falls (0.3%) (P<0.001). Falls caused more moderate cases with injury severity scores (ISS) ranging from 9 to 15 (22.7%) than RTCs (17.1%) (P<0.001). RTC-related injuries required more ventilation (2.7%) and intensive care unit (ICU) admissions (11.1%) than falls (P<0.001). After adjusting for age, GCS, ISS, and body region, fall had a median length of stay nine hours shorter than RTCs (95% CI = -16.2, -1.8). CONCLUSION: Significant injury pattern differences were observed between RTCs and falls. RTCs had higher frequencies of injuries resulting in GCS scores between 9 and 12, while falls had higher frequencies of moderate ISS scores. In addition, patients with RTC-related injuries required more mechanical ventilation and ICU admissions. Moreover, after adjusting for various factors, patients with RTC-related injuries had a significantly longer hospital stay compared to those with fall-related injuries.

Motorcycle riders and pillion passengers injury patterns and in-hospital outcomes based on the National Trauma Registry of Iran.

OBJECTIVE: Road traffic injury (RTI) is the second leading cause of death and disability, and motorcycle crashes rank as the first cause of traffic fatality in Iran. We aimed to compare various characteristics between traumatized motorcycle riders and pillion passengers registered with the National Trauma Registry of Iran (NTRI). METHODS: This is a retrospective study of the NTRI, an ongoing multicenter trauma database built on a registry. This study included injured motorcyclists from six major trauma centers nationwide admitted between February 2017 and November 2023. Motorcyclists should have been hospitalized for RTIs and met the NTRI's inclusion criteria. We assessed patients regarding their demographics, clinical features, the pattern of injuries, and diverse in-hospital outcomes. RESULTS: Of 54,342 registered patients in the NTRI, 7,594 motorcyclists were included. Of them, 6,636 (87.4%) were riders, and 958 (12.6%) were pillion passengers. Among all, 7165 (94.5%) were male, and 420 (5.5%) female (p < 0.001). Only 656 (9.9%) of riders and 24 (2.5%) of pillion passengers were wearing helmets (p < 0.001). Lone motorcyclist crashes led to injuries in 1,394 (21.2%) riders and 332 (35.5%) pillion passengers (p < 0.001). Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) was 3 to 8 in 204 (3.1%) riders and 16 (1.7%) pillion passengers (p = 0.016). The most frequent pattern of poly-trauma was "head and thorax," with 43 (32.3%) riders and 5 (25.0%) pillion passengers (p = 0.362). Univariable logistic regression analysis showed that Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission (OR = 0.78, CI 95% = 0.62 to 0.97, p = 0.028) and mechanical ventilation (OR = 0.58, CI 95% = 0.39 to 0.84, p = 0.004) were significantly lower in pillion passengers compared to motorcycle riders. After adjustment for age, gender, occupational status, and helmet use, being a rider or a pillion passenger didn't have a significant association with any of the in-hospital outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Motorcycle riders and pillion passengers sustain the same injuries in terms of pattern, severity, and in-hospital outcomes. Therefore, healthcare providers can approach them similarly. Since there is a high number of underage riders and helmets are not used commonly, there should be more police enforcement in this case.