Background: Transition to college is characterized by change, ambiguity, and adjustment compared to the previous lifestyle before entering college. Our study aimed was to determine the pattern of students’ physical exercise practices in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the period before and during college attendance.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among university students from fifteen universities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on August 2017. The data were collected using an electronic questionnaire that was modified from questionnaires used in previous studies. Statistical analysis and data entry was performed with SPSS version 21. This study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee at King Abdulaziz University.Results: 417 college students completed the questionnaire and 77.2% were female. Slightly more than half of the participants (55.9%) were from King Abdulaziz University, and 59.7% were from healthcare specialties from different institutions. The mean age of the participants was 21.80 years old (SD = 2.75). The pattern of practicing physical exercise showed a significant decrease after enrollment in college (p = 0.000). The most common reason for not practicing exercise was time restrictions, accounting for 18.5% of all the reasons, while the most common reason for practicing exercise was to improve body shape, accounting for 48% of all the reasons.Conclusions: Our research found that there was a significant decrease in doing regular exercise during one’s college years in comparison to the school years prior to college. To address the decrease in physical exercise, we recommend organizing and promoting more awareness campaigns and providing suitable sports facilities and infrastructure.

Background. During the last decade, vitamin D status was a major concern in the health and biomedical fields. This study assessed the level of awareness and knowledge regarding vitamin D and investigated the factors associated with the level of awareness such as knowing general facts about vitamin D, sources, benefit, and consequences of its deficiency. Methods. This cross-sectional study was conducted among the general population in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, above the age of 18 years who were in 3 malls during the period of August and September 2017. A self-administrated questionnaire in paper forms was utilized and was divided into two parts to collect data. It was designed by the authors after revising the previous studies and validated by three pediatric consultants. An ethical approval was obtained from the ethical committee in King Abdulaziz University. We did an initial sample and tested it with the Cronbach test. The questionnaire had 2 parts with 19 questions. The first part was demographic information, and the second part was general information about vitamin D. An ethical approval was obtained from the ethical committee in King Abdulaziz University. Each participant received explanations about the aim of the study, and a verbal consent was taken from participants. The scoring system was as follows: for each right answer, 1 score was given and for wrong answer, 0 score was given, and the overall score was 14. The collected data were statistically analyzed using descriptive statistics using IBM SPSS statistics for windows version 20.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL). Result. Out of 1022 participants, 472 (46.1%) were aged 18–28 years, 830 (82.1%) were of Saudi ethnicity, 702 (68.7%) had a university degree, 275 (26.9%) attended high school, more than half were married (55.6%), and 54.4% had children. The majority of the participants agreed that vitamin D is important in the maintenance of bone and tooth health (88.4%). It is important in the maintenance of calcium and phosphates (76.6%), and it strengthens immunity (69.4%). Of the total participants, 86.2% were aware that sunlight exposure encourages vitamin D production in the skin. The overall knowledge mean score was 5.9 ± 1.2 (39.3%). Conclusion. This study highlighted a high level of inadequate knowledge of vitamin D deficiency among participants. There was a significant association between knowledge level and education level. The awareness of vitamin D deficiency is high regarding its benefits. The study revealed that participants who did not have children had the highest score for benefits. Nongovernment organizations and social workers may work together with government health-care organization to teach parents and children about the uses and benefits of vitamin D.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) has been associated with high morbidity and mortality rates among critically ill children. Cystatin C is a protease inhibitor, and studies have shown that it is a promising marker for the early diagnosis of AKI. Our goal in this study was to assess whether serum cystatin C could serve as an accurate marker for the diagnosis of AKI. This prospective study was undertaken in the pediatric intensive care unit at King Abdulaziz University Hospital. Serum creatinine and serum cystatin C levels were both measured in patients on admission (0 h) and at 6, 12, and 24 h after admission. AKI was diagnosed according to the modified pRIFLE criteria. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to assess the utility of serum cystatin C for diagnosing AKI. A total of 62 patients were enrolled in this study, and 32 were diagnosed with AKI according to the modified pRIFLE criteria (51.4 %). The area under the ROC curve for serum cystatin indicated that it was a good marker for the diagnosis of AKI at 0, 6, 12 and 24 h, with sensitivities of 78, 94, 94 and 83 %, respectively. However, the specificities of serum cystatin C at 0, 6, 12, and 24 h were 57, 57, 60 and 50 %, respectively. The optimal cutoff value was 0.645 mg/L. The area under the ROC for serum creatinine showed sensitivities of 50, 65.4, 69.2 and 57.7 % and specificities of 67.7, 70, 60 and 70 % at 0, 6, 12 and 24 h, respectively. The optimal cutoff value for serum creatinine was 30 μmol/l. Comparisons of ROC curves revealed that serum cystatin C was superior to serum creatinine for the diagnosis of AKI at 12 h (p = 0.03), but no differences were detected at 0, 6 or 24 h. Serum cystatin is a sensitive, but not a specific, marker for the diagnosis of AKI in critically ill children.

To record pediatric end stage renal disease (ESRD) patients' quality of life (QOL) in relation to peritoneal dialysis (PD) and hemodialysis (HD). Chronic kidney disease is a rising global epidemic yielding worldwide prevalence of 11-13%. It could possibly lead to ESRD, thus imposing serious burdens on patients and reducing their QOL. These burdens may affect their family members as well. Methods: This cross-sectional study examined 23 pediatric ESRD patients aged 2-18 years who were undergoing peritoneal dialysis and hemodialysis at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in July 2018. Data were collected using the validated Pediatric Quality of Life InventoryTM 3.0 ESRD Module questionnaire. Results: The sample included HD (n=9, 40.9%) and PD (n=14, 60.9%) patients. According to the parent-proxy report, we found that the QOL among PD pediatric patients was significantly higher than HD patients (p=0.045). Also, male HD patients had a significantly better QOL on the interaction subscale (70.83±15.95 compared to 30.00±24.00 for females [p=0.023]). Conclusion: Quality of life was found to be better among PD pediatric patients in King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Introduction: Nephrolithiasis is a common problem worldwide, especially in hot areas like Saudi Arabia. This retrospective study investigated the current prevalence and risk factors of renal stones in Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methods: A non-interventional cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2018 to June 2019 at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This study included 1031 participants (age ≥18 years) from Jeddah (n = 652, 63.30%) and Riyadh (n = 379, 36.80%). Of them, 169 (16.40%) had renal stones while 862 (83.60%) had no renal stones. All participants filled out a questionnaire distributed via social media, which contained questions regarding eating and drinking habits. Results: Significant differences were found between the groups regarding frequencies of intake of black tea and orange/lemon juice. The number of patients who consumed cow meat was significantly higher among those without renal stones than among those with renal stones. Significant high risk for renal stones was found in those who consumed energy drink >1 can/day, black tea >1 cup/day, and orange/lemon juice >1 glass/day. Conclusion: This study revealed that some eating habits play a major role in the development of urinary stones in the Saudi population. Therefore, a dietary intervention on a large scale and health, education in this regard may be helpful in preventing the 25 related to renal stones.

Urinary bladder agenesis is a very rare congenital anomaly with very few cases reported in the literature. We report a one-month-old baby presenting with ambiguous genitalia and recurrent urinary tract infections. Her clinical course was complicated by renal impairment. Magnetic resonant imaging (MRI) revealed a diagnosis of bladder agenesis with bilateral ectopic insertion of the ureters into the vagina, associated with several other anomalies. The patient underwent bilateral high anterior ureterostomies in an hospital abroad at 5.5 months of age. She then developed ureteral necrosis that had to be corrected with left pyeloplasty and by placing a left nephrostomy tube for drainage. Eventually, the patient’s renal function declined, and she developed chronic kidney disease (CKD).The case with its imaging findings and pathogenesis as well as a review of the literature are presented. Urinary bladder agenesis is a rare congenital condition that can be associated with multiple anomalies. Early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention can prevent progression to chronic kidney disease.