BackgroundStress is a common psychological condition usually associated with many psycho-physical disorders. Stress and its risk factors are frequently seen in Ethiopians including university students. In such circumstances, a valid measure to screen for stress in Ethiopians is necessary. Therefore, we assessed the psychometric properties of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) in Ethiopian university students.MethodsA cross-sectional study with a simple random sampling method was performed on students of Mizan-Tepi University, Mizan-Aman, Ethiopia. The study presents a psychometric investigation on a sample of 387 students (age = 21.8 ± 3.8 years, and body mass index = 20.8 ± 3.2 kg/m2) who completed PSS, Generalized anxiety disorder-7 scale (GAD-7), and a socio-demographics tool. McDonald’s Omega (internal consistency), factor validity for ordinal data and convergent validity (Spearman’s correlation) were assessed.ResultsNo ceiling/floor effect was seen for the total or factor scores of the PSS-10 and PSS-4. Two factor model of the PSS-10 was favored by fit indices with Comparative Fit Index> 0.95, Weighted root mean square residual<.05 and root mean square error of approximation<.08. McDonald’s Omega was 0.78 and 0.68 for the PSS-10: Factor-1 and PSS-10: Factor-2, respectively. McDonald’s Omega was 0.70 and 0.54 for the PSS-4: Factor-1 and PSS-4: Factor-2, respectively. There were moderate-strong correlations (r = 0.62–0.83) between PSS factors and respective items loading on them. PSS scores were correlated with GAD-7 (r = .27–.40, p < .01).ConclusionThe psychometric measures support the validity of the PSS-10 in Ethiopian university students.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12889-018-6310-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

BackgroundPredisposing factors for metacognitive dysfunctions are common in university students. However, there is currently no valid questionnaire instrument designed to assess metacognitive aspects including meta-memory and meta-concentration in students. To address this need, the present study investigated the psychometric validity of a brief questionnaire, the Mizan meta-memory and meta-concentration scale for students (MMSS) in university students.Materials and methodsA cross-sectional study with simple random sampling was conducted among students (n = 383, age = 18–35, body mass index = 21.2 ± 3.4 kg/m2) of Mizan-Tepi University, Ethiopia. MMSS, a socio-demographics questionnaire, and the Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS) were employed.ResultsNo ceiling/floor effect was seen for the MMSS global and its sub-scale scores. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that a 2-Factor model had excellent fit. Both, the comparative Fit Index (CFI) and goodness of fit index were above 0.95, while both the standardized root mean square residual and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) were less than 0.05, while χ2/df was less than 3 and PClose was 0.31. The 2-Factor MMSS model had adequate configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariances across gender groups as determined by a CFI > .95, RMSEA<.05, χ2/df < 3, non-significant Δχ2 and/or ΔCFI≤.01. Good internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.84, 0.80 and McDonald’s Omega =0.84, 0.82) was found for both subscales of the MMSS. No correlations between the MMSS scores and ESS score favored its divergent validity.ConclusionThe MMSS was found to have favorable psychometric validity for assessing meta-memory and meta-concentration among university students.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s40359-018-0275-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, and the anti-retroviral therapy (ART) associated complications necessitate that the medical care system keeps evolving for proper management of this group of patients. Electrolyte imbalance and sleep problems are common in patients on ART. Both of these conditions are associated with increased morbidity (such as acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, low CD4 count, non-adherence and depression) and mortality. Therefore, screening for both sleep problems and electrolytes imbalance may help to decrease the risk of complications in patients on ART.

Khat (Catha edulis) is a evergreen flowering shrub that is cultivated at high altitudes, especially in East Africa and the southwest of the Arabian Peninsula. The plant contains alkaloids, of which cathinone and cathine have structural similarity and pharmacological action similar to amphetamines. The leaves are, therefore, consumed in some regions as a psychoactive stimulant due to cultural beliefs and misperceptions on the health benefits of khat consumption. This resulted in a growing prevalence of khat consumption among pregnant women. The myriad of physiological changes associated with pregnancy impairs sleep and memory. Moreover, khat has also been shown to have adverse effects on memory and sleep. Therefore, its use during pregnancy may further aggravate those impairments. The purpose of this mini-review is to summarize the changes in sleep and memory during pregnancy and the evidence supporting a relationship between khat consumption and neurocognitive deficits and sleep dysfunctions. The misperceptions of beneficial effects of khat, the high prevalence of consumption among pregnant women, and the possibility of under-reporting of khat abuse do necessitate the development of alternative methodologies to identify cases of unreported khat abuse in pregnant women. It is proposed that screening for sleep problems and memory deficits may help identify under-reported cases of khat abuse in pregnant women.

The prevalence of anxiety and its associated factors in Ethiopians necessitates availability of a valid questionnaire tool to screen for this disorder. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the factor structure, its stability, and psychometric measures of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Scale GAD-7) in Ethiopian university students. A cross-sectional study with random sampling was carried out in students (n = 354, age = 21.79 ± 4.49) attending Mizan-Tepi University, Ethiopia. The GAD-7, the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and a sociodemographic questionnaire were completed by participants. The unidimensional model of the GAD-7 showed configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariance among gender groups. The Cronbach's alpha (0.77), item-total score correlations (r = .51—.72, p < .01), and inter-item correlations (all significant, p < .05) indicated adequate internal consistency. GAD-7 scale scores correlated significantly with the PSS, suggesting desired convergent validity. The GAD-7 has good psychometric validity with Ethiopian university students.

No abstract

Heat shock protein70 associated with lymphatic filariasis (LF) has been identified from a cattle filarial parasite Setaria digitata. A heat shock protein was detected in different life stages of Setaria digitata when exposed to an elevated temperature of 44°C. A combination of ATP-agarose column chromatography and electro-elution was used for its purification from adult female extract. On closer examination, it migrated as a single band at 62 kDa on 10% SDS-PAGE. These observations suggest a plausible biological connection of ScHSP70 with the disease and its strong immunogenic nature. ScHSP70 showed antigenic cross-reactivity with IgG class of antibody in different categories of filarial sera. However, when IgG subclasses were tested, IgG4 showed high specificity and sensitivity with symptomatic microfilaraemic sera.

Background: Hyperglycemia is an important risk factor for the development of diabetic nephropathy. In the initial stages ie micro albuminuria the DKD is clinically detectable and can even be reversed. Hence early screening of diabetic patients is important. Hence the aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of nephropathy in a cross section of diabetic patients. Objectives: The Aim of our study was to evaluate the prevalence of nephropathy in recently detected diabetic patients by evaluating microalbuminuria, serum creatinine and creatinine clearance. Methods: A total of 120 patients above 18 years were included in the study and were divided into three groups according to age and were further divided into three groups as per the duration of diseases Patients were again divided into two groups according to the gender. The GFR was calculated as per the MDRD formula and the patients were divided further as per the stage of CKD. Serum Creatinine levels were calculated and the variables associated with CKD were adjusted by Logistic Regression. Results: Our results suggests that 41.25% of subjects were in mild to severe nephropathy out of which 16.25 % were within the three years of diagnosis, thus suggesting the role of early and routine investigation in diabetic patients. Conclusion: Hence the role of life style is clearly emphasized by our results. Although when the variables were adjusted with the logistic regression the occupation was not that significant. Keywords: Albuminuria, Diabetes mellitus (DM), Diabetic Kidney Disease (DKD), Diabetic nephropathy (DN), Serum Creatinine.