Prevalence of somatisation and psychologisation among patients visiting primary health care centres in the State of Qatar

Background: Medically unexplained somatic complaints are among the most common clinical presentations in primary care in developing countries and they are considerable burden for patients and health care system. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of somatisation in comparison to psychologisation among a sample of Qatari patients who were visiting primary health care (PHC) centres and to investigate the clinical and socio-demographic characteristics of somatisers (STs) and psychologisers (PGs). Method: The survey was conducted among PHC Qatari patients during the period from January to July 2007. About 2,320 patients were approached, of whom 1,689 agreed to participate and responded to the questionnaire. Among the studied Qatari patients, 404 patients were identified for clinical interview. The first stage of the study was conducted with the help of general practitioners, using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire. The second stage was carried out by a consultant using the Clinical Interview Schedule. A specific operational criterion was used to identify STs and PGs. Results: The prevalence rate of STs among the total studied sample was 12.4%, while the PGs were 11.5%. Among the identified psychiatric cases, the proportion of STs (52%) was higher than PGs (48%). Most of the diagnostic categories were more prevalent among PGs. The dissatisfaction at work and stressful life events within 12 months before the onset of the presenting symptoms were the three postulated determinants which were significantly more among STs than PGs. Conclusion: The prevalence of somatised mental disorder was little higher than the psychologised mental disorder. The prevalence of somatisation and psychologisation is comparable with other reported studies from the Middle-East and Western countries. Dissatisfaction at work and stressful life events were significantly higher among STs than PGs

SCREENING OF VARIOUS BIVOLTINE HYBRIDS OF SILKWORM BOMBYX MORI L. FOR DISEASE SUSCEPTIBILITY DURING MONSOON SEASON IN UTTAR PRADESH

ABSTRACT Bombyx mori has long been reared as a beneficial insect in the sericulture industry and as an experimental laboratory insect. In tropical countries like India, grasserie, (BmNPV) spreads by the occultation bodies (OBs) in the blood cell of infected silkworm, usually high temperature and humidity prevalent in tropical regions is conductive to proliferation of polyhedrosis disease. It is known to occur in all larval instars during all seasons causing 20-50% cocoon crop losses in India. In the present study, four promising bivoltine hybrids will be screened for their susceptibility to BmNPV and BmIFV, Muscardine and other diseases and the susceptibility status has been compared across monsoon season of Uttar Pradesh. This will help in selecting most promising race for monsoon season of which will be least susceptibility to different Silkworm diseases Viz., Grasserie, Bacterial flacherie, Muscardine and % other diseases (DNV, CPV, IFV, Sotto disease) and farmer will face less difficulty during silkworm rearing and will have no fear of attack of diseases. It will lead to further adoption and spread of Sericulture in other districts of Uttar Pradesh

Detecting depressive and anxiety disorders in distressed patients in primary care; comparative diagnostic accuracy of the Four-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire (4DSQ) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)

BACKGROUND: Depressive and anxiety disorders often go unrecognized in distressed primary care patients, despite the overtly psychosocial nature of their demand for help. This is especially problematic in more severe disorders needing specific treatment (e.g. antidepressant pharmacotherapy or specialized cognitive behavioural therapy). The use of a screening tool to detect (more severe) depressive and anxiety disorders may be useful not to overlook such disorders. We examined the accuracy with which the Four-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire (4DSQ) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) are able to detect (more severe) depressive and anxiety disorders in distressed patients, and which cut-off points should be used. METHODS: Seventy general practitioners (GPs) included 295 patients on sick leave due to psychological problems. They excluded patients with recognized depressive or anxiety disorders. Patients completed the 4DSQ and HADS. Standardized diagnoses of DSM-IV defined depressive and anxiety disorders were established with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI). Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analyses were performed to obtain sensitivity and specificity values for a range of scores, and area under the curve (AUC) values as a measure of diagnostic accuracy. RESULTS: With respect to the detection of any depressive or anxiety disorder (180 patients, 61%), the 4DSQ and HADS scales yielded comparable results with AUC values between 0.745 and 0.815. Also with respect to the detection of moderate or severe depressive disorder, the 4DSQ and HADS depression scales performed comparably (AUC 0.780 and 0.739, p 0.165). With respect to the detection of panic disorder, agoraphobia and social phobia, the 4DSQ anxiety scale performed significantly better than the HADS anxiety scale (AUC 0.852 versus 0.757, p 0.001). The recommended cut-off points of both HADS scales appeared to be too low while those of the 4DSQ anxiety scale appeared to be too high. CONCLUSION: In general practice patients on sick leave because of psychological problems, the 4DSQ and the HADS are equally able to detect depressive and anxiety disorders. However, for the detection of cases severe enough to warrant specific treatment, the 4DSQ may have some advantages over the HADS, specifically for the detection of panic disorder, agoraphobia and social phobi

The Relation of Omentin-1 Levels and Some Trace Elements as a Potential Markers for Diagnosis of Prediabetic Obese Patients

The obesity is one of the most common physiological disorders, also it is linked with a variety of circumstances like hypertension, dyslipidemia, T2DM, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to check the changes and compare serum omentin-1, lipid profile (TC, TG, VLDL-C, LDL-C, and HDL-C), trace elements (Mg, Zn, Cu, Fe) and insulin resistance between the prediabetic obese patients, healthy obese, and control subjects and assess the correlation between omentin-1, lipid profile, trace elements (Mg, Zn, Cu, Fe) levels and insulin resistance in prediabetic obese patients. Correlation analysis between omentin-1 levels with the biochemical parameters in the prediabetic obese patients with WC, body mass index, FBG, Insulin, HOMA-IR, HbA1c, TG, TC, LDL-C, VLDL-C, and copper was found to be negative; while significant positive correlation of omentin-1 with HDL-C, Mg, Zn, and Fe was noticed. Omentin-1 serum concentration level decrease and insulin resistance increased in prediabetic obese patients compared to healthy obese and control individuals. Omentin-1 inversely associated with obesity and insulin resistance, therefore can be used as a biomarker for obesity related metabolic disorders

Effect of seed rates on seed germination and seedling growth of Mulberry (Morus sp.)

956-960Mulberry (Morus sp.) is a fast growing, deciduous, woody perennial plant, usually pollinated by wind (anemophily). Morus sp. produces seed which is used to raise seedlings to be used for root grafting, whereas scion of an improved variety is grafted over the rootstock got through seedling raising. Seed rate is an important parameter that decides population of plants per unit area with optimum exposure to sunlight, proper space, aeration, and nutrition. In this study, we tried to find the optimum seed rate in mulberry for raising of quality seedlings under Kashmir climatic conditions. The investigation was carried out at College of Temperate Sericulture, Mirgund, SKUAST- Kashmir, wherein different seed rates were tested for seedling raising in mulberry. Amongst different seed rates tested, treatment T3 wherein 28 seeds were sown per square foot was at par with treatments T1 and T2 having 20 and 24 seeds per sq. foot, respectively. The study indicated that 20-28 seeds per square foot could be successfully adopted for raising of quality seedlings