Impact of Ramadan Fasting on the Severity of Symptoms Among a Cohort of Patients With Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD).

INTRODUCTION:  Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a condition caused by the reflux of stomach contents into the esophagus. Heartburn, chest discomfort, and regurgitation are the main symptoms. Medications, surgical procedures, and lifestyle modification are considered treatment options. Fasting is believed to be one of the lifestyle modifications that helps minimize GERD symptoms. Muslims abstain from eating, drinking, and smoking from dawn until dusk. The objectives of our study were to investigate the relationship between fasting and GERD symptoms and evaluate how fasting affects GERD symptoms in Saudi Arabia. METHODOLOGY: This was a longitudinal study that selected GERD patients for its consecutive sampling. The patients answered the questionnaires at two separate times: once during Ramadan and once after Ramadan. A validated gastroesophageal reflux disease health-related quality of life (GERD-HRQL) self-administered survey was used. RESULT: After Ramadan, heartburn symptoms significantly decreased, particularly when lying down. Overall, the 45-point heartburn score decreased from 17.9 during Ramadan to 14.3 thereafter. The regurgitation score decreased from 12.3 during Ramadan to 9.9 after fasting, with statistical significance (P = .049). Although satisfaction was much higher after Ramadan (17% vs. 15.1%), there was no statistical significance (P = .422), and 45.3% of the patients were satisfied with their health state during Ramadan compared to 34% after Ramadan. There was no relationship between the severity of GERD symptoms before or after fasting and the type of food, the timing of eating, or the amount of food consumed. CONCLUSION: The results suggested that Ramadan fasting may improve GERD symptoms. However, more studies are required to validate these results and comprehend the underlying mechanisms.

Awareness of Stroke Risk Factors, Warning Signs, and Preventive Behaviour Among Diabetic Patients in Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia.

Objectives This study aims to measure the level of awareness about stroke symptoms, risk factors, and preventive health practices that could be taken to reduce the risk of stroke among diabetic patients in Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia in 2020. The sample included a total of 202 male and female Saudi adults aged 18-65 years, with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus, and living in Al Ahsa, Saudi Arabia. The information was collected randomly through an online questionnaire distributed among patients after getting their contact information from relevant governmental and private diabetes clinics and after signing the informed consent. For awareness and knowledge items, each correct answer was scored one point and the total summation of the discrete scores of the different items was calculated. A diabetic patient with a score less than 60% of the total score was considered to have poor awareness while a score of 60% or more of the total score was considered a good level of awareness. Results A total of 87 (43.1%) participants had an overall good awareness level, while 115 (56.9%) had poor awareness levels. Around 40.6% of the study patients had heard about stroke, 61.9% knew that stroke affects the brain, and 24.3% reported that stroke is higher among males. As for factors associated with stroke, the most reported was high blood pressure (71.8%), followed by diabetes mellitus (69.3%). Exactly 65.8% of participants knew about the mechanism of ischemic stroke and 42.6% reported hemorrhagic stroke. A high percentage of patients (73.1%) realize that they could reduce their risk of stroke. Conclusion The findings of the current study showed that less than half (43.1%) of the Saudi patients with DM had a good awareness level regarding stroke and its related risk factors and warning signs. Older patients (aged 50-65 years) with high social levels (high education and income) and those with a family history of stroke had significantly higher awareness levels. Hypertension, DM, and smoking are the highest reported known risk factors of stroke, and speech disorders are the highest known stroke presentation to the respondents.

An Assessment of the 10-Year Risk of Developing Type 2 Diabetes Among Saudi Adults Based on the Finnish Diabetes Risk Score.

Background and objective Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic, metabolic disease characterized by elevated blood glucose levels that eventually lead to several acute and chronic complications. Type 2 DM (T2DM) is a major healthcare problem globally as well as in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Predicting and identifying people at high risk for developing T2DM will help implement preventive measures for these individuals. In light of this, the present study was designed to estimate the 10-year risk of developing T2DM among the Saudi general population. Methodology A descriptive, cross-sectional survey involving 15,509 Saudi individuals was undertaken. The participants were selected from all 13 provinces of KSA based on stratified random sampling. The Finnish Diabetes Risk Score (FINDRISC), a validated tool for T2DM risk assessment, was employed. Descriptive and chi-square analyses were used. Results The mean age of the participants was 28.33 years. Subjects with a moderate, high, and very high risk of developing T2DM within the next 10 years comprised approximately 18% of the sample. The mean FINDRISC was 7.53 [standard deviation (SD): 4.28], which is considered a level associated with a slightly elevated risk of developing T2DM. Of note, 938 participants (6.05%) among the sample population had a high risk of developing T2DM as predicted by FINDRISC. Education, daily physical activity, high blood glucose, and family history of DM were significantly higher in females compared to males (p<0.001). On the other hand, smoking rates and use of antihypertensive medications were substantially higher among males (p<0.001). Conclusion Based on our findings, approximately 18% of the Saudi general population has a moderate to high risk of developing T2DM. T2DM risk assessment should be widely and regularly practiced by general practitioners and internists as part of national programs for diabetes prevention.

Correlation of 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and Serum Lipid Levels Among Patients With Type 2 Diabetes.

Introduction Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a well-known health care problem. The is a growing interest in the role of vitamin D in metabolism including glucose and lipid metabolism. This study aims to investigate the possible association between 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and serum lipid levels among patients with T2DM. Method A cross-sectional study was done at the King Faisal University Health Care Center in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethics and Research Committee at the College of Medicine, King Faisal University. We obtained the clinical and laboratory data of patients with T2DM by searching the electronic files of patients attending the center during the period between 2014 and 2021. Data collected included age, gender, nationality, vitamin D levels, HbA1c, and lipid levels. The chi-square and independent sample t-tests were applied when appropriate, for comparisons between groups to determine significance. A P-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Result The study included 191 diabetic patients, 137 (71.7%) from Saudi Arabia, and 54 (28.3%) from other countries. Patient ages ranged from 21 to 100 years with a mean age of 56.2 ± 11.8 years. Cholesterol levels were observed to be high among 61 (32.3%) patients. Considering vitamin D, the average level among male patients was 26.526 ng/ml compared to 26 ng/ml% among females (P = 0.742).  Conclusion Further long-term and more comprehensive randomized controlled trials are needed to make a firmer conclusion and stronger evidence on this beneficial role of vitamin D treatment on T2DM.

Knowledge of Thyroid Disease Manifestations and Risk Factors Among Residents of the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: Thyroid disorders are worldwide common endocrine disorders. These disorders are frequently under-diagnosed. In general, lack of knowledge and understanding of thyroid disorder effects can lead patients to go undiagnosed. This study aims to figure out the level of the general knowledge about thyroid disease manifestations, risk factors, and preventive behaviors among the general population.  Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 882 participants in the Eastern province of Saudi Arabia from July 2020 to October 2020, and were selected randomly. The representative sample included Saudi and non-Saudi males and females of different age groups (18-60 years). RESULT: The overall mean knowledge score was 8.67 (SD 3.69) with 44.7%, 41.2%, and 14.2% were classified into low, average, and high knowledge, respectively. In the comparison of mean knowledge score among the socio-demographic profiles and previous history of thyroid disease, the current study shows that being a female, living in Al Ahsa, being a student, those with a previous history of thyroid disease, family history of the disease, and those who underwent thyroid gland examination were significantly more associated with having better knowledge toward thyroid diseases. CONCLUSION: Nearly, half of the studied sample has low awareness scores regarding thyroid disease manifestations and its risk factors. The health authorities should hold more successful health education methods to improve the public and their caregivers' awareness of the various aspects of thyroid disorders and the value of their early detection and adequate control.