Background. Chronic stress among medical students affects academic performance of students and leads to depression, substance use, and suicide. There is, however, a shortage of such research evidence in Ethiopia. Objective. We aimed to estimate the prevalence and severity of stress and its association with substance use and academic performance among medical students. Methods. A crosssectional survey was conducted on a sample of 329 medical students at Jimma University. Data were collected using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), Medical Students Stress Questionnaire (MSSQ-20), and Drug Abuse Surveillance Test (DAST). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Logistic regression analysis and Student's -test were applied. Results. The mean age of the respondents was 23.02 (SD = 2.074) years. The current prevalence of stress was 52.4%. Academic related stressor domain was the main source of stress among 281 (88.6%) students. Stress was significantly associated with khat chewing [AOR = 3.03, 95% CI (1.17, 7.85)], smoking [AOR = 4.55, 95% CI (1.05, 19.77)], and alcohol intake [AOR = 1.93, 95% CI (1.03, 3.60)]. The prevalence of stress was high during the initial three years of study. Stress was significantly ( = 0.001) but negatively ( = −0.273) correlated with academic achievement. Conclusion. Stress was a significant problem among medical students and had a negative impact on their academic performance. Year of study, income, and substance use were associated with stress. Counseling and awareness creation are recommended.

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BackgroundKhat (Catha edulis) contains a psychoactive substance, cathinone, which produces central nervous system stimulation analogous to amphetamine. It is believed that khat chewing has a negative impact on the physical and mental health of individuals as well as the socioeconomic condition of the family and the society at large. There is lack of community based studies regarding the link between khat use and poor mental health. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between khat use and mental distress and to determine the prevalence of mental distress and khat use in Jimma City.MethodsA cross-sectional community-based study was conducted in Jimma City from October 15 to November 15, 2009. The study used a structured questionnaire and Self Reporting Questionnaire-20 designed by WHO and which has been translated into Amharic and validated in Ethiopia. By multi stage sampling, 1200 individuals were included in the study. Data analysis was done using SPSS for window version 13.ResultsThe Khat use prevalence was found to be 37.8% during the study period. Majority of the khat users were males (73.5%), age group 18–24 (41.1%), Muslims (46.6%), Oromo Ethnic group (47.2%), single (51.4%), high school students (46.8%) and employed (80%). Using cut-off point 7 out of 20 on the Self Reporting Questionnaire-20, 25.8% of the study population was found to have mental distress. Males (26.6%), persons older than 55 years (36.4%), Orthodox Christians (28.4%), Kefficho Ethnic groups (36.4%), widowed (44.8%), illiterates (43.8%) and farmers (40.0%) had higher rates of mental distress. We found that mental distress and khat use have significant association (34.7% Vs 20.5%, P<0.001). There was also significant association between mental distress and frequency of khat use (41% Vs 31.1%, P<0.001)ConclusionThe high rate of khat use among the young persons calls for public intervention to prevent more serious forms of substance use disorders. Our findings suggest that persons who use khat suffer from higher rates of mental distress. However, causal association could not be established due to cross-sectional study design.

Background An estimated 150 million people worldwide and nearly 17% of the populations in the developing nations are currently suffering from sleep problems. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence and associated factors of sleep quality among adults in Ethiopia. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted on 422 randomly selected adults using validated and pretested Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Data were entered into EpiData and analyzed using SPSS version 20 considering bivariable (P value < 0.25) and multivariable (P < 0.05) logistic regression procedures at 95% confidence interval. Result The overall prevalence of poor sleep quality (PSQI score > 5) was 65.4% with higher proportion among males (79 (63.0%)) and age group of 40–49 years (174 (28.6%)). A multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated that age category of 40–49 years (AOR = 2 [95% CI (1.1, 3.6)]) (P = 0.03), monthly income ≤ 1000 ETB (AOR = 2.2 [95% CI (14, 3.5)]) (P = 0.01), current khat chewing (AOR = 1.8 [95% CI (1.1, 3.1)]) (P = 0.03), daily khat chewing (AOR = 3.4 [95% CI (1.2, 11.1)]) (P = 0.04), and obesity (AOR = 1.2 [95% CI (1.3, 2.5)]) (P = 0.03) were identified as risk factors of poor sleep quality. Conclusion The current study is informative for government to work on poverty reduction, create awareness for weight reduction, and develop legislation for khat control to prevent poor sleep quality.

BackgroundAnemia is a major health problem worldwide. Because of health and socioeconomic problems, the prevalence of anemia is higher in developing countries. Children and pregnant women are the most vulnerable groups to anemia. The aim of the present study was to determine the magnitude of anemia among school children.MethodsA cross-sectional household survey was conducted in January 2011 on 423 children, aged 6–14 years, selected through systematic random sampling method. Sociodemographic and anthropometric data were collected using a pre-tested questionnaire. Capillary blood was taken from the fingertip of each child and hemoglobin was measured using HaemoCue digital photometer. All the necessary safety measures were taken during blood collection. Anthropometric indicators were measured using WHO’s guideline. Data analysis was made using SPSS Version 16.0 for Windows. The association between predictors and outcome variables were measured by a stepwise logistic regression model. Ethical permission was obtained; consent of the parents/guardian was taken and confidentiality was maintained.ResultA total of 404 children were studied. The mean age was 10.21(SD ± 1.89) years. The proportion of females was 217(53.7%). The mean hemoglobin level for both sexes was 11.59(SD ± 1.97 g/dl). The current prevalence of anemia was 152(37.6%), out of which, 73(18.1%) had mild while 79(19.6%) of them had moderate anemia. The prevalence of anemia among the age group of 6–11 years was 118(40.5%) while the prevalence among the group of 12–14 years old children was 34(30.1%). Among the selected variables in the logistic regression analysis, low family income [OR = 4.925, 95% CI(1.063,22.820)], mothers’ education [OR = 4.621, 95% CI(1.383,15.439)], intake of plant food [OR = 3.847, 95% CI(2.068, 7.157)] and intake of animal food [OR = 2.37, 95% CI(1.040,5.402)] were significantly and independently associated with anemia.ConclusionAnemia is a moderate public health problem in the study area. Family income, educational status of parents and inadequate plant and animal food intake are the predictors of anemia. Improving the economic status of the family, women education and health education about balanced animal and plant food consumption are recommended strategies to reduce the burden of anemia.