Stroke(‫الدماغية‬ ‫السكتة‬ ‫مشابهات‬ ‫انتشار‬ ‫مدى‬ ‫معرفة‬ ‫األهداف:‬ ‫الطوارئ‬ ‫قسم‬ ‫إلى‬ ‫احملولني‬ ‫السعوديني‬ ‫املرضى‬ ‫لدى‬ ‫املرض‬ ‫وطبيعة‬)mimics ‫عصبية‬ ‫أعراض‬ ‫حدوث‬ ‫عند‬ ‫الرياض،‬-‫الطبية‬ ‫عبدالعزيز‬ ‫امللك‬ ‫مدينة‬ ‫في‬ ‫الدماغية.‬ ‫بالسكتة‬ ‫لالشتباه‬ ‫تؤدي‬ ‫مفاجئة‬ Objectives: To study the prevalence and nature of stroke mimics)SM(among Saudi patients who came to the emergency department with a sudden neurological deficit and suspected stroke. Original Articles Methods: The electronic health records from February 2016 to July 2018 of patients who were admitted to the Stroke Unit at King Abdulaziz Medical City, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)KAMC-RD(with a suspected stroke were all reviewed. A comparison between SM and stroke was established. Our study identified the predictors of SM by using logistic regression analysis. This study was approved by the local institutional review board. Results: Out of 1,063 patients, 131)12.3%(had SM. The most common causes were a peripheral vestibular disorder)27.4%(followed by psychogenic causes)24.4%(. Stroke mimics were more common among younger individuals and women. Arterial hypertension, diabetes, and smoking were less likely to be found in SMs. At discharge, individuals with SM were more likely to be independent, had milder deficits, and shorter hospital stays. Predictors of SM were young age, female gender, mild deficit at presentation, and good functional status before the stroke. Conclusion: The incidence of stroke mimics is common among suspected stroke patients. Practicing physicians should consider potential diagnostic errors, particularly in the hyperacute phase of the stroke.

Background: Ear health and hearing loss (HL) among infants has devastating outcomes. With most HL being deemed preventable, the assessment of one’s knowledge and attitude regarding this impairment is important. In Saudi Arabia, the state of the general population’s knowledge on infant HL remains unknown. Objectives: To determine and further elucidate the general population’s knowledge and attitude with regard to HL in Saudi Arabia. Methods: This is a cross-sectional survey-based study conducted on the general population of Saudi Arabia. A predetermined questionnaire was translated into Arabic. This was distributed among the targeted participants in several provinces of Saudi Arabia (central, northern, eastern, western, and southern) by using an online survey via social media. The data were collected and analyzed via the SPSS program. Results: The knowledge with moderate, poor, and good was determined among 60.9%, 29.6%, and 9.4% of the participants, respectively. The participants with positive and negative attitudes were detected among 92.6% and 7.4% of respondents, respectively. Increasing age was associated with better attitude, while increased knowledge was directly related to higher educational attainment. Those who have a child with HL had nearly twice as poor knowledge as those who do not have a child with HL ( P < 0.001). Conclusions: Although most of the respondents possessed a positive attitude toward infant HL, their knowledge about it seems to be lacking. Thus, there is a need to address these knowledge gaps regarding infant HL.

Lacunar stroke (LS) is responsible for one-quarter of the overall number of ischemic strokes with long-term complications and carries health and economic issues for patients and health care systems. Therefore, we aimed to investigate lacunar versus non-lacunar strokes in a tertiary academic center. From February 2016 to July 2019, all patients admitted to the stroke unit were retrospectively reviewed. We included LS patients and compared them to other TOAST subtypes. Hemorrhagic stroke and conditions mimicking stroke were excluded. Regression analysis was done to determine LS predictors and outcomes. A 35.5% rate of LS among 989 ischemic stroke patients was found. Most patients (71.9%) were males. Lower National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores at admission and negative history for cardiac diseases were predictors for LS in our population. At discharge, LS patients had low NIHSS scores and shorter hospitalization periods compared to non-LS patients. In conclusion, LS was prevalent among ischemic stroke patients in our cohort. Future studies are highly needed with long follow-up intervals to identify the stroke recurrence, complications, and outcomes.