Factors associated with chronic kidney disease in patients with type 2 diabetes in Bangladesh

Diabetes and chronic kidney disease (CKD) are a major public health burden in low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to explore factors associated with CKD in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Bangladesh. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 315 adults with T2D presenting at the outpatient department of Bangladesh Institute of Health Sciences (BIHS) hospital between July 2013 to December 2013. CKD was diagnosed based on the estimated glomerular filtration rate using the ‘Modification of Diet in Renal Disease’ equations and the presence of albu-minuria estimated by the albumin-to-creatinine ratio. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with CKD. The overall prevalence of CKD among patients with T2D was 21.3%. In the unadjusted model, factors associated with CKD included age 40–49 years (OR: 5.7, 95% CI: 1.3–25.4), age 50–59 years (7.0, 1.6–39), age ≥60 years (7.6, 1.7–34), being female (2.2, 1.2–3.8), being hypertensive (1.9, 1.1–3.5), and household income between 10,001 and 20,000 Bangladeshi taka, BDT (2.9, 1.0–8.2) compared with income ≤10,000 BDT. However, after ad-justment of other covariates, only the duration of hypertension and household income (10,001– 20,000 BDT) remained statistically significant. There is a need to implement policies and programs for early detection and management of hypertension and CKD in T2D patients in Bangladesh. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Masudus Salehin” is provided in this record*

COVID-19 related psychological distress, fear and coping : identification of high-risk groups in Bangladesh

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed psychological distress and fear across the globe; however, factors associated with those issues or the ways people cope may vary by country or context. This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with psychological distress, fear, and coping strategies for people living in Bangladesh during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A cross-sectional study conducted in August-September 2020 using online platforms in Bangladesh. People residing in Bangladesh, aged ≥18 years, who were proficient in English and able to respond to online questionnaire. The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale was used to assess the psychological stress. Level of fear was assessed using the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, and strategies to cope were assessed using the Brief Resilient Coping Scale. Results: Of the 962 participants, half of them were aged between 30 and 59 years. Being born in Bangladesh, having graduate education, perceived distress due to employment change, effect of COVID-19 on financial situation, having multiple comorbidities, and visiting a healthcare provider in the last 4 weeks were associated with higher levels of both psychological distress and fear of COVID-19. Furthermore, higher psychological distress was associated with being a female (AOR 1.81, 95% CI 1.33–2.47, p < 0.001), being a frontline worker (AOR 1.50, 95% CI 1.04–2.15, p < 0.05), having pre-existing psychiatric problems (AOR 4.03, 95% CI 1.19–13.7, p < 0.05), being a smoker (AOR 2.02, 95% CI 1.32–3.09, p < 0.01), providing care to a known/suspected COVID-19 patient (AOR 1.96, 95% CI 1.40–2.72, p < 0.001), having a recent overseas travel history and being in self-quarantine (AOR 4.59, 95% CI 1.23–17.2, p < 0.05), self-isolation without COVID-19 (AOR 2.63, 95% CI 1.68–4.13, p < 0.001) or being COVID-19 positive (AOR 2.53, 95% CI 1.19–5.34, p < 0.05), and having high levels of fear of COVID-19 (AOR 3.27, 95% CI 2.29–4.66, p < 0.001). A higher level of fear was associated with moderate to high levels of psychological distress (AOR 3.29, 95% CI 2.31–4.69, p < 0.001). People with pre-existing mental health problems were less likely to be resilient (AOR 0.25, 95% CI 0.11–0.54, p < 0.01), whereas those with having an income were more likely to be resilient (AOR 1.46, 95% CI 1.02–2.11, p < 0.05). Conclusion: Effective interventions to support the vulnerable groups including improved access to mental health services are of utmost importance during the pandemic. © Copyright © 2021 Rahman, Rahman, Wazib, Arafat, Chowdhury, Uddin, Rahman, Bahar Moni, Alif, Sultana, Salehin, Islam, Cross and Bahar. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Muhammad Aziz Rahman, Masudus Salehin, Wendy Cross" is provided in this record*

Psychological distress, fear and coping among Malaysians during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has enormously affected the psychological well-being, social and working life of millions of people across the world. This study aimed to investigate the psychological distress, fear and coping strategies as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated factors among Malaysian residents. Methods Participants were invited to an online cross-sectional survey from Aug-Sep 2020. The study assessed psychological distress using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, level of fear using the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, and coping strategies using the Brief Resilient Coping Scale. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to adjust for potential confounders. Results The mean age (±SD) of the participants (N = 720) was 31.7 (±11.5) years, and most of them were females (67.1%). Half of the participants had an income source, while 216 (30%) identified themselves as frontline health or essential service workers. People whose financial situation was impacted due to COVID-19 (AOR 2.16, 95% CIs 1.54 3.03), people who drank alcohol in the last four weeks (3.43, 1.45 8.10), people who were a patient (2.02, 1.39 2.93), and had higher levels of fear of COVID-19 (2.55, 1.70 3.80) were more likely to have higher levels of psychological distress. Participants who self-isolated due to exposure to COVID-19 (3.12, 1.04 9.32) and who had moderate to very high levels of psychological distress (2.56, 1.71 3.83) had higher levels of fear. Participants who provided care to a family member/patient with a suspected case of COVID-19 were more likely to be moderately to highly resilient compared to those who did not. Conclusion Vulnerable groups of individuals such as patients and those impacted financially during COVID-19 should be supported for their mental wellbeing. Behavioural interventions should be targeted to reduce the impact of alcohol drinking during such crisis period. © 2021 Public Library of Science. All rights reserved. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Masudus Salehin, Wendy Cross, Muhammad Aziz Rahman” is provided in this record*

Reliability of the tools used to examine psychological distress, fear of COVID-19 and coping amongst migrants and non-migrants in Australia

Study tools examining psychological distress, fear of COVID-19 and coping amongst migrants and non-migrants in Australia are very limited. The aim of this research was to assess the psychometric properties and correlation of the English version of Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCSV-19S), and Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS) tools during the COVID-19 pandemic situation in Australia. Data from a cross-sectional survey (n = 516) were utilized to examine reliability; 299 (57.9%) were migrants. High internal consistency, as evidenced by Cronbach’s alpha, was found for the K-10 (0.92), FCV-19S (0.87) and BRCS (0.66) tools. The corresponding values for migrants and non-migrants were (0.92, 0.87, 0.67) and (0.92, 0.86, 0.63), respectively. Item-total correlations ranged 0.57-0.78 for K-10, 0.62–0.69 for FCV-19S, and 0.39–0.50 for BRCS tools. EFA retained a single factor for each tool with adequate factor loadings. The scoring of K-10 was significantly predicted by the scoring of FCV-19S (r = 0.284, P < 0.001) and BRCS tool (r = 0.132, P < 0.01). Therefore, these tools can be used reliably amongst both migrant and non-migrant population in Australia. © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Muhammad Aziz Rahman and Wendy Cross" is provided in this record*

COVID-19 : factors associated with psychological distress, fear, and coping strategies among community members across 17 countries

Background: The current pandemic of COVID-19 impacted the psychological wellbeing of populations globally. Objectives: We aimed to examine the extent and identify factors associated with psychological distress, fear of COVID-19 and coping. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study across 17 countries during Jun-2020 to Jan-2021. Levels of psychological distress (Kessler Psychological Distress Scale), fear of COVID-19 (Fear of COVID-19 Scale), and coping (Brief Resilient Coping Scale) were assessed. Results: A total of 8,559 people participated; mean age (±SD) was 33(±13) years, 64% were females and 40% self-identified as frontline workers. More than two-thirds (69%) experienced moderate-to-very high levels of psychological distress, which was 46% in Thailand and 91% in Egypt. A quarter (24%) had high levels of fear of COVID-19, which was as low as 9% in Libya and as high as 38% in Bangladesh. More than half (57%) exhibited medium to high resilient coping; the lowest prevalence (3%) was reported in Australia and the highest (72%) in Syria. Being female (AOR 1.31 [95% CIs 1.09-1.57]), perceived distress due to change of employment status (1.56 [1.29-1.90]), comorbidity with mental health conditions (3.02 [1.20-7.60]) were associated with higher levels of psychological distress and fear. Doctors had higher psychological distress (1.43 [1.04-1.97]), but low levels of fear of COVID-19 (0.55 [0.41-0.76]); nurses had medium to high resilient coping (1.30 [1.03-1.65]). Conclusions: The extent of psychological distress, fear of COVID-19 and coping varied by country; however, we identified few higher risk groups who were more vulnerable than others. There is an urgent need to prioritise health and well-being of those people through well-designed intervention that may need to be tailored to meet country specific requirements. © 2021, The Author(s). **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the Federation University Australia affiliates are named “Muhammad Aziz Rahman, Biswajit Banik, Masudus Salehin, Joseph Bindu, Louisa Lam, Mimmie Watts and Wendy Cross” are provided in this record*

Factors associated with psychological distress, fear and coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the personal, professional and social life of Australians with some people more impacted than others. Objectives This study aimed to identify factors associated with psychological distress, fear and coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. Methods A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among residents in Australia, including patients, frontline health and other essential service workers, and community members during June 2020. Psychological distress was assessed using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) level of fear was assessed using the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) and coping strategies were assessed using the Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS). Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with the extent of psychological distress, level of fear and coping strategies while adjusting for potential confounders. Results Among 587 participants, the majority (391, 73.2%)...This work was supported by grant 1R21EB022356 from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Psychological impact of COVID-19 on healthcare workers: cross-sectional analyses from 14 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare workers (HCWs) have been impacted psychologically due to their professional responsibilities over the prolonged era of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The study aimed to identify the predictors of psychological distress, fear, and coping during the COVID-19 pandemic among HCWs. Methods A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among self-identified HCWs across 14 countries (12 from Asia and two from Africa). The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, and the Brief Resilient Coping Scale were used to assess the psychological distress, fear, and coping of HCWs, respectively. Results A total of 2447 HCWs participated; 36% were doctors, and 42% were nurses, with a mean age of 36 (±12) years, and 70% were females. Moderate to very-high psychological distress was prevalent in 67% of the HCWs; the lowest rate was reported in the United Arab Emirates (1%) and the highest in Indonesia (16%). The prevalence of high levels of fear was 20%; the lowest rate was reported in Libya (9%) and the highest in Egypt (32%). The prevalence of medium-to-high resilient coping was 63%; the lowest rate was reported in Libya (28%) and the highest in Syria (76%). Conclusion COVID-19 has augmented the psychological distress among HCWs. Factors identified in this study should be considered in managing the wellbeing of HCWs, who had been serving as the frontline drivers in managing the crisis successfully across all participating countries. Furthermore, interventions to address their psychological distress should be considered

Factors Associated with Chronic Kidney Disease in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes in Bangladesh

Diabetes and chronic kidney disease (CKD) are a major public health burden in low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to explore factors associated with CKD in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Bangladesh. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 315 adults with T2D presenting at the outpatient department of Bangladesh Institute of Health Sciences (BIHS) hospital between July 2013 to December 2013. CKD was diagnosed based on the estimated glomerular filtration rate using the &lsquo;Modification of Diet in Renal Disease&rsquo; equations and the presence of albuminuria estimated by the albumin-to-creatinine ratio. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with CKD. The overall prevalence of CKD among patients with T2D was 21.3%. In the unadjusted model, factors associated with CKD included age 40&ndash;49 years (OR: 5.7, 95% CI: 1.3&ndash;25.4), age 50&ndash;59 years (7.0, 1.6&ndash;39), age &ge;60 years (7.6, 1.7&ndash;34), being female (2.2, 1.2&ndash;3.8), being hypertensive (1.9, 1.1&ndash;3.5), and household income between 10,001 and 20,000 Bangladeshi taka, BDT (2.9, 1.0&ndash;8.2) compared with income &le;10,000 BDT. However, after adjustment of other covariates, only the duration of hypertension and household income (10,001&ndash;20,000 BDT) remained statistically significant. There is a need to implement policies and programs for early detection and management of hypertension and CKD in T2D patients in Bangladesh

COVID-19 : factors associated with the psychological distress, fear and resilient coping strategies among community members in Saudi Arabia

(1) Background: COVID-19 caused the worst international public health crisis, accompanied by major global economic downturns and mass-scale job losses, which impacted the psychosocial wellbeing of the worldwide population, including Saudi Arabia. Evidence of the high-risk groups impacted by the pandemic has been non-existent in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, this study examined factors associated with psychosocial distress, fear of COVID-19 and coping strategies among the general population in Saudi Arabia. (2) Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in healthcare and community settings in the Saudi Arabia using an anonymous online questionnaire. The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) and Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS) were used to assess psychological distress, fear and coping strategies, respectively. Multivariate logistic regressions were used, and an Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) with 95% Confidence Intervals (CIs) was reported. (3) Results: Among 803 participants, 70% (n = 556) were females, and the median age was 27 years; 35% (n = 278) were frontline or essential service workers; and 24% (n = 195) reported comorbid conditions including mental health illness. Of the respondents, 175 (21.8%) and 207 (25.8%) reported high and very high psychological distress, respectively. Factors associated with moderate to high levels of psychological distress were: youth, females, non-Saudi nationals, those experiencing a change in employment or a negative financial impact, having comorbidities, and current smoking. A high level of fear was reported by 89 participants (11.1%), and this was associated with being ex-smokers (3.72, 1.14–12.14, 0.029) and changes in employment (3.42, 1.91–6.11, 0.000). A high resilience was reported by 115 participants (14.3%), and 333 participants (41.5%) had medium resilience. Financial impact and contact with known/suspected cases (1.63, 1.12–2.38, 0.011) were associated with low, medium, to high resilient coping. (4) Conclusions: People in Saudi Arabia were at a higher risk of psychosocial distress along with medium-high resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic, warranting urgent attention from healthcare providers and policymakers to provide specific mental health support strategies for their current wellbeing and to avoid a post-pandemic mental health crisis. © 2023 by the authors