Background & Objectives: Cerebrovascular diseases are the most common disabiling neurologic disorders and the third cause of death in the population over 45 years of age. Most of the strokes in adults are ischemic and almost one-fifth of them are due to intra- or extracranial internal carotid artery stenosis. Ultrasonography is a noninvasive, cost-effective and safe technique for evaluation of intra or extracranial vessels that is available in two methods: TCD and carotid Duplex. The present research is an attempt to investigate the appropriatens and comprehensiveness of TCD in diagnosing symptomatic significant carotid stenosis.

  Methods : This descriptive-analytical study was conducted on fifty patients admitted to the neurology ward of Imam Hospital who underwent both carotid duplex and TCD examination. Variables of blood flow velocities, collateral flow evidences and degree of carotid stenosis were assessed with both methods. The data were analyzed by SPSS (ver.11.5) using T.test, Chi-square and Fisher test.

  Results : 34 patieuts were. Male mean age of the patients was 66.70% of the subjects were above 65 and 68% of them had a history of hypertension. No statistically significant difference was seen between systolic and diatolic blood flow velocity in internal carotid artery and pulsatile index obtnined from reported by TCD and carotid Duplex. There was no statistically significant difference between the percentage of stenosis TCD finding of the patients with carotid stenosis showed collateral flow in 78.57% of the cases.

  Conclusion: Acceptable correlation of the flow velocity parameters and the percentage of carotid stenosis between TCD and Carotid Duplex results showed that the primary performance of TCD to diagnose significant carotid stenosis (that causes hemodynamic disorder) and screen ischemic cerebrovascular accident is a reliable and effective method, but for precise determination of stenosis, plaque typing and for diagnosing stenisis below 50% the performance of carotid duplex study is also necessary and to complemantory TCD.

 Background & Objectives: Pain acts as a defensive mechanism of body, which occurs following tissue damage. It is expected in surgical wounds. With regard to negative clinical outcomes resulting from surgery pain, this study was conducted to investigate the quality of pain control after appendectomy.

 Methods: In this descriptive, cross- sectional and prospective study, 200 patients undergoing appendectomy were randomly selected. Pain control in all of the patients was managed for 8 hours using narcotics injected intramuscularly. The patients were studied during 12 hours after surgery. The rating scale of 0-10 grade was used to estimate pain severity. The collected data were analysed by SPSS.

 Results: From 200 patients experiencing appendectomy, 101 (50.5%) were female and 99 (49.5%) were male. Pain was controlled with pethidine, methadon and pentazocin in 123 (61.5%), 51 (25.5%) and 26 (13%) patients, respectively. In 98 (49%) patients there was severe pain following the surgery. The most severe pain belonged to 21 (80.7%) patients who received pentazocin.

 Conclusions: With regard to multiple complications and problems resulting from pain after appendectomy, careful control of pain and more attention is necessary.

  Background & Objectives: With respect to the importance of diabetes mellitus prevalence and contradictory role of treatment with metformin on vitamin B12 and folic acid serum levels and this study was done in order to determine of Vitamin B12 and folic acid serum level in patients with diabetes mellitus under treatment with metformin. This research was performed in diabetes center of Kashan in 2004.

  Methods: Information about research method, target and conclusions were given to patients. Those who were under treatment with anti acids, and chemotherapy drugs and also those who were alcoholic and had gastrointestinal diseases and hepatic diseases were excluded among all samples of this research, then patients were divided in to 2 groups: The first group were under treatment with metformin, second group were with other drugs for diabetes treatment. All of people were under treatment for at least 6 months folic acid, vitamin B12 serum level of them were checked after 14 hours fasting and the findings were studied with SPSS software and X2 tests, T test fisher exact test.

  Results: there were 145 (84.31%) female and 27 male (15.69%) between 172 patients. Average age of patients was 52.1±12.7 years. Duration of disease was 5.42±9.1 and average Body Mass Index was 27.7±4.7 kg/m2. Folic acid average was 9.2±5.1 (ng/dl) in patients who consumed metformin and was 8.7±4.6 (ng/dl) in patients without consuming of metformin that did not show significant difference (p=0.557). B12 vitamin average was 5.43±342.54 (pg/dl) in patients under treatment with metformin and was 516±32.16 (pg/dl) in patients without consuming metformin in statistical findings between these 2 groups was not significant. (p=0.639). Significant correlation was observed between age of patients whom were studied and serum folic acid level of them. (p=0.07), But did not show significant correlation between age with serum B12 level (p=0.095). There was no significant correlation between age, length of disease, body mass index and level of B12 and folic acid.

  Conclusion: Correlation between reduction serum level of B12 and folic acid with consuming of metformin was not found. Difference between results of this study with other studies is likely because of more use of routine vitamin supplement that is consumed by patients without physician’s recommending, genetic differences or drugs composition.

  Background & Objectives: Malassizia furfur (pityrosporum ovale/orbicular) and other related species are ethologic agents of tinea versicolor and pityrosporosis in normal individuals but fungal infections due these yeasts are a major cause of mortality in immunocompromised and cancer patients. Catheter-related fungemia or foliculitis is most common mycoses in immunocompromised cases, but malassezia Spp., has been frequently implicated as the causative agent of peritonitis, septic arthritis, mastitis, and sinusitis and variety ocular infections. In this study we surveyed Pityrosporom ovale in dandruff of patients with leukemia underlying chemotherapy.

  Methods: Over a one year period, 100 scale samples were obtained from 50 patients with leukemia underlying chemotherapy. All samples were stained using Metilin Blue method. In direct microscopic examination, seeing budding yeast cells with certain numbers, (bottle bacillus) on epithelial cells were reported positive sample.

  Results: Pityrosporosis were dtected in %78 patient with Leukemia. Most of patients were range of 21-30 years old (27%), that suffering from increased scale.

  Conclusion: Malassezia fur fur is one of more common noncandidal yeasts causing a variety of fungal infection. This organism is a lipophilic yeast that colonizes superficially in human skin and causes superficial mycoses such as tinea versicolor, rarely catheter– related sepsis, foliculitis and other systemic mycoses. Most reported cases of systemic mycoses due to this yeast have been in neonates or adults with malignancy or immunocompromised patients, who were receiving parenteral lipids via a central vascular catheter, undergo chemotherapy and BMT. As pityrosporosis were positive in over than 82% of studied patients, suggested that for prevention of serious fungal infections and mortality in immunocompromissed patients, it must be considered a suitable anti fungal protocol for these cases such as using shampoo or other drugs containing antifungal agents for treatment of patient underlying chemotherapy.

  Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system with multifocal areas of demyelination. Genetic and environmental factors could be involved in etiology of disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate important risk factors for MS progression in patients admitted in Alavi hospital, Ardabil.

  Methods : The present research is an analytical, case-control study in groups with or without MS with same age and sex (80 subjects in each group). A self-made questionary including demographic characteristics and risk factors used as a data compilation instrument which validity reliability were confirmed by content and α-Coronbach tests respectively. Data were analyzed by SPSS software using descriptive and inferential statistics.

  Results: Factors such bachelorship (p=0.037), accidental head and back traumas (p=0.003), smoking (p=0.035), smoke exposures (p= 0.0001), meat regimen (p=0.0001), contact with birds (p=0.032), inadequate sunlight exposure (p=0.034), occupational pollution (p=0.002), menarche age (p=0.016), family history (p=0.029), being third born in family (p=0.034), were found as significant risk factors for multiple sclerosis.

  Conclusion : The present study demonstrates that factors such as smoke, trauma, environmental pollution, touching birds and family history of MS are important risk factors for onset of multiple sclerosis.