RESUMO
BACKGROUND: There is a deluge of information available and circulated about COVID-19, during the ongoing course of the pandemic. This study was conducted to assess knowledge, attitudes, practices, and behavior regarding COVID-19 among serving soldiers. METHODS: A quick cross-sectional online survey was conducted using a web portal and social media platform, wherein a pretested questionnaire was uploaded. Responses were collected for 3 days. Data were analyzed using Epi Info software. RESULTS: A total of 1231 serving personnel participated in the survey, 133 (10.80%) officers, 144 (11.69%) Junior Commissioned Officers, and 954 (77.49%) Other Ranks. The prevalence of correct knowledge was more than 80% (range 81.47-88.13) except 29.97% regarding transmission by food and water. A statistically significant association (all P values < 0.05) was found with increasing age and education. Social distancing was an effective method as per 93.54%, and 81.38% thought that the response measures were adequate. Handwashing was the only practice which demonstrated a statistically significant association across change in all 3, i.e. age (P = 0.001), education (P = 0.005) and rank (P = 0.022). In the affective domain, increased perception of anxiousness, worriedness, and not feeling relaxed was found in the responses. CONCLUSION: Levels of knowledge, positive attitude, and practice are high among serving soldiers, however feeling of anxiousness and worry prevail. Aggressive, continuous, relevant target population-oriented Information Education and Communication is the need of the hour, with structured and programmed interventions for positive mental health during course of the pandemic and this has been implemented in our area.
RESUMO
Background: Mothers are the creators and sustainers of progeny. The health and wellbeing of children is intimately linked with the health, nutrition, education and well-being of their mothers because she is both the seed as well as the soil where in the baby is nurtured for 9 months. Hence the present study was conducted to determine the association between first trimester body mass index (BMI) of antenatal mothers with the mode of delivery, birth weight and APGAR scores of new born babies at birth in a tertiary care hospital.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted amongst 115 antenatal mothers who reported to the Labor room in a tertiary care hospital of Pune during the period of Nov. 2017 to Feb. 2018, to determine the association between first trimester body mass index (BMI) of antenatal mothers with the mode of delivery, birth weight and APGAR scores of new born babies.Results: The findings were suggestive of increased odds of APGAR of <7 at 1 min of birth among new born babies born to the study participants of low BMI group as compared to the new born babies born to the high BMI group; Increased odds of birth weight of >3.5 kg and gestational weight gain of >14 kg and greater odds of complications among new born babies born to the study participants of high BMI group than the new born babies born to the low BMI group.Conclusions: The study concluded that birth weight of the new born babies shows a clinically significant increasing trend in association with the increasing first trimester BMI of their mothers.