Riyadh Lafta

Burns in Baghdad from 2003 to 2014: Results of a randomized household cluster survey

PURPOSEnCivilians living amid conflict are at high-risk of burns. However, the epidemiology of burns among this vulnerable group is poorly understood, yet vital for health policy and relief planning. To address this gap, we aimed to determine the death and disability, healthcare needs and household financial consequences of burns in post-invasion Baghdad.nnnMETHODSnA two-stage, cluster randomized, community-based household survey was performed in May 2014 to determine the civilian burden of injury from 2003 to 2014 in Baghdad. In addition to questions about cause of household member death, households were interviewed regarding burn specifics, healthcare required, disability, relationship to conflict and resultant financial hardship.nnnRESULTSnNine-hundred households, totaling 5148 individuals, were interviewed. There were 55 burns, which were 10% of all injuries reported. There were an estimated 2340 serious burns (39 per 100,000 persons) in Baghdad in 2003. The frequency of serious burns generally increased post-invasion to 8780 burns in 2013 (117 per 100,000 persons). Eight burns (15%) were the direct result of conflict. Individuals aged over 45 years had more than twice the odds of burn than children aged less than 13 years (aOR 2.42; 95%CI 1.08-5.44). Nineteen burns (35%) involved ≥ 20% body surface area. Death (16% of burns), disability (40%), household financial hardship (48%) and food insecurity (50%) were common after burn.nnnCONCLUSIONnCivilian burn in Baghdad is epidemic, increasing in frequency and associated with household financial hardship. Challenges of healthcare provision during prolonged conflict were evidenced by a high mortality rate and likelihood of disability after burn. Ongoing conflict will directly and indirectly generates more burns, which mandates planning for burn prevention and care within local capacity development initiatives, as well as humanitarian assistance.

Effect of adverse childhood experiences on physical health in adulthood: Results of a study conducted in Baghdad city

Background: Studies have revealed a powerful relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and physical and mental health in adulthood. Literature documents the conversion of traumatic emotional experiences in childhood into organic disease later in life. Objective: The aim was to estimate the effect of childhood experiences on the physical health of adults in Baghdad city. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from January 2013 to January 2014. The study sample was drawn from Baghdad city. Multistage sampling techniques were used in choosing 13 primary health care centers and eight colleges of three universities in Baghdad. In addition, teachers of seven primary schools and two secondary schools were chosen by a convenient method. Childhood experiences were measured by applying a modified standardized ACEs-International Questionnaire form and with questions for bonding to family and parental monitoring. Physical health assessment was measured by a modified questionnaire derived from Health Appraisal Questionnaire of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The questionnaire includes questions on cerebrovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, tumor, respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases. Results: Logistic regression model showed that a higher level of bonding to family (fourth quartile) is expected to reduce the risk of chronic physical diseases by almost the half (odds ratio = 0.57) and exposure to a high level of household dysfunction and abuse (fourth quartile) is expected to increase the risk of chronic physical diseases by 81%. Conclusion: Childhood experiences play a major role in the determination of health outcomes in adulthood, and early prevention of ACEs. Encouraging strong family bonding can promote physical health in later life.

Impact of nutrition clinic on obesity in Baghdad, Iraq: First year outcome

Background: Overweight and obesity are growing global health concerns. Strategies to control obesity focus on obesity management and weight reduction as well as obesity prevention. Objective: The objective of this study was to summarize the impact of new nutrition clinic on obesity in Baghdad city, Iraq. Methods: All patients who attended the clinic during the year 2015 were included in this case series study to describe the yield of work of the clinic in its first year. A complete examination was done by the researchers for every patient, including height, weight, BMI, and other relevant examinations according to the underlying health problem. Results: The total number of patients that visited the clinic for the first time was 738 with a mean age of (32.9 ± 9.1 year) and mean BMI of (34.85 ± 7.84 kg/m2). The attendants who reported only one visit formed 71.5%, while 15% achieved two visits and only 13.5% could make it to achieve three visits, 10.5% of the sample did not show any loss in their weight, while 47.4 showed a loss of up to three kilograms after one month, and 42.1% lost more than three kilograms. Conclusion: Most of the attendants to the nutrition clinic are females and morbid obese especially those with hypertension and diabetes mellitus. The compliance of the patients is still low. More health education is needed to increase their awareness about the problem of obesity.

Road traffic injuries in Baghdad from 2003 to 2014: results of a randomised household cluster survey

Introduction Around 50 million people are killed or left disabled on the worlds roads each year; most are in middle-income cities. In addition to this background risk, Baghdad has been plagued by decades of insecurity that undermine injury prevention strategies. This study aimed to determine death and disability and household consequences of road traffic injuries (RTIs) in postinvasion Baghdad. Methods A two-stage, cluster-randomised, community-based household survey was performed in May 2014 to determine the civilian burden of injury from 2003 to 2014 in Baghdad. In addition to questions about household member death, households were interviewed regarding crash specifics, healthcare required, disability, relatedness to conflict and resultant financial hardship. Results Nine hundred households, totalling 5148 individuals, were interviewed. There were 86 RTIs (16% of all reported injuries) that resulted in 8 deaths (9% of RTIs). Serious RTIs increased in the decade postinvasion and were estimated to be 26u2005341 in 2013 (350 per 100u2005000 persons). 53% of RTIs involved pedestrians, motorcyclists or bicyclists. 51% of families directly affected by a RTI reported a significant decline in household income or suffered food insecurity. Conclusions RTIs were extremely common and have increased in Baghdad. Young adults, pedestrians, motorcyclists and bicyclists were the most frequently injured or killed by RTCs. There is a large burden of road injury, and the families of road injury victims suffered considerably from lost wages, often resulting in household food insecurity. Ongoing conflict may worsen RTI risk and undermine efforts to reduce road traffic death and disability.

Prevalence of Alcohol Consumption among University Students in Baghdad: A Cross-section survey from Iraq

Background: Alcohol consumption is a well-known public health problem, especially among university students. It was poorly studied in Middle East, especially in Iraq, due to religious and social taboos. This study conducted to throw a light on the prevalence of Alcohol consumption among university students in Baghdad. Subjects and methods: A survey conducted in three universities (Baghdad, Al-Mustansiriyah and Al-Nahrain) from Baghdad city, in the duration between January and May 2015. A semi-structured questionnaire form used to collect the data from 1435 university students. The sample selected by multistage random sampling technique with probability proportion to size. Results: The average age (range) of the studied sample was 19.8 (18 - 24) years; more than a half of them were females 760 (53%). Alcohol consumption was reported by 9.7% (95%CI: 8.2% - 11.2%) of the participants (19.7% males vs. 0.8% females). Heavy Alcohol consumption was reported by 12.2% of consumers. Male students living out of their families or relatives and those of medical group colleges found to be risk factors for Alcohol consumption ( PR= 2.65, 95% CI: 1.72 - 4.1 ) and ( PR= 2.72, 95%CI: 1.48 - 5.01 ) respectively. No significant relations showed between demographic characters of female students and Alcohol consumption. Conclusions: Usage of Alcohol was relatively prevalent among university students in Baghdad, in spite of religious and social barriers in Iraq. Family and college staff supervision and education of the students with meetings targeting health risks and sequels of Alcohol hazardous consumption are the effective ways to control this practice.