Physical activity and its correlates among school teachers in a semi-urban district of Nepal.

Regular physical activity (PA) is one of the effective strategies for mitigating non-communicable diseases, promoting healthy ageing, and preventing premature mortality. In South Asia, up to 34.0% of adults are insufficiently active, and up to 44.1% of adults in Nepal. We sought to assess self-reported PA status and its correlates among teachers in the semi-urban district of Nepal. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among teachers at randomly selected public secondary schools in Bhaktapur, Nepal, from November 2018-April 2019. PA status was assessed in Metabolic Equivalent to task minutes per week using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ)-Long Form. Point estimates and odds ratios were calculated at a 95% confidence interval, and a p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Among the 360 participants, the mean (SD) age was 40.3 (10.2) years, with 52.5% female participation. A low level of PA was seen among 11.9% (95% CI: 8.4-15.2) of teachers, and more than half (56.0%) of the activity was only moderate intensity. Domestic and garden work was the main contributor (43.0%) of total PA, while leisure time was the least (14.0%). Among the socio-demographic factors, only sex was significantly associated (p = 0.005) with PA. Participants living in locations with walkable areas were 3.4 times (95% CI: 1.6-7.3) more likely to be engaged in moderate-to-high level PA than those without. In our study, the point prevalence of insufficient PA among teachers working at public secondary schools was higher than the national point prevalence. PA promotion programs targeting sedentary populations like school teachers should be developed to reduce the point prevalence of insufficient PA.

Effect of Educational Intervention Based on Theory of Planned Behaviour on Physical Activity Intention among Secondary School Teachers of Nepal.

Any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscle which requires energy expenditure is known as physical activity (PA). WHO has recommended that at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity PA or a combination of both per week is required for health benefits. Physical inactivity is one of the strongest risk factors for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and other conditions and is attributable to 6% of global premature death. However, data on the PA of teachers are unavailable in Nepal. They are considered one of the risk groups for NCDs because of the less active nature of their job. So, we aimed to evaluate the effect of the educational intervention based on the theory of planned behaviour on PA intention among secondary school teachers in Bhaktapur district, Nepal. For this study, we recruited 126 teachers from 6 schools. Each intervention and control group contained three randomly selected secondary schools. All the teachers from the selected schools were enrolled in the respective groups. A quasiexperimental (pretest-posttest control group) study design was used to test the effectiveness of the intervention on attitude, behaviour control, subjective norms, and intention for engaging in regular PA. Both groups underwent baseline and follow-up assessments at four weeks using the self-administered questionnaire developed for this study. The intervention group delivered a one-hour lecture session supported by audio-video materials for PA promotion. The effect was analysed by comparing the changes in the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) constructs within and between intervention and control groups. The difference in scores between and within the groups was tested using Student's t-test. Adjusted difference-in-difference scores were calculated through linear regression. Data analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Science version 26.0. The adjusted mean score increase in TPB constructs due to the interaction of time and intervention increased from 0.641 to 1.381. The highest gain (beta = 1.381) was seen in the intention score, while a minor improvement was seen in perceived behavioural control (beta = 0.641). After the intervention, the net increase in PA intention score was 9.35% compared to the control group. Thus, the promotion package was effective in increasing PA intention. The findings of this study and educational package could be helpful in encouraging teachers to engage in PA in other schools.

Screen time and its correlates among children aged 3-10 years during COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal: a community-based cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to determine the prevalence of high screen time among schoolchildren aged 3-10 years in Bhaktapur, its correlates and the parents' strategies to reduce screen time during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted during March 2021. A total of 630 households were selected for the study from 21 randomly selected clusters in Bhaktapur, Nepal. Correlates of high screen time were determined using a logistic model. P<0.002 was taken as significant. RESULTS: Among all the participants, the mean (SD) age was 7.0 (2.2) years, with 50.3% male participation. Few participants had online classes (n=24, 3.8%). The prevalence of high screen time among the participants was very high (55.2%, 95% CI=51.3% to 59.1%), which is even higher in boys (61.8%, 95% CI=58.0% to 65.6%). The median screen time before the COVID-19 pandemic was 1.0 hours (mean rank=275.8) which increased to 2.2 hours (mean rank=116.6) during the pandemic (p<0.001). Participants having smartphones were about seven times (adjusted OR=6.9, 95% CI=1.5 to 31.3, p=0.013) more likely to have high screen time than those who did not have the device. Most parents used to reprimand and urge their children to play outside to limit their screen usage. CONCLUSION: During the COVID-19 pandemic, about one in two schoolchildren of 3-10 years had higher screen time than before the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents' strategies to reduce screen time were not effective. An intervention study is recommended to design and test effective strategies to reduce screen time and its negative effects on children's health.

Diabetes Mellitus among Adult Outpatients Visiting a Tertiary Care Centre: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disease characterised by elevated blood sugar levels and is a pandemic of public health importance. Screening programs can help reduce morbidity and mortality by preventing or delaying complications. This study aimed to find out the prevalence of diabetes mellitus among adult outpatients visiting a tertiary care centre. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among outpatients visiting a tertiary care centre between 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2019. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethical Review Board (Registration number: 408/2020 P). Patients with unknown history of diabetes participating in free random blood sugar examinations were included in the study. Systematic random sampling was used. Point estimate and 95% Confidence Interval were calculated. Results: Among 385 adult outpatients, 17 (4.42%) (2.37-6.47, 95% Confidence Interval) had diabetes. The mean random blood sugar level of the diabetic patients was 281.41±57.49 mg/dl. Conclusions: The prevalence of diabetes mellitus among adult outpatients was similar to previous studies conducted in similar settings. Random blood sugar test in hospital outpatient settings is feasible to identify people with diabetes mellitus. Keywords: diabetes mellitus; hospital; Nepal; outpatient.

Factors associated with low back pain among construction workers in Nepal: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Low back pain (LBP) is the commonest cause of disability throughout the world. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with LBP among the construction workers in Nepal. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among the construction workers working in Banepa and Panauti municipalities of Kavre district, from September 2019 to February 2020. Data was collected purposively by face-to-face interview from 402 eligible participants from the both municipalities using semi-structured questionnaire. Mobile-based data collection was done using KoboCollect. Data were exported to and analysed using R-programming software (R-3.6.2). Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed. All tests were two tailed and performed at 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULT: One-year prevalence of LBP among construction workers were 52.0% (95%CI: 47.0-57.0). The higher odds of LBP was reported among females [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 2.42; 95%CI: 1.12-5.23], those living below poverty-line (aOR = 2.35; 95%CI: 1.32-4.19), participants with more than five years of work experience (aOR = 1.66; 95%CI: 1.01-2.73) and those with intermediate sleep quality (aOR = 2.06; CI: 1.03-4.11). About 80.0% of construction workers with LBP never seek healthcare services due to: a) time constraints (90.9%), b) financial constraints (18.1%) and c) fear of losing wages on seeking healthcare services (40.9%). The majority of the participants (94.8% among those without LBP and 72.3% among those with LBP) did nothing to prevent or manage LBP. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of LBP in the past one year was high among construction workers where majority of workers never did anything to prevent or manage LBP. Therefore, the public health professionals should set up the health promotion, education, and interventions aimed at increasing awareness on preventive techniques and predisposing factors of LBP.