Assessment of COVID-19 Related Misinformation among the Community in Basrah, Iraq

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (CSI) ◽  
pp. 12-18
Author(s):  
Ali Al-Rubaye ◽  
Dhurgham Abdulwahid ◽  
Aymen Albadran ◽  
Abbas Ejbary ◽  
Laith Alrubaiy

Background: There has been a rapid rise in cases of COVID-19 infection and its mortality rate since the first case reported in February 2020. This led to the rampant dissemination of misinformation and rumors about the disease among the public. Objectives: To investigate the scale of public misinformation about COVID-19 in Basrah, Iraq. Methods: A cross-sectional study based on a 22-item questionnaire to assess public knowledge and understanding of information related to the COVID-19 infection. Results: A total of 483 individuals completed the questionnaire. The most frequent age group was 26–35 years (28.2%); there were 280 (58%) males and 203 (42%) females. Of the participants, 282 (58.4%) were with an education level below the Bachelor’s degree, 342 (70.8%) were married, and 311 (64%) were living in districts in Basra other than the central district. Overall, 50.8% (11.8/ 22 * 100%) of individuals had the correct information regarding COVID-19. There was a significant association between the level of COVID-19 related misinformation and participants’ educational levels and occupation (p <0.05). However, there was no significant difference found across sex, age group, marital state, and area of residence. Conclusions: Misinformation related to COVID-19 is widely spread and has to be addressed in order to control the pandemic. Keywords: COVID-19, misinformation, knowledge, Iraq

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 11-14
Author(s):  
Suraj Raj Bhattarai ◽  
Kishor Kumar Tamrakar

Background: Appendectomy is the most commonly performed emergency  surgical procedure and has significant morbidity of surgical site infection (SSIs). Regarding this, there are conflicting reports and dilemma on use of optimal duration of antibiotics. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence of SSIs after three doses of perioperative prophylactic antibiot­ics (single dose before surgery and two doses postoperatively) after ap­pendectomy in acute non- perforated appendicitis (NPA). Methods: This cross sectional study was conducted in the department of General surgery, Chitwan Medical College Teaching Hospital, from May 2018 to April 2019. All the cases received single dose of antibiotics (cef­triaxone and metronidazole) during the induction of anesthesia and two doses of the same antibiotics postoperatively within 24 hours. SSIs was assessed on 2nd and followed up till 7th postoperative day. The data col­lected was analyzed using SPSS version 16. Results: In the study of 100 patients, who received perioperative three doses of antibiotics, the overall frequency of SSIs on 2nd and 3rd post-operative day were 2% (p=.840) and 6% (p=.539) respectively, which was statistically not significant. In follow up after 3rd postoperative day, there was no evidence of SSIs. Statistically there was no significant difference in the incidence and grade of SSIs between age group, sex and duration of operation. Conclusions: A combined three doses of perioperative antibiotics was ad­equate for SSIs prevention in patients of any age group and sex with acute NPA after appendectomy in usual operative time.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosaura Soares Paczek ◽  
Andreia Inês Engelmann ◽  
Giulia Pedroso Perini ◽  
Glória Pinto Soares de Aguiar ◽  
Erica Rosalba Mallmann Duarte

Objetivo: analisar o perfil de usuários e os motivos da consulta de enfermagem em estomaterapia. Método: trata-se de um estudo quantitativo, descritivo, exploratório e transversal. Coletaram-se os dados em prontuários de 252 usuários nos quais foram consultados em 1116 consultas de enfermagem. Analisaram-se os dados pelo programa SPSS versão 20, empregando-se a estatística descritiva. Resultados: revela-se, quanto ao sexo, que não houve diferença significativa; quanto à faixa etária, 53,6% dos participantes tinham 65 anos ou mais de idade; a causa do estoma foi a doença neoplásica maligna em 65,5% da amostra; o motivo da consulta, em 56%, foi a troca de bolsa de ostomia e 50,4% dos pacientes realizaram somente uma consulta no período analisado. Conclusão: mostrou-se, que o enfermeiro estomaterapeuta precisa refletir no planejamento e nas estratégias de cuidados prestados, contemplando a educação do autocuidado do usuário e educação permanente da equipe, enfatizando a sensibilidade do acolhimento, visto que a maioria dos pacientes tem neoplasia maligna, situação de grande impacto na vida do usuário e de sua família. Descritores: Estomia; Consulta de Enfermagem; Educação Permanente; Estomaterapia; Autocuidado; Cuidados de Enfermagem.AbstractObjective: to analyze the profile of users and the reasons for the nursing consultation in stomatherapy. Method: this is a quantitative, descriptive, exploratory and cross-sectional study. Data was collected from medical records of 252 users, who were consulted in 1116 nursing consultations. Data was analyzed using the SPSS version 20 program, using descriptive statistics. Results: it is revealed, as for sex, that there was no significant difference; as for the age group, 53.6% of the participants were 65 years old or older; the cause of the stoma was malignant neoplastic disease in 65.5% of the sample; the reason for the consultation, in 56%, was to change the ostomy bag and 50.4% of the patients had only one consultation during the analyzed period. Conclusion: it was shown that the stoma nurse needs to reflect on the planning and care strategies provided, contemplating the education of the user's self-care and permanent education of the team, emphasizing the sensitivity of the welcoming, since the majority of patients have malignancy, situation of great impact on the life of the user and their family. Descriptors: Ostomy; Nursing Consultation; Education Continuing; Stomatherapy; Self Care; Nursing Care.ResumenObjetivo: analizar el perfil de los usuarios y los motivos de la consulta de enfermería en estomaterapia. Método: se trata de un estudio cuantitativo, descriptivo, exploratorio y transversal. Se recopilaron datos de registros médicos de 252 usuarios, que fueron consultados en 1116 consultas de enfermería. Los datos se analizaron utilizando el programa SPSS versión 20, utilizando estadísticas descriptivas. Resultados: se revela, en cuanto al sexo, que no hubo diferencia significativa; en cuanto al grupo de edad, el 53,6% de los participantes tenían 65 años o más; la causa del estoma fue la enfermedad neoplásica maligna en el 65.5% de la muestra; el motivo de la consulta, en el 56%, fue cambiar la bolsa de ostomía y el 50,4% de los pacientes tuvieron una sola consulta durante el período analizado. Conclusión: se demostró que el enfermero de estomas necesita reflexionar sobre la planificación y las estrategias de atención provistas, contemplando la educación del autocuidado del usuario y la educación permanente del equipo, enfatizando la sensibilidad de la recepción, ya que la mayoría de los pacientes tienen neoplasia maligna, situación de gran impacto en la vida del usuario y su familia. Descriptores: Estomia; Consulta de Enfermería; Educación Permanente; Estomaterapia; Autocuidado; Cuidados de Enfermería.


Author(s):  
Anupama Deepak ◽  
Dhanraj Ganapathy ◽  
Visalakshi Ramanathan

Anxiolytic drugs are a class of drugs that reduce the anxiety levels in the individuals by nonspecifically binding to the GABAα located throughout the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to compare the anxiolytic effects of diazepam and Zolpidem in patients undergoing extraction. This was a cross-sectional study conducted at a university setting, with a sample size of 100 patients, of the age group 25-45 years. 50 patients were administered with Tab. Diazepam and 50 patients with Tab. Zolpidem one hour before the surgical procedure. The Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A Scale) was used to record the patient's anxiety levels before and during the extraction procedure. These data were then recorded in MS Excel Sheet and imported to SPSS for statistical analysis. From this study, it can be seen that most of the patients were females and mainly between the age group 25-35 years. Diazepam had significantly lesser post sedation anxiety levels in comparison with its post sedation levels than zolpidem with, a statistically significant difference (p<0.001). Therefore, it can be concluded that diazepam had better post sedation effects than zolpidem in patients undergoing extraction as patients presented with lesser severity in their anxiety levels.


2012 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 37-39
Author(s):  
W Nargis ◽  
BU Ahamed ◽  
S Zabeen ◽  
F Alam ◽  
MA Wahab ◽  
...  

Introduction: Nephropathies, as one of the multiple extrahepatic features of Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection, can occur in clinically improved HEV hepatitis patients which in majority of the cases remain clinically silent for a long period. By the time these are reported, patients have already developed renal insufficiency which may even lead to renal replacement therapy. Proteinuria, a simple test in practice, can be a useful tool for early detection of the underlying renal impairment. Objective: The aim of this study was to detect the presence of proteinuria and to evaluate the degree of proteinuria in HEV- hepatitis patients during post-icteric state. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional study was conducted on 50 diagnosed patients of clinically improved HEV-hepatitis at the Department of Biochemistry, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) with active cooperation of the Department of Hepatology, BSMMU, between July 2006 and June 2007. Cases were chosen carefully, to exclude the acute state of illness and the patients of HEV were selected during their third or fourth follow-up, in their post-icteric phase. The study subjects were grouped according to equal age ranges in group-I (18-26 year) and group-II (27-35 year). Depending on the level of spot urinary protein (mg/dl) the subjects were also categorized as having trace, mild and moderate proteinuria. Results: The mean age of HEV infected subjects was 24.72±2.59 years. The mean spot urinary protein in age group-II patients was raised compared to age group-I and the difference was highly significant (p<0.001). Moreover, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) of spot urinary protein of male and female. Majority of HEV patients (42%) presented with mild proteinuria and mostly (53.3%) was of age group-I. Conclusion: Spot urinary protein concentration should be checked in every HEV- hepatitis patient to detect the presence and level of proteinuria. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jafmc.v7i2.10395 JAFMC 2011; 7(2): 37-39


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (04) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanveer Hussain Shah ◽  
Tahir Saeed Siddiqui ◽  
Ahmad Zeb

Background: Present study was designed by keeping in view the importance of vitamin D in adolescents’ age group. Objectives: To explore the cases of low vitamin D status (<50 nmol/l) with respect to age & sex factors in school students. Study Design: Observation cross-sectional study. Setting: Department of Biochemistry faculty of Health Sciences, Hazara University Mansehra, Ayub Medical College and Teaching Hospital Abbottabad. Period: June 2014 to June 2015. Subject & Methods: We recorded daily intake of vitamin D of each individual and  measured serum 25 hydrxoy vitamin D in a school based cross sectional sample of adolescents girls (n=93) and boys (n=96) students. Results: Results of this study reflected that, out of total boys and girls students, 16% and 39% of the sample  respectively showed low serum vitamin D status(<50 nmol/l). Number of cases had low vitamin D level increased with age in girls and decreased with age in boys. Serum vitamin D concentration was decreased with increase in age of girls and found significantly low (p=0.0087) in higher age group (>13-≤16).  No significant difference (p=0.29) was noted regarding daily intake of vitamin D between lower & higher age. Conclusion: It is concluded that, age and sex might be contributory factors in the occurrence of low vitamin D status.


2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. e27011124843
Author(s):  
Juliana Hiromi Emin Uesugi ◽  
Caroline Ferreira Fernandes ◽  
Jonatan Carlos Cardoso da Silva ◽  
Hadassa Hanna Soares Martins ◽  
Eliane Leite da Trindade ◽  
...  

This study aims to identify the clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of Spotted Fever in Brazil between 2008 and 2017. A descriptive, retrospective, cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach that used as a source of data the Sistema de Informação de Agravos de Notificação (SINAN) available in the public database of the Departamento de Informática do Sistema Único de Saúde (DATASUS), adopting the following variables within the pre-established period: Region of Notification, Sex, Age Group, Evolution, Infection Zone, Schooling, Environment of Infection, and Confirmation Criteria. Spotted fever was prevalent in the Southeast region of the country, although underreporting is a reality in other regions. The most affected population was male, economically active, living in rural areas, and with incomplete primary education. Thus, epidemiological surveillance is fundamental, especially in endemic and "silent" regions for the notification of the disease.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1462-1473
Author(s):  
Ramdan M. Elkalmi ◽  
Eman Dyab ◽  
Azyyati Mohd Suhaimi ◽  
Ali Qais Blebil ◽  
Mohamed Hassan Elnaem ◽  
...  

Vaccine hesitancy has surfaced globally within the last few decades, and the fears and misconceptions of people about vaccine safety and effectiveness have been identified as key factors for their under-utilization. The familiarity, attitudes, and religious beliefs of the public and of future healthcare practitioners regarding vaccination are extensive areas needing exploration. The present exploratory cross-sectional study was designed, planned and carried out on students enrolled in health science and non-health science courses in one of the public universities of Malaysia. A research instrument that had been formulated, validated and subjected to reliability testing was used to collect the data, which were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. A response rate of 80.8% (n = 202) was obtained: the majority were female (n = 161, 79.7%), and had been vaccinated before (n = 190, 97.5%), while a mere 2% did not support vaccination for reasons pertaining to safety issues. The vaccine familiarity score was 10.79 ± 1.4, which significantly differed among the study disciplines (p < 0.001). The mean of the total attitude score was 14.95 ± 1.5, with no significant difference among demographics being noted. The mean of the total religious beliefs score was 24.29 ± 2.8 and significantly differed based on gender (p = 0.040) and study disciplines (p < 0.001). The current findings showed that the participants were familiar with vaccines and had generally positive attitudes and positive religious beliefs toward vaccination; thus, one can expect that their inclusion in immunization campaigns will generate positive outcomes of the immunization program. Although the current research reported few knowledge gaps, these may be handled with the introduction of a specialized immunization course at an undergraduate level.


Author(s):  
Subhashisa Swain ◽  
Shreeporna Bhattacharya ◽  
Ambarish Dutta ◽  
Sanghamitra Pati ◽  
Lipika Nanda

Background: Extreme heat and heat illness are becoming very frequent in India. We aimed to identify the factors associated with heat illness and the coping practices among city dwellers of Odisha, India during the summer. Methods: A cross-sectional study included 766 households (HHs) in twin cities of Odisha covering a population of 1099 (slum: 404 and non-slum: 695) in the year 2017. We collected information on sociodemographic, household characteristics, coping practices to heat and the heat illness history reported during the summer. Multivariate logistic regression accounting for clustering effects at the household and slum levels was used to identify the associated factors of heat illness after adjustment of other variables. Result: Nearly, 49% of the study participants were female and the mean age was 38.36 years (95% confidence interval (CI): 37.33–39.39 years). A significant difference of living environment was seen across the groups. More than two-thirds of the study participants at least once had heat illness. In the non-slum population, males (adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 3.56; 95% CI: 2.39–5.29), persons under medication (aOR: 3.09; 95% CI: 1.15–8.29), and chronic conditions had higher association with heat illness. Whereas, in the slum population, having a kitchen outside the home (aOR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.02–3.96) and persons with chronic conditions were positively associated with heat illness. Use of cooling practices in slum areas reduced the risk of heat illness by 60%. Conclusion: Heat illness is associated with the living environment and physical health of the individuals. Identifying the vulnerable population and scaling up adaptive practices can strengthen the public health preparedness.


2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (17) ◽  
pp. 3118-3126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filipa Fontes ◽  
Albertino Damasceno ◽  
Neusa Jessen ◽  
António Prista ◽  
Carla Silva-Matos ◽  
...  

AbstractObjective:The ongoing demographic, nutritional and epidemiological transitions in sub-Saharan Africa highlight the importance of monitoring overweight and obesity. We aimed to assess the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Mozambique in 2014/2015 and compare the estimates with those obtained in 2005.Design:Cross-sectional study conducted in 2014/2015, following the WHO Stepwise Approach to Chronic Disease Risk Factor Surveillance (STEPS). Prevalence estimates with 95 % CI were computed for different categories of BMI and abdominal obesity, along with age-, education- and income-adjusted OR. The age-standardized prevalence in the age group 25–64 years was compared with results from a STEPS survey conducted in 2005.Setting:Mozambique.Participants:Representative sample of the population aged 18–64 years (n 2595).Results:Between 2005 and 2014/2015, the prevalence of overweight and obesity increased from 18·3 to 30·5 % (P < 0·001) in women and from 11·7 to 18·2 % (P < 0·001) in men. Abdominal obesity increased among women (from 9·4 to 20·4 %, P < 0·001), but there was no significant difference among men (1·5 v. 2·1 %, P = 0·395). In 2014/2015, the prevalence of overweight and obesity was more than twofold higher in urban areas and in women; in the age group 18–24 years, it was highest in urban women and lowest in rural men.Conclusions:In Mozambique, there was a steep increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity among adults between 2005 and 2014/2015. Overweight and obesity are more prevalent in urban areas and among women, already affecting one in five urban women aged 18–24 years.


Author(s):  
Khalid A. Alshehri ◽  
Waleed M. Alqulayti ◽  
Bassam E. Yaghmoor ◽  
Hisham Alem

Background: Knowledge of ear health and hearing loss is essential for early intervention and treatment, but the state of public knowledge of such in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, remains unknown.Objectives: To measure public knowledge of ear health and hearing loss.Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted during August 2018 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. An electronic survey questionnaire was distributed to 2372 residents of various districts in Jeddah. The survey was created in 2013 by adopting previously published World Health Organization material, designed to assess knowledge and perception of ear health. All males and females aged 10 years or older living in Jeddah had the chance to participate in this study. A total of 2372 people participated. Percentages mean ± standard deviation, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVAs) and independent t-tests were applied to determine the significant difference. p-values of 0.05 or less were considered significant.Results: The overall mean number of correct responses on the survey’s true/false questionnaire was 10.66 ± 1.92 out of 14. Female participants gave a higher mean number of correct answers than did male participants (10.73 ± 2.03 vs. 10.54 ± 2.03, respectively). Participants with a family history of hearing loss gave a higher mean number of correct answers compared with participants who reported a negative family history (10.89 ± 1.82 vs. 10.53 ± 1.97, respectively).Conclusion: Overall awareness of ear health and hearing loss management is fair. However, the results indicate a need for more integrated educational materials to be made available both to the general population as well as to hearing loss individuals and their families.


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