The Libyan journal of medicine
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Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) are highly prevalent in medical students around the world. However, there is no specific data on FGIDs in Tunisia. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of FGIDs in medical students according to the rome III criteria and to identify risk factors associated with these disorders. ⋯ In logistic regression, abnormal BMI (OR = 2.1, 95% CI= 1-4.3), living in school dormitory (OR = 3.7, 95% CI = 1.7-7.8), low water intake (OR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.1-4.2), digestive medication use (OR = 3.4, 95% CI= 1.3-8.5), and probable or definite anxiety (OR = 2.5, 95% CI = 1.1-5.8) were the five risk factors associated with FGIDs. We demonstrate a high prevalence of FGIDs (54.2%) among our students. Risk factors for FGIDs were abnormal BMI, living in school dormitory, low water intake, digestive medication use and anxiety.
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The mechanisms of diabetogenesis in children remain largely obscure. This study aimed to determine the impact of vitamin D and calcium supplementation on pancreatic β-cells function in terms of insulin secretion and sensitivity. This was a quasi-experimental study involving 30 obese and prepubescent Tunisian children (57% boys). ⋯ Hyperinsulinism and insulin-resistance decreased significantly by 56.67% (p < 0.0001) and 70.00% (p < 0.0001), respectively. Complete reversibility of these two disorders was noted in 26.6% of children. To conclude, in obese and prepubescent children, vitamin D and calcium supplementation led to the reversibility of the pancreatic β-cells dysfunction.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Pragmatic Clinical Trial
Effects of a structured health education on prevention of HIV risky behaviours among adolescents in Nigeria - a pragmatic randomized controlled trial.
Infection with HIV/AIDS continues to be a major public health concern around the world, particularly in low- and middle-income nations. To assess the effectiveness of structured health education on the prevention of HIV/AIDS risky behaviours among adolescents in secondary school. A pretest-posttest-control group randomized controlled trial where a sample of 647 adolescents was drawn from the population of 2,890 secondary school students and was block-randomized into the intervention (n = 400) and control (n = 224) groups. ⋯ There was no significant difference in the post-intervention risky behaviour between males and females in the rural (0.285), urban (0.179) and both schools together (p = 0.956). Post-intervention reduced risky behaviours more significantly in the intervention than in the control groups. HIV/AIDS health education should be part of schools' curriculum, guidance and counsellor teachers should be trained as HIV counsellors.
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Many COVID-19 infected people remain asymptomatic, and hence the diagnosis at first presentation remains a challenge. Assessment at a presentation in primary care settings is usually done by visual triaging and basic clinical examination. This retrospective study involved investigating the medical e-records of COVID-19 positive patients who presented to a COVID-19 centre in Qatar for July 2020. ⋯ Compared to the asymptomatic group, the symptomatic group had lower Ct values (age groups [21-30], [31-40], [41-50] and [51-60]), higher temperature (age groups [21-30] and [31-40], Ct ranges [20.01-25.00] and [25.01-30.00]), higher HR (age groups [21-30] and [31-40], Ct range [15.01-20.00]); and lower SpO2 (age groups [41-50] and [51-60], Ct ranges [15.01-20.00] and [35.01-40.00]). Compared with asymptomatic patients, symptomatic patients with COVID-19 are most likely to be febrile, tachycardic, hypoxic and having higher viral load. Higher viral load was associated with higher HR, higher temperature, lower SpO2, but there was no relation between viral load and age.
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The meniscus is a relatively avascular fibrocartilaginous structure that provides a key role in shock absorption and load transmission. However, accurate diagnosis of meniscal retear can present a clinical challenge. The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic review on the available literature, which compare the sensitivities, specificities, and accuracies of different diagnostic modalities of diagnosing knee meniscal retears in patients who have undergone surgical meniscal repair, such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Magnetic Resonance Arthrography with intraarticular contrast (direct MRA), and a combination of MRI and direct MRA. ⋯ We recommend the use of direct MRA for the diagnosis of meniscal retears due to its higher sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy as compared to MRI and its reduced cost and invasive nature as compared to second-look arthroscopy. However, our review is limited by the number of studies available on this topic. More studies using study designs such as randomized controlled trials, involving MRI, direct MRA, and combinations of such techniques, should be performed to accurately assess the different techniques and aid in designing guidelines to guide the diagnosis of meniscal retears following meniscal repair.