International Research Journal of Medicine and Medical Sciences

Number 1, 2020

1-7
Relationships among social networking behaviors, depressive symptom and sedentary behaviors in older adults

Authors: Surinrat Baurangtheinthong, Suparb Aree-Ue and Sirirat Leelacharas

Abstract

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Social networking may help older adults to decrease emotional distress and depression. However, over using or addiction to social networking may lead to sedentary behavior. This descriptive research aimed to examine the relationship between social networking behavior, depressive symptom, and sedentary behavior in older adults. A total of 152 community-dwelling older adults who were living in Bang Bua Thong District, Nonthaburi Province, Thailand, and met inclusion criteria were randomly selected with multi-stage sampling to participate in this study. The data were collected by using The Demographic Questionnaire, Social Network Behavioral Questionnaire, Thai Geriatric Depression Scale-15, and Physical Activity Record Form. Data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics and Spearman’s Rank Correlation Coefficient. A signiﬁcant level was set at .05. Results revealed that the majority of participants had a high level of social networking behavior (48.0%), but mostly had no depression (92.8%). There was only 3.3% of them had sedentary behavior. Regarding the correlation among study variables, social networking behavior had a mild negatively signiﬁcant relationship with depressive symptoms, but it was not signiﬁcant relationship to sedentary behavior. Depressive symptoms had a mild negatively signiﬁcant relationship with sedentary behavior. The result of this study provides healthcare providers to understand social networking health behavior, depressive symptom, and sedentary behavior, and to help the healthcare providers to plan any intervention to promote healthy behavior in older adults.

8-17
Vector borne viral diseases: An emerging threat and their control strategies in Bangladesh perspectives

Authors: Mohammed Alimul Islam, Md. Enamul Haque, Md. Mohiuddin Sharif, Sumaiya Islam and Mohammad Robed Amin

Abstract

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Of the vector-borne viral diseases (VBVDs), dengue and chikungunya viral fever appearing almost every year since last two decades but recent report indicates that Japanese encephalitis, West Nile and Zika viral fever has also entered into Bangladesh as these diseases are endemic in India, Myanmar and other South-East Asia countries. Bangladesh have the experiences of several outbreak of dengue (first report in the year 1964 then from 2000 till 2019), chikungunya viral fever (first report in the year 2008 and then from 2014 to 2017), JE (reported once in 1977), Zika (reported once in 2015) and WN (reported first time in 2019) from different region of the country. Different species of vector mosquitoes, Aedes and Culex spps and their population are very high during pre-monsoon and monsoon seasons in this country. As vector control strategies are very poor (killing of adult mosquitoes by fogging and spraying during outbreak seasons only); so they are very active from dawn to dusk and are responsible for frequent outbreak of dengue and chikungunya every year. Proposed strategies could easily be adapted to reduce prevalence of most of the VBVDs by screening of travelers during in and out from Bangladesh through rapid screening kit tests, social mobilization, behavioral changes, community engagement, vectors control by adapting modern techniques like, predators, parasitoids, pathogens, Classical Sterile Insect Technique (CSIT), genetically modified mosquito (GMS), Gamma Irradiated sterile mosquito (GISM), Oil drip, predator fish culture to kill larva and also using available effective vaccines against important VBVDs before facing serious catastrophe. This review considers existing and proposed strategies for vector and disease control as well as discussing some of the novel approaches how to improve worsening of public health issue against most of the VBVDs and their endemicity in Bangladesh.