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Background: The prevalence and patterns of aphrodisiac drug consumption without prescription among men in Saudi Arabia remain underexplored, with limited empirical evidence available. Given the potential health implications and societal considerations, a comprehensive investigation is warranted. Aim: Assess the Prevalence, pattern of use and the associated factors of Aphrodisiac drugs consumption without prescription among men at Najran City, Saudi Arabia. Methods: Employing a cross-sectional descriptive study, 500 participants were included through convenience sampling. The utilized questionnaires covered a range of data, including socio-demographic information, patterns of aphrodisiac use, knowledge about aphrodisiacs, lifestyle details, a sexual health inventory for men, and a perceived stress level scale. Results: The study reveals a significant prevalence of unsanctioned aphrodisiac drug use (31%) among men in Najran City, Saudi Arabia, with a majority (79.3%) consuming these substances four times monthly. Associated disparities in knowledge, lifestyle, stress, and sexual function underscore the urgent need for policy interventions and tailored health education initiatives for this demographic. Conclusion: Approximately one-third of the sampled population engaged in the unsanctioned use of aphrodisiac drugs, with the majority utilizing them four times monthly. Tablets emerged as the most prevalent form of consumption. Commonly cited motives and justifications included peer influence and the perceived safety of aphrodisiacs. Influential factors encompassed levels of knowledge, lifestyle, stress levels, erectile function, age, education, and the number of wives. Recommendations: Urgent policy interventions are warranted to regulate the acquisition and distribution of aphrodisiacs. Tailored health education initiatives should be implemented for married and prospective married men.
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Background/Aim: Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a significant complication of acute and chronic liver disease. It is crucial for nurses to have knowledge of encephalopathy symptoms to enable prompt and effective responses when caring for such patients. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate nurses' HE knowledge in Najran hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Methods: This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted with nurses at the Najran Hospital in Najran City, Saudi Arabia. The sample size was determined using Epi-Calc 2000, resulting in a final sample of 125 nurses from intensive care units (ICU), cardiac surgical ICU and pediatric ICU, and they were selected by convenience sampling technique. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire, and 125 nurses participated in knowledge assessment. The data were coded and entered into SPSS version 21.0 for descriptive and inferential statistics. Information letters and consent forms were obtained from all the participants. Results: The majority of nurses (88.8%) were female, and 59.2% were married. The age range of participants was 20-30 years (50.4%). Approximately 36.8% had 4-6 years of work experience. The majority of the nurses (87.2%) held a bachelor's degree. More than half (56%) of the nurses demonstrated moderate HE knowledge, whereas over a quarter (28%) exhibited good knowledge. There was a highly statistically significant association between marital status, level of education, nationality, and level of nurses' knowledge regarding HE (P-value = 0.01, 0.02, and 0.02, respectively). Conclusion: The study concludes that nurses in Najran hospitals have an adequate knowledge levels, ranging from moderate to good. This highlights the importance of tailored educational programs to enhance nurses' understanding of HE symptoms and management. Furthermore, the marital status, education level, and nationality have significant association with nurses' knowledge.
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BACKGROUND: Lung cancer is a fatal disease that kills approximately 85% of those diagnosed with it. In recent years, advances in medical imaging have greatly improved the acquisition, storage, and visualization of various pathologies, making it a necessary component in medicine today. OBJECTIVE: Develop a computer-aided diagnostic system to detect lung cancer early by segmenting tumor and non-tumor tissue on Tissue Micro Array Analysis (TMA) histopathological images. METHOD: The prototype computer-aided diagnostic system was developed to segment tumor areas, non-tumor areas, and fundus on TMA histopathological images. RESULTS: The system achieved an average accuracy of 83.4% and an F-measurement of 84.4% in segmenting tumor and non-tumor tissue. CONCLUSION: The computer-aided diagnostic system provides a second diagnostic opinion to specialists, allowing for more precise diagnoses and more appropriate treatments for lung cancer.
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BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic contributed to a significant mental health crisis and caused a widening economic crisis, growing financial loss, and numerous uncertainties. This pandemic brought alarming implications and overall increased risk for psychiatric illness. This study explores the psychological impact experienced by patients who tested positive from coronavirus in the Najran region, Saudi Arabia. DESIGN AND METHODS: This exploratory analysis included 210 COVID-19 positive patients. The study was conducted during a six-month period starting from March to September 2020, in two tertiary government hospitals in Najran, Saudi Arabia. Samples were selected using purposive sampling; survey questionnaire and face-to-face interview to collect the data. Statistical data were calculated using IBM SPSS v. 2.0 to compute the following statistical formulas: percentage distribution, mean, standard deviation, and Chi-square test of independence. RESULTS: The findings of this study revealed that the majority of COVID-19 positive patients were middle-aged adults (n=98 or 46.7%), male (n=178 or 84.8%), and were non-Saudi nationals (n=132 or 62.9%). It was found out that COVID-19 patients experienced bothersome behaviour at a very high level (xÌ =2.63±0.6734). Meanwhile, depression (xÌ =2.51±0.7070), worry (xÌ =2.23±0.8811), and anxiety (xÌ =2.21±0.8719) was only at a high level. CONCLUSIONS: The study revealed that the majority of participants had high levels of depression, anxiety and bothersome behaviours. However, demographic characteristics like age, sex, and nationality were not significantly related to coronavirus patients' psychological health problems. Assessments and interventions for psychosocial concerns, integration of mental health considerations, and treatment for severe psychosocial consequences must be administered in COVID-19 care facilities.
