Background: Eating habits are important determinants of health. Young adults who have recently transitioned to university life experience stress and lack of time, which are major risk factors for poor eating habits. This study’s objectives were to identify and compare eating habits between students at health and non-health colleges at Northern Border University (NBU), Saudi Arabia and to determine the relationship between students’ eating habits and their sociodemographic, lifestyle, and psychological factors. Methods: This comparative cross-section study was conducted on 480 students equally from health and non-health colleges at NBU from March to April 2023. A pre-designed electronic questionnaire was used to collect data on students’ sociodemographic characteristics, eating habits, and diet-related psychological factors. Statistical analyses were carried out using STATA/SE version 11.2 for Windows. Results: Unhealthy eating habits were reported by 44.6% and 41.3% of students at health and non-health colleges, respectively. Most students had irregular meals, skipped breakfast, ate fast food frequently, and consumed insufficient amounts of vegetables, fruits, and water. Parental separation, living away from family predisposed to unhealthy eating habits. Being 21–23 years old, playing sports, and high body mass index were linked to healthy eating habits. Psychological factors such as overeating until the stomach hurts and eating to feel happy were associated with unhealthy eating habits. Conclusion: Unhealthy eating habits were prevalent among students at NBU irrespective of the type of study. Thus, implementing initiatives to promote nutrition and healthy eating habits within the university environment is crucial for health promotion and well-being among students.

Introduction: Psoriasis is a chronic non-contagious inflammatory skin disorder, which might impair patient’s social relationships, limit leisure activities, and lower self-esteem. Psoriasis patients might be stigmatized leading to psychological disorders such as anxiety and depression. Objectives: This study aimed to outline the clinical features of psoriasis and its effects on quality of life, and the feeling of stigmatization among psoriasis patients. Methods: This cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted on 109 adult psoriasis patients in Arar City, Saudi Arabia. The study collected data on socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of psoriasis patients, self-reported psoriasis severity using the self-assessment Simplified Psoriasis Index (sa-SPI-s), patients’ quality of life using the dermatological life quality index (DLQI), and the feeling of stigmatization using the six-items stigmatization scale. Results: The mean age of psoriasis onset in studied patients was 20 (±7.65) years, females represented 58.72%, and 22% were unemployed. Joint and nail affection were reported in 46.79% and 51.38%, respectively. One third of patients had positive family history of psoriasis. Seasonal variation, life stressors, smoking and skin injuries were frequent provocative factors for psoriasis lesions. The average sa-SPI-s was 10.08 (±10.41), which was correlated with patients’ ages, disease duration, obesity, and pruritis. The average DLQI and six-items stigmatization scale for psoriasis patients were 8.95 (±5.77) and 7.61 (±4.5), respectively that were correlated with sa-SPI-s. Conclusion: The clinical manifestations and chronicity of psoriasis impaired patients’ quality of life and accompanied with social stigma due to skin disfigurement. These effects need to be addressed for better care of patients.

Home injuries are a major cause of mortality and disability in children worldwide. Home accidents strain the healthcare system and can hurt family income and children's quality of life. To save lives and avoid sequelae, parents and carers should be competent in giving emergency management to children engaged in house accidents. This study aims to determine the pattern of home injuries affecting children (0–5 years old) in Arar City, to assess Saudi mothers' knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding first aid measures to be taken for injured children, and to identify some of the factors associated with mothers' level of KAP. A cross-sectional study was conducted on Saudi mothers with under-five children in Arar, Saudi Arabia. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data on recruited mothers’ sociodemographic characteristics, knowledge, attitudes, and practices towards home injuries and first aid measures. Out of the total 348 respondents, 24.7% demonstrated a high level of knowledge about domestic injuries, while 38.8% had a moderate level of awareness, and 36.5% had a low level of knowledge on the subject. Knowledge was associated with mother’s age, educational level, employment, being married, high economic status and fewer number of children (P < 0.05). Regarding the attitude score, 28.5% demonstrated a good attitude towards domestic injuries, while 31.0% exhibited a fair attitude, and 40.5% had a poor attitude. However, the practice score revealed that most participants fall into the categories of good practice (37.1%) and Fair practice (30.2%). The findings revealed varying levels of knowledge, attitudes, and practices among the respondents, with a significant portion demonstrating gaps in understanding and implementation of first aid measures. Factors such as age, marital status, type of residence, and family household income were found to be associated with levels of knowledge about first aid.

Background Acne vulgaris is a common inflammatory skin condition affecting a large section of the population. However, the serum levels of acute phase proteins (APPs) in those patients have not been studied enough. Objective To study the serum levels of different APPs in acne vulgaris patients and to investigate their clinical relevance. Patients and methods Sixty moderate to severe active acne vulgaris patients according to Global Acne Grading system, in addition to forty age, sex and BMI matched acne free control subjects were included. Double-antibody sandwich ELISA kits were used for measuring high sensitivity C reactive protein (hs-CRP), ferritin and hepcidin according to manufacturer’s protocols. Results Serum levels of hs-CRP and hepcidin were significantly higher in patients than control subjects (P=0.01 and 0.02 respectively). The serum level of hsCRP in severe acne vulgaris patients was significantly higher than in moderate disease (P=0.02). Patients with post inflammatory hyperpigmentation showed significantly higher hepcidin level than those without post inflammatory hyperpigmentation (P=<0.001). Using Spearman correlation coefficient, there were significant negative correlations between serum levels of hs-CRP and hepcidin (rho=−0.38, P=0.003), and between serum levels of ferritin and hepcidin (rho= −0.36, P =0.005). While, there was a significant positive correlation between serum levels of hs-CRP and ferritin (rho=0.31, P=0.01). There were no statistically significant differences between the diagnostic ability of the three studied markers. Conclusion Serum levels of CRP and hepcidin are elevated in acne vulgaris. hs-CRP correlates with the disease severity. The possible effect of hepcidin on melanocytes activity requires further investigation.