Motives for Medical Tourism Amongst Cancer Patients in Oman: A Perspective From Patient’s Point of View

Background: Traveling abroad to seek an opinion about diagnosis or treatment is a common practice in medicine, especially in the field of oncology. In Oman, patients diagnosed with cancer frequently travel with their families to seek an opinion, sometimes even before consulting a medical/surgical oncologist at home. The purpose of this study was to report and study the prevalence and motives of medical tourism amongst patients diagnosed to have cancer in Oman. Methods: A cross sectional, retrospective study involving patients admitted to the medical oncology unit at the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital was conducted. Patients with a biopsy-proven cancer who were admitted to the wards and the day-care unit between October 2016 and March 2017 were invited to participate. A semi-structured interview consisting of 3 parts was used to obtain information on demographics, motives and satisfaction with travel. Results: Of the 100 patients who were invited, a total of 64 patients participated in the study and completed the questionnaire. Of these 64 subjects, 24 (38%) traveled abroad to seek a second opinion. The primary reasons for traveling abroad to seek a second opinion were as follows: poor perception about health care in Oman (31%), expectations of a better healthcare overseas (12%), dissatisfaction with the communication or explanation by the healthcare providers in Oman, or concerns about delay in treatment (24%), and societal pressures (33%). Conclusion: A significant proportion of patients traveled abroad to seek a second opinion after getting a diagnosis of cancer, main reasons being societal pressures, dissatisfaction with the communication, or concerns of delay in initiating treatment in Oman

Adherence to Medications in Patients with Ischemic Heart Disease in Oman

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of adherence to medications in patients with IHD in Oman and assess the factors influencing it. Methods: This was a cross sectional questionnaire-based study among patients with IHD. Results: A total of 105 patients (Mean age 49.9+11.1 years; 78.1% male) were recruited. Most of the patients take the medications by themselves (84 or 80%). 77 patients (73.3%) said that over the preceding two weeks, they missed at least three doses. The reasons for missing included forgetting (100%), too many tablets (57%), not effective (48%) and too many times a day (23%). There were no factors that could be identified that made patients prone to not taking medications. Conclusion: Medication adherence was low among patients with IHD in Oman with high pill burden the most common reason for non-adherence. Physicians must keep this in mind when patients are reviewed. Keywords: Cardiovascular disease, adherence, myocardial infarction

Motives for Medical Tourism Amongst Cancer Patients in Oman: A Perspective From Patient’s Point of View

Background: Traveling abroad to seek an opinion about diagnosis or treatment is a common practice in medicine, especially in the field of oncology. In Oman, patients diagnosed with cancer frequently travel with their families to seek an opinion, sometimes even before consulting a medical/surgical oncologist at home. The purpose of this study was to report and study the prevalence and motives of medical tourism amongst patients diagnosed to have cancer in Oman. Methods: A cross sectional, retrospective study involving patients admitted to the medical oncology unit at the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital was conducted. Patients with a biopsy-proven cancer who were admitted to the wards and the day-care unit between October 2016 and March 2017 were invited to participate. A semi-structured interview consisting of 3 parts was used to obtain information on demographics, motives and satisfaction with travel. Results: Of the 100 patients who were invited, a total of 64 patients participated in the study and completed the questionnaire. Of these 64 subjects, 24 (38%) traveled abroad to seek a second opinion. The primary reasons for traveling abroad to seek a second opinion were as follows: poor perception about health care in Oman (31%), expectations of a better healthcare overseas (12%), dissatisfaction with the communication or explanation by the healthcare providers in Oman, or concerns about delay in treatment (24%), and societal pressures (33%). Conclusion: A significant proportion of patients traveled abroad to seek a second opinion after getting a diagnosis of cancer, main reasons being societal pressures, dissatisfaction with the communication, or concerns of delay in initiating treatment in Oman

Subsurface algal blooms of the northwestern Arabian Sea

In situ plankton sampling, combined with remotely sensed and ocean Seaglider observations, provided insight into the termination of the winter monsoon bloom and subsequent evolution into a subsurface fluorescence maximum in the northwestern Arabian Sea. This subsurface maximum gradually descended, presenting increased fluorescence between 25 and 55 m depth during the spring inter-monsoon season. Species diversity decreased by half within the deep fluorescence maximum relative to the bloom. The dinoflagellate Noctiluca scintillans dominated by biomass in all samples collected from the depth of the subsurface fluorescence maximum. We show that the subsurface algal bloom persists throughout inter-monsoon seasons, linking algal blooms initiated during the southwest and northeast monsoons. In situ samples showed a net decrease in Noctiluca cell size, illustrating a shift towards a deep chlorophyll maximum adapted community, but did not exhibit any increases in chlorophyll-containing endosymbionts. We propose that the plankton biomass and estimates of the northwestern Arabian Sea productivity are much greater than estimated previously through remote sensing observations, due to the persistence, intensity and vertical extent of the deep chlorophyll maximum which—using remote means—can only be estimated, but not measured

Delayed Transient Post-Traumatic Quadriplegia

Transient neurological deficit following cervical trauma have been reported following sports injuries, and has been referred to as cervical cord neurapraxia. The so-called "whiplash injuries" following minor motor vehicle collisions usually do not produce any neurological deficit. Here we report the case of a whiplash type of injury presenting with a delayed onset neurological deficit, which was followed by rapid and complete recovery. The patient, an otherwise healthy 34-year-old male, attended the emergency department of Sultan Qaboos University Hospital following a rear-end motor vehicle collision. We present images showing degenerative disc disease causing spinal canal narrowing and mild cord compression in the patient, but no spinal instability. Differential diagnoses are also discussed

Fractionation and determination of chemical and physical properties of Dates’ fibers

Dates are considered as highly nutritious and healthy food. It is a rich source of DF including pectin, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. The present study aims to fraction and characterize dates’ insoluble fibers to reach a better understanding of dates’ constituents. Two fractions (light and dark) were isolated from dates’ flesh together with skin fibers and their chemical and functional properties were determined. Light fiber was the major fraction in the extracted insoluble fiber; 76.22% and 59.83% in Khalas and Fard, respectively. The skin yield from 100 g dates was about 4.08 ± 0.1 g and 2.34 ± 0.04 g for Fard and Khalas varieties, respectively. The dark fiber was significantly (10 times) denser than light fiber. Water holding capacity (WHC) and oil holding capacity were significantly higher in light fiber compared to the other extracted dates’ fiber fractions as well as many reported results for other plants. TPC (bound) for the individual fiber fractions was in the range 5.12–19.87 mg GAE/100 g fiber while TFC (bound) was in the range 34.16–158.52 mg QE/100 g fiber. Using HPLC-PDA, 16 phenolic compounds were identified in dates’ fiber fractions. Protocatechuic acid (3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid) was significantly the highest phenolic acid in all the fiber fraction, catechin was the highest flavonoid in light and dark fiber; whereas, rutin was the highest flavonoid in skin fiber. FTIR results demonstrated that dark fiber had more lignin than light and skin fiber, while sugar profile by GC–MS revealed more heterogeneity in light fibers compared to skin and dark fibers