Erectile Dysfunction and Depression Prevalence Among Male Patients with Type II Diabetes.

Background and Objective: Patients with Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) are at substantial risk for developing erectile dysfunction (ED). The primary goal of this study was to assess the prevalence of ED and depression among T2D patients and the associated risk factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted for adult T2D patients who had a routine clinic visit between January-August 2023. Structured questionnaires formed with two validated questionnaires - the International Index of Erectile Function short form (IIEF-5) and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) - were used to screen for ED and depression, respectively. Results: A total of 478 male patients with T2D with a mean age of 59.2 ± 10.8 years, mostly married, with long standing T2D were included. Hyperlipidemia followed by hypertension were the most reported comorbidities. Of the patients, 61.3% had reported no depression and were less likely to have ED or severe ED (p <0.001) and more likely to be physically active and to report no smoking (p <0.0001) when compared to those with depression. Fifty-two percent of the patients reported moderate and severe ED and those were older in age (p = 0.031), had longer duration of T2D diagnosis (p = 0.005), were more likely to have any comorbidities (p <0.05), were less likely to have a university degree and higher income (both p <0.001), were less likely to be on oral hypoglycemic agents (OHA) (p <0.001), had worse glycemic control parameters (p = 0.463), were more likely to have positive urine microalbuminuria (p = 0.019), and were less likely to be physically active (p = 0.048) when compared to patients with no or milder degree of ED. Conclusion: ED is highly prevalent in our study sample, with half of the patients having moderate to severe ED and being more likely to have depression. Older age, long-standing T2D, comorbidities, socioeconomic disadvantage, and sedentary lifestyle were all significantly associated with ED.

Outcomes and characteristics of myasthenia gravis: A 10-year retrospective cross-sectional study at King Fahad Medical City.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the distribution of muscle weakness in Myasthenia gravis (MG) and the therapeutic response in each category. METHODS: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study included all MG patients presented to our clinic between 2010 and 2020. The demographic, clinical, serological, electrophysiological, radiological, and histopathological data of the patients were recorded. The details of the treatment administered were also documented. Muscle weakness was divided into: ocular, bulbar, and generalized. RESULTS: The mean age of the 147 patients included in this study was 34.2±16.6 years. The most common presentation was ocular MG (57.1%). There was no significant association between the gender of the patients and the MG subgroups. Antibodies against AChR were reported in 95.2%, 75%, and 87% of the patients with ocular, bulbar, and generalized myasthenia, respectively. Anti-MuSK antibodies were detected in 20% of the patients with bulbar weakness. Most of the patients with ocular (91.7%) and bulbar (90%) presentation developed generalized weakness. At the end of the follow-up, 82.6%, 70.2%, and 57.5% of the patients with generalized, ocular, and bulbar presentations, respectively demonstrated well-controlled weakness. CONCLUSION: The most common initial presentation was ocular weakness. Most patients with ocular and bulbar presentation developed generalized weakness during the follow up period. The most frequently reported autoantibody was against AChR. Most patients with generalized, ocular, and bulbar presentation demonstrated well-controlled weakness at the end of the follow up period.

The Prevalence of Headache and Associated Factors in Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Only few studies have investigated the prevalence and risk factors of headaches among the Saudi population. The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of headache and to explore its associated risk factors Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia. Methods: The multistage sampling technique was used to enroll 1200 population-based participants who were asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire about headaches, demographics, and several other parameters such as smoking status and different chronic and psychological illnesses. The chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to test the association. Results: The overall prevalence of headaches in this study was 3%. The multiple logistic regression analysis showed that females were more likely to have headaches than males (odds ratio (OR) 0.735, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.612-1.341; P=0.024). Being a current smoker was also significantly associated with higher "odds" of having headache (OR = 1.319, 95% CI = 0.932-2.462; P=0.037). Participants who were overweight had a significantly higher risk of headache (OR = 1.631, 95% CI = 1.48-1.854; P=0.037). Nonmarried people were significantly more likely to have headache pain, compared to married individuals (OR = 0.875, 95% CI = 0.646-2.317; P=0.047). Conclusion: The prevalence of headaches was 3%, and four significant associated factors were identified: females, nonmarried, smoking, and overweight. The temporality of the relationship between these factors and headache cannot be confirmed in this cross-sectional study; so future longitudinal studies are needed to confirm these potential causal relationships.

Prevalence and risk factors of myasthenia gravis recurrence post-thymectomy.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the prevalence and the factors associated with recurrence of myasthenia gravis following thymectomy. METHODS: Six electronic databases which reported on recurrence of myasthenia gravis following thymectomy and/or its risk factors from 1985 to 2018 were searched. Summary prevalence and risk values obtained based on the random effect models were reported. RESULTS: Seventy (70) papers containing 7,287 individuals with myasthenia gravis who received thymectomy as part of their management were retrieved. The patients had a mean follow-up of 4.65 years post-thymectomy. The prevalence of myasthenia gravis recurrence post-thymectomy was 18.0% (95% CI 14.7-22.0%; 1865/7287). Evident heterogeneity was observed (I2=93.6%; p<0.001). Recurrence rate was insignificantly higher in male compared with female patients (31.3 vs. 23.8%; p=0.104). Pooled recurrence rates for thymomatous (33.3%) was higher than the rate among non-thymomatous (20.8%) myasthenia gravis patients (Q=4.19, p=0.041). Risk factors for recurrence include older age, male sex, disease severity, having thymomatous myasthenia gravis, longer duration of the myasthenia gravis before surgery, and having an ectopic thymic tissue. CONCLUSION: A fifth of individuals with myasthenia gravis experience recurrence after thymectomy. Closer monitoring should be given to at-risk patients and further studies are needed to understand interventions to address these risks.