BACKGROUND Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains a major global health problem. This study aimed to assess the prevalence and risk behaviors for HBV infection among high risk groups in Kohgiloyeh and Boyerahmad province, in Southwest of Iran. METHODS Blood samples were collected from 2009 subjects, between 2009 and 2010 in Kohgiloyeh and Boyerahmad province, in southwest of Iran. Recruite...

ABSTRACT Aim: One of the main diagnostic problems of conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is indiscrimination of low parasitic loads in soil samples. The aim of this study is to determine the genetic diversity and identification of Toxocara spp. from public areas soil inferred by loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 180 soil samples wer...

BACKGROUND The present study was carried out to investigate the accurate status of ovine Theileria infection in sheep from Ahvaz and surrounding region, a tropical area southwest Iran. METHODS A PCR-RFLP method based on 18S ribosomal RNA gene was designed which could detect and differentiate Theileria and Babesia spp. and also differentiate main Theileria species in sheep at the same time. 11...

Sample-size determination is often an important step in planning a statistical study—and it is usually a difficult one. Among the important hurdles to be surpassed, one must obtain an estimate of one or more error variances, and specify an effect size of importance. There is the temptation to take some shortcuts. This paper offers some suggestions for successful and meaningful sample-size deter...

BACKGROUND Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a multifactorial and heterogenic disease. Recently, genome-wide association studies have reported that rs1333040 (C/T) and rs1004638 (A/T) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the 9p21 locus have very strong association with CAD. This study aimed to examine these associations in Southwest of Iran. METHODS Blood samples were collected from 200 C...

Wilson disease is a metabolic disorder with an autosomal recessive genetic pattern and occurs in 1-4 of every 100000 individuals. Inactivation of the ATP7B gene leads to accumulation of the toxic copper to liver and brain causing hepatic and neurological complication. Therefore, most patients suffer from chronic hepatic inflammation and central nervous system disorder. Nowadays, up to 500 mutat...

Toxoplasma gondii is obligate coccidian zoonotic parasite. Felidae family is definitive and wide ranges of warm-blooded vertebrates are intermediate hosts for the parasite. Rodents are measured as an important source of T. gondii infection for the definitive host. Thus, this study aimed to investigate Toxoplasm infection in rodents of Ahvaz district, southwest of Iran. A total of 100 rodents (7...

Sample size calculation formulas for testing equality, noninferiority, superiority, and equivalence based on odds ratio were derived under both parallel and one-arm crossover designs. An example concerning the study of odds ratio between a test compound (treatment) and a standard therapy (control) for prevention of relapse in subjects with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder is presented...

BACKGROUND Previous reviews have focussed on the rationale for employing the stepped wedge design (SWD), the areas of research to which the design has been applied and the general characteristics of the design. However these did not focus on the statistical methods nor addressed the appropriateness of sample size methods used.This was a review of the literature of the statistical methodology us...