Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 304 in total

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  1. Ibrahim N, Che Din N, Ahmad M, Amit N, Ghazali SE, Wahab S, et al.
    BMC Public Health, 2019 Jun 13;19(Suppl 4):553.
    PMID: 31196009 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-019-6861-7
    BACKGROUND: The high number of adolescents and young adults harbouring suicidal ideation, as reported by the Ministry of Health Malaysia, is alarming. This cross-sectional study aims to examine the association between social support and spiritual wellbeing in predicting suicidal ideation among Malaysian adolescents.

    METHODS: A total of 176 adolescents in selected urban areas in the states of Wilayah Persekutuan and Selangor were selected. The Suicide Ideation Scale (SIS) was used to measure the level of severity or tendency of suicidal ideation. The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) was used to measure the perceived social support received by the respondent while the Spiritual Wellbeing Scale (SWBS) was used to measure the religious wellbeing (RWB), the existential wellbeing (EWB) and the overall score of spiritual wellbeing (SWB).

    RESULTS: The study found that both RWB and EWB showed significant negative correlation with suicidal ideation. Similarly, support from family and friends also showed a negative correlation with suicidal ideation. Further analysis using multiple regressions showed that RWB and SWB, and family support predict suicidal ideation in adolescents.

    CONCLUSION: Spiritual wellbeing in combination with family support plays a major role in predicting suicidal ideation. Therefore, intervention for encompassing spirituality and family support may contribute to a more positive outcome in suicidal adolescents.

  2. Villiers-Tuthill A, Copley A, McGee H, Morgan K
    BMC Public Health, 2016 07 22;16:627.
    PMID: 27448397 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-016-3158-y
    BACKGROUND: Health behaviour patterns in older groups, including tobacco and alcohol use, are key factors in chronic disease prevention. We explore ageing self-perceptions as motivating factors behind smoking and drinking alcohol in older adults, and the complex reasons why individuals engage harmfully in these behaviours.

    METHODS: Cigarette and alcohol use was assessed in a large cross-sectional national sample aged 50 years and above from the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) (n = 6,576). The Brief Ageing Perceptions Questionnaire (BAPQ) assessed individual's views of their own ageing across five domains. Study hypothesis that stronger beliefs on each of the BAPQ domains would be related to drinking and smoking was examined using multinomial logit models (MNLM). Regression parameter estimates for all variables were estimated relative risk ratios (RRR).

    RESULTS: More women were non-drinkers (30 % vs. 20 %) and men displayed significantly higher alcohol use patterns. One in five older Irish adults was a current smoker (16.8 % of women, 17 % of men), and smoking and harmful drinking were strongly associated (P 

  3. Mohamad NE, Sidik SM, Akhtari-Zavare M, Gani NA
    BMC Public Health, 2021 03 04;21(1):438.
    PMID: 33663451 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-021-10440-5
    BACKGROUND: Anxiety disorder is one of the most common mental health problems worldwide, including Malaysia, and this issue has gained concern and attention from many, including experts and authorities globally. While average levels of stress and worry may help to motivate students to perform well in their studies, excessive feelings will increase their level of anxiety.

    METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted at selected government and private universities throughout Malaysia. A total of 1851 students participated in this study. The students were asked to complete self-administered questionnaires, including socio-demographic, academic, and psychosocial characteristics. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) questionnaire was used to measure the prevalence risk of anxiety among the students. Chi-square analysis was conducted to find the relationship between the variables and anxiety, and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the predictors.

    RESULTS: The response rate was 97.90%, where 1821 out of 1860 students participated in the study. The prevalence risk of anxiety in this study was recorded at 29%. The data revealed that academic year, financial support for the study, alcohol consumption, poor sleep quality, body mass index (BMI), having a good friend in the university, having doubt regarding the future, actively involved in the society, and having problems with other students and lecturer(s) were significantly associated with risk of anxiety; with the academic year as the primary predictor.

    CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight the current prevalence risk of anxiety among university students in Malaysia. The outcome of this study can serve as the evident baseline data and help with the development of specific interventions in addressing and managing the issue appropriately.

  4. Ghazi HF, Isa ZM, Aljunid S, Shah SA, Tamil AM, Abdalqader MA
    BMC Public Health, 2012;12:562.
    PMID: 22839101 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-12-562
    Environmental factors play a very important role in the child development process, especially in a situation like that of Iraq. Thirteen years of economic sanctions followed by the 2003 war and 8 years of unstable security have affected the daily life of Iraqi families and children. The objective of this study was to assess the associations between living environment domains and child intelligence quotient (IQ) score.
  5. Moy FM, Bulgiba A
    BMC Public Health, 2010 Nov 06;10:678.
    PMID: 21054885 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-10-678
    BACKGROUND: Metabolic Syndrome is associated with increased risk for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. However, different diagnostic criteria have been recommended by different expert groups. In Malaysia, there is a lack of research comparing these different diagnostic criteria. Therefore, it is our aim to study the concordance between the IDF and the modified NCEP ATP III definitions of Metabolic Syndrome among a Malay cohort in Kuala Lumpur; and to demonstrate if all participants have the same cardiometabolic risks.

    METHODS: This was an analytical cross sectional study. Ethics approval was obtained and informed consent was given by all participants. Anthropometric measurements, blood pressure, fasting blood glucose and lipid profile were taken following standard protocols.

    RESULTS: Metabolic Syndrome was diagnosed in 41.4% and 38.2% participants using the modified NCEP and IDF criteria respectively. Among those diagnosed with Metabolic Syndrome by modified NCEP, 7.6% were missed by the IDF criteria. Participants diagnosed by the modified NCEP criteria had lower BMI and waist circumference but had higher cardiometabolic risks than those diagnosed with both criteria. Their blood pressure, glucose, total cholesterol and triglyceride were more adverse than the IDF group. This demonstrated that central obesity may not be a prerequisite for the development of increased cardiometabolic risks within this Malay cohort.

    CONCLUSION: Metabolic syndrome is common in this Malay cohort regardless of the criterion used. The modified NCEP ATP III criteria may be more suitable in diagnosis of metabolic syndrome for this Malay cohort.

  6. Guo K, Ouyang J, Minhat HS
    BMC Public Health, 2023 Dec 18;23(1):2530.
    PMID: 38110936 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-17315-x
    BACKGROUND: The increased number of older persons in China, and the prevalence of most chronic diseases raised with age significantly increased the total disease burden. When a person ages, psychological distress happens when they are faced with stressors that they cannot cope with. Psychological distress refers to non-specific symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Health literacy influences several health outcomes, such as emotional functioning among the population. The primary purpose of this study is to examine the mediator role of health literacy between the presence of chronic disease and psychological distress among older persons living in Xi'an city. Thus, this study used the Cognitive Behavior Theory (CBT) as a combination of the basic behavioral and cognitive psychology principles to explain the cognitive processes associated with psychological distress.

    METHODS: This study employs a quantitative research design using a cross-sectional survey of 300 older persons over 60 years living in the six urban districts of Xi'an city. Data were collected using the Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21). This study employed descriptive statistics and inferential methods to analyze the data. The inferential methods applied structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the hypothesis of the mediator role of health literacy between the presence of chronic disease and psychological distress.

    RESULTS: In this study, chronic disease had an effect on health literacy among older persons living in Xi'an city (β=-0.047, p 

  7. Chan NN, Ong KW, Siau CS, Lee KW, Peh SC, Yacob S, et al.
    BMC Public Health, 2022 02 14;22(1):296.
    PMID: 35164734 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-022-12632-z
    BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a global health emergency and lock-down measures to curb the uncontrolled transmission chain. Vaccination is an effective measure against COVID-19 infections. In Malaysia amidst the national immunisation programme (NIP) which started in February 2021, there were rising concerns regarding the prevalence of vaccine hesitancy and refusal, and therefore, vaccine uptake among Malaysians. Although there are many quantitative studies on COVID-19 vaccination, the subjective experience of individuals was understudied. This study aims to explore the lived experiences of Malaysians regarding vaccine hesitancy and refusal, and facilitating factors that could enhance vaccine acceptance and uptake.

    METHODS: This qualitative study employed the hermeneutic phenomenological study design. Purposive sampling strategies were used to recruit Malaysians that had direct experiences with friends, family members and their community who were hesitating or refusing to accept the COVID-19 vaccines. A semi-structured interview guide was developed based on the expert knowledge of the investigators and existing literature on the topic. A series of focus group interviews (FGIs) was conducted online facilitated by a multidisciplinary team of experts. The group interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed.

    RESULTS: Fifty-nine participants took part in seven FGIs. We found that "incongruence" was the overall thematic meaning that connected all the 3 main themes. These themes comprise firstly, the incongruence between the aims and implementation of the National Immunization Program which highlighted the gap between realities and needs on the ground. Secondly, the incongruence between Trust and Mistrust revealed a trust deficit in the government, COVID-19 news, and younger people's preference to follow the examples of local vaccination "heroes". Thirdly, the incongruence in communication showed the populace's mixed views regarding official media and local social media.

    CONCLUSIONS: This study provided rich details on the complex picture of the COVID-19 immunization program in Malaysia and its impact on vaccine hesitancy and refusal. The inter-related and incongruent factors explained the operational difficulty and complexity of the NIP and the design of an effective health communication campaign. Identified gaps such as logistical implementation and communication strategies should be noted by policymakers in implementing mitigation plans.

  8. Norris SA, Anuar H, Matzen P, Cheah JC, Jensen BB, Hanson M
    BMC Public Health, 2014;14 Suppl 2:S6.
    PMID: 25080995 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-14-S2-S6
    BACKGROUND: Malaysia faces burgeoning obesity and diabetes epidemics with a 250% and 88% increase respectively between 1996 and 2006. Identifying the health challenges of young adults in Malaysia, who constitute 27.5 % of the population, is critical for NCD prevention. The aim of the study was two-fold: (1) to achieve consensus amongst stakeholders on the most important challenge impacting the health of young adults, and (2) to engage with stakeholders to formulate a NCD prevention framework.

    METHODS: The Delphi Technique was utilised to achieve group consensus around the most important life and health challenges that young adults face in Malaysia. Subsequently, the results of the consensus component were shared with the stakeholders in an engagement workshop to obtain input on a NCD prevention framework.

    RESULTS: We found that life stress was a significant concern. It would seem that the apathy towards pursuing or maintaining a healthy lifestyle among young adults may be significantly influenced by the broader distal determinant of life stress. The high cost of living is suggested to be the main push factor for young working adults towards attaining better financial security to improve their livelihood. In turn, this leads to a more stressful lifestyle with less time to focus on healthier lifestyle choices.

    CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight a pivotal barrier to healthier lifestyles. By assisting young adults to cope with daily living coupled with realistic opportunities to make healthier dietary choices, be more active, and less sedentary could assist in the development of NCD health promotion strategies.

  9. Jalil MF, Ali A
    BMC Public Health, 2023 Dec 06;23(1):2435.
    PMID: 38057782 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-17347-3
    BACKGROUND: Stress, depression, and anxiety are prevalent issues among SME employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even while having meaningful work that expressively contributes to individual growth has been related to improving mental health, employees' work may also need to adopt coping strategies to increase outcomes. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between meaningful work (positive meaning, meaning-making, and greater good motivations) and mental health, as well as coping strategies (problem-focused and emotion-focused) as a mediator of this relationship.

    METHODS: Meaningful work, coping strategies, and mental health were evaluated in empirical research based on a sample of 462 SME employees working in Malaysia. Structured questionnaires were used to collect the data and analyze it through Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) using AMOS 21.0.

    RESULTS: The findings of the study show the importance of meaningful work in influencing the mental health of SME employees, particularly during a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic. This suggests that the more they value and see their work as meaningful, the more capable they are of dealing with limitations and mental health problems associated with crises. The study also discovered a partial mediating role for coping strategies between employees' mental health and meaningful work.

    CONCLUSION: This study encourages employees to constantly feel connected and discover continued possibilities to work and learn even during crisis situations. In order to improve human resource efficiency in emerging markets, managers and owners of SMEs must implement the model developed by the researchers.

  10. Rasiah R, Thangiah G, Yusoff K, Manikam R, Chandrasekaran SK, Mustafa R, et al.
    BMC Public Health, 2015;15:1242.
    PMID: 26673166 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-015-2577-5
    Numerous studies have shown the importance of physical activity in reducing the morbidity and mortality rates caused by cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, most of these studies emphasise little on the cumulative effect of CVD risk factors. Hence, this study investigates the association between physical exercise and cumulative CVD risk factors among adults in three different age groups.
  11. Chauhan R, Varma G, Yafi E, Zuhairi MF
    BMC Public Health, 2023 Nov 02;23(1):2142.
    PMID: 37919737 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-17000-z
    BACKGROUND: The world in recent years has seen a pandemic of global scale. To counter the widespread loss of life and severe repercussions, researchers developed vaccinations at a fast pace to immunize the population. While the vaccines were developed and tested through extensive human trials, historically vaccines have been known to evoke mixed sentiments among the generic demographics. In the proposed study, we aim to reveal the impact of political and socio-economic factors on SARS-Cov-2 vaccination trends observed in two hundred and seventeen countries spread across the six continents.

    METHODS: The study had hypothesized that the citizens who have lower trust in their government would be less inclined towards vaccination programs. To test this hypothesis, vaccination trends of nations under authoritarian rule were compared against democratic nations. Further, the study was synthesized with Cov-2 vaccination data which was sourced from Our World Data repository, which was sampled among 217 countries spread across the 6 continents. The study was analyzed with exploratory data analysis and proposed with relevance and impacting factor that was considered for vaccine dissemination in comparison with the literacy rate of the nations. Another impacting factor the study focused on for the vaccination dissemination trends was the health expenses of different nations. The study has been synthesized on political and socio-economic factors where the features were ardently study in retrospect of varied socio- economic features which may include country wise literacy rate, overall GDP rate, further we substantiated the work to address the political factors which are discussed as the country status of democratic or having other status.

    RESULTS: The comparison of trends showed that dissemination of SARS-Cov-2 vaccines had been comparable between the two-opposing types of governance. The major impact factor behind the wide acceptance of the SARS-Cov-2 vaccine was the expenditure done by a country on healthcare. These nations used a large number of vaccines to administer to their population and the trends showed positive growth. The overall percentage of vaccine utilized by countries in quantitative terms are Pfizer/BioNTech (17.55%), Sputnik V (7.08%), Sinovac (6.98%), Sinopharm/Beijing (10.04%), Oxford/AstraZeneca (19.56%), CanSino (2.85%), Moderna (12.05%), Covaxin (3.28%), JohnsonandJohnson (10.89%), Sputnik Light (3.07%), Novavax (3.49%). While the nations with the lowest healthcare expenses failed to keep up with the demand and depended on vaccines donated by other countries to protect their population.

    CONCLUSIONS: The analysis revealed strong indicators that the nations which spend more on healthcare were the ones that had the best SARS-Cov-2 vaccination rollout. To further support decision-making in the future, countries should address the trust and sentiment of their citizens towards vaccination. For this, expenses need to be made to develop and promote vaccines and project them as positive health tools.

  12. Ibrahim N, Moy FM, Awalludin IA, Ali Z, Ismail IS
    BMC Public Health, 2014 Apr 01;14:298.
    PMID: 24684809 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-14-298
    BACKGROUND: People with pre-diabetes are at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Measurements of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among pre-diabetics enable the health care providers to understand their overall health status and planning of interventions to prevent type 2 diabetes. Therefore we aimed to determine the HRQOL and physical activity level; and its association with Body Mass Index (BMI) among pre-diabetics.

    METHODS: This was a cross sectional study carried out in two primary care clinics in a semi-urban locality of Ampangan, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaires assessing the demographic characteristics, medical history, lifestyle and physical activity. The Short Form 36-items health survey was used to measure HRQOL among the pre-diabetics. Data entry and analysis were performed using the SPSS version 19.

    RESULTS: A total of 268 eligible pre-diabetics participated in this study. The prevalence of normal weight, overweight and obesity were 7.1%, 21.6% and 71.3% respectively. Their mean (SD) age was 52.5 (8.3) years and 64.2% were females. Among the obese pre-diabetics, 42.2% had both IFG and IGT, 47.0% had isolated IFG and 10.8% had isolated IGT, 36.2% had combination of hypertension, dyslipidemia and musculoskeletal diseases. More than 53.4% of the obese pre-diabetics had family history of diabetes, 15.7% were smokers and 60.8% were physically inactive with mean PA of <600 MET-minutes/week. After adjusted for co-variants, Physical Component Summary (PCS) was significantly associated with BMI categories [F (2,262)=11.73, p<0.001] where pre-diabetics with normal weight and overweight had significantly higher PCS than those obese; normal vs obese [Mdiff=9.84, p=0.006, 95% CIdiff=2.28, 17.40] and between overweight vs obese [Mdiff=8.14, p<0.001, 95% CIdiff=3.46, 12.80].

    CONCLUSION: Pre-diabetics who were of normal weight reported higher HRQOL compared to those overweight and obese. These results suggest a potentially greater risk of poor HRQOL among pre-diabetics who were overweight and obese especially with regard to the physical health component. Promoting recommended amount of physical activity and weight control are particularly important interventions for pre-diabetics at the primary care level.

  13. Hasani WSR, Muhamad NA, Hanis TM, Maamor NH, Chen XW, Omar MA, et al.
    BMC Public Health, 2023 Aug 16;23(1):1561.
    PMID: 37587427 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-16466-1
    BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a significant cause of premature mortality worldwide, with a growing burden in recent years. Despite this, there is a lack of comprehensive meta-analyses that quantify the extent of premature CVD mortality. Study addressed this gap by estimating the pooled age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) of premature CVD mortality.

    METHODS: We conducted a systematic review of published CVD mortality studies that reported ASMR as an indicator for premature mortality measurement. All English articles published as of October 2022 were searched in four electronic databases: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science (WoS), and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL). We computed pooled estimates of ASMR using random-effects meta-analysis. We assessed heterogeneity from the selected studies using the I2 statistic. Subgroup analyses and meta regression analysis was performed based on sex, main CVD types, income country level, study time and age group. The analysis was performed using R software with the "meta" and "metafor" packages.

    RESULTS: A total of 15 studies met the inclusion criteria. The estimated global ASMR for premature mortality from total CVD was 96.04 per 100,000 people (95% CI: 67.18, 137.31). Subgroup analysis by specific CVD types revealed a higher ASMR for ischemic heart disease (ASMR = 15.57, 95% CI: 11.27, 21.5) compared to stroke (ASMR = 12.36, 95% CI: 8.09, 18.91). Sex-specific differences were also observed, with higher ASMRs for males (37.50, 95% CI: 23.69, 59.37) than females (15.75, 95% CI: 9.61, 25.81). Middle-income countries had a significantly higher ASMR (90.58, 95% CI: 56.40, 145.48) compared to high-income countries (21.42, 95% CI: 15.63, 29.37). Stratifying by age group indicated that the age groups of 20-64 years and 30-74 years had a higher ASMR than the age group of 0-74 years. Our multivariable meta-regression model suggested significant differences in the adjusted ASMR estimates for all covariates except study time.

    CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis synthesized a comprehensive estimate of the worldwide burden of premature CVD mortality. Our findings underscore the continued burden of premature CVD mortality, particularly in middle-income countries. Addressing this issue requires targeted interventions to mitigate the high risk of premature CVD mortality in these vulnerable populations.

  14. Boedeker W, Watts M, Clausing P, Marquez E
    BMC Public Health, 2020 Dec 07;20(1):1875.
    PMID: 33287770 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-020-09939-0
    BACKGROUND: Human poisoning by pesticides has long been seen as a severe public health problem. As early as 1990, a task force of the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that about one million unintentional pesticide poisonings occur annually, leading to approximately 20,000 deaths. Thirty years on there is no up-to-date picture of global pesticide poisoning despite an increase in global pesticide use. Our aim was to systematically review the prevalence of unintentional, acute pesticide poisoning (UAPP), and to estimate the annual global number of UAPP.

    METHODS: We carried out a systematic review of the scientific literature published between 2006 and 2018, supplemented by mortality data from WHO. We extracted data from 157 publications and the WHO cause-of-death database, then performed country-wise synopses, and arrived at annual numbers of national UAPP. World-wide UAPP was estimated based on national figures and population data for regions defined by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

    RESULTS: In total 141 countries were covered, including 58 by the 157 articles and an additional 83 by data from the WHO Mortality Database. Approximately 740,000 annual cases of UAPP were reported by the extracted publications resulting from 7446 fatalities and 733,921 non-fatal cases. On this basis, we estimate that about 385 million cases of UAPP occur annually world-wide including around 11,000 fatalities. Based on a worldwide farming population of approximately 860 million this means that about 44% of farmers are poisoned by pesticides every year. The greatest estimated number of UAPP cases is in southern Asia, followed by south-eastern Asia and east Africa with regards to non-fatal UAPP.

    CONCLUSIONS: Our study updates outdated figures on world-wide UAPP. Along with other estimates, robust evidence is presented that acute pesticide poisoning is an ongoing major global public health challenge. There is a need to recognize the high burden of non-fatal UAPP, particularly on farmers and farmworkers, and that the current focus solely on fatalities hampers international efforts in risk assessment and prevention of poisoning. Implementation of the international recommendations to phase out highly hazardous pesticides by the FAO Council could significantly reduce the burden of UAPP.

  15. Reidpath DD, Olafsdottir AE, Pokhrel S, Allotey P
    BMC Public Health, 2012;12 Suppl 1:S3.
    PMID: 22992346 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-12-S1-S3
    In the health systems literature one can see discussions about the trade off between the equity achievable by the system and its efficiency. Essentially it is argued that as greater health equity is achieved, so the level of efficiency will diminish. This argument is borrowed from economics literature on market efficiency. In the application of the economic argument to health, however, serious errors have been made, because it is quite reasonable to talk of both health equity being a desirable output of a health system, and the efficient production of that output. In this article we discuss notions of efficiency, and the equity-efficiency trade off, before considering the implications of this for health systems.
  16. Md Yusop NB, Mohd Shariff Z, Hwu TT, Abd Talib R, Spurrier N
    BMC Public Health, 2018 03 01;18(1):299.
    PMID: 29490648 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-018-5206-2
    BACKGROUND: Interventions that encompass behavioural modifications of dietary intake and physical activity are essential for the management of obesity in children. This study assessed the effectiveness of a stage-based lifestyle modification intervention for obese children.

    METHODS: A total of 50 obese children (7-11 years old) were randomized to the intervention group (IG, n = 25) or the control group (CG, n = 25). Data were collected at baseline, at follow-up (every month) and at six months after the end of the intervention. IG received stage-based lifestyle modification intervention based on the Nutrition Practice Guideline for the Management of Childhood Obesity, while CG received standard treatment. Changes in body composition, physical activity and dietary intake were examined in both the intervention and control groups.

    RESULTS: Both groups had significant increases in weight (IG: 1.5 ± 0.5 kg; CG: 3.9 ± 0.6 kg) (p 

  17. Su TT, Majid HA, Nahar AM, Azizan NA, Hairi FM, Thangiah N, et al.
    BMC Public Health, 2014;14 Suppl 3:S4.
    PMID: 25436830 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-14-S3-S4
    Death rates due to hypertension in low and middle income countries are higher compared to high income countries. The present study is designed to combine life style modification and home blood pressure monitoring for control of hypertension in the context of low and middle income countries.
  18. Zhang J, Xiao W, Soh KG, Yao G, Anuar MABM, Bai X, et al.
    BMC Public Health, 2024 Apr 02;24(1):949.
    PMID: 38566018 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-18243-0
    BACKGROUND: Evidence indicates that the Sport Education Model (SEM) has demonstrated effectiveness in enhancing students' athletic capabilities and fostering their enthusiasm for sports. Nevertheless, there remains a dearth of comprehensive reviews examining the impact of the SEM on students' attitudes toward physical education learning.

    PURPOSE: The purpose of this review is to elucidate the influence of the SEM on students' attitudes toward physical education learning.

    METHODS: Employing the preferred reporting items of the Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) statement guidelines, a systematic search of PubMed, SCOPUS, EBSCOhost (SPORTDiscus and CINAHL Plus), and Web of Science databases was conducted in mid-January 2023. A set of keywords associated with the SEM, attitudes toward physical education learning, and students were employed to identify relevant studies. Out of 477 studies, only 13 articles fulfilled all the eligibility criteria and were consequently incorporated into this systematic review. The validated checklist of Downs and Black (1998) was employed for the assessment, and the included studies achieved quality scores ranging from 11 to 13. The ROBINS-I tool was utilized to evaluate the risk of bias in the literature, whereby only one paper exhibited a moderate risk of bias, while the remainder were deemed to have a high risk.

    RESULTS: The findings unveiled significant disparities in cognitive aspects (n = 8) and affective components (n = 12) between the SEM intervention and the Traditional Teaching (TT) comparison. Existing evidence suggests that the majority of scholars concur that the SEM yields significantly superior effects in terms of students' affective and cognitive aspects compared to the TT.

    CONCLUSIONS: Nonetheless, several issues persist, including a lack of data regarding junior high school students and gender differences, insufficient frequency of weekly interventions, inadequate control of inter-group atmosphere disparities resulting from the same teaching setting, lack of reasonable testing, model fidelity check and consideration for regulating variables, of course, learning content, and unsuitable tools for measuring learning attitudes. In contrast, the SEM proves more effective than the TT in enhancing students' attitudes toward physical learning.

    SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: ( https://inplasy.com/ ) (INPLASY2022100040).

  19. Abdulamir AS, Hafidh RR, Abdulmuhaimen N, Abubakar F, Abbas KA
    BMC Public Health, 2008;8:400.
    PMID: 19055849 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-8-400
    Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and other head and neck cancer (HNCA) types show a great epidemiological variation in different regions of the world. NPC has multifactorial etiology and many interacting risk factors are involved in NPC development mainly Epstein Barr virus (EBV). There is a need to scrutinize the complicated network of risk factors affecting NPC and how far they are different from that of other HNCA types.
  20. Baharudin AD, Din NC, Subramaniam P, Razali R
    BMC Public Health, 2019 Jun 13;19(Suppl 4):447.
    PMID: 31196141 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-019-6868-0
    BACKGROUND: The main aim of this study was to determine the association between Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) and caregiver burden, and the mediating role of coping strategy and personality style of caregivers to patients with dementia (PWD).

    METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 202 caregivers to PWD in home-based settings. Recruited caregivers were administered questionnaires regarding BPSD which was measured using Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Questionnaire (NPI-Q), caregiver burden using Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI), Brief COPE for coping strategies and Big-Five Inventory which measured personality traits.

    RESULTS: Majority of the caregivers were female (71.3%), aged 50 and above (55%), single (46%), married (43.6%), working full time (45%) while the rest work part time (22.3%), unemployed (7.4%) and retiree (25.2%), and majority were parents (58.9%) and spouse (18.3%). The duration of caregiving was less than a year (33.7%) while the rest are more than a year. Results demonstrated that the most frequent types of BPSD exhibited by PWD was irritability, followed by apathy and agitation. All of the types of BPSD showed to be significantly correlated to caregiver burden except for anxiety, elation and appetite. Of personality traits, only conscientiousness was found to mediate the relationship between BPSD and caregiver burden (p 

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