scholarly journals Social Isolation and Associated Factors in Chinese Adults With Epilepsy: A Cross-Sectional Study

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Zhong ◽  
Hanyu Zhang ◽  
Qingling Chen ◽  
Xin Guo ◽  
Yujian Han ◽  
...  

Objective: We aimed to determine the prevalence of social isolation and associated factors among adults with epilepsy in northeast China.Methods: A cohort of consecutive patients with epilepsy (PWE) from the First Hospital of Jilin University (Changchun, China) was recruited. Demographic and clinical data for each patient were collected during a face-to-face interview. Social isolation was measured using the Berkman-Syme Social Network Index (SNI), and the Neurological Disorders Depression Inventory for Epilepsy (NDDI-E) and Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory (QOLIE-31) were also administered. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to determine the factors associated with social isolation in PWE.Results: A total of 165 patients were included in the final analysis. The mean SNI score was 2.56 (SD: 1.19), and 35 patients (21.2%) were socially isolated. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, higher depressive symptom levels (OR = 1.15, 95% CI: 1.003–1.318, P = 0.045) and poorer quality of life (OR = 0.967, 95% CI: 0.935–0.999, P = 0.047) emerged as independent factors associated with social isolation in PWE.Conclusion: Social isolation is common and occurs in approximately one-fifth of PWE. Social isolation is significantly associated with depressive symptoms and poor quality of life in PWE. Patients need to be encouraged to actively integrate with others and reduce social isolation, which may help improve their quality of life.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Wu ◽  
Zihuang Chen ◽  
Fei Yu ◽  
Youran Xu ◽  
Yue Ma ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic has been drastically increasing among men who have sex with men (MSM) in China over the past decade. More so, the number of HIV infections among young adults in the country has also been on the rise, highlighting a unique sub-population, which may lead to increased incidence and transmission of the disease. This study aimed to determine the HIV infection rate amongst student and non-student young men who have sex with men (YMSM) in three regions in China and factors associated with their HIV infection. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted from 1 September to 6 September 2017 in Beijing, Sichuan, and Guangzhou). Participants were recruited through a popular Chinese gay social networking application, as well as several college-based youth associations. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess factors associated with HIV infection. Results The HIV infection rate among non-student YMSM was significantly higher than that of student YMSM (10.3% versus 5.3%, χ2trend=17.34, P<0.001). The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that YMSM self-identifying as homosexual (AOR=2.81, 95%CI=1.40-5.66, P=0.004) and perceived themselves at risk for HIV (AOR=3.08, 95:CI:1.33-7.15, P=0.009) had a 3 times increased odds of being HIV positive. Additionally, participants whom reported not always using condoms with sex partners in the past six months (AOR=1.69, 95%CI=1.17-2.44, P=0.006) were at increased odds of HIV infection. Conclusions Young men who have sex with men, particularly those identifying as homosexual and not always using condoms during intercourse, are at increased odds of HIV infection in China. Promoting comprehensive sexual education to youth and other measures aimed at improving HIV knowledge could help control HIV transmission among this key sub-population.


Background: This study aimed to determine the quality of life and describe associated factors among children aged 5-18 years with diabetes Mellitus at St. Francis Hospital Nsambya and Mulago National Referral Hospital. Methods: An explanatory sequential study design was used between November 2018 and March 2019. Univariate analysis together with bivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine quality of life and identify association between the quality of life at a p-value ˂ 0.05 respectively. Factors found to have a p-value ˂ 0.25 were included in the Multivariate logistic regression. A backward method was then applied to determine the best model that predicts quality of life among children. Data was analysed using STATA version 14. Data on the perception of quality of life of children with diabetes mellitus from the perspective of the children, caregivers and health workers was used to obtain qualitative results. Results: 115 children were recruited from the paediatric diabetic clinics. A low quality of life with a mean score of 77 ±15.58 was reported with a mean age of 13 ± 3.9. Factors associated with quality of life included: age groups of 8-12 and 13-18 years, primary education, secondary education, tertiary education, a single parent, living with relatives and primary care giver being a relative other than the biological parents. Conclusion: A sub-optimal quality of life was observed among children with type 1 diabetes mellitus. The factors associated with good quality of life included; age between 5- 7 years, a child living with biological parents, a child being in primary school and higher parental level of education. Recommendation: Community health education and sensitization should be more focused towards the adolescent patients, single mothers, guardians and benefactors of children with diabetes mellitus. There is greater need for healthcare support in schools to mitigate the stigma experienced by these children.


2021 ◽  
Vol 05 (02) ◽  
pp. 31-40
Author(s):  
Nguyen Nhat Linh Hoang ◽  
◽  
Vuong Diem Khanh Doan ◽  
Thi Dang Thu Nguyen ◽  
Thi Hong Nhi Nguyen

Objectives: Sleep is a normal physiological process of the body. Sleep impacts on many aspects of health and quality of life at all ages. There are many risk factors associated with sleep deprivation or poor sleep quality: physical health problems such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease; mental health issues like depression; traffic and occupational accident. The study was conducted with the aims of understanding the sleep quality situation of youngster aged 16-30 years in Da Nang City, Vietnam, and determining the factors related to the sleep quality of the study participants. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on adolescents living in Da Nang City, Vietnam. The information was collected by using a structured questionnaire. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the risk factors associated with the sleep quality among adolescents. Results: The proportion of the adolescents who suffered from poor sleep quality was 31.1%. The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that there were the relationships between sleep quality and living in Hoa Vang District; occupations were student, worker, or officer; finishing working/studying time after 7 pm; regularly use and dependent on the internet; having stress; having pressure on study/work, overeating before going to bed, rarely or sometimes staying up late, lying postures were laying up, lie on the left side and other postures; hand posture when sleeping. Conclusion: The proportion of adolescents living in Da Nang City with good sleep quality was not high. The government needs to propagandize and mobilize people, especially young people in terms of the impacts of sleep quality on health, thereby improving sleep quality to help young people in good condition, helping the country and defending the country. Keywords: Sleep quality, adolescents, Da Nang City


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. e0252298
Author(s):  
Mekdes Dejenie ◽  
Sitotaw Kerie ◽  
Kidist Reba

Background Undiagnosed hypertension is defined as individuals who were hypertensive but did not report having been told by a health professional that they have hypertension. It is an important risk factor for development of chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality. Despite those problems and benefits of finding individuals with undiagnosed hypertension to prevent its outcomes, no enough investigations have been done regarding the prevalence and associated factors of undiagnosed hypertension. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of undiagnosed hypertension and its associated factors among bank workers in Ethiopia. Methods An institutional based cross-sectional study was held at Bahir Dar city bank workers. The simple random sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Self-administered structured questionnaire and physical measurement were used to collect data. The data were entered into EPI data 3.1 versions and exported to SPSS version 23.0 statistical software for further analysis. In order to decide the association between independent and dependent variables; multivariate logistic regression analysis was implemented. A P-value of < 0.05 was used as the criterion for statistical significance and OR with 95% confidence interval was used to indicate the strength of association. Result In this study from a total of 524 participants 513 were completed the questionnaire correctly, which gives a response rate of 97.9%. The overall prevalence of undiagnosed hypertension among bank workers was 24.8% with (95% CI 21.1–28.5). Multivariate logistic regression revealed that age 35–44 [AOR = 2.56, 95% CI: (1.60–4.09)], being male [AOR = 3.61, 95% CI: (1.84–7.05)], having moderate knowledge [AOR = 3.81, 95% CI: (2.29–6.34)], having poor knowledge [AOR = 6.19, 95% CI: (3.07-)12.48], and being physically inactivity [AOR = 2.91, 95% CI: (1.26–6.76)] were variables significantly associated with undiagnosed hypertension. Conclusion The prevalence of undiagnosed hypertension among bank workers in Bahir Dar city was found to be high. An age group of 35–44 years, being male, having moderate and poor knowledge and being physically inactivity was the variables that were significantly associated with undiagnosed hypertension. Therefore, creating awareness, frequent screening and implementation of an appropriate intervention for this vulnerable group is important.


Chemotherapy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 197-204
Author(s):  
Yirong Wang ◽  
Peng Zhang ◽  
Yong Han ◽  
Ryan S. Nelson ◽  
Howard L. McLeod ◽  
...  

Background: Adherence to imatinib therapy has been significantly associated with disease progression and direct medical costs in gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) patients. However, adherence to oral anticancer drugs is frequently hindered by the influence of various factors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of imatinib adherence and its influencing factors among GIST patients in the adjuvant setting. Methods: Adherence of GIST patients (receiving imatinib for ≥1 month) was assessed using the 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS), with a score <8 indicating nonadherence. Quality of life and social support were evaluated by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 (EORTC QLQ C30) and Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS). Factors associated with nonadherence were identified by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Imatinib plasma concentrations were determined and compared between adherent and nonadherent groups. Results: A total of 158 GIST patients were enrolled, 92 (58.2%) patients were considered nonadherent. Intentional nonadherence, especially feeling hassled by treatment plan (34.2% of patients), was common. In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, gender (OR 2.68, 95% CI 1.33–5.41; p = 0.0058), place of residence (OR 3.20, 95% CI 1.39–7.35; p = 0.0061), and global health status (OR 1.02, 95% CI 1.00–1.04; p = 0.0378) were significantly associated with nonadherence. Moreover, imatinib plasma concentrations in nonadherent patients were significantly lower than that in the good adherence group (p = 0.0338). Conclusions: Poor adherence to imatinib is a notable problem in Chinese GIST patients in the adjuvant therapy setting. The predominant indicators of nonadherence in this study were gender (female), living in a rural area, and harboring a low global health status score. These indicators may aid clinicians in determining where increased efforts in promoting adherence may be beneficial.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Melin ◽  
Cheyu Zhang ◽  
Juan Pablo Zapata ◽  
Yonaira M. Rivera ◽  
Katie Fernandez ◽  
...  

UNSTRUCTURED COVID-19 has been particularly devastating to Black and Latinx communities in the U.S. However, data on acceptability of the COVID-19 vaccines among minority populations are limited. We conducted an online survey among adults in Puerto Rico to identify factors associated with intention to vaccinate against COVID-19. Sociodemographic variables were analyzed independently for association with intention to vaccinate. Significant associations were included in the multivariate logistic regression analysis. A total of 1016 responses were available for analysis. In the bivariate analysis, younger age, higher education, pre-covid employment, male sex, gay/bisexual identity, and single marital status were associated with increased intention to vaccinate. In the multivariate logistic regression, younger, male respondents who had higher educational attainment reported higher intention to vaccinate. Lower-income and living outside the San Juan metro region were associated with lower intention to vaccinate. National and international health organizations were identified as the most reliable sources of information, followed by healthcare professionals. These findings highlight the importance of considering sociodemographic characteristics identified with low intention to vaccinate as well as using trusted sources of information when designing public messaging related to increasing COVID-19 vaccinations.


Author(s):  
Danielle LoRe ◽  
Christopher Mattson ◽  
Dalia M. Feltman ◽  
Jessica T. Fry ◽  
Kathleen G. Brennan ◽  
...  

Objective The study aimed to explore physician views on whether extremely early newborns will have an acceptable quality of life (QOL), and if these views are associated with physician resuscitation preferences. Study Design We performed a cross-sectional survey of neonatologists and maternal fetal medicine (MFM) attendings, fellows, and residents at four U.S. medical centers exploring physician views on future QOL of extremely early newborns and physician resuscitation preferences. Mixed-effects logistic regression models examined association of perceived QOL and resuscitation preferences when adjusting for specialty, level of training, gender, and experience with ex-premature infants. Results A total of 254 of 544 (47%) physicians were responded. A minority of physicians had interacted with surviving extremely early newborns when they were ≥3 years old (23% of physicians in pediatrics/neonatology and 6% in obstetrics/MFM). The majority of physicians did not believe an extremely early newborn would have an acceptable QOL at the earliest gestational ages (11% at 22 and 23% at 23 weeks). The majority of physicians (73%) believed that having an extremely preterm infant would have negative effects on the family's QOL. Mixed-effects logistic regression models (odds ratio [OR], 95% confidence interval [CI]) revealed that physicians who believed infants would have an acceptable QOL were less likely to offer comfort care only at 22 (OR: 0.19, 95% CI: 0.05–0.65, p < 0.01) and 23 weeks (OR: 0.24, 95% CI: 0.07–0.78, p < 0.02). They were also more likely to offer active treatment only at 24 weeks (OR: 9.66, 95% CI: 2.56–38.87, p < 0.01) and 25 weeks (OR: 19.51, 95% CI: 3.33–126.72, p < 0.01). Conclusion Physician views of extremely early newborns' future QOL correlated with self-reported resuscitation preferences. Residents and obstetric physicians reported more pessimistic views on QOL. Key Points


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Safiye Nur Ozcan ◽  
Dilek Yıldız Sevgi ◽  
Ahsen Oncul ◽  
Alper Gunduz ◽  
Ozgun Pehlivan ◽  
...  

Background: Reduced bone mineral density (BMD) is a frequent comorbidity observed in people living with HIV (PLHIV). Objective: The aim of the study is to determine the prevalence and associated factors of reduced bone mineral density (BMD) among men with suppressed viral load taking antiretroviral therapy. Method: The study was conducted as a cross-sectional study design between January to April 2019. 211 patients were included in the study. Z-score at either body site between -1.0 and -2.0 or -2 or less were defined as osteopenia or osteoporosis, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the factors affecting the development of reduced BMD. Results: The mean age of the patients involved in the study was 34.8 ± 7.6. Osteoporosis was detected in 21.4% and osteopenia in 44.5% of the patients. There was a significant relationship between HIV diagnosis time, ART usage duration, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) use, TDF use in the past, total TDF usage time and decreased BMD. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the likelihood of reduced bone marrow density was 67% lower among those with regular milk or dairy product intake compared to those without (OR=0.330; 95% CI = 0.12-0.92, p=0.033 ) Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of reduced BMD among PLHIV aged under 50 which is mainly confounded by HIV diagnosis time, ART usage duration and TDF usage. Although virological control has been achieved, these patients should be followed up, considering that they may have decreased BMD.


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