Journal of Research in Health Sciences
Volume:24 Issue: 2, Spring 2024

 Numerous epidemiological studies have explored the relationship between social support and suicidal behaviors; however, the overall impact remains unclear. Therefore, a systematic assessment of the association between social support and suicide is necessary.

Study Design: 

This is a systematic review study.

 We conducted a comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases until March 2023 and screened reference lists for relevant studies. Epidemiological studies that investigated the associations between social support and suicidal behaviors were included. Furthermore, between-study heterogeneity was investigated using I2 statistics. In addition, the likelihood of publication bias was evaluated using the Begg and Egger tests, and a trim-and-fill analysis was conducted. The overall effect size was calculated as an odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using a random-effects model.

 Out of the 21004 identified studies, 118 studies (involving 692266 participants) met the eligibility criteria. The analysis of data revealed a significant inverse association between social support and suicidal ideation (OR: 0.79, 95% CI: 0.76-0.82), suicide plans (OR: 0.86, 95% CI: 0.79-0.95), suicide attempts (OR: 0.96, 95% CI: 0.94-0.98), and suicide death (OR: 0.85, 95% CI: 0.75-0.96). Moreover, significant heterogeneity was observed across studies, but there was little concern regarding the presence of publication bias.

 Our meta-analysis provides clear evidence for a significant inverse association between social support and suicidal behaviors. However, the observational nature of the included studies and the significant heterogeneity observed across studies highlight the need for further research, including prospective studies and intervention trials, to explore the complex relationship between social support and suicidal behaviors.

 Adolescent cigarette smoking remains a concern globally, including in Thailand. This research aimed to elucidate the prevalence and determinants of cigarette smoking among Thai adolescents.

Study Design: 

A cross-sectional study.

 A cross-sectional analysis of data from the 2021 Thailand Global School-Based Health Survey with 5545 adolescents aged 13–17 with complete information was conducted on their cigarette smoking status. Bivariate analysis and multivariable logistic regression were performed to discern the determinants of tobacco smoking among adolescents.

 The overall weighted prevalence of cigarette smoking was 11.5% (95% confidence interval [CI]=9.7%, 13.5%), with adolescent males at 18.2% (95% CI=15.3%, 21.4%) and adolescent females at 5.6% (95% CI=4.2%, 7.4%). The multivariable logistic regression also revealed that males were more likely to be smokers (Adjusted Odd Ratio [AOR]=1.58; 95% CI=1.02, 2.45, P=0.040) compared to females. The presence of smokers in their vicinity significantly increased the odds of smoking (AOR=2.21, 95% CI=1.46, 3.36, P<0.001). Current alcohol use (AOR=3.37, 95% CI=2.21–5.14, P<0.001) and current marijuana use (AOR=4.53, 95% CI=2.06, 9.99, P<0.001) were both significant determinants of smoking. Notably, early initiation of cigarette use (before age 14) was associated with a lower likelihood of current smoking (AOR=0.54, 95% CI=0.33, 0.92, P=0.022).

 With an overall prevalence of smoking among adolescents at 11.5%, our study highlights a significant public health concern. The positive determinants of the identified tobacco smoking include being male, having smokers in their vicinity, and currently using alcohol, and marijuana, while early initiation of cigarette use before age 14 is identified as an inverse determinant.

 Cognitive function is crucial during aging. This study assessed the cognitive function of European adults aged 50 and over in relation to handgrip strength and physical inactivity.

Study Design: 

This was a cross-sectional survey.

 Data were collected from 41,395 adults from 27 European countries participating in the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) during 2019-2020. Cognitive function was assessed based on five tests, and cognitive impairment was defined using 3+tests. Handgrip strength and physical inactivity were also correlated through the analysis of covariance using a complex study design.

 The majority of participants were female (56.6%), with a mean age of 70.9 years, and 22.6% presented multimorbidity. Furthermore, 51.1% had a normal cognitive function, while 13.3% had cognitive impairment (The estimated population was 21,944,722). Moreover, cognitive impairment was more prevalent in females than in males (14.4% vs. 12.0%, P<0.001) in patients with no years of education (P<0.001) and origin from southern European countries (P<0.001). Additionally, participants with cognitive impairment had lower mean handgrip strength compared to those with cognitive impairment in 1-2 criteria or with normal cognitive function (29.3 vs. 33.4 and 35.1 kg, respectively, P<0.001). Physically inactive participants had higher odds ratio (OR) of cognitive impairment than those engaging in moderate/vigorous physical activity, both in 1-2 tests (OR:1.73, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.32-2.26) and in 3+tests (OR: 3.36, 95% CI: 2.57-4.40).

 Cognitive impairment presented low prevalence and was associated with low levels of handgrip strength and physical inactivity. These specific factors may play a special role in early detection, diagnosis, and treatment or may slow down the progression of cognitive impairment.

 Timely and accurate screening of malnutrition at the community level is essential to identifying malnourished children. The World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines classify non-oedematous acute malnutrition among children using mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) or weight-for-height Z-score (WHZ).

Study Design: 

A cross-sectional study.

 This study was conducted among children aged 6‒60 months. After necessary exclusions, 433 participants were selected using a multi-stage simple random sampling method. Using WHO guidelines for global acute malnutrition (GAM) [WHZ<-2, MUAC<12.5 cm], the sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), predictive values, likelihood ratios, Youden index, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were calculated for MUAC using WHZ as the criterion.

 Out of 433 participants, 30% were diagnosed with GAM using WHZ, while 17.6% were found malnourished using MUAC measurements. As per WHO cut-offs, the Se, Sp, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), Youden index, positive likelihood ratio (LR+), and negative likelihood ratio (LR-) of MUAC were 48%, 96%, 83%, 81%, 0.44, 12, and 0.54, respectively. The ROC curve displayed an area under the curve of 0.86 (95% confidence interval=0.83, 0.90) for MUAC<12.5 cm. Bivariate Pearson correlation also demonstrated a positive linear relationship (R2=0.302) between the WHZ and MUAC variables.

 Based on the findings, 48% of the children were correctly identified by the MUAC with an 83% probability of GAM (PPV=0.83). Moreover, there was 96% Sp in non-malnourished children, with only 4% false positives. Therefore, personnel at the grassroots level can use MUAC for timely and accurate screening of children in Anganwadi centers (AWCs) due to its ease of use and simplicity.

 Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in adolescents are among the major public health challenges that have to be prevented in time. Traditional education falls short of reach; social media offers accessible ways. However, there is no research on such an issue in Nepal. Accordingly, this study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of a social media-based health education intervention in changing the intention of promoting sexual health among adolescents in Nepal.

Study Design: 

A quasi-experimental study.

 A total of 160 adolescent students aged 14–19 years old from four purposively selected schools were evenly divided into intervention and non-intervention groups. Sampling and data collection were performed between May and June 2023. Data were collected through self-administered questionnaires for pretest and posttest evaluation. The intervention was delivered and followed up through a Facebook Messenger group. The obtained data were managed and analyzed using SPSS 21, with a significance level of 5%.

 Social media-based health education interventions played a significant role in promoting the sexual health behavior of adolescents. The adolescents’ knowledge and attitude scores on STIs increased from 2.33 to 4.62 and from 21.87 to 26.30. In addition, their scores on subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and intentions in promoting sexual behavior increased from 13.93 to 17.59, from 19.96 to 25.40, and from 13.07 to 18.06, respectively, which were statistically significant.

 The utilization of social media platforms such as Facebook Messenger groups is an effective medium for delivering health educational messages. Hence, increasing social media-based health education is a cost-effective intervention for promoting the health and sexual behaviors of adolescents.

 Investigating the prevalence of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection in asymptomatic children who have been in close contact with symptomatic individuals is instrumental for refining public health approaches, protecting vulnerable populations, and mitigating the broader impact of the pandemic. Accordingly, this study aimed to evaluate the incidence of COVID-19 infection in asymptomatic children who had been in close contact with parents exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms.

Study Design: 

A cross-sectional study.

 The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 175 asymptomatic children who had been in close contact with COVID-19 confirmed cases in Hamadan County from March 2021 to August 2021. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing was performed on all asymptomatic children who had been in close contact with an individual with COVID-19. Furthermore, multiple logistic regressions were conducted to determine the predictors of COVID-19 transmission from family members to children.

 Out of the 175 children in close contact with index cases, 53 (30.29%) tested positive for COVID-19 through PCR. Regarding factors related to the index case, male cases (Adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=2.29; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.03-5.09, P=0.041), rural dwellers (AOR=3.22; 95% CI: 1.02-10.16, P=0.046), illiterate cases (AOR=8.45; 95% CI: 1.76-40.65, P=0.008), and cases presenting with nasal congestion symptoms (AOR=9.12; 95% CI: 2.22-37.40, P=0.002) were more prone to transmitting the virus to children who had close contact with them.

 The findings of the present study suggested that asymptomatic COVID-19 infection in household contacts is significant in children who were in close contact with a COVID-19-positive patient. Therefore, it is crucial to continue to monitor this group closely.

 Leukemia is the most common childhood malignancy. Identifying prognostic factors of patient survival and relapse using more reliable statistical models instead of traditional variable selection methods such as stepwise regression is of great importance. The present study aimed to apply a penalized semi-parametric mixture cure model to identify the prognostic factors affecting short-term and long-term survival of childhood leukemia in the presence of competing risks. The outcome of interest in this study was time to relapse.

Study Design: 

A retrospective cohort study.

 A total of 178 patients (0‒15 years old) with leukemia participated in this study (September 1997 to September 2016, followed up to June 2021) at Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were collected, and then a penalized semi-parametric mixture cure competing risk model with smoothly clipped absolute deviation (SCAD) and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regularizations was used to analyze the data.

 Important prognostic factors of relapse patients selected by the SCAD regularization method were platelets (150000‒400000 vs.>400000; odds ratio=0.31) in the cure part and type of leukemia (ALL vs. AML, hazard ratio (HR)=0.08), mediastinal tumor (yes vs. no, HR=16.28), splenomegaly (yes vs. no; HR=2.94), in the latency part. In addition, significant prognostic factors of death identified by the SCAD regularization method included white blood cells (<4000 vs.>11000, HR=0.25) and rheumatoid arthritis signs (yes vs. no, HR=5.75) in the latency part.

 Several laboratory factors and clinical side effects were associated with relapse and death, which can be beneficial in treating the disease and predicting relapse and death time.

 Regarding the importance of the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and higher consumption of salt among the Iranian population than the level recommended by the World Health Organization, the aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of the salt mentioned in the traffic light labelling of nuts and seeds.

Study Design:

 A cross-sectional study.

 A total of 53 packaged nuts and seeds, including 7, 8, 9, 9, 10, and 10 samples of pumpkin, pistachios, almond, sunflower, peanut, and watermelon nuts and seeds, respectively, with traffic light labelling, were randomly purchased from several local markets in Isfahan, Iran. The amount of sodium was measured by the inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy technique and then multiplied by 2.5 to achieve the amount of salt.

 Varying levels of traffic light labeling value accuracy were observed in most of the samples. In the almond, pistachio, peanut, and watermelon groups, the average amount of laboratory value had a statistically significant difference with the label value (P<0.05).

 The results demonstrated that the salt content of 82% of the studied samples had discrepancies with the values stated on the traffic light labelling. The presentation of an accurate amount of salt content is essential for promoting healthy eating habits and enabling individuals to make informed choices about their diet. It is recommended that regulatory authorities should review labelling guidelines and enforce stricter compliance to ensure accurate representation of salt content on packaged foods.