Immediate outcome assessment of the rapid response team of home health care services at King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh.

Background: Paediatrics rapid response team (RRT) is a newly developed service under paediatrics home health care (HHC) programme which is a standby visiting team that responds to non-critical emergency calls. The current study aimed to compare the total emergency visits and hospital admissions before and after implementation of RRT project. Method: A retrospective chart review was conducted from December 2018 to December 2020. Paediatric patients registered under the home health care (HHC) programme were the target population. The admission and hospitalization rates were assessed before and after the implantation of an RRT. The variables related to patient profile were assessed to explore the association between hospitalization and admission. Result: Data for 117 patients and a total of 114 calls attended under HHC covered by RRT were analysed. In the first year after the implementation of RRT, the mean number of ER visits per patient per year was reduced from 4.78 ± 6.10 to 3.93 ± 4.12 with (P value, 0.06). Also, a slight decrease in the mean number of admissions from 3.74 ± 4.43 to a mean of 3.46 ± 4.1 with (P value, 0.29). Follow-up after receiving an RRT call for an initial complaint was statistically significant in reducing both ER visits and hospital admissions within 7 days with a P value of 0.03 and 0.04, respectively. Conclusion: The RRT was effective in decreasing the ER visits and hospital admissions for a very special group of patients. Additionally, the emplacement of proper triaging code at the time of attending to patients helped in reducing unnecessary ER visit and hospital admission.

A Novel Mutation of the CYP11B2 in a Saudi Infant with Primary Hypoaldosteronism.

Isolated hypoaldosteronism is a rare autosomal recessive disease presenting with severe salt wasting and failure to thrive in infancy. A 6-month-old Saudi girl born to consanguineous parents was referred from primary health care for failure to thrive and developmental delay. Laboratory tests revealed hyponatremia, hyperkalemia, and metabolic acidosis with high renin and low aldosterone. Blood samples were collected for endocrine and genetic studies. Sequence analysis of the CYP11B2 revealed a T to A transition at position 1398 + 2 in exon 8 of the gene in a homozygous state (c.1398+T>A). This result was confirmed by sequencing an independent PCR product. Given the position of the transition at a highly conserved nucleotide and the predictions of different bioinformatic algorithms, it is likely that the mutation is the pathogenic cause of this condition. This result was compared with the reference NM_000498.3. Here, we report a novel homozygous mutation resulting in aldosterone synthase deficiency. To the best of our knowledge, this mutation has not been described in the literature or in any database thus far. The mutation manifested as a rare inherited disease in an infant exhibiting critical salt loss. An adequate replacement treatment will give a good long-term prognosis.

Prevalence of Body Dysmorphic Disorder and its Association With Body Features in Female Medical Students.

BACKGROUND: Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is a distressing psychiatric disorder. So far there have not been any studies on BDD in Saudi Arabia. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of body dysmorphic disorder in female medical students and to investigate whether there is an association between BDD and body features of concern, social anxiety and symptoms of BDD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross sectional study was carried out on female medical students of the college of medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia during January to April, 2015. Data were collected using the body image disturbance questionnaire, Body dysmorphic disorder symptomatology and social interaction anxiety scale. Descriptive statistics, bivariate and multivariate analysis were used to analyze the results. RESULTS: Out of 365 students who filled out the questionnaire, 4.4% (95% confidence intervals (CI): 2.54% to 7.04%) were positive for BDD with skin (75%) and fat (68.8%) as the most frequent body features of concern. Ten features (skin, fat, chest, hips, buttocks, arms, legs, lips, fingers, and shoulders) out of twenty-six were significantly associated with BDD. Arms and chest were independently associated with BDD. The odds of presence of body concern related to "arms" was 4.3 (95% C.I: 1.5, 12.1) times more in BDD subjects than non-BDD subjects, while concern about "chest" was 3.8 (1.3, 10.9) times more when compared to non-BDD subjects. No statistically significant association was observed between BDD and social anxiety (P = 0.13). CONCLUSIONS: This was the first study conducted in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) on female medical students, which quantified the prevalence of BDD and identified the body features associated with it. Body dysmorphic disorder is prevalent in female medical students but it is relatively rare and an unnoticed disorder.