Determinants of adolescents' perceptions on access to healthcare services in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Jeeluna national survey findings.

OBJECTIVES: The study aimed at identifying the determinants of adolescents' access to healthcare services. SETTING: Intermediate and secondary schools across all 13 regions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) from 2011 to 2012 through the Jeeluna national school-based survey. PARTICIPANTS: Intermediate and secondary school students participated in the study. A multistage, cluster, random sampling technique was used. Participants responded to a self-administered questionnaire that addressed several domains. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Adolescents' perception of access to healthcare services. RESULTS: Twenty-five per cent of participants reported difficulty in accessing healthcare. Women, early (younger) adolescents and adolescents with three siblings were less likely to report difficulty in accessing healthcare than men, late (older) adolescents and those with fewer than three siblings. Adolescents from low-income families and those with either mental or physical illness were more likely to report difficulty in accessing healthcare than adolescents from higher income families and those without mental or physical illnesses. CONCLUSIONS: Disparities in access to care exist between certain subpopulations of adolescents. Efforts are needed to support enhancing access and making it more equitable. Training for healthcare professionals and targeted health policies are necessary to improve adolescents' access to health services in the KSA. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: RC08-092; King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre.

Public Awareness on Cord Blood Banking in Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: In the last decade, cord blood (CB) has proven to be a valuable source of hematopoietic stem cells for transplantation to treat many hematological disorders. Since then, many CB banks have been established worldwide. Our aim was to estimate the level of public awareness of CB banking in Saudi Arabia. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: A self-administered questionnaire of 22 multiple choices was conveniently distributed, consisting of demographics, awareness measure, attitude toward banking preference, and donation for research data. RESULTS: A total of 1146 participants have completed the questionnaire. The majority were young female 19-25 years old (26%), who are college graduates (57%) with middle class socioeconomic status (82%). The subjective assessment of the overall knowledge was inadequate (66%). For the objective assessment, 12 questions were asked about CB source, collection, storage, and usage. Only half of the subjects (52%) knew that CB is a source of stem cells. More than half did not know the main use of CB. About half did not know about the method of collection nor the condition of storing. CONCLUSION: This study shows a high lack of knowledge about CB banking. More than half of the subjects were unaware of CB banking and its uses. However, most subjects are accepting CB storage, which anticipates great impact and efficacy on educational programs. Moreover, the data demonstrated that health professionals were not the source of knowledge. We recommend having comprehensive educational campaigns with clear information about CB banking to facilitate positive perspectives towards donation and scientific research.

Does obesity impact the pattern and outcome of trauma in children?

PURPOSE/BACKGROUND: Childhood obesity is pandemic condition. The effect of obesity on trauma outcomes in children has been relatively understudied. We conducted this study to ascertain the effects of obesity on the hospital outcome of injured children. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of patients aged 2 to 18 years admitted to the King Abdul Aziz Medical City between May 2001 and May 2009 was conducted. Patients were categorized as lean (body mass index <95th percentile) and obese (body mass index ≥ 95th percentile). Groups were compared regarding admission demographics, mechanism of injury, pattern of injury, length of stay, intensive care unit admission, ventilation duration, types of procedures performed, injury severity score, and mortality. RESULT: Nine hundred thirty-three patients were included, of those 55 (5.89%) children were obese. The obese children were older than nonobese (P = .001) and had a higher injury severity score (P = .001) and a lower pediatric trauma score (P = .00), heart rate (P = .0081), and respiratory rate (P = .000). There were no differences between groups with regard to sex, mechanism of injury, and surgical procedures. Obese children were more likely to have rib fractures (P = .02) and pelvic injuries (P = .033). There was no significant association between mortality and obesity (P = .42). CONCLUSION: Obesity does not seem to impact the severity of injury, mortality rate, types of injury, and procedure outcomes in children. Obese patients are more likely to have rib and pelvic injuries.