The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

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The prevalence of smartphone addiction and its correlation with depression among higher college of technology students, Oman

Background: The aim of this study is to identify the prevalence of smartphone addiction and its correlation with depression among Higher College of Technology students in Oman.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Higher College of Technology, Oman. A self-reported questionnaire was distributed electronically to students between January and February 2017. The questionnaire contained a validated short version of the smartphone addiction scale (SAS-SV) and a validated Arabic version of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), along with a single question to self-assess smartphone addiction.Results: With a response rate of 86.2%, a total of 376 students were considered, of whom 34.6% were males and 65.4% were females, with an overall mean age of 20.9 years. This study showed that the prevalence of smartphone addiction in the study population using the SAS-SV was 63.8%; 88.3% of students were using their smartphones for four hours or more per day and 80% had been using smartphones for more than four years. The overall depression rate was 32.2%. As the total depression score increased by 1 point, the smartphone addiction score increased by 0.428 points (p<0.005). The prevalence of smartphone addiction was 54.9% among those who had no depression, 80.3% among those who had mild depression, 75.9% among those who had moderate depression, and 96.2% among those who have severe depression (p<0.005).Conclusions: This study shows high smartphone addiction levels based on SAS-SV scores and found a significant positive correlation between smartphone addiction score and depression scores

The association of Human Leukocyte Antigens Complex with Type 1 Diabetes in Omanis

Background: Identifying the human leukocyte antigens (HLA) high risk alleles, genotypes and haplotypes in different populations is beneficial for understanding their roles in type 1 diabetes (T1D) pathogenesis and intervention practices. Objective: The aim of this study was to identify T1D associated HLA gene alleles in the Omani population. Methods: Our case-control study included 73 diabetic seropositive children (mean age 9.08±3.27 years) and 110 healthy controls. HLA–A, -B, -C, -DRB1, and -DQB1 genes were genotyped using sequence specific primer polymerase chain reaction (SSP-PCR). Results: Two HLA class I alleles (B*08, B*58) and three class II alleles (DQB1*02, DRB1*03 and DRB1*04) were associated with T1D susceptibility, while one class I (B*51) and three class II (DQB1*05, DQB1*06, and DRB1*16) alleles were associated with T1D protection. HLA- DRB1*03 and DQB1*02 alleles showed the strongest risk association among all alleles. Six DRB1 residues (E9, S11, S13, Y30, V70 and K71) were significantly associated with T1D susceptibility. Heterozygous genotypes, HLA-DRB1*03/*04 and DQB1*02/*03 were significantly associated with T1D susceptibility (P=4.29E-07, OR=63.2 and P=0.02, OR=3.6, respectively). Furthermore, we detected a significant combined action of DRB1*03-DQB1*02 haplotype in T1D risk (P=1.76E-05, OR=15), and DRB1*16-DQB1*05 haplotype in protection (P=3.12E-2, OR=0.48). Conclusion: Known HLA class II gene alleles are associated with T1D in Omani children

Curriculum Development for Medical Education: A Six-Step Approach

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Cannabis Exposure in an Omani Child: First case report from Oman

We report a confirmed case of cannabis exposure in an Omani female child with developmental delay. Cannabis exposure in children can lead to many consequences; for example, chronic use can result in developmental delay, abnormal behaviour, and hyperactivity while there is a risk of coma with acute exposure. It is important for clinicians to consider substance abuse as a differential diagnosis for similar presentations in paediatric patients, noting that children are at risk of cannabis exposure if their parents/caregivers are cannabis users

Inflammatory Markers as a Predictor of Postmenopausal Osteoporosis: A cross-sectional study from the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital

Objectives: Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a progressive metabolic bone disease resulting from estrogen deficiency. However, due to the silent nature of the disease, there is an urgent need for a simple, early predictive marker. This study,&nbsp;conducted between January 2017 to December 2019, aimed to assess the potential of three factors—specifically, the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR)—as inflammatory markers of bone mineral density (BMD) loss. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted among 450 postmenopausal Omani women undergoing dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry at the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman. Participants were allocated into groups based on lumbar spine BMD t-score values. A receiver-operating characteristic curve was used to find the area under the curve (AUC). Multivariate logistic regression was performed to identify independent predictors of low BMD. Results: A total of 65 (14.4%), 164 (36.4%), and 221 (49.1%) women were allocated to the control, osteopenia, and osteoporosis groups, respectively. No significant differences in PLR, MLR, and NLR values were observed based on group allocation. BMD t-score values were reversely correlated with age (P = 0.007) and PLR (P = 0.004), and positively correlated with body mass index (BMI) (P &lt;0.001). The AUC was 0.59. However, the only independent predictors of low BMD were age (&gt;65 years) and BMI (&lt;25 kg/m2). Conclusion: None of the three inflammatory biomarkers studied were found to be useful prognostic indicators of bone loss. Further research is recommended to reject or support&nbsp;theories regarding the role of inflammatory status in the pathogenesis. Keywords: inflammatory markers, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, Bone mineral density, osteoporosi

The Pattern of Sensitisation to Inhalant Allergens in Omani Patients with Asthma, Allergic Rhinitis and Rhinoconjunctivitis

Objective: Identification of relevant allergens that are prevalent in each environment which may have diagnostic and therapeutic implications in allergic diseases. This study aimed to identify the pattern of sensitisation to inhalant allergens in Omani patients with asthma, allergic rhinitis and rhinoconjunctivitis. Methods: The study was carried out during three consecutive years (2004-2006) at the allergy skin test laboratory of Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Oman. Records of patients who had undergone an allergy skin prick test with a referring diagnosis of asthma, allergic rhinitis or rhinoconjunctivitis were reviewed. Two panels were used during the 3 years period. The frequencies of positive skin tests were analysed. Results: 689 patients were tested, 384 for the first panel and 305 for the second panel. In the first panel, the commonest positive allergens were: house dust mites (37.8%), hay dust (35.4%), feathers (33.3%), sheep wool (26.6%), mixed threshing dust (25.8%), cat fur (24.2%), cockroach (22.7%), straw dust (22.7%), horse hair (17.4%), maize (16.1%), grasses (11.5%), cotton flock (10.7%), trees (10.4%), cow hair (7.8%), Alternaria alternata (3.6%), Aspergillus Niger (3.4%), and Aspergillus fumigatus (1.3%). In the second panel, the commonest positive allergens were also house dust mites: Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (50.8%), Dermatophagoides farinae (47.9%); Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) (35.7%), Russian thistle (Salsola kali) (34.4%), cockroach (32.1%), Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon) (19.7%), grass mix-five standard (18.0%), wheat cultivate (14.1%), cats (13.8%), Penicillium notatum (4.3%), Alternaria tenius (3.9%), Aspergillus Niger (3.3%), feather mix (3.0%), dog (2.6%), horse hair and dander (2.6%), and Aspergillus fumigatus (1.6%). Conclusion: The pattern of sensitisation to environmental allergens in Oman seems to be similar to other reports from the Arabian Peninsula. Methods to identify and characterise environment specific allergens like a pollen survey may help in the management of patients with allergic asthma, allergic rhinitis and rhinoconjunctivitis

Metabolic and other morbid complications in congenital generalized lipodystrophy type 4

\ua9 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.Morbidity and mortality rates in patients with autosomal recessive, congenital generalized lipodystrophy type 4 (CGL4), an ultra-rare disorder, remain unclear. We report on 30 females and 16 males from 10 countries with biallelic null variants in CAVIN1 gene (mean age, 12 years; range, 2 months to 41 years). Hypertriglyceridemia was seen in 79% (34/43), hepatic steatosis in 82% (27/33) but diabetes mellitus in only 21% (8/44). Myopathy with elevated serum creatine kinase levels (346–3325 IU/L) affected all of them (38/38). 39% had scoliosis (10/26) and 57% had atlantoaxial instability (8/14). Cardiac arrhythmias were detected in 57% (20/35) and 46% had ventricular tachycardia (16/35). Congenital pyloric stenosis was diagnosed in 39% (18/46), 9 had esophageal dysmotility and 19 had intestinal dysmotility. Four patients suffered from intestinal perforations. Seven patients died at mean age of 17 years (range: 2 months to 39 years). The cause of death in four patients was cardiac arrhythmia and sudden death, while others died of prematurity, gastrointestinal perforation, and infected foot ulcers leading to sepsis. Our study highlights high prevalence of myopathy, metabolic abnormalities, cardiac, and gastrointestinal problems in patients with CGL4. CGL4 patients are at high risk of early death mainly caused by cardiac arrhythmias