iRuFARS-2025

Prevalence and Severity of Anaemia across Different Chronic Kidney Disease Stages among Chronic Kidney Disease Patients at Teaching Hospital, Jaffna

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Prevalence and Severity of Anaemia across Different Chronic Kidney Disease Stages among Chronic Kidney Disease Patients at Teaching Hospital, Jaffna Karthiga, M.; Sangavi, T.; Kanistan, J.; Thangarajah, B.R.; Arasaratnam, V. Background: Anaemia and Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) are linked to global health challenges. Awareness of anaemia in CKD patients is essential to optimising patient care. However, it remains unknown in selected CKD patients. Objectives: To assess the prevalence and anaemia severity across the CKD stages among patients attending the Nephrology and Medical clinics at Teaching Hospital, Jaffna Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using convenient sampling technique. A total of 137 patients (18 years or more) diagnosed with CKD were recruited and categorized into five CKD stages based on estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). Patients on dialysis, with kidney transplant or erythropoietin therapy were excluded. Serum creatinine and blood haemoglobin concentrations were measured by Jaffe and cyanmethemoglobin methods, respectively. Anaemia and its severity were defined according to the WHO criteria. Patients’ age and gender were entered in to a data extraction sheet. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics in SPSS software. Results: In the selected population, 48.18% (n=66) were anaemic and equally distributed (n=33) between males and females. The mean±SD age of anaemic patients was 51.24±14.59 years. The highest proportion of anaemic patients (13.9%) was observed in stage 3b, followed by stage 4 (12.4%) and stage 2 (10.2%), showing statistical significance (p<0.001). Anaemia was more frequent in females at early CKD stages, while in advanced stages, anaemia was predominantly observed in males. Mild anaemics (63.6%) were highest, followed by moderate (33.3%) and severe (3%) anaemics. Mild anaemia was predominated in males (54.8%), whereas moderate anaemia was more prevalent in females (54.5%). Only females had severe anaemia. Mild anaemia was the most frequent form observed across all CKD stages. Moderate anaemia (22.7%) was distributed evenly between patients in stages 2 and 3b. Severe anaemia was observed only in the patients at stage 4. However, the severity of anaemia was not significantly associated with CKD stages. Conclusions: Anaemia was prevalent in nearly half of the CKD patients, with mild anaemia being the most common across all stages and severe anaemia observed only in advanced stages. Although anaemia prevalence increased significantly with CKD progression, no significant association was found between anaemia severity and CKD stages in selected CKD patients.

Genotypic and Phenotypic Effect of BTNL2 and LTA Genes in Sri Lankan Sarcoidosis Patients

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Genotypic and Phenotypic Effect of BTNL2 and LTA Genes in Sri Lankan Sarcoidosis Patients Rodrigo, M.P.S.N.; Wettasinghe, K.; Rajapakshe, Y. Background: Sarcoidosis is a rare chronic inflammatory disorder affecting multiple organs, including the lungs, lymph nodes, and eyes with symptoms including granulomas, dry cough, and shortness of breath. While several genes have been linked to the disease, environmental and other conditions trigger its onset. Objectives: To identify genetic variants associated with Sarcoidosis by analysing Minor allele frequencies (MAF) of BTNL2 and LTA gene polymorphisms and comparing them with healthy controls to corelate the symptomatic presentation and mutation zygosity of the selected genes Methods: A literature review was conducted to identify relevant genetic variants linked to Sarcoidosis in the Asian population, focusing on the NOD2 gene rs104895462 (C>T), LTA gene rs1041981 (C>A), ANXA11 gene rs1049550 (G>C), and BTNL2 gene rs2076530 (T>C). Blood samples from 22 patients were collected nationwide and genotyped using optimized Tetra-primer Amplification Refractory Mutation System (tetra-primer ARMS) and validated using Sanger sequencing followed by MAF calculation. Results: Our research identified BTNL2 and LTA, with a high disease prevalence in individuals aged 40-50 years, of whom 81.81% had lung granulomas. Among (n=13) individuals carrying the LTA variant, 30.76% were homozygous, while 69.23% were heterozygous with the mutant allele (MAF 0.4091). In contrast, all 9 individuals carrying BTNL2 variants were heterozygous for the mutant allele (MAF 0.2045). The previously reported MAF of BTNL2 is 0.3989 and LTA is 0.36. Our findings strongly associate these genes and sarcoidosis in patients with Sarcoidosis in Sri Lanka, consistent with other Asian studies. Further, BTNL2 modulate T-cell proliferation, while LTA regulates tumor necrosis factor collectively promoting granuloma formation via single nucleotide polymorphisms. Conclusions: This study successfully optimized tetra-primer ARMS PCR for the selected genes and reinforced the genetic basis of Sarcoidosis by analyzing MAF, followed by supporting the involvement of the BTNL2 and LTA genes in observed clinical features.

Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Associated Occupational Risk Factors among Chefs in Five-star Hotels in Colombo Municipal Council Area, Sri Lanka

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Associated Occupational Risk Factors among Chefs in Five-star Hotels in Colombo Municipal Council Area, Sri Lanka Amaradisi, W.D.G.K.; Samarasinghe, Y.M.K.; Rathnayake, T.M.K.G.; Perera, G.A.D.; Chandrathilaka, K.R.M. Background: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) are common in physically demanding jobs, including the culinary industry. In Sri Lanka, chefs play a vital role in the tourism sector, particularly in food tourism. However, the physical demands of their work increase the risk of developing WRMSDs. Objective: To determine the prevalence of WRMSDs and associated occupational risk factors among chefs in five-star hotels in Colombo municipal council area, Sri Lanka Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted using systematic random sampling. A total of 100 chefs from four five-star hotels registered with the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority were recruited. Data were collected using the Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire (CMDQ) to assess the frequency, severity, and work-related interference of musculoskeletal symptoms over the past work-week. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 25.0. Independent samples t-tests were used to analyse pain severity related to resting periods, repetitive movements, and double shifts. Results: Among the 100 chefs, 94% reported musculoskeletal discomfort, most commonly in the neck (55%), right shoulder (54%), and lower back (47%). Lower back pain was significantly associated with age (r=0.310, p=0.002) and work experience (r=0.345, p=0.001). BMI was significantly correlated with forearm (p=0.022) and hip (p=0.009) discomfort. The left foot was most affected by inadequate rest (p=0.015), and the lower back was most affected by both repetitive tasks (p=0.001) and double shifts (p=0.010). Conclusion: WRMSDs are highly prevalent among chefs, with strong associations to age, BMI, work experience, and occupational factors. These findings emphasize the need to address work- related contributors to musculoskeletal symptoms in this population.

Cultural Adaptation and Psychometric Validation of the Sinhala Version of the Osteoporosis Knowledge Assessment Tool

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Cultural Adaptation and Psychometric Validation of the Sinhala Version of the Osteoporosis Knowledge Assessment Tool Dias, H.; Rathnayake, R.H.M.P.N. Background: Osteoporosis is a global health problem and it is a prevalent disease among postmenopausal women in Asian countries. It is considered as a silent disease as it does not give any clue until person suffer a fracture which is a major cause of long-term disability. Assessing osteoporosis-related knowledge is crucial for promoting prevention and management strategies. A validated tool for assessing knowledge on osteoporosis is therefore much needed. Osteoporosis Knowledge Assessment Tool (OKAT) is a reliable and standardised measure to assess individual knowledge of osteoporosis and it has been used across various countries, with no categorisation of any domains. Objectives: To adapt the OKAT in Sinhala language and assess its psychometric properties among peri-menopausal and postmenopausal women Methods: This validation study comprised of two phases; cultural adaptation and psychometric properties evaluation. Cultural adaptation includes forward translation, synthesizing a common version, backward translation, expert review and testing pre-final version. The final Sinhala version of OKAT was administered among 179 peri-menopausal and postmenopausal women selected using multi-stage random sampling from the Hikkaduwa Medical Officer of Health division. The tool was re-administered among the same group of women after two weeks of first administration. Content validity was evaluated using the expert review. Reliability was determined by measuring internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) and test-retest reliability (interclass correlation coefficient, ICC). Construct validity was examined using exploratory factor analysis. Results: The content validity index (CVI) was 0.97, indicating strong agreement among experts on the relevance and clarity of the questionnaire items. The OKAT demonstrated good internal consistency measures with Cronbach’s alpha of 0.91 and high test-retest reliability measured with ICC of 0.91. Factor analysis using the Principle Component Analysis revealed four factor structure with eigen value >1, explaining 59.81% of variance with KMO value of 0.89 and Bartlert Test of Spericity <0.001. The factor structure showed four main factors that can be explained as ‘General Knowledge about Osteoporosis’, ‘Knowledge on Risk Factors’, ‘Knowldge on Preventive Measures’ and ‘Knowledge on Consequences and Management’. Conclusions: The Sinhala version of OKAT demonstrated excellent validity and reliability in assessing osteoporosis related knowledge among peri-menopausal and postmenopausal women. Further, this is a psychometrically sound tool and its alidity and reliability make it a valuable instrument for both research and educational interventions focusing osteoporosis awareness and prevention. Further studies are recommended to explore its applicability in diverse populations with confirmatory factor analysis.