Iranian Army Research Articles

Musculoskeletal complaints and its economic impact in an Iranian army hospital

AimMusculoskeletal conditions constitute a remarkable portion of disability cases in the military. This study evaluated the distribution and types of musculoskeletal problems and estimated the direct and indirect costs due to these complaints in an Iranian military hospital.MethodsAll medical records of patients with musculoskeletal complaints that were referred to the medical committee of a military hospital, including rheumatology, orthopedics, and neuro-surgical specialists, from 2014 to 2016, were reviewed. Details of each complaint and the final opinion of the medical committees were recorded. The cost of each diagnostic step was calculated based on the recorded data. The treatment costs were estimated for each complaint by calculating the average cost of treatment plans suggested by two specialists, a physical medicine and a rheumatologist. The estimated cost for each part is calculated based on the army insurance low. Indirect costs due to absences, inability to work, and disability were assessed and added to the above-mentioned direct costs. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 21.Results2,116 medical records of the committee were reviewed. 1252 (59.16%) cases were soldiers (who had to spend two years of mandatory duty in the army), and 864 (40.83%) cases were non-soldiers. The three most common complaints were fractures (301 cases, 14.22%), low back pain due to lumbar disc bulges and herniations (303 cases, 14.31%), and genu varus/genu valgus (257 cases, 12.14%). The most affected sites were the lower limbs and vertebral column. According to an official document in these subjects’ records, 4120 person-days absent from work were estimated annually, and nearly $1,172,149 of annual economic impact was calculated.ConclusionMusculoskeletal problems are common in the army, and establishing preventive strategies for these conditions is essential. The conservative and medical approach and the proper education for correct movement and the situation should be mentioned for the reduction of disability and its economic burden on the army’s staff.

Psychometric properties, predictive utility and diagnostic capacity of the Persian version of the Scale of Resilience to Suicide Attempts in army conscripts.

Suicide among army conscripts represents a poorly understood and complex public health issue that has escalated in recent decades. The early identification of individuals at risk holds the potential to significantly contribute to the effective prevention of suicide attempts. To address this, the Scale of Resilience to Suicide Attempts-18 (SRSA-18) has been developed to assess protective factors related to suicide attempts. The present study aimed to develop a Persian version of SRSA-18 (P-SRSA) and examine its psychometric properties and predictive utility within a sample of the Iranian Army. The initial study sample consisted of 400 male conscripts from the Iranian Army grand forces (M=19.86, SD=1.40). Subsequently, for the follow-up stage, 296 participants (M=19.83, SD=1.39) were recruited. The participants were assessed using various measures of resilience, social support, suicide and hopelessness at baseline and a 6-month follow-up. In contrast to the original version, both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported an 18-item two-factor model of the P-SRSA (root mean square error of approximation=0.076; 95% CI (0.069 to 0.086), comparative fit index=0.943, Tucker-Lewis index=0.936). P-SRSA strongly correlated with convergent/divergent measures and demonstrated satisfactory internal consistency (α=0.82). Furthermore, regression analysis revealed that the P-SRSA significantly predicted suicide reattempts at baseline and during a 6-month follow-up period. The study confirms that the P-SRSA, comprising a two-factor, 18-item solution, is a reliable measure of resilience, displaying robust discriminant and predictive validity. These findings provide substantial support for implementing P-SRSA in samples from the Iranian Army, highlighting its potential to identify suicidal conscripts effectively.

Effectiveness of the Gatekeeper-Based Suicide Prevention Training Package in Improving the Attitude and Enhancing the Knowledge About Suicide Prevention in Iran Army Commanders

Background: In military organizations and units, commanders, as the most influential people on the military conditions of duty-staff personnel, have a significant impact on the mental and physical health of their forces. Therefore, primary mental health training and improving their ability to deal with risky behaviors can guarantee the health of the military forces under their command. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the gatekeeper training program in improving the attitude and enhancing the knowledge about suicide prevention among Iranian army commanders. Methods: This practical research was structured using a quasi-experimental method with the 31-question scale of the attitude toward suicide (ATTS) questionnaire as a pretest and posttest. A sample of 40 commanders in Tehran’s military barracks was appointed by purposeful sampling (20 in the experimental group and 20 in the control group). The experimental group received a gatekeeper-based suicide prevention training package, while the control group received no training. The data obtained from the questionnaires were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test in SPSS software. Results: The present study indicated a considerable impact on knowledge and attitude about suicide in IR army commanders. Furthermore, the difference between the experimental and control groups in suicide prevention knowledge and its fundamental structures was significant, and in the entire population, it was greater than 0.1. Conclusions: The findings indicated that the gatekeeper training package significantly improved attitudes toward suicide and enhanced knowledge about it. Thus, the gatekeeper training package can be used in other active training methods to educate commanders to prevent suicide.

Iran in Motion: Mobility, Space, and the Trans-Iranian Railway

Iran in Motion: Mobility, Space, and the Trans-Iranian Railway

Job requirements and physical demands (JRPD) questionnaire: cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation in Iranian Army personnel with chronic low back pain

BackgroundBiomechanical risk factors have been identified as the main predisposing factor of chronic low back pain (CLBP), especially in Army personnel. The Job Requirements and Physical Demands (JRPD) questionnaire has been developed to assess the biomechanical exposures related to CLBP. Examining the biomechanical risk factors could prevent CLBP. This study aimed to translate and cross-culturally adapt the JRPD into Persian and assess its psychometric properties among Iranian male Army personnel with CLBP.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, the content validation of the JRPD was assessed after translating to Persian. The Persian JRPD was administered to 198 male Army personnel with CLBP, with an interval of 7 days, to assess test-retest reliability, including Cronbach’s α, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), standard error of measurement (SEM), and minimal detectable change at 95% confidence interval (MDC95%). Scores of the Persian JRPD were correlated with the scores of visual analog scale (VAS), Borg’s category-ratio (CR10) scale, general health questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28), and physical functioning (PF1 and PF2) subscale of the 12-item short-form health survey (SF-12) to assess convergent validity using Spearman correlation for a priori hypotheses.ResultsThe Persian JRPD had good content validity evidenced by the higher content validity index (> 0.70). The questionnaire had a significant positive negligible to weak correlation with the VAS (rho = 0.27; p < 0.001), Borg’s CR10 scale (rho = 0.19; p = 0.009), and the total score of GHQ-28 and its domains (rho ≤0.34; p < 0.05); and significant negative weak correlation with PF2 (rho = − 0.27; p < 0.001) and significant negative moderate correlation with PF1 (rho = − 0.35; p < 0.001), thus confirming the priori hypotheses (89%, 8/9). The internal consistency and ICC (α = 0.91; ICC = 0.80) were highly adequate, with SEM and MDC95% of 7.91 and 21.3 respectively.ConclusionsThe JRPD was successfully adapted into Persian and had adequate psychometric properties in terms of content and convergent validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability. The questionnaire is found useable to assess the CLBP-related biomechanical exposures in Iranian male Army personnel.

The attraction of direct action: the making of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps in the Iranian Kurdish conflict

ABSTRACT The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) played a significant role in repressing armed movements that erupted around Iran after the 1979 revolution, but little is known about how this repression campaign shaped the IRGC’s organization and logic of practice. Focusing on the most intensive of these movements, i.e. the Iranian Kurdish conflict at its height in 1979–80, this article argues that the IRGC’s involvement in the conflict ingrained a particular structure and practice within it, in two ways. On the political level, fighting for the state legitimized the IRGC’s existence as an organization independent of the regular army. On an organizational level, learning combat in a low-intensity war allowed the IRGC to adopt a flexible structure based on direct action, which was attractive to both leaders and volunteers as the ‘revolutionary’ method. I argue that post-revolutionary civil conflicts enable alternative paths of institution-building by defying the need for rapid centralization. The article uses novel in-depth interviews with veterans of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and Iranian Army officers, as well as documents collected in Iran, to explore this early phase of the IRGC’s history.

The Mojahedin-e Khalq’s utilization of Karbala’s ethos and the creation of an ex-patriot nationalism

During the Iran-Iraq war the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MeK or MKO) with its own army, the National Liberation Army of Iran (NLAI), fought side by side with Iraq’s leader. The organization, which showed determination, belief in its goals and unity and achieved several successes in the battlefield had a main, but not final, goal which was to cause the exhausted Iranian Army to collapse − so that the NLAI could then conquer Iran and replace the ‘corrupt regime’ of the Ayatollahs. By providing an understanding of how an ethos can be created, this article describes how an oppositional group’s narrative can transport it from its wishful thinking about winning a battle of the few against the many (which was objectively deemed to be impossible) to the bitter, actual result of total defeat. The article shows how the Mojahedin, by unapologetically siding with Saddam, fought against all odds with the sole result being the creation of a mythos-ethos which would replace that of ex-patriot nationalism. The Mojahedin’s defeat would ultimately translate into a new national-religious ethos in which the Imam Hossein’s fight in Karbala would be commemorated as fighting for the ‘real Islam’.

Psychometric Properties of Frailty Syndrome Checklist 5-Items in Frail Older Adults in Iran

Psychometric Properties of Frailty Syndrome Checklist 5-Items in Frail Older Adults in Iran

İran’ın Şii Afgan Göçmenleri Militan Olarak Kullanması: Liva Fatımiyun Örneği

This study analyzes how migrants are militarized through analyzing an Iranian proxy, namely Liwa Fatemiyoun, as a case study. Liwa Fatemiyoun is a proxy group formed from migrants of the Shiite ethnic group of Afghan Hazaras by Iran. Shiite Hazaras immigrated to Iran due to ongoing civil wars in Afghanistan to find a safe haven. Numbering more than two million and crossing the borders illegally, Hazaras were recruited by the Iranian army either voluntarily or for a certain amount of money or by force. They were sent to Syria to protect holy shrines, but most of them found themselves in fronts. By analyzing the proxy group's formation, this study concludes that Iranian regime guards (IRGC) mostly conscript Afghan migrants and refugees to Liwa Fatemiyoun forcibly thereby exploiting their vulnerability and human rights. Besides, by referring to past experiences, the study asserts that Iran may also move the proxy group to Afghanistan if necessary after US troops' withdrawal. This study mainly wielded news, including those in Persian and institutional reports, and made interviews for its analysis. By examining Liwa Fatemiyoun, the study is expected to contribute to ethnoreligious migration literature from a security perspective.

Effects of acupressure at the P6 and LI4 points on the anxiety level of soldiers in the Iranian military

IntroductionMilitary service is a stressful environment. Methods to reduce stress may result in the mental health promotion of military forces. There are various methods for relieving anxiety. Acupressure is one...

ВІЙСЬКОВО-ПОЛІТИЧНІ ОБСТАВИНИ ПЕРЕМОГИ МУСУЛЬМАН У БИТВІ ПРИ АЛЬ-КАЗІМІ У 633 РОЦІ

The Battle of Kazima in 633 marked the beginning of a series of successful victories by General Khalid ibn al-Walid on the west bank of the Euphrates, which opened up opportunities for the Arab Caliphate to defeat the Iranian Sassanid Empire. The battle was a minor and secondary skirmish between Iranian border guards and nomadic robbers. The number of soldiers involved in the battle on both sides was not significant. In fact, the battle of Kazima was a clash between Arab Muslims and non-Muslim Arabs with the support of a small contingent of professional Iranian troops. The Iranian command followed passive and wait-and-see tactics, while the Arab military leader Khalid ibn al-Walid used mobile rapid maneuvering tactics to determine its course. The Iranian army and its allies were forced to fight after a long grueling march through the desert and weakened fighting spirit. At the beginning of the battle, the Arabs managed to trap and kill the Iranian commander Hormuzd, which further worsened the moral and psychological condition of the Arab Confederates allied with the Sassanids and led to their escape from the battlefield. The victory in the battle of Kazima had a largely moral and psychological significance for the Muslims, as it persuaded non-Muslim Arab tribes to join the Arab Caliphate. As a result of the victory at al-Kazimah, Muslims received significant material resources as military booty, which increased the influence of Muslims among the Arab leaders. It is not scientifically appropriate to call the battle of al-Kazimah a "battle of chained or tied" because of the absolute fiction of the plot about a load of iron chains in the convoy of the Iranian army. The fact that soldiers were tied up during combat formation was common in Iranian military practice, but its use was inappropriate in the Battle of Kazima.

FROM FRIENDSHIP TO ENMITY SOVIET-IRANIAN RELATIONS (1945-1965)

FROM FRIENDSHIP TO ENMITY SOVIET-IRANIAN RELATIONS (1945-1965)

Caucasian Albanian Warriors in the Armies of pre-Islamic Iran

Albania, an ancient country in the Caucasus, was turned into a Sasanian province by Šāpūr I (c. 253). The Albanians became increasingly integrated into the battle order of the Iranian army (especially cavalry). All along the Caspian coast the Sasanians built powerful defense works, designed to bar the way to invaders from the north. The most celebrated of these fortifications are those of Darband in Caucasian Albania. Albania remained an integral part of the Sasanian Empire until the Arab conquest of Iran.

The Relation between Dietary Patterns and Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders among Iranian Military Men.

Background:Assessing the relation between dietary habits and functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) is less investigated among military personnel. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the association of certain eating patterns and FGIDs in Iranian army men.Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional study was performed on 600 army personnel working in Kerman ground forces military station number 05, Iran. Participants were asked to define their weekly breakfast consumption, lunch intake time, and chewing efficiency. FGIDs were categorized as four groups including functional dyspepsia (FD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), functional constipation (FC) and functional diarrhea (FDi) diagnosed by Rome Ш criteria. Relation between variables was assessed through crude and multiple stepwise adjusted models.Results:The prevalence of FD, IBS, FC, and FDi in our study was 20%, 32.3%, 3%, and 53.2%, respectively. After adjustment of all potential confounding variables, more weekly breakfast consumption was associated with decreased FDi prevalence (odds ratio [OR]: 0.57, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.38–0.84, P = 0.005). Slowly lunch consumption declined prevalence of IBS (OR: 0.33, 95% CI = 0.13–0.84, P = 0.02). Individuals chewing their meals well had a lower percentage of IBS, FC, and FDi (OR: 0.53, 95% CI = 0.33–0.83, P = 0.006; OR: 0.24, 95% CI = 0.06–0.89, P = 0.03; and OR: 0.52, 95% CI = 0.34–0.79, P = 0.003, respectively).Conclusions:This study suggested that increasing breakfast intake, slowly lunch consumption, and better food chewing could be effective decreasing FGIDs' prevalence and increasing army crews' quality of lives and work efficiency. Further studies required to confirm this relationship and define accurate pathophysiological mechanisms.

Abbas Mirza and Reforms of the Iranian Army in the first Quarter of the 19th Century

Abbas Mirza and Reforms of the Iranian Army in the first Quarter of the 19th Century

Chemical Weapons in the Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988). 3. Medical Consequences of Chemical Warfare

The third article in the series is dedicated to the medical consequences of the chemical warfare between Iran and Iraq during the war (1980–1988). The UN official documents and materials, declassified CIA documents, as well as other open Western and Iranian sources have been used during its preparation. The chemical war against the Islamic Republic of Iran was waged in the conditions of the increased power of chemical weapons, when the Iraqi army had the opportunity to carry out multiple massive chemical aviation strikes at operational depth and to use multiple launch rocket systems for the massive use of toxic substances in the tactical zone. The mortality from sulfur mustard reached 30 % in some sections of the front, that was impossible during the First World War. The unpreparedness of the Iranian army to chemical warfare led to the serious irretrievable losses among the Iranian military during the war (25 thousand people) and to the grave long-term consequences for the health of the survivors (at least 100 thousand people), despite of the relatively small amount of poisonous substances used by Iraq (2.54 thousand tons). As in World War I, sulfur mustard turned out to be the «king of gases» in this war. The Iranian scientists find out that even after the curing of acute lesions in hospitals the pathological process caused by the action of poisonous substances does not stop. It enters the phase of delayed effects, manifested with the age of the patient. There are the irreversible obstructive processes in the lungs («mustard lung»). In 2014 about 45 thousand Iranians suffered from late respiratory complications caused by sulfur mustard. There are the eczemoid dermatitis, vitiligo, psoriasis and discoid lupus erythematosus. There are the delayed ulcerative keratitis and various lesions in the neurological tissues of the eye and in the ocular fundus of the vascular system. There are other pathologies as well. The article contains a large number of photographs, diagrams and images, never published in Russian medical literature before.

Prevalence of Refractive Errors in Army Air Force Soldiers in Isfahan, 2017 - 2018

Background: Refractive errors are a major reason for visual impairments that can occur at any age. One of the most important target populations for refractive errors investigation is the military population. Objectives: The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of refractive errors in Iranian Army Air Force soldiers who presented to Shahid Babaee Hospital of Isfahan. Methods: 500 male military soldiers with the age range of 18 to 29 years (mean age ± standard deviation (STD) 19.9 ± 1.6 years) were recruited in the study. We set the spherical equivalent (SE) based on dry retinoscopy cutoff points of -0.50 diopter (D) for myopia and + 0.50 D for hyperopia. The cylinder error of ≥ 0.75 D was considered as astigmatism. Results: The data of 500 consecutive participants complying with the inclusion/exclusion criteria were analyzed. All the 500 participants were men for whom, the overall prevalence of myopia (SE ≤ -0.50 D), hyperopia (SE ≥ 0.50 D), and astigmatism was 18.8% [95% confidence interval (CI): 15.5 - 22.5], 13.4% (95% CI: 10.5 - 16.7), and 20.8% (95% CI: 17.3 - 24.6), respectively. With-the-rule (WTR) and simple astigmatism were found to be more frequent. Conclusions: The results indicated that the prevalence of refractive errors in Iranian Army Air Force soldiers is significantly high despite the prior screening. Due to their visual activities during the military period, accurate optometric and ophthalmic examinations would be helpful.

AZERBAIJAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENT IN SOUTHERN AZAERBAJIAN AND TURKISH PUBLIC OPINION

İkinci Dünya Savaşı yıllarında İran'da Güney&#x0D; Azerbaycan’da Seyyid Cafer Pişevari başkanlığında “Azerbaycan Millî Hükümeti”&#x0D; kurulmuştur. Bu hükümetin kuruluşunu hazırlayan en önemli gelişme İran&#x0D; üzerindeki Alman-İngiliz mücadelesidir. Zira İngilizler Alman taraftarı olan&#x0D; Rıza Şah Pehlevi'yi görevden almak amacıyla Ağustos 1941'de İran'a girmişler ve&#x0D; oğul Muhammed Rıza'yı tahta oturtmuşlardır. Bunu fırsat bilen Ruslar da&#x0D; kuzeyden İran topraklarına dahil olarak 11 Eylül 1941 tarihinde Tebriz’i işgal&#x0D; etmişlerdir. Bu arada Cafer Pişevari liderliğindeki Azerbaycan Demokrat Partisi&#x0D; devreye girmiştir. Rusya'nın korumasında yapılan seçimler neticesinde 12 Aralık&#x0D; 1945 tarihinde Azerbaycan Milli Hükümeti kurulmuştur. Fakat yaklaşık bir yıl&#x0D; sonra İran ordusundan evvel vatanseverler denilen milis birlikler 12 Aralık&#x0D; tarihinde Tebriz'e girmiş ve katliam yapmışlardır. Bu bildirinin amacı&#x0D; Azerbaycan Milli Hükümeti'nin ortaya çıkış süreci ve faaliyetlerini Türk basını&#x0D; çerçevesinde ele almaktır. Bu siyasi oluşuma Türk kamu oyununun yaklaşımını&#x0D; somut verilerle net bir şekilde tespit etmektir. İlaveten konu ile ilgili diğer&#x0D; kaynaklardan da yararlanılacaktır.

Spatial modeling of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Iranian army units during 2014-2017 using a hierarchical Bayesian method and the spatial scan statistic.

OBJECTIVESThis study aimed to map the incidence of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in Iranian army units (IAUs) and to identify possible spatial clusters.METHODSThis ecological study investigated incident cases of CL between 2014 and 2017. CL data were extracted from the CL registry maintained by the deputy of health of AJA University of Medical Sciences. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) of CL was computed with a Besag, York, and Mollié model. The purely spatial scan statistic was employed to detect the most likely high-and low-rate clusters and to obtain the observed-to-expected (O/E) ratio for each detected cluster. The statistical significance of the clusters was assessed using the log likelihood ratio (LLR) test and Monte Carlo hypothesis testing.RESULTSA total of 1,144 new CL cases occurred in IAUs from 2014 to 2017, with an incidence rate of 260 per 100,000. Isfahan and Khuzestan Provinces were found to have more CL cases than expected in all studied years (SIR>1), while Kermanshah, Kerman, and Fars Provinces were observed to have been high-risk areas in only some years of the study period. The most significant CL cluster was in Kermanshah Province (O/E, 67.88; LLR, 1,200.62; p<0.001), followed by clusters in Isfahan Province (O/E, 6.02; LLR, 513.24; p<0.001) and Khuzestan Province (O/E, 2.35; LLR, 73.71; p<0.001), while low-rate clusters were located in the northeast areas, including Razavi Khorasan, North Khorasan, Semnan, and Golestan Provinces (O/E, 0.03; LLR, 95.11; p<0.001).CONCLUSIONSThis study identified high-risk areas for CL. These findings have public health implications and should be considered when planning control interventions among IAUs.

The Effect of Cognitive Inhibition Training on the Reduction of Attention-deficit/ Hyperactivity Symptoms and the Improvement of Planning Performance

Background and aims: The deficit in inhibition has been recognized as a central deficit in ADHD. the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of cognitive inhibition training on the reduction of attention-deficit and hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms and the improvement of planning performance.Methods: Using cluster sampling, 42 children (8 to 11 years old) of the Iranian army personnel were selected from 3 boys’ primarily schools. The diagnosis of students with ADHD was done using Conner’s Teachers Rating Scale and the clinical psychologist’s assessment. The participants were randomly placed into two groups: experimental group (n=27) and control group (n=15). All participants were assessed in terms of IQ before the intervention. Both of the groups were assessed by The Child Symptom Inventory-4 and Tower of London test before and after the intervention.Results: The results indicated that cognitive inhibition training resulted in the reduced attention-deficit symptoms and the improved planning performance (P&lt;0.05); however, there was not a significant difference between the two groups in terms of Hyperactivity/Impulsivity.Conclusion: This study imply that cognitive inhibition training is effective in reducing attention deficit symptoms and improving planning performance to a great extent.