COVID-19 PANDEMIC: PSYCHO-SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES DURING THE SOCIAL DISTANCING PERIOD AMONG NAJRAN CITY POPULATION

Background: COVID-19 is a global pandemic that endanger the health and enforced social distancing for the whole world. Social distancing may generate stress, anxiety, and depression. Understanding the psychosocial consequences of COVID19 during social distancing may help decision-makers to take suitable decisions that help in increasing awareness.This study aims to evaluate the psychosocial consequences of COVID-19 pandemic during the social distancing period and explore the relationship between social media use and psychological stress during COVID-19 outbreak among Najran city population. Subjects and methods: Descriptive correlational research design was utilized to carry out this study. A snowball sampling technique, was used to recruit participants live in Najran city during the COVID-19 pandemic (1508 participant). Results: A statistically significant differences (P<0.05) are observed between Saudi and non-Saudi participants in all social aspects assessed except for time spent on social media. In addition, a high mean of depression, stress, and anxiety subscale scores are observed in non-Saudi compared to the Saudi participants with statistically significant differences (p=0.000). As well as high DASS-21 total scores in non Saudi compared to the Saudi participants. Also, there are positive statistically significant correlations (≤0.05) between participants\u27 time spent in social media and their depression, stress, anxiety, and total DASS scores during the COVID-19 outbreak. Conclusion: The findings of the present study indicate that COVID-19 pandemic generates stress, anxiety and depression among Najran population especially, non-Saudi. This poor psychological condition is exaggerated with prolonged social media use. COVID-19 also has negative impact on social wellbeing and use of social media cannot replace direct contact with friends. The current study results may be utilized to formulate interventions that enhance psychosocial health and resilience during the COVID-19 outbreak

Late Diagnosis of 5-α-Reductase Type 2 Deficiency in an Adolescent Girl with Primary Amenorrhoea : Case report

Deficiency of the 5-α-reductase enzyme has been found to affect male sexual development. We report an 18-year-old patient who was referred to an endocrinology clinic in Jizan, Saudi Arabia, in April 2014 with primary amenorrhoea, virilisation and a lack of secondary sex characteristics. As female external genitalia were present at birth, she had been raised as a female. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed no uterine or ovarian tissue in the pelvis and the presence of a scrotal sac. She was diagnosed with 5-α-reductase type 2 deficiency, a 46,XY disorder of sexual development. Typically, affected males have pseudovaginal perineoscrotal hypospadias and ambiguous genitalia at birth. Individuals who have been raised as female manifest characteristics of virilisation at puberty, including deepening of the vocal tone, phallus enlargement, scrotal hyperpigmentation and increased muscle mass

Riyadh Neighborhood Residents’ Use and Satisfaction with Urban Green Spaces

Neighborhood urban green spaces are indispensable elements for residents’ rest and recreation. They are also of paramount importance to enhance quality of life within neighborhoods. However, these urban green spaces did not receive much research interest, particularly in cities of the developing world. Larger city parks seem to have been the focus of studies. The present study is undertaken under the contention that dissatisfaction with a service is the difference between what is expected from that service and what is really experienced out of it. The gap between expectancy and what is experienced in reality would lead to how satisfied residents were with their use of UGS. The results indicate that apart from their feeling of security and safety, all the other dimensions did live up to residents’ expectations. UGS services, landscaping, and accessibility have received a neutral evaluation, something in between satisfaction and dissatisfaction. The study recommends that local authorities should do more to improve UGS so as to attract more users and meet their expectations

Exercise as a treatment modality for depression: A narrative review

Depression is a major health burden associated with poor quality of life and impaired functioning. Depression is a leading cause of disability worldwide and is associated with profound economic costs. Depression is usually treated with antidepressant medications and psychological therapy or combination of both. However, there are lot of limitations associated with these therapies and as a result, a number of alternative or adjunctive therapies have been sought for. Exercise is one such option with a lot of substantial supportive research. The objective of the article was to review the beneficial effects of exercise in depression. An electronic search of literature from inception till 06/2017 highlighting the effects of exercise on depression and the possible mechanistic pathways involved was conducted using PubMed/ Medline, Google scholar and Scopus and relevant articles were utilized for this review. The results of this review confirmed the beneficial role of exercise in depression as evidenced by the improvement in the outcomes and the various psychobiological parameters measured. Thus exercise can be considered as a treatment option for the management of depression.Keywords: Depression, Exercise, Physical activity, Mechanistic pathways, BDN

COVID-19 Outbreak: Effect of an Educational Intervention Based on Health Belief Model on Nursing Students' Awareness and Health Beliefs at Najran University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

This study aimed to investigate the effect of an educational intervention based on the health belief model (HBM) about COVID-19 on nursing&nbsp; students' awareness and health beliefs. A true-experimental research design was conducted at nursing college, Najran University, KSA. A&nbsp; comprehensive sampling was followed to include all female students at the colleges (164 students). The sample was divided randomly into&nbsp; intervention (82) and control group (82). The educational intervention was designed and conducted based on the HBM through four sequential phases: assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation. The current study results indicated no statistically significant differences between intervention and control groups concerning their demographic characteristic, awareness, and health beliefs before intervention. After intervention, significant differences (p&lt; 0.05) were observed between intervention and control groups in their awareness and all HBM constructs regarding COVID19. There were positive, statistically significant correlations (P&lt; 0.05) between participants' total HBM score and their total awareness score. This study concluded that HBM is effective in increasing nursing students' awareness regarding COVID-19. It also increases their perceived&nbsp; susceptibility, severity, and benefits. Besides, it may increase their self-efficacy to overcome perceived barriers to practice protective and preventive actions while dealing with COVID-19. Keywords: Awareness, COVID-19, Health belief model, Nursing students, Saudi Arabia &nbsp; Cette étude visait à étudier l'effet d'une intervention éducative basée sur le modèle de croyance en santé (HBM) à propos du COVID-19 sur la sensibilisation des étudiants en soins infirmiers et leurs croyances en matière de santé. Une conception de recherche véritablement expérimentale a été menée au collège d'infirmières de l'Université de Najran, en Arabie Saoudite. Un échantillonnage complet a été suivi pour inclure toutes les étudiantes des collèges (164 étudiantes). L'échantillon a été divisé au hasard en groupe d'intervention (82) et groupe témoin (82). L'intervention éducative a été conçue et menée sur la base du HBM à travers quatre phases séquentielles: évaluation, planification, mise en oeuvre et évaluation. Les résultats de l'étude actuelle n'ont indiqué aucune différence statistiquement significative entre les groupes d'intervention et de contrôle concernant leurs caractéristiques démographiques, leur sensibilisation et leurs croyances en matière de santé avant l'intervention. Aprèsl'intervention, des&nbsp; différences significatives (p &lt;0,05) ont été observées entre les groupes d'intervention et de contrôle dans leur connaissance et tutes les constructions HBM concernant COVID19. Il y avait des corrélations positives et statistiquement significatives (P &lt;0,05) entre le score HBM total des participants et leur score total de sensibilisation. Cette étude a conclu que HBM est efficace pour sensibiliser les étudiants en sciences infirmières au COVID-19. Cela augmente également leur sensibilité, leur gravité et leurs avantages perçus. En outre, cela peut augmenter leur efficacité personnelle pour surmonter les obstacles perçus à la pratique d'actions de protection et de prévention tout en traitant le COVID-19. Mots-clés: Sensibilisation, COVID-19, modèle de croyance en matière de santé, étudiants en sciences infirmières, Arabie saoudit

Assessment of genotype by year interaction for yield components and physiological traits in cotton under drought stress using multivariate analysis and genetic parameters

The objective of this study was to identify genotype high yielding and drought-tolerant, by understanding the interaction GY pattern for yield, yield components and physiological traits in 24 cotton genotypes over five years under drought stress conditions using AMMI analysis, genetic parameters and multivariate analysis. All assessed traits were significantly impacted by genotypes and GY interaction using the AMMI model, with the exception of chlorophyll b by GY interaction. Meanwhile, seed cotton yield/plant, number of open bolls/plant, lint percentage, lint cotton yield/plant, and number of fruiting branches/plant were significantly affected by the year's factor. High BSH coupled with high GAM% was observed for all studied traits, indicating the heritability due to additive type of gene action and, the importance of these genotypes and the possibility of effective selection for drought-tolerant genotype development. A statistically significant correlation was discovered between cotton yield and most investigated traits under drought stress conditions. Direct selection can be done through these traits based on genetic parameters and Pearson's correlations analyses, which will be effective for drought tolerance and enhancing cotton yield. The results of our study's Pearson's correlation analysis, PCA and cluster analysis could be relevant and appropriate for studying drought tolerance mechanisms and cotton yield improvement. According to PCA and cluster analysis, the genotypes G20 and G19 followed by G5, G4 and G21 genotypes showed the best performance in response to drought stress regarding the yield, yield components and physiological-related traits. The previous genotypes could be used in future cotton breeding efforts in Egypt to promote drought tolerance, improve cotton productivity, and sustainable production during drought stress conditions

Clinical variables related to small bowel obstruction: comparison of patients with and without Crohn’s disease

Small bowel obstruction is a known complication of Crohn’s disease. Determining need for operation is a demanding task. The aim of this study was to fine tune the decision-making process by evaluating standard clinical and laboratory parameters in small bowel obstruction of any cause and compare etiologies. Consecutive patients with Crohn’s disease and small bowel obstruction were selected retrospectively and compared to a randomly selected group of non Crohn’s patients with obstruction over a 9 year period. Twenty-two clinical, laboratory and radiological variables were assessed for the following outcomes: i) diagnosis of Crohn’s; ii) operative or non operative treatment in Crohn’s; iii) operative or non operative treatment without Crohn’s; iv) exacerbation or adhesions causing obstruction among Crohn’s patients. Multivariable models were developed for each outcome using logistic regression. Age less than 50, history of smoking, Jewish ethnicity, white count &gt;11x10E9, neutrophils &gt;7.5x10E9 and platelet volume &lt;9.9 fL, supported the diagnosis of Crohn’s disease. Operation in Crohn’s disease within the same admission was associated with a history of smoking, temperature &gt;38˚, high pulse &gt;100, leukocytosis (&gt;11x10E9) and obstruction on abdominal scan, while operation in patients without Crohn’s in the sentinel admission, was associated with temperature &gt;38˚, tachycardia, leukocytosis (&gt;11x10E9) and previous operation. Confirmation of these predictive patterns in a validation group could help in clinical decisions regarding therapeutic options in an emergency setting

The role of self-esteem and self-efficacy in women empowerment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study

The study aimed to explore the role of self-esteem and self-efficacy in women empowerment among academic and administrative staff at Saudi universities. A cross-sectional design was carried out at 15 governmental universities. A&nbsp; multistage cluster sampling technique was used to select 5587 participants. Multiple linear regression was used to analyze the predictive relation. Data collection included socio-demographic variables, Rosenberg self-esteem scale, general self-efficacy scale, and women empowerment scale. The results indicated that study participants' self-esteem was equally distributed between moderate (49.8%) and high (50.2%). Also, 66.9% of the participants had high self-efficacy, and 86.8% had high total women's empowerment. Regression coefficient showed that self-esteem (B=0.521, b=0.127, t=13.785 and p&lt;0.001) and self-efficacy (B=2.388, b=0.702, t=76.049 and p&lt;0.001) are important predictors of the total women empowerment. However, self-efficacy was observed to be the most dominant predictor (t=76.049). The total model summary shows that 73.4% of the women empowerment level can be predicted through self-esteem and self-efficacy. The study results can be used as a base to build women empowerment programs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and help to achieve the 2030 KSA vision regarding women empowerment. Keywords: Self-esteem, self-efficacy, women empowerment, 2030 KSA vision L'étude visait à explorer le rôle de l'estime de soi et de l'efficacité personnelle dans l'autonomisation des femmes parmi le personnelacadémique et administratif des universités saoudiennes. Une conception transversale a été réalisée dans 15 universités gouvernementales. Une technique d'échantillonnage en grappes à plusieurs degrés a été utilisée pour sélectionner 5587 participants.Une régression linéaire multiple a été utilisée pour analyser la relation prédictive. La collecte de données comprenait des variablessociodémographiques, une échelle d'estime de soi de Rosenberg, une échelle d'auto-efficacité générale et une échelle d'autonomisation des femmes. Les résultats ont indiqué que l'estime de soi des participants à l'étude était également répartie entremodérée (49,8%) et élevée (50,2%). En outre, 66,9% des participants avaient une auto-efficacité élevée et 86,8% avaient une forteautonomisation totale des femmes. Le coefficient de régression a montré que l'estime de soi (B = 0,521, b = 0,127, t = 13,785 et p&lt;0,001) et l'auto-efficacité (B = 2,388, b = 0,702, t = 76,049 et p &lt;0,001) sont des prédicteurs importants du l'autonomisation totaledes femmes. Cependant, l'auto-efficacité a été observée comme le prédicteur le plus dominant (t = 76,049). Le résumé total dumodèle montre que 73,4% du niveau d'autonomisation des femmes peut être prédit grâce à l'estime de soi et à l'auto-efficacité. Lesrésultats de l'étude peuvent être utilisés comme base pour élaborer des programmes d'autonomisation des femmes dans le Royaumed'Arabie saoudite (KSA) et aider à réaliser la vision 2030 de la KSA concernant l'autonomisation des femmes. Mots-clés: Estime de soi, efficacité personnelle, autonomisation des femmes, vision 2030 KS

MicroRNA-34a: A Key Regulator in the Hallmarks of Renal Cell Carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) incidence has increased over the past two decades. Recent studies reported microRNAs as promising biomarkers for early cancer detection, accurate prognosis, and molecular targets for future treatment. This study aimed to evaluate the expression levels of miR-34a and 11 of its bioinformatically selected target genes and proteins to test their potential dysregulation in RCC. Quantitative real-time PCR for miR-34a and its targets; MET oncogene; gene-regulating apoptosis (TP53INP2 and DFFA); cell proliferation (E2F3); and cell differentiation (SOX2 and TGFB3) as well as immunohistochemical assay for VEGFA, TP53, Bcl2, TGFB1, and Ki67 protein expression have been performed in 85 FFPE RCC tumor specimens. Clinicopathological parameter correlation and in silico network analysis have also implicated. We found RCC tissues displayed significantly higher miR-34a expression level than their corresponding noncancerous tissues, particularly in chromophobic subtype. MET and E2F3 were significantly upregulated, while TP53INP2 and SOX2 were downregulated. ROC analysis showed high diagnostic performance of miR-34a (AUC = 0.854), MET (AUC = 0.765), and E2F3 (AUC = 0.761). The advanced pathological grade was associated with strong TGFB1, VEGFA, and Ki67 protein expression and absent Tp53 staining. These findings indicate miR-34a along with its putative target genes could play a role in RCC tumorigenesis and progression