World Health Association Research Articles

Comparison of efficacy between face-to-face and online consultation against overweight and obesity

Introduction: Overweight and obesity have progressively increased in recent years. Online consultation has become a useful tool for healthcare professionals and patients that cannot be assisted through face-to-face consultation. Objectives: Our study aimed to compare the efficacy between online and face-to-face consultation as a strategy in the management of overweight and obesity. Material and Methods: An experimental, cross-sectional study was carried out in 88 patients between 25-30 years old. Patients were classified into two groups of 44 individuals: online and face-to-face consultation. Nutritional evaluations were conducted in each consultation, which comprised of anthropometric, dietetic, and physical assessments. The therapy consisted of individually designed menus made by a specialist and other recommendations based on the World Health Association (WHO) guidelines. Results: Most patients in both groups achieved normal anthropometric measurements after the intervention (41/44 face-to-face group; 39/44 online group). Intragroup analysis (before and after intervention) of body mass index (BMI), weight, and fat percentage in both groups revealed a significant improvement after the intervention (p<0.0001). Intergroup analysis of BMI (p<0.4031), weight (p<0.2265), and fat percentage (p<0.3872) showed no significant difference. The analysis of efficacy revealed an efficacy of up to 95% in the online consultation group when compared to the face-to-face consultation one. Conclusions: No significant difference was found between online and face-to-face groups. The efficacy of online consultation was 95%. These results allow us to conclude that online and face-to-face consultation have a similar efficacy.

Levetiracetam as a first-line antiseizure medication in WHO grade 2 glioma: Time to seizure freedom and rates of treatment failure.

The high seizure burden seen in World Health Association (WHO) grade 2 gliomas is well documented. This study aims to identify factors that influence the probability of seizure freedom (12 months of seizure remission) and treatment failure (antiseizure medication [ASM] cessation or introduction of an alternative) in patients with WHO grade 2 glioma. This is a retrospective observational analysis of patients from a regional UK neurosurgical center with histologically proven (n= 146) WHO grade 2 glioma and brain tumor related epilepsy. Statistical analyses using both Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards models were undertaken, with a particular focus on treatment outcomes when the commonly prescribed ASM levetiracetam (n= 101) is used as first line. Treatment with levetiracetam as a first-line ASM resulted in a significant increase in the probability of seizure freedom (p< .05) at 2 years compared with treatment with an alternative ASM. Individuals presenting with focal seizures without bilateral tonic-clonic progression were between 39% and 42% significantly less likely to reach seizure freedom within 10 years (p< .05) and 132% more likely to fail treatment by 5 years (p< .01) when compared to individuals who had seizures with progression to bilateral tonic-clonic activity. ASM choice did not significantly affect treatment failure rates. More than two-thirds of patients with WHO grade 2 glioma related epilepsy treated with levetiracetam first line achieve seizure freedom within 2 years and it is a reasonable first-choice agent. Experiencing mainly focal seizures without progression infers a significant long-term reduction in the chance of seizure freedom. Further studies are needed to inform ASM selection.

IOT Enabled Smart ECG System for the Remote Monitoring

As there is a quick development in human populace and clinical use and furthermore the medical services have gotten quite possibly the most critical issue for the two people just as the public authority. Then, as per a report from World Health Association (WHO), the issue of an exceptionally expanding populace is getting more genuine. The strength of matured individuals should be checked all the more often, which represents a more noteworthy challenge to the existing clinical framework. Henceforth, to distinguish human illnesses as expected and precise way with minimal effort has been given an expanding consideration. Because of the strength in the conclusion of heart-related infections, electrocardiogram (ECG) observing has been broadly utilized in the two emergency clinics and clinical examination. An electrocardiogram gadget screens the cardiovascular status of a patient by recording the heart’s electrical potential versus time. Such gadgets assume a vital part to save the existence of patients who endure a respiratory failure or experience the ill effects of these patients. Early identification of conditions that lead to the beginning of heart failure permits specialists to give legitimate treatment on time and keeps passing or incapacity from heart failure. Most non-industrial nations have very helpless data about these medical services issues. Here we proposed an approach that is able to check the ECG level with low cost and power consumption.

A Multinational Study on the Protective and Risk Factors Associated with Mental Health Parameters in the General Population During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study in the Asia-Europe-North America Cohort

Background: The novel Coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) was declared a pandemic by the World Health Association (WHO) in March 2020, impacting the lifestyles, economy, physical and mental health of individuals globally. Little is known about the relationship between the impact of COVID-19 and one’s mental health status, and thus research needs to be conducted to identify the factors involved and develop tailored evidence-based strategies in response to reduce the adverse psychological impact. Methods: From February to June 2020, we conducted an online Global Mental Health survey which recruited participants via a respondent-driven sampling country in 8 countries (China, Pakistan, Philippines, Iran, Poland, Spain, USA and Vietnam). The online survey collected information on demographic characteristics, physical symptoms and health service utilisation, contact history, knowledge and concerns regarding COVID-19, precautionary measures taken and additional health information variables among the countries involved. The psychological impact was measured by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) questionnaire and the mental health status was measured by the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Results: There were 5555 participants involved in the study, 31.4% male and 68.6% female, with an age range of 12-to above 50 years of age. There were significant differences in the mean IES-R and DASS-21 scores between the 8 countries (F(7, 55477) = 71.605, η2=0.085, pInterpretation: During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the mental health of the global population was significantly affected as shown empirically by the results of our study, and each country faced their own set of unique challenges in their response to COVID-19. Our findings have identified protective and risk factors associated with mental health that can help us to develop targeted psychological interventions for those who are more vulnerable during this pandemic.Funding Statement: This study has the following funding sources: Huaibei Normal University, China, Ministry of Science and Higher Education in Poland under the 2019-2022 program, Regional Initiative of Excellence", project number 012 / RID / 2018/19, National University of Singapore iHeathtech Other Operating Expenses (R-722-000-004-731) and Vingroup Innovation Foundation (VINIF) COVID research grant (VINIF.2020.Covid19.DA07) in Vietnam.Declaration of Interests: None declared.Ethics Approval Statement: The study was approved by the Institutional Review Boards from each country, China (Huaibei Normal University of China, HBU-IRB2020-001/002), Philippines (University of Philippines Manila Research Ethics Board, UPMREB 2020-198-01), Poland (SWPS University, WKEB62/04/2020), Spain (Complutense University of Madrid of Spain, Pr_2019_20_027), Vietnam (Hanoi Medical University, QD 75/QD-YHDP&YHDP) and the US (East Carolina University, UMCIRB 20-000838). Approval was also obtained from the relevant Iranian and Pakistani committees. All respondents provided informed consent. The collected data were anonymous and treated as confidential.