Ozone therapy in postgraduate theses in Egypt: systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Systematic reviews of the studies published in the major medical data bases have not shown solid support for the use of ozone therapy. Unpublished or grey literature, including postgraduate theses, may solve this controversy. OBJECTIVES: To review the postgraduate theses published in Egypt in order to assess the clinical safety and effectiveness of ozone therapy in specific medical conditions. METHODS: The databases of the Egyptian Universities' Library Consortium and the databases of each university were searched for postgraduate theses that evaluated ozone therapy as an intervention for any disease or condition in any age group, compared with any or no other intervention and published before September 2010. RESULTS: A total of 28 quasi trials were included. The theses did not report any safety issues in terms of ozone therapy. With respect to its effectiveness, the studies suggested some benefits of ozone in the treatment of dental infection and recovery, musculoskeletal disorders, diabetes mellitus, chronic diseases, and obstetrics and gynaecology. However, the number of studies included was small and they were of limited quality. CONCLUSION: There is insufficient evidence to recommend the use of ozone in the treatment of dental infections, in facilitating faster dental recovery after extraction or implantation, in diabetes mellitus, musculoskeletal disorders, or obstetrics and gynaecology.

The use of and out-of-pocket spending on complementary and alternative medicine in Qassim province, Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The current picture of the Saudis' use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has not yet been developed. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of using the international questionnaire to measure use of complementary and alternative medicine (I-CAM-Q) in Saudi Arabia to evaluate the use of and out-of-pocket spending on CAM. DESIGN AND SETTINGS: It was a cross-sectional study, conducted in 2011, in primary health care centers in Qassim. METHODS: In a multistage sampling technique, 12 primary health care centers were selected randomly in the Al-Qassim province in Saudi Arabia. From each center, 100 attendants were interviewed for a total of 1160 completed questionnaires. RESULTS: A total of 74% of subjects had visited CAM providers in 12 months before the survey. This percentage decreased to 47.6% when spiritual healers were excluded. The specific CAM providers who were visited were spiritual healers (26.7%), herbalists (23.2%), providers of honeybee products (14.9%), and hijama (wet cupping; 13%). Chronic illnesses were the main reason for the visits. A total of 50% of subjects were satisfied with their visit. Physicians were the providers of CAM for 11.3% of the participants. More than 75% of the subjects used herbs in the previous 12 months for medical and health reasons, while only 25% used vitamins or minerals. Self-help was used in 26% of the participants. Relaxation (10.3%) was the most common self-CAM practice followed by meditation (6.7%). The subjects spent 350000 (US$) on CAM visits and 300000 (US$) purchasing CAM products. CONCLUSIONS: I-CAM-Q can be used in different populations and cultures in the East including Saudi Arabia after customization to overcome its limitations, as the questionnaire was developed in Western societies.

Use of the target group index survey to evaluate the cigarette smoking profile in Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVE: To draw a profile, and study the media habits for cigarette smokers in Saudi Arabia using the Target Group Index survey (TGI). METHODS: A household survey using the TGI sample was conducted in March 2008 in 21 cities in Saudi Arabia. A sample of 7003 individuals aged 15 years or more, male and females, living in town and cities, were randomly selected using the multistage sampling technique. One individual per household was interviewed using a structured questionnaire covering socio-economic profile, media exposure, and cigarette consumer information. The study was conducted in Arabian Center for Tobacco Control, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. RESULTS: Cigarette smoking was 35.9% in males, and 2.3% in females. This was significantly higher in the age group 30-49 years compared with younger ages (p=0.001). Among smokers, 22.3% were heavy smokers, 69.3% were using regular flavor cigarettes, and 22.4% tried to quit smoking but failed. The most common methods of quitting smoking were; nicotine gum (18.5%), hypnosis (14%), nicotine patch (8%), and acupuncture (3%). Ninety-eight percent of the smokers watched TV daily, noticed mainly big outdoor ads, and 46% used the Internet daily. Favorite TV and radio channels, newspaper, magazine, and interesting topics for the smokers were recorded, and the main smoker profile was drawn. CONCLUSION: The TGI can be used to draw a smoker profile and identify different segments with the greatest opportunities to send anti-smoking messages.