Breast cancer is the top cancer in women worldwide and its incidence is increasing, particularly in developing countries. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), many cases are first diagnosed in later stages and at younger age compared to those seen in developed countries. Early detection in order to improve breast cancer outcome and survival remains the cornerstone of breast cancer control. Performance of breast self examination is one of the important steps for identifying breast disease at an early stage, by the woman herself. No information has hitherto been available about the frequency of this practice among female university students in UAE or about their breast cancer risk perception and therefore the present study was conducted in Ajman. It was found that 22.7% of the participants practiced BSE but only 3% of them practiced BSE monthly. Marital status but not age as significantly associated with age likelihood. The most frequent reported barriers for BSE were lack of knowledge, considering oneself not at risk and the absence of doctor advice. These factors need to be taken into account in intervention efforts.

Results:The frequency of previous and current contraceptive use was 68.0% and 61.8%, respectively. Expatriates more frequently used contraceptives in comparison to Emiratis (77.3% versus 54.3%, respectively). Contraceptive use increased significantly with age (75.5% among >35-year-olds versus 57.3% among ≤25-year-olds; P <0.050) and education level (83.3% among postgraduates versus 60.0% among those with primary education; P <0.050). In addition, contraceptive use was significantly higher among those living in a nuclear family system (P <0.050). A univariate analysis indicated significant associations between contraceptive use and age, nationality, education level, type of family system, employment sector, parity, knowledge of birth control measures and source of birth control information (P <0.050 each). However, no significant associations were found via multivariate analysis. Conclusion: Healthcare practitioners can play a pivotal role in providing contraceptive advice which could lead to an improvement in contraceptive utilisation. Efforts are recommended to raise awareness regarding newer forms of contraceptives among mothers of reproductive age in the UAE.

There was significant concordance of abnormal glycaemia among non-diabetic women with diabetic husbands. The spouses of diabetic patients may therefore be a target population for regular hyperglycaemia and DM screening.

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Objective: The goal of this research was to identify familial and nonfamilial social factors influencing post-secondary students' choices of career in medicine. Method: The comparative study was conducted in Ajman, among medical students in the beginning three years, and nonmedical students at the same educational level. After obtaining verbal consent, the participants completed a pilot tested, self-administered questionnaire which included socio-demographic variables and social factors related to career choices. Result: Among the 135 medical students, two thirds were females and 87.3% were below 23 years of age. Most fathers were South Asians (53%); 80% had professional training; 48% were business persons and 12% worked in the medical field. Among mothers, 61.4% were professionally trained, and 67.2% was engaged in unskilled, semiskilled or skilled labor. The non-medical students had mostly Middle Eastern fathers (83.5%), were professionally educated (56.3%) and had careers in business (52.9%); mothers of non-medical students were primarily working in unskilled, skilled or semiskilled occupations (61.4%) and 38% had attained a professional level of education. The majority of medical students perceived their parents to have had strong influence on their career choice of medicine. Among non-familial social factors, 'friends' had a significantly weak influence on their career choice. While more medical students chose their career along with parents, most of the nonmedical group made the choice on their own. Conclusion: Parents had significant influence on post-secondary career choice in medicine and friends had a weak influence. Career guidance programs should consider including parents at the process of career selection at the secondary level.