BackgroundTo investigate the association between glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and the lipid profile in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) at a tertiary care hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (SA).MethodsThe present retrospective cross-sectional study was accomplished at the Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Jeddah, SA, between April and July 2018. There were 206 T2DM patients selected for the study (141 females and 65 males), and the data were collected through a review of the electronic profiles of patients by using the medical electronic file system used at the KAU Hospital. Biochemical data such as fasting plasma glucose (FPG), HbA1c and lipid profile, along with the patient’s age, BMI and gender, were also taken from the electronic file system. The inclusion criteria allowed for only patients who were regularly seeing their physician and whose electronic file was up to date.ResultsThe participants’ data were analyzed gender-wise. The females had significantly higher values for BMI (p=0.002), HbA1c (p=0.009), triglycerides (TGs) (p<0.001), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (p=0.002) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (p<0.001) compared to the males. The study subjects were grouped according to their level of HbA1c (good glycemic index <7%, and poor glycemic index >7%). In both groups, no significant differences were found in any of the parameters other than TGs (p=0.020) and HbA1c (p<0.001). An analysis of the correlation between HbA1c and other parameters exhibited a significant correlation with TG (r=0.16, p=0.020), while no significant relationship was observed with the other variables. The linear regression results indicated that HbA1c values were associated with TGs (p=0.020) and were independent of age, BMI, TC, LDL-C, HDL-C and FPG levels.ConclusionThe glycated Hb was associated with TGs, and no significant association was found with age, BMI, TC, LDL-C, HDL-C and FPG levels.

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BackgroundThis study investigated the prevalence and association of liver transaminases in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients at King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.MethodsThis retrospective, cross-sectional study was carried out on 211 T2DM patients at KAUH in 2017, and the Research Ethics Committee of KAUH approved this study. The data were analyzed on SPSS 21 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, US). The association of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) with several risk factors was computed by the chi-square test. The odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was also calculated.ResultsThe mean age of study participants was 60 ± 13.43 years; 143 (67.8%) were female while 68 (32.2%) were male. Serum AST levels were elevated in 6.16% (10.3% in males, 4.2% in females). Elevated ALT levels were found in 7.58% (11.8% in males, 5.6% in females) (Table 2). The probability of rising AST levels increased with age (OR = 2.59 for patients aged 46-65) and with male gender (OR = 2.65, CI: 0.84-8.12). Additionally, the probability of rising ALT levels increased with male gender (OR = 2.25, CI: 0.80-6.27), low-density lipoproteins (LDL-C) (OR = 2.11, CI: 0.73-6.04), and triglycerides (TG) (OR = 2.08, CI: 0.739-5.87). No statistically noteworthy association was observed between elevated levels of AST and ALT with gender, age, body mass index (BMI), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), TG, total cholesterol (TC), LDL-C, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels, smoking, or hypertension.ConclusionHigher ALT and AST levels were found in T2DM patients but with no statistically significant link between elevated levels and gender, age, BMI, HbA1c, TG, TC, HDL-C, LDL-C, smoking, or hypertension.

Background Epilepsy is a chronic disease characterized by periodic seizures that result from abnormal integrated firing impulses in the brain. It is one of the most common neurological disorders. Over the past few years, there has been increasing awareness about the effect that having a child with epilepsy has on parents and the reciprocal impact of parental knowledge and attitudes regarding epilepsy on the affected child. Objective This study aimed to assess parental knowledge, attitudes, and behavior toward their epileptic children. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2018 by the Pediatric Neurology Department of King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A sample size of 115 of 332 parents who have a child diagnosed with epilepsy and aged 18 years or younger were recruited for this study. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 21. Data analysis was performed using an independent t test, a chi-square test, one-way analysis of variance, and correlation analysis. Results A total of 115 participants answered the questionnaire; of these, 65 (56.5%) were men, with an average age of 40.3 years, and the mean age of the children was 9.0 years. Overall, 85 (85/115, 73.9%) children were taken care of by both of their parents. The mean parental knowledge score was 7.49 (SD 2.08) out of 12, and it was significantly related to the educational level of the parent (P=.004). The knowledge question that was most frequently answered incorrectly was “Diagnosis of epilepsy is usually made based on at least two unprovoked seizures.” As only 28.7% (33/115) of participants chose the correct answer, mean parental attitude score was 26.51 (SD 4.284) out of 35, and there was no significant relation with the educational level of parents (P=.13); however, it was negatively correlated with the child’s age (P=.045). Mean parental behavioral score was 23.35 (SD 4.121) out of 35, and there was no significant relation with the educational level of the parents (P=.24). The most negatively answered question for the behavior section was “I can leave my child without supervision,” with a mean score of 2.25 (SD 1.09) out of 5. Gender did not play a significant role in parental knowledge, attitudes, or behavior (P=.44, P=.77, and P=.99, respectively). Conclusions Parental knowledge in our sample still needs improvement. Therefore, more awareness campaigns should be made for the community and for the parents of affected children to create a supportive environment for the children and help them thrive and develop.

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