Introduction Dental caries and obesity are two of the most prevalent health conditions affecting children. Relative decrease in corporeal movements, escalating inactive lifestyles, and changes in dietary factors are strongly linked with the increasing incidence of overweight and obesity. Furthermore, obesity increases the risk of chronic disease and dental caries that significantly affects the quality of life of young children. The present study intends to explore the relationship between dental caries and obesity in children in Al-Kharj city, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Materials and methods The present descriptive study was designed as a cross-sectional study in which a total of 386 children in the age range of 6 to 12 years from elementary schools of Al-Kharj city and pediatric dental clinics in Prince Sattam Dental College were included. Results Mean decayed filled teeth (DFT) score was found to be considerably higher among obese children. Also, incidence of dental caries in deciduous dentition was found to be notably higher among obese children. Conclusion Obesity has a considerable outcome on prevalence of dental caries among primary schoolchildren in Al-Kharj city, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The importance of obesity is limited not only to systemic disorders but also in relation to carious lesions. Hence, educating primary schoolchildren about caries and its related factors is very important. Clinical significance High intake of free sugar is a wellestablished risk factor for dental caries and also for obesity. Therefore, it is speculated that factors that decrease these risk factors have the potential to affect both conditions at the population level to control it competently. How to cite this article Abu El Qomsan MAS, Alasqah MN, Alqahtani FA, Alobaydaa MAA, Alharbi MM, Kola Z. Intricate Evaluation of Association between Dental Caries and Obesity among the Children in Al-Kharj City (Saudi Arabia). J Contemp Dent Pract 2017;18(1):29-33.

Background: The SaudiMEDs framework was founded and adopted by the Saudi Deans’ Committee in 2011 to ensure that Saudi medical graduates learned core competencies. Meanwhile, CanMEDs was established by the Canadian Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1996 and aimed to establish the abilities and skills of all aspects of medical practice, as well as to ensure the acquisition of basic knowledge related to medical education. The main purpose of this study was to explore the similarities and differences between both frameworks. Methods: In March and April 2017, 15 researchers conducted an extensive review of both the SaudiMEDs and CanMEDs frameworks using a semi-quantitative evaluation with color codes to determine the following: the exact similarities in both frameworks, the close similarities, and the unique differences. Results: According to the coloring system, most of the frameworks were similar. For example, Leadership, Communication and Professionalism were almost identical in both frameworks. There was some degree of similarity between both frameworks in “Collaborator”. Furthermore, the SaudiMEDs framework had a unique input which involved the most essential skills that undergraduate medical students must acquire. Conclusion: SaudiMEDs has great potential to improve the quality of Saudi medical graduates in a manner that fits our current and future needs. CanMEDs focuses mainly on outcomes and processes, while SaudiMEDs focuses more on outcomes. SaudiMEDs was not created to provide a copy-and-paste curriculum. The ultimate goal was to create an outcome-based curriculum that ensures the quality of Saudi medical school graduates.

ObjectivesThe College of Medicine at Imam University has incorporated reciprocal peer-teaching into the curriculum in the form of peer-led seminars. The aim was to evaluate this program and ascertain student perceptions.MethodsA cross-sectional survey of medical students attached to the Internal Medicine I and II courses was conducted in 2018. The questionnaire evaluated perceptions about the peer-teaching program, tutors’ knowledge, skills and attitudes, both from a student and a tutor perspective.ResultsBased on a 63% response rate from a total of 410 students, 34.5% of learners agreed that peer-tutoring was the most effective method of clinical teaching and 30.3% disagreed. More students reported that peer-led seminars did not prepare them for their exams (38.4%) compared to those who reported it did (27.9%). More than 40% of participants reported the tutors were approachable, created a welcoming learning environment and provided targeted information. From a tutor perspective, more than 70% of participants reported that they developed personally and professionally, improved their collaborative, communication, tutoring and presentation skills and confidence. Female students reported they benefited more as tutors compared to male students.ConclusionStudents regard obligatory reciprocal peer-teaching in the form of peer-led seminars as similar to faculty teaching and an overwhelming majority report that they benefit both personally and professionally from leading seminars. As doctors are expected to teach and train younger generations, medical schools should prepare all students for such roles. A system that provides an opportunity for every student to become a peer-teacher can fulfil this need.

Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate knowledge of and attitudes toward the lumbar puncture procedure among adults in Riyadh region, Saudi Arabia, 2018. Methods: This study used a quantitative cross-sectional evaluation of the responses of adults aged ⩾18 years from the Saudi Telecom Company database in the Riyadh region of Saudi Arabia to an online survey between October and December 2018. The questionnaire included questions on knowledge, attitudes, and demography. The questionnaire was pretested and validated (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.701). Results: Of 1500 questionnaires, 1223 (81.5%) were returned and included in the analysis. In the study, 57.7% of the participants were aged 18–25 years, and 58.5% of the participants were females. Only 235 (19.2%) participants had an accepted knowledge level of lumbar puncture. The attitudes of the majority of the participants ( n = 1151, 94%) to lumbar puncture were acceptable. A multivariate logistic regression test revealed a significant association between an acceptable knowledge level and acceptable attitude level (odds ratio = 2.30, 95% confidence interval = 1.06–5.66). A significant association was also found with ages over 46 years old (odds ratio = 12.99, 95% confidence interval = 4.45–37.9). The attitudes level toward lumbar puncture had a significant negative association among the participants who had a fear of injections in the lumbar region (odds ratio = 0.46, 95% confidence interval = 0.3–0.68). Conclusion: There is a lack of appropriate knowledge of the lumbar puncture procedure among the public which predict an unacceptable attitude toward lumbar puncture. Improvements in public education could improve public awareness of the clinical importance/value and complications of lumbar puncture.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and care-seeking practices of parents towards childhood ear infections in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methods: This quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, between April and June 2018. An online survey was sent to a random selection of parents who were ≥18 years old with children of ≤10 years old. Associations between parental knowledge, attitude, care-seeking practices, socioeconomic status, level of education and age were assessed using the chi square test and logistic regression analysis. Results: A total of 782 subjects participated in this study (response rate: 78.2%). Most respondents were knowledgeable (76.2%), had a positive attitude (78.9%) and had positive care-seeking practices (89.5%). There was a statistically significant difference on both bivariate and multivariate analyses (P <0.05) between parental care seeking practice and knowledge. Parents who sought modern approaches to treatment were found to be almost nine times more likely to have a good attitude towards ear infections than those who did not seek treatment (odds ratio = 8.907, 95% confidence interval = 2.655–34.928; P <0.001). A statistically significant relationship was found between good care-seeking practice and age, as well as socioeconomic status (P <0.05 each). Conclusion: This study showed that knowledge, attitude and practice regarding paediatric ear infections were positive in the majority of parents in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Future studies should assess other factors that enhance the knowledge, attitude and practices regarding ear infections.Keywords: Otitis Media; Infection; Knowledge; Attitude; Pediatrics; Parents; Saudi Arabia.