Psychiatry

Background The external academic accreditation is a quality assurance and auditing process that focuses on the structure, process, and outcome of the education. It is an interrupting and highly demanding process in terms of effort, time, financial, and human resources. However, it is unclear in the literature how much of these external quality assurance practices impeded in the accreditation processes would reflect on the other end of the learning pathway, including student satisfaction. Methods A retrospective quantitative secondary data analysis, with a before-after comparison research design, was performed to evaluate external accreditation’s impact on students’ mean satisfaction score within two accreditation cycles at King Saud University (KSU)-Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) program. Results The overall average students’ satisfaction scores pre-and-post the first accreditation cycle were 3.46/5 (±0.35), 3.71 (±0.39), respectively, with a P-value of

Objective To report on a patient with childhood-onset psychosis at age 12 with a known WNT10A mutation. Methods Case report. Results The patient is a 12-year-old male who presented with an acute onset of psychosis in the context of a known WNT10A mutation. Conclusion WNT genes have only been previously linked to schizophrenia on a theoretical basis. To our knowledge, this is the first case report of an association between a childhood-onset psychosis and a WNT10A mutation. We conclude that there is a possibility that WNT10A may be one of the many genes contributing to the development of childhood-onset schizophrenia.

Background: As the COVID-19 Delta variant has spread across the globe, healthcare workers’ (HCWs) knowledge, worries, and vaccine booster acceptance should be assessed. Methods: Online questionnaires aimed at HCWs in Saudi Arabia were distributed between 9 and 12 August 2021, aiming to evaluate HCWs’ perceptions and worries about the Delta variant as well as their feelings about receiving a booster-vaccine. Results: A total of 1279 HCWs participated, with 51.1% being physicians and 41.7% nurses. 92.5% were aware of the emergence of the Delta variant. Still, only 28.7% were found to have sufficient knowledge of the variant, and their level of worry about it was higher than their level of worry about the Alpha variant (2.32/5 versus 1.79/5). The main information sources cited by the participants were social media (50.5%), while 30.5% used scientific journals. Overall, 55.3% were willing to receive a vaccine booster, while one third would have preferred to receive a new mRNA vaccine sp...

Burnout in healthcare workers (HCWs) is defined as a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion that results from unmanaged, excessive, and long-term workplace stressors. This study aims to assess the prevalence of burnout and the levels of anxiety and depression among HCWs who primarily work with children who have autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted utilizing the Arabic version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), Areas of Worklife Survey (AWS), Patient Health Questionnaire for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), and Patient Health Questionnaire for Depression (PHQ-9). Among the 381 participants working in autism centers, the majority were young Saudi females (326) working full-time as specialists in the private sector with less than five years of experience. The HCWs’ overall mean scores on the three Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) subscales: emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and personal accomplishment...

Objectives: Research examining the age of diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and its influencing factors mostly originate from developed Western countries, providing little to no systematic information about the understanding and management of ASD in the rest of the world. The present exploratory study examined the influence of child and family characteristics on the age of ASD diagnosis in Saudi Arabia. Results: The median age at diagnosis was 3.0 years and was associated with some child and family characteristics. A one-year increase in child's age was associated with a 0.1-year increase in age of diagnosis (95% CI: 0.05, 0.12). Children who did not respond to their name were diagnosed 0.3 years earlier than other children (95% CI: - 0.60, -0.05), and engaging in challenging behavior was associated with a 0.5-year increase in age of diagnosis (95% CI: 0.20, 0.81). A lack of comorbidity was associated with a 0.6-year increase in the age of diagnosis compared to the dia...

Background: As the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant emerged and spread globally at an alarming speed, healthcare workers’ (HCWs) uncertainties, worries, resilience, and coping strategies warranted assessment. The COVID-19 pandemic had a severe psychological impact on HCWs, including the development of Post-Traumatic Stress symptoms. Specific subgroups of HCWs, such as front-line and female workers, were more prone to poor mental health outcomes and difficulties facing stress. Methods: The responses to an online questionnaire among HCWs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) were collected from 1 December 2021 to 6 December 2021, aiming to assess their uncertainties, worries, resilience, and coping strategies regarding the Omicron variant. Three validated instruments were used to achieve the study’s goals: the Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS), the Standard Stress Scale (SSS), and the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS)—Short Form. Results: The online survey was completed by 1285 HCWs. ...

Child maltreatment, especially during health crises, is a major public health issue transcending cultural, social, and racial contexts. We assessed the sociodemographic and related risk factors associated with the types and rates of child maltreatment. We also assessed the economic, social, and environmental characteristics of child maltreatment victims and their perpetrators, as they were reported to the Saudi National Family Safety Program (NFSP), with consideration of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact. A secondary data analysis of a retrospective review was conducted to compare types and rates before and during the COVID-19 outbreak, utilizing descriptive and multivariate analyses on anonymized data from the NFSP. According to a predetermined list of relevant risk factors for child maltreatment outlined by the NFSP, these anonymized data were obtained and analyzed with no exclusion criteria (n = 1304). The findings showed that a child’s age correlated significantly and positively wi...

Background: There is a large gap between the needs of individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and the currently available services in Saudi Arabia. Services are often difficult to access, inconsistent in quality, incomplete, unsatisfactory, and costly. As such, there is a national need for expert consensus on the appropriate standards for the assessment and management of children on the autism spectrum. Methodology: A guideline development group (GDC) was formed by professionals representing all related specialties and institutions involved in the management of individuals on the autism spectrum in Saudi Arabia. They met on a regular basis over 21 months. The guideline development process consisted of five steps starting from reviewing existing guidelines and ending with discussing and writing this manuscript. A formal voting process was utilized and recommendations were discussed until a consensus was reached. Results: There was consensus on the following: A speci...

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 Omicron spread fast globally and became the predominant variant in many countries. Resumption of public regular life activities, including in-person schooling, presented parents with new sources of worry. Thus, it is important to study parental worry about the Omicron variant, willingness to vaccinate their children, and knowledge about school-based COVID-19 precautionary measures. Methods: A national, cross-sectional, pilot-validated online questionnaire targeting parents in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) was distributed between 31 December 2021, and 7 January 2022. The survey included sociodemographic, COVID-19 infection data, parental and children vaccination status, attitudes towards booster vaccine, parents’ Omicron-related perceptions and worries, and attitude towards in-person schooling. Results: A total of 1340 participants completed the survey, most (65.3%) of whom were mothers. Of the parents, 96.3% either received two or three doses of the CO...

Psychotropic medication use is rising among children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in Saudi Arabia. Two hundred ninety-three parents of children diagnosed with ASD completed a parental concerns questionnaire (PCQ) online to examine children’s family socio-demographics, health conditions and comorbidities, and past and current exposure to psychotropic medication as prescribed by their primary doctor. Findings revealed that more than one-third of the parents (39.08%) reported that their children were using medications at the time of the survey; risperidone (53%), methylphenidate (30%), and valproic acid (9%) were the most commonly used. A smaller number of parents stated that their children had previously used medications (16.09%). The most often prescribed drugs among this group were risperidone (45%), followed by methylphenidate (32%) and valproic acid (17%). The variables that showed a statistically significant association with the current use of psychotropic drugs were the ...

BackgroundMonkeypox re-emerged in May 2022 as another global health threat. This study assessed the public’s perception, worries, and vaccine acceptance for Monkeypox and COVID-19 during the first month of WHO announcement.MethodsA national cross-sectional survey was conducted between May 27 and June 5, 2022, in Saudi Arabia. Data were collected on sociodemographic characteristics, previous infection with COVID-19, worry levels regarding Monkeypox compared to COVID-19, awareness, and perceptions of Monkeypox, and vaccine acceptance.ResultsAmong the 1546 participants, most respondents (62%) were more worried about COVID-19 than Monkeypox. Respondents aged 45 years and above and those with a university degree or higher had lower odds of agreement with Monkeypox vaccination (OR .871, p-value .006, OR .719, p-value <0.001), respectively. Respondents with moderate to a high level of self and family commitment to infection control precautionary measures and those who expressed self and...

Background: Mental disorders are highly prevalent among adolescents, and they correlate negatively with students’ achievement, performance, and leadless school engagement and participation. School Teachers can contribute significantly to the early detection and intervention strategies for mental disorders among adolescents. This study estimates high school teachers’ knowledge, attitude, and practice toward mental disorders and determines the association between selected demographic factors.Methods: The ethical committee of King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, approved this cross-sectional study. Multistage random sampling was done, which included 62 male and 48 female high schools in Riyadh between August and December 2021. An Anonymous self-administered questionnaire consisting of 39-item was used for data collection.Results: A total 487 responses were received from the high school teachers, on a scale of 10 maximum score, only (60.4%) showed adequate knowledge regarding men...