Prevalence of Congenital Nasolacrimal Duct Obstruction and its related risk factors among newborns

Introduction: Lacrimal drainage system disorders are among the most common ocular disorders faced by physicians. The prevalence of congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction (CNLDO) is different in various studies, and the role of such factors as maternal and neonatal demographic characteristics have not been completely investigated in CNLDO. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of CNLDO and its related factors in newborns in Sabzevar. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 541 newborns in Shahidan Mobini hospital, Sabzevar, Iran from January to February 2015 after obtaining informed consent from their parents. Data were collected by interviewing mothers, filling out checklists, and physical examination of the newborns. Data analysis was carried out in Stata software using a logistic regression test at a 95% confidence interval. Results: The prevalence of CNLDO was 22.6%. Purulent ocular discharge was the most common symptom (16.82%). There was a significant relationship between the neonate’s head circumference and the incidence of CNLDO (P= 0.01); nonetheless, CNLDO in the newborns showed no significant association with weight, height, and Apgar score (P>0.05). Conclusion: Considering the significant prevalence of CNLDO in preterm and term neonates, as well as its variable prevalence rates reported in different studies and the absence of overlapping of various risk factors of such disorder, it is recommended to carry out more thorough studies from birth to 1 year of age.

Compliance of operating room sterilization procedures with valid Scientific guidelines

introduction: Infections caused by surgeries have always been considered a primary concern of medical centers and are associated with irreversible complications. Using appropriate sterilization procedures reduces these complications. This study aimed to investigate how compliant are the current sterilization procedures of operating room (OR) environment and instruments with valid scientific standards. Methods: This cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical study examined ophthalmology, gynecology, and otorhinolaryngology ORs of Valiasr Hospital in Birjand. With the presence of the researcher in the OR, a standard 41-item checklist consisting of three parts (environmental cleaning, equipment cleaning, and sterilization procedure) was completed for each OR in each shift. The data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis test by SPSS(Version18) in significant level (a=0.05). Results: A total of 50 questionnaires were filled out for ORs. The highest number of questionnaires were completed for the gynecology OR, and the most elective surgeries were performed in the morning shift. There was no significant difference between the median score of OR instruments cleaning and that of valid scientific guidelines in terms of steralization (P> 0.05). The median scores of sterilization procedures and steps in hospital ORs were significantly different from those of scientific guidelines in the field of sterilization of surgical operations (P <0.05). Conclusion: The study findings indicate cases of mismatch between the quality of infection control and sterilization in the ORs of Vali-asar Hospital in Birjand and those recommended by valid scientific standards and guidelines.

Evaluation of the relation between myopia and central corneal thickness in patients admitted to vali-e-asr hospital in birjand, iran

Introduction: Considering the increasing prevalence of myopia and the subsequent complications, and due to the dearth of studies on the correlation between myopia and gender with corneal thickness in Iran, this study aimed to determine this relationship in patients admitted to the ophthalmic clinic of Vali-e-Asr Hospital, Birjand, Iran. Methods: This descriptive-analytic epidemiologic study was conducted on 100 patients admitted to Vali-e-Asr ophthalmic clinic in Birjand, Iran, for one year since January 2017. According to the degree of myopia, the patients were divided into three groups of low (0-3 D), moderate (3-6 D), and high myopia (6≤D). Corneal thickness was measured using Orbscan and Pentacam. The data were analyzed in SPSS software (Version 19) through ANOVA and T-test to determine the possible relationship between myopia and central corneal thickness. A p-value equal to and less than (P≤0.05) was considered statistically significant. Results: Overall, 100 patients (49 males and 51 females) were enrolled in this study. Moderate myopia had the highest frequency in both eyes. The results of the T-test revealed that no significant difference was observed in the mean corneal thickness measured by Pentacam between the two genders (P=0.18 in the right eye and P=0.32 in the left eye). Based on the ANOVA findings, the mean corneal thickness measured by Pentacam was not significantly different among the myopia categories (P=0.05 in the right eye and P=0.51 in the left eye) Conclusions: The study results revealed that there was no significant relationship between myopia and gender with corneal thickness.

A descriptive study of the admitted patients for injuries in a large teaching hospital in 2016

Introduction: Injuries are the causes of irreparable damages and costs in urban and rural settings. Preventive procedures are effective if correct related information is gathered and provided. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the injury patterns and related factors in a large teaching hospital. Methods: The current cross-sectional study was conducted at Edalatian Emergency Center, Mashhad, Iran, in 2016. All study subjects were extracted from the Hospital Information System (HIS).The demographic characteristics and injuries-related factors of 6,350 patients were extracted from the HIS. The extracted variables were emergency severity index (ESI), type of referral, referral reason, insurance organizations, age, anatomic site of injuries, and month of referral. The data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 21) using the descriptive statistics method (frequency and percentage). Results: The majority of the study population was composed of males (%76.4). In total, 98.3% of the patients were classified into the semi-urgent and non-urgent levels, and 75.6% of the cases were affected in the right upper extremity. The most common age group was between 10-20 (69.4%) years, and the majority of the cases were admitted in June, July, and August. Conclusion: The current study determined the pattern and most important reasons for injuries' referral to an emergency department. Accordingly, the injuries were more frequent in the young people and active human force in our community. Furthermore, there was a significant difference among the frequencies of injury incidence in the summer holidays. It seems necessary to develop preventive procedures for injuries.

Hyalinizing clear cell carcinoma of parotid, intricacies of management:a rare case report

Hyalinizing clear cell carcinoma (HCCC) usually affects minor salivary glands. It rarely occurs in major salivary glands. HCCCis difficult to diagnose in Fine Needle Aspiration cytology (FNAC). The possibility of metastasis from other primary sites should be rejected during the management of these tumors. An elderly manpresented with insidious onset, and gradual progressive painless swelling arising from the deep lobe of the parotid gland. FNAC, which was performedtwice with UltrasoundGuidance(USG), could not provide much detail about the type of tumor. Total conservative parotidectomy was conducted. These rare tumors cause significant challenges to physicians. Thehigh index of suspicion and combined efforts ofthe multidisciplinary team are pivotal in management.

Management of acute appendicitis in emergency departments during pandemic times: who are the most affected, children or adults?

COVID-19 was the most important public health problem in the world during the years 2020 - 2021 . Its appearance and rapid global expansion caused an abrupt change in the management of diseases in all medical departments, due to the risk of contagion and death . The outcomes of acute surgical pathologies have been one of the main questions due to organizational modifications in hospitals, in order to control the dynamics of emergency and critical care for COVID-19 patients, leaving aside the approach and control of the surgical disease burden. Fear of infection, long distances, confinement, socioeconomic problems, and institutional restrictions were some of the aspects that most affected the flow of patients with diseases other than COVID-19, leading to delays in care. Appendicitis is the leading cause of acute surgical abdomen worldwide, occurring in approximately 10% of the population. Its age range of presentation is between 5 and 45 years, with male predominance. Considering the variability of the symptomatology, the rapidly progressive deterioration, and the limitations in the access to timely surgical services, its early diagnosis and management are indispensable. The delay in the management of this pathology constitutes an increase in the risk of perforation and peritonitis, which in turn can lead to sepsis and death. Considering the heterogeneity of the behavior of the pandemic among the different continents, and the response of the health systems and the community to this public calamity, it is not known with certainty which age group was the most affected with respect to appendicitis during this period of time.

Tooth autotransplantation of the mandibular third molar: A case report

Autotransplantation is a viable option for treating teeth with severe decay when a donor tooth is available. Our case was a 29-year-old female that her mandibular second molar was non restorable due to extensive root caries. After extraction of mandibular second molar, the mandibular third molar was reimplanted into the recipient site. Root canal therapy was done for the third molar after two weeks.After15 months, clinical and radiographic examination revealed satisfactory outcome with no signs or symptoms suggestive of pathology.

Correction to: A case report of a patient with visual hallucinations following snakebite

The original version of this article unfortunately contained mistakes. This is a correction to "J Surg Trauma. 2018;6(2):73-76." In the originally published version of this paper, there was an error in the abstract and main content. In this report, the offending snake was mistakenly mentioned an adder snake (3rd sentence in the "Abstract" and 1st paragraph in the "Case" part). However, the offending snake was actually a Saw scaled viper (Echis carinatus sochureki). The authors express their apologies for this error, and state that this correction does not affect the findings and does not change the scientific conclusions of the article in any way.

Challenges and management of spine trauma during Covid-19

The COVID-19 pandemic is the most serious threat to national health systems in a century. The rapid development and spread of the COVID-19 disease necessitated a significant shift in clinical practice and a restructuring of institutional structures. Elective surgery has been drastically reduced in Spinal Surgery Units around the world since the start of the pandemic, and spine trauma management techniques have changed dramatically. All elective treatments, including spinal surgeries, were cancelled due to the virus's highly contagious nature, reduced nosocomial infection, and freed up extra beds for COVID-19 diseases. Emergencies, such as growing neurological deficits or spine instability caused by fractures, infections, or malignancies, could not be postponed. While different considerations should have been made before performing routine spine procedures, the latter was rendered more difficult due to unknown characteristics of the COVID-19 infection. In one study, all patients were polytrauma patients with a higher risk of pneumonia complications due to trauma. The usefulness of corticosteroids in the treatment of spinal cord injury is debated. In the instance of COVID-19 infection, Russell et al. advised not to use corticosteroids. Pneumonia was linked to a 20percent increase in death rate following posterior lumbar fusion surgeries in research by Bohl et al.

Can climate help fighting COVID-19 trauma? A case study of Maricopa County, Arizona, USA

Introduction: Since the emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, the disease has spread rapidly throughout the world and became a traumatic stressor. Identification of the factors affecting the spread of the disease makes it possible to prevent its further propagation and save more people in similar situations. Environmental and climatic parameters are among the factors affecting the prevalence of diseases. Determination of environmental effects on Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) prevalence can help develop policies to suppress the spread. Methods: This study investigated the effect of climatic parameters on the spread of COVID-19 disease in County Maricopa from March 11, 2020, to November 30, 2020. These parameters include maximum, minimum, and mean daily temperature as well as maximum, minimum, and mean daily humidity, wind speed, solar radiation, and Air Quality Index (AQI) of particulate matter10 (PM10), PM2.5, and O3. A Shapiro-Wilk test was used to evaluate the normality of variables and the Spearman correlation test was used to determine the correlation between parameters and daily COVID-19 cases. A simple linear regression was applied on parameters that had significant Spearman’sranked correlation with the daily COVID-19 cases to determine their contribution to the pandemic. Results: The present study showed that the maximum, minimum, and mean temperature parameters and PM10 and PM2.5 particles had a positive and significant correlation (P<0.01) with the prevalence of COVID-19 disease. The effect of PM10 particles was higher than the other parameters (0.488, P<0.01). The parameters of maximum, minimum, and mean relative humidity along with solar radiation and O3 AQI had a significant and negative correlation with the development of COVID-19 disease (P<0.01). The effect of maximum humidity was higher than that of the other parameters (-0.364, P<0.01). A linear regression test showed that O3 (β=-15.16, P<0.001) and Tmean (β=18.47, P<0.01) significantly predicted daily COVID-19 cases. Conclusion: It can be concluded that climatic parameters can affect the COVID-19 pandemic and should be addressed.