Accessibility and consumption of alcoholic drinks in Metro Manila colleges and universities

@#<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>OBJECTIVE:</strong> Alcohol consumption of university students in Metro Manila was determined and compared to other countries in the region and in the West.<br /><strong>METHODS:</strong> A survey of students from ten randomly selected public and private universities in Metro Manila was done.<br /><strong>RESULTS:</strong> A total of 2,930 students participated, 46.1% from public schools and 58.9% were female. Of the total students, 81.6% had drank an alcoholic drink in their lifetime; and 15.6% drank beer, 22.5% drank wine and 11.4% drank distilled spirits before they were 13 years old. For the past 30 days, 30.2% drank beer, 30.8% distilled spirit and 18.7% wine; 16.9%, 7.4% and 19.7% binged on beer, wine and distilled spirits, respectively; and 29.1% got drunk. Five percent of the students had drank inside their school. Of those who drove any motorized vehicle, 28.9% drove when they had drank and of those who use prohibited drugs, 66.7% mixed the two. Thirty one percent said they tried to quit drinking in the past 12 months and 7.5% admitted they have a drinking problem.<br /><strong>CONCLUSION:</strong> Alcohol consumption of Metro Manila students approximates those of other countries. For policy and monitoring purposes, it is recommended that this survey be done regularly with a nationwide scope and compare this with other countries for best practices.</p>

Prevalence of graves ophthalmopathy among patients with thyroid disease

Objective@#This study determined the prevalence of Graves ophthalmopathy among thyroid-disease patients at a tertiary government hospital.@*Methods@#Patients with thyroid disease seen at a tertiary hospital from February to September 2007 were enrolled. All patients underwent ophthalmologic examination consisting of visual-acuity testing; exophthalmometry; examination for presence of lid retraction, lid lag, and lateral flare; globe position; external-ocular-muscle-movement grading; corneal light reflex; and direct funduscopic examination. All clinical findings were recorded and data were analyzed. Chi square and Fisher’s exact tests determined the association of gender and age to the different ocular signs and symptoms. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) compared the average number of ocular symptoms among the different age groups.@*Results@#A total of 121 patients, 20 males and 101 females, with thyroid disease were evaluated. 47.93% had Graves ophthalmopathy, occurring more frequently among patients aged between 30 and 49 years. The most common signs were eyelid retraction, proptosis, and lid lag.@*Conclusion@#Graves ophthalmopathy occurs frequently among patients with thyroid disease, especially those more than 30 years of age.