Epidemiology of Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia in Arab Countries: A Systematic Review

Background/Objectives. Contrary to popular belief, the condition of dementia is not an actual discrete disease, but rather a group of symptoms, most notable of which is the disturbance of memory and social ability, often severe enough to impair daily functioning. As a result, it has been a major cause of functional deterioration among varying populations in the world. This study is aimed at reviewing the epidemiology of dementia in Arab countries in terms of its prevalence, distribution, and risk factors. Methods. A systematic literature review was conducted using articles published in PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and other local journals between 1990 and 2018. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 18 studies were concluded to be eligible for the review. Results. Prevalence studies demonstrated that dementia is indeed a prevalent condition in Arab countries, ranging between 1.1% and 2.3% among age groups of 50 years and older, as well as between 13.5% and 18.5% among age groups of 80 years and above. However, these results are not different from those of many other countries in the world. Moreover, prevalence was found to vary depending on sociodemographic characteristics. Major risk factors of dementia included hypertension, low income, and low education, while the risk of developing dementia is increased by obesity, diabetes mellitus, and cardiovascular risk factors. Despite the growing evidence regarding the epidemiological distribution and determinants of dementia worldwide, studies from the Arab region remain scarce. Conclusion. This systematic review highlights the need for population-based studies to provide necessary information for developing preventive and curative strategies specific to the Arab region.

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ADHD Research in Arab Countries: A Systematic Review of Literature

Journal of Attention Disorders ◽

10.1177/1087054715623047 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 23 (13) ◽

pp. 1531-1545

Author(s):

Jamal M. Alkhateeb ◽

Muna S. Alhadidi

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Systematic Reviews ◽

Literature Search ◽

Arab Countries ◽

Social Aspects ◽

Review Of Literature ◽

Prevalence Studies ◽

Education Resources ◽

Information Center

Objective: No systematic reviews could be identified in the literature that address ADHD research in Arab countries. In an attempt to help fill this gap, this systematic review was undertaken. Method: An electronic literature search of ADHD studies carried out in Arab countries was done by using Google Scholar, PsycINFO, PubMed, Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), and Arabpsynet. Results: The search yielded 58 studies (10 studies on psychoeducational and social aspects of ADHD, 26 prevalence studies and two reviews of epidemiology of ADHD, and 22 studies on risk factors and comorbidities in ADHD). Conclusion: Although there has been an increase in ADHD research in Arab countries in recent years, this research remains relatively sparse and used methods and procedures that limit the generalizability of the findings.

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The prevalence of diabetes in Afghanistan: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-021-10993-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Sohail Akhtar ◽

Jamal Abdul Nasir ◽

Amara Javed ◽

Mariyam Saleem ◽

Sundas Sajjad ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Population Based ◽

Included Study ◽

Cochrane Library ◽

Or Education ◽

Meta Regression

Abstract Background The aim of this paper is to investigate the prevalence of diabetes and its associated risk factors in Afghanistan through a systematic review and meta–analysis. Methods A comprehensive literature search was conducted using EMBASE, PubMed, Web of Sciences, Google Scholar and the Cochrane library, carried out from inception to April 312,020, without language restriction. Meta–analysis was performed using DerSimonian and Laird random-effects models with inverse variance weighting. The existence of publication bias was initially assessed by visual inspection of a funnel plot and then tested by the Egger regression test. Subgroup analyses and meta-regression were used to explore potential sources of heterogeneity. This systematic review was reported by following the PRISMA guidelines and the methodological quality of each included study was evaluated using the STROBE guidelines. Results Out of 64 potentially relevant studies, only 06 studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were considered for meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of diabetes in the general population based on population-based studies were 12.13% (95% CI: 8.86–16.24%), based on a pooled sample of 7071 individuals. Results of univariate meta-regression analysis revealed that the prevalence of diabetes increased with mean age, hypertension and obesity. There was no significant association between sex (male vs female), smoking, the methodological quality of included articles or education (illiterate vs literate) and the prevalence of diabetes. Conclusions This meta-analysis reports the 12.13% prevalence of diabetes in Afghanistan,with the highest prevalence in Kandahar and the lowest in Balkh province. The main risk factors include increasing age, obesity and hypertension. Community-based care and preventive training programmes are recommended. Trial registration This review was registered on PROSPERO (registration number CRD42020172624).

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A population-based exposure assessment of risk factors associated with gastrointestinal pathogens: a Campylobacter study

Epidemiology and Infection ◽

10.1017/s0950268812001641 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 141 (5) ◽

pp. 976-986 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

L. A. MacRITCHIE ◽

C. J. HUNTER ◽

N. J. C. STRACHAN

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Population Density ◽

Exposure Assessment ◽

Disease Incidence ◽

Univariate Analysis ◽

Age Groups ◽

Multivariate Logistic Regression Analysis ◽

Environmental Water ◽

Population Based ◽

Elevated Exposure

SUMMARYA questionnaire survey was undertaken to determine the exposure of a study population to campylobacteriosis source risk factors (environmental, water, food) and results were stratified by age, population density and deprivation. Data were gathered using an exposure assessment carried out by telephone in the Grampian region of Scotland. Univariate analysis showed that children aged 5–14 years, living in low population density (0–44·4 persons/km2) and affluent areas had elevated exposure to environmental and water risk factors. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that younger age groups and lower population density were significant indicators for most environmental risk factors. The results compared to reported disease incidence in Grampian showed that greater exposure to risk factors does not necessarily coincide with greater disease incidence for age groups, particularly for the 0–4 years age group. Further research is required to explain the relationship between exposure and disease incidence.

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The Comparison of Susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 Infection between Pediatric and Adults

International Journal of Medical Laboratory ◽

10.18502/ijml.v8i4.8083 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Milad Zandi ◽

Saber Soltani ◽

Mona Fani ◽

Haniye Shafipour ◽

Samaneh Abbasi

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Risk Factors ◽

Mortality Rate ◽

Age Groups ◽

Severe Illness ◽

Converting Enzyme ◽

Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 ◽

The World ◽

Smoking Susceptibility ◽

The Relationship

SARS-CoV-2 causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and is responsible for the recent pandemic in the world. It has been recently recognized as a challenge for public health and a significant cause of severe illness in all age groups. Young children and older people are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, children usually present mild symptoms compared to adult patients. The relationship between age, severity, and COVID-19 transmission is compared to determine whether there is any reasonable relationship between age and COVID-19. It should be mentioned that some risk factors may increase the probability of developing severe COVID-19 by advancing age, such as pathophysiological changes in the respiratory system, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 expression in the nasopharynx, and smoking. Susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection is independent of age, but the mortality rate of COVID-19 depends on age.

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Age-Related Risk Factors and Complications of Patients With COVID-19: A Population-Based Retrospective Study

Frontiers in Medicine ◽

10.3389/fmed.2021.757459 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Han Zhang ◽

Yingying Wu ◽

Yuqing He ◽

Xingyuan Liu ◽

Mingqian Liu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Retrospective Study ◽

Age Groups ◽

Clinical Manifestations ◽

Population Based ◽

Male Gender ◽

Poor Correlation ◽

Age Related ◽

Related Risk ◽

Independent Risk Factors

Objective: To study the differences in clinical characteristics, risk factors, and complications across age-groups among the inpatients with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).Methods: In this population-based retrospective study, we included all the positive hospitalized patients with COVID-19 at Wuhan City from December 29, 2019 to April 15, 2020, during the first pandemic wave. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to explore the risk factors for death from COVID-19. Canonical correlation analysis (CCA) was performed to study the associations between comorbidities and complications.Results: There are 36,358 patients in the final cohort, of whom 2,492 (6.85%) died. Greater age (odds ration [OR] = 1.061 [95% CI 1.057–1.065], p < 0.001), male gender (OR = 1.726 [95% CI 1.582–1.885], p < 0.001), alcohol consumption (OR = 1.558 [95% CI 1.355–1.786], p < 0.001), smoking (OR = 1.326 [95% CI 1.055–1.652], p = 0.014), hypertension (OR = 1.175 [95% CI 1.067–1.293], p = 0.001), diabetes (OR = 1.258 [95% CI 1.118–1.413], p < 0.001), cancer (OR = 1.86 [95% CI 1.507–2.279], p < 0.001), chronic kidney disease (CKD) (OR = 1.745 [95% CI 1.427–2.12], p < 0.001), and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) (OR = 1.96 [95% CI 1.323–2.846], p = 0.001) were independent risk factors for death from COVID-19. Patients aged 40–80 years make up the majority of the whole patients, and them had similar risk factors with the whole patients. For patients aged <40 years, only cancer (OR = 17.112 [95% CI 6.264–39.73], p < 0.001) and ICH (OR = 31.538 [95% CI 5.213–158.787], p < 0.001) were significantly associated with higher odds of death. For patients aged >80 years, only age (OR = 1.033 [95% CI 1.008–1.059], p = 0.01) and male gender (OR = 1.585 [95% CI 1.301–1.933], p < 0.001) were associated with higher odds of death. The incidence of most complications increases with age, but arrhythmias, gastrointestinal bleeding, and sepsis were more common in younger deceased patients with COVID-19, with only arrhythmia reaching statistical difference (p = 0.039). We found a relatively poor correlation between preexisting risk factors and complications.Conclusions: Coronavirus disease 2019 are disproportionally affected by age for its clinical manifestations, risk factors, complications, and outcomes. Prior complications have little effect on the incidence of extrapulmonary complications.

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Prevalence of Transfusion Transmissible Infections in Beta-Thalassemia Major Patients of Pakistan: A Systematic Review

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2020-138911 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 136 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 23-25

Author(s):

Hamid Ehsan ◽

Ahsan Wahab ◽

Muhammad Ammar Shafqat ◽

Muhammad Salman Faisal ◽

Ahmad Muneeb ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

General Population ◽

Blood Transfusion ◽

Low Income ◽

Age Groups ◽

Thalassemia Major ◽

Beta Thalassemia ◽

Blood Transfusions ◽

Medical Database ◽

Qualitative Synthesis

Introduction: β-thalassemia major (TM) is one of the most prevalent inherited hemoglobinopathies in Pakistan. It has one of the highest prevalence of transfusion-dependent TM patients globally, with an estimated greater than 100,000 active cases. Each year, an estimated 5000-9000 new cases of TM are being diagnosed in the country. Blood transfusions (BT) are essential in the management of severe TM; it is critical to have a safe BT to reduce the risk of transfusion transmissible infections (TTIs). Frequent blood transfusions in these patients increase their risk of acquiring TTIs compared to the general population. In this systematic review, we aimed to identify the prevalence of TTIs in transfusion-dependent β -thalassemia major patients in Pakistan. Methods & Material: We performed a systematic literature search to identify studies related to the TTIs and transfusion-related infections in Pakistan from January 1, 2010, to January 31, 2020. The search was conducted using PubMed and PakMediNet (Largest medical database of Pakistan), with initial search retrieved 981 studies. Among these, 166 studies met the inclusion criteria. After further screening by reviewing the articles for relevance and availability of full-length articles, only 14 studies met the final criteria for qualitative synthesis. Results Analysis of 14 studies (n=3786) showed that the seroprevalence of Hepatitis B virus (HBV) of 3.13% (0.66 % to 7.4%) and Hepatitis C virus (HCV) of 26 % (5.56% to 68.2%). There were only two studies reported HIV seroprevalence of 0 % & 0.5% (n=6). The rate of seropositivity for HBV and HCV was directly related to the number of transfusions, higher ferritin levels, and older age groups. There was an increase in the HCV rate with the increasing age of patients. Thalassemia patients who were older than ten years of age had a greater HCV compared to those who were less than ten years of age, i.e., 22% vs. 8.4%, p:0.005, respectively. The mean age was higher in HCV reactive children than non-reactive children. A comparison of HCV in healthy donors vs. thalassemia patients showed a rate of 1.9% vs. 13.1% for T.M. patients. There was HCV infection rate of 74% in the group with greater than 100 BTs compared to 33 % in a group with fewer than 35 BTs. The rate of HCV increased to 75% for the patients who had more than 100 BTs. The majority of the patients were males (51% to 88%). The seroprevalence of TTIs was higher in males than in females (73.4% vs. 26.6%). On average, a single TM patient is exposed to at least 17 different donors annually, requiring 1-2 transfusions every month. The free BT is accessible only in 1 out of 4 thalassemia centers. The majority of patients either need to bring their donors or are dependent on an external source of financial aid as they could not afford the cost of BT treatment. More than half of thalassemia patients (57.2%) need to contact multiple BT centers to search for required blood products. About 42.1% of parents of TM patients did not know about TTIs, whereas 31.6% of them did not know about the bloodborne transmission of HBV and HCV. The majority of parents of TM children had a low income, with 75% of them having income less than 10,000 Pakistani rupees (PKR) per month. The prevalence of TTIs in TM patients was significantly higher (96% vs. 4%) compared to the patients requiring multiple transfusions due to other causes such as leukemia, aplastic anemia, and thrombocytopenia. Conclusion: Our data highlights that the prevalence of transfusion-transmitted infections, especially HCV, is alarmingly higher (26%) in the TM population than in the general population. This is because of a lack of resources, inadequate safety measures, and a fragmented blood transfusion system. These findings warrant the urgent need for better public health measures, safe blood transfusion practices, voluntary remunerated blood-based transfusions, and universal quality-assured donor screening. Without these positive interventions, the current transfusion system can lead to a further worsening of the situation. Large prospective multi-centered clinical trials are required to understand better the high prevalence of TTIs in patients with TM. Disclosures Anwer: Incyte, Seattle Genetics, Acetylon Pharmaceuticals, AbbVie Pharma, Astellas Pharma, Celegene, Millennium Pharmaceuticals.:Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau.

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Association Between Subconjunctival Hemorrhage and Acute Coronary Syndrome: A 14-Year Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study

Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine ◽

10.3389/fcvm.2021.728570 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Ping-Hao Chiang ◽

Jung-Nien Lai ◽

Yun-Chi Chiang ◽

Kai-Chieh Hu ◽

Min-Yen Hsu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Acute Coronary Syndrome ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Age Groups ◽

Population Based ◽

Research Database ◽

Coronary Syndrome ◽

Subconjunctival Hemorrhage ◽

Related Risk ◽

Patients With Diabetes

Purpose: Subconjunctival hemorrhage (SCH) is usually a benign ocular disorder that causes painless, redness under the conjunctiva. However, since SCH and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) share many vascular risk factors, studies have suggested that these two disorders may be significantly associated with each other, and evaluate the concomitance of ACS in patients with SCH.Methods: This population-based cohort study, enrolled 35,260 Taiwanese patients, and used the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database to identify patients with ACS and SCH. Outcomes were compared between the with and without SCH groups. The study population was followed until the date of ACS onset, the date of withdrawal, death, or December 31st 2013, whichever came first.Results: Of the 85,925 patients identified with SCH between 1996 and 2013, 68,295 were excluded based on the study's exclusion criteria, and a total of 17,630 patients with SCH who were diagnosed by ophthalmologists between 2000 and 2012 were eligible for analysis. After 1:1 propensity score matching for 5-year age groups, gender, and the index year, the results showed that SCH was more common in the 40–59 age group (53.82%) and females (58.66%). As for the ACS-related risk factors, patients with diabetes mellitus (aHR = 1.58, 95% CI = [1.38, 1.81]), hypertension (aHR = 1.71, 95% CI = [1.49, 1.96]) and patients taking aspirin (aHR = 1.67, 95% CI = [1.47, 1.90]) had a notably higher risk of ACS. However, it was found that there were no significant differences in the occurrence of ACS between the non-SCH and SCH patients.Conclusion: This results of this study regarding the risk factors and epidemiology of SCH and ACS were in keeping with previously reported findings. However, the results revealed no significant association between SCH and ACS.

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The world pandemic of diabetes

Oxford Textbook of Endocrinology and Diabetes ◽

10.1093/med/9780199235292.003.1395 ◽

2011 ◽

pp. 1795-1799

Author(s):

Nigel Unwin

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Type 1 Diabetes ◽

Geographical Area ◽

Age Groups ◽

The World ◽

Level Of Economic Development ◽

Increasing Trends

A pandemic refers to a disease that is rapidly increasing in frequency across many populations, over a wide geographical area (1). Put another way, it refers to the situation in which epidemics of the disease are occurring simultaneously in many countries. This is the case for diabetes, which has the dubious distinction of being one of the few chronic non-communicable diseases known to be increasing in all countries from which data are available, irrespective of the level of economic development (2). This is mirrored by a pandemic of people who are overweight or obese (3), the major risk factors for type 2 diabetes. This chapter focuses on diabetes in adults (aged 20 years old and above), of which 85% to more than 95%, depending on the population, have type 2 diabetes (2, 4), which is thus the main contributor to the growing burden of diabetes. However, it is worth noting that, in children (<15 years old), the incidence of type 1 diabetes is also increasing, particularly in the youngest age groups, across the vast majority of countries from which good data are available (5). The reasons for this increase are unclear, although various environmental risk factors have been implicated (5). This chapter aims to do the following: ◆ provide an overview of the prevalence and trends in diabetes in adults across the world and its contribution to mortality ◆ describe the broad determinants that underlie the increasing trends in diabetes in adults ◆ provide an introduction to variations by ethnicity in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes

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Risk factors of perioperative mortality from complicated peptic ulcer disease in Africa: systematic review and meta-analysis

BMJ Open Gastroenterology ◽

10.1136/bmjgast-2019-000350 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. e000350

Author(s):

Sarah Peiffer ◽

Matthew Pelton ◽

Laura Keeney ◽

Eustina G Kwon ◽

Richard Ofosu-Okromah ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Peptic Ulcer ◽

Peptic Ulcer Disease ◽

Low Income ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Mortality Rates ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Perioperative Mortality ◽

Ulcer Disease

IntroductionIn 2013, peptic ulcer disease (PUD) caused over 300 000 deaths globally. Low-income and middle-income countries are disproportionately affected. However, there is limited information regarding risk factors of perioperative mortality rates in these countries.ObjectiveTo assess perioperative mortality rates from complicated PUD in Africa and associated risk factors.DesignWe performed a systematic review and a random-effect meta-analysis of literature describing surgical management of complicated PUD in Africa. We used subgroup analysis and meta-regression analyses to investigate sources of variations in the mortality rates and to assess the risk factors contributing to mortality.ResultsFrom 95 published reports, 10 037 patients underwent surgery for complicated PUD. The majority of the ulcers (78%) were duodenal, followed by gastric (14%). Forty-one per cent of operations were for perforation, 22% for obstruction and 9% for bleeding. The operations consisted of vagotomy (38%), primary repair (34%), resection and reconstruction (12%), and drainage procedures (6%). The overall PUD mortality rate was 6.6% (95% CI 5.4% to 8.1%). It increased to 9.7% (95% CI 7.1 to 13.0) when we limited the analysis to studies published after the year 2000. The correlation was higher between perforated PUD and mortality rates (r=0.41, p<0.0001) than for bleeding PUD and mortality rates (r=0.32, p=0.001). Non-significant differences in mortality rates existed between sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and North Africa and within SSA.ConclusionPerioperative mortality rates from complicated PUD in Africa are substantially high and could be increasing over time, and there are possible regional differences.

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Diagnosis and Epidemiology of Anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive, and Trauma and Stressor-Related Disorders

10.1093/med/9780190681425.003.0032 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Murray B. Stein ◽

Meghan E. Keough ◽

Peter P. Roy-Byrne

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Anxiety Disorder ◽

Anxiety Disorders ◽

Depressive Disorders ◽

Obsessive Compulsive ◽

Prevalence Studies ◽

Current Prevalence ◽

The World ◽

Heavy Burden ◽

Dsm Iv

The anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, and trauma- and stressor-related disorders are, together, the most common class of mental disorders. From a systematic review of prevalence studies across 44 countries, the global current prevalence for the DSM IV anxiety disorders was estimated at 7.3% (95% CI 4.8%–10.9%), suggesting that one in 14 people around the world at any given time has an anxiety disorder. Women are approximately twice as likely as men to have an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders are a substantial contributor to the heavy burden of disease conveyed by mental and substance use disorders worldwide, where they are second only to depressive disorders in years-lost-to-disabilility.

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