Tag: nevin manimala

BMC Public Health. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):2207. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-14660-1.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Nigeria is among the top five countries in the world with the highest under-five mortality rates. In addition to the general leading causes of under-five mortality, studies have shown that disparity in sociocultural values and practices across ethnic groups in Nigeria influence child survival, thus there is a need for scientific validation. This study quantified the survival probabilities and the impact of socioeconomic and demographic factors, proximate and biological determinants, and environmental factors on the risk of under-five mortality in Nigeria.

METHODS: The Kaplan-Meier survival curve, Nelson Aalen hazard curve, and components survival probabilities were estimated. The Exponential, Gamma, Log-normal, Weibull, and Cox hazard models in a Bayesian mixed effect hierarchical hazard modeling framework with spatial components were considered, and the Deviance and Watanabe Akaike information criteria were used to select the best model for inference. A [Formula: see text] level of significance was assumed throughout this work. The 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey dataset was used, and the outcome variable was the time between birth and death or birth and the date of interview for children who were alive on the day of the interview.

RESULTS: Findings show that the probability of a child dying within the first two months is 0.04, and the probability of a boy child dying before attaining age five is 0.106, while a girl child is 0.094 probability. Gender, maternal education, household wealth status, source of water and toilet facility, residence, mass media, frequency of antenatal and postnatal visits, marital status, place of delivery, multiple births, who decide healthcare use, use of bednet are significant risk factors of child mortality in Nigeria. The mortality risk is high among the maternal age group below 24 and above 44years, and birth weight below 2.5Kg and above 4.5Kg. The under-five mortality risk is severe in Kebbi, Kaduna, Jigawa, Adamawa, Gombe, Kano, Kogi, Nasarawa, Plateau, and Sokoto states in Nigeria.

CONCLUSION: This study accentuates the need for special attention for the first two months after childbirth as it is the age group with the highest expected mortality. A practicable way to minimize death in the early life of children is to improve maternal healthcare service, promote maternal education, encourage delivery in healthcare facilities, positive parental attitude to support multiple births, poverty alleviation programs for the less privileged, and a prioritized intervention to Northern Nigeria.

PMID:36443732 | DOI:10.1186/s12889-022-14660-1

BMC Psychiatry. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):737. doi: 10.1186/s12888-022-04403-2.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in serious mental health conditions, particularly among older adults. This research explored the prevalence of COVID-19-related anxiety and its associated factors among older adults residing in Bangladesh.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,045 older Bangladeshi adults aged ≥ 60 years through telephone interviews in September 2021. A semi-structured interview schedule was used to collect data on participants’ characteristics and COVID-19-related anxiety. The anxiety level was measured using the Bengali version of the five-point Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS). A linear regression model explored the factors associated with COVID-19-related anxiety.

RESULTS: Overall, the prevalence of COVID-19-related anxiety was 23.2%. The regression analysis revealed that the average COVID-19-related anxiety score was significantly higher among females (β: 0.43, 95% CI: 0.05 to 0.81), and among those who faced difficulty getting medicine (β: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.16 to 0.97), felt isolated (β: 0.60, 95% CI: 0.24 to 0.95), and felt requiring additional care during the pandemic (β: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.16 to 0.91). Alternatively, the average COVID-19-related anxiety score was significantly lower among those who were widowed (β: -0.46, 95% CI: -0.87 to -0.04) and living distant from the health centre (β: -0.48, 95% CI: -0.79 to -0.17).

CONCLUSION: The findings of the present study suggest providing immediate psychosocial support package to the older adults, particularly females and those who are vulnerable to receive health and social care support during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh.

PMID:36443729 | DOI:10.1186/s12888-022-04403-2

BMC Public Health. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):2200. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-14641-4.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Enterobius vermicularis (pinworm) is a common intestinal parasitic infection in children. A gradual decrease in the prevalence of pinworm infection has been noted in resource-rich settings, such as Taiwan. However, the influence of sociodemographic factors on the temporal trend in pinworm infection rates in children under the current pinworm infection prevention policy in Taiwan is not well characterized. This study aimed to evaluate the trend of pinworm infection prevalence and the associated factors among children in Hualien County, Taiwan.

METHODOLOGY: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, we included a total of 56,197 students (aged 6-10 years) in grades 1 and 4 in Hualien in 2009-2018. Children were screened for pinworm infection using adhesive cellophane perianal swabs in the routine student health examination. Logistic regression was conducted to evaluate the factors associated with pinworm infection. Associations between dependent and independent variables were measured by odds ratios. The Cochran-Armitage test was used to assess whether there were significant trends in different stratifications. Variables with P-values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant.

RESULTS: A total of 56,197 school-age children from grades 1 and 4 during 2009-2018 were included. Young age and male sex were risk factors for pinworm infection (P < 0.001). A negative correlation between body mass index and enterobiasis was observed, and decreased pinworm infection was noted during the study reference period. Children living in suburban and rural areas had higher odds of having a pinworm infection than those living in urban areas (P < 0.001). A significant decrease in the overall prevalence rate of pinworm infection was observed among children in 2009-2018 (P < 0.001). However, there was no obvious change in the pinworm infection rate in rural areas during this period (P = 0.953), and it was higher than that in urban and suburban areas.

CONCLUSIONS: The overall prevalence of pinworm infection gradually decreased from 2009 to 2018 among school-age children in Hualien. However, there was no declining trend in pinworm infection in rural areas. Young age, male sex, and rural residence were significantly associated with pinworm infection. Pinworm infection remains a major public health concern among children in rural areas of Hualien.

PMID:36443706 | DOI:10.1186/s12889-022-14641-4

BMC Infect Dis. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):893. doi: 10.1186/s12879-022-07893-3.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The infection rate of human papillomavirus (HPV) is high in the coastal regions of China. However, the infection rate among high-risk genotypes of women in Putian City is unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to analyse the epidemiology of high-risk HPV infection among women in Putian and provide a reference for the diagnosis, treatment and vaccination of cervical cancer in this region.

METHODS: The data used were obtained from the Chinese government’s public health program (“Cervical and Breast Cancer Screening Project”). A total of 40,693 female cervical cell exfoliation samples screened for high-risk HPV at the Affiliated Hospital of Putian University from July 2020 to December 2021 were enrolled. DNA was extracted using a fully automatic extractor. Then, 14 high-risk genotypes of HPV were detected by polymerase chain reaction. The characteristics of HPV infection, distribution of high-risk genotypes, infection types and thinprep cytologic test (TCT) classification at different age groups were analysed.

RESULTS: Among the 40,693 samples, 3899 were infected with HPV, with an infection rate of 9.6%. Accordingly, HPV infection rates gradually increased with age, and statistically significant differences were observed among age groups (χ² = 74.03, P < 0.01). The infection rates of high-risk HPV52, HPV58 and HPV16 were in the top three and increased with age. Single infection was dominant (84.7%), followed by double infections (12.7%). The cervical cytology of 3899 HPV-positive people can be classified into negative for intraepithelial lesion and malignancy (NILM, 88.0%), atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US, 6.6%), atypical squamous cells-cannot exclude high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (ASC-H, 1.4%), low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (LSIL, 3.2%) and high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL, 0.8%). HPV16 infection rate increased with increasing severity of cervical cytology (χ²_trend = 43.64, P < 0.01), whereas the infection rates of HPV52 (χ²_trend = 13.89, P < 0.01) and HPV58 (χ²_trend = 13.50, P < 0.01) showed opposite trends.

CONCLUSION: The infection rate of female HPV high-risk screening in this region was 9.6% and mainly involved single infections. In addition, HPV16, HPV52 and HPV58 were closely related to the severity of cervical cytology. Effective screening, vaccination and education are needed. The 9-valent vaccine will be effective in reducing cervical pre-invasive disease. It would also be reasonable to state that the rising trend in HPV infection and high grade cytology with age emphasises the need to target older women with screening. Vaccination of younger women (aged ≤ 25) will lay the foundation for better cancer outcomes in the future.

PMID:36443703 | DOI:10.1186/s12879-022-07893-3

BMC Anesthesiol. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):364. doi: 10.1186/s12871-022-01901-4.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Maintaining patent airways is vital in pediatric anesthetic management. Failure to manage and anticipate difficult laryngoscopy (DL) preoperatively is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Data on the predictive values of screening parameters in predicting DL are limited in children. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the predictive value of the modified Mallampati test (MMT), upper lip bite test (ULBT), thyromental distance (TMD), and ratio of height to thyromental distance (RHTMD) in predicting DL in children aged 5-12 years at selected Addis Ababa governmental hospitals in Ethiopia.

METHODS: A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted on 141 elective pediatric surgical patients aged 5 to 12 years selected using a systematic random sampling technique at three governmental hospitals from December 1, 2021, to April 30, 2022. The collected data were entered and analysed by SPSS version 26. Chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests were used to compare categorical variables. The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to compare the accuracy of MMT, ULBT, TMD, and RHTMD against DL. A P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS: The magnitude of DL was 15.6%. MMT has the highest sensitivity (86.4%), specificity (91.6%), and negative predictive value (NPV) (97.3%) compared to other tests. The ULBT also has a high sensitivity (72.7%) and specificity (84%) with comparable diagnostic accuracy (90.8%) with the MMT (P < 0.05). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), NPV, and accuracy of TMD were 63.6%, 95.8%, 73.7%, 93.4%, and 82.2%, respectively. The RHTMD has the lowest specificity (63.6%), PPV (22.5%), NPV (91.4%), and accuracy (56.7%) in predicting DL.

CONCLUSION: The MMT and ULBT are good screening tests, followed by the TMD in predicting DL, while the RHTMD was the least accurate predictor. Because no single test has 100% predictive value, a combination of screening tests is advised in pediatrics for predicting DL.

PMID:36443701 | DOI:10.1186/s12871-022-01901-4

BMC Palliat Care. 2022 Nov 28;21(1):209. doi: 10.1186/s12904-022-01094-0.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Early palliative care (PC) has shown beneficial effects for advanced cancer patients. However, it is still debated what criteria to use to identify patients for PC referral.

AIM: To document the initial steps of the development of the Palliative Care Referral System (PCRS), a tool to be used by oncologists in clinical practice.

METHODS: A multiprofessional working group developed the PCRS based on the results of a scoping literature review on PC referral criteria. PCRS criteria were evaluated by experts via a nominal group technique (NGT). Descriptive statistics were used to summarize expert scores on relevance, appropriateness and perceived feasibility of the criteria proposed. Quotations of participants during the discussion were also reported.

RESULTS: Sixteen studies, including PC referral criteria/tools, emerged from the scoping review. Severe symptoms, poor performance status, comorbidities and prognosis were the most commonly used criteria. The PCRS included nine major criteria and nine assessment methods; a scoring procedure was also proposed. Answers to the questionnaire during the NGT showed that five criteria reached full agreement on all items, while four did not, and were then discussed within the group. Participants agreed on the relevance of all criteria and on the appropriateness of methods proposed to assess most of them, while issues were raised about potential feasibility of the overall assessment of the PCRS in clinical practice.

CONCLUSION: The PCRS has been developed as an help for oncologists to timely identify patients for specialized PC referral. Since feasibility emerged as the main concern, implementation strategies have to be tested in subsequent studies.

PMID:36443700 | DOI:10.1186/s12904-022-01094-0

BMC Cancer. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):1226. doi: 10.1186/s12885-022-10331-x.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Cervical cancer is one of the most common cancer types among women in developing countries. Women’s behavior in the early detection of the disease is influenced by sociocultural factors. Thus, the present study aimed to determine the effect of an educational intervention based on PEN-3 model on women’s participation in cervical cancer screening.

METHODS: The present quasi-experimental study was conducted with 160 women participants visiting health care centers in Bandar Abbas in 2021. The sampling was as a multi-stage clustering, and the participants were divided into two groups, an intervention and a control (each with 80 participants). The data collection instrument was a researcher-made questionnaire based on the PEN-3 model constructs before and 3 months after an educational intervention (a training course). The intervention involved 30 online sessions of 15-20 minutes for the intervention group while the control group did not receive any training.

RESULTS: After the educational intervention, the mean scores of knowledge, attitude, enablers, nurturers and the Pap smear test behavior in the experimental group increased significantly compared to the control group (P < 0.05). The analysis of covariance results showed that by modulating the effect of pre-test score, there was a statistically significant difference between the intervention and control groups in the post-intervention behavior score.

CONCLUSION: In the light of the present findings, it can be concluded that interventions based on the PEN-3 model with a focus on knowledge -raising, changing beliefs and identifying sociocultural and environmental factors that affect cervical cancer screening behavior can prevent cervical cancer in women.

PMID:36443696 | DOI:10.1186/s12885-022-10331-x

BMC Cancer. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):1223. doi: 10.1186/s12885-022-10230-1.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Paclitaxel plus S-1(PTXS) has shown definite efficacy for advanced gastric cancer. However, the efficacy and safety of this regimen in neoadjuvant setting for locally advanced gastric cancer (LAGC) are unclear. This study aimed to compare the efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) PTXS and oxaliplatin plus S-1 (SOX) regime for patients with LAGC.

METHODS: A total of 103 patients with LAGC (cT3/4NanyM0/x) who were treated with three cycles of neoadjuvant SOX regimen (n = 77) or PTXS regimen (n = 26) between 2011 and 2017 were enrolled in this study. NAC-related clinical response, pathological response, postoperative complication, and overall survival were analyzed between the groups.

RESULTS: The baseline data did not differ significantly between both groups. After NAC, the disease control rate of the SOX group (94.8%) was comparable with that of the PTXS group (92.3%) (p = 0.641). Twenty-three cases (29.9%) in the SOX group and 10 cases (38.5%) in the PTX group got the descending stage with no statistical difference (p = 0.417). No significant differences were observed in the overall pathological response rate and the overall postoperative complication rate between the two groups (p > 0.05). There were also no differences between groups in terms of 5-year overall and disease-free survival (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: The validity of NAC PTXS was not inferior to that of SOX regimen for locally advanced gastric cancer in terms of treatment response and overall survival. PTXS regimen could be expected to be ideal neoadjuvant chemotherapy for patients with LAGC and should be adopted for the test arm of a large randomized controlled trial.

PMID:36443694 | DOI:10.1186/s12885-022-10230-1

BMC Plant Biol. 2022 Nov 29;22(1):550. doi: 10.1186/s12870-022-03946-6.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Saussurea is one of the most species-rich genera in the Cardueae, Asteraceae. There are approximately 40 Saussurea species distributed in Korea, with nearly 40% of them endemics. Infrageneric relationships remain uncertain due to insufficient resolutions and low statistical support. In this study, we sequenced the plastid genomes of five Korean endemic Saussurea (S. albifolia, S. calcicola, S. diamantica, S. grandicapitula, and S. seoulensis), and comparative analyses including two other endemics (S. chabyoungsanica and S. polylepis) were conducted.

RESULTS: The plastomes of Korean endemics were highly conserved in gene content, order, and numbers. Exceptionally, S. diamantica had mitochondrial DNA sequences including two tRNAs in SSC region. There were no significant differences of the type and numbers of SSRs among the seven Korean endemics except in S. seoulensis. Nine mutation hotspots with high nucleotide diversity value (Pi > 0.0033) were identified, and phylogenetic analysis suggested that those Korean endemic species most likely evolved several times from diverse lineages within the genus. Moreover, molecular dating estimated that the Korean endemic species diverged since the late Miocene.

CONCLUSIONS: This study provides insight into understanding the plastome evolution and evolutionary relationships of highly complex species of Saussurea in Korean peninsula.

PMID:36443690 | DOI:10.1186/s12870-022-03946-6

BMC Geriatr. 2022 Nov 28;22(1):910. doi: 10.1186/s12877-022-03548-9.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Multimorbidity is highly prevalent and associated with several adverse health outcomes, including functional limitations. While maintaining physical functioning is relevant for all adults, identifying those with multimorbidity at risk for faster rates of physical functioning decline may help to target interventions to delay the onset and progression of disability. We quantified the association of multimorbidity with rates of long-term disability and objective physical functioning decline.

METHODS: In the Health and Retirement Study, we computed the Multimorbidity-Weighted Index (MWI) by assigning previously validated weights (based on physical functioning) to each chronic condition. We used an adjusted negative binomial regression to assess the association of MWI with disability (measured by basic and instrumental activities of daily living [ADLs, IADLs]) over 16 years, and linear mixed effects models to assess the association of MWI with gait speed and grip strength over 8 years.

RESULTS: Among 16,616 participants (mean age 67.3, SD 9.7 years; 57.8% women), each additional MWI point was associated with a 10% increase in incidence rate of disability (IRR: 1.10; 95%CI: 1.09, 1.10). In 2,748 participants with data on gait speed and grip strength, each additional MWI point was associated with a decline in gait speed of 0.004 m/s (95%CI: -0.006, -0.001). The association with grip strength was not statistically significant (-0.01 kg, 95%CI: -0.73, 0.04). The rate of decline increased with time for all outcomes, with a significant interaction between time and MWI for disability progression only.

CONCLUSION: Multimorbidity, as weighted on physical functioning, was associated with long-term disability, including faster rates of disability progression, and decline in gait speed. Given the importance of maintaining physical functioning and preserving functional independence, MWI is a readily available tool that can help identify adults to target early on for interventions.

PMID:36443663 | DOI:10.1186/s12877-022-03548-9