From the Editor
..........................................................................................................................

Abdul Abyad, MD, MPH, MBA, AGSF, AFCHSE (Chief Editor)

Address correspondence to:
Abdul Abyad, MD, MPH, MBA, AGSF, AFCHSE (Editor)
Abyad Medical Center & Middle East Longevity Institute
Azmi Street, Abdo Center, 2nd Floor
PO BOX 618, Tripoli LEBANON
Tel & Fax: 961 6 443684/5/6
Email: aabyad@cyberia.net.lb
Web: www.amc-lb.com

This issue of the journal is rich with papers from different countries in the region. A cross sectional study from Qatar looked at the prevalence and predictors of asymptomatic bacteriuria in pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at the primary health care centers in Qatar. Of the 433 pregnant women, 43 had significant bacteriuria giving a prevalence rate of 9.9%. The authors found that the prevalence of asymptomatic bacteriuria in pregnant women attending primary health care centers in Qatar is 9.9%, and the predominant organism was E.coli. The current screening for asymptomatic bacteriuria in pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at primary care, should focus on anemic pregnant women and those with a history of urinary tract infection.

Another study designed to determine whether outpatient administration of vaginal misoprostol safely decreases the incidence of post term pregnancies was conducted by authors from Shahid Beheshti University of medical science, Tehran, Iran and found that Misoprostol was associated with a significant decrease in mean time to delivery.

A paper from Bangladesh looked at the negative consequences of early first childbirth. The authors attempted to estimate the extent of early first birth (at adolescence) and that to find ever married adolescent women's pattern of giving first childbirth (first birth intervals since marriage). This study also examines some selected covariates' impact on timing of the first birth. The authors concluded that lengths of ever married adolescent women's first birth are very short in Bangladesh. Newly married adolescent women (also their husbands) should be encouraged to use contraceptives which are relevant to spacing births.

A paper from Iran reviewed the health status of Iranian children and some aspects of sexual differences as the journey in life from birth to child period. The authirs found there is no significant difference between male and female children in Iran from standpoint of health, but more information is still needed about their social supports and security.

A paper from Kuwait looked at the effect of health literacy on health outcomes. Due to the vast growth of knowledge in the medical and nursing fields and the increased demand on patients to comprehend communicated health information and effectively comply with treatment regimens, health literacy promotion has become the current trend in health care in the United States. The author report that this research proposal examines the effect of the level of health literacy on the hospitalization rate and health-promoting behaviors among the chronically ill patients who live in Kuwait.

A paper from Libya looked the guidelines, development and impact of a Poster. The author stressed that scientific posters are an effective oral communication tool for demonstration, and explanation as they serve a short way of verbal presentation combined with visual aid. They should provide the important component in terms of its content, and the way constructed to influence the overall effectiveness. They should be visually attractive and easy to read and understand within few minutes, plus they should be short, simple.

A rare case report from Kuwait described a patient with type 1 b pseudohypoparathyroidism complicated by hypocalcemic dilated cardiomyopathy. The authors stressed that a number of endocrine disorders show the symptoms of cardiac failure. Hypocalcemic dilated cardiomyopathy secondary to hypoparathyroidism is a well known, albeit rare, cause of heart failure. The patient is a 14 -year old girl complicated by sever congestive heart failure induced by severe chronic hypocalcemia. Although the patient showed a significant clinical improvement after calcium supplementation, her follow up echocardiograms showed no such improvement.