ObjectiveThis study examined the impact of a multicomponent intervention to increase physical activity (PA) in adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Oman.Research design and methodsThis is a cluster randomized controlled trial in eight primary health centers. Participants were physically inactive, aged ≥18 years, and with no contraindication to PA. Patients attending intervention health centers (n=4) received the ‘MOVEdiabetes’ intervention, which consisted of personalized, individual face-to-face consultations by dietitians. Pedometers and monthly telephone WhatsApp messages were also used. Patients attending comparison health centers received usual care. The primary outcome was change in PA [Metabolic Equivalent(MET).min/week] after 12 months assessed by the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire. The secondary outcomes were changes in daily step counts, sitting time, weight, body mass index, glycated hemoglobin, blood pressure and lipids.ResultsOf the 232 participants (59.1% female, mean (SD) age 44.2 (8.1) years), 75% completed the study. At 12 months, the mean change in MET.min/week was +631.3 (95% CI 369.4 to 893.2) in the intervention group (IG) vs +183.2 (95% CI 83.3 to 283.0) in the comparison group, with a significant between-group difference of +447.4 (95% CI 150.7 to 744.1). The odds of meeting PA recommendations were 1.9 times higher in the IG (95% CI 1.2 to 3.3). Significant between-group differences in favor of IG were detected for mean steps/day (+757, 95% CI 18 to 1531) and sitting time hours/ per day (−1.5, 95% CI −2.4 to −0.7). Clinical measures of systolic and diastolic blood pressure and triglycerides also showed significant intervention effects.Conclusions‘MOVEdiabetes’ was effective in increasing PA, the likelihood of meeting PA recommendations, and providing cardioprotective benefits in adults with T2D attending primary care.

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Aim This study aims to determine the effectiveness of home‐based pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) on decreasing the severity of symptoms and improving the quality of life (QOL) among Omani women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Methods A randomized controlled single‐blind trial was conducted in three primary health care centers in Muscat. Eligible women who were diagnosed with SUI (from a concurrent phase‐I study which was a cross‐sectional study to determine the prevalence of urinary incontinence in Oman) were invited to take part. The consenting subjects were randomly allocated to either an intervention group (unsupervised PFMT) or a control group (lecture with no PFMT). Baseline and 12‐week assessment of both groups was carried out for the primary outcome using the validated Arabic version of the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire (ICIQ)‐short form and the secondary outcome by blinded measures of pelvic floor muscle (PFM) strength using the modified Oxford grading system (MOGS), endurance, and perineometer. Results A total of 73 subjects were included in the study. They were randomly divided into two groups. Both groups were similar at the baseline in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, ICIQ score, and PFM strength. At the 12‐weeks assessment, there was a significant difference in the ICIQ score (P < .001) between the intervention group and the control one. There was no statistical difference between the two groups in MOGS, endurance, or perineometer values. Conclusions The home‐based PFMT is an effective treatment in reducing the severity of symptoms and improving the QOL in women with SUI.

Up to date, the sufficient-component cause model seems to be a theoretical framework for disease causation in epidemiology, and its implications in epidemiological research methods is currently still limited. Recently, pitfalls in current epidemiological research methods were addressed based on the sufficient-component cause model; hence, new research approaches are needed as alternatives. Therefore, this paper aims to review and suggest new epidemiological methods used to assess disease causation. A new approach was discussed to identify potential mechanisms of disease occurrence which may be useful for risk prediction and disease prevention. In addition, a novel “exposed case-control” design was introduced to identify potential component causes. Furthermore, this paper suggested a new approach of conducting a systematic review/meta-analysis related to causation studies.

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