ABSTRACT
Objectives: Clinical trials are prospective studies on human subjects designed to answer various clinical questions. However, only a limited number of clinical trials have been conducted in Oman. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitudes of Omani patients and their relatives towards participating in clinical trials
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between October 2015 and March 2016 among 174 patients and relatives attending the Haematology and Oncology Outpatient Clinics and Day Care Unit of the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman. A self-administered questionnaire was designed to elicit participants' knowledge of and attitudes towards participation in clinical trials
Results: A total of 100 patients and relatives agreed to take part in the study [response rate: 57.5%]. The male-to-female ratio was 1:1.2. Only 31.3% of the studied population knew what clinical trials were and only 6.5% had themselves previously participated in a clinical trial. The majority agreed or strongly agreed that they would participate in clinical trials related to their own condition [59.2%]. Overall, 89.7% expected to be informed about potential clinical trials by their treating physicians
Conclusion: Omanis had a low level of knowledge of clinical trials and a very low rate of previous participation in such trials, despite a moderate level of interest. Patients should therefore be educated and informed of ongoing clinical trials in order to improve participation rates for clinical trials conducted in Oman
ABSTRACT
Objectives: A measure to increase the electroencephalogram [EEG] outcome includes a short period of nap sleep during a routine standard EEG with the aim of increasing its sensitivity to interictal abnormalities or provoking seizures. As part of an ongoing auditing of our EEG data, we aimed to investigate the contribution of nap sleep during routine outpatient department based EEGs requested for a variety of reasons
Methods: EEG data at the Department of Clinical Physiology at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Oman, from July 2006 to December 2007 and from January 2009 to December 2010 [total 42 months] were reviewed. The EEGs were for patients older than 13-years referred for possible epilepsy, blackouts, headache, head trauma, and other non-specified attacks. The recording period was between 20 to 40 minutes. Abnormalities were identified during waking and nap sleep periods
Results: A total of 2 547 EEGs were reviewed and 744 were abnormal [29.2%]. Of those abnormal EEGs, nap sleep was obtained in 258 [34.7%] EEGs, and 39 [15.1%] showed abnormalities during nap sleep. Nineteen out of the 39 [48.7%] EEGs were abnormal during awake and nap sleep; and 20 [51.3%] were abnormal during nap sleep, which represented only 2.7% of the total abnormal EEGs [n = 744]
Conclusions: The contribution of the short nap sleep to the pickup rate of interictal abnormalities in EEG was minimal. We recommend the EEG service to include one cycle of spontaneous sleep EEG directed at patients with a history suggestive of epilepsy if their awake EEGs are normal