Pattern and predictors of non-adherence to diabetes self-management recommendations among patients in peripheral district of Bangladesh.

OBJECTIVES: This study was designed to determine the extent of non-adherence to the different dimensions of diabetes self-management and to identify the factors influencing non-adherence among peripheral patients in Bangladesh. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 990 adult diabetic patients residing in Thakurgaon district, Bangladesh. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews including socio-demographic information, disease and therapeutic, health services, knowledge and adherence to self-management components. RESULTS: The proportion of non-adherence to drug prescription was 66.7%, dietary regimen (68.9%), physical exercise (58.0%), follow-up visit/blood glucose test (88.2%), stopping tobacco (50.6%), and regular foot care (93.9%). Significant predictors for non-adherence to drug were poorest socio-economic status (OR = 2.47), absence of diabetic complications (OR = 1.43), using non-clinical therapy (OR = 5.61), and moderate level of knowledge (OR = 1.87). Non-adherence to dietary recommendations was higher for women (OR = 1.72), poorest socio-economic status (OR = 3.17), and poor technical knowledge (OR = 4.68). Non-adherence to physical exercise was lower for women (OR = 0.62), combined family (OR = 0.63), middle socio-economic status (OR = 0.54), and moderate knowledge on physical exercise (OR = 0.55). Non-adherence to follow-up visits/blood glucose test was higher among patients who did not have diabetic complications (OR = 1.81) and with own transport (OR = 2.57), and respondents from high-income group (OR = 0.23) were less likely to be non-adherent. Non-adherence to stopping tobacco was higher for older individuals (OR = 1.86); but lower for women (OR = 0.48), individuals with higher education level (OR = 0.17) and patients sick for a longer time (OR = 0.52). Non-adherence to foot care was higher for patients who needed longer time to go to hospital (OR = 4.07) and had poor basic knowledge on diabetes (OR = 17.80). CONCLUSION: An alarmingly high proportion of diabetic patients did not adhere to diabetes self-management. Major predictors for non-adherence were related to patient's demographic characteristics and their experience with disease, treatment and health care services.

Shark fish oil prevents scopolamine-induced memory impairment in an experimental model.

Fish oil has been known for its antioxidant, cardioprotective, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective characteristics due to the presence of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) that are essential for optimal brain function and mental health. The present study investigated the effect of Carcharhinus Bleekeri (Shark Fish) oil on learning and memory functions in scopolamine-induced amnesia in rats. Locomotor and memory-enhancing activity in scopolamine-induced amnesic rats was investigated by assessing the open field and passive avoidance paradigm. Forty male Albino mice were divided into 4 equal groups (n = 10) as bellow: 1 - control (received 0.9% saline), 2 - SCOP (received scopolamine 2 mg/kg for 21 days), 3 - SCOP + SFO (received scopolamine and fish oil 5 mg/kg/ day for 21 days), 4 - SCOP + Donepezil groups (received 3 mg/kg/day for 21 days). SFO produced significant (P < 0.01) locomotor and memory-enhancing activities in open-field and passive avoidance paradigm models. Additionally, SFO restored the Acetylcholine (ACh) concentration in the hippocampus (p < 0.05) and remarkably prevented the degradation of monoamines. Histology of brain tissue showed marked cellular distortion in the scopolamine-treated group, while the SFO treatment restored distortion in the brain's hippocampus region. These results suggest that the SFO significantly ameliorates scopolamine-induced spatial memory impairment by attenuating the ACh and monoamine concentrations in the rat's hippocampus.

Spontaneous triple vessel cervicocephalic artery dissection in a young gentleman: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Cervicocephalic arterial dissections (CADs) occur in 3 cases per 100,000 individuals across all ages. Multiple simultaneous CADs are found in 13 to 22% of cases, and three or more dissections occur in approximately 2%. CADs might result from multifactorial intrinsic deficiencies of vessel wall integrity and extrinsic factors, e.g., minor trauma. CASE PRESENTATION: A young gentleman presented to the emergency department with a sudden onset of a spinning sensation of surrounding, left side arm weakness, blurring of vision, and an NIHSS score of 4. An urgent CT scan of the head and intracranial angiogram showed bilateral severe stenosis of the distal cervical segment of internal carotid arteries (ICAs) and right vertebral artery moderate stenosis at the V2 segment. He had been given IV TPA (Alteplase) within the 4.5-hour window. After 4 hours, the patient's GCS dropped from 15 to 10, and the NIHSS score increased from 4 to 24, followed by witnessed a generalized tonic-clonic seizure. Repeat urgent CT head showed no evidence of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). The patient was arranged for cerebral angiographic catheterization that showed bilateral flame-shaped occlusion of cervical ICA dissection. There is a mild focal narrowing of the right cervical vertebral artery, likely dissection. Routine laboratory blood workup for vasculitis was negative. During MICU admission, he had witnessed the right arm hemichorea-ballism spectrum abnormal movement. After the 6th-month follow-up, intracranial CT angiogram showed reduced caliber of the bilateral distal cervical course of the internal carotid arteries seen with residual dissection and focal outpouching of the right ICA representing pseudoaneurysm. DISCUSSION: The occurrence of multiple CADs suggests the presence of an underlying intrinsic arteriopathy, such as FMD, the presence of pseudoaneurysm, environmental triggers, cervical manipulation, and remote history of head or neck surgery. A study of the most extensive case series of patients with cervical artery dissection showed 15.2% of patients with multiple CAD. In most patients with multiple cervical artery dissections, antithrombotic treatment is effective, complete recanalization, and the outcome is favorable. Outside the window period of acute ischemic stroke, either anticoagulation or antiplatelet therapy is a recognized treatment for secondary ischemic stroke prevention due to extracranial artery dissection. For acute stroke or TIA patients caused by intracranial artery dissection, experts recommend antiplatelet therapy rather than anticoagulation. CONCLUSION: Simultaneous triple-vessel cervicocephalic arterial dissections are rarely reported condition. Multiple CADs are associated with underlying vasculopathy and environmental triggers, and a majority are recanalized with antithrombotic treatment with favorable outcomes. Antithrombotic treatment is effective in most patients with multiple CADs, and most expect complete recanalization. This case report guides physicians in the treatment and outcome of acute stroke due to multiple CAD.

Comparative antioxidant and analgesic effect of sesame oil, fish oil and their combination in experimental animal model.

Natural oils are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFs) like omega 3, omega 6 and other nutrients that boost physical and mental health. Traditionally these oils have been used to treat joint pain associated with several inflammatory conditions. In this study, we investigated the antioxidant and analgesic properties of the sesame oil (SO), fish oil (FO) and combination of these two oils (SO+FO). Different concentrations of the SO, FO and SO+FO combination 0.02-4mg/ml were used for assessing the free radical scavenging activity by DPPH method and the IC50 value was calculated. Acetic acid-induced abdominal writhing test, tail immersion and hot plate models were used to determined analgesic effect. Results showed that both oils were well tolerated as no signs of toxicity or death were noticed during the observational study period. SO+FO combination showed the best antioxidant properties as shown by DPPH assay. Similarly in analgesic models, SO and FO significantly reduced the number of abdominal contractions (p<0.05) however, SO+FO (1:1) exhibited highly significant results (p<0.001) in writhing reflex test. Furthermore, SO and FO both increased the reaction time on a hot plate as well as in tail flick test (p<0.05) whereas, SO+FO significantly increased reaction time (p<0.001) in hot plate and in tail flick test as compared to SO and FO single treatments. Conclusively, our results suggest that the combination of both oils (SO+FO) exhibited significant antioxidant and analgesic potential that it could be considered as one of the active combinations for relieving pain in adjunctive treatment for joint pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis.

Validation of a food frequency questionnaire as a tool for assessing dietary intake in cardiovascular disease research and surveillance in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has emerged as a major public health concern in Bangladesh. Diet is an established risk factor for CVD but a tool to assess dietary intake in Bangladesh is lacking. This study aimed to validate a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) using the 24-h dietary recall method and corresponding nutritional biological markers among rural and urban populations of Bangladesh. METHOD: Participants of both genders aged 18-60 years were included in the analysis (total n = 146, rural n = 94 and urban n = 52). Two FFQs of 166 items were administered three-months apart, during which time three 24-h dietary recalls were also completed. Participants were asked to recall their frequency of consumption over the preceding 3 months. Urine and blood samples were collected for comparison between FFQ-estimates of nutrients and their corresponding biomarkers. Methods were compared using unadjusted, energy-adjusted, de-attenuated correlation coefficients, 95% limits of agreement (LOA) and quartile classification. RESULTS: Fair to moderate agreement for ranking energy, macro and micronutrients into quartiles was observed (weighted k value ranged from 0.22 to 0.58; p < 0.001 for unadjusted data) except for vitamin D (weighted k - 0.05) and zinc (weighted k 0.09). Correlation coefficients of crude energy, macronutrients and common micronutrients including vitamin E, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pyridoxine, folate, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and sodium were moderately good, ranging from 0.42 to 0.78; p < 0.001 but only fair for vitamin A, ß carotene and calcium (0.31 to 0.38; p < 0.001) and poor for vitamin D and zinc (0.02 and 0.16; p = ns, respectively). Energy-adjusted correlations were generally lower except for fat and vitamin E, and in range of - 0.017 (for calcium) to 0.686 (for fat). De-attenuated correlations were higher than unadjusted and energy- adjusted, and significant for all nutrients except for vitamin D (0.017) to 0.801 (for carbohydrate). The Bland Altman tests demonstrated that most of the coefficients were positive which indicated that FFQ provided a greater overestimation at higher intakes. More than one in three participants appeared to overestimate their food consumption based on the ratio of energy intake to basal metabolic rate cut points suggested by Goldberg. Absolute intake of macronutrients was 1.5 times higher and for micronutrients it ranged from 1.07 (sodium) to 26 times (Zinc). FFQ estimates correlated well for sodium (0.32; p < 0.001), and vitamin D (0.20; p = 0.017) with their corresponding biomarkers and iron (0.25; p = 0.003) with serum ferritin for unadjusted data. Folate, iron (with haemoglobin) and total protein showed inverse association; and fat and potassium showed poor correlation with their corresponding biomarkers for unadjusted data. However, folate showed significant positive correlation (0.189; p = 0.025) with biomarker after energy adjustment. CONCLUSION: Although FFQ showed overestimation for absolute intake in comparison with 24-h recalls, the validation study demonstrated acceptable agreement for ranking dietary intakes from FFQ with 24-h recall methods and some biomarkers and therefore could be considered as a tool to measure dietary intake for research and CVD risk factors surveillance in Bangladesh. The instrument may not be appropriate for monitoring population adherence to recommended intakes because of the overestimation.

The influence of mobile phone-based health reminders on patient adherence to medications and healthy lifestyle recommendations for effective management of diabetes type 2: a randomized control trial in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: In 2017, 80% of 425 million adults with diabetes worldwide were living in low and middle-income countries. Diabetes affected 6.9 million adults in Bangladesh and accounted for 3% of the country's total mortality. Proper management of diabetes is the key to positive health outcomes. This study investigated how mobile phone-based health intervention could increase patient adherence and thereby improve the disease outcomes for diabetes type 2 in Bangladesh. METHODS: A mobile phone-based health project (including mobile phone reminders and 24/7 call center) was implemented in Dhaka District, Bangladesh from January to December 2014. A randomized control trial was carried out, recruiting randomly in intervention and control groups among the patients receiving treatment for type 2 diabetes at the Bangladesh Institute of Health Sciences Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh. A total of 320 patients from both groups at baseline and 273 at endline were interviewed. RESULTS: A significant improvement in patient adherence to diet, physical exercise, the cessation of use of tobacco and betel nut, and blood glycaemic control was found in the intervention group, whereas no such significant improvement was found in the control group. Cost and other co-morbidities were found to be the main reasons for non-adherence. CONCLUSION: A mobile-health intervention should be considered as an additional option for non-communicable disease programs.

A comparative neurobehavioral study of sesame oil and fish oil on experimental animals.

Natural oils are enriched with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) which are important for our health. Recent experimental data explained that PUFAs might have a beneficial effect on various brain functions such as anxiety, dementia, epileptic seizures, depression or bipolar and other neurobehavioral diseases. The objective of the current research work was to evaluate the effect of sesame oil, fish oil and mixture of both oils (1:1) on neurobehavioral changes and cognition. For this purpose shark fish oil and sesame oil were extracted out and there poly unsaturated and saturated fatty acids were analyzed by using GCFID that exposed the presence of different PUFs in shark fish oil, sesame oil and mixture of both oils. Neurobehavioral changes were seen after 5ml/kg/day sesame oil, 5ml/kg/day shark fish oil and 1:1 combination of both oil 5ml/kg/day administration on open field, cage crossing, light and dark, stationary rod, forced swimming induced depression test and water maze test. Our GCFID results showed sesame and fish oil enriched with higher amount of PUFs and showed significant anxiolytic and antidepressant like effect after 30 days of treatment (P<0.05) however combination of these both oils exhibited greater efficacy (P<0.01) in reducing anxiety and depression as imipramine standard drug. Results showed that combination of both oils (sesame oil and fish oil) could be a better option to treat neurobehavioral problems as compared to alone.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus in Bangladesh: a prevalence based cost-of-illness study.

BACKGROUND: The economic burden of type 2 diabetes has not been adequately investigated in many low- and lower middle-income countries, including Bangladesh. The aim of this study was to estimate the cost-of-illness of type 2 diabetes and to find its determinants in Bangladesh. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2017 to recruit 1253 participants with type 2 diabetes from six diabetes hospitals, providing primary to tertiary health care services, located in the northern and central regions of Bangladesh. A structured questionnaire was used for face-to-face interviewing to collect non-clinical data. Patients' medical records were reviewed for clinical data and hospital records were reviewed for hospitalisation data. Cost was calculated from the patient's perspective using a bottom-up methodology. The direct costs for each patient and indirect costs for each patient and their attendants were calculated. The micro-costing approach was used to calculate direct cost and the human capital approach was used to calculate indirect cost. Median regression analysis was performed to identify the determinants of average annual cost. RESULTS: Among the participants, 54% were male. The mean (±SD) age was 55.1 ± 12.5 years and duration of diabetes was 10.7 ± 7.7 years. The average annual cost was US$864.7 per patient. Medicine cost accounted for 60.7% of the direct cost followed by a hospitalisation cost of 27.7%. The average annual cost for patients with hospitalisation was 4.2 times higher compared to those without hospitalisation. Being females, use of insulin, longer duration of diabetes, and presence of diabetes complications were significantly related to the average annual cost per patient. CONCLUSIONS: The cost of diabetes care is considerably high in Bangladesh, and it is primarily driven by the medicine and hospitalisation costs. Optimisation of diabetes management by positive lifestyle changes is urgently required for prevention of comorbidities and complications, which in turn will reduce the cost.

Agreement between 2017 ACC/AHA Hypertension Clinical Practice Guidelines and Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee Guidelines to Estimate Prevalence of Postmenopausal Hypertension in a Rural Area of Bangladesh: A Cross Sectional Study.

Background and objectives: Justification for application of 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) guidelines to detect hypertension (HTN) among Bangladeshi population is understudied. This prompted us to examine the level of agreement between 2017 ACC/AHA and Joint National Committee 7 (JNC 7) guidelines to detect postmenopausal HTN in a rural area of Bangladesh. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited 265 postmenopausal women of 40-70 years of age who visited a rural primary health care centre of Bangladesh. HTN was diagnosed based on two definitions: the JNC 7 guidelines (SBP ≥ 140 or DBP ≥ 90 mmHg), and the 2017 ACC/AHA guidelines (SBP ≥ 130 mmHg, or DBP ≥ 80 mmHg). The prevalence of postmenopausal HTN, its sub-types and stages were reported and compared using frequency and percentage. Agreement was evaluated using Cohen's Kappa (κ), Prevalence-Adjusted Bias-Adjusted Kappa (PABAK) and First-order Agreement Coefficient (AC1). Results: The prevalence of postmenopausal HTN was 67.5% and 41.9% using 2017 ACC/AHA and JNC 7 guidelines respectively. Among the HTN sub-types and stages, the new 2017 ACC/AHA guideline classified higher proportion of respondents as having isolated systolic hypertension (ISH) (42.6%) and stage 2 HTN (35.8%) compared to JNC 7 (28.7% and 6.8% respectively). On the other hand, the JNC 7 guideline identified more respondents as pre-hypertensive (32.5%) when compared with the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline (3.8%). Between two guidelines, highest agreement was observed for ISH (86.03%) and those had pre-hypertension/elevated blood pressure (71.3%). Similarly, Landis & Koch's approach detected highest agreement for ISH (κ = 0.74, substantial; PABAK = 0.76, substantial; AC1 = 0.84, excellent; p < 0.001) and pre-hypertension/elevated blood pressure (κ= 0.12, slight; PABAK = 0.42, moderate; AC1 = 0.83, excellent; p < 0.001). Conclusions: The 2017 ACC/AHA HTN guideline reported high agreement and detected more participants as hypertensive when compared with JNC 7 guideline for Bangladeshi postmenopausal women that demands further large-scale study in general population to clarify the current findings more precisely.

Concordance between two versions of world health organization/international society of hypertension risk prediction chart and framingham risk score among postmenopausal women in a rural area of Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: Prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among postmenopausal women with limited resource is a great challenge for a country like Bangladesh. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the level of agreement among different risk prediction tools to find out the cost-effective and suitable one that can be applied in a low-resource setting. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted from February through December 2016 among 265 postmenopausal women of 40-70 years age. Data were collected from the outpatient department of a rural health-care center situated in the village Karamtola of Gazipur district, Bangladesh. The CVD risk was estimated using the World Health Organization/International Society of Hypertension (WHO/ISH) "with" and "without" cholesterol risk charts and the Framingham Risk Score (FRS). Concordance among the tools was evaluated using Cohen's kappa (κ), prevalence-adjusted bias-adjusted kappa (PABAK), and first-order agreement coefficient (AC1). RESULTS: The "without" cholesterol version showed 79% concordance against the "with" cholesterol and 75.4% concordance against the FRS. In between the WHO/ISH risk charts, slight-to-substantial levels of agreement (κ = 0.14, PABAK = 0.58, and AC1 = 0.72; P = 0.023) were observed. With FRS, the "without" cholesterol version showed higher agreement (κ = 0.38, fair; PABAK = 0.50, moderate; and AC1 = 0.60, moderate; P = 0.000) compared to "with" cholesterol version (κ = 0.13, slight; PABAK = 0.30, fair; and AC1 = 0.44, moderate; P = 0.013). Predictability of CVD risk positive (≥10%) cases was similar for both the versions of WHO/ISH risk charts. CONCLUSION: In a low-resource setting, the "without" cholesterol version of WHO/ISH risk chart is a good option to detect and target the population with high CVD risk.

Developing a frame of reference for fisheries management and conservation interventions.

Effective implementation of management interventions is often limited by uncertainty, particularly in small-scale and developing-world fisheries. An effective intervention must have a measurable benefit, and evaluation of this benefit requires an understanding of the historical and socio-ecological context in which the intervention takes place. This context or 'frame of reference' should include the baseline status of the species of interest, as well as the most likely counterfactual (a projected scenario indicating what would have occurred in the absence of the intervention), given recent trends. Although counterfactuals are difficult to estimate and so are not widely specified in practice, an informative frame of reference can be developed even in data-poor circumstances. We demonstrate this using a case study of the Bangladesh hilsa (Tenualosa ilisha) fishery. We combine qualitative and some quantitative analyses of secondary datasets to explore ecological trends in the hilsa fishery, as well as patterns of social, economic, institutional, and physical change relevant to its management over the last ∼50 years. We compile all available information on the key parameters that determine hilsa abundance and distribution (movement, reproduction, growth, and mortality), as well as all available information on stock status. This information is used to produce a baseline and qualitative counterfactual which can be used to guide decision-making in this complex, data-poor fishery. A frame of reference provides a systematic way to break down potential drivers of change in a fishery, including their interactions, reducing the potential for unexpected management outcomes. Critical evaluation of contradictions and commonalities between a set of potential counterfactuals, as well as the reliability of sources, allows the identification of key areas of uncertainty and information needs. These can then be incorporated into fisheries management planning.

Validity of the global physical activity questionnaire (GPAQ) in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: Feasible and cost-effective as well as population specific instruments for monitoring physical activity (PA) levels are needed for the management and prevention of non-communicable diseases. The WHO-endorsed Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) has been widely used in developing countries, but the evidence base for its validity, particularly for rural populations, is still limited. The aim of the study was to validate GPAQ among rural and urban residents in Bangladesh. METHODS: A total of 162 healthy participants of both genders aged 18-60 years were recruited from Satia village (n = 97) and Dhaka City (n = 65). Participants were invited to take part in the study and were asked to wear an accelerometer (GT3X) for 7 days, after which they were invited to answer the GPAQ in a face to face interview. RESULTS: Valid accelerometer data (i.e., ≥10 h of wear times over ≥3 days) were received from 155 participants (rural = 94, urban = 61). The mean age was 35 (SD = ±9) years, 55% were females and 19% of the participants had no schooling, which was higher in the rural area (21% vs 17%). The mean ± SD steps/day was 9998 ± 3936 (8658 ± 2788 and 12,063 ± 4534 for rural and urban respectively, p = 0.0001) and the mean ± SD daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was 58 ± 30 min (51 ± 26 for rural and 69 ± 34 for the urban, p = 0.001) for accelerometer. In case of GPAQ, rural residents reported significantly higher moderate work related PA (MET-minutes/week: 600 vs. 360 p = 0.02). Spearman correlation coefficients between GPAQ total MVPA MET-min/day and accelerometer MVPA min/day, counts per minute (CPM) or steps counts/day were acceptable for urban residents (rho: 0.46, 0.55 and 0.63, respectively; p < 0.01) but poor for rural residents. The overall correlation between the GPAQ and accelerometer for sitting was low (rho: 0.23; p < 0.001). GPAQ-Accelerometer correlation for MVPA was higher for females (rho: 0.42), ≤35 age group (rho: 0.31) and those with higher education attainment (rho: 0.48). The Bland-Altman plots illustrated bias towards over estimation of GPAQ MVPA with increased activity levels for urban and rural residents. CONCLUSION: GPAQ is an acceptable measure for physical activity surveillance in Bangladesh particularly for urban residents, women and people with high education. Given waist worn accelerometers do not capture the typical PA in rural context, further study using a physical activity diary and a combination of multiple sensors (e.g., wrist, ankle and waist worn accelerometers) to capture all movement is warranted among rural population with purposive sampling of all education levels.

Knowledge attitude and practice regarding diabetes mellitus among Nondiabetic and diabetic study participants in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: Increased awareness amongst large population groups is a major determinant for the prevention of diabetes and its complications as well as related metabolic disorders. Knowledge and attitude are the principal markers of awareness that need to be studied in various population groups in specific racial and cultural contexts. The present study was undertaken to explore knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) regarding -diabetes mellitus (DM) among nondiabetic (nonDM) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients in Bangladesh. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 18,697 adults (aged 18 years and above; 7796 male and 10,901 female; 6780 nonDM and 11,917 T2DM) selected purposively from the OPD of 19 healthcare centres in and around Dhaka and in northern parts of Bangladesh. KAP were assessed by a pre-structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire and categorised using predefined scores of poor (mean + 1 SD). Univariate and bivariate statistical analysis were done as appropriate. Multivariate linear regression was done to examine the association between diabetes related KAP and other covariates. RESULTS: The mean (±SD) age (years) of all the study participants was 46 ± 14, mean BMI 24.4 ± 4.1 and mean waist-hip ratio (WHR) was 0.93 ± 0.07. The proportion of poor, average and good knowledge scores among T2DM subjects were 17%, 68% and 15% respectively. The corresponding values for attitude score were 23%, 67% and 10% respectively. The KAP regarding diabetes was found to be better among people who were living with diabetes compared to their counterparts. DM males showed better knowledge and practice regarding diabetes, compared to nonDM counterparts (M ± SD; 44.18 ± 16.13 vs 40.88 ± 15.62, p = <0.001; 66.00 ± 29.68 vs 64.21 ± 31.79, p < 0.001, respectively). Females showed better attitude score compared to males. Overall KAP were found to be significantly higher (p < 0.001) in middle aged (31-50 years) participants in each group. Participants from urban residents, higher educational background and upper socio-economic class demonstrated significantly greater score in terms of KAP in both nonDM and T2DM groups (p < 0.001). On linear regression analysis, knowledge scores correlated strongly with education, income, residence, diabetic state, BMI and attitude. CONCLUSIONS: The overall level of knowledge and practice concerning diabetes among Bangladeshi population is average, but the overall level of attitude is good both in nonDM and T2DM subjects. To prevent diabetes and its complications there is an urgent need for coordinated educational campaigns with a prioritized focus on poorer, rural and less educated groups.

Short-term predictive ability of selected cardiovascular risk prediction models in a rural Bangladeshi population: a case-cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Prediction of absolute risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) has important clinical and public health significance, but the predictive ability of the available tools has not yet been tested in the rural Bangladeshi population. The present study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that both laboratory-based (Framingham equation and WHO/ISH laboratory-based charts) and non-laboratory-based tools may be used to predict CVDs on a short-term basis. METHODS: Data from a case-cohort study (52989 cohort and 439 sub-cohort participants), conducted on a rural Bangladeshi population, were analysed using modified Cox PH model with a maximum follow-up of 2.5 years. The outcome variable, coronary heart diseases (CHDs), was assessed in 2014 using electrocardiography, and it was used as a surrogate marker for CVDs in Bangladesh. The predictive power of the models was assessed by calculating C-statistics and generating ROC curves with other measures of diagnostic tests. RESULTS: All the models showed high negative prediction values (NPVs, 84 % to 92 %) and these did not differ between models or gender. The sensitivity of the models substantially changed based on the risk prediction thresholds (between 5-30 %); however, the NPVs and PPVs were relatively stable at various threshold levels. Hypertension and dyslipidaemia were significantly associated with CHD outcome in males and ABSI (a body shape index) in females. All models showed similar C-statistics (0.611-0.685, in both genders). Overall, the non-laboratory-based model showed better performance (0.685) in women but equal performance in men. CONCLUSIONS: Existing CVD risk prediction tools may identify future CHD cases with fairly good confidence on a short-term basis. The non-laboratory-based tool, using ABSI as a predictor, may provide better predictive accuracy among women.

Clinical and biochemical characterization of high risk and not high risk for cardiovascular disease adults in a population from peripheral region of Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: A group of 63708 Bangladeshi adults from a rural area were screened in 2011-12 for cardiovascular diseases (CVD) risk using a questionnaire based tool developed as part of the 'WHO CVD-RISK Management Package for low-and medium resource setting'. In the current study participants who were found to be high risk and a sample of the not high risk participants from the screening were further characterized clinically and biochemically to explore the burden and determinants of CVD risk factors in a remote rural Bangladeshi population. METHODS: The high risk participants comprised all 1170 subjects who screened positive in 2011-12 and the not high risk group comprised 563 randomly sampled participants from the 62538 who screened negative. Socio-demographic, behavioral, anthropometric, clinical and biochemical data (glucose and lipids) were collected by standardized procedures. Body Mass Index (BMI) was classified following Asian BMI criteria. Data was analyzed using univariable and multivariable methods. RESULTS: On univariable analysis in high risk and not high risk participants respectively, age in years (M ± SD) was 50 ± 11 for both groups, ratio of male: female was 40:60 and 66:44, current smoking 28.5% and 50.6%; smokeless tobacco use 37.1% and 34.8%; overweight and obesity measured by body mass index (BMI) was 39.1% and 20.5%; high waist circumference (WC) 36.1% and 11.9%; high waist to hip ratio (WHR) 53.8% and 26.3%; and with high waist to height ratio (WHtR) 56.4% and 28.4%, existence of hypertension (HTN) was 15.8% and 3.6%, pre-HTN 43.8% and 12.1%, diabetes (DM) 14.0% and 10.5%, pre-DM 16.9% and 12.1% and dyslipidaemia 85.8% and 89.5%. In multivariable logistic regression analysis female sex, BMI, WC, WHR and WHtR, HTN and dyslipidaemia remain significantly more common among high risk participants (p < 0.05 and p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of clinical and biochemical risk factors of CVDs are quite high even in this rural population and this may be related to the socioeconomic and cultural transition in Bangladeshi society. Surprisingly more of the high risk group was female and there were fewer smokers. Obesity and hypertension were more frequent in high risk participants.

Arsenic exposure increases maternal but not cord serum IgG in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: Thousands of pregnant women are exposed to arsenic (As), which has been shown to lead to a higher risk of maternal and infant morbidity. We hypothesized that As-induced modifications to the humoral immune system may be partly responsible, and examined the relationship between As and immunoglobulin G (IgG). METHODS: Pregnant women were recruited in As-contaminated rural areas in Bangladesh. Blood and urine samples, and questionnaire data were collected. We analyzed data from 202 pregnant women and a subset of 121 mother-infant pairs. Urinary As was measured on inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry and adjusted with specific gravity (U-AsSG ). Maternal (IgGmat ) and cord (IgGcord ) serum total IgG were measured using immunoturbidity assay. RESULTS: The geometric mean U-AsSG (n = 202) was 69 µg/L (range, 3.1-1356 µg/L). Urinary-AsSG was significantly associated with IgGmat (n = 202; (r = 0.24; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.10-0.36; P < 0.001) and remained so after the inclusion of maternal-associated variables in a multiple-regression model (ß = 1.26; 95%CI: 0.47-2.05; P < 0.01). U-AsSG , however, was not significantly associated with IgGcord (n = 121), while IgGmat and IgGcord were also not associated with each other. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal As exposure was positively associated with IgGmat but not IgGcord . Elevated IgGmat may have implications as regards maternal morbidity and the placental transfer of specific IgGs. Further studies are required to better understand how As may affect maternal and child health by modifying the humoral immune system.

Bone mineral density: reference values and correlates for Bangladeshi women aged 16-65 years.

BACKGROUND: Studies examining the reference values of bone mineral density (BMD) and their patterns at different ages are largely based on data generated from developed countries. The objective of this study was to estimate reference values of BMD, along with their correlates, for women living in urban and suburban areas of Bangladesh. METHODS: Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans were performed on 500 women 16-65 years of age. Reference values at the lumbar spine (LS) and femoral neck (FN) were estimated after adjusting for height and weight. In addition, multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine correlates of BMD at the LS and FN. RESULTS: Mean BMD was highest at the LS and FN in women 16-19 (1.001-1.007 g/cm(2)) and 16-22 years of age (0.880-0.888 g/cm(2)), respectively, and gradually declined with increasing age thereafter. BMD decreased at an annual rate of 0.0027 g/cm(2) at the LS and 0.0046 g/cm(2) at the FN among women aged 16-45 years. For women 46-65 years of age, the respective figures were 0.0073 and 0.0083 g/cm(2). In both age groups, body weight was positively associated with BMD at both sites, and with height only at the LS. In addition, years of pill use was positively associated with BMD at the LS among women aged 16-45 years. BMD levels at both sites began to decline during the early twenties among Bangladeshi women. CONCLUSIONS: Age-specific BMD data generated in this study could be useful for interpreting bone densitometry data among women in Bangladesh and other South Asian countries.

Non-adherence to self-care practices & medication and health related quality of life among patients with type 2 diabetes: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Non-adherence to lifestyle modification among diabetic patients develops the short-term risks and the long-term complications as well as declines the quality of life. This study aimed to find out the association between non-adherence to self-care practices, medication and health related quality of life (HR-QoL) among type 2 diabetic patients. METHODS: At least 1 year diagnosed patients with type 2 diabetes (N = 500), age>25 years were conveniently selected from the Out-Patient Department of Bangladesh Institute of Health Sciences Hospital. Patients' self-care practices were assessed via interviewer-administered questionnaires using an analytical cross-sectional design. HRQoL was assessed by an adapted and validated Bangla version of the EQ-5D (EuroQol Group, 2009) questionnaire which has five domains- mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression and two levels on each dimension. EQ-5D responses were further translated into single summery EQ-5D index using UK TTO value set. Patients' were considered as non-adhered to self-care practices according to the guidelines of Diabetic Association of Bangladesh. Multivariable linear regression was used to assess the association between non-adherence towards self-care practices and HRQoL. RESULTS: Among the study patients, 50.2% were females and mean ± SD age was 54.2 (±11.2) years. Non-adherence rate were assessed for: blood glucose monitoring (37%), diet (44.8%), foot care (43.2%), exercise (33.2%) and smoking (37.2%). About 50.4% patients had problem in mobility, 28.2% in self-care, 47.6% in usual activities, 72.8% in pain/discomfort and 73.6% in anxiety/depression. On chi-squared test, significant association was found between non adherence to foot care and problem with mobility, self-care and usual activities (p < 0.05). Significant association was also found between non-adherence to exercise and poor mobility, self- care, usual activities, pain and anxiety (p < 0.05). Non-adherence to diet was associated with poor mobility (p < 0.05). In multivariable linear regression non-adherence to foot care (p = 0.0001), exercise (p = 0.0001), and smoking (p = 0.047) showed significant association with EQ-5D index after adjusting co-variates. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, patients who have a non-adherence rate also have a lower quality of life.

Osteopenia and osteoporosis among 16-65 year old women attending outpatient clinics.

Women living in developing countries are more prone to osteoporotic fractures than women in developed countries. The objectives of this study were to estimate the burden of osteopenia and osteoporosis and examine their correlates among Bangladeshi women. This cross-sectional study consisted of 500 women aged 16-65 years attending gynecology and family planning clinics of a tertiary hospital which cares urban/suburban low income population in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured at the lumbar spine and femoral neck using dual X-ray absorptiometry. We calculated T scores based on sex-matched reference data from Caucasian women provided by the manufacturer. Osteoporosis was defined as a BMD at either site more than 2.5 standard deviations (SD) below the young healthy adult woman mean while the osteopenia was defined as a BMD between 1 and 2.5 SD below the mean as suggested by the World Health Organization. Separate multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to examine the correlates of osteopenia/osteoporosis among 16-45 and 46-65 year old women. Overall, 43.6 and 5.5 % of 16-45 year old women, and 40.7 and 41.8 % of 46-65 year old women had osteopenia and osteoporosis based on T scores either of the two sites (lumbar spine or femoral neck), respectively. Body mass index was negatively associated with osteopenia/osteoporosis at both lumbar spine and femoral neck, while age was positively associated. The burden of osteopenia/osteoporosis is very high in Bangladeshi women which warrants appropriate interventional strategies to minimize future fractures and reduce related social and economic burden of the society.