Epidemiology of primary brain tumor among adolescents and adults in Palestine: a retrospective study from 2018 to 2023.

BACKGROUNDS: Primary brain tumors (PBTs) are uncommon, but they significantly increase the risk of disability and death. There is a deficiency of data concerning the epidemiology and anatomical distribution of PBTs among adults in Palestine. METHODS: A retrospective descriptive study in which data were collected from the clinical reports of Palestinian patients diagnosed with PBTs at Al-Makassed Hospital during the period (2018-2023). RESULTS: In Palestinian adolescents and adults, the incidence rate of PBTs was 3.92 per 100,000 person-years. Glioblastoma (18.8%) was the most common type identified, and it was more common in males. Non-malignant tumors were more common than malignant tumors (2.41 vs. 1.52 per 100,000). The mortality rate from PBTs was 4.8%. The most common initial symptom was headaches, and it occurred more with non-malignant tumors (57.28% vs. 42.72%, p-value < 0.001). Cerebral meninges (26.3%) were the most common location for primary brain tumors (p-value < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This is the first study of primary brain tumor epidemiology in Palestine. The overall incidence of PBTs in Palestinian adolescents and adults was 3.96 per 100,000, which was lower than the incidence rate of primary brain tumors worldwide. More studies on the epidemiology and distribution of PBTs in Palestine are recommended.

Assessment of epilepsy awareness, knowledge, and attitudes among preclinical and clinical medical students in the West Bank of Palestine.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this research was to evaluate the level of epilepsy-related awareness, knowledge, and attitude exhibited by medical students at a specific medical school in Palestine, as well as the students' reactions to the treatment and social activities provided to patients with epilepsy. METHODS: A cross-sectional, observational research of 306 medical students at An-Najah National University in the West Bank, Palestine, was conducted. We used a validated survey taken from previous publications. We split the medical students into preclinical (2nd and 3rd year) and clinical (4th, 5th, and 6th year) groups to see if there were significant differences in their awareness, knowledge, attitude, and their practices toward patients with epilepsy. Several elements, such as sociodemographics, awareness, knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding epilepsy, were included in the survey. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 29.0. Quantitative data were expressed as mean and standard deviation, whereas qualitative data as frequencies and percentages. The chi-square test was used to compare groups.Any P-value below 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: In general, clinical medical students exhibited better epilepsy awareness, knowledge, and attitude than preclinical students. Of note, 73.6% of clinical students believe epilepsy is a treatable disorder, compared to 44.6% of preclinical students (P-value < 0.001). Some students believe that depression/anxiety (39.6%), psychosis (35.7%), jinns (evil spirit) (7.8%), evil eye (5.8%), and punishment from God (4.5%) cause epilepsy. Clinical students were more likely than preclinical students to have rotated in a neurology clinic or department (40% vs. 4.6%, P-value < 0.001). In total, 95.5% of clinical students and 86.9% of preclinical students (P-value = 0.006) thought patients with epilepsy should marry. Clinical stage students were more likely than preclinical stage students to think that patients with epilepsy can have children (92.7% vs. 83.1%, P-value = 0.009). Preclinical stage students were more likely than clinical stage students to believe that students with epilepsy should not play sports (22.3% versus 13%, P-value = 0.030). Generally, there were no significant gender differences in awareness, knowledge, and attitudes. CONCLUSION: The study found that medical students knew little about epilepsy types, causes, triggers, and first aid. Negative attitudes toward people with epilepsy living alone and discrimination against people with epilepsy were also observed. Students' perceptions of this prevalent disease must be improved through educational programs that provide increased opportunities for clinical exposure to this condition as well as proper inclusion of epilepsy in the regular curriculum.

Epidemiology and Anatomical Distribution of Primary Brain Tumors Among Children in Palestine: A 6-Year National Referral Institution Study.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the incidence rate of primary brain tumors (PBTs) among Palestinian children over a 6-year interval. This study also aimed to identify the predominant histopathologic types identified in these children. METHODS: This retrospective epidemiologic study focused on PBTs in children (<15 years) in Palestine. The data were collected from the registry system at Al-Makassed Hospital in Jerusalem, a prominent referral institution in Palestine and the largest center for PBTs in the region, over a 6 years period from 2018 to 2023. RESULTS: The incidence rate of PBTs in children (<15 years) was 1.33 per 100,000 person-years, with a 5% mortality rate. Pilocytic astrocytoma was the most common type (24%), followed by medulloblastoma (15.2%) and glioblastoma (6.3%). About one half of the tumors in children were malignant. Headaches were the most common first sign or symptom. About 20% of brain tumors in children were situated within the ventricles, making it the most prevalent location of these tumors, followed by the cerebellum (15.19%) and frontal lobe (11.39%). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first national study in Palestine investigating PBTs in children. The crude incidence rate of primary brain tumors among Palestinian children was lower than the incidence rate in many countries around the world. It is recommended that more research be done on the epidemiology and distribution of PBTs in children in Palestine.

Evaluation of knowledge and attitudes regarding Alzheimer's disease and related dementia among medical students in Palestine: A cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: Dementia, a major global health concern, is an acquired disorder that causes a progressive decline in cognitive abilities, affecting learning and memory, language, executive function, complex attention, perceptual-motor skills, and social cognition. Our study aims to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes regarding dementia and Alzheimer's disease among medical students. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 393 medical students in Palestine from August 2023 to November 2023. The assessment of knowledge and attitude toward dementia was measured using the Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge Scale (ADKS) and Dementia Attitude Scale (DAS). The data were analyzed using SPSS version 26, and the Mann-Whitney U-test and the Kruskal-Wallis test were used to compare the mean between the groups with a 5% significance level. RESULTS: The overall mean score of the student's knowledge of dementia measured by the ADKS was 18.91 (±3.32 SD) out of 30. The mean score of the student's attitude toward dementia measured by the DAS was 91.68 (±3.32 SD). Clinical students had higher ADKS scores than pre-clinical students (p-value < 0.001). No significant differences in the knowledge and attitudes toward dementia were found between males and females. The medical students' knowledge and attitude scores were positively correlated (ρ = 0.227, p-value <0.001). CONCLUSION: Palestinian medical student's knowledge about Alzheimer's disease and dementia is insufficient, with students in the clinical phase showing better understanding than pre-clinical students. The findings highlight a necessity for enhancing the dementia curriculum and conducting further studies to evaluate training's impact on students' knowledge and attitudes.