Academia Open Vol 8 No 2 (2023): December DOI: 10.21070/acopen.8.2023.8087 . Article type: (Medicine)Impact of COVID-19 on Dental Students' Psychological Health Maryam Hameed Alwan, [email protected], (1) Department of Oral Diagnosis, College of Dentistry, Baghdad University, Iraq, Iraq (1) Corresponding author Abstract This study investigates the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dental students at Baghdad University College of Dentistry. Conducted between December 2021 and January 2022, this cross-sectional survey aligns with ethical guidelines and the Helsinki Declaration. The study utilized Cochran's equation to determine a sample size of at least 400, ensuring a 95% confidence level with a 5% margin of error. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the Covid Student Stress Questionnaire (CSSQ) were employed as primary tools, assessing general and COVID-19-related stress, respectively. A total of 411 students participated, with 67.50% experiencing moderate to severe stress (PSS <14) and 58.8% reporting average levels of COVID-related stress (CSSQ <7). Notably, there was a significant positive correlation between the PSS and CSSQ scores (P = 0.008). The analysis, conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics software V26, included descriptive statistics, Cronbach's alpha for reliability, and Pearson Correlation for assessing correlations. The findings indicate that a substantial proportion of dental students experienced heightened stress levels, potentially leading to mental health disorders like cognitive impairment. These results emphasize the need for universities to enhance psychological support and for government bodies to implement comprehensive health education and awareness programs. This study not only sheds light on the immediate psychological effects of the pandemic on dental students but also serves as a foundational reference for future interventions aimed at reducing stress levels in this demographic
Background: With the start of the current century, increased the interest in the role of the adipose tissue derived substances that named adipokines in the inflammatory diseases of the human being including the inflammatory periodontal disease, but scientific evidences were not clearly demonstrate the association between these adipokines and periodontal pathologies. Materials and Methods: Forty two subjects male only with normal body mass index were selected for the study with an age ranged (30-39 years). Samples were divided into three groups of 14 subjects in each group based on clinical periodontal parameters; clinically healthy gingiva (group I), gingivitis group (group II) and chronic periodontitis patients group (group III), from whom
... Show MoreABSTRACT Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine disorders affecting women in their reproductive age.It is characterized by anovulation or oligo-ovulation and hyperandrogensim.Androgen excess is the central defect in polycystic ovary syndrome. It is a complex disorder affects general health in addition to oral health.This study aimed to assess the gingival health status among a group of women with polycystic ovary syndrome as well as to estimate the levels of salivaryfree testosterone in unstimulated saliva in relation to gingival health condition. Materials and methods: Sixty two women with an age range 20-25 years old and with a body mass index range18.5-24.9 (normal weight) were included in this s
... Show MoreBackground: Gasoline constituents and its derivatives had many hazardous effects on the general health of humans. Thus, gasoline stations workers may be affected by different types of related diseases.This study was conducted to assess selected salivary elements and their relation with dental caries, oral hygiene status and periodontal diseases among gasoline stations workers in comparison with individuals have no regular exposure to gasoline. Materials and methods: The study group consists of thirty male subjects with an age range (33-39) years who worked in different gasoline stations in different areas of Baghdad city and thirty persons that matching in age and gender and not exposed to gasoline were selected as a control group. Dental c
... Show MoreObjectives: This study aimed to identify and study most properties of the specific and general health-related
quality-of-life (HRQoL) in prostate cancer patients, as well as creating a new measurement scale for assessing QoL
among prostate cancer patients.
Methodology: A cross sectional (descriptive) study was conducted to evaluate General Quality of life in patients
with prostate cancer. A sample of 100 prostate cancer patients from Al-Amal National hospital for cancer
management and Oncology Center in Baghdad Medical City. This study applied format of General World Health
Organization Quality of Life-BERF questionnaire. The methods used descriptive statistics to evaluate the General
QoL-Improvements, as well as inf
The Umm Al-Naaj Marsh was chosen in Maysan province, and it is one of the sections of Mar Al-Hawza, which is one of the most prominent Iraqi marshes in the south. The marshes are located between latitudes 30 35 and 32 45 latitudes and longitudes 13 46 and 48 00. The area of the study area is 76479.432142 hectares to evaluate soil quality and health index and their spatial distribution based on measuring physical, chemical, biological and fertility traits and calculating the total quality index for those characteristics. Using an auger drilling machine, we collected 50 randomly selected surface samples, evenly distributed across the study region, from Al-Aq 0.0–0.30 m, noting their precise locations along the way. Soil health and quality w
... Show MoreBreast cancer is the most diagnosed form of malignant tumour in Iraqi women. Tamoxifen and trastuzumab are highly effective adjuvant therapy for breast cancer.
This study's objectives were to define the patient's belief in tamoxifen or trastuzumab when used as adjuvant therapy and to determine the variation in belief between the two medications in a sample of Iraqi breast cancer patients.
The cross-section survey was conducted using the BMQ-Specific questionnaire. Ninety-seven participants (sixty-seven tamoxifen, thirty trastuzumab) participated in this study.
The mean of specific-necessity scale for tamoxifen was (3.7) and for trastuzumab (4). The findings showed a high necessity for both medicines, and there wer
... Show MoreBackground: Birth weight is a powerful predictor of infant growth and survival. Evidence now shows that children born with low birth weight face an increased risk of chronic diseases and have many health problems including oral health. The aims of this study were to assess the salivary flow rate, viscosity, and salivary cortisol among low birth weight kindergarten children aged 5 years old in Hilla centre, in relation to dental caries and compares them with the normal birth weight children of the same age and gender. Materials and methods: The total sample involved 80 children (40 low birth weights and 40 normal birth weights) aged 5 years old. The diagnosis and recording of severity of dental caries was recorded through the application of
... Show MoreBackground: The physiologic, biochemical and anatomic changes that occur during pregnancy are extensive and may be systemic or local. However, most of these changes return to pre pregnancy status six weeks postpartum. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of dental caries among preterm postpartum women and it's relation to baby birth weight and salivary interleukin-6 (IL-6). Materials and methods: 66 postpartum women were examined, 33 preterm postpartum women (study group) and 33 full term postpartum women (control group). Dental caries was recorded using, decayed, missing and filled surfaces index, also assess the decayed lesion by severity. Salivary samples were taken from all subjects to estimate salivary IL-6 levels. Babie
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