ABSTRACT
Introduction Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is the leading source of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients in Saudi Arabia. Currently, there is no literature on VTE knowledge and awareness among hospitalized patients in Saudi Arabia's western region. Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the hospitalized patients' awareness and perceptions of VTE and associated thromboprophylaxis in surgical wards in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 301 patients who were admitted to the surgical ward in the Al-Noor Hospital for more than three days, between September and November 2021. Results The study found that patients who had higher education levels, and who were currently or previously receiving pharmacological/non-pharmacological thromboprophylaxis had a significantly higher knowledge score regarding VTE (p = < 0.05). On the other hand, a non-significant relationship was found between knowledge scores and age, gender, the reason for admission, and personal or family history of VTE (p = > 0.05). Spearman's correlation analysis also revealed a highly significant positive correlation between the patients' knowledge and attitude scores (r=0.21, p=<0.001). Conclusion This study revealed a lack of awareness among hospitalized patients about VTE, clinical presentation, and risk factors. Therefore, we encourage health care providers to educate patients about them.
ABSTRACT
Undesirable side effects of medication are inevitable. Due to the role of the kidneys in clearance and filtration, the renal system faces a unique situation when it comes to the side effects of drugs. It has an important role for different classes of drugs to be excreted, and drugs are a key factor for this system to be at risk. Medications in articles were divided into classes using the standard set by the Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal. Many drug classes cause renal insults. The top six classes were pain killers, antibiotics, proton pump inhibitors, antidiabetics, antihyperlipidemics, and agents for erectile dysfunction. Renal insults caused by these agents could vary in severity. Some drugs could cause nephrotoxicity from one dose, while others may only need continuous monitoring. Different populations also operate under different rules, as some people need dose adjustments while others who are medically free of major illnesses do not. A variety of unfavorable outcomes for the kidney could take place, such as acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, and end-stage renal disease, and unfortunately, some of these issues could lead to the need for renal replacement therapies. The outcome of this review paper will help multidisciplinary physicians to understand the renal side effects of the most used drug classes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, their destructive mechanisms, and most importantly, the clinical presentations of renal dysfunction in relation to each class. Emphasizing these adverse effects will prevent future unfavorable outcomes, especially in commonly used drugs that are frequently prescribed for different age groups. Moreover, some of these drugs are considered to be over-the-counter medications, which makes them a serious problem that needs to be handled cautiously.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is defined as a chronic metabolic disorder characterized by persistent high blood glucose. Proper insulin injection is indispensable to achieve adequate control of DM and prevent complications. Therefore, this study aims to assess the knowledge of DM patients about their insulin injection techniques. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A questionnaire-based and cross-sectional study was carried out from January to March 2020 at three locations in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. The inclusion criteria of research subjects included patients diagnosed with type-1 or type-2 DM and using insulin pen injection. The questionnaire included demographic data including age, gender, nationality, educational level, and chronic disease as well as specific questions about insulin injection technique. RESULTS: Four hundred and thirty-seven DM patients participated in the study. The most prevalent age group was between 20 and 60 years old (69.1%). The vast majority of patients were females (64.1%), Saudi nationals (92.9%), and residents of Makkah city (70%). There were roughly equal numbers of patients with type-1 and type-2 DM (47% and 53%, respectively). With regard to complications of DM, 19.5% of patients had previous acidosis, and 16.5% of patients were admitted to hospital for various complications. Injection-related complications were reported by almost half of the patients (49.9). The knowledge of insulin injection practices was examined among DM patients according to different variables. Only the frequency of administration exhibited a significant difference in the practices toward proper insulin injection technique (p = 0.049); patients who administered insulin injection three times daily had the best practices toward insulin injection when compared to other patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed that the practices toward insulin use among the surveyed DM patients in Makkah region were not satisfactory. Poor insulin injection technique is an important modifiable risk factor for uncontrolled blood glucose levels. More awareness campaigns and better counseling initiatives are crucial to guarantee steady insulin levels among DM patients.
