International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Diastasis recti abdominis (DRA) is a common postpartum condition that may coexist with pelvic floor dysfunction and impact quality of life; however, data from Middle Eastern populations are scarce, and awareness among affected women remains poorly understood. This cross-sectional study included 248 Jordanian women with at least one previous pregnancy who completed a structured questionnaire assessing demographic and obstetric characteristics, lifestyle factors, self-reported DRA prevalence, clinical presentation, and awareness regarding DRA. Chi-square tests and multivariate binary logistic regression were used to identify independent predictors. The prevalence of self-reported DRA-compatible signs among the study sample was 62.5% (n = 155). Multivariate analysis identified symptoms as the strongest predictor (≥3 symptoms: OR = 5.57, 95% CI: 2.68–11.57, p < 0.001; 1–2 symptoms: OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.20–3.83, p = 0.010), followed by heavy lifting after delivery (OR = 2.75, 95% CI: 1.44–5.26, p = 0.002), and younger age (18–25 years: OR = 4.37, 95% CI: 1.67–11.43, p = 0.003; 31–35 years: OR = 3.36, 95% CI: 1.25–9.03, p = 0.016). Regular physical activity was protective (OR = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.21–0.75, p = 0.005). While 58.9% had heard of DRA, only 17.7% had received professional advice, and 88.7% desired more education. DRA affects a substantial proportion of Jordanian women, with symptoms as the strongest independent predictor, followed by heavy lifting after delivery and younger age; regular physical activity was associated with lower odds of self-reported DRA-compatible signs. Despite high prevalence, awareness and professional advice are inadequate, highlighting an urgent need for targeted postpartum screening, patient education, and healthcare professional training to improve DRA recognition and management in Jordan and similar settings.

Neck–shoulder disorders are common among computer users, yet the effects of integrated active breaks (IABs) on discomfort, electromyographic (EMG) responses, and typing performance remain unclear. This randomized crossover trial compared neck–shoulder discomfort, cervicoscapular EMG responses quantified using normalized median frequency (NMF), and typing performance among IABs, passive breaks (PBs), and uninterrupted computer work at prespecified measurement time points in computer users at risk of neck pain. Thirty-six eligible participants (50% female) completed three randomized 62 min typing sessions: (1) IABs, comprising two 1 min active breaks every 20 min; (2) PBs of identical duration; and (3) uninterrupted computer work (control group (CG)). Neck–shoulder discomfort and bilateral cervicoscapular muscle NMF were assessed throughout the measurement sessions, and typing performance was determined during active typing time. Neck–shoulder discomfort and NMF differed significantly across conditions and measurement time points (p < 0.05). NMF showed a significant overall decline over time (p < 0.05), while both IABs and PBs attenuated this decline compared with uninterrupted computer work (p < 0.05). IABs showed higher NMF values than PBs at several prespecified measurement time points, although changes in NMF across break intervals did not differ significantly between the two break conditions (p > 0.05). An IAB was also associated with lower neck–shoulder discomfort and higher typing performance at selected time points compared with the other conditions (p < 0.05). A brief IAB every 20 min was associated with lower neck–shoulder discomfort and differences in cervicoscapular NMF responses at selected time points during standardized computer work. Further investigation in real-world workplace settings is warranted.

The Family Management Measure (FaMM) assesses family management of childhood chronic conditions, but evidence on its measurement properties in Thailand is limited. This methodological study translated, culturally adapted, and evaluated the Thai FaMM among 350 primary family caregivers. Translation followed International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research Task Force guidelines; psychometric evaluation followed the Consensus-based Standards for the Selection of Health Measurement Instruments framework. Independent exploratory and confirmatory subsamples comprised 150 and 200 caregivers. Child’s Daily Life was unidimensional after post hoc residual-covariance respecification. Multidimensional first-order models of Condition Management Ability, Family Life Difficulty, View of Condition Impact, and Parental (Caregiver) Mutuality fitted better than one-factor alternatives; second-order models did not improve fit. Internal consistency varied across scales and dimensions; nine items across these five scales had corrected item–total correlations below 0.30. Reported scale-level test–retest intraclass correlations ranged from 0.92 to 1.00. Condition Management Effort had low internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.28), failed original exploratory extraction, and an inadmissible confirmatory solution. These preliminary, scale-specific findings require further validation before separating dimensional scoring or clinical use.