Zika Virus (ZIKV) and its associated consequences remain vital public health challenge of international concerns. The current study was done to assess knowledge and attitudes towards ZIKV and the factors associated with good knowledge among medical students in King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 426 students. They were selected through multistage stratified random sample method, 2016. A validated, confidential, interviewing questionnaire contained 25 knowledge and 10 attitude items was used. Descriptive and inferential statistics were done. Results revealed that Facebook was the commonest source of ZIKV information. About half of the participants correctly identified mosquito bites and vertical route as ZIKV transmission modes. However, smaller percentages recognized the sexual and blood transmission modes. Calculations of knowledge score revealed that 77.5%, 15.0%, and 7.5% of the participants obtained poor, fair, and satisfactory scores, respectively. Age, educational year and attending ZIKV training were significantly associated with good knowledge (p<0.05). Concerning attitudes, about half of the participants agreed that ZIKV could add new burden on healthcare system of the affected countries. Most of participants were interested in learning more about ZIKV, emerging diseases and travel epidemiology. In conclusion, medical students had limited knowledge about ZIKV, and good attitudes towards learning about it. Conduction of ZIKV educational programs, and development of courses about emerging disease epidemiology are required.

Introduction Gender discrimination continues to be an issue in different surgical subspecialties, especially in Saudi Arabia, where no studies have been conducted so far on female surgeons in academia, on gender discrimination, and on job satisfaction. Considering the increasing number of women enrolling for surgery programs in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, this study aims to examine their perceptions about and equity in working as surgeons. Methods Following the STROCSS criteria, cross-sectional analyses were conducted of survey data from a multicentric online questionnaire in 2019/2020. A representative sample of medical interns and surgeons (n = 100) from Saudi Arabia responded out of 400 from the 4th iteration. Results Females were 53%; most participants were less than 40 years. Women ranked assistant professors were fewer than men (2% vs. 11%). The number of publications by females vs. males was 2.58 +/– 2.68 vs. 11.37 +/– 20.53 (p = 0.002). Surgery was not considered a profession conducive to family life according to more than half the women citing lack of flexible/part-time training or work (26/53, or 49%). However, only 1/5, or 9/47 (19.1%), of men thought there was gender attitude/bias; men also had more variety in surgical career choices. Further, most patients preferred male surgeons ( p = 0.026). Both females (30/53 or 56.6%) and males (25/47 or 53.2%) agreed that the best response to an offensive question was to ignore it. Decision in choosing their specialty was influenced mostly by career and promotion prospects, enthusiasm, and commitment (females: 31/53 or 58.5% and males: 17/47 or 36.2%) with p = 0.026. Conclusions The findings reveal the persisting discrepancies based on gender in the surgical field in Saudi Arabia. A nationwide movement limiting working hours, encouraging medical students to enter surgery, and upholding women in leadership positions can help in overcoming this situation.

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Introduction:Neurokinin-1 receptor (NK-1R) induces inflammatory reactions in peripheral tissues but its regulatory effects in target tissues is dependent on receptor signalling. Substance P (SP) has a high affinity for the NK-1R, to which it binds preferentially. We aimed to investigate the expression of NK-1R in World Health Organization (WHO) grade 4 astrocytomas as well as in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and urothelial carcinoma, and its association with disease progression. Material and methods: The study included tissue samples from 19 brain astrocytomas, 40 OSCCs and 10 urothelial carcinomas. NK-1R expression was quantitatively assessed in the tumour cells using immunohistochemistry. The relationship between NK-1R expression in astrocytomas and recurrence-free interval has been explored. Results: The results showed that the NK-1R was intensely expressed in patients with WHO grade 4 astrocytoma, OSCC and urothelial carcinoma. However, cases clinically diagnosed as a low-grade cancer showed reduced NK-1R expression. Conclusions: NK-1R is overexpressed in all cases of WHO grade 4 astrocytoma, OSCC and urothelial carcinoma. The ubiquitous presence of SP/NK-1R complex during tumour development and progression suggests a possible therapeutic key strategy to use NK-1R antagonist as an adjuvant therapy in the future.

Posterior fossa tumors constitute the most common brain tumor in pediatrics with 25% development postresection. Cerebellar mutism can manifest as neurobehavioral abnormalities that can occur within days to months after surgery but usually peak on the third postoperative day. It can be caused by discontinuation of dento-thalamo-cortical pathway in the vermian lesion, due to edema, tumors, and hypoperfusion. We report a seven-year-old patient with posterior fossa lesion (pilocytic astrocytoma in histopathology) and learning difficulties with symptoms of urinary retention, pseudobulbar palsy, and motor incoordination that were treated successfully with zolpidem 2.5 mg with regain of function by the third month.