Showing 8 results for Socioeconomic Status
Ali Akbar Abdollahi, Mostafa Qorbani, Hamid Asayesh, Aziz Rezapour, Mehdi Noroozi, Mohammad Ali Soleimani, Hossain Ansari,
Volume 27, Issue 2 (5-2013)
Abstract
Background: Considering the physical, emotional and psychological complications of early or delayed menopause on women`s life, it is necessary to determine associated factors of menopause age. This study designed to determine menopausal age and associated factors in women of Gorgan, i.e. the capital of Golestan province in the north-east of Iran.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 804 menopausal women in Gorgan were selected via two-stage sampling method in 2009. The study included only women who had undergone natural menopause and had their last menstrual bleeding at least one year before. Data were gathered through structured questionnaire that included individual characteristics, socioeconomic characteristics, menstrual and fertility characteristics and climacteric complaints. Socioeconomic status was defined using principal component analysis. Data were analyzed with T-student’s and ANOVA tests using SPSS version 16 (SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA) for Windows.
Results: The mean menopause age was 47.6±4.45 years with the median age of 48 years. The mean menopause age in women with first pregnancy before 30 years (47.58±4.47years), without pregnancy (46.26±4.90years) and without delivery (46.30±4.47years) was significantly lower than others (p<0.01). The mean menopause age was lower in single women (46.6±2.80 years), with low income level (47.7±4.39years) and smokers (47.6±4.45years) compared to others but these differences were not statistically significant (p> 0.05). Socioeconomic status was not associated significantly with menopause age (p>0.05).
Conclusion: This study illustrated that menstrual and fertility factors have influence on menopausal age while socioeconomic factors were not effective.
Alireza Ahmadvand, Farshad Farzadfar, Hamid Reza Jamshidi, Naser Mohammadi, Kourosh Holakouie-Naieni,
Volume 29, Issue 1 (1-2015)
Abstract
Background: Statins have been effective medications in lowering serum total cholesterol (TC) concentrations across populations over time. The aim of this study was to estimate national and provincial trends in atorvastatin sales in Iran, to systematically quantify its relationship with socio-economic indicators, and changes in TC level.
Methods : In this retrospective ecological study, conducted in Iran, we examined trends in atorvastatin sales, the wealth index (WI) as a validly-available socio-economic indicator, and TC level between 2004 and 2011. The main outcome variable was mean atorvastatin sold in defined daily dose per 100,000 people per day (DPD). We analyzed the relationship between WI and DPD and between DPD and mean TC across time and space.
Results : At national level, both mean WI and mean DPD showed increasing trend over time, while we observed decreasing trend for TC. Mean WI and DPD in 2011 was nearly 5 and 50 time that of their respective figures in 2004, while the mean TC decreased for nearly 10%. Increases in both WI and DPD had happened in every province, but with different patterns. The maximum and minimum changes in DPD versus WI were seen in Gilan and North Khorasan respectively.
Conclusion : A striking increase occurred in the sales for atorvastatin in Iran from 2004-2012 in most provinces examined. The wealthier a province became, the more sales were seen for atorvastatin. TC optimistically decreased from 2005 to 2011 and its decrease was positively correlated with increasing sales for atorvastatin.
Morteza Abdollahi, Forouzan Salehi, Naser Kalantar, Mohsen Asadilari, Mohammad Reza Khoshfetrat, Marjan Ajami,
Volume 30, Issue 1 (1-2016)
Abstract
Background: The consumption of low quality foods is common in low socioeconomic areas; and according to epidemiological studies, the density of nutrients often proves the quality of diet. This study aimed to compare the density of macronutrients and micronutrients in various parts of Tehran.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study performed from September to December 2007 in all the 22 districts of the municipality of Tehran including 1,807 households. Experienced interviewers completed a 24-hour recall questionnaire. To estimate the nutrient densities, nutrient intake (grams or milligrams) was calculated per 1,000 kcal energy intake. To calculate the density of energy intake, energy intake (kcal) was divided by 100 g of foodstuff. The 22 districts of Tehran were divided into five zones of north, center, east, west and south. ANOVA and Tukey tests were used.
Results: The highest density of protein and fat intake was observed in the north of Tehran, while carbohydrate density was highest in the west, east and south zones, and energy density was highest in the south zone (p<0.05). Calcium and vitamin C had the highest density in the north of Tehran, and vitamin A and riboflavin had the highest density in the north and center of Tehran, and the lowest level in the south of Tehran (p<0.05).
Conclusion: Despite the high density of energy in the south of Tehran, a deficiency of micronutrient intake was obvious, reflecting the importance of the impact of socioeconomic factors.
Parisa Mirmoghtadaee, Ramin Heshmat, Shirin Djalalinia, Nazgol Motamed-Gorji, Mohammad Esmaeil Motlagh, Gelayol Ardalan, Saeid Safiri, Zeinab Ahadi, Gita Shafiee, Hamid Asayesh, Mostafa Qorbani, Omid Yaghini, Roya Kelishadi,
Volume 30, Issue 1 (1-2016)
Abstract
Background: Socioeconomic status (SES) is a major determinant of health inequality in children and adolescents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of SES of family and living region with self-rated health (SRH) and life satisfaction (LS) among children and adolescents.
Methods: This study was a part of the fourth survey of a national surveillance program, which was conducted in 30 provinces of Iran in 2011-2012. LS and SRH were assessed by a questionnaire based on the World Health Organization-Global School-based student Health Survey (WHO-GSHS). Family SES was estimated using principal component analysis (PCA) and based on family assets, parental education and occupation, and type of school. Region SES was calculated using PCA and some variables including literacy rate, family assets and employment rate.
Results: Out of 14,880 invited students, 13,486 (participation rate: 90.6%) completed the survey; of whom, 49.2% were girls, and 75.6% were from urban areas with the mean ± SD age of 12.47±3.36 years. In the multivariate model, SES of family and living region was associated with LS and good SRH. In the full models, in addition to all potential confounders, family and living region SES were included simultaneously. However, only the association of family SES with LS, and good SRH remained statistically significant.
Conclusion: The effect of families’ SES on SRH and LS is more important than regional SES. The presented patterns of SRH and LS may be useful in developing better health policies and conducting complementary studies in this field.
Ramin Heshmat, Forouzan Salehi, Mostafa Qorbani, Mahsa Rostami, Gita Shafiee, Zeinab Ahadi, Shayesteh Khosravi, Vahab Rezvani, Farzaneh Sadeghi Ghotbabadi, Maryam Ghaderpanahi, Zahra Abdollahi,
Volume 30, Issue 1 (1-2016)
Abstract
Background: Improper nutritional knowledge is one of the most important causes of nutritional problems, which can affect practice and cause more complications. The aim of this study was to assess the association between nutritional knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of Iranian households with socioeconomic status (SES).
Methods: The study population was 14,136 households (57 clusters of 8 individuals in each province) who lived in urban and rural regions of 31 provinces of Iran. The sample size of the study was selected using multi-stage cluster sampling technique. A structured questionnaire and interview with the qualified person in each family was used to collect data. The questionnaire included demographic, SES and nutritional KAP questions. Using principle component analysis, some variables including household assets, occupation and education level of the heads of the families and respondents and the number of family members were used to construct family SES. The SES was categorized as good, moderate and weak. Pearson’s Chi-square test was used to analyze categorical variables.
Results: The percentage of knowledge about growing up, acquiring energy and being healthy as reasons for eating food was 24.1%, 44.8% and 54.7%, respectively. Only 69.7%, 60.5% and 52.5% of the participants had knowledge of identification of meat and legumes, grain and dairy group, respectively. More than 97% of the participants had a favorable attitude toward importance of nutrition in health. The nutritional knowledge linearly increased with increasing SES. Families with good SES significantly consumed more fruit, vegetable, dairy group, red meat, chicken and poultry, fish and egg while sugar consumption was significantly higher in families with weak SES (p<0.05).
Conclusion: SES can influence the rate of nutritional KAP. Some policies should be considered to increase nutritional KAP especially in lower SES group in the society.
Masoud Nakhzari-Moghaddam, Parvin Yavari, Alireza Abadi, Narges Rostami-Gooran,
Volume 33, Issue 1 (2-2019)
Abstract
Background: Under-5 mortality is an important health indicator of a country’s development and every country is committed to decrease it. Children under-5 years are vulnerable to the imbalance of socioeconomic inequality and are dependent on the adults to remain healthy. The aim of this study was to determine the association of socioeconomic factors with under-5 mortality in Zabol.
Methods: This descriptive cross sectional study was performed on 2001 children younger than 5 years who were under the coverage of Zabol University of Medical Sciences between 2011 and 2015. The data were collected using standard questionnaires on mortality of infant and children 1-59 months old, questionnaires determining socioeconomic condition, and health center data files. The analyses were performed using SPSS software version 21, and significance level was set at 0.05 for all tests.
Results: The most common causes of death under 5 years of age included immaturity, congenital defects, and respiratory diseases. In the logistic regression model, father's addiction, maternal literacy, socioeconomic level, and household family size were significantly associated with under-5 mortality (P<0.05). Moreover, there was a correlation between a congenital defect in the Zahak region and immaturity in the Hamun region with under-5 mortality.
Conclusion: Low socioeconomic status, parental addiction, and low education level were the most probable risk factors for under 5 mortality.
Homayoun Sadeghi-Bazargani, Hamid Soori, Seyed Abbas Motevalian, Omid Aboubakri, Ali Jafari-Khounigh, Alireza Razzaghi, Hamid Reza Khankeh, Seyyed Taghi Heydari, Forouzan Rezapur Shahkolai, Mojtaba Sehat, Davoud Khorasani Zavareh, Mohammad Asghari-Jafarabadi, Ali Imani, Mohammad Bagher Alizadeh Aghdam, Hossein Poustchi, Mahdi Rezaei, Mina Golestani,
Volume 38, Issue 1 (1-2024)
Abstract
Background: Measuring socioeconomic status (SES) as an independent variable is challenging, especially in epidemiological and social studies. This issue is more critical in large-scale studies on the national level. The present study aimed to extensively evaluate the validity and reliability of the Iranian SES questionnaire.
Methods: This psychometric, cross-sectional study was conducted on 3000 households, selected via random cluster sampling from various areas in East Azerbaijan province and Tehran, Iran. Moreover, 250 students from Tabriz University of Medical Sciences were selected as interviewers to collect data from 40 districts in Iran. The construct validity and internal consistency of the SES questionnaire were assessed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses and the Cronbach's alpha. Data analysis was performed in SPSS and AMOS.
Results: The complete Iranian version of the SES questionnaire consists of 5 factors. The Cronbach's alpha was calculated to be 0.79, 0.94, 0.66, 0.69, and 0.48 for the occupation, self-evaluation of economic capacity, house and furniture, wealth, and health expenditure, respectively. In addition, the confirmatory factor analysis results indicated the data's compatibility with the 5-factor model (comparative fit index = 0.96; goodness of fit index = 0.95; incremental fit index = 0.96; root mean square error of approximation = 0.05).
Conclusion: According to the results, the confirmed validity and reliability of the tool indicated that the Iranian version of the SES questionnaire could be utilized with the same structure on an extensive level and could be applicable for measuring the SES in a broader range of populations.
Bakhtiar Piroozi, Banaz Adnan Saeed, Azad Shokri, Hossein Safari, Farhad Moradpour, Mehdi Zokaei, Kaveh Qaderi Bagajan, Amjad Mohamadi-Bolbanabad, Yadolah Zarezadeh,
Volume 39, Issue 1 (1-2025)
Abstract
Background: Mental disorders are prevalent among individuals with disabilities, often exacerbated by socioeconomic factors. This study aims to examine the prevalence of mental disorders among people with disabilities in Iran, addressing a significant yet under-researched issue within this population.
Methods: Conducted in 2023, this cross-sectional study focused on adults with physical and sensory disabilities (sight, hearing, speech) in Sanandaj city. A total of 613 individuals participated, selected through simple random sampling. Data were gathered utilizing the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28). Multivariate logistic regression identified significant predictors of mental disorder suspicion, while the concentration index (C) and concentration curve (CC) measured prevalence inequality. Data analysis was conducted using STATA software version 16.0.
Results: The prevalence of mental disorder suspicion was 56.7% (344 individuals), with severity categorized as 29.7% mild, 16.6% moderate, and 10.4% severe. Significant predictors for increased odds of mental disorder symptoms included being female (AOR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.05-2.29), under 30 years old (AOR: 3.46; 95% CI: 1.55-5.76), unemployed (AOR: 4.10; 95% CI: 2.74-6.14), lacking supplementary insurance (AOR: 2.78; 95% CI: 1.49-5.20), and belonging to the poorest economic class (AOR: 4.23; 95% CI: 2.34-7.62). The suspicion of mental disorders was unevenly distributed and concentrated among individuals with lower economic status (C = -0.395).
Conclusion: This study highlights significant mental health disparities among individuals with disabilities, particularly in economically disadvantaged groups. Health policies should focus on prevention and access to mental health services, such as community-based programs, healthcare provider training, and financial assistance, alongside efforts to improve employment opportunities for this population.
