Assessment of knowledge and practice of mammography and breast self-examination among the general female population in Asir region of KSA.

OBJECTIVE: Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and an increasing burden in terms of incidence, morbidity and mortality. It accounts for about 28.7% of all new cancers in women. In 2015, the Saudi cancer registry shows that breast cancer was graded first among women and it accounts for 16.7% of all cancers reported among Saudi nationals. This study was designed to assess breast cancer screening knowledge and practices among women in the Asir region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study recruiting 1,021 female participants was performed. The variables included breast cancer knowledge, socio-demographic features, breast self-examination knowledge and practice. Descriptive statistics was used to compare and analyze the collected data while chi-square test was used to check the statistical significance among the selected variables. Saudi married women from Asir region were the participants of this cross-sectional study. RESULTS: Our findings suggested that participants had a satisfactory level of knowledge about breast self-examination and mammograms at a rate of > 90% and 44.76% respectively. Over 90% of participants had good breast self-exam knowledge, however, only 6.37% was always performed breast self-examination. Similarly, nearly 40% of participants performed mammograms, while 40.5% were unaware. Leaflets and doctors were the primary sources of information for participants regarding the information of breast cancer screening. CONCLUSIONS: Breast self-examination is a crucial approach to the timely detection of breast cancer and is subsequently critical for effective treatment. From the findings of this study we concluded that most women in the Asir region have a good awareness of breast cancer screening methods. However, either screening of self-examination or mammogram for breast cancer was not carried out thoroughly and regularly. This means that we must continue to emphasize the importance of primary health care in the earliest stages of breast cancer.

Comparing heart risk scores to identify the most important risk factors for cardiovascular diseases.

OBJECTIVE: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the most common non-communicable disease and the leading cause of death worldwide. To reduce the global burden of CVD and related morbidity and mortality, early prediction of CVD risk is essential. Various tools are available to access the risk of cardiovascular disorders. In the present study, we evaluated four risk score calculators associated to CVD for superiority and most reliable CVD prognosis parameters. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In the present prospective study, we investigated the probability of CVD in 150 individuals, including both men and women, using four different cardiovascular risk assessment estimators (Framingham Risk Score [FRS] Calculator, Q-RISK calculator, Reynolds score calculator, and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk calculator) and evaluated how closely they were related to 16 selected parameters. The four risk estimators shared several common parameters, such as age, smoking status, and blood pressure; however, each of them also used some unique parameters. We used statistical analysis to reduce the number of parameters necessary to predict CVD. RESULTS: Statistical analysis revealed a significant correlation between the main factors responsible for CVD risk. The analysis revealed that out of the four risk calculators tested, the FRS calculator was superior to the others because it showed more significant corroboration with statistical tools and could better predict the most important prognostic factors in CVD. CONCLUSIONS: In all four risk estimators, the parameters that affected risk most significantly and conferred the most reliable CVD prognosis were age, weight, total cholesterol, and hemoglobin levels. With that FRS calculator was superior to the others.