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  1. Susanti, Hassan HC, Aljaberi MA
    J Public Health Res, 2024 Apr;13(2):22799036241246701.
    PMID: 38646455 DOI: 10.1177/22799036241246701
    BACKGROUND: Changes in one's mental state are possible during pregnancy because it is a phase. Anxiety is one of these mental changes that is common during pregnancy and has a tendency to have a detrimental impact on both the mother and the fetus. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of pregnancy exercise on pregnancy anxiety levels.

    DESIGN AND METHODS: The method used in this study was quasi-experimental with a purposive sampling technique. The Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS) is the instrument that is employed in this study, and it will be given to the sample group of 15 pregnant women without complications to determine their levels of anxiety. This research was conducted at one of the Health Centers in Batam City, Indonesia. The sample is instructed to perform pregnancy exercise for a total of 4 weeks, with each week's instruction consisting of pregnancy exercise being performed twice for a total of 1 h.

    RESULT: The findings of the data analysis performed with the t-test, which assessed the differences in sample anxiety levels before and after taking out pregnant exercise, showed a value of p = 0.000. This indicates that the value of p is less than 0.05, which is the threshold at which the significance level of the test is considered to be significant.

    CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, childbirth of complementary care in the form of exercise during pregnancy can have the impact of lowering levels of anxiety.

  2. Ismail M, Alsalahi A, Aljaberi MA, Ibrahim RM, Bakar FA, Ideris A
    Nutrients, 2021 Mar 23;13(3).
    PMID: 33806762 DOI: 10.3390/nu13031028
    Edible bird's nest (EBN) is constructed from saliva of swiftlets birds and consumed largely by Southeast and East Asians for its nutritional value and anti-aging properties. Although the neuroprotection of EBN in animals has been reported, there has not been yet systemically summarized. Thus, this review systemically outlined the evidence of the neuroprotective activity of EBN in modulating the cognitive functions of either healthy or with induced-cognitive dysfunction animals as compared to placebos. The related records from 2010 to 2020 were retrieved from PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and ScienceDirect using pre-specified keywords. The relevant records to the effect of EBN on cognition were selected according to the eligibility criteria and these studies underwent appraisal for the risk of bias. EBN improved the cognitive functions of induced-cognitive dysfunction and enhanced the cognitive performance of healthy animals as well as attenuated the neuroinflammations and neuro-oxidative stress in the hippocampus of these animals. Malaysian EBN could improve the cognitive functions of experimental animals as a treatment in induced cognitive dysfunction, a nutritional cognitive-enhancing agent in offspring and a prophylactic conservative effect on cognition against exposure to subsequent noxious cerebral accidents in a dose-depended manner through attenuating neuroinflammation and neuro-oxidative stress. This systemic review did not proceed meta-analysis.
  3. Aljaberi MA, Alsalahi A, Juni MH, Noman S, Al-Tammemi AB, Hamat RA
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 Jul 22;18(15).
    PMID: 34360058 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18157765
    This review aimed to systematically outline and meta-analyze the efficacy of psychoeducational, cultural orientation, socio-cultural, and peer-pairing programs in reducing acculturative stress and enhancing adjustment among international students worldwide. The consulted databases were PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, EBSCO, and ProQuest. Eligibility criteria allowed the inclusion of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-experimental trials without applying language, country, publication type or time restrictions. The quality of the eligible studies was appraised by the RoB2 tool of Cochrane for RCTs and JBI critical appraisal tools for quasi-experimental trials. Data items were collected based on PICO acronym by two investigators and reviewed for accuracy by a third one. The evidence was narratively synthesized and validated by proceeding with a random model meta-analysis using Cochrane RevMan software(Version 5.4). The quality of the pooled evidence from meta-analysis was assessed using the tool of GRADE. Out of 29,975 retrieved records, 14 studies (six RCTs and eight quasi-experimental trials) were included. The psychoeducational program significantly reduced acculturative stress and enhanced adjustment. In contrast, cultural orientation and peer-pairing programs significantly enhanced adjustment, but could not reduce acculturative stress. In meta-analysis, acculturative stress was significantly reduced in the psychoeducational intervention versus controls [overall pooled size effect = -3.89 (95% CI: -5.42, -2.53) at p < 0.001]. Similarly, adjustment was significantly enhanced in the psychoeducation and socio-cultural interventions versus control [overall pooled size effect = 3.10 (95% CI: 2.35, 3.85) at p < 0.001]. In conclusion, the psychoeducational program demonstrated superior efficacy in reducing acculturative stress and enhancing adjustment compared to the other interventional programs. However, socio-cultural programs have still been effective in enhancing adjustment. This systematic review is registered in PROSPERO (CRD42018104211).
  4. Noman S, Shahar HK, Rahman HA, Ismail S, Aljaberi MA, Abdulrahman MN
    BMC Womens Health, 2021 Dec 29;21(1):437.
    PMID: 34965865 DOI: 10.1186/s12905-021-01543-7
    BACKGROUND: The reliability and validity of the Champion's Health Belief Model Scale (CHBMS) used in assessing the belief of women regarding breast cancer (BC) and breast cancer screening (BCS) have been examined on various populations. However, the use of this tool has not been adequately assessed for its validity in ethnic minorities. This study assessed the validity and reliability of CHBMS by analyzing the factor structure and internal reliability of the factors among Yemeni women in Malaysia.

    METHODS: A survey was conducted among 103 female teachers from 10 schools. SPSS version 22.0 was utilized in analyzing the data. Descriptive statistics were computed for the socio-demographic characteristics. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients were used in assessing the internal reliability. The Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was used to analyze the factor structure of the translated items. Parallel analysis was performed to determine the number of factors accurately.

    RESULTS: The alpha coefficients of the factors had acceptable values ranging between 0.76 and 0.87. The factor analysis yielded six and five factors for breast self-examination (BSE) and mammography (MMG), with a total explained variance of 47.69% and 52.63%, respectively. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) index values of 0.64 and 0.72, and the Bartlett's Test of Sphericity (P = 0.0001) for BSE and MMG, respectively, verified the normality distribution and the adequacy of the sample size for EFA. All the items on each factor were from the same construct that were consistent with the number of factors obtained in the scale development study. The items achieved adequate factor loadings that ranged between 0.47 and 0.88.

    CONCLUSIONS: The translated version of the CHBMS is a validated scale used in assessing the beliefs related to BC and BCS among Yemeni women living in Malaysia. Healthcare workers could use the scales to assess women's beliefs on BC and BCS. This instrument could be used to test the effectiveness of the intervention programs.

  5. Mohammed LA, Aljaberi MA, Amidi A, Abdulsalam R, Lin CY, Hamat RA, et al.
    Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ, 2022 Aug 15;12(8):1121-1142.
    PMID: 36005228 DOI: 10.3390/ejihpe12080079
    BACKGROUND: Shifting the educational system from a traditional to an online context during COVID-19 necessitated several considerations to assure students' satisfaction with e-learning.

    AIM: This study aims to explore the factors influencing students' satisfaction with e-learning during the COVID-19 crisis. In particular, it tests multiple mediations, student factors, and system quality between students' satisfaction and each course evaluation and instructor's performance.

    METHODOLOGY: In this cross-sectional study, 258 undergraduate and postgraduate students enrolled in online courses at multiple Malaysian universities were recruited using non-probabilistic purposive sampling. Data were collected using a questionnaire that assessed four factors that influenced students' satisfaction with e-learning during the COVID-19 crisis (i.e., instructor performance, course evaluation, student factors, and system quality) and analyzed using the partial least squares route structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).

    RESULTS: The results indicated that the four factors were significantly associated with students' satisfaction with e-learning during COVID-19. Student factors and system quality were the most factors predicting students' satisfaction with e-learning. Findings indicate statistically significant relationships between the instructor's performance, student factors, course evaluation, and system quality on students' satisfaction. Furthermore, the results depict that both course evaluation and system quality serially mediate the relationship between instructors' performance and students' satisfaction.

    CONCLUSION: This study finds that improving and enhancing student factors and system quality is critical for students' satisfaction with e-learning. Furthermore, e-learning platforms should contain new advances of computer-mediated technologies that enable collaboration, which is a critical factor in the success of e-learning systems.

  6. Aljaberi MA, Juni MH, Al-Maqtari RA, Lye MS, Saeed MA, Al-Dubai SAR, et al.
    BMJ Open, 2018 09 12;8(9):e021180.
    PMID: 30209153 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-021180
    OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to investigate the relationships among the perceived quality of healthcare services, satisfaction and behavioural intentions among international students in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

    SETTING: A cross-sectional study on public universities in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

    PARTICIPANTS: All participants in this study were international students joining public universities in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

    PRIMARY INDEPENDENT VARIABLE: Perceived quality of healthcare services measured on a SERVQUAL scale.

    PRIMARY DEPENDENT VARIABLE: Participants' satisfaction of healthcare services assessed using five items.

    SECONDARY DEPENDENT VARIABLE: Behavioural intentions measured on six items.

    RESULTS: Of the 556 international students, 500 (90%) completed the survey. The study used structural equation modelling (SEM) through the AMOS (Analysis of Moment Structures) software to analyse the data. SEM analyses showed that the perceived quality of healthcare services significantly and directly affected satisfaction, with a value of 89% and an effect size of 0.78. It also had a significant indirect impact on the behavioural intentions (0.78) of international students. The results indicated that participants' satisfaction had a statistically significant impact on their behavioural intentions (0.77).

    CONCLUSION: Perceived quality of care is an important driver of international students' satisfaction and their behavioural intention with healthcare services. Such relations of effects among the three investigated factors were also positive and significant.

  7. Al-Tammemi AB, Sallam M, Rebhi A, Soliman L, Al Sarayrih L, Tarhini Z, et al.
    Narra J, 2022 Dec;2(3):e97.
    PMID: 38449901 DOI: 10.52225/narra.v2i3.97
    Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a rare but highly contagious and lethal disease that occurs predominantly in African countries, with a case-fatality rate of 30-90%. The causative viral pathogens of EVD are within the genus Ebolavirus in the family Filoviridae. The primary route of human-to-human transmission is through direct contact with blood, bodily fluids and secretions from infected individuals. Direct contact with virally contaminated objects and sexual transmission have also been reported. Management of EVD is aggressive supportive care with possibly new therapeutic options. On 20 September 2022, an EVD outbreak was declared in Uganda, caused by Sudan ebolavirus. As of 7 November 2022, a total of 136 confirmed cases, 53 confirmed deaths have been reported, including 18 cases with seven deaths among healthcare workers. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), an EVD outbreak was also declared on 22 August 2022 (which ended on 27 September 2022); with only one case, a middle-aged woman. At the time when most countries in the world have been occupied with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the recent human monkeypox outbreak, these two outbreaks of EVD have the potential to significantly add to the burden on global health. Authorities need to augment their multi-faceted response, including stringent contact tracing and border control, to avoid the catastrophe of the 2014-2016 EVD epidemic.
  8. Alsalahi A, Maarof NNN, Alshawsh MA, Aljaberi MA, Qasem MA, Mahuob A, et al.
    Heliyon, 2024 Mar 30;10(6):e27390.
    PMID: 38510007 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e27390
    The immune-modulatory effects of black seeds (Nigella sativa seeds, NSS) are well documented, but the overall in vivo impact of this important natural medicinal product on immune system function has yet to be established. Here we systematically reviewed and meta-analyzed the effects of NSS on humoral [serum titers of immunoglobulins including IgG, IgM, anti-Newcastle virus disease (anti-NDV), and sheep red blood cell antigen (anti-SRBC)] and cellular immunity [total white blood cell (WBC) count and percentages of monocytes, lymphocytes, basophils, neutrophils, and eosinophils] in healthy animals. The PubMed, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, and Scopus databases were searched according to predefined eligibility criteria. Meta-analyses were performed to estimate the final effect size using RevMan software. Seventeen animal studies were eligible for analysis. For humoral immunity, the overall pooled effect size (ES) of NSS on serum titers of IgM and anti-NVD antibodies was not significantly different [mean difference (MD) 75.27, 95% CI: -44.76 to 195.30, p = 0.22 (I2 = 89%, p = 0.003), and -0.01, 95% CI: -0.27 to 0.25, p = 0.94 (I2 = 74%, p = 0.02), respectively]. However, NSS significantly increased serum titers of IgG and anti-SRBC antibodies [MD 3.30, 95% CI: 2.27 to 4.32, p = 0.00001 (I2 = 0%, p = 0.97), and 1.15, 95% CI: 0.74 to 1.56, p = 0.00001 (I2 = 0%, p = 0.43), respectively]. For cellular immunity, the ES of NSS on WBCs, monocytes, and lymphocytes were not significantly different [MD 0.29, 95% CI: -0.55 to 1.13, p = 0.50, (I2 = 14%, p = 0.32), - 0.01, 95% CI: -0.45 to 0.44, p = 0.97 (I2 = 0%, p = 0.77), and 4.73, 95% CI: -7.13 to 16.59, p = 0.43, (I2 = 99%, p = 0.00001), respectively]. In conclusion, black seeds enhance humoral immunity in healthy animals but do not affect cellular immunity.
  9. Aljaberi MA, Lee KH, Alareqe NA, Qasem MA, Alsalahi A, Abdallah AM, et al.
    Healthcare (Basel), 2022 Sep 24;10(10).
    PMID: 36292305 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare10101858
    BACKGROUND: Several instruments are currently used to assess Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) -induced psychological distress, including the 22-item Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). The IES-R is a self-administered scale used to assess post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The current study aimed to examine the construct validity of the IES-R, based on the Rasch model, with COVID-19-related data, as well as to test the multilevel construct validity of the IES-R within and among countries during the pandemic crisis.

    METHODS: A multi-country web-based cross-sectional survey was conducted utilizing the 22-item IES-R. A total of 1020 participants enrolled in our survey, of whom 999 were included in the analyses. Data were analyzed using Rasch modeling and multilevel confirmatory factor analysis (MCFA).

    RESULTS: The Rasch modeling results of the IES-R demonstrated that the IES-R is a satisfactory instrument with the five-point Likert scale, asserting that its 22 items are significant contributors to assessing PTSD as a unidimensional construct covered by the items of the IES-R. The MCFA confirmed that the 22-item IES-R, with its three factors, including intrusion, avoidance, and hyperarousal, demonstrates adequate construct validity at the within- and among-country levels. However, the results of the Akaike information criterion (AIC) model determined that the 16-item IES-R is better than the 22-item IES-R.

    CONCLUSION: The results suggested that the 22-item IES-R is a reliable screening instrument for measuring PTSD related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and can be utilized to provide timely psychological health support, when needed, based on the screening results.

  10. Aljaberi MA, Alareqe NA, Alsalahi A, Qasem MA, Noman S, Uzir MUH, et al.
    PLoS One, 2022;17(11):e0277368.
    PMID: 36350838 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277368
    Although the psychological impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been evaluated in the literature, further research is needed, particularly on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and psychological outcomes, is needed. This study aims to investigate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychological outcomes (depression, anxiety, and insomnia). A cross-sectional study using an online survey was conducted using the following instruments: Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), and Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), structural equation model (SEM), multiple indicators and multiple causes (MIMIC) modeling, and differential item functioning (DIF) were performed to analyze the collected data. According to the results, participants with PTSD (n = 360) showed a higher level of depression, anxiety, and insomnia than those without PTSD (n = 639). Among the participants, 36.5% experienced moderate to severe symptoms of depression, and 32.6% had mild depressive symptoms. Moreover, 23.7% of participants experienced moderate to severe anxiety symptoms, and 33.1% had mild anxiety symptoms. In addition, 51.5% of participants experienced symptoms of insomnia. In conclusion, the PTSD caused by COVID-19 is significantly associated with depression, anxiety, and insomnia at the level of latent constructs and observed variables.
  11. Al-Tammemi AB, Barakat M, Al Tamimi D, Alhallaq SA, Al Hasan DM, Khasawneh GM, et al.
    Tob Use Insights, 2021;14:1179173X211053022.
    PMID: 34866951 DOI: 10.1177/1179173X211053022
    BACKGROUND: The relationship between smoking and coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is still topical with mixed epidemiological evidence. However, the pandemic may affect people's beliefs toward smoking as well as their smoking behavior and quit intentions. Considering high smoking rates in Jordan, our current study aimed to assess the following domains in a community-based sample from Jordan: (i) the beliefs that surround smoking/vaping and COVID-19 and (ii) the pandemic impact on smoking behavior and quit intention.

    METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Jordan from March 9 to March 16, 2021, utilizing a web-based structured questionnaire. The questionnaire comprised 13 items on sociodemographic, health, and smoking profiles, 14 items to assess beliefs surrounding COVID-19 and the use of combustible cigarettes (CCs), waterpipe (WP), and electronic cigarettes (ECs), and 12 items to assess the pandemic impact on smoking behavior and quit intention.

    RESULTS: Of 2424 survey respondents who participated in our study, there were 1163 never-smokers, 1044 current smokers, and 217 ex-smokers. The mean age of participants was 35.2 years (SD: 11.06). Most participants have reported anti-smoking beliefs with around 72.9% believed that WP smoking is related to the risk of contracting COVID-19. Also, 71.7% believed that smoking CC may worsen the COVID-19 clinical course, while 74.1% of respondents believed that smoking has no protective effect against COVID-19. During the pandemic, about 28.1% and 19.3% of current smokers reported increased or reduced smoking, respectively. Besides, 459 current smokers have expressed their plans/intention to quit smoking during the pandemic, of whom 27.5% (n = 126) confirmed that the driving force for their decision is a COVID-19-related reason, such as self-protection (n = 123) and protection of family members (n = 121) which were the most cited reasons. Also, around 63 participants have successfully ceased smoking during the pandemic. However, only 22 of them reported that the main driving motivation of their successful quit attempt was the COVID-19 pandemic.

    CONCLUSION: Most participants' beliefs and attitudes were against smoking during the pandemic. Nevertheless, the double-edged effect of the pandemic on smoking habits should be carefully considered, and reliable anti-smoking measures should be strengthened and sustained in the country.

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