Healthcare, Volume 13, Issue 12

Background: Quality of life (QoL) in oncology patients is shaped by the interplay of biological, psychological and treatment-related factors. While prior studies have addressed the independent effects of treatment toxicity and psychological distress,...

In regions with sustained air pollution, the adoption of protective health behaviors is critical, particularly among pregnant women—a population marked by physiological vulnerability and heightened receptivity to preventive guidance. Understand...

Background/Objectives: Sexual attitudes, particularly those on the erotophilia (positive openness) to erotophobia (negative fear) scales, play a critical role in shaping behaviors and health decisions. While associations between sexual behavior and s...

Background/Objectives: Transgender individuals face significant healthcare disparities, often exacerbated by provider prejudice and knowledge gaps. Nurses, as frontline providers, play a critical role in promoting inclusive care. This study aimed to...

Background/Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly restricted clinical training for midwifery students, highlighting the need for alternative teaching methods. With the disruption of traditional face-to-face education, online simulation-b...

Background: Unhealthy lifestyles constitute significant risk factors for adolescent suicide, and their detrimental effects may persist from adolescence into adulthood. This research study sought to examine how Body Mass Index (BMI), alongside various...

Background/Objectives: Psychological factors play a crucial role in the experience of acute low back pain and may influence functional outcomes. However, the interplay between these factors and levels of physical activity remains poorly understood. M...

Background and Objectives: Healthcare payment systems face challenges such as fraud and overbilling, which often require costly and resource-intensive detection tools. In response, the utility of simple statistical tests was explored in this study as...

Introduction: Nonbinary individuals who do not identify as exclusively male or female often face unique emotional challenges due to societal cisheteronormativity and limited recognition of their identities. While existing research has primarily focus...

Background/Objective: Sustained exercise adherence among older adults is essential for healthy aging but remains challenging due to psychological, social, and economic barriers. This study aimed to investigate how perceived exercise barriers, financi...

Background: Chronic thoracic pain is commonly caused by thoracic facet dysfunction, intercostal neuralgia, surgery, or thoracic pain secondary to cancer and is present in approximately 15% of the population. Conventional treatments, including pharmac...

Background: AI has been adopted in dentistry for diagnosis, decision making, and therapy prognosis prediction. This systematic review aimed to identify AI models in dentistry, assess their performance, identify their shortcomings, and discuss their p...

Background/Objectives: Unwanted loneliness is the gap between the social relations a person has and those they want. The main objective of this research is to assess the impact of a multidimensional community-based intervention on the feeling of unwa...

Background: Frailty is a major public health concern among older adults, leading to increased morbidity and functional decline. Physical activity and psychological resilience have been identified as potential protective factors against frailty, yet t...

Background/Objectives: The phase angle (PhA) is an emerging biomarker reflecting the cellular integrity and nutritional status. This study aimed to explore potential associations between the PhA, clinical severity scores, and 60-day survival outcomes...

Background/Objectives: Individuals diagnosed with substance use disorders (SUD) exhibit notable deficits in executive function (EFs). Notably, the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) has been associated with cognitive impairments in indivi...

Background: Early childhood dental decay remains a pervasive chronic condition, and environmental toxicants—particularly lead—may exacerbate its development. This systematic review was designed to synthesize evidence on how lead exposure...

Background: Caregivers in urban settings often face unique challenges in providing nurturing care. This qualitative study explores the complex realities of caregiving among mothers and grandmothers in urban poor neighbourhoods of Bangalore, South Ind...

Background: Late-life depression is a critical public health concern, particularly among older adults with chronic multimorbidity. Existing studies often focus on single-disease associations, neglecting the complex interplay of coexisting conditions....

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) constitutes a critical threat to global public health, with carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) presenting significant challenges due to their resistance to last-line antibiotics. Among these, New Delhi metallo-...

Background: The effective management of psychotic and bipolar disorders in tertiary care can improve patient outcomes, yet the role of clinical pharmacists in optimising psychotropic medication use remains underexplored in South Africa. This study ai...

Background: Health inequality is seen as a challenge for implementing the Healthy China Strategy. This study analyzes the income-related health inequality among urban–rural resident basic medical insurance (URRBMI) participants. Methods: This s...

Aim: This study explores the effects of core stabilization exercises on balance and upper extremity functions—both unilateral and bilateral—in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Method: Thirty-six children with CP (aged 5–12) were r...

Background: The digital transformation in dentistry is increasingly reshaping treatment procedures, offering new opportunities and advancements. While digitalization promises enhanced efficiency and quality of care through the standardization, accele...

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of integrative treatment on functional recovery in stroke patients by comparing medical records of those receiving Western rehabilitation treatment only versus integrative treatment in a single hos...

Background/Objectives: Accurately estimating survival times is critical for clinical decision-making, treatment evaluation, resource allocation, and other purposes. Yet data from relatively recent diagnosis cohorts is strongly affected by right censo...

Background and Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic significantly impacted healthcare systems worldwide. As a result, remote areas such as the Penghu Islands have encountered unique challenges related to pediatric care. This s...

Background/Objectives: The increased availability of naloxone underscores the urgent need for scalable, effective training interventions. While current training modalities show promise, critical challenges persist, particularly regarding the developm...

Background/Objectives: Research on oral dysfunctions as contributing factors to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is needed to prevent and treat OSA. This study aimed to explore the association of OSA with oral dysfunction and examine its impact on nutri...

Background: Burnout among clinicians, including physicians, is a growing concern in healthcare. An overwhelming burden of clinical documentation is a significant contributor. While medical scribes have been employed to mitigate this burden, they have...

Background: Maternal nutrition is one of the main determinants of healthy pregnancy outcomes. The aim of this study is to investigate maternal nutritional risks and their relationship with gestational weight gain (GWG) among Saudi women. Methods: Thi...

Background: Pneumonia is a leading cause of hospitalization worldwide, particularly among older adults and individuals with comorbidities. Physical therapy is increasingly recognized as a key component in improving health-related outcomes. The aim of...

Background and Objective: Despite growing emphasis on quality and safety in healthcare, there remains a limited understanding of how Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (QI/PS) training for health workers has evolved in response to global events l...

Background/Objectives: Bystander first aid in paediatric choking is crucial. It ought to be universally comprehensible and backed up by evidence-based guidelines. However, there still are inconsistencies in guidelines worldwide. The objective of this...

The CORE complex refers to the muscles of the core region of the body, including the abdominal muscles, lower back muscles, and diaphragm. Among the various techniques aimed at improving CORE strength and functionality, abdominal hypopressive techniq...

Background/Objectives: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive respiratory disorder characterized by systemic manifestations, including altered body composition, reduced quality of life, and psychological distress. Despite its s...

Background: Optimal coping with chronic pain (CP) has a positive impact on minimizing the barriers to patients’ quality of life. Mindfulness-based approaches have been shown to improve emotional regulation and coping strategies in CP management...

Background: Mothers of children with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) frequently face high levels of psychological stress. While the impact of this stress on caregiving is well documented, the potential role of spirituality as a protective factor has...

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive respiratory condition characterised by frequent exacerbations, which contribute to increased healthcare utilisation and reduced quality of life. Knowledge about the disease is...

Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) are interrelated chronic conditions whose global prevalence continues to rise, posing significant clinical and socioeconomic challenges. Their pathophysiological intersection—commonly referred to as &...

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) defines stillbirth as the loss of a fetus after 28 weeks of gestation. Annually, approximately 2 million stillbirths occur worldwide. Projections indicate that by 2030, this figure could rise to nearly...

Introduction: Endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) is highly effective for ischemic stroke patients with a large vessel occlusion. EVT is typically only offered at urban hospitals; therefore, patients are transferred for EVT from hospitals that solely off...

Background/Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic affected frontline workers’ mental health, including healthcare workers, firefighters, and police officers, increasing the need for effective interventions. This study focuses on the pandemic’s...

Background/Objectives: Despite the proven effectiveness of colorectal cancer screening, men are less likely to participate than women, with emotional, behavioural and informational barriers contributing to this disparity. The aim of this study was to...

Background/Objectives: The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has restricted access to healthcare, increasing the risk of poor disease control among patients with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). This study aimed to compare...

Background: Breast cancer poses a significant health challenge in Bangladesh, where limited screening and unique reproductive patterns contribute to delayed diagnoses and subtype-specific disparities. While reproductive risk factors such as age at me...

Background: The advanced access (AA) scheduling model in primary healthcare (PHC) may reduce unnecessary visits to the emergency department (ED). However, evidence of this effect remains uncertain and limited. Objective: To evaluate whether the adopt...

Background and Objectives: AI is transforming healthcare, with family doctors at the forefront. As primary care providers, they play a key role in integrating AI into patient care. Despite AI’s potential, concerns about trust, data privacy, and...

Aim: The present study evaluated the feasibility and quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) performed by a single rescuer, comparing the over-the-head (OTH) technique using mouth-to-pocket mask ventilation with bag-valve mask (BVM) ventilatio...

Background/Objectives: Mental disorders and diabetes-related distress (DRD) are under-addressed aspects of person-centered diabetes care. This study examines the burden of depression, anxiety, and DRD among adults with type 1 (T1D), latent autoimmune...