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Purpose Many marine animals are infected and susceptible to toxoplasmosis, which is considered as a potential transmission source of Toxoplasma gondii to other hosts, especially humans. The current systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the prevalence of T. gondii infection among sea animal species worldwide and highlight the existing gaps. Methods Data collection was systematically done through searching databases, including PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, Scopus, and Web of Science from 1997 to July 2020. Results Our search strategy resulted in the retrieval of 55 eligible studies reporting the prevalence of marine T. gondii infection. The highest prevalence belonged to mustelids (sea otter) with 54.8% (95% CI 34.21–74.57) and cetaceans (whale, dolphin, and porpoise) with 30.92% (95% CI 17.85–45.76). The microscopic agglutination test (MAT) with 41 records and indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) with 30 records were the most applied diagnostic techniques for T. gondii detection in marine species. Conclusions Our results indicated the geographic distribution and spectrum of infected marine species with T. gondii in different parts of the world. The spread of T. gondii among marine animals can affect the health of humans and other animals; in addition, it is possible that marine mammals act as sentinels of environmental contamination, especially the parasites by consuming water or prey species. Graphical Abstract Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11686-021-00507-z.

Background: Hemophilia is a rare inherited sex-linked disease caused by the deficiency or lack of some blood coagulation factors. The severity varies depending on the levels of these factors in the blood. Objectives: Therefore, this study aimed at determining the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and risk factors of cardiovascular disease in patients with hemophilia compared to a control group in 2015. Methods: A case-control study was done on all hemophilia patients referring to the Birjand University of Medical Sciences (n = 91). Healthy subjects with no hemophilia were selected using systematic random sampling from healthy individuals in Birjand City, who were matched in terms of age and sex. The data were entered into SPSS19 software. The significance level of less than 0.05 was considered in this study. Results: The mean age was 34.11 ± 14.68 and 33.72 ± 13.46 years in the case and control groups, respectively. The rate of metabolic syndrome was 12.1% in the control group and 4.4% in the hemophilia group. The results of Mann-Whitney U test showed a significant difference between the two groups in terms of TG (P = 0.016) and LDL (P < 0.001), and the waist circumference was significantly higher (P = 0.001) in the control group than in the hemophilia group. Conclusions: In the present study, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was significantly lower among hemophilia patients than in the control group. The prevalence of diabetes and hypertriglyceridemia was significantly lower in hemophilia patients than in the control group (healthy subjects).

Background: There are 350 million carriers of hepatitis B virus (HBV) around the world. HBV can be associated with type II diabetes mellitus. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and risk factors for type II diabetes mellitus among patients with HBV. Methods: This community-based, cross sectional, descriptive, correlational study recruited participants above 13 years, who resided in Esfandiar rural area, Tabas, Iran. A blood sample was collected from each participant for serological and biochemical tests. A researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect data on the participants’ demographic characteristics, HBV risk factors, and diabetes mellitus risk factors. Independent sample t test, Chi square test, and Fisher’s exact test were applied in SPSS v. 22.0 at a significance level of 0.05). Conclusions: This study suggests that HBV can be a risk factor for type II diabetes mellitus. Therefore, continuous monitoring for diabetes mellitus is essential for patients with HBV infection, particularly those above 50 years, those with a body mass index above 25 kg/m2, and those with a positive family history of type II diabetes mellitus.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the demographics, clinical characteristics, fatal dose, the efficacy of treatments, and prognosis in paraquat (PQ) poisoning in the Kerman Province of Iran. Methods: This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 126 PQ poisoned patients who were referred to Afzalipour Hospital during 2006–2015. Demographic variables such as age and gender, signs and symptoms of poisoning, the estimated ingested dosage of PQ, and clinical outcome were extracted from medical records. Patients were compared and categorized into two groups considering the outcome: survivors and nonsurvivors. Patients with nonoral exposures, combined drug exposures, PQ exposures more than 24 h before the presentation, and critical underlying diseases were not included in the study. Findings: Our results indicated that the mean dose of PQ used by all patients was 2358 mg, which was reported as 1846 and 2812 mg in females and males, respectively. Moreover, the results showed that the highest mortality rate was in patients with respiratory distress, followed by oral ulceration and excess salivation. In all PQ-poisoned patients, the dose of greater than approximately 2250 mg predicted death with 86.2% specificity and 75.7% sensitivity. Conclusion: Based on the results of the present study, the mortality rate in PQ-poisoned patients depended on the dose of poison, blood sugar level, and aspartate transaminase levels. Our results suggest that these parameters have excellent prognostic value for the prediction of mortality.

Background: Many factors influence the organizational commitment of employees. One of these factors is job designing since it affects the attitude, beliefs, and feelings of the organization employees. Objectives: We aimed to determine the relationship between job characteristics and organizational commitment among the employees of hospitals. Patients and Methods: In this descriptive and correlational study, 152 Iranian employees of the hospitals (physicians, nurses, and administrative staff) were selected through stratified random sampling. Data gathered using 3-part questionnaire of “demographic information”, “job characteristics model,” and “organizational commitment,” in 2011. Study data were analyzed using SPSS v. 16. Results: There was significant statistical correlation between organizational commitment and variables of educational level (P = 0.001) and job category (P = 0.001). Also, a direct and significant correlation existed between motivating potential score and job feedback on one hand and organizational commitment on the other hand (P = 0.014). Conclusions: According to the results, managers of the hospitals should increase staff’s commitment through paying attention to proper job designing.