Home accidents in the community-dwelling elderly in Izmir, Turkey: how do prevalence and risk factors differ between high and low socioeconomic districts?

OBJECTIVE: To determine and compare the prevalence of and risk factors for home accidents in the elderly in two different districts. METHOD: This cross-sectional study involves 497 older participants ages 65 and older. Sociodemographic characteristics of the elderly and characteristics of the houses in two different regions are evaluated. Data are analyzed by chi-square and t test. RESULTS: The prevalence of home accidents was 39.3% in the low socioeconomic region and 13.1% in the high socioeconomic region within the past 6 months (p = .000). The most common type of home accident was fall (61.8%), followed by cut or piercing (22.0%). Home accidents are associated with being female and increasing age in the higher socioeconomic region, whereas being female, being unmarried, and living in a squatter house are associated with home accidents in the low socioeconomic region. DISCUSSION: The prevalence of home accidents in the elderly population who live in low socioeconomic region was higher.

Elder abuse and neglect in two different socioeconomic districts in Izmir, Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: To determine and compare the prevalence and risk factors of elder abuse in elderly population in two different districts in Izmir, Turkey. METHODS: This cross-sectional study involved 497 subjects selected by cluster sampling. RESULTS: The prevalence of physical and financial abuse among the elderly in the district of low socioeconomic status was 1.5% and 2.5%, respectively, while among the elderly in the district of high socioeconomic status, it was 2% and 0.3%, respectively. However, the prevalence of elder neglect in the two districts was 27.4% and 11.2%, respectively. Prevalence of neglect was associated with infrequent contact with relatives, little or no income, and fewer years of education among the elderly in the low socioeconomic district. In the high socioeconomic district, neglect was associated with fewer years in education, poor health status and having chronic status. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of abuse among the elderly living in the two different districts was low. However, nearly one-fifth of elderly people were exposed to neglect.

Perinatal outcomes and risk factors of Turkish adolescent mothers.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Adolescent pregnancy is considered a high risk for both the mother and infant. The aim of this study was to determine obstetric and neonatal outcomes and risk factors in adolescent pregnant women and to compare perinatal outcomes among the teen age groups and between adolescent and adult women. DESIGN: Retrospective study including adolescent pregnant women and adult women. SETTING: A public maternal hospital. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: This retrospective cohort study included 945 teenagers who gave birth at year 2004 in a maternity hospital in Izmir. Dependent variables included perinatal and maternal outcomes. Independent variables were miscellanous socio-demographic characteristics and obstetric complications. Chi-square, Fisher exact test, and t-tests were used for the comparison of the adolescent group and adult women. RESULTS: Overall, adolescents accounted for 11.8% of all deliveries in hospital. 99.7% of teenagers were unemployed, and 59.8% of those had no health insurance. 81.5% of the pregnant adolescents were nulliparous. 27.5% of teenagers gave birth by cesarean delivery. The rates of preterm birth and low birthweight of teen mothers were 18.2% and 12.1%, respectively. Twenty-eight percent of women had some obstetric and neonatal complications. The rate of preterm delivery was higher in adolescent mothers; however, cesarean delivery rate was higher in adult women (P = 0.000, P = 0.0002 respectively). Absence of health insurance, less education, and non-official marriage were significantly higher in pregnant women aged 17 years or younger compared with women aged 18-19 years (for all, P = 0.000). However, there was no statistically significant difference between the adolescent age groups regarding perinatal complications. CONCLUSION: The rates of pregnancy and the rates of adverse obstetric and neonatal outcomes were considerably higher in teenagers.

[The prevalence of Enterobius vermicularis in schoolchildren and affecting factors]. / Ilkokul ögrencilerinde Enterobius vermicularis varligi ve etkileyen etmenler.

This study was carried out in order to determine the factors affecting the presence of Enterobius vermicularis in schoolchildren. This investigation was a cross-sectional and analytic study. The dependent variable was the presence of parasites and the independent variables were the characteristics of the children, families, houses, toilets and drinking water. A stool specimen was taken in the morning using the cellophane tape method, and examined the same day by microscopy. Data were evaluated using the Chi square test and logistic regression analysis and p < 0.05 was accepted as being statistically significant. There were 529 students in the kindergarten and 1-5 classes in the Isikkent and Sait Guzelcan primary schools in the region of the Isikkent Health Center in Izmir. However specimens could only be obtained from 477 (90.2%) students. The mean age of children was 8.6+/-2.0 years. The number of residents in their homes averaged 5.4+/-2.0, the average number of children in the homes was 3.2+/-1.9 and 290 (60.8%) houses were single dwellings. The source for piped water in 404 houses (84.7%) was the city network, and there were modern sanitary facilities (toilets) in 377 (70.6%) houses. Enterobius vermicularis was found in 209 (43.8%) children. According to logistic regression analyses, the rate of Enterobius vermicularis was found to be 3.05 times higher in students from the Sait Guzelcan primary school, if there were more than 6 residents in the home 2.05 times even higher and 2.02 times still higher if there were no sanitary facilities at his/her home. When there was a history of parasites in the family, the risk was significantly decreased. The prevalence of Enterobius vermicularis in schoolchildren was higher in slum areas, in crowded homes and in those that lacked modern sanitary facilities.

The prevalence and risk factors of dementia in the elderly population in a low socio-economic region of Izmir, Turkey.

The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of and risk factors of dementia in the elderly with a low socio-economical status. The study is a cross-sectional and analytic study. Two hundred and four persons aged 65 years and above were selected by using the cluster sampling method. The presence of dementia was determined by Standardized Mini Mental State Examination (SMMSE). Twenty-three and 18 cut-off points were accepted as the existence of dementia in educated and uneducated older individuals, respectively. Chi-square test, Student's t-test, and logistic regression analysis were used for data analysis. The mean age of older subjects was 70.8+/-6.45 (S.D.); 71.5+/-5.9 in males and 70.3+/-6.8 in females (p=0.19). Ninety-one percent of older people had never attended school, 54.6% were living below the poverty level, and 97% of the residences were in squatter settlements. Dementia was determined in 46 older subjects (22.9%). Dementia was found significantly higher in females, in elderly subjects aged 80 years and above, in older subjects who were in a bad or very bad self-health status and in those who had a chronic disease, did not have any occupation, had a lower monthly income, and with a depressive score eight and above (p<0.05). In our study, the prevalence of dementia in older people was higher, in agreement with many reported studies. We assumed that this was due to the fact that the ratio of the uneducated, poor, and advanced aged subjects in this study was considerably higher. The different prevalence rates in studies demonstrate that the adoption of SMMSE for the study population, the validity-reliability analyses of tests and the standardization of diagnostic criteria are necessary.