A study on health risk behavior of mid-adolescent school students in a rural and an urban area of West Bengal, India

Background and Objective: High-risk behaviors can have adverse effects on health of adolescents. It is essential to identify risks so that modification can be initiated before any damage. The present study was conducted among adolescents to study their risk behaviors. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study based on the concept of Global School-based Student Health Survey was conducted by interviewing adolescents of one urban and one rural randomly selected school. For quick overall assessment of their risk behaviors, a predesigned three-point scoring system was followed. Data were analyzed using Epi Info version 3.5.1. Results: The study of six domains of important risk behaviors among 788 school-going adolescents (rural: 436 [55.3%], urban: 352 [44.7%]), (male: 406 [51.5%], female: 382 [48.5%]) revealed that occurrence of dietary high-risk behavior was more in urban students (11.4%) than rural students (1.8%). Regarding violence, occurrence of high-risk behavior was also higher among urban students (18.8% vs. 6%). The number of mentally disturbed girls is more than boys. Conclusion: The mean risk scores in all domains, except personal hygiene, are either in ′Moderate′ or ′high′ risk grade. It is of great concern that rural and urban, male and female adolescents are at risk though their vulnerability varies

A Study on Socio-demographic Profile of HIV/AIDS Patients Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy in an ART Center of Burdwan District,West Bengal

Background: HIV/AIDS is a chronic debilitating disease which has engulfed a significant number of people. 10% of the total People living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA) of the country live in the state of West Bengal. Objective: To study the different socio-demographic characteristics of HIV/AIDS patients receiving Antiretroviral Therapy (ART). Methodology: It was an observational study with cross-sectional design conducted from July 2010 – June 2011 among 558 subjects in the ART Centre of Burdwan Medical College and Hospital. HIV/AIDS patients who were 15 years of age or more, and had been on ART in this ART Centre till the end of June, 2010 were interviewed with a semi-structured schedule. Result: 63.1% patients were male. Number of male and female patients varied significantly according to age and literacy status in this study. Age group and educational status were significantly associated with sex. Conclusion: HIV/AIDS has been transmitted among the people of different socio-demographic background and causing concern regarding the holistic approach to prevent further spread of this deadly disease

Physical injury: A profile among the municipal primary school children of Siliguri, Darjeeling District

A cross sectional study was conducted from February - May 2009 with the objectives to find out profile of injuries among municipal primary school children in Siliguri, West Bengal and to identify the related factor associated with injury. 20% of total primary schools under municipal corporation of the town were selected and a pre-designed, pre-tested schedule was used to assess the profile of injury and associated factors. The Chi square test was usedto determine statistical significance at the 0.05 significance level. Out of 956 participants, a significantly higher injury was observed among males (68%). Open wound injuries were commonest (59.6%) occurring mainly at the extremities. Falls were mainly responsible for overall injuries. Injury at home (41.8%) was also found to be more. Mother education, number of siblings and presence of caregiver were significant related factors to injury