Assessing the Variation in COVID-19 Severity Among the Different Nationalities Living in Qatar.

Background Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a highly infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and it has resulted in a global pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in numerous reports on clinical outcomes and risk factors associated with morbidity and mortality. However, the extent to which nationality influences the severity of COVID-19 is not fully understood. Therefore, this study aimed to explore disparities in COVID-19 severity among individuals of different nationalities in Qatar. Methods This is a retrospective study. Secondary data were obtained from the Ministry of Public Health in Qatar. Patients of different nationalities were categorized into different groups based on the WHO regional classification, and the severity of COVID-19 across these groups was analyzed. Results Data were obtained for 96,728 patients. This study found a statistically significant difference in disease severity among nationalities. The highest number of patients were from the Eastern Mediterranean group (42.3%), followed by Southeast Asia (39.4%). The severity of COVID-19 was highest among the Eastern Mediterranean groups (40%), followed by those from Southeast Asia (38.5%) and the Western Pacific (12.4%). There was a significant correlation between disease severity and vaccination status. Conclusion The findings of this study provide novel perspectives on the severity of COVID-19 among individuals of various nationalities. Moreover, it emphasizes the importance of healthcare interventions to address disparities in COVID-19 morbidity and mortality within these groups. The results of this study provide a useful foundation for developing approaches to prevent and manage pandemics more effectively and reduce the number of cases and fatalities during future health crises.

Validation of the Malay Version of the Shame and Stigma Scale among Cancer Patients in Malaysia.

The assessment of stigma among cancer patients is of the utmost importance as stigma may lead to various psychological sequelae and a lower quality of life. This study aimed to translate the English version of the Shame and Stigma Scale (SSS) into Malay and validate the Malay version of the SSS (SSS-M) to assess the degree of stigma among cancer patients in Malaysia. Initially, the concurrent translation and back translation of the SSS-M were performed, and the face and content validity were assessed. Subsequently, the SSS-M was administered to a total of 234 patients with mixed types of cancer to assess its reliability (internal consistency and test-retest reliability), construct validity (convergent and discriminant validity), and conduct an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The SSS-M total score registered a good internal consistency (a Cronbach's α of 0.881) and test-retest reliability (an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.876, p < 0.001). The EFA and CFA confirmed that the SSS-M consisted of 16 items in 3 domains. Its convergent and discriminant validity were achieved. Hence, the SSS-M demonstrated good psychometric properties and is available for use to assess stigma among cancer patients in Malaysia.

Posttraumatic Growth, Positive Psychology, Perceived Spousal Support, and Psychological Complications in Head and Neck Cancer: Evaluating Their Association in a Longitudinal Study.

Despite head and neck cancer (HNC) association with various negative impacts, collective evidence is accumulating regarding the positive impacts of positive psychology on cancer survivors. However, data on how positive psychology is related to the psychological complications of HNC across time are lacking. This longitudinal study examined the trends of positive psychology (e.g., posttraumatic growth [PTG], hope, and optimism), perceived spousal support, and psychological complications (e.g., depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress symptoms) and determined the association between them, psychological complications, and PTG across two timelines among a cohort of HNC patients. A total of 175 HNC respondents exhibited an increasing trend of positive psychology and perceived spousal support while reporting a decreasing trend of psychological complications between baseline and follow-up assessments. A greater degree of hope and perceived spousal support contributed to a higher degree of PTG across time. Conversely, a higher severity of anxiety symptoms was associated with a lower degree of PTG over time. Female gender had a moderating effect on the association between severity of anxiety symptoms and PTG, but did not moderate the association between hope, perceived spousal support and PTG. This study indicates the pivotal role of incorporating psychosocial interventions into the treatment regimen to enhance the degree of hope and perceived spousal support and reduce the severity of anxiety symptoms, which, in turn, will facilitate the development of PTG in HNC patients.

The effectiveness of iron education through a mobile application on donor return after deferral for low hemoglobin.

BACKGROUND: Low hemoglobin level is a common cause of donor deferral and results in a huge loss of the donor pool. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a mobile application as an educational tool to enhance donor return and improve hemoglobin levels after deferral. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was an interventional study involving 382 blood donors who were deferred for low hemoglobin. The donors were divided equally into two groups: a control group and the intervention group. The control group received standard management for low hemoglobin deferral, which includes a short counseling session and a 1-month course of oral iron therapy. The intervention group used a mobile application in addition to standard management. The primary endpoint was the number of blood donors who returned during the 7 months of follow-up. The secondary endpoints were the hemoglobin increment at the first visit after the donors' deferral. RESULTS: The return rate was higher in the intervention group, with 81.2% of the donors returning in the 7 months of follow-up compared to 66% of the control group (p<0.001). Male and female donors had mean hemoglobin increments of 1.0 g/dL and 0.7 g/dL, respectively, in the intervention group, compared to decrements of 0.2 g/dL and 0.4 g/dL, respectively, in the control group (p<0.001). Multivariable analysis showed a significant association between intervention method, education level and donation status on donor return (p=0.015, p<0.001, and p<0.001, respectively). DISCUSSION: Higher return rate and greater hemoglobin increase in the interventional group could be attributed to features in the mobile application. Repeat donors had the highest odds of returning to donate, followed by those with a tertiary level of education, and those given the mobile application. This study showed that a mobile application was effective in enhancing donor return and increasing hemoglobin level among deferred blood donors on their first return.

Behavior, social and economic impact of COVID-19 responses among healthcare professionals: Development and validation of COVID-19 Responses Impact Questionnaire (COVRiQ).

As the world goes through the fourth wave and the continued emergence of new COVID-19 variants, the general and work-related risks of healthcare professionals are expected to rise. This has the capacity to adversely affect productivity and efficiency in the healthcare delivery system, particularly in this era of global shortage of trained healthcare professionals. We aimed to develop and validate a new instrument known as the COVID-19 Responses Impact Questionnaire (COVRiQ) to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the healthcare professionals managing the COVID-19 pandemic. This methodological study involved three steps: the formulation of the COVRiQ draft, content and face validation, and construct validity. A total of 61 questions were drafted with 3-point Likert scale answers. From the list, 39 were rated valid by a panel of experts and subsequently tested on 301 participants. The results were analyzed and validated using exploratory factor analysis on SPSS. Components were extracted and questions with low factor loading were removed. The internal consistency was measured with Cronbach's alpha. Following analysis, three components were extracted and named as behavioral, social, and economic impacts. In general, 29 items were deleted leaving 32 out of 61 questions retained as the final validated COVRiQ. Internal consistency showed high reliability with Cronbach's alpha of 0.91. Participants scored a total cumulative mean of 118.74 marks. A subanalysis by occupation showed that medical assistants scored the lowest in the group with a score of 22.3% whereas medical specialists scored the highest at 77.7%. Higher score indicates higher impact of COVID-19 responses among healthcare professionals. The new COVRiQ consisting of 32 items demonstrated to be user friendly with good psychometric properties and valid for assessing the impacts of COVID-19 responses among healthcare professionals.

Knowledge, Awareness, Attitude and Preventive Behaviour on the Transmission of the Pandemic Novel Coronavirus Among Malaysians.

BACKGROUND: Restricted movement and preventive actions have been introduced to break the chain of transmission of a new coronavirus. This study was conducted to determine the level of knowledge, awareness, attitude and preventive behaviour regarding the transmission of the COVID-19. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among Malaysians aged 20 years old and over, who had accessed the internet and used the WhatsApp application. The sampling method was a convenient snowball from 14 Malaysian states. This study was conducted online using questionnaires during the Movement Control Order due to the pandemic. RESULTS: Approximately 40.0%, 46.1% and 47.4% of 1,290 participants had a score above the median (good score) for preventive behaviour, attitude and knowledge, respectively. Age was significantly associated with poor knowledge (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 0.98; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.97, 0.99; P = 0.026). Males (AOR 1.35; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.74; P = 0.021), Malays (AOR 1.41; 95% CI: 1.01, 1.98; P = 0.043) and Chinese (AOR 2.19; 95% CI: 1.17, 4.13; P = 0.015) were the associated factors for poor attitude. Chinese ethnicity was significantly associated with poor preventive behaviour (AOR 2.80; 95% CI: 1.39, 5.61; P = 0.004). CONCLUSION: The level of knowledge, attitude and practices were high except for a few questions. The young, males and Malay and Chinese individuals need health education.

Multicentre prospective cohort study of unmet supportive care needs among patients with breast cancer throughout their cancer treatment trajectory in Penang: a PenBCNeeds Study protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Proper assessment of unmet supportive care needs of patients with breast cancer and its influencing factors at different treatment intervals will improve the rehabilitation of patients with breast cancer. Therefore, this study aims to determine the prevalence of unmet supportive care needs, changes of needs over time and associated factors during the treatment period. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This multicentre, prospective cohort study will be conducted in three governmental hospitals and one tertiary cancer institute in Penang, Malaysia. Adult women diagnosed with primary or recurrent tumour, node, metastases stage I-IV breast cancer based on pathological biopsy will be eligible for this study. At least 281 samples are required for this study. Participants will undergo follow-up at three time intervals: T1 at breast cancer diagnosis; T2 at 3 months after diagnosis and T3 at 6 months after diagnosis. Patients will complete a set of questionnaires at each time. The primary outcome of this study includes the changes in supportive care needs over three time points, followed by the secondary outcome examining patients' characteristics, coping behaviours and positive psychological components as they affect changes in unmet supportive care needs over time. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The study has received ethics approval from the Medical Research and Ethics Committee, Ministry of Health Malaysia (NMRR-19-268-45809 IIR) and the Human Research Ethics Committee of Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM/JEPeM/17100443). The results of the prospective study will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

Depression and anxiety in the Malaysian urban population and their association with demographic characteristics, quality of life, and the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The prevalence of depression and anxiety has been shown to be higher in the urban population compared with the rural population. The present study investigated the prevalence of depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and depression with comorbid anxiety symptoms and their associated factors in a random sample drawn from several urban communities in Malaysia. This study also determined the association between the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and depression with comorbid anxiety symptoms. We recruited 326 participants, who were administered a sociodemographic characteristics questionnaire; the 21-item Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) to assess the presence or absence of depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and depression with comorbid anxiety symptoms; and the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQoL-BREF) to assess their QoL. The following prevalence values were obtained among the participants: depression symptoms, 23.9%; anxiety symptoms, 41.7%; and depression with comorbid anxiety symptoms, 19.9%. Those assessed after the declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic showed increased odds of depressive symptoms (adjusted OR = 2.99, 95% CI = 1.41-6.35, p = 0.006) and depressive with comorbid anxiety symptoms (adjusted OR = 3.19, 95% CI = 1.37-7.45, p = 0.005), while the presence of comorbid stress increased the odds of depressive symptoms (adjusted OR = 16.00, 95% CI = 7.84-32.63, p < 0.001), anxiety symptoms (adjusted OR = 19.72, 95% CI = 9.75-39.89, p < 0.001), and depressive with comorbid anxiety symptoms (adjusted OR = 40.44, 95% CI = 15.90-102.87, p < 0.001). Higher psychological QoL reduced the odds of depressive symptoms (adjusted OR = 0.83, 95% CI = 0.69-0.99, p = 0.032) and depressive with comorbid anxiety symptoms (adjusted OR = 0.82, 95% CI = 0.68-0.98, p = 0.041), whereas higher physical health QoL (adjusted OR = 0.85, 95% CI = 0.75-0.97, p = 0.021) and social relationship QoL (adjusted OR = 0.70, 95% CI = 0.55-0.90, p = 0.009) reduced the odds of anxiety symptoms. Based on our findings, we recommended several measures to curb psychological complications among the urban population, particularly as the battle to contain COVID-19 is ongoing.

A narrative review of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) on cognitive performance in Alzheimer's disease.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a neurotrophin that is highly expressed in the brain. It influences neuronal survival, growth and acts as a control centre for neurotransmitters. It also plays a crucial role in learning and memory. Current evidence indicates that BDNF may be a possible neurotrophic factor that controls cognitive functions under normal and neuropathological conditions. Recent findings indicate a reduction in cognitive performance in individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD). This relationship between cognitive performance and AD is important for investigating both the time they overlap and the pathophysiological mechanism in each case. Therefore, this study reviewed the existing knowledge about BDNF and cognitive performance in the AD population. The findings support the idea that this tropic factor may be a potential biomarker for evaluating the changes in cognitive performance in AD.

Diagnosis of cancer is not a death sentence: Examining posttraumatic growth and its associated factors in cancer patients.

Objectives: Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is the experience of positive psychological growth as a result of struggle with highly challenging life crises. This study was conducted to investigate the degree of PTG and its associated factors, as well as to identify which positive psychological parameters most significantly associated with greater PTG among Malaysian cancer patients. Design, sample, & methods: This cross-sectional survey included 195 patients with different cancer diagnoses. Perceived spousal support, level of hope, level of optimism, and PTG were measured using various validated indexes. Findings: The total mean score for PTG Inventory-Short Form (PTGI-SF) was 39.87 (±9.09). Female gender, Islamic religious belief, and having higher level of hope and greater spousal support were associated with a higher PTGI-SF score, and the most significant predictor was the hope scale. Conclusions: Malaysian cancer patients exhibited a high level of PTG, and hope was the positive psychological factor which was most significantly associated with PTG. Implications for psychosocial providers: Psychosocial interventions that promote positive psychology should be included in the treatment for cancer patients.