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Urethral catheterization is a common procedure performed commonly before some elective surgeries, often without consideration of the pain and negative perception among women. Owing to patient complaints and the fact that catheterization is not always necessary; a descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out from January to March 2012 at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences hospital. One hundred healthy women who were catheterized before undergoing cesarean delivery were interviewed to assess the perception of pain and distress, determining the association between these two factors. This issue has rarely been investigated in previous studies. This study also aimed to evaluate the efficiencies of the Wong-Baker and 0–10 numerical rating scales. The authors results indicate that although the patients did not initially have a good understanding of the pain scales, when they were given additional explanation, a positive correlation between the two scales (p<0.01) was found. Their study further demonstrates that catheterization is a moderately painful (4.68 of 10) procedure, causing distress (4.67 of 10) and discomfort.

Background & Objective: Little is known about the association between dietary protein intake and clinical manifestations in osteoarthritis (OA) patients. We aimed to determine the correlation between dietary protein intake and pain severity, functional status, and body composition indices in patients with knee OA. Materials & Methods:This cross-sectional study was performed on 220 OA patients, staged I to Ⅲon Kellgren and Lawrence scale. Patients were selected randomly via cluster sampling method from the health centers of Tabriz between October 2017 and October 2018. We estimated the participants' protein intakes using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Western Ontario and McMaster Index (WOMAC) was used to measure the functional status. We used the Visual Analogue Scale to measure pain severity. A bioelectric impedance device measured the patients' body composition.Results: Total dietary protein intake was 55.36±24.14 grams per day. Higher dietary total and animal-based protein intakes were associated with lower pain severity. There were reverse correlations between dietary protein intakes (total and animal-based) with the physical disability according to WOMAC total, WOMAC pain, and WOMAC stiffness scores in the subset of patients who didn't meet the 75 percent of recommended dietary allowance. In these patients, higher total, plant-based, and animal-based protein intakes correlated with WOMAC functional scores. Higher total and animal-based protein intakes were associated with higher soft lean and lean body mass in women. Conclusion:Dietary protein intake needs to improve in knee OA patients, and dietary protein intake might be an intermediation objective in these patients.

Background and aims:Iranian Student Center for Evidence Based Medicine (ISCEBM) has been pioneer in using innovative and creative teaching methods to deliver and spread the concepts of evidence Based Practice (EBP). Many studies found peer tutoring as an effective method to train tutees. The aim of this study was to evaluate the experience of students participating in the peer assisted learning workshops of this center on EBP and methodology of research.Methods:ISCEBM held the second series of workshops on Evidence Based Practice and methodology of evidence based research. These workshops were held weekly for two months (June–July 2016) for undergraduate medical sciences students from different fields. The education was based on peer assisted learning using interactive group discussion methods and problem based learning. Tutors were selected from students of ISCEBM who were expert in this field moreover, each session was held under the supervision of a specialist who completed and corrected the speech of student tutors. A checklist containing questions about each trait of workshop using 5-point Likert scale and an open question about their ideas, were shared via web based electronic questionnaire.Results:Thirty participants who regularly participated in the workshops responded to the questionnaire. 46.2% believed peer education to be very effective in training concepts in a more understandable way rather than conventional teaching method. 92.3% found problem based learning very effective or effective. 84.6% believed continuous and weekly courses are more effective than intensive courses in one or two days. And 100% of responders were willing to participate in the next series of workshops. Participants indicated that peer tutoring “increased their self-confidence”, “helped them to comment freely”, “made them glad to see someone who understands them” and “made the lesson more attractive”.Conclusion:Peer tutoring was a successful experience in training students about EBP; however; larger projects involving larger number of participants can indicate the real impact of this method better.