Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and associated factors in Bangladeshi adolescents during COVID-19

Background and Aims

The COVID-19 pandemic and its accompanying countermeasures significantly disrupt the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of adolescents. We aimed to estimate the status and associated factors related to HRQoL of adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic from the community population of Bangladesh.

Methods

This cross-sectional study followed two-stage sampling. From eight administrative divisions of Bangladesh, 2030 adolescents were enrolled. The KIDSCREEN-10 index was used to measure the HRQoL of adolescents. In addition to this, adolescents' data on sociodemographics, mental well-being, parenting style, insomnia, food insecurity, depression, anxiety and stress, resilient coping, screen-based activity, and anthropometry were taken for finding out the factors associated with HRQoL of adolescents. The hierarchical multilinear regression was performed to assess the association.

Results

More than 47% of adolescents were found to have moderate and high HRQoL, while 4.7% of adolescents experienced low HRQoL during data collection. Higher age (B: -0.671), having more siblings (B: -0.316), food insecurity (B: ‒2.010), depression (B: ‒0.321), anxiety (B: ‒0.362), and stress (B: ‒0.150) were found to have significantly negative associations with adolescents' HRQoL during the COVID-19 pandemic. Whereas, positive parenting (B: 0.409), inconsistent parenting discipline (B: 0.266), good mental health (B: 5.662), resilient coping (B: 0.306) were found to have significant positive relationships.

Conclusions

The findings from this study indicate that over 52% of the adolescents reported a moderate and lower level of HRQoL. In light of these results, it may be beneficial to prioritize interventions targeting psychological factors such as depression, anxiety, and stress.

Psychometric Validation of the Translated and Adapted Bengali Version of the HLS-EU-Q16/Q6 for Adults

Health Literacy (HL) emerges as a critical tool in addressing the escalating burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and their associated costs. Particularly in Bangladesh, where the inadequacy of HL presents multifaceted challenges, there is an urgent need to address this issue. This study aimed to translate and evaluate the Bengali versions of the European Health Literacy Questionnaire with 16 items (HLS-EU Q16) and its shorter 6-item version (HLS-EU Q6), as there is currently no validated Bengali tool for assessing HL. This article used a subset of data from a Bangladeshi national survey of Primary Healthcare (PHC) facilities. The study included adults seeking Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) services at PHCs. Validity and reliability testing succeeded in a detailed back-to-back translation. The statistics covered were descriptive, Cronbach's internal consistency, confirmatory factor analysis, and the chi-square test. Following the translation and preliminary testing, minor rephrasing and the insertion of Item-Relevant Stimulus Material were performed to ensure cultural equivalency. The Confirmatory Factor Analysis produced a 3-factor structure for the HLS-EU-Q16 that included a second-order general component, confirming the viability of using an HL total score. A 3-factor model based on a priori was determined to be suitable for the factor structure of the HLS-EU-Q6. The model fit indices (Chi-square/df, TLI, AGFI, CFI, GFI, SRMR, RMSEA, and PCLOSE) supported CFA models of both scales. The internal consistency of the translated and adapted instruments was α = .934 and .857, respectively. This study showed that the Bengali version of the HLS-EU-Q16 and HLS-EU-Q6 are psychometrically sound, have clear factor structures, and are equivalent to the original models. However, the HLS-EU_Q16 is recommended over the shorter version considering its better psychometric properties.

Study of streptococcal antibody (anti-streptolysin O) among healthy children in Bangladesh

Objectives:

The standard reference value of anti-streptolysin O (ASO) titre for diagnosing acute rheumatic fever (RF) in children is yet to be determined in Bangladesh. We aimed to measure the upper limit of the normal (ULN) of ASO titre among healthy children to determine the cut-off value for the diagnosis of RF in Bangladesh.

Methods:

A total of 400 healthy children aged 5–15 years with no history of fever, sore throat and impetigo during the last 8 weeks of the study were enrolled. The respondents were randomly selected from an urban non-slum area, an urban slum area and a rural area of Bangladesh. ASO titre was measured using a turbidimetric immunoassay based on the principle of an agglutination reaction. The 80th percentile value was considered as the ULN of ASO titre.

Results:

Approximately 55% of the children were male. The mean (SD) age of children was 9.1 (2.7) years. The ULN of ASO titre for 5–15 years aged children was 217.4 IU/mL.

Conclusion:

Our reference value of ASO titre at the 80th percentile will be an essential guide for clinicians to diagnose acute RF.