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: Nebulized Salbutamol have great advantages for patients with respiratory problems by depositing drugs directly to the lungs, inspite of reported adverse metabolic effects on different electrolytes and glucose heamostasis of patients.AIM OF STUDY: To evaluate the effect of nebulized salbutamol used in the management of patients with asthma who have normal serum potassium and blood glucose levels. in the emergency department after 30 and 60 minutes of administration and to find out if these results are of clinical importance that should be taken in consideration when treating patients especially those with abnormal glucose hemostasis or electrolyte disturbance. PATIENTS & METHODS: The study is a prospective follow
... Show MoreIn the present work, nanocomposite of poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) incorporated with functionalized graphene oxide (FGO) were fabricated using casting method. PVA was dispersed by varying content of FGO (0.3, 0.5, 0.8, 1 wt %). The PVA- FGO nanocomposite was characterized by FT‐IR, FE-SEM and XRD. Frequency dependence of real permittivity (ε’), imaginary (ε’’) and a.c conductivity of PVA/FGO and PVA/GO nanocomposite were studied in the frequency range 100 Hz- 1 MHz. The experimental results showed that the values of real (ε’) and imaginary permittivity (ε’’) increased dramatically by increasing the FGO content in PVA matrix. PVA/ FGO (1 wt %) nanocomposite revealed higher electrical conductivity of 6.4×10-4 Sm-1 compared to
... Show MoreThe compounding of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with two types of fillers and some additives were studied for the manufacturing of acid resistant tile. Various concentrations of two types of fillers namely; calcium carbonate and recycled glass powder were used along with different additives generally categorized as plasticizers, stabilizers, and lubricants were mixed in the standard concentration unit parts per hundred resins (phr) with the PVC as base polymer. The effects of filler materials on acid resistant towered different acids like sulphuric, nitric and hydrochloric at different concentration were studied. Samples which passed the test were further checked for dielectric strength and mechanical properties. It was found that the recycl
... Show MoreOptoelectronic devices, widely used in high energy and nuclear physics applications, suffer severe radiation damage that leads to degradations in its efficiency. In this paper, the influence of gamma radiation (137Ce source) and beta radiation (90Sr source) on the photoelectric parameters of the Si solar cell, based on the I–V characterization at different irradiation exposer, has been studied. The penetrating radiation produces defects in the base material, may be activated during its lifetime, becoming traps for electron–hole pairs produced optically and, this will, decrease the efficiency of the solar cell. The main objective of the paper is to study and measure changes in the I–V characteristics of solar cells, such as efficienc
... Show MoreBackground: Reduction in bond strength when bonding was done immediately after intracoronal bleaching procedure has been recognized. The purpose of this study is to assess the effect of antioxidants (10% sodium ascorbate (SA), 0.1M thiourea and7% sodium bicarbonate (SB)) on reversing bonding strength of composite resin to bleached dentin. Materials and method: Sixty upper 1st premolar teeth, were selected, the crowns of the teeth were embedded in acrylic resin blocks exposing a flat dentin from the buccal surface, then divided into 6 groups (10 samples each). Bleaching for the experimental groups was performed using 35% hydrogen peroxide bleaching gel (pola–office).Group A (Negative
... Show MoreBackground: Improved glucose level control with insulin injections have allowed for the diabetic population to live longer and healthier lives. Unfortunately diabetes remains a worldwide epidemic disease with multiple health implications. Specifically, its effects upon fracture healing are compromised in diabetics with as high as 87% recovery delay relative to “healthy†counterparts. Current medical treatments for bone injuries have been largely focused on replacing the lost bone with allogenic or autogenous bone grafts, beta-tricalcium phosphate (β -TCP), a ceramic alloplast, has interconnected system of micropores, has been widely used as a biologically safe osteoconductive bone substitute. The aim of this study was histol
... Show MoreThe goal of the current study was to research the changes in hematological parameters: WBC count, RBCs count, Hb, PCV, neutrophil, lymphocyte, and monocyte in albino mice infected with Aspergillus fumigatus by intraperitoneal injection after induced immunosuppression by intraperitoneal injection of cortisone. The current research also examined an attempt to reduce the infection load by treating Solanum aculeastrum. The result shows higher decreased significance (P≤0. 05) in RBCs, Hb, and PCV after being infected with A. fumigatus 7. 1 ± 0. 8, 11. 3 ± 0. 5 and 41. 5 ± 2. 4, respectively, while the total WBC count, neutrophil, lymphocyte, and monocytes were increased significantly (P≤0. 05) after treatment with S. aculeastrum i
... Show MoreEpoxy (EP) – Silica (SiO2) composites are well known composites used in microelectronic industry . So it is important to study their dielectric behavior under different conditions such as
the presence carbon black (UV absorber) and immersion in the water for 30 days .
Dielectric properties were calculated over the frequency range 102 – 106 Hz for epoxy composites with different weight % of micrometer 1.5μm SiO2 particles (60%, 65% and 70wt%) modified with 0.5wt% silane coupling agent to improve adhesion between EP and SiO2 phases .