Prevalence of fibromyalgia and irritable bowel syndrome and its association with studying medicine, a cross-sectional study in Al-Baath University, Syria.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to assess the prevalence rate of fibromyalgia (FM) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) among Al-Baath University students and find out whether studying medicine has an association with a higher prevalence rate. METHODS: The participants of this observational cross-sectional study were students aged 18-30 years from Al-Baath University. A structured self-estimated electronic questionnaire developed by Google Forms was distributed using social media platforms from 15 February to 15 March, 2023. We used The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 2016 and Fibromyalgia Rapid Screening Tool criteria to assess the prevalence rate of FM. We used The ROME IV criteria to asses IBS prevalence rate. RESULTS: The final sample size was 800 individuals. The prevalence of IBS in the study population was 26.8%. Overall, IBS-Constipation was the most common subtype, and the prevalence rate was higher among medical students (14%) compared to other colleges (12.8%) (p = .002). The difference in IBS prevalence between males and females was (9.3% vs. 17.5%, p = .283), but this did not reach the statistical significance. The prevalence of FM according to The ACR in the study population was 3.6%. Females had higher prevalence rate than males (3.1% vs. 0.5%, p = .007). The prevalence of FM was also higher in other colleges compared to medicine (2.3% vs. 1.4%, p = .547), but this did not reach statistical significance. CONCLUSION: We found an increased prevalence of IBS among medical students. The prevalence of FM did not show any relation to studying medicine. We recommend additional prospective studies to assess whether studying medicine could be a risk factor for these disorders or not.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia and metabolic syndrome; prevalence and association: a cross-sectional study in Syria.

BACKGROUND: Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) is considered the most common cause of lower urinary tract symptoms in men aged 40 years and older. BPH is related to sex steroids, but there are increasing studies investigating the relationship between the urinary symptoms and the metabolic syndrome. They still have inconsistent results; some reported a significant positive association, while others found no significant association. In this study, we aim to assess the prevalence rate of metabolic syndrome in BPH patients and whether there is an association between symptoms linked to BPH and metabolic syndrome in the Syrian community. METHODS: The participants of this observational cross-sectional study were benign prostatic hyperplasia patients aged 40-year-old and older from Homs, Syria. An interview questionnaire was performed to collect data from all patients who visited the urology clinic of Homs Military Hospital in the period of January 10 to March 10, 2023. We used the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) to assess the urinary symptoms, and we used the US National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel (NCEP ATPIII) criteria to define the metabolic syndrome. RESULTS: The final sample size was 426 patients. The overall prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 46.2%. Patients with metabolic syndrome had higher International Prostate Symptom Score compared to patients without metabolic syndrome (21 vs. 18, P < 0.001), and 59.3% of patients with metabolic syndrome suffered from severe symptoms compared to 36.2% of patients without metabolic syndrome who suffered from severe lower urinary tract symptoms (P < 0.001). There was a positive association between (waist circumference, diabetes, triglycerides) (P < 0.001), HDL (P = 0.014) and higher International Prostate Symptom Score. However, there was no statistically significant association between blood pressure and International Prostate Symptom Score (P = 0.879). CONCLUSION: Our results showed that patients with metabolic syndrome had a higher International Prostate Symptom Score. This idea should be used to design a new benign prostatic hyperplasia/lower urinary tract symptoms treatment.