Association between lifestyle choices and mental health among medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: Mental health is recognized as a critical component of public health Given the close relationship between mental health and life style and the importance of students as valuable human resources, the present study aimed at determining the relationship between life style and mental health among medical students in Sousse during COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional observational study in university students from the first to the fifth grade of the Faculty of Medicine of Sousse during the academic year 2020/2021. Data were collected anonymously via an online questionnaire published on the Facebook groups of each grade, on december 2020. The online survey consisted of three sections. The first one aimed to collect sociodemographic information. The second section of the survey addressed recent lifestyle choices and the third one assessed psychological distress using the French version of 12 items of The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). The significance level was considered 0.05. RESULTS: Overall 147 were studied. Using the bimodal scoring, the total score was between 0 and 12, to evoke psychiatric disorders, we set the threshold of 4. For our sample, the median scale was 7 [4-9], and more than half of the students (68%; n = 100) had a score higher than 4. Psychiatric disorder was significantly more frequent in female students (73.3% vs 42.3%; p = 0.002). Higher GHQ-scale was found in younger students, foreigners, students who need more than 30 minutes to get to the faculty, unemployed students, and students of fifth grade. However, differences were not statistically significant. Regarding lifestyle choices, we found that physical inactivity, no smoking habits, no alcohol use, no illicit substance use, other substance use, changing in eating habits, and absence of coping methods of stress were higher in students with psychiatric disorders. However, this association was statistically significant only for physical activity (p = 0.016). The results of the regression analysis suggest female gender as an independent predictor of high GHQ-12 scores. Practicing physical activity was found as protective factor for psychiatric disorders. CONCLUSION: Considering the vital role of medical students in providing and promoting community health, the need for more detailed planning and interventions to improve their life style and mental health is essential.

Trends of Healthcare-associated Infections in a Tuinisian University Hospital and Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Although efforts to manage coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have understandably taken immediate priority, the impacts on traditional healthcare-associated infection (HAI) surveillance and prevention efforts remain concerning. AIM: To describe trends in HAIs in a Tunisian university hospital through repeated point prevalence surveys over 9 years, assess the impact of measures implemented for COVID-19 pandemic, and to identify associated factors of HAI. METHODS: The current study focused on data collected from annual point prevalence surveys conducted from 2012 to 2020. All types of HAIs as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were included. Data collection was carried out using NosoTun plug. Univariate and multivariate logistic analysis were used to identify HAI risk factors. RESULTS: Overall, 2729 patients were observed in the 9 surveys; the mean age was 48.3 ± 23.3 years and 57.5% were male. We identified 267 infected patients (9.8%) and 296 HAIs (10.8%). Pneumonia/lower respiratory tract infections were the most frequent HAI (24%), followed by urinary tract infection (20.9%).The prevalence of infected patients increased from 10.6% in 2012 to 14.9% in 2020. However, this increase was not statistically significant. The prevalence of HAIs increased significantly from 12.3% to 15.5% (P =.003). The only decrease involved is bloodstream infections (from 2% to 1%). Independent risk factors significantly associated with HAI were undergoing surgical intervention (aOR = 1.7), the use of antibiotic treatment in previous 6 months (aOR = 1.8), peripheral line (aOR=2), parenteral nutrition (aOR=2.4), urinary tract within 7 days (aOR=2.4), central line (aOR = 6.3), and prosthesis (aOR = 12.8), length of stay (aOR = 3), and the year of the survey. Young age was found as protective factor (aOR = .98). CONCLUSION: Contrary to what was expected, we noticed an increase in the HAIs rates despite the preventive measures put in place to control the COVID-19 pandemic. This was partly explained by the vulnerability of hospitalized patients during this period.