The oral cancer constitutes 48% of head and neck cancer cases. Ninety percent of oral cancer cases are histologically diagnosed as oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs). Despite new management strategies, the 5-year survival rate of oral cancer is still below 50% in most countries. Head and neck cancers are heterogeneous tumors, and this characteristic of them provides a challenge to treatment plan. Due to the poor outcomes in oral cancer, prevention is a necessity. In this review, a relevant English Literature search in PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar from 2000 to mid-2018 was performed. All published articles related to oral cancer and its prevention were included. The risk factors of oral cancer and strategies of oral cancer prevention will be discussed.

Background: Today, because of increasing immigration and the prevalence of drug-resistant tuberculosis in Iran, identifying intra-community cases is necessary in the country. It will be possible through the use of molecular epidemiologic methods. In this inquiry, in order to determine the role of immigrants in the transmission of specific strains to Iran, the studies have been examined which had been conducted based on molecular epidemiologic methods among Iranians and non-Iranians people. Methods: All studies from 1997 to the end of March 2017 were examined in three databases of PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar and finally, 16 studies were selected. Results: The common clustering rate between Iranians and non-Iranians was determined to be 19.8, and the intra-community recent transmission rate was from 0% to 49% with average of 18.1%. The rate of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) was 12.5%, which was higher among immigrants, especially Afghans, and a significant number of the strains were Beijing. Conclusions: The studies have shown that migrants, especially Afghans, are more effective in transmitting specific strains of tuberculosis to migratory areas. To control tuberculosis, it is necessary to register of immigrant's health information, while enter to the country, so that, by doing appropriate diagnostic tests, the curing the patients, the transmission of tuberculosis to the country would be prevented.

Vitamin D (Vit. D) is among the most important elements of the human body that play pivotal roles in health and disease. It belongs to the fat-soluble secosteroid family, which is provided by either foods or direct exposure to sunlight that converts 7-hydroxycholesterol to the Vit. D precursor. An alternative step is bio-activation, which delivers an active form of Vit. D (Vit. D3), which participates in various noticeable functions including calcium regulation, bone remodeling, fertility, glucose control, and detoxification. The most recent literature is carefully reviewed (2049 articles) and the relative information was collected and discussed meticulously. Inclusion criteria were the articles that mentioned the relationship between Vit. D, adipokine, and kidney disease and exclusion criteria were nonrelevant articles. Vit. D plays several roles in the normal function of the kidney and metabolism. It has been revealed that Vit. D has a crucial impact on kidney disease and that its deficiency leads to kidney dysfunction and further renal disorder. Apart from the direct relationship of Vit. D with kidney disease, the association of adipocytes and adipokines with Vit. D and kidney function has also been studied. The noticeable role of Vit. D in kidney disease is investigated in various studies. It has been found that Vit. D has a pivotal role in kidney function and metabolism. Further study can reveal the better-detailed information about the exact relation of Vit. D and kidney disorders. The aim of the review was to provide a better insight into the exact role of Vit. D and adipokine in the kidney disease.

Rabbit strains find immense application in biomedical research with every strain having their discrete advantage in specific research endeavor. Acceptability of rabbit strains as laboratory animals owes to their breeding ease, availability, cost-effectiveness, ethical conveniences, larger size, compared to rats and mice, and responsiveness. With respect to different life phases, the article displays that one human year is equivalent to: (1) in developmental phase, 56.77 days for New Zealand White (NZW) and New Zealand Red (NZR) rabbits, 71.01 days for Dutch belted and Polish rabbits, and 85.28 days for Californian rabbits; (2) in the prepubertal phase, 13.04 days for NZW and Dutch belted, 15.65 days for NZR and Californian, and 10.43 days for Polish rabbits; (3) in the adult phase, 18.25 days for NZW and Californian rabbits, 22.75 days for NZR, and 12 days for Dutch Belted and Polish rabbits; (4) during reproductive senescence, 42.94 days for NZW, NZR and Californian rabbits, 28.62 days for Dutch belted, and 25.05 days for Polish rabbits; (5) in the post-senescence phase, 50.34 days for NZW, 25.17 days for NZR, Dutch Belted and Californian and 31.46 days for Polish rabbits. The laboratory rabbit strains differ in various physiological, developmental and genetic make-ups, which also reflect upon the correlation of their age at different life stages with that of a human. The present article aids selection of laboratory rabbit strain of accurate age as per experimental need, by precisely relating the same with age of human considering different life stages.

Background: To plan for decreasing the prevalence of malnutrition among children, reliable data of current status are required. The aim of the present cross-sectional study was to estimate the prevalence and trend of malnutrition among Iranian children. Methods: PubMed, ISI Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar, and Iranian databases including SID and Magiran were searched for studies published prior to October 2017 with MeSH terms of Malnutrition, Nutrition Disorders, Wasting, Stunting, Underweight, Undernutrition, Nutrition, Anthropometry, Weight, and Children and Iran. Three random effect models were applied to estimate the pooled prevalence of underweight, stunting, and wasting. Meta-regression and cumulative meta-analysis were performed. All analyses were also conducted separately for two different age groups including 0–6 years old (preschool) and 7–11 years old (primary school). Seventy-five studies (information of 1,069,815 individuals) were included in the final meta-analysis. Results: The overall prevalence of underweight, stunting, and wasting was estimated to be 8.4% [95% confidence interval (CI): 7.6–9.1], 14.5% (95% CI: 13.1–15.9) and 5.6% (95% CI: 5–6.2) in children age 0–6 years, and 6.6% (95% CI: 4.8–8.4), 7.3% (95% CI: 5.6–9.1), and 8.3% (95% CI: 6–10.7) in children age 7–11 years, respectively. Conclusions: The cumulative meta-analysis showed a decrease in the general trend of malnutrition in both preschool and primary school children of Iran. Stunting and wasting were the most common form of malnutrition in Iranian preschool and primary school children, respectively. The decreasing trend of malnutrition was much more noticeable about stunting.

Background: Obesity is related to increase in the incidence of morbidity and mortality. Previous studies have led to conflicting results regarding the effect of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplementation on anthropometric indices. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of CoQ10 supplementation on body weight, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference (WC) through a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Methods: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library as well as the reference lists of the identified relevant RCTs were searched up to March 2019, and weighted mean differences (WMDs) were pooled by using the random-effects model. Results: Twenty RCTs (976 participants) were eligible to be included in the systematic review. The meta-analysis revealed that CoQ10 supplementation had no effect on body weight (WMD = −0.04 kg; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −1.96, 1.6; I² = 0.0%), BMI (WMD = −0.06 kg/m²; 95% CI: −0.54, 0.42; I² = 0.0%), and WC (WMD = 0.79 cm; 95% CI: −2.83, 0.04; I² = 0.0%). Conclusions: CoQ10 supplementation might not improve anthropometric indices. Future well-designed trials are still needed to confirm these results.

Background: Nowadays, tobacco consumption has become one of the major public health problems and is the leading cause of escapable illness and death. A significant role is played by dental professionals in the identification of smokers; they are, thus, in a better position to offer preventive care. The aim of the present study was to systemically review the knowledge and attitude of dental practitioners toward tobacco cessation. Methods: A literature search was performed in PubMed Central and Cochrane Library, Medline—PubMed, Embase, Google Scholar up to 2018 to identify appropriate studies. Full-text original research articles of the cross-sectional design were only included in the study. Our target was to systemically review the knowledge and attitude of dental practitioners toward tobacco cessation. Results: The present review included a total of nine articles (studies) that fulfilled the eligibility criteria. Two articles which were hand searched and one article which was obtained through contact with experts were included. The results of the review revealed that the dental practitioners in most of the included studies lack satisfactory knowledge and were unaware of existing referral pathways to specialist smoking cessation services. At the same time, most of the dentists have a positive attitude toward tobacco cessation. Conclusions: Dental professionals are aware of their obligations toward smoking cessation counseling for patients but certain barriers including lack of time, confidence, and training prevent them from practicing the same in their daily routine. The dental professionals should obtain appropriate training and attain knowledge along with quantifiable skills for the prevention and cessation of tobacco use.

Bisphosphonates (BPs) are a commonly used class of drugs for the treatment of bone disorders. An extensive review of BPs with their clinical efficacy and safety profile is unavailable. This study aimed to review the available literature on BPs, summarize their role in clinical therapy, and emphasize their safety profile. Authors reviewed the existing literature using the Google Scholar, PubMed, and Micromedex databases and analyzed the collected articles. BPs are the preferred medication for osteoporosis and other similar conditions owing to their efficient antiosteoclastic activity. Few of them are available in oral dosage forms; hence, they are patient-friendly. The mechanism of action, common adverse effects and their clinical applications, precautions and warnings pertaining to the route of administration, and safety profiles have been discussed in this manuscript. The common adverse effects are majorly related to the gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and endocrine system. Upon chronic usage, patients may experience serious problems like osteonecrosis of the jaw and atypical bone fractures. Although BPs are effective and safe, they may cause GI adverse effects and rare cases of osteonecrosis. Patient counseling could prove beneficial in early identification and prevention of the adverse effects associated with BPs.

Objective: Food insecurit (FI) has been considered as reason for childhood and adolescent overweight/obesity (OW/OB). Hence, this study was undertaken to assess these relationships. Design: Related articles were found by searching the Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed and Embase databases until October 2019. Odds ratio (OR) was analized by a random-effects model. Standard methods were used for assessment of heterogeneity and publication bias. Data were available from 32 studies. The risk ratios of 139,762 participants were pooled from these articles for the meta-analysis. Results: This study domenstrated that children and adolescents in food-insecure condition are not at risk of OW/OB (OR = 1.02 95% CI: 0.99, 1.05). However, subgroup analysis indicated that FI related with inhanced risk of OW/OB in adolescents living in developed countries (OR = 1.14; 95% CI: 1.02, 1.27). Other subgroup analysis indicated that severe FI increased the risk of OW/OB among adolescents (OR = 1.24 95% CI: 1.03-1.49). In addition, we found that lower economic development significantly decreased risk of OW/OB among under 6 year children (OR = 0.88; 95% CI: 0.84, 0.93). Conclusions: Our results showed that higher FI degrees were related with more risks of OW/OB among adolescents (12–18 years). Moreover, the country economic levels had effect on the association between FI and risk of OW/OB.

Nowadays, COVID-19 is in pandemic stage, and concerns about the infection of children are on the rise. At first, it has been believed that children are not at risk while some evidences have shown that the risk of infection is lower in children than adults. The COVID-19 children indicated milder symptoms including cough, fever, sore throat, myalgia sneezing, and fatigue than COVID-19 adults. Lymphopenia, which is prevalent in adult cases, has not been reported in pediatric patients. The COVID-19 can also occur in neonates although vertical transmission from mothers to fetuses during pregnancy is rare. Overall, the outcome is better in children than adults. Thus far, there has been neither specific treatment for eradicating the infection nor any preventative vaccine for COVID-19, Preventive measures such as frequent hand washing, social distancing and wearing face mask are the best ways.

Adiponectin, an adipokine secreted by adipocytes, is a well-known homeostatic factor for regulating glucose levels, lipid metabolism, and insulin sensitivity through its anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic, and antioxidant effects. All these metabolic processes are mediated via two adiponectin receptors, AdipoR1 and AdipoR2. In addition, adiponectin is one of the hormones with the highest plasma concentrations. Weight loss or caloric restriction leads to increasing adiponectin levels, and this increase is associated with increased insulin sensitivity. Therefore, the adiponectin pathway can play a crucial role in the development of drugs to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus and other obesity-related diseases affected by insulin resistance like cancers or cardiovascular diseases. Adiponectin appears to increase insulin sensitivity by improving glucose and lipid metabolisms. The objective of this review is to analyze current knowledge concerning adiponectin and, in particular, its role in physiology and pathophysiology.

Gynecological cancers are one of the most lethal and deadliest cancers in the world. In India, the prevalence of ovarian cancer accounts for 2.5% to 3%. Despite the availability of improved treatment option along with improved technology, the survival rate of ovarian cancer in the early-stage and the advanced stage is poor. Therefore, due to the heterogeneity of ovarian cancer, to detect it at an early stage and to prevent further mortality turns out to be a big challenge. Researchers are still in the process to identify any single biomarker with good sensitivity and specificity. Various traditional and serum approaches to identify ovarian cancer have been successful in the early stages. The invention of molecular biomarkers such as the use of genomic profiling, DNA methylation, and other approaches have proven to be of higher sensitivity and specificity, which overall affects the prognosis of ovarian cancer. With the use of whole-genome analysis, the detection of possible location of critical tumor suppressor gene (TSGs) in the paired region of chromosomes has been identified, which are associated with BRCA1 and BRCA2 which further makes these novel molecular biomarkers as potential biomarkers. Moreover, studies are required to assess the combined use of traditional, molecular biomarkers that might be useful for enhanced sensitivity and specificity for early detection and prevention of ovarian cancer in early stages which will lead to reduced mortality and good prognosis

Background: Hypertension is a major cause of noncommunicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease. Therefore, this study aimed to estimate the prevalence of hypertension in cardiovascular patients in Iran by meta-analysis. Methods: The search was carried out using authentic Persian and English keywords in national and international databases including IranMedex, Scientific Information Database (SID), Magiran, IranDoc, Medlib, ScienceDirect, PubMed , Scopus, Cochrane, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar search engine without any time limitation until 2017. Heterogeneity of studies was assessed using I2 statistic . Data were analyzed using STATA 11.1. Results: In 66 reviewed studies with a sample of 111,406 participants, the prevalence of hypertension was 44% in Iranian patients with cardiovascular disease 67%(95%CI: 38%–49%) in women and 42% in men. The prevalence of systolic hypertension in cardiac patients was 25%, diastolic 20%, diabetes 27%, and overexposure 43%. The prevalence of hypertension was 44% in patients with coronary artery disease, 50% in myocardial infarction, 33% in aortic aneurysm, and 44% in cardiac failure. Conclusions: Hypertension has a higher prevalence in women with cardiovascular disease than men, and it increases with age. Among patients with cardiovascular disease, myocardial infarction patients have the highest levels of hypertension. The prevalence of systolic hypertension in cardiac patients is higher than diastolic hypertension.

The prevalence of mental disorders in Iran is rising for many reasons including the population growth and its problems, the collapse of the family foundation, the economic problems, etc. Epidemiological studies of psychiatric disorders play an important role in determining the general mental health of the population and policy-making and future planning of service delivery. To identify the relevant studies, two authors independently searched different scholarly databases including Embase, PubMed/MEDLINE, ISI/Web of Science (WOS), Scopus, Psych INFO, and Iranian databases such as MagIran, SID, IranPsych, and Irandoc from 1^st January 2007 up to 1^st July 2018. The gray literature (through Google Scholar) was also mined. Studies written in English or in the Persian language were searched. After searching the databases and removing duplicates cases, a total of 10 studies were selected and included in the study, which reported a total of 14 prevalence rates. There were a total of 72,262 participants, of whom 32,925 were male and 39,337 were female. The prevalence of psychiatric disorders in studies which used screening tool was 31.03% (95% confidence interval: 25.99–36.07). The prevalence was 25.42% in studies which used clinical interviews (95% CI: 15.96–34.88). There is an undeniable fact that the prevalence of mental disorders in Iran has been increasing, and this could be a warning to policy-makers and health system managers. Hence, it is necessary to pay attention to this issue to maintain social capital, vitality, and efficiency of individuals and society as a whole.

Background: Inflamation is widely known as an adaptive pathophysiological response in a variety of cancers. There is an expanding body of research on the key role of diet in inflammation, a risk factor for all types of cancer. Dietary inflammatory index (DII) was recently develpoed to evalute the inflammatory potential of a diet either as anti-inflammatory or pro-inflammatory. In fact, several studies have shown the association of DII and risk of different cancer types. The aim of this meta-analysis was to investigate the association of DII with risk of incidence and mortality of any cancer types. Methods: We searched PubMed-Medline, Scopus, and Web of Science databases for pertient studies util January, 2017. All studies conducted to investigate the association of DII and incidence, mortality, and hospitalization of all cancer types were included. According to degree of heterogeneity, fixed- or random-effect model was employed by STATA software. Results: Total 38 studies were eligible for the meta-analysis. The results show that a higher level of DII increases the risk for all cancer types incidence by 32% (OR: 1.32; 95% CI: 1.22-1.42) including digestive tract cancers (OR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.33-1.78), hormone-dependent cancers (OR: 1.14; 95% CI: 1.04-1.24), respiratory tract cancers (OR: 1.64; 95% CI: 1.11-2.17), and urothelial cancers (OR: 1.36; 95% CI: 1.01-1.73). Moreover, a higher level of DII is in association with a higher risk for mortality caused by all types of cancer by 16% (OR: 1.16; 95% CI: 1.01-1.32). In addition, meta-regression analysis reveals that the design of study can have a significant effect on the association of DII and incidence of all cancer types (slope: 0.54; P= 0.05). The stratified meta-analysis shows that the association of DII and incidence of all cancer types in case-control studies (OR: 1.53; 95% CI: 1.36-1.71) were more prominent than cohort studies (OR: 1.18; 95% CI: 1.07-1.30). Conclusions: This study shows that a higher level of DII is associated with a higher risk of incidence and mortality of all cancer types. The findings of the present study suggest that modifying inflammatory properties of dietary patterns can reduce the risk of incidence and mortality of all cancer types.