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Lorestan province is one of the 5 flood-prone provinces in terms of weather conditions and high average rainfall. During floods, many economic and social damages are inflicted on individuals and their livelihoods. Estimating post-flood vulnerability is always one of the challenges of crisis and risk management. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to assess the vulnerability of farmers to floods. The statistical population of this study is 3843 households who are living along the Afrineh river basin in Poledokhtar Township. The sample size was determined to be 350 according to Cochran's formula and the participants were selected through a simple random sampling method. An Index-based method was used to assess vulnerability. The vulnerability was measured based on three components of exposure, sensitivity and, adaptive capacity. Cluster analysis and one-way ANOVA were used to grouping and identify the factors affecting the vulnerability. The results showed that most rural households are in the middle class based on vulnerability to floods. The results of the analysis of variance showed that flood duration index in exposure dimension, financial and, livelihood indicators in sensitivity dimension and social capital and human capital indicators in adaptation dimension had a significant effect on the vulnerability of rural households. Therefore, diversifying products and sources of income and encouraging villagers to participate in rural organizations and, creating incentives for participation and cooperation among farmers can play a constructive role in reducing the effects of flood risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let Γ = (V, E) be a simple graph. A set C of vertices Γ is an identifying set of Γ if for every two vertices x and y the sets NΓ[x] ∩ C and NΓ[y] ∩ C are non-empty and different. Given a graph Γ, the smallest size of an identifying set of Γ is called the identifying code number of Γ and is denoted by γ ID(Γ). Two vertices x and y are twins when NΓ[x] = NΓ[y]. Graphs with at least two twin vertices are not identifiable graph. In this paper, we study identifying code number of some Cayley graphs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The clinical and paraclinical symptoms of COVID-19 differ across age groups. This study investigated the differences between these parameters and their outcomes in young, middle-aged, and elderly patients admitted to a COVID-19 referral center. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study encompassed patients with COVID-19 hospitalized at Khorshid Hospital (Isfahan, Iran) during February 23 to April 30, 2020. The patients' predisposing conditions, clinical and paraclinical findings, and outcomes were compared among three young, middle-aged, and elderly groups. Results: Of the 1185 hospitalized patients with suspected COVID-19, 1065 were discharged or died at the end of the study. Among these 1065 patients, 654 patients with the mean age of 57.7 years had positive PCR results or typical CT scans and were included in the study, of whom 77 (11.8%), 353 (54%), and 234 (34.2%) patients were assigned into the young, middle-aged, and elderly groups, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference among the three groups regarding the prevalence of clinical symptoms. Moreover, CRP, ESR, WBC, BUN, Cr, and lymphocytes were higher in the elderly group. The ground-glass opacity (GGO) (24.1%), GGO-consolidation (27.4%), and consolidation (10.3%) were the most common CT scan findings in the young, middle-aged, and elderly groups, respectively. Fifty-three patients (8.1%) died, and the mortality rates were 10.36%, 7.27%, and 3.8% in the elderly, middle- aged, and young groups, respectively. Conclusion: COVID 19 symptoms do not depend on age; however, paraclinical findings differ across young, middle-aged, and elderly patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The periaqueductal gray (PAG) region plays an essential role in the modulation of nociception. Also, lateral PAG (lPAG) is involved in reward circuitry by the dopaminergic system in addiction. The present study investigated the blockade of D1/D2-like dopamine receptors in the lateral PAG region affects morphine self-administration with and without exercise. Methods: Rats were divided into six groups. The rats were initially trained to receive small pellets of food by pressing an active lever in the self administration apparatus. Exercise groups were run on a treadmill at 20m/min, 5 days/week, for 4 weeks before the surgery. Then rats were bilaterally implanted with cannulae in lPAG. The SCH23390 and sulpiride were microinjected into the lPAG, 5min before receiving morphine. Afterward, the animals were allowed to self administer morphine in 2h sessions over 11 consecutive days. At last, the numbers of lever pressing, infusion times and withdrawal symptoms were measured. Results: The results showed the number of active lever pressing was significantly increased in the morphine group compared to other groups in self-infusion during 11 days. Exercise significantly reversed the detrimental effects of morphine self-administration after five days. However, the synergistic effect of injected sulpiride into the lPAG region with exercise training was more pronounced on the amelioration of morphine than on the combinatory effect of SCH23390 with exercise. Conclusion: The findings suggested that the D2 dopamine receptor in the lPAG region was involved in the morphine addiction via the dopaminergic system and exercise training in combination with antagonists could reduce the rewarding properties of morphine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since the beginning of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, concerns raised by the growing number of deaths worldwide. Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and extrapulmonary complications can correlate with prognosis in COVID-19 patients. This study evaluated the association of systemic complications with mortality in severely affected COVID-19 patients. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was done on 51 intensive care unit (ICU)-admitted COVID-19 adult patients who were admitted to the ICU ward of Khorshid hospital, affiliated with Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. Only the patients who had a definite hospitalization outcome (dead vs. survivors) were included in the study. Daily clinical and paraclinical records were used to diagnose in-hospital complications in these patients. Results: The sample was comprised of 37 males (72.5%) and 14 females (27.4%). The median age of patients was 63 years (Min: 20, Max: 84), with the mortality rate of 47.1%. In total, 70.6% of patients had at least one coexisting disorder. Chronic kidney disease was associated with the worse outcome (29.16% of dead patients against 3.70 of survived ones). Mechanical ventilation was used in 58.8% of patients. Patients who had received invasive ventilation were more likely to die (87.50% of dead patients against 7.40 of survivors), Complications including sepsis and secondary infections (odds ratio: 8.05, confidence interval: 2.11–30.63) was the strongest predictors of mortality. Conclusion: Complications including sepsis and secondary infections can increase the risk of death in ICU-admitted COVID-19 patients. Therefore, it is substantial that the physicians consider preventing or controlling these complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Exercise reverses retention deficit induced by morphine. The present study investigated the effect of aerobic exercise on tolerance to morphine usage and pain modulation., Materials and Methods: Male Wistar rats were divided into four groups as follows: (1) saline group (S), (2) morphine group (M), (3) saline + exercise (S + E), and (4) morphine + exercise group (M + E). The rats were initially trained to receive small pellets of food by pressing an active lever in the self-administration apparatus. The tail-flick and hot-plate tests were used for pain assessment. To perform the experiment, the jugular vein was exposed and cannulated. After recovery, the animals were placed in the self-administration apparatus and allowed to self-administer morphine in 2 h sessions over 11 consecutive days., Results: The morphine group was found to record a higher number of active lever pressings than did the saline one while this parameter decreased in the morphine + exercise group compared with the morphine one. Moreover, the morphine + exercise exhibited lowered pain sensitivity as evidenced to have reduced morphine use in the hot plate test., Conclusion: The exercise might be suggested to reduce using of morphine and modulate pain probably through the release of endogenous opioid., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Objective: Thrombocytopenia is a common problem in cardiovascular surgery patients. However, heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is a rare but life-threatening complication of prophylaxis or treatment with heparin. Prompt management of HIT with an alternative anticoagulant is necessary due to the extreme risk of thrombotic complications. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of danaparoid in the treatment of HIT in patients with cardiac surgery who are at moderate to high risk of HIT., Methods: A prospective observational study involving 418 postcardiac surgery patients who received unfractionated heparin and low-molecular weight heparin was conducted in an educational tertiary cardiac care hospital in Iran. All patients were assessed for HIT type II based on thrombocytopenia and pretest clinical scoring system, the "4T's" score. HIT patients were treated with 1500-2500 units intravenous bolus danaparoid sodium followed by 200-400 units/h for a mean of 5 days. Successful response to danaparoid therapy, defined as augmentation in platelet count and improvement of thrombotic events was assessed in all patients treated with danaparoid., Findings: According to pretest clinical score (4T's), the probability of HIT was high in 14 (3.3%) patients and intermediate in three ones (0.7%). 15 patients with HIT were treated with danaparoid. One death occurred in danaparoid-treated group due to persistent thrombocytopenia. The rest of patients were treated successfully with danaparoid without any major thrombotic complication., Conclusion: According to our data and the previous studies', HIT can be managed prosperously with danaparoid in postcardiac surgery patients. However, with the absence of any increase in platelet count after 3-5 days of danaparoid therapy and/or the occurrence of a new thrombotic event, danaparoid cross-reactivity with heparin should be suspected.