Prevalence of asymptomatic COVID-19 infection using a seroepidemiological survey

The prevalence of asymptomatic infection by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a critical measure for effectiveness of mitigation strategy has been reported to be widely varied. In this study, we aimed to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic infection using serosurvey on general population. In a cross-sectional seroprevalence survey in Guilan province, Iran, the specific antibody against COVID-19 in a representative sample was detected using rapid test kits. Among 117 seropositive subjects, prevalence of asymptomatic infection was determined based on the history of symptoms during the preceding 3 months. The design-adjusted prevalence of asymptomatic infection was 57.2% (95% confidence interval (CI) 44-69). The prevalence was significantly lower in subjects with previous contacts to COVID-19 patients (12%, 95% CI 2-49) than others without (69%, 95% CI, 46-86). The lowest prevalence was for painful body symptom (74.4%). This study revealed that more than half of the infected COVID-19 patients had no symptoms. The implications of our findings include the importance of adopting public health measures such as social distancing and inefficiency of contact tracing to interrupt epidemic transmission.

The Association of Mean Platelet Volume with Intra Ventricular Hemorrhage and Broncho Pulmonary Dysplasia in Preterm Infants

BACKGROUND

Interventricular hemorrhage (IVH) and Broncho pulmonary dysplasia(BPD) commonly occur in premature infants and they associate with platelet dysfunction. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of MPV and occurrence of IVH and BPD.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this cross sectional study, 3 groups including IVH, BPD and control were compared. All participants were preterm neonates with <35 weeks of gestation. MPV was recorded during the first 48 hours of life for all cases. Data were reported by descriptive statistics and analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient, spearman correlation coefficient, paired T test and multinomial regression analysis in SPSS version 17.

RESULTS

Higher MPV level was noted in BPD and IVH groups versus control group (9.79±0.73 fl and 10±1.04 fl versus 8.33±0,91 fl p<0.0001). Also, most participants in BPD (93.3%) and IVH (73.3%) groups had MPV >9 fl compared to controls (16.7%) (p<0.0001). Regression analysis showed that only MPV related to the occurrence of IVH (OR=2.200 95%CI p=0.013) and elevated MPV significantly increased duration of O2 therapy (p<0.0001) and mechanical ventilation (p=0.0010).

CONCLUSION

MPV value at first 48 hours of life can be noted as a simple biomarker for occurrence of BPD and specially IVH in preterm infants.

Reliability and validity of the Persian (Farsi) version of the Risk Perception Survey-Diabetes Mellitus

Knowledge of patients' risk perceptions is essential for the management of chronic diseases. This study aimed to assess the reliability and validity of a Persian (Farsi) language translation of the Risk Perception Survey-Diabetes Mellitus. After forward-backward translation the RPS-DM was randomly administered to 106 adult patients with diabetes who were enrolled in a teaching referral clinic in the north of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Rasht). Internal consistency and exploratory factor analysis were applied. The minimum value for internal consistency was 0.50 for risk knowledge and the highest value was 0.88 on the optimistic bias subscale. Principal component analysis showed that the items of the composite risk score matched with the same items in the English language version, except for question numbers 16, 24 and 25. The Persian version of RPS-DM is the first standardized tool for measuring risk perception and knowledge about diabetes complications in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Rationale, methods and first results of the Iranian national programme for prevention of chronic diseases from childhood: CASPIAN Study

The CASPIAN Study aims to implement a school-based surveillance system for prevention of noncommunicable diseases from childhood in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The baseline survey was conducted from November 2003 to May 2004 in 23 provinces among 21,111 school students aged 6-18 years and their parents. The data collected included: birth weight and current anthropometric measurements; dietary and exercise habits; family history of chronic diseases; and knowledge about prevention. Fasting blood sugar and lipid profile were assessed in a subsample of 4811 students.