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Background and Aim: There is evidence of associations between noise exposure and psychological outcomes from noise annoyance. This study aims to examine the mediating role of noise annoyance in the relationship of noise exposure with Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Cognitive Emotion Regulation (CER). Methods: This is a cross-sectional study that was conducted on 58 male workers of a lead mine in Yazd, Iran. Noise exposure was determined based on ISO 9612:2009. Noise annoyance was assessed using the ISO/TS 15666:2003's numerical rating scale. The Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (modified version) and the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ) were used for data collection. Mann-Whitney U test, correlation test, and Generalized Structural Equation Modeling (GSEM) were used to analyze the data. Results: The mean age of workers was 35.78±7.10 years. A significant relationship was found between noise annoyance and noise exposure, such that a unit increase in noise exposure had a multiplicative effect on the odds of experiencing more annoyance (p<0.001). Also, for every one-unit increase in noise annoyance, mean scores for EI and CER decreased by 0.192 and 0.172, respectively. Conclusion: Noise exposure is directly related to noise annoyance and indirectly related to EI and CER. Further studies in this area are recommended to clarify the issue and the relationships between these variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: Hypertension is the leading preventable risk factor for cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease and cognitive impairment, and mortality and disability worldwide. Since prevention, early detection, and treatment of blood pressure improve public health, the aim of present study was to determine the best obesity indices and estimate the optimal cut‐off point for each one to predict the risk of elevated/stage 1 and undiagnosed hypertension in the population of center of Iran based on American ACC/AHA 2020 guidelines. Methods: This cross‐sectional study was performed on 9715 people who enrolled in 2018 in Persian Adult Cohort in Shahedieh area of Yazd, Iran in 2018. The anthropometric indices including body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC), wrist circumference, hip circumference, waist‐to‐hip ratio, and waist‐to height ratio of individuals, were extracted. The receiver operating characteristic curve was utilized to determine the optimum cut‐off point of each anthropometric index to predict hypertension stages and compare their predictive power by age‐sex categories. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 23.0. Results: The results showed that BMI has the best predictive power to recognize the risk of elevated/stage 1 hypertension for female (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.72 and optimal cut‐off = 30.10 kg/m2) and WC for male (AUC = 0.66 and optimal cut‐off = 93.5 cm) in 35−45 age group. BMI had the best predictive power for the risk of undiagnosed hypertension for 35−45 years old male (AUC = 0.73 and optimal cut‐off = 28.90 kg/m2) and female (AUC = 0.75 and optimal cut‐off = 5.10 kg/m2), and hip circumference revealed similar predictive power for female as well (AUC = 0.75 and optimal cut‐off = 112 cm). Conclusion: Based on our findings, BMI and WC, which are simple, inexpensive, and noninvasive means, are the best markers to predict the risk of elevated/stage 1 and undiagnosed hypertension in young Iranians. It shows that the approach of reducing hypertension prevalence through primary prevention, early detection, and enhancing its treatment is achievable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Individual factors influence safety behavior, especially personality and psychological variables. Self-efficacy and perceived control are among these psychological drivers that were less addressed in the industrial environments and work safety. In this regard, the present study was conducted to investigate the association between safety self-efficacy and safety perceived control with the dimensions of safety behaviors. Methods and Materials: This cross-sectional study was conducted in a steel industry in Yazd province during the spring of 2023. 252 employees from different occupational groups (workers, supervisors, and production managers) were included in the study. Griffin and Neal's questionnaire was used to check the safety behavior dimensions (safety compliance and safety participation). Moreover, safety self-efficacy and safety perceived control were evaluated using Proactive-Safety Role Orientation Questionnaire (PRO-SAFE). To analyze the data, correlation, Mann-Whitney, Kruskal-Wallis test, and multiple linear regression model were used. SPSS-24 software was used to analyze data. Results: We found a positive and significant association between psychological drivers and safety behavior. The regression model showed that with a unit increase in the safety self-efficacy score, the mean score of safety compliance, and safety participation increased by 0.36 and 0.36, respectively. Furthermore, with a unit increase in the safety perceived control score, the mean score of safety compliance and safety participation increased by 0.41 and 0.44, respectively. Conclusion: Considering positive and significant association between psychological drivers and safety behavior, creating and promoting psychological drivers in the individuals can improve the level of safety in the workplace and reduce accidents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: With the onset of the first wave of COVID-19 in Iran, along with the preventive quarantines, children who had to stay at home were in contact with drugs, alcohol, and disinfectants. This study compares the prevalence rates of poisoning for children and adolescents hospitalized during the first wave of COVID-19 to the previous year (pre-COVID-19 period in 2019). Methods: This analytic, cross-sectional study was conducted based on the administrative data obtained from the referral teaching hospital in Yazd and Taft cities, Iran. This study was conducted on children under the age of 15 years who were admitted to the hospital because of poisoning. The study was conducted from February 19, 2020, to February 18, 2021 (12 months during the COVID-19 pandemic) compared to 2019 as the reference period (pre-COVID-19). The data were analyzed by the SPSS software, version 20. Results: Multivariate regression analysis showed that by adjusting the effects of age and sex, the chance of alcohol poisoning (odd ratio [OR]=0.3, P=0.03), poisoning with oil and its derivatives (OR=0.33, P=0.05), and drugs-opioids poisoning in the period before the outbreak of COVID-19 was lower than during the outbreak of COVID-19. Additionally, the chance of poisoning with medications in the period before the outbreak of COVID-19 was 67% higher than during the outbreak of COVID-19 (OR=1.67, P=0.01). Conclusion: The results indicated a significant increase in poisoning with alcohol, drugs-opioids, oil, and its derivatives in children and adolescents in Yazd City, Iran, during the 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: Noise has many psychological effects. Although different studies have so far focused on various psychological effects, they have not evaluated communication skills and cognitive triad. Thus, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of noise exposure and noise annoyance on communication skills and cognitive triad. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 65 workers in 2021. The equivalent sound level (LeqA) was determined using dosimetry. Based on LeqA, noise exposure was divided into permissible and impermissible types. Noise annoyance was measured by the numerical rating scale recommended by ISO/TS 15666:2003. The Communication Skills Questionnaire and Cognitive Triad Inventory were used for data collection. Finally, the obtained data were analyzed by SPSS 24 using an independent samples t test and Spearman correlation test. Results: The mean (± standard deviation) age of workers was equal to 33.87 (± 5.95) years. The results of the correlation test showed a positive and significant relationship between LeqA and noise annoyance (P < 0.001, r = 0.82). Based on the results of the independent samples t test, there was no significant difference in the scores of communication skills (P = 0.11) and cognitive triad (P = 0.93) in the two groups. Conclusion: In this study, a positive and significant relationship was found between noise exposure and noise annoyance. In addition, communication and cognitive skills were not significantly different in the two study groups. To accurately determine the relationships of variables, it is recommended to conduct similar studies with larger sample sizes while considering variables such as personality traits and social intelligence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The awareness, attitudes, and practices of mothers regarding rheumatic fever (RF) remain obscure, therefore, this study aimed to assess the level of awareness, attitude, and practice of mothers regarding RF. A Quasi-experimental study was conducted on 100 mothers who visited medical centers in Yazd province in 2023 to evaluate the level of awareness, attitude, and practice, with the results reported after the intervention using self-made questionnaires. Statistical tests such as the Kruskal-Wallis test, T -test, One-Way analysis of variance, and Mann-Whitney were used. A significance level of P  < .05 was assumed. The mean score of awareness was 6.63 (2.6) and 9.52 (2.59), attitude was 12.56 (4.75) and 17.51 (6.72) and practice was 13.97(5.52) and 19.25 (7.04) of mothers regarding rheumatic fever were before and after study, respectively. The results of mixed effects models showed that education has a significant effect on awareness ( P  < .001), attitude ( P  < .001), and practice ( P  < .001). The mean score of attitude, practice, and awareness were increased by 2.98, 5.28, and 4.95, respectively, after the intervention. Based on the findings, it was observed that mothers have a moderate awareness of rheumatic fever (RF) despite the high burden, poor attitude, and practice. The results of the current study also demonstrate the influence of education in promoting positive practices. Effective training can have a positive impact on the awareness, attitudes, and practices of mothers., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.