Association Between Fear of COVID-19 and Death Anxiety with Moderator Role of Self-Regulation Among Older Adults Residing in Qazvin.

Background and Objectives: Fear of COVID-19 is common among older adults and negatively impacts on their physical and mental health. Self-regulation is an essential factor for controlling or managing excitement and anxiety. So, this study aimed to determine the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and death anxiety with the moderator role of self-regulation among the elderly residing in Qazvin. Method(s): This descriptive and cross-sectional study was performed on 430 elderly aged 60 and over living in Qazvin in 2021. Samples were selected by cluster sampling method. The demographic checklist, Templer death anxiety scale, fear of COVID-19 questionnaire, and Self-Regulation Inventory were used for collecting the data. The data were analyzed using the Path Analyze test. Result(s): The mean age of the elder participants in the study was 66.88 +/- 6.40 years old. The results showed a significant and positive relationship between fear of COVID-19 and death anxiety (beta=0.60, P<0.001) and an inverse association between fear of COVID-19 (beta=-0.24, P=0.021) and death anxiety (beta=-0.10, P=0.021) with self-regulation. Furthermore, the results of the Path analysis confirmed the moderator role of self-regulation in the association between fear of Covid-19 and death anxiety among the elderly residing in Qazvin, Iran. Conclusion(s): Given the mediator role of self-regulation in the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and death anxiety, it is suggested to use teaching strategies to the older adults to improve self-regulation to control and mitigate the negative impacts of the fear of COVID-19 in this vulnerable population.Copyright © 2022 The Authors.

Automated Covid-19 Disease Identification on Chest-Ct Images Using Cnn and Vgg16

The human respiratory system is most affected by COVID-19, a coronavirus illness that has been identified. Infectious disease COVID-19 was brought on by a virus that emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The key problem for healthcare professionals is early diagnosis. Medical organizations were confused in the early stages because there were no suitable medical tools or medications to detect COVID-19. Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction, a novel diagnostic technique, was released. The COVID-19 virus congregates in the patient's nose or throat, thus swab samples from those areas are collected. There are various accuracy and testing time restrictions with this method. Medical professionals advise using a different method called CT (Computerized Tomography), which can rapidly identify the infected lung regions and detect COVID-19 at an earlier stage. With the help of chest CT images, computer scientists created a number of deep learning models to recognize the COVID-19 condition. In this paper, a model for automatic COVID-19 recognition on chest CT images is presented that is based on Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and VGG16. A public dataset of 14320 CT scans was used in the experiment, and the findings revealed classification accuracy for CNN and VGG16 of 96.34% and 96.99%, respectively.Copyright © 2022, Anka Publishers. All rights reserved.

A Comparative Study of Screen Time and Its Effects in Pre-Covid and Covid-Era in Children of 5 to 15 Years

Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the screen time (ST) in pre-COVID and COVID era in children aged 5-15 years and to analyse the ST effect in pre-COVID and COVID era in the children. Method(s): The study was done at Vivekananda Polyclinic and Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow. Two hundred and seventy-six children aged between 5 and 15 years, attending outpatient department or inpatient department were enrolled in the study. Result(s): It was observed that the ST was significantly increased in post-COVID as compared to pre-COVID time and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.0001*). It was also observed that the screening time was significantly increased in post-COVID as compared to pre-COVID time and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.0001*). Conclusion(s): The present study found that when screening duration was analysed, the screening time during COVID-19 was significantly longer than the screening time before COVID-19 which may be associated with the various health problems reported among children during COVID-19 pandemic.Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Innovare Academic Sciences Pvt Ltd.

A Competing Stimuli Intervention Package to Treat Automatically Reinforced Destructive Behavior

Behaviors maintained by automatic reinforcement are often more difficult to treat due to difficulty with identifying the relevant maintaining variable(s). One common intervention to treat automatically maintained behavior includes competing stimuli. Competing stimuli promote item engagement which may replace challenging behavior (i.e., response competition). Competing stimuli have shown to be a widely successful intervention across diverse topographies of challenging behavior;however, few studies have evaluated the use of competing stimuli on destructive behavior. The purpose of the current study was to treat automatically maintained destructive behavior with a competing stimuli intervention package for an adolescent with developmental disabilities. Results showed a decrease in destructive behavior when access to competing stimuli was a component of an intervention package in a clinic setting. Also, preliminary data are provided showing treatment effects when caregivers implemented the intervention. Due to the complexity of the final intervention package, recommendations for clinicians are provided which focus on improving feasibility, practicality, and sustainability of treatment components.Copyright © The Author(s) 2022.

The Impact of Covid-19 on Physical and Mental Health of Children: A Descriptive Study

Background and Aim: The World Health Organization (WHO) acknowledged coronavirus epidemic as a pandemic and declared the outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern. Emerging research has suggested that these various restrictions, as well as the fear of the virus itself, may have caused children to experience negative mental health consequences. Due to increased amounts of time spent at home the parents need to be aware about the changes in the mental and physical health of the children. This study, thus aimed to survey the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on physical and mental health of school-going children. Material(s) and Method(s): A cross sectional survey was designed to analyse the impact of COVID-19 on the physical and mental health of children. The data is collected with the use of online survey platform. A semi structured questionnaire was developed with several open and close ended questions to examine the effect of lockdown on the mental and physical health of the children from parent-reported changes. Any mental health issues and emotional problems newly emerged or aggravated during lockdown were also enlisted. Another objective was to determine the level of awareness amongst parents about the importance of PA for the child. Result(s): A total of 200 children were included in the study. When the comparison was done in time from before and after lockdown, it was found that the hours spent on mobile were increased from 2 hours to 5 hours. There was significant decrease in the time spend for physical activity. A total of 65% of the respondents reported that there was change in the behaviour of the children. Around 58% of the children had shown the physical changes like eyestrain, fatigue, neck pain, head ache, lower back pain and major problem with increase in weight of children. Conclusion(s): More research is needed to improve our understanding of the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's mental health, especially with regards to the identification of protective factors found in children who may have been less affected by the pandemic. Copyright © 2023, Institute of Medico-legal Publication. All rights reserved.

Impact of a Virtual Behavioural Support Intervention on Improving Behaviour, Mental Health, and Academic Engagement and Motivation for Children with Adhd and Their Families: A Pilot Study

BACKGROUND: Children with ADHD struggle with their academic achievement, well-being, and social functioning. COVID-19 restrictions negatively impacted families of children with ADHD and limited their access to services. This led to the creation of the online ADHD-VIBES program (VIrtual BEhavioural Support Intervention for Children with ADHD). OBJECTIVE(S): To determine the efficacy of the ADHD-VIBES program to support families of children with ADHD in behavioural, mental health, academic motivation, and engagement challenges. DESIGN/METHODS: The ADHD-VIBES program was an online program created to support children with ADHD and their families. It consisted of separate parent and child sessions (1-hour each) for six weeks, targeting the development of self-regulation, positive thinking, communication, problem-solving and executive function skills. To our knowledge, there was no other online program offering the same program content during the pandemic. All children met the following criteria: confirmed ADHD based diagnosis of child on parent ratings on Conners-3 Rating Scale (T-score > 65);IQ score > 80 on the WASI-II abbreviated;and access to technology to join virtual groups. Parents completed the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC-3) and the Parenting Stress Index (PSI-4-SF) questionnaires. Children completed the BASC-3, the Executive Skills Questionnaire (ESQ), and the Motivation and Engagement Scale (MES). All questionnaires were completed at three different time-points: pre-intervention, post-intervention, and two-months after intervention. A survey was completed at the end of the intervention to determine level of satisfaction of parents towards the ADHD-VIBES. RESULT(S): A total of 12 boys between the ages of 8 to 11 years old (M = 9.62, SD = 0.94), and their caregivers, took part in this program (summer 2021). On the BASC-3, parents reported significantly lower levels of depression and anxiety (F:5.65, p=.016;F:6.21, p=.012) after completion of the ADHDVIBES program. No significant difference was reported by the children on the BASC-3. On the PSI-4-SF, there was no statistical difference observed (parental distress p=0.244). Improvement associated with executive skills (ESQ) were noticed related to Planning/Preparation (F:4.86, p=.019), Time Management (F:7.08, p=.005) and Goal Directed Persistence (F:5.71, p=.011). On the MES, negative Motivation subscales scores demonstrated a decrease in raw scores (T1=40.78;T2=35.75;T3=30.98;p=.103). Finally, all parents (100%) were satisfied/very satisfied with the ADHD-VIBES intervention. CONCLUSION(S): The ADHD-VIBES online intervention showed promising improvement on some behavioural issues, and executive function skills. However, future randomized controlled studies with a larger sample size are required to better understand the impact of the intervention for children with ADHD and their parents.

Synchronous, group virtual delivery of a childhood weight program: Participation and effectiveness

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic interfered with delivery of childhood weight management programs. Get Up & Go is a community group program for children 6-14 years with BMI≥85th%ile and their families that provides fun learning about healthy nutrition, physical activity, and behavior change at no cost to families. The program is effective in improving %BMIp95, reported healthy lifestyle, and physical endurance. This study evaluates the participation and effect of a virtual delivery option offered starting winter 2021. Methods: Groups of 5-12 families met in-person at a YMCA or via synchronous virtual delivery. Parents chose setting. Each of the 10 weekly lessons lasted 60-90 minutes. Data include demographics and pre-and post-measured weights, heights, and parent-completed behavior assessment questionnaires (BAQ), with score range of 0-100, higher indicating healthier behavior. Graduation criterion is attendance at 6 of 9 non-orientation classes. Results: Among the registered families, 46 of 82 (56%) who chose virtual actually attended vs 40 of 56 (71%) who chose in-person (p = 0.07). Baseline characteristics of attenders did not differ (we report virtual, then in-person): mean age (SD) 11.1 (2.5) vs 11.1 (2.2) years, male 29 (63.0%) vs 23 (57.5%), Spanish-speaking 18 (39.1%) vs 12 (31.6%), severe obesity (≥120% BMIp95) in 39 (84.8%) vs 30 (75.0%), and baseline BAQ scores 34.9 (13.2) vs 37.2 (12.1). Virtual participants attended more classes than in-person participants: 7.3 (2.3) vs 6.1 (2.9), p = 0.04. More virtual participants met graduation criterion: 35 (87.5%) vs 24 (63.2%), p = 0.01. Among graduates with post-measures, mean change in %BMIp95 was -3.27 (6.20) for n = 32 virtual vs -1.09 (3.84) for n = 23 in-person, p = 0.11, and mean BAQ increase was 15.4 (13.1) for n = 34 virtual vs 11.4 (10.6) for n = 21 in-person, p = 0.25. Conclusions: The synchronous, group virtual delivery of the Get Up & Go program engaged similar participants, with higher attendance and no difference in %BMIp95 and BAQ outcomes, compared with contemporaneous in-person delivery. Continued virtual delivery option could expand the availability of this program without compromising effect.

Gaming addiction and its impact on emotional intelligence among school students during COVID – 19 pandemic

Background: Internet addiction has become a major issue all over the world. Internet addiction in adolescents could be a serious crisis comparable to drug addiction in terms of personal life, family relationships, social behavior, and academic standing. According to scientific evidence, people with higher emotional intelligence are less addicted to the internet. However, the type and strength of this relationship are still up for debate. Our study aims to understand the level of emotional intelligence and online game use among adolescents and emotional intelligence based on gender with the level of gaming addiction. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 417 adolescent children of age 10-19 in the schools of Dharmapuri district from March 2021 to April 2021. Simple Random Sampling techquine is used to select the schools and students. Game Addiction Scale for Adolescent (Jeroen S. Lemmens et al) and 30 Item Emotional Intelligence Scale (TEIQue-SF) was used as a standard tool. Results: A total of 471 children between the ages of 10 and 19 were included in the study. Game addiction received the lowest possible score of 21 and the best possible score of 105. The lowest possible score for emotional intelligence was 30, and the best possible score was 150. Males and girls had no statistically significant differences in gaming addiction and emotional intelligence at (p>0.05). There was a statistically significant correlation (p < 0.05) between tolerance and sociability, mood modification and self-control, relapse, and sociability. Conclusion: Excessive time spent in front of a computer and web overuse may be harmful to various aspects of their lives, including social, functional, physical, and psychological aspects, and may cause them to neglect other important priorities, putting them at risk for a variety of morbidities and, in the worst-case scenario, mortality. Happiness includes a variety of positive emotional and cognitive states, as well as the absence of depression.