Microbial Contamination of Mobile Phones a Potential Threat to the Patients: A Cross Sectional Study

Background: The use of mobile phones especially smart phones have become an integral part of everyone’s life leading to addiction. Most of the studies conducted earlier were focused on youngsters. Hence this study was conducted to find out the prevalence of smart phone addiction in the study area.Methods: Community based cross sectional study carried out in Anakaputhur, Tamil Nadu from November 2018 to January 2019. Sample size of 400 was calculated using the formula 4PQ/L2. The respondents were selected by systematic random sampling. Subjects 18 years and above who are using mobile phones were included in the study. Data was analyzed using SPSS 16 version and presented using descriptive and analytical statistics.Results: Out of 405 participants 191 participants were non smart phone users and 214 were smart phone users. Overall prevalence of smart phone addiction was 27.6%. Male respondents were more addicted than the female (OR-1.94, 95%CI: 1.12-3.77, p=0.01). There was a statistically significant association between subjects <45 years of age and smart phone addiction (OR-2.33, 95% CI: 1.31-4.13, p=0.003) compared to older age group. Likewise respondents who were class III (modified BG Prasad Scale) and above were more addicted compared to subjects below class III (OR-2.29, 95% CI: 1.32-3.98, p=0.002).Conclusions: The prevalence of smart phone addiction is high that has to be addressed seriously. This can be tackled by better life style modification, awareness creation and attitudinal changes.

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Mobile phone usage in patients with diabetes and their intention to use it for self-management: a cross-sectional study

10.21203/rs.2.13951/v2 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Fatemeh Rangraz Jeddi ◽

Ehsan Nabovati ◽

Rahele Hamidi ◽

Reihane Sharif

Keyword(s):

Blood Glucose ◽

Mobile Phones ◽

Type Ii Diabetes ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Self Management ◽

The Internet ◽

Intention To Use ◽

Type Ii ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional

Abstract Background Mobile health has potential for promotion of self-management in patients with chronic diseases. This study was conducted to investigate smartphone usage in patients with type II diabetes and their intention to use it for self-management.Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2018 with 176 patients with type II diabetes visiting a specialized diabetes clinic or one of two endocrinology and metabolism specialists in north of Iran. Data were collected using a validated questionnaire containing items on demographic characteristics, disease information, use of mobile phones, smartphones and the internet, and intention to use mobile phones for diabetes self-management.Results The majority of the participants had mobile phones (94.9%), smartphones (61.1%), and daily access to the internet (81.3%), and used phones two hours per day on average (80.1%). They mostly used mobile phones to contact friends (89.2%) and search for information (50.6%), and their greatest intention for using smartphones and the internet for self-management was related to dietary planning (96%), checking blood glucose (90.9%), and contacting specialists (87.5%). Younger participants were more interested in using smartphone applications (apps) (P<0.001). About half of the participants argued that using apps can be interesting (54%) and useful (50%) for diabetes management, and intended to use apps much more in future (48.3%).Conclusions The majority of patients with type II diabetes are inclined to use mobile phone and the Internet, especially to plan their diet, check blood glucose, and contact their doctors. The present study provides valuable information for designing and implementing interventions based on mHealth to promote self-management in type II diabetes.

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Assessment of Microbial Contamination of Indian Currency Notes in Mathura City, India: A Cross-sectional Study

Journal of Advanced Oral Research ◽

10.1177/2229411220150308 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 6 (3) ◽

pp. 43-48 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Gaurav Agarwal ◽

Navin Anand Ingle ◽

Navpreet Kaur ◽

Ekta Ingle ◽

Zohra Charania

Keyword(s):

Microbial Contamination ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional

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Investigating Different Dimensions of Nomophobia among Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Open Access Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences ◽

10.3889/oamjms.2019.138 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 (4) ◽

pp. 573-578 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Mohammad Darvishi ◽

Majid Noori ◽

Mohammad Reza Nazer ◽

Soheil Sheikholeslami ◽

Ebrahim Karimi

Keyword(s):

Medical Students ◽

Mobile Phone ◽

Mobile Phones ◽

Cell Phone ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

P Value ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Significance Level

BACKGROUND: Today, mobile phones are recognised as an inseparable part of our daily lives, facilitating communication between users. Based on the studies, addiction to cell phones can lead to several complications including depression, anxiety, anger, and aggression. AIM: This study aimed to investigate nomophobia (no mobile phone phobia) among medical students of Islamic Azad University, Tehran Branch. METHODS: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 students studying in different majors of medical sciences in Islamic Azad University, Tehran Branch, from 2016 to 2017. Demographic data of all participants were recorded in a data sheet. In the next stage, a questionnaire was designed by the researcher to evaluate the effect of age, gender, education, and the duration of using cell phone variables on discomfort, anxiety, and insecurity due to lack of access to cell phone or other related issues. Raw data were analysed using SPSS statistical software version 21. The significance level was considered P < 0.05. RESULTS: The results of the study showed that participants with lower mean age felt more discomfort, anger, anxiety, and insecurity due to lack of access to mobile phones and other related issues compared to other people. However, no variable was statistically significant (P-value > 0.05). Except anxiety, results showed that longer duration of mobile phone use might lead to a significant decrease in discomfort, anger, and insensibility variables among users (P-value > 0.05). The incidence of nomophobia (with its different aspects) was significantly lower in females (P-value > 0.05). Also, in participants with higher educational status, the nomophobia was recorded to be more frequent (P-Value > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Understanding the pattern of nomophobia occurrence among cell phone users can facilitate our path to prevent its harms including discomfort, anger, anxiety, and feeling of insecurity among users of technology.

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The Use of Mobile Phones by Women Accessing Health Care Services in Bangladesh: A Cross-Sectional Study

Current Women s Health Reviews ◽

10.2174/1573404817666210702163730 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 17 ◽

Author(s):

Md Mosharaf Hossain ◽

Ruhani Mat Min ◽

Madihah Mohd

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Antenatal Care ◽

Mobile Phone ◽

Mobile Phones ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Level Of Education ◽

Care Services ◽

To Receive

Background: Maternal and neonatal mortality rates still pose a global challenge. Objectives: The present study aimed to identify the socio-demographic characteristics of mobile users trying to access antenatal care services, transportation to facilities, and postnatal care for mothers and newborns. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study that used data collected from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) 2014. Data were gathered using a questionnaire. Participants comprised 4,494 mothers aged between 14 and 49. Models of logistic regression were used to determine associations. Results: The overall sample size was 4494, with only 22.23% of women using mobile phones. Among these, 29.9% used their mobile phones to obtain health services or advice and 70.1% did not. Women with mobile phones who had a higher level of education used them to receive more health care (secondary and higher: OR = 1.922, 95%CI = 1.225−3.014; primary: OR = 1.982, 95% CI = 1.738−2.654); they were of higher socio-economic status (rich: OR = 1.228, 95% CI = 1.009&−1.494; middle income: OR = 1.691, 95% CI = 1.256−2.333); they accessed more prenatal care (yes: OR = 1.993, 95% CI = 1.425−1.987) and antenatal care (yes: OR = 1.951, 95% CI = 1.765−1.998); they checked their health status after delivery (yes: OR = 1.966, 95% CI = 1.639−2.357). Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that young women who had a higher level of education and income and resided in urban areas were more likely to use a mobile phone to receive health care facilities in Bangladesh. Intervention studies are essential in recognising that mobile phone-based facilities improve maternal health care.

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Concordance and accuracy Of Teledermatology using mobile phones in the outpatient clinic Of Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center: A Cross-sectional study (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.32546 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ivan Arni Caballero Preclaro ◽

Zharlah Gulmatico-Flores ◽

Elizabeth Amelia Velasco Tianco

Keyword(s):

Mobile Phones ◽

Final Diagnosis ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Substantial Agreement ◽

Perfect Agreement ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Face To Face ◽

The Third ◽

Store And Forward

BACKGROUND Dermatologists rely on visual findings, thus teledermatology is uniquely compatible to provide dermatologic care. The use of mobile phones in a store-and-forward approach, where gathered data is sent to a distant health provider for later review, may be a potential bridge to seek dermatologic care. OBJECTIVE To determine the agreement between face-to-face consult and teledermatologic consult through the store-and-forward approach using mobile phone, and its accuracy compared to histopathologic diagnosis. METHODS The study design is a cross-sectional study of participants consecutively recruited from dermatology patients who presented with skin or mucosal complaint and without prior dermatologist consultation. Photographs were taken using a standard phone (iPhone 6s plus) and a 4-mm skin punch biopsy was taken on each patient, the gold standard to which the study result was compared to. The photographs were sent to three consultant dermatologists using a store-and-forward approach, for independent diagnosis and treatment plan. RESULTS A total of 64 patients were included, with a median age of 41 years old. There was moderate to almost perfect agreement in terms of final diagnosis between face to face dermatologic diagnosis and teledermatologic diagnoses. The third teledermatologist had the highest agreement with the clinical dermatologist in terms of final diagnosis (kappa = 0.84; p <.001). Between the three dermatologists, there was moderate to almost perfect agreement as well. Agreement between pairs of teledermatologists ranges from 0.45 to 0.84. The three teledermatologists had moderate to substantial agreement with the biopsy results, with the third teledermatologist having the highest accuracy (kappa = 0.77; p < .001). Overall, there was a moderate agreement in the diagnosis of patients across raters. CONCLUSIONS Teledermatology is a viable alternative to face-to-face consultations. Our results show moderate to substantial agreement in diagnoses from face-to-face consultation and store-and-forward teledermatology.

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Three Years Later: A Study of MAC Address Randomization In Mobile Devices And When It Succeeds

Proceedings on Privacy Enhancing Technologies ◽

10.2478/popets-2021-0042 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 (3) ◽

pp. 164-181

Author(s):

Ellis Fenske ◽

Dane Brown ◽

Jeremy Martin ◽

Travis Mayberry ◽

Peter Ryan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Operating System ◽

Mobile Phones ◽

Operating Systems ◽

Mobile Device ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

User Privacy ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

In The Wild ◽

High Degree

Abstract Mobile device manufacturers and operating system developers increasingly deploy MAC address randomization to protect user privacy and prevent adversaries from tracking persistent hardware identifiers. Early MAC address randomization implementations suffered from logic bugs and information leakages that defeated the privacy benefits realized by using temporary, random addresses, allowing devices and users to be tracked in the wild. Recent work either assumes these implementation flaws continue to exist in modern MAC address randomization implementations, or considers only dated software or small numbers of devices. In this work, we revisit MAC address randomization by performing a cross-sectional study of 160 models of mobile phones, including modern devices released subsequent to previous studies. We tested each of these phones in a lab setting to determine whether it uses randomization, under what conditions it randomizes its MAC address, and whether it mitigates known tracking vulnerabilities. Our results show that, although very new phones with updated operating systems generally provide a high degree of privacy to their users, there are still many phones in wide use today that do not effectively prevent tracking.

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A study to evaluate mobile phone dependence among students of a medical teaching institute in Mumbai

International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health ◽

10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20205703 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 253

Author(s):

Shreya Sodhani ◽

Priyanka Gupta ◽

Anuradha Kunal Shah

Keyword(s):

Medical Students ◽

Mobile Phone ◽

Mobile Phones ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Medical Teaching ◽

Mobile Phone Use ◽

Study Participants ◽

Harmful Effects

Background: Mobile phone use has become such a significant part of the life of medical students that they do not realize their level of dependence on their cell phones. It is therefore imperative to identify the threshold where mobile phones cross the line from being a helpful tool to becoming one that enslaves the users. They need to be made aware of the harmful effects of excessive use of mobile phones and counseled about ways to avoid it. This study aims to assess the prevalence and pattern of mobile phone dependence among medical students.Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among MBBS students of a medical teaching institute in Mumbai. A predesigned and pretested questionnaire (NMP-Q) was sent to all the students out of which 205 students responded and consented to participate in the study.Results: Amongst all the study participants, 47.3% were males (97/205) and 52.7% were females (108/205). Mild Nomophobia was found in 19.04% students whereas 50.70% had moderate and 30.26% had severe Nomophobia. Amongst the males, 56.7% and 26.8% had moderate and severe Nomophobia, respectively while in females, moderate and severe Nomophobia was found to be 45.4% and 33.3%, respectively.Conclusions: Mobile phone dependence is prevalent amongst medical students.

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Women Using Mobile Phones for Health Communication Are More Likely to Use Prenatal and Postnatal Services in Bangladesh: Cross-Sectional Study

JMIR mhealth and uhealth ◽

10.2196/10645 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 (2) ◽

pp. e10645 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Shangfeng Tang ◽

Bishwajit Ghose ◽

Md Rakibul Hoque ◽

Gang Hao ◽

Sanni Yaya

Keyword(s):

Health Communication ◽

Mobile Phones ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional

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Prehospital infection control and prevention in Denmark: A nationwide cross-sectional study on guideline adherence and microbial contamination of surfaces

Dansk Tidsskrift for Akutmedicin ◽

10.7146/akut.v2i3.112996 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2 (3) ◽

pp. 54

Author(s):

Heidi Storm Vikke

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Infection Control ◽

Guideline Adherence ◽

Microbial Contamination ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Source Of Infection ◽

Control And Prevention ◽

Infection Control And Prevention

Background: Prehospital acute care and treatment have become more complex, and while invasive procedures are standard procedures, focus on infection control and prevention is scarce. We aimed to evaluate guideline adherence, microbial contamination, and associated risk factors. Methods: In a nationwide cross-sectional study, we evaluated guideline adherence to thorough cleaning (TC) once a day, and moderate cleaning (MC) in-between patient courses. Microbial contamination on hand-touch sites (HTS) and provider-related sites (PRS) was assessed by total aerobic colony forming units (CFU) and presence of selected pathogens, using swab and agar imprints. Also, microbial contamination was assessed in relation to potential risk factors. Results: 80 ambulances and coherent EMS providers were enrolled. Adherence to guidelines regarding TC was 35%, but regarding MC it was 100%. In total, 129 (27%) of 480 HTS presented a total CFU > 2.5/cm2 and/or pathogenic growth, indicating hygiene failures. The prevalence of selected pathogens on HTS was: S. aureus 7%; Enterococcus 3% and Enterobacteriaceae 1%. Total CFU on the PRS ranged from 0-250/cm2, and the prevalence of pathogens was 18% (S. aureus 15%, Enterococcus 3% and Enterobacteriaceae 0.3%). Methicillin-resistant S. aureus was found in one sample, and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus in two. No Enterobacteriaceae with extended-spectrum beta-lactamases were recorded. Conclusion: Guideline adherence was suboptimal, and many HTS did not comply fully with proposed standards for cleanliness. Pathogens were demonstrated on both HTS and PRS, indicating that the EMS may be a source of infection in hospitalized patients. Moreover, cleaning effort and time appears associated with microbial contamination, but a comprehensive investigation of risk factors is needed.

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