@article {96174, title = {A Systematic Review of the Arthropod-Borne Rickettsial Diseases with a Special Emphasis on Iran}, journal = {Journal of Health Sciences \& Surveillance System}, volume = {9}, year = {2021}, month = {2021}, pages = {208-217}, type = {Review article}, abstract = {

Background: Rickettsialinfections occur worldwide. Rickettsia spp. are mandatory intracellular Gram-negative bacteria that can cause mild to severe disease.

Objectives:Recently, with increasing international travel to high-risk areas, the risk of rickettsia transmission has increased. These infections are also important because of their possible use as bioterrorism agents. In this study, we investigated arthropod-borne rickettsial diseases.

Methods: This systematic review study was performed based on PRISMA guidelines. All Persian and English language articles published until the end of 2019 were extracted during the search in the scientific databases of Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, Science Direct, Google Scholar, Medlib, Irandoc, Magiran, and SID.

Results:\  A total of 62 studies related to the field of arthropod-borne rickettsial diseases between 1940 and 2020 were included in the systematic review. Rickettsiae are related to arthropods which will act as vectors and reservoirs within the bacteria life cycle. To date, ticks (Acari: Ixodidae), lice (Phtiraptera), and fleas (Siphonaptera) have been identified as the main suitable vectors of rickettsiae. Recently, mosquitoes have been suggested as potential vectors for R. felis.

Conclusion: One of the most important rickettsial diseases in Iran has been typhus. Historically, typhus has been one of the main health problems with a financial effect in Iran; be that as it may, there are constrained data on the prevalence of typhus within the past centuries. In Iran, there were both epidemic and endemic typhus. Health care officials and physicians should always consider the potential risk of typhus outbreaks under certain conditions. Natural disasters, famines, and overcrowded camps increase the risk of transmission of these infectious diseases

}, keywords = {arthropods, Communicable diseases, Iran, Rickettsia Infections}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.30476/jhsss.2020.88770.1154}, url = {https://jhsss.sums.ac.ir/article_47889.html}, author = {Aboozar Soltani and Fatemeh Borouji and Sanam Abdollahi and Arefe-sadat Pourtabatabaei} } @article {96173, title = {A comprehensive entomological survey and evaluation of the efficacy of different therapies on a suspected delusional parasitosis case}, journal = {Brain Behavior}, volume = {11}, year = {2020}, month = {Jan 2021}, pages = {13 pp}, type = {Open Access}, abstract = {

Objective: Delusional parasitosis (DP) is one type of psychotic disorders. It is a multifactorial disorder with different etiologies. Given that very little attention is paid to entomological survey in these cases, a comprehensive study was designed and performed for the first time in Iran on a suspected DP case and its home from Shiraz during 2018-2019.

Methods: In this study, entomological survey, dermatological studies, and psychological and psychiatric interventions were done respectively on a 40-year-old man who was referred to as a suspected case of DP.

Results: No medical importance arthropods were collected from the patient\&$\#$39;s home. He was not infected with lice and other ectoparasites. Skin samples were negative for scabies, but he was infected with Demodex folliculorum at low level. Psychiatric studies showed that he was a secondary DP case with depression. No effect and partial remission were reported after treatment with risperidone (2-6 mg/d) and olanzapine (5 mg/d), respectively. Therapeutic effects of hypnotism were also not satisfactory.

Conclusions: In Iran, the most important challenges these patients faced with are as follows: the absence of a specific referral center, patients resort to self-treatment or traditional methods, and lack of a certain duration and dosage of antipsychotic for these cases. Comprehensive clinical trials should be done on this rare syndrome at the national level for better understanding the epidemiological profile of DP and finding the best method of treatment for Persian community.

}, keywords = {delusional parasitosis, dermatology, entomological survey, Iran, psychiatric disorder}, issn = {2162-3279, 2162-3279}, doi = {10.1002/brb3.1945}, url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/brb3.1945}, author = {Parisa Soltan-Alinejad and Mozaffar Vahedi and Habibollah Turki and Aboozar Soltani} } @article {96019, title = {Molecular Monitoring of Knockdown Resistance in Head Louse (Phthiraptera: Pediculidae) Populations in Iran}, journal = {Journal of Medical Entomology}, volume = {58}, year = {2021}, month = {Jun-09-2021}, pages = {2321-2329}, abstract = {

Knockdown resistance (kdr) is a common mechanism of insecticide resistance in head lice to the conventionally used pyrethroid pediculosis and can be the result of various amino acid substitutions within the voltage-sensitive sodium channel (VSSC). In this study, 54 sequences from varied specimens were investigated to monitor well-known resistance mutations and probable new mutations. The Pediculus humanus capitis de Geer specimens were collected from 13 provinces in Iran. The specimens were stored in 70\% ethanol until DNA extraction and PCR amplification of ~900-bp fragment of VSSC. The sequences were analyzed using different bioinformatics software for the detection of well-known kdr substitutions and additional mutations potentially associated with kdr resistance in head lice. There were six new and an old (haplotype I) kdr haplotypes within the Iranian head louse population. K794E, F815I, and N818D amino acid substitutions were reported for the first time. The P813H mutation was the most prevalent amino acid substitution in eight provinces. Among 53 sequences, 26 (49\%) were homozygous susceptible, and 27 (51\%) were heterozygotes. Thus, 51\% of the head lice collected in Iran harbored only the P813H allele. The exact test for the Hardy\–Weinberg (H\–W) equilibrium showed that genotype frequencies differed significantly from the expectation in East-Azerbaijan and Tehran provinces. Moreover, these populations had an inbreeding coefficient (Fis) \<0, indicating the excess of heterozygotes. This observation suggests that the populations of head lice from Iran are currently under active selective pressure. For the rest of the populations, H\–W equilibrium and the expectations were significantly in harmony. The results of the current study highlight molecular techniques in the accurate detection of resistance genotypes before their establishment within the head louse population. Accurate detection of resistant genotypes seems to be helpful in decision-making on lice control programs and resistance monitoring and management.

}, issn = {0022-2585, 1938-2928}, doi = {10.1093/jme/tjab101}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/jme/article-abstract/58/6/2321/6295458}, author = {Fereshteh Ghahvechi_Khaligh and Navid Dinparast Djadid and Mostafa Farmani and Zahra Asadi_Saatlou and Samira Firooziyan and Fatemeh Abedi-Astaneh and Fariba Farnoosh and Aioub Sofizadeh and Firoozeh Naseri and Delnia Adib and Mohammad Taheri and Emran Lalehzari and Shabnam Pashaei and Shadiyeh Soltanbeiglou and Aboozar Soltani and Hassan Khooban and Ebrahim Abbasi and Ali-Ashraf Aivazi and Samrand Saeedi and Behrooz Taghilou and Abbas Jafari and Kamal Dashti_Khavidak and Toloza,Ariel Ceferino and Saber Gholizadeh} } @article {95253, title = {Comparative efficacy of three pediculicides to treat head lice infestation in primary school girls: a randomised controlled assessor blind trial in rural Iran}, journal = {BMC Dermatology}, volume = {19}, year = {2019}, month = {09-2019}, pages = {9 pp}, type = {Open Access}, abstract = {

Background: Head lice infestation (Pediculosis) is one of the most important health challenges particularly in primary school-aged children. It is often present among 6\–11-year-old students in various tropical and temperate regions of the world. The aim of this study was to examine epidemiologic indices and comparative analysis of two pyrethroid-based and one non-chemical pediculicide products on head lice treatment of primary school girls in a rural setting of Fars province, south Iran, as part of a randomized controlled assessor blind trial.

Methods: Before treatment, infested students were screened using plastic detection combs to find live head lice. Three independent parallel groups, each with about 25 participants ($\#$77) were eventually twice with a week apart treated with either 1\% permethrin, 0.2\% parasidose (d-phenothrin) or 4\% dimeticone lotion preparations. In each case, a questionnaire form was completed on epidemiologic factors. Data were registered after a fortnight from primary scalp treatment and re-inspection on days 2, 6, 9 and 14. Data analyses were performed using Chi-square test with a P-value \<\ 0.05 being taken as statistically significant.

Results:From 3728 inspected students, 87 (2.33\%) girls were infested with head lice, Pediculus humanus capitis De Geer, 1778. Ten students dropped out pertaining to exclusion criteria. No significant correlation was found between head lice infestation level and hair length, hair style, itching, nationality, age, settlement site and baths; but there was a significant relationship between age and hair style (P\ =\ 0.027). The efficacy values on each of the above re-inspection days from each of the three treatments were 81, 74, 70 and 63\% for permethrin; 83, 92, 100 and 100\% for dimeticone; and 96, 88, 96 and 92\% for d-phenothrin; respectively. A quartile difference in efficacy of permethrin relative to dimeticone on day 14 represented the scale of head lice resistance to permethrin treatment. There were significant statistical differences in case re-inspection days 9 (P\ =\ 0.008) and 14 (P\ =\ 0.003) post treatment. Only two dropout cases, one non-compliant and the other lost before the second-week treatment, from permethrin trial were observed following two applications a week apart.

Conclusions: Dimeticone lotion had the fullest efficacy (100\%) among all treatments. This high cure rate was attributed to the low level of infestation and the extent of patients\’ involvement. Parasidose swiftly ameliorated the infested cases by the second day since initial treatment. Female third grade students were the most infested cohort.

}, keywords = {D-phenothrin, Dimeticone, head lice, Iran, Pediculosis, Topical treatment}, doi = {10.1186/s12895-019-0093-5}, url = {https://bmcdermatol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12895-019-0093-5}, author = {Hadi Kalari and Aboozar Soltani and Kourosh Azizi and Hossein Faramarzi and Mohammad Djaefar Moemenbellah-Fard} }