Environmental Determinants in Sustaining the Transmission of Lymphatic Filariasis: A Systematic Review IntroductionSince mass drug administration continues in many of the endemic countries, it is vital to synthesise evidence to adapt the challenges contributed by the environments. As such, the aim of this review was to explore relationship between lymphatic filariasis prevalence and potential environmental determinants .MethodsWe searched the electronic databases PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, and Scopus between Jan 1, 2013, and Dec 31, 2022, for studies fulfilling the following criteria: it was an original article investigating the environmental determinants associated with transmission of lymphatic filariasis; and the study was published in English. The quality assessment tools for observational studies from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute was used to assess the study quality. This systematic review was registered with the PROSPERO database (CRD42023393018).ResultsWe identified 409 potentially eligible published articles, of which 11 met our inclusion criteria. The main environmental determinants associated with lymphatic filariasis transmission were Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), land cover, distance to waterbody, rainfall/precipitation, elevation, slope, day land surface temperature, average annual temperature, house type and distance to stable light. ConclusionsThis review is one of the steps towards understanding the associations between environmental determinantsand transmission of lymphatic filariasis. These results can be used in future evidence-based strategies to strengthen surveillance and control strategies.

Gema Ekologi: Meneroka Interaksi Antara Persekitaran Hutan dan Vektor Malaria Pendahuluan Malaria kekal sebagai salah satu cabaran kesihatan awam yang penting di seluruh dunia, dengan kemajuan telah terbantut dalam kebelakangan ini. Memandangkan peningkatan kes malaria terutamanya di beberapa kawasan tropika, pemahaman yang lebih baik tentang hubungan ekologi yang mendasari penularan vektor malaria perlu diberikan fokus. Pendekatan pelbagai disiplin yang melibatkan ekologi, entomologi dan kesihatan awam adalah diperlukanuntuk memahami kaitan antara malaria dan habitat persekitaran. Ulasan ini bertujuan untuk mensintesis penyelidikan sedia ada tentang bagaimana ekosistem hutan mempengaruhi dinamik penularan malaria.MetodologiMenggunakan pangkalandata PubMed, Google Scholar dan Scopus, kajian literatur komprehensif telah dijalankan menggunakan kata kunci tertentu. Artikel yang berkaitan telah dinilai untuk aliran tematik. Secara keseluruhan, 42 artikel telah dipilih untuk naratif ini.Hasil Iklim mikro hutan mempengaruhi kecergasan, tingkah laku, corak aktiviti dan fisiologi organisma. Relung biologiberbeza yang disebabkanoleh suhu, kelembapan, pendedahan cahaya dan kerpasan boleh memberi kesan kepada populasi nyamuk. Ciri-ciri fiziko-biokimia badan air, termasuk suhu, pH, jumlah pepejal terlarut (TDS), kandungan nitrat, dan paras oksigen terlarut, mempunyai kesan yang ketara ke atas banyaknya larva nyamuk anopheline. Kelimpahan vektor mungkin dipengaruhi oleh kehadiran perumah dan pemangsa semulajadi. Interaksi rumit geografi, tumbuh-tumbuhan hutan, kepadatan vektor malaria, dan tingkah laku mempunyai pengaruh besar ke atas dinamik penularan malaria. Penebangan hutan mengubah landskap dan ekosistem serpihan, yang mempunyai kesan besar ke atas habitat larva vektor Plasmodium. Perubahan iklim menimbulkan ancaman besar kepada kelimpahan vektor malaria dan dinamik penghantaran.KesimpulanTerdapat banyak aspek kepada interaksi kompleks antara persekitaran hutan dan penyebaran malaria,memerlukan pengetahuan yang mendalam dan lebih banyak penyiasatan. Kerjasama antara ahli ekologi, entomologi dan pakar kesihatan awam adalah penting dalam menghasilkan model komprehensif yang meramalkan risiko malaria dengan tepat dalam persekitaran yang berubah-ubah

The aim of this study is to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of breast cancer among health science students in Shahrekord city, Iran. A cross- sectional study was conducted in 2017-2018 academic year among 334 health science students in Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences. Data was collected using self-administered structured questionnaire. The total score for knowledge was 18. Any respondent who had more than 9 was considered as having good knowledge and below 9 as having poor knowledge. The total score for attitude was 7. Any score more than 4 was considered as good attitude and score less than 4 was considered as bad attitude. The mean age of the respondents was 21.21± 1.19 years. Most of the respondents aged 18 to 21 years. The knowledge level was significantly different by age group (P=0.002), department (P=0.000) and those who attended training course (P=0.000). Those who perform BSE (Breast Self-Examination) had higher knowledge score about breast cancer than those who do not perform BSE (P=0.000). The participants’ attitude was not significantly different by age group, department, family history of cancer and attending of training courses (p > 0.05). The breast self-examination practice was significantly different by age group (P=0.002), department (P=0.000) and those who attended training course (P=0.000). About half of the respondents had good knowledge on breast cancer. However, more than half of the participants had negative attitude towards breast cancer. For example, less than half of the respondents performed BSE and none of the respondents has performed CBE (Clinical Breast Examination) or mammogram before.

Aim of this study is to determine levels of general health, occupational stress and burnout in nurses who are working in Shohadaye Kargar Hospital of Yazd. A cross- sectional study was conducted among nurses who are working in Shohadaye Kargar Hospital of Yazd in 2017-2018 years. The sample was randomly selected and total 200 nurses were enrolled to the study. The study instruments included Occupational stress questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory and General Health Questionnaire. Collected Data were analyzed by using descriptive test and Pearson correlation coefficient and multivariate regression in SPSS. The findings of research indicated that total levels of occupational stress were high among 58.85 % of nurses. Regarding burnout, 35.93% of nurses had reported high levels of burnout. Less than one percent (0.37 %) of nurses have high mental health problems and 0.44 percent reported mid mental health problem. There was a statistically significant correlation between occupational stress with mental health (p<.001) and job burnout with mental health (p<.001). Occupational stress and job burnout may have undesired influences on nursing mental health and general function.

Antenatal care is a vital part of primary healthcare that is known to improve maternal and newborn outcomes. The aim of this study was to identify the factors affecting utilization of antenatal care services for women in reproductive age in Yemen. This cross-sectional community-based study was conducted in six districts of Sana’a City, Yemen. Data were collected from 460 mothers who gave birth in the past six months via face-to-face interviews at home between September to December 2010. Only 54% of mothers were found to have made four or more antenatal care visits. Almost two third of participants made their first visit during their first trimester due to presence of health problems and did not follow up when they became healthy during pregnancy. Reasons for not receiving antenatal care services due to absence of health problems, high cost of antenatal care services, long waiting time, and poor staff attitude. Sixty percent of participants were unaware of the danger symptoms of common health problems in pregnancy. The significant factors affecting utilization of antenatal services were mother education, residence place, age at first pregnancy, gravida, parity, occurrence of pregnancy without planning, and number of live children (P<0.05). The factors affecting the number of visits were mother education, place of residence, and husband work were (P<0.05). Future healthcare activities should focus on improving women’s awareness of the importance of antenatal care even in the absence of noticeable health problems and lack of education about the common danger signs and symptoms of pregnancy.
Factors ; Utilization ; Antenatal Care Services