To identify the frequency and associated factors of persistent diarrhoea in a paediatric hospital in Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran, children admitted with acute diarrhoea were followed prospectively until resolution of the episode. Persistent diarrhoea developed in 19.6% of the 424 diarrhoea cases. Children with persistent diarrhoea were significantly younger than those with acute diarrhoea (15.3 versus 29.4 months). Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli was the most prevalent pathogen in both groups, but otherwise the profile of symptoms and isolated organisms was similar in the 2 groups. History of dietary change prior to admission and use of antibiotics and anticholinergic drugs in the acute phase were significantly higher in the persistent than acute diarrhoea cases.

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One of the most common types of cancer is head and neck cancer. Head and neck cancers are the sixth most common cancer worldwide and the most common cancer in developing countries. Oral cancer, which is a subset of head and neck cancers, refers to any cancerous growth in the oral cavity. Risk factors for oral cancer include age, malnutrition, genetic factors, family history, X-rays, papilloma virus, alcohol, smoking, tobacco, which three last are the strongest risk factors. The destructive link between tobacco products and human cancers stems from a powerful combination of two factors - nicotine and carcinogens. The highest incidence of tobacco related oral cancer is seen in low and middle income countries. The chance of curing oral cancers increases if they are diagnosed and treated early. At least three-quarters of all oral cancers can be prevented by quitting smoking and drinking alcohol. Screening programs can be valuable in patients from high-risk groups (smokers and alcoholics) or in patients with a previous diagnosis of cancer outside the head and neck.

In recent years several interspecific hybrids have been reported in the plant pathogenic oomycete genus Phytophthora. Due to the large genotypic and phenotypic changes, these hybrids might have broader or more limited host ranges compared with their parental species. It is crucial to understand the host range of Phytophthora hybrids to minimize the economic losses caused by their infection. The potential host range of four hybrids belonging to Clade 8a of the Phytophthora phylogenetic tree was investigated in this study. Thirty species of herbaceous plants as well as eight species of woody plants were inoculated and monitored for any symptom of infection. In addition, the detached twigs of 32 tree species, fruits of six plant species, tubers of potato, and roots of carrot and sugar beet were investigated for susceptibility to these hybrids. Almost all hybrids caused severe rot on all tested fruits, tubers, and roots, although different isolates showed different pathogenicity on detached tree twigs. All hybrids tested had a different host range compared with their parental species: they were able to infect plants outside the host range of their parents, infect hosts of both parental species, although these parents did not have overlapping hosts, or, in some cases, they were not able to infect hosts infected by the parents.

Background. High blood pressure in adults is directly correlated with increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. Hypertension in childhood and adolescence could be considered among the major causes of this problem in adults. This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with hypertension among the adolescents of Jahrom city in Iran and also standard percentiles of blood pressure were estimated for this group. Methods. In this community-based cross-sectional study 983 high school students from different areas of the city were included using a multistage random cluster sampling method in 2014. Blood pressure, weight, and height of each student measured using standard methods. Data were analyzed by statistical software SPSS 16. Results. In total, 498 male and 454 female students were included in this study. Average systolic blood pressure of students was 110.27 mmHg with a variation range of 80.6–151.3. Average diastolic blood pressure was 71.76 mmHg with the variation range of 49.3–105. Results of this study indicated that there was a significant relationship between gender, body mass index, and parental education level with systolic and diastolic blood pressure of the students (P < 0.05). Conclusions. Body mass index was one of the most important changeable factors associated with blood pressure in adolescents. Paying attention to this factor in adolescence could be effective in prevention of cardiovascular diseases in adulthood.