[Falls from height in childhood in Diyarbakir province: a questionnaire study combined with clinical data]. / Diyarbakir'da çocukluk çaginda damdan düsmeler: Klinik çalisma ile desteklenmis bir anket çalismasi.

BACKGROUND: In Diyarbakir, the rate of falls from height increases during summer months since people sleep on the unprotected balconies and roofs of their houses. We aimed to determine the frequency of falls from height and the related risk factors. METHODS: We used questionnaire method and clinical data in this study. The questionnaire was administered in 1445 residences. Clinical data were obtained from files of patients hospitalized due to trauma in the Neurosurgery Clinic of Dicle University over the last six years. RESULTS: In this questionnaire study, it was determined that 246 people had fallen, their average age was 15.4 years, 98% of them had fallen accidentally (mostly from 3.6 m height in summer months), mortality was 6.9%, and the prevalence of falls from height over the previous six years was 472/100,000. Of 464 patients who were hospitalized during the last six years, 326 were cases of fall from height and 59% of these patients were falls from a roof. The average age of these patients was 8.9 years, and average height of the fall was 4.2 m. CONCLUSION: Falls from height, particularly from roofs in Diyarbakir, remain a serious problem in terms of public health.

Patterns of active and passive smoking, and associated factors, in the South-east Anatolian Project (SEAP) region in Turkey.

BACKGROUND: Smoking is an important health threat in Turkey. This study aimed to determine the frequency of and main factors associated with smoking in persons of 15 years and over, and the frequency of passive smoking in homes in the South-east Anatolian Project (SEAP) Region in Turkey. METHODS: A cross sectional design was employed. The sample was chosen by the State Institute of Statistics using a stratified cluster probability sampling method. 1126 houses representing the SEAP Region were visited. Questionnaires about tobacco smoking and related factors were applied to 2166 women and 1906 men (of 15 years old and above) in their homes. Face-to-face interview methods were employed. Participants were classified as current, ex, and non-smokers. The presence of a regular daily smoker in a house was used as an indication of passive smoking. The chi-square and logistic regression analysis methods were used for the statistical analysis. RESULTS: The prevalence of smoking, in those of 15 years and over, was 11.8% in women and 49.7% in men. The prevalence of current smokers was higher in urban (34.5%) than in rural (22.8%) regions. The mean of total cigarette consumption was 6.5 packs/year in women and 17.9 packs/year in men. There was at least one current smoker in 70.1% of the houses. CONCLUSION: Smoking is a serious problem in the South-eastern Anatolian Region. Male gender, middle age, a high level of education and urban residency were most strongly associated with smoking.

Attitudes towards family planning in the Southeast Anatolian Project (SEAP) region of Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: To determine attitudes towards family size and last pregnancies in order to improve family planning services in the Southeast Anatolian Project (SEAP) region. METHODS: A questionnaire survey in the nine SEAP regional provinces was carried out under the auspices of the 'SEAP Public Health Project' from 2001 to 2002. The participants comprised 1756 women and 661 men from 1126 households. RESULTS: For men and women aged 15 years and over the median ideal number of children was three. The rate of unintended last pregnancies (43.1%) in the present study was very high compared to the national average of 18.8%. Some 30.1% of the last pregnancies were unwanted by either partner. CONCLUSIONS: The number of pregnancies and children in this region is approximately twice as high as the ideal number. Families in the region are having more children than they want. Basic education must be given to women, particularly non-Turkish speakers, to improve their knowledge and use of family planning. Family planning education for men in rural areas also needs special attention.

Induced abortion and effecting factors of ever married women in the Southeast Anatolian Project Region, Turkey: a cross sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Nearly 10% of the population of Turkey lives in the Southeast Anatolian Project (SEAP) region. The population growth rate and the rate of unintended pregnancies are high and family planning services are insufficient in this region. Lifetime induced abortion rate is also high in this region. Public health problems of the SEAP region were investigated in the "SEAP Public Health Project" in 2001 and 2002. As it is one of the most important health problems of the women living in this region; induced abortion was also investigated in this project. METHODS: An optimumsample size representing the rural and urban area of the region (n = 1150) was chosen by the State Institute of Statistics by a sampling method proportional to size. 1126 of the area's 1150 houses have been visited and data about induced abortions have been obtained by applying a questionnaire to 1491 ever married women who live in the region. RESULTS: It has been found that 9.0% of these women who had at least one pregnancy in their life had at least one induced abortion. The lifetime induced abortion per 100 pregnancies was found to be 2.45. The primary reason given for induced abortions was "wanting no more children" (64.6%). Lifetime induced abortions were 5.3 times greater with women using a family planning method than women not using family planning methods. Lifetime induced abortions were 4.1 times greater with unemployed women than working women. Most of the women have used private doctors in order to have an induced abortion. Although 32.29% have not yet begun to use a contraceptive method after their last induced abortion, 43.75% of the women have since started to use an effective contraceptive method. 23.96% of them have begun to use an ineffective contraceptive method. CONCLUSIONS: Induced abortion is still an important problem at the SEAP region. The results of the study remind us that unemployed women and women who have more than four children is our target group in the campaign against induced abortions. Most of the women use private doctors in order to have an induced abortion. Thus, priority must be given to educate private gynecologists with respect to induced abortion. After induced abortions, a qualified family planning consultant can be given to women and they can be secured to use a suitable contraceptive method.

[Typhoid fever epidemic in Ahmetli village, Diyarbakir-Ergani]. / Diyarbakir-Ergani, Ahmetli köyünde ortaya çikan bir tifo salgini.

Salmonella typhi leads to typhoid fever outbreaks due to the contamination of drinking water. In this study, a typhoid fever outbreak due to drinking water contamination in Ahmetli village, Ergani-Diyarbakir, in the period of December 25, 2001-January 4, 2002 was evaluated. A total of 181 suspicious cases were admitted to different health care centers during the outbreak and 71 (39.2%) of them were hospitalized. Gruber-Widal test could be performed for only 8 hospitalized patients, and were found positive in 6 of them. S. typhi was isolated from 3 of the 26 blood cultures and two of the 73 stool cultures of the patients. All village inhabitants were visited and suspicious cases were screened for salmonellosis. It was shown that the village-drinking water was contaminated with sewage. No S. typhi was isolated from the drinking water since it was previously disinfected. Maintenance of drinking water supply system, individual chloride usage and education were recommended, as safety cushions.

The distribution of the intestinal parasitic diseases in the Southeast Anatolian (GAP=SEAP) region of Turkey.

OBJECTIVES: The physical alterations put in place by the Southeastern Anatolia Project will undoubtedly provide a remarkable economical growth and a social development in the area. In addition, the influence that formation of dam ponds, enlargement of irrigation areas, change of product and the way of cultivation, urbanization and industrialization will have an impact on the environment. To minimize the adverse effects of this process on human beings, a Community Health Project was completed by the teams participated by Ege, Dicle, Gaziantep and Harran Universities under the Directorate of Turkish Parasitology Association and by Southeastern Anatolia Project Regional Development Administration between 2001 and 2003. RESULTS: To identify individuals with parasite, feces samples were taken from a total of 4,470 individuals. Parasites were found in feces of 41.8% of men, 44.3% of women and 32.2% of children, 0-59 months old, who were included in the research and gave feces samples for parasites tests. These prevalence values indicate how widespread parasitic diseases are in the region. The high prevalence of parasitic diseases in this area is one of the causes of malnutrition in 40% of children. Parasites were detected in 44.2% of feces samples taken from rural areas and in 39.5% taken from urban areas. When the distribution of parasites detected in feces samples was studied, the most common parasites were Giardia intestinalis (18.1%), Entamoeba coli (11.8%), Ascaris lumbricoides (4.8%), Trichuris trichiura (4.5%) and Hymenolepis nana (3.9%). Distribution of parasites according to cities varied widely. The most frequently seen parasites were T. trichiura in Gaziantep; G. intestinalis in Batman, Mardin, Diyarbakir, Sirnak and Sanliurfa; and E. coli in Siirt, Kilis and Adiyaman. CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first investigation of intestinal parasite prevalence in a large region, specifically, in this GAP region and in Turkey, in general. There is no direct relationship between irrigating the cultivation areas and diffusion of parasitic diseases because the existence of intestinal parasites mentioned above is not related to the range of irrigation of cultivation areas, but is related to factors already discussed.