Readability of written medicine information materials in Arabic language: expert and consumer evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Written Medicine Information (WMI) is one of the sources that patients use to obtain information concerning medicine. This paper aims to assess the readability of two types of WMIs in Arabic language based on vocabulary use and sentence structure using a panel of experts and consumers. METHODS: This is a descriptive study. Two different types of materials, including the online text from King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Arabic Health Encyclopaedia (KAAHE) and medication leaflets submitted by the manufacturers to the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) were evaluated. We selected a group of sentences from each WMI. The readability was assessed by experts (n = 5) and consumers (n = 5). The sentence readability of each measured using a specific criteria and rated as 1 = easy, 2 = intermediate, or 3 = difficult. RESULTS: A total of 4476 sentences (SFDA 2231; KAHEE 2245) extracted from websites or patient information leaflets on 50 medications and evaluated. The majority of the vocabulary and sentence structure was considered easy by both expert (SFDA: 68%; KAAHE: 76%) and consumer (SFDA: 76%; KAAHE: 84%) groups. The sentences with difficult or intermediate vocabulary and sentence structure are derived primarily from the precautions and side effects sections. CONCLUSIONS: The SFDA and KAAHE WMIs are easy to read and understand as judged by our study sample. However; there is room for improvement, especially in sections related to the side effects and precautions.

Prevalence of Helicobacter Pylori among Sudanese children admitted to a specialized children hospital.

The infection by Helicobacter Pylori (HP), a gram-negative bacillus, is more prevalent in the developing countries, and more often among younger people reaching up to 10% of the population in comparison to only 0.5% in more developed world. Generally HP is asymptomatic in children. This study aimed to determining the prevalence of Hp among Sudanese children and to recognize associated epidemiological features. It was a prospective cross sectional study at Gaafar Ibn Aouf children hospital (GCH) in the period between December 2010 and May 2011. GCH is the largest specialized referral hospital in Khartoum and in the Sudan. Those who were diagnosed before as Hp positive were excluded. Full history, Physical examination was performed. A blood sample was taken from every patient and serum was kept at -20°C to be tested for Hp IgG antibodies through ELISA kit (Monobind; Inc., California, USA) as directed by the Manufacturer, and 20 U/mL for antibodies was considered significant and positive. Using SPSS Version 21, categorical variables were compared with Chi-square test where P < 0.05 was taken as statistically significant. This current study included 128/312 (40.1%) children admitted to the hospital who were +ve for HP (56.3% = male). The prevalence of HP is 56.3% among Sudanese children Prevalence of HP increased with age and was directly related to mother and father level of education, socioeconomic status and positive family history.