Introduction: World Health Organization recognizes online game addiction as a mental health condition. The rise of excessive online gaming is emerging in the Philippines, with 29.9 million gamers recorded in the country. The incidence of depression is also increasing in the country. The current correlational analysis evaluated the association between online game addiction and depression in Filipino adolescents. Methods: A paper-and-pencil self-administered questionnaire assessing depression and online game addiction was distributed from August to November, 2018. The questionnaire included socio-demographic profiles of the respondents, and the 14-item Video Game Addiction Test (VAT) (Cronbach's α=0.91) and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (Cronbach's α=0.88) to determine levels of online game addiction and depression, respectively. Multiple regression analyses were used to test the association between depression and online game addiction. Results: Three hundred adolescents (59% males, 41% females) participated in the study. Fifty-three out of 300 respondents (12.0% males, 5.7% females) had high level of online game addiction as reflected in their high VAT scores. In this study, 37 respondents (6.7% males, 5.7% females) had moderately severe depression and 6 (2.0%) females had severe depression. Online game addiction was positively correlated with depression in this study (r=0.31; p<0.001). When multiple regression analysis was computed, depression was found to be a predictor of online game addiction (Coefficient=0.0121; 95% CI-8.1924 - 0.0242; p=0.05). Conclusion: Depression, as associated with online game addiction, is a serious threat that needs to be addressed. High level of online game addiction, as positively correlated to the rate of depression among adolescents in Manila, could potentially be attributed to the booming internet industry and lack of suffiicent mental health interventions in the country. Recommended interventions include strengthening depression management among adolescents and improving mental health services for this vulnerable population groups in schools and within the communities.

Leptospirosis is a significant zoonotic disease that poses a global public health challenge, particularly in warm, humid regions. The aim of this review pa

For the first time, Boliwong, an indigenous community in the Philippines, was surveyed for the prevalence of Cryptosporidium from April to December 2017. Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected in samples from the river, creek, and water pumps via immunomagnetic separation techniques, and from human and animal concentrated faecal samples using the modified Ziehl-Neelsen technique. Seven of the 24 water samples (29.2%) were positive for Cryptosporidium, with the highest concentration (0.8 oocyst/L) detected in the creek. Of 35 fecal samples from different animal groups, 8 (21.6%) were positive for Cryptosporidium oocysts. The highest intensity of oocyst shedding was detected in dogs (χ2 =8.00). Of the 137 human fecal samples, 39 (28.5%) were infected with Cryptosporidium. In this study, 3 risk factors were found to be associated with infection: (1) location (crude odds ratio [cOR], 16.39; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.11 to 127.41; p=0.008), (2) drinking water from the natural spring (cOR, 0.29; 95% CI, 0.11 to 0.82; p<0.05), and (3) using an open pit as a sanitary toilet facility (cOR, 2.44; 95% CI, 1.14 to 5.20; p<0.05). When the cOR was adjusted, using an open pit as a sanitary toilet facility remained a significant risk factor of infection (adjusted OR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.19 to 0.90; p<0.05). There is a potentially emerging Cryptosporidium zoonosis in Boliwong, Lagawe, Philippines. It is recommended that the toilet facilities and the water system in the community be rehabilitated to avoid any possible disease outbreak. Health education is also needed in the community to maintain proper hygiene and sanitation practices.

The state of community lock-down due to COVID-19 pandemic caused restricted movements of people. There are existing evidence of the negative impact of quarantine and isolation to the mental health of a person in different contexts. A scoping review of literature using Google Scholar was conducted to discover records about the public mental health while in a community quarantine due to COVID-19 pandemic. A methodological approach suggested by Arksey and O’Malley was utilized. It comprised (a) identifying the research questions, (b) identifying relevant literatures, (c) selecting literature, (d) charting the extracted data, and (e) summarizing, analyzing, and reporting the results. As of April 17, 2020, there were only 4 original articles found that discuss psychosocial aspect of the COVID-19 crisis. After an online survey, they present evidence that (1) there is an outward change in the people’s behavior toward self-care during the pandemic and (2) trusting the community governing bodies can minimize the level of anxiety and stress. Other literatures found are original articles in preprint (n=8), letters, commentaries, editorial (n=6), review paper (n=4), and WHO guideline (n=1). It is evident that the psychosocial aspect of COVID-19 crisis needs more attention from the scholars and a large research gap can be lessened trough expansion of online platforms.

Background: Street food consumption can pose food safety hazards. To mitigate this risk, both vendors and consumers must play essential roles in implementing the Philippine Food Safety Act 2013 (RA 10611). While there are sufficient reports about the food handling practices of vendors, there is limited evidence regarding the behavior of consumers. This study aims to determine the awareness, agreement, and adherence of street food consumers to the food safety as stipulated in RA 10611. Methods: The study aimed to test the awareness-to-agreement-to-adherence model by analyzing the results of a self-administered survey on food safety. The survey was completed by 384 street food consumers in Manila City, Philippines. It consisted of three parts, each containing 15 items that assessed consumers’ awareness, agreement, and adherence to food safety policies. Each item was assigned a score of 1 for a positive response and 0 otherwise. Total scores and percentages were calculated. A score ranging 80–100% was considered good, 60–79% moderate, and <60% poor. Respondents who consistently scored high in awareness, agreement, and adherence were classified as fitting the model. Results: The distribution of male (n=189; 49.2%) and female (n=195; 50.8%) respondents adhered to the study’s quota. The majority of respondents (n=346, 90.1%) were aged 18–30 years old, and most (n=224; 58.3%) had attained a college level of education. Out of the 384 respondents, 315 (82.0%) had a good score in ‘awareness’, 361 (94.0%) had a good score in ‘agreement’, and 339 (88.3%) had a good score in ‘adherence’. A total of 290 (75.5%) respondents fit the model, while 94 (24.5%) deviated from the model. Six deviations were observed, including respondents with good awareness and agreement but poor adherence, noted as good-good-poor (n=12; 3.1%). Other deviations included good-poor-good (n=7; 1.8%), good-poor-poor (n=6; 1.6%), poor-good-good (n=45; 11.7%), poor-good-poor (n=13; 3.4%), and poor-poor-poor (n=11; 2.9%). Regression analysis revealed that adherence to food safety was significantly positively associated with awareness (B=0.219, P value =0.01) and agreement (B=0.774, P value =0.006). Awareness accounted for 21.9% of the variance in adherence, t(1, 384) =6.194, P value =0.01, while agreement accounted for 77.4% of the variance in adherence, t(1, 384) =14.346, P value =0.006. Among the socio-demographic characteristics, only the highest educational attainment was associated with consumers’ awareness, agreement, and adherence to food safety. Conclusions: Most street food consumers in Manila, Philippines were aware of the food safety as stipulated in the Philippine Food Safety Act 2013. However, this study found that awareness does not guarantee agreement and adherence to food safety. ‘Agreement’ influences ‘adherence’ more than ‘awareness’ does. It is suggested that existing interventions related to food safety issues among street food consumers be reviewed, with the goal of not only increasing awareness but also instilling consumers’ accountability for food safety.