International Journal of Biomedicine and Public Health
Volume:3 Issue: 2, Spring 2020

Tendency toward addiction in adolescence can affect not only the youth but also whole life periods of an individual. Recent studies indicated that addiction is a severe and progressive issue in Iran. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of social anxiety and it’s relationship with addiction tendency and sleep quality among high school students in Divandareh in 2018. The study population in this cross-sectional study included high school students (16-18 years old) in Divandareh city, Kurdistan, Iran in 2018. The sample size was calculated 386 subjects based on Cochrane equation and sampling was performed using cluster sampling method. Data collection instruments included Puklek social anxiety questionnaire, Zargar et al. tendency to addiction questionnaire and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality questionnaire. Chi-square was used for analytical statistics. This study revealed that low, moderate and high levels of social anxiety were present in 31 (8%), 252 (68%) and 87 (23%) students respectively. Desirable sleep quality was observed in 76 (20.5%) students while 294 (79.5%) students had sleep disorder. In our study, there was a significant relationship between sleep quality and social anxiety (P < 0.001), social anxiety and tendency to addiction in adolescents (P < 0.001) and also there was a significant relationship between sleep quality and addiction tendency (P < 0.001). Also, social anxiety was significantly related to gender (P < 0.001), grade (P < 0.001), grade point average (P = 0.008) and economic status (P = 0.038). The findings of this study indicate that pay attention to sleep in children, providing a calm and supportive environment for adolescents should be one of the priorities in families.

There is no published study on obesity among private university students in Yemen. Therefore, this study determined the prevalence and factors associated with obesity among medical students of the University of Science and Technology (UST) in Sana’a, Yemen. This cross-sectional study was conducted among 448 students aged 18-29 years and randomly selected from medical faculties of the UST between January and April 2017. Data about sex, age, smoking, participation in physical activities and family history of obesity were collected using a self-administered questionnaire, while anthropometric measurements were performed according to standard criteria, and body mass index (BMI) was then calculated. The majority of students were males (62.1%), aged 22 years or older (63.4%), having normal weight (54.0%) and reporting no family history of obesity (65.0%). Male gender (OR=3.51; 95% CI = 2.22–5.53, P < 0.001), age of 22 years or older (OR = 2.73; 95% CI = 1.53 –3.67, P < 0.001), smoking (OR = 2.66; 95% CI=1.69–4.18, P <0.001) and physical inactivity (OR = 3.49; 95% CI = 2.24–5.42, P < 0.001) were the factors significantly associated with overweight and obesity among medical students. In contrast, family history of obesity was not significantly associated with overweight and obesity (P = 0.936). About a third of students were either overweight or obese, where overweight/obesity are associated with male gender, older age, smoking and physical inactivity. Therefore, there is a need for health education to raise the awareness of medical students regarding healthy diet and lifestyle to manage body weight.

In developing countries about half of young children are affected by anemia with 54% children aged under five suffering from moderate to severe anemia in Pakistan. The aim of this study was to  investigate the community, household, and individual level factors associated with anemia among children aged 1-5 years and to estimate the prevalence of anemia. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among children in two peri urban communities of Karachi Pakistan. Systematic sampling method was used. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on independent variables. The dependent variable was anemia which was measured by Hemacue machine. Binary multilevel logistic regression was used to analyze the data. The prevalence of mild, moderate and severe anemia in 1-5 year old childrenwas 17.6%, 57.7% and 14.8%, respectively. The community level factors found to be negatively associated with anemia  were  living in neighborhoods with high availability of fruit [Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) = 0.3, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.1-0.6], and residing in neighborehoods with high number of meat and dairy product and vegetable shops (AOR=0.4, 95% CI: 0.2-0.9). The household and individual level factors found to be positively associated with anemia were mothers with 4 or more children (AOR=1.9, 95% CI: 1.2-3.1), younger age (AOR=2.0, 95% CI:1.3-3.1) and child not being vaccinated (AOR=1.9, 95% CI: 1.0-3.6). We found a high prevalence of anemia in children living in two peri urban communities. The public health measures call for improvements in nutrition facilities in the neighborhoods, vaccination of child and reduction in the number of family members.

Recently, association between the length of abdominal esophagus and increased risk for gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) has been hypothesized. The aim of the present study was to determine this relation. In a cross-sectional study, 75 consecutive premature neonates aged less than 30 days with birth weight less than 2000 gr hospitalized in Neonates’ ward of the Mahdieh hospital in Tehran were included into the study. The certain diagnosis of GERD was based on clinical manifestations. The presence of GERD and also measurement of the abdominal esophageal length was assessed by portable sonography using SIUI sonography device. Clinically, reflux was diagnosed in 15 neonates (20.0%). It was also diagnosed in 20 cases (26.7%) by sonography assessment yielding a sensitivity of 86.7%, a specificity of 88.3%, a positive predictive value of 65.0%, a negative predictive value of 96.4%, and an accuracy of 88% for this diagnostic device. The mean length of abdominal esophagus was estimated 15.2 ± 4.1 mm. There was a strong positive association of the length of abdominal esophagus with neonatal birth weight (r = 0.553, P < 0.001)  and also with gestational age (r = 0.491, P = 0.001). In a multivariate linear regression model, shorter abdominal esophagus was shown to be related to the presence of reflux. Shorter abdominal esophagus in premature neonates is associated with increased risk for GERD that is more highlighted in those neonates with lower birth weight and lower gestational age. Sonography has a high value for assessment of abdominal esophageal length and reflux diagnosis in premature neonates.

Ichthyoses as epidermal genodermatoses are a large group of keratinization disorders that affect the entire integument, which is typically characterized by visible scaling and inflammation on the skin. Nowadays, in addition to clinical criteria, new molecular diagnostic methods, such as next-generation sequencing, can help to differentiate the subgroups of ichthyoses more precisely. These disorders are mostly classified based on clinical and histologic features and molecular markers. Inherited ichthyoses were divided into two groups: non-syndromic ichthyosis and syndromic ichthyosis. Non-syndromic ichthyosis is a group of various skin diseases with genetic and clinical heterogeneity. In this group, ichthyosis vulgaris and recessive X-linked ichthyosis are common and are often of delayed onset. Correct diagnosis of the molecular defects resulted from ichthyosis is useful for the prediction of the prognosis, genetic counseling (accurate risk assessment), prenatal diagnosis, and a better understanding of skin biology. However, the most essential and promising advantage of a precise molecular diagnosis is using gene therapy for its treatment, which may be considered as a subcategory of personalized medicine. This review is focused on the different aspects of non-syndromic ichthyoses pathophysiology.

Chronic wounds became a major public health problem leading to very high economic costs. They have a devastating impact upon patients, caregivers and the society in general, being a major source of patient morbidity. Even though all the advances, the role of antimicrobial agents is not clear.

We searched Medline/PubMed, Web of Science and Cochrane Database of Systemic Reviews, using the terms chronic wounds, patient morbidity, topic treatments, systemic treatments and education. Our focused was on the articles published since 2000.

The rationale use of anti-infectious agents is crucial particularly in a context of a global emergence of microbial resistance. In this situation higher interest has been created in the use of topical therapies to manage wound infection. Concerning the utilization of systemic antibiotics, they are used as last resort when topical treatments are unsuccessful to the healing process. Data from the literature recognized scarcities in the wound care knowledge in several healthcare professionals.

Clinical assessment of patient wound is crucial to select the best wound treatment. In this context educational strategies are urgent to meet the needs of different professional groups and levels of expertise to maximize effectiveness.