METHODS: A cross sectional study by adopting European Quality of Life scale (EQ-5D) for the assessment of HRQoL was conducted. All registered HB patients attending two public hospitals in Quetta, Pakistan were approached for study. Descriptive statistics were used to describe demographic and disease related characteristics of the patients. HRQoL was scored using values adapted from the United Kingdom general population survey. EQ-5D scale scores were compared with Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis test. Standard multiple regression analysis was performed to identify predictors of HRQoL. All analyses were performed using SPSS v 16.0.
RESULTS: Three hundred and ninety HB patients were enrolled in the study. Majority of the participants (n = 126, 32.3%) were categorized in the age group of 18-27 years (36.07 ± 9.23). HRQoL was measured as poor in the current study patients (0.3498 ± 0.31785). The multivariate analysis revealed a significant model (F(10, 380) = 40.04, P
METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted among Malaysian adults in three northern states of Malaysia. A pre-developed questionnaire consisting of both the EQ-5D and SF-12 items was used for data collection. Concurrent, convergent, and known group validity of EQ-5D were assessed against SF-12 and several known relationships with participants' demographic and illness characteristics.
RESULTS: A total of 596 Malaysians participated in the study. The mean EQ-5D score was 0.93 (SD = 0.13), while the mean physical component score (PCS-12) and mental component score (MCS-12) scores were 48.9 (SD = 7.4) and 49.1 (SD = 8.0), respectively. Participants with a current medical problem had lower PCS-12 and MCS-12 scores and reported more problems with all of the EQ-5D dimensions; they also had lower EQ-5D and EQ-VAS scores (P < 0.05). Convergent validity was supported by a moderately positive correlation between EQ-5D and EQ-VAS with MCS-12 and PCS-12 scores; moreover, the stronger effect sizes between PCS-12 and the physical dimensions of EQ-5D as well as between MCS-12 with anxiety/depression scores further supported the convergent validity of EQ-5D. Responses to the EQ-5D dimensions only supported two of the four known group validity hypotheses of higher quality of life among individuals who are better educated and no medical problem. No association was found between income and gender with EQ-5D score.
CONCLUSION: This study has demonstrated acceptable construct validity of the EQ-5D among the Malaysian population.
METHODS: This point prevalence survey (PPS) was conducted in 13 hospitals among 7 different cities of Pakistan. The survey included all inpatients receiving an antibiotic on the day of PPS. A web-based application was used for data entry, validation, and reporting as designed by the University of Antwerp (www.global-pps.com).
RESULTS: Out of 1954 patients, 1516 (77.6%) were treated with antibiotics. The top three most reported indications for antibiotic use were prophylaxis for obstetrics or gynaecological indications (16.5%), gastrointestinal indications (12.6%) and lower respiratory tract infections (12.0%). The top three most commonly prescribed antibiotics were ceftriaxone (35.0%), metronidazole (16.0%) and ciprofloxacin (6.0%). Out of the total indications, 34.2% of antibiotics were prescribed for community-acquired infections (CAI), 5.9% for healthcare-associated infections (HAI), and 57.4% for either surgical or medical prophylaxis. Of the total use for surgical prophylaxis, 97.4% of antibiotics were given for more than one day.
CONCLUSIONS: Unnecessary prophylactic antibiotic use is extremely high, and broad-spectrum prescribing is common among hospitals in Pakistan. There is an urgent need to work on the national action plan of Pakistan on antibiotic resistance to address this.
METHODS: We used the methodology employed by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control to assess the prevalence of HAIs in Punjab Province, Pakistan. Data were collected from 13 hospitals using a structured data collection tool.
RESULTS: Out of 1,553 hospitalized patients, 130 (8.4%) had symptoms of HAIs. The most common HAI was surgical site infection (40.0%), followed by bloodstream infection (21.5%), and lower respiratory tract infection (14.6%). The prevalence of HAI was higher in private sector hospitals (25.0%) and among neonates (23.8%) and patients admitted to intensive care units (33.3%). Patients without HAIs were admitted mainly to public sector hospitals and adult medical and surgical wards.
CONCLUSIONS: The study found a high rate of HAIs among hospitals in Pakistan, especially surgical site infections, bloodstream infections, and lower respiratory tract infections. This needs to be addressed to reduce morbidity, mortality, and costs in the future, and further research is planned.