Azhar Md. Zain

Variation in the Prevalence, Awareness, and Control of Diabetes in a Multiethnic Population: A Nationwide Population Study in Malaysia:

The purpose of this study was to determine the association between different ethnic groups and the prevalence, awareness, and control of diabetes in Malaysia. A population-based cross-sectional study using multistage sampling was conducted in Malaysia. Diabetes is defined as having a fasting blood glucose ≥7 mmol/L or a self-reported diabetic on treatment. Among the 7683 respondents aged ≥30 years, the prevalence of diabetes mellitus was 15.2% (95% CI = 14.1, 16.4). Multivariate analysis showed that compared with Malays, Chinese had lower odds (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.71; 95% CI = 0.56, 0.91) and Indians had higher odds of having diabetes (aOR 1.54; 95% CI = 1.20, 1.98). The odds of diabetes increased with age, family history of diabetes, body mass index, and lower education levels. Among those with diabetes mellitus, 45.0% were aware and 42.7% were under treatment. Among treated diabetics, 25.1% had their fasting blood sugar under control. There is a significant association between prevalence of diabetes and different ethnic groups.

The relationship between the social management of emotional intelligence and academic performance among medical students

Positive social interaction with peers was said to facilitate cognitive and intellectual development leading to good academic performance. There was paucity of published data on the effect of social management (SM) emotional intelligence (EI) on academic performance. We conducted this study to examine their relationship in the undergraduate medical students in a public medical school in Malaysia. This was a cross-sectional study using the Mayer–Salovey–Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) to measure the SM. The first and final year medical students were invited to participate. Students answered a paper-based demography questionnaire and completed the online MSCEIT in privacy. Independent predictors were identified using multivariate analyses. A total of 163 (84 first year and 79 final year) medical students completed the study (at a response rate of 66.0%). SM score (B = −.10 95% CI −.175 to −.015, p = .021) was significantly related to the continuous assessment (CA) marks (adjusted R2 = .45, F13,137 = 10.26, p < .0001), and was a predictor of poor result in the overall CA (adjusted OR 1.06 95% CI 1.011–1.105). Negative relationships might exist between emotional social intelligence and academic success in undergraduate medical students. A different collection of social skills and SM EI could be constructive towards academic achievement in medical schools.

Screening for Depression with a Brief Questionnaire in a Primary Care Setting: Validation of the Two Questions with Help Question (Malay Version)

Objective: To determine the diagnostic accuracy of the two questions with help question (TQWHQ) in the Malay language. The two questions are case-finding questions on depression, and a question on whether help is needed was added to increase the specificity of the two questions. Method: This cross sectional validation study was conducted in a government funded primary care clinic in Malaysia. The participants included 146 consecutive women patients receiving no psychotropic drugs and who were Malay speakers. The main outcome measures were sensitivity, specificity, and likelihood ratios of the two questions, the help question, and combination of the two questions and help question. Results: The two questions showed a sensitivity of 99% (95% confidence interval 88% to 99.9%) and a specificity of 70% (62% to 78%), respectively. The likelihood ratio for a positive test was 3.3 (2.5 to 4.5) and the likelihood ratio for a negative test was 0.01 (0.00 to 0.57). The addition of the help question to the two questions increased the specificity to 95% (89% to 98%). Conclusion: The two questions on depression detected most cases of depression in this study. The questions have the advantage of brevity. The addition of the help question increased the specificity of the two questions. Based on these findings, the TQWHQ can be strongly recommended for detection of depression in government primary care clinics in Malaysia. Translation did not appear to affect the validity of the TQWHQ.

Postpartum depression and psycho‐socio‐demographic predictors

There appears to be a growing international recognition of postpartum depression as a significant public health concern. This paper determined the prevalence and psycho‐socio‐demographic predictors of postpartum depression symptomatology and its constancy over 12‐week postpartum in Mazandaran province Iranian women.

Prediction of incidence and bio-psycho-socio-cultural risk factors of post-partum depression immediately after birth in an Iranian population

Introduction Post-partum depression (PPD) is the most prevalent mental problem associated with childbirth. The purpose of the present study was to determine the incidence of early PPD and possible relevant risk factors among women attending primary health centers in Mazandaran province, Iran for the first time. Material and methods A longitudinal cohort study was conducted among 2279 eligible women during weeks 32–42 of pregnancy to determine bio-psycho-socio-cultural risk factors of depression at 2 weeks post-partum using the Iranian version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Univariate and hierarchical multiple logistic regression models were used for data analysis. Results Among 1,739 mothers whose EPDS scores were ≤ 12 during weeks 32–42 of gestation and at the follow-up study, the cumulative incidence rate of depression was 6.9% (120/1,739) at 2 weeks post-partum. In the multivariate model the factor that predicted depression symptomatology at 2 weeks post-partum was having psychiatric distress in pregnancy based on the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) (OR = 1.06, (95% CI: 1.04–1.09), p = 0.001). The risk of PPD also lower in those with sufficient parenting skills (OR = 0.78 (95% CI: 0.69–0.88), p = 0.001), increased marital satisfaction (OR = 0.94 (95% CI: 0.9–0.99), p = 0.03), increased frequency of practicing rituals (OR = 0.94 (95% CI: 0.89–0.99), p = 0.004) and in those whose husbands had better education (OR = 0.03 (95% CI: 0.88–0.99), p = 0.04). Conclusions The findings indicated that a combination of demographic, sociological, psychological and cultural risk factors can make mothers vulnerable to PPD.