Psychological impact of Covid-19 pandemic among the Healthcare workers in a North-Eastern state of India

Background: Previous studies done during SARS 2003 outbreak and early reports related to COVID-19 show that healthcare workers experience considerable anxiety, stress and fear. Although similar studies were done in other parts of India, there is dearth of data on this topic in the Northeastern region. Aim: This study aimed to assess the mental health status of Healthcare Workers during Covid-19 pandemic in the region. Methods: The study was conducted among the doctors and nurses of a Northeastern state of India through an online survey. PHQ-9, GAD-7 and ISI scales were used to assess depression, anxiety and insomnia among the participants. Results: The prevalence of depression, anxiety and insomnia among the HCWs was 74.5%, 42% and 32%, respectively. Moderate to Severe form of depression, anxiety and insomnia was experienced by 15.5%, 20.5% and 8.5%, respectively. Females and those who directly cared for Covid-19 patients were more prone to suffer from depression. Participants who reported having previous history of any psychological problems reported eight-fold, seven-fold and three-fold increased odds of developing depression, anxiety and insomnia, respectively, during the pandemic. Conclusions: A large proportion of HCWs reported symptoms of depression, anxiety and insomnia among the healthcare workers. Protecting the mental health of these health workers is paramount to ensure psychological wellbeing, which in turn will ensure a healthy and robust workforce. Relevance for Patients: Improves the productivity of Healthcare workers in terms of Patient care and Management

Tobacco use, exposure to second-hand smoke among pregnant women and their association with birth weight: A retrospective cohort study

Background: There is paucity of studies on prevalence of SHS among pregnant women and its association with low birth weight (LBW). Objectives: The study was designed to determine the proportion of tobacco use, exposure to second hand smoke among pregnant women and their association with LBW. Materials and Methods: A Retrospective cohort study was conducted from March–June 2017 among 1043 pregnant women admitted for delivery in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, JIPMER. Socio-demographic and obstetric characteristics, tobacco use and exposure to SHS during pregnancy were assessed by interviews. Birth weight of the baby was also extracted. Data was analysed using STATA v12. Univariate analysis was used to assess the association of socio-demographic, obstetric characteristics and exposure to SHS with LBW. Results: Out of 1043 pregnant women, the mean age was 25 (±3.9) years. More than half (57.4%) of women were primigravida. The proportion of women exposed to SHS during pregnancy was 69.9% (95% CI: 67.0-72.6) among which 24% of the women belonged to family, where family members were smokers. Only four had ever used tobacco in the past. However, none used any form of tobacco during pregnancy. LBW was present in 21.4% of the babies. There was no association between exposure to SHS and LBW [PR:0.98 (95% CI:0.71-1.35)]. Conclusion: The study shows that there was no significant association between the SHS exposure of pregnant women and low birth weight