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Aim: The situation, structure, and facilities of hospitals change in a crisis, which negatively affects the provision of care quality of health services. One of the current world crises is the Covid-19 pandemic. This study aimed to investigate the preparedness of hospitals to deal with the Covid-19 crisis. Materials and Methods: This narrative review searched the SID, PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar databases/search engines in published articles between 2019-2022. A search strategy was defined for PubMed and it was translated into other selected databases. Also, the reference list of the included articles was searched. The databases/search engines were searched by two authors independently, and any disagreement was resolved through discussions. To find related articles, Iranian and International databases were searched using Persian keywords and their English equivalents (Covid-19, Hospital, Preparedness, epidemic, and Pandemic). Results: A total of 311 articles were found, of which 15 were reviewed. Inclusion criteria included being an original paper, in Persian or English, and compliance with the purpose of the study. The exclusion criteria included not having access to the full text of the article. The study showed that hospital preparedness against the Covid-19 pandemic in most countries and different regions in Iran is not optimal. Hospitals should be prepared in terms of personal protective equipment, staffing, and beds. Rapid response management and hospital equipment should be strengthened. Conclusion: Considering the desirability of patient preparation in coping with Covid-19, it is necessary to improve healthcare facilities by increasing the number of workforce and beds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Evidence indicates the protective role of Irisin on nervous tissue following ischemic events, by preventing the cascades of secondary damage. We conducted this scoping review to summarize what has been discovered so far on the neuroprotective effects of Irisin, with a focus on ischemic stroke. Methods: Search strategies were designed based on the keywords related to ischemic stroke and Irisin. Next, an extensive search in Medline, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science was conducted by the end of April 2022. Two researchers independently reviewed the articles and performed the screening of the selected papers according to the inclusion criteria. Finally, the required data were extracted to a checklist designed based on the PRISMA guideline. The "meta" package was used for the meta-analysis, and heterogeneity between studies was assessed using the I2 test. Results: Pooled data analysis showed that the Irisin administration significantly improved the neurological function following cerebral ischemia / reperfusion injuries (SMD = 3.08; 95% CI: 1.10, 5.06; p<0.0001). Additionally, meta-regression demonstrated that the improvement in neurological function was directly related to the dose of administered Irisin (meta-regression coefficient = 0.03; p = 0.02). Moreover, Irisin administration significantly reduced the volume of infarcted lesions (SMD= -3.14; 95% CI: -4.23, -2.04; p<0.0001), the amount of edema in the brain (SMD= -2.30; 95% CI: -4.07, -0.53; p<0.0001), and the extend of neuronal-cell apoptosis rate (SMD= -4.67; 95% CI: -8.15, -1.19; p<0.0001). Conclusion: The present study demonstrates that the administration of Irisin in animal models of cerebral ischemia / reperfusion injuries is associated with a significant dose-dependent improvement in neurological function. Due to the limited number of articles, more research on the aim of finding the optimum Irisin dosage is in high demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The need for the training of emergency physicians was felt in the mid-20th century in response to rising public expectations for access to quality and specialized medical care around the clock. This study was conducted with the aim of comparing the decision-making status of patients referring to Imam Reza Hospital’s Emergency Department in Birjand before and after the establishment of emergency medicine. Methods: In this comparative study, 800 patients who were admitted to the emergency department of Imam Reza Hospital, Birjand, Iran, from March to September in 2011 (before the establishment of emergency medicine) and 2017 (after the establishment of emergency medicine) were compared regarding the status of decision-making. Patient information (including patient demographics, reason for referral, length of hospital stay, and time to assignment, discharge or referral) was collected from a paper file or the hospital information system (HIS). After collecting the data, they were entered in SPSS software version 16 and Mann-Whitney and Chi-square tests were used at a significance level of 0.05. Results: Mean time to decision-making had reduced from 343.1 ± 222.73minutes to 200.19 ± 174.33minutes after the deployment of emergency medicine specialists (P<0.001). There was a significant difference between the frequency of discharge against medical advice, and decision-making regarding the patients in less than 6 hours and 12 hours between the two time periods (P<0.05). The number of patients who were referred to other medical centers and other wards was not significantly different between the two time periods (P>0.05). Conclusion: The presence of emergency medicine specialists, as a successful model in the health system, led to an increase in speed, quality, and accuracy of providing services to patients admitted to the emergency department. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Research is an important part of the clinical practice. In recent years, several workshops are held to teach research skills to medical students. Evaluating workshops determine that workshop content can lead to higher performance in individuals. The present study aimed to evaluate effectiveness of writing scientific papers workshop for medical students using Kirkpatrick's model. Materials and Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study using pretest-posttest design and face to face communication to assess the learning effect of the training intervention. Immediately after workshop, the participants filled out a satisfaction questionnaire for evaluation of level one. To assess level two, pretest and posttest questionnaire was used. To assess level three and four, number of students who started their first research project and who published their first research articles were considered for a 6 months' period after workshop. Results: Based on our results, contributors' gender and semester had no efficacy on knowledge improvement of the participants. Results of four levels of Kirkpatrick's model showed all participants were satisfied from workshop and participation in this workshop has had a positive effect on participants' knowledge about writing articles. Obviously, the workshop affect on transfer of knowledge to contributors and it leads to maintenance of change over time. Conclusion: Impressively the authors found strong evidence to validate that the training effect on students' understanding of the research process, positively. Such courses enable medical students to investigate properly and improve their knowledge in their field. Therefore, universities must encourage medical students to participate in these workshops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Data mining techniques, including decision tree algorithms can be used for modeling and identifying those at risk of developing COVID-19. The main goal of this study is estimating the risk of death of patients due to COVID-19, using the classification and regression tree (CART) algorithm based on the observed effective factors. Methods: This paper is an analytical study and the data of all patients with COVID-19 registered on the Kaggle site through Johns Hopkins University, was extracted. There was a total of 26,031 records from various countries. Data analysis was performed using JMP statistical software version 13. In the modeling section, decision tree algorithm and CART model were used. Results: The results of the classification and regression tree showed that among quantitative variables, age, the interval between hospitalization and result, the interval between onset of symptoms and test result, and the interval between hospitalization and test result, and the qualitative variable of gender were the most important factors affecting the outcome of patient treatment, respectively. According to the analysis of words, fever, cough, sore throat, fatigue, weakness, headache, chills, and runny nose, respectively, were the most common symptoms among patients with this disease. Conclusion: The accuracy of the fitted model was shown to be 94.1% for experimental data and 91.1% for educational data using the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: During the past few years, social networking has become very popular. Currently, there is a lack of information about the uses, benefits, and limitations of social media for health communication in society. Material and Methods: This paper will review some of challenges and opportunities to use social and their impact on psychological health. In this review we searched all valuable and relevant information considering the social media impact on psychological health. We referred to the information databases of Medline, PubMed, Scopus and Google scholar. Conclusion: Social media brings a new dimension to health care, offering a platform used by the public, patients, and health professionals to communicate about health issues with the possibility of potentially improving health outcomes. More study is required to establish whether social media has impact on mental health in both the short and long terms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, the academic world is faced with various challenges involving fraudulent activities related to publishing. The most important of these concerns the fast growth in predatory journals, a phenomenon that has more victims than others. In response, we have offered papers and proceedings that discuss the issue of predatory journals in trying to increase the awareness of researchers. The unproven hypothesis is that by increasing awareness among junior researchers the numbers of victims will decrease. This hypothesis, however, has never been tested. In this short piece, we try to prove or reject this conjecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Vesicoureteral reflux is the backward flow of the urine from the bladder into the ureters or kidneys that may result in urinary tract infection. This paper aimed at evaluating this problem and its relationship with the children's mood, growth, and physical conditions as well as its influence on the family and school. Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of 122 children aged 4-14 years old: 61 with and 61 without VUR. The Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) were used to assess the parents' behavior. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and t test. Results: In this study, 23% of the children with and 4.9% of the children without VUR suffered depression (P value= 0.007). Moreover, 10.7% of the children with VUR showed offensive behaviors but there found no case among the children in the other group (P value=0.012). In addition, 16.4% of the children with and 1.7% of the children without VUR had intellectual problems (P value=0.008). Furthermore, 27.9% of the children with and 3.3% of the children without VUR had emotional problems (P value=0.001), and 4.9% of the parents of the children with VUR needed serious clinical measures but there were no such cases among children without VUR (P value=0.021). Conclusions: Increased behavioral problems in children with VUR and declined parental functioning require prompt treatment to prevent future behavioral problems in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) is a lysosomal enzyme present in the proximal convoluted tubules of the kidneys that may be used as a marker of proximal tubular damage and nephrotoxicity. An abnormal urinary NAG excretion has been reported in different kinds of renal disorders such as acute kidney injury, urinary tract infection, vesicoureteral reflux; diabetes mellitus; nephrotic syndrome; glomerulonephritis; hypertension; perinatal asphyxia; heavy metals poisoning; drug nephrotoxicity, renal allograft rejection; and heart failure. This paper provides an overview of the diagnostic value of urinary NAG in the nephrourology field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]