Association between hepatitis A virus and Helicobacter pylori in a developing country: the saga continues.

BACKGROUND: The epidemiologic association between Helicobacter pylori and hepatitis A virus (HAV) has been evaluated by various different groups with conflicting conclusions. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of HAV and H. pylori infection among adolescents attending high schools in Lebanon, and to identify the sociodemographic factors associated with their prevalence, individually and concurrently. METHODS: Nine hundred and two school students 14-18 years of age were selected randomly from 30 schools scattered all over Lebanon and tested for IgG antibodies against hepatitis A and H. pylori. Each student received a copy of a self-administered questionnaire to be completed by his/her parents inquiring about demographics, history of immunization, and prior viral hepatitis illness in the student. Bivariate analysis examined the association between different sociodemographic variables and prior HAV or H. pylori infection, and multivariate regression analysis was done to determine the factors independently associated with prior infection. RESULTS: Using ELISA the seroprevalence of antibodies against HAV was 71.3% as compared to 61.6% for anti-H. pylori. A total of 9.1% of those tested were negative for both agents. A multinomial regression analysis revealed that place of residence in relation to district or urban versus rural areas, in addition to mothers' education, were important determinants for the incidence of both agents. CONCLUSION: The low number of subjects negative for both H. pylori and HAV antibodies in Lebanon is indicative of their high prevalence in the country. It is possible that this high prevalence reflects an age-specific prevalence rather than a true association.

Paid Work and Domestic Labor in Disadvantaged Communities on the Outskirts of Beirut, Lebanon.

This article explored the association between economic activity and the contribution to domestic labor in a Middle Eastern society. Analyses were carried out on cross-sectional survey data from 5,998 individuals, aged between 18 and 64 years, in three poor communities in the suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon. Domestic labor was evaluated with a composite index that takes into account both the type of task performed and the level of involvement. Housework categories included core household chores, care giving, financial management, home management, and home/car maintenance. Results showed that women continue to do most of the domestic labor in the three communities. However, women's load of domestic labor decreased as they joined the labor market, whereas men's contribution to domestic labor increased with involvement in paid work. Relatively speaking, the difference in contribution to housework between house members engaged and not engaged in paid labor was much higher for women than it was for men.

Occupational health research in developing countries: a partner for social justice.

Occupational health remains neglected in developing countries because of competing social, economic, and political challenges. Occupational health research in developing countries should recognize the social and political context of work relations, especially the fact that the majority of developing countries lack the political mechanisms to translate scientific findings into effective policies. Researchers in the developing world can achieve tangible progress in promoting occupational health only if they end their professional isolation and examine occupational health in the broader context of social justice and national development in alliance with researchers from other disciplines. An occupational health research paradigm in developing countries should focus less on the workplace and more on the worker in his or her social context.