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Background Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a major health problem in Saudi Arabia. It is caused by the protozoa Leishmania. The vector is female sand flies. In order to develop preventive strategies to reduce the burden of this health problem, public awareness of the disease should be assessed. Objective This study aimed to investigate the knowledge and attitude toward CL among the adult population in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. Methods A cross-sectional survey study was conducted on 385 adult participants of Tabuk between April and May 2022. The investigators assembled the survey questions from peer-reviewed articles with some modifications. Google Forms was used to create the online survey. Social media were used to distribute the survey. Results The study revealed that hearing about CL was much more common among participants older than 61 years and Saudi males. The most prominent sources of information for the participants on which their answers were based were as follows: families and friends, health care professionals, television or radio, and lastly, newspapers. Subjects older than 61 years also showed more knowledge of the risk factors for contracting CL. However, the participants showed overall poor knowledge of the clinical presentation of the disease, which gender or age group was mostly affected, or how the disease was transmitted. Likewise, their knowledge of sand flies was poor. Most participants did not know if CL was a health problem or not. Conclusions The study revealed overall poor awareness of the epidemiological aspects of CL, how it is transmitted, its clinical presentation, and proper management. Our study could help authorities correct the gap in knowledge regarding CL in Tabuk.
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We report a case of a 3-year-old Saudi female patient as the first case reported in Saudi Arabia who is homozygous for dystonin c.3370C>T, p.(Gln1124*). At the age of 3 months, the girl started to develop numerous vesicles and bullae involving the dorsum of the feet that were not on a pressure site, with remission and aggravation, but she had no mucosal lesions or nail affection. The patient was diagnosed with epidermolysis bullosa simplex.
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Background Poor or imperfect sleep hygiene practices include all factors that promote arousal or disrupt the normal balance of the sleep-wake cycle. It is necessary to clarify the relationship between sleep hygiene behaviors and a person's mental health. This may allow a better understanding of this problem and might help design effective awareness programs about good sleep hygiene practices for reducing the serious outcomes of this problem. Therefore, the current study was conducted to evaluate sleep hygiene practices and assess the impact of sleep hygiene on sleep quality and the mental health of the adult population of Tabuk city, Saudi Arabia. Methodology This cross-sectional, survey-based study was conducted in Tabuk city, Saudi Arabia in 2022. All adult residents of Tabuk city, Saudi Arabia were invited to participate. Participants with incomplete data were excluded from the study. A self-administered questionnaire was developed by the researchers to assess sleep hygiene practices and their impact on the sleep quality and mental health of the study participants. Results The study included 384 adults. There was a significant association between the frequency of sleep problems and poor sleep hygiene practices (p < 0.001). The percentage of subjects who had problems sleeping during the past three months was significantly higher among those having poor sleep hygiene practices (76.5%) than their counterparts (56.1%). The rates of excessive or severe daytime sleepiness were significantly higher among individuals with poor hygiene practices (22.5% versus 11.7% and 5.2% versus 1.2%, p = 0.001). Participants with depression were found to be significantly higher among the poor hygiene group (75.8%) in comparison to those having good hygiene practices (59.6%) (p = 0.001). Conclusions The findings of the present study indicate significant associations between poor sleep hygiene practices and sleep problems, daytime sleepiness, and depression among adult residents of Tabuk city, Saudi Arabia.
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Background The application of artificial intelligence (AI) in education is undergoing rapid advancements, with models such as ChatGPT-4 showing potential in medical education. This study aims to evaluate the proficiency of ChatGPT-4 in answering Saudi Medical Licensing Exam (SMLE) questions. Methodology A dataset of 220 questions across four medical disciplines was used. The model was trained using a specific code to answer the questions accurately, and its performance was assessed using key performance indicators, difficulty level, and exam sections. Results ChatGPT-4 demonstrated an overall accuracy of 88.6%. It showed high proficiency with Easy and Average questions, but accuracy decreased for Hard questions. Performance was consistent across all disciplines, indicating a broad knowledge base. However, an error analysis revealed areas for further refinement, particularly with category (Option) A questions across all sections. Conclusions This study underscores the potential of ChatGPT-4 as an AI-assisted tool in medical education, demonstrating high proficiency in answering SMLE questions. Future research is recommended to expand the scope of training and evaluation as well as to enhance the model's performance on complex clinical questions.
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BACKGROUND: Allergic diseases such as bronchial asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis are common health problems among children. The prevalence of different allergic diseases is increasing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence and risk factors of allergic diseases among school students in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. METHODS: This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted in Tabuk city, Saudi Arabia, between the first of August and the end of September, 2022. Students from primary, intermediate, and secondary schools were included. A predesigned, structured, self-administered questionnaire in the Arabic language was used to collect data. RESULTS: This study included 384 school students from Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. The age of the recruited students ranged from five to 19 years old. The prevalence of clinically diagnosed bronchial asthma that occurred at any time in the past was 31.8%. The prevalence of asthma symptoms was 51.0% for lifetime wheezing and 45.8% for current wheezing (in the past 12 months). The prevalence rates of clinically diagnosed allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis were 56.8% and 30.2%, respectively. Further, 68.2% of the school students had one or more of the diagnosed allergic diseases. The second or more childbirth orders were significantly associated with an increased risk of allergic diseases (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 3.140, 95% CI: 1.864-5.288). A family history of asthma or atopic conditions showed 3.118 times increased likelihood of allergic conditions (AOR = 3.118, 95% CI: 1.827-5.320). Other significant risk factors were the father's smoking (AOR = 1.698, 95% CI: 1.024-2.817) and having a dog, cat, or bird at home (AOR = 0.493, 95% CI: 0.257-0.946). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of bronchial asthma and other allergic diseases such as allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis among school students in Tabuk city, Saudi Arabia, is alarmingly high. Furthermore, both genetic and environmental components of allergic disease pathogenesis have been identified as risk factors.
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Pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) is a rare ulcerative, painful inflammatory skin condition that is categorized among neutrophilic dermatoses. We report an otherwise healthy female who initially presented to a dermatology clinic with erythematous nodules and pustules scattered over her legs and thigh, which progressed later to multiple painful ulcers. Upon further investigation, it was diagnosed as idiopathic PG. Prednisone was an initial mainstay of treatment. While tapering, mycophenolate mofetil was started as adjunctive therapy but failed to maintain remission. A tumor necrosis factor inhibitor was initiated alongside colchicine with a significant clinical response.
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The pathogenesis of psoriasis involves the interaction of several environmental and genetic factors. Predicting the disease risk cannot depend on individual genetic alleles. Consequently, some studies have evaluated the use of genetic risk scores that combine several psoriasis susceptibility loci to increase the accuracy of predicting/diagnosing the disease. This meta-analysis summarizes the evidence regarding using genetic risk scores (GRS) in the diagnosis or prediction of psoriasis. A search of MEDLINE/PubMed, the Latin American Caribbean Health Sciences Literature (LILACS) database, Cochrane Library, Scopus, Web of Science, and ProQuest was conducted in July 2022. The primary objective was to record the area under the curve (AUC) for GRS of psoriasis. Secondary objectives included characteristics of studies and patients. The risk of bias (ROB) was assessed using the PROBAST tool. Five studies fulfilled the eligibility criteria of this review. None of the studies described the clinical criteria (reference standard) that were employed to diagnose psoriasis. The AUCs of the 11 GRS models ranged from 0.6029-0.8583 (median: 0.75). Marked heterogeneity was detected (Cochran Q: 1250.051, p < 0.001, and I2 index: 99.2%). So, pooling of the results of the included studies was not performed. The ROB was high for all studies and clinical application was not described. Genetic risk scores are promising tools for the prediction of psoriasis with fair to good accuracy. However, further research is required to identify the most accurate combination of loci and to validate the scores in variable ethnicities.
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Child abuse represents a serious problem worldwide. In Arab countries, the problem is complicated because abuse may be perceived as a method of discipline. This review aimed to describe awareness of the public in Saudi Arabia regarding child abuse. A search was performed in the databases of MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, Academic Search Complete (EBSCOhost), and Web of Science for articles published in English from the 1st of January, 2000, to the 14th of November, 2022. The search was conducted during the period from the 7th to the 14th of November 2022. The used search words were {"Child Abuse"} AND {"Saudi Arabia"} AND {"awareness"}. The risk of bias (ROB) was assessed using the Risk of Bias Instrument for Cross-Sectional Surveys of Attitudes and Practices. Six studies were included in this review. Most studies had high ROB in recruiting the participants, designing the questionnaires, and stating the rate of response. The awareness regarding physical abuse seemed fair in most studies, but the awareness about shaken baby syndrome was poor. Also, there was a misconception about the parent's right to discipline their children through corporal punishment. Most participants did not perceive a need for establishing protective laws or programs. Public awareness about emotional abuse and neglect was lower than in cases of physical abuse. The overall knowledge about child abuse seems to be fair, but poor knowledge was observed in some forms, such as shaken baby syndrome. The public concepts about physical punishment and the need for protective laws and programs are also negative and require more efforts to alter them.