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Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the education sector, leading to the closure of colleges and schools and disrupting the learning process for an uncertain duration. In response, electronic learning has emerged as a suitable method for continuing the educational process during the lockdown. This study aimed to assess the attitudes, practices, and barriers to e-learning among medical students at Syrian Private University. Methods A cross-sectional survey study was conducted at the Faculty of Medicine of the Syrian Private University (SPU) in Damascus, Syria. The study used a convenience sampling approach and was carried out from June 2021 to January 2022. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire structured into two sections. The first section included 12 sociodemographic questions. The second section assessed students’ attitudes, practices, and barriers related to e-learning, and consisted of 14 questions on attitudes, 11 questions on practices, and 9 questions on barriers. Results Of the 519 participating students, over half (55.1%) exhibited a negative attitude towards e-learning. However, more than 60% reported engaging in e-learning activities such as downloading educational content and participating in virtual study groups. The main barriers identified were unstable internet connections (92.7%) and challenges in communication with educators (82.7%). Bionomical logistic regression revealed that negative attitudes were predicted by housing status, academic year, health status, lack of engagement with colleagues in e-learning practices, and the reported barriers of difficulty adjusting learning style, lack of technical skills, poor communication with educators, limited access to devices, and limited space conducive for studying (P

Abstract Background Eating disorders (EDs) are a complex group of disorders that affect mental and physical health and pose a challenge for medical professionals to diagnose. This study aims to screen for eating disorders among Syrian university undergraduates. Methods and materials A cross-sectional study was conducted among Syrian university students using a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of three sections: socio-demographic characteristics, dietary habits and barriers to healthy eating, and the Sick, Control, One, Fat, Food (SCOFF) score. The chi-square test was used to evaluate the factors related to eating disorders. Results Of 728 students, 45.3% were males and 54.7% females. The majority of participants studied medicine 32.3%, followed by pharmacy 25.7% and dentistry 17.6%. Overweight and obese participants represented 21.4% and 6.8% respectively. Merely 36% of students reported adopting a healthy diet, a greater percentage of females 58.8% reported having snacks compared to males 48.5% (P = 0.006), a higher percentage of females 38.8% reported consuming fast food compared to males 26.6% (P

Background: On 6 February 2023, an earthquake with a 7.8 magnitude wreaked destruction in northern Syria to add a new emergency status in the country. This study aims to evaluate the mental health status of the Syrian population in the immediate phase of the earthquake.Methods: This nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted in Syria from 17 February to 6 April. Data were collected on socio-demographics, trauma exposure characteristics, and levels of acute stress, depression, and anxiety. The NSESSS Checklist for the APA was used to assess ASD symptoms, PHQ-9 for depression, and GAD-7 for anxiety. Linear mixed-effects models were employed to identify predictive factors while accounting for governorate as a random effect and time elapsed as a fixed factor.Results: The rate of probable ASD symptoms was significant, with 55.3% of participants exhibiting these symptoms, including 10.3% reporting severe-to-extreme levels of severity. Similarly, 71.6% of participants exhibited symptoms of depression and 59.1% showed symptoms of anxiety. Furthermore, 40.4% of participants displayed a co-occurrence of ASD along with anxiety and depression. Linear mixed effects models indicated that symptoms were predicted by female sex, displacement, poor economic status, and a positive mental health history time elapsed, physical trauma, belief in the ongoing risk of earthquakes, feelings of dizziness, recurrent night-time fear arousal, and a continued sensation of seismic activity.Conclusion: This study demonstrated the high rates of symptoms of ASD, anxiety, and depression across the Syrian population during the immediate aftermath of the earthquake. High portions of people may acquire co-occurring symptoms represented by different mental health problems. These findings highlight the need for immediate actions to enhance mental health support in Syria.

Background: This study aimed to examine the prevalence of menstrual cycle changes (MCs) and their patterns among healthy Syrian women following the administration of the first and second doses of a vaccine. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey following campaigns for COVID-19 vaccines was conducted in 2022 from June 26 to August 3. Data collected included the participants’ demographic characteristics, vaccination status, and multiple-choice questions for MCs changes after the first and second doses. Results: Of 236, 89.8 % completed all shots of the vaccine. After the first dose, 36.9 % reported MCs, and 35 % after the second dose. Most women did not experience changes in menstrual cycle frequency—81.8 % after the first dose and 83.4 % after the second dose. Similarly, most women did not observe changes in cycle length, or menstrual flow quantity—5.5 % after the first dose and 8 % after the second dose reported spotting. Dysmenorrhea was reported by 15.7 % and 14.1 % of women after the first and second doses, respectively. Conclusion: MCs are a potential symptom that a healthy woman at childbearing age could have after a different type of COVID-19 vaccine. MCs patterns do not significantly differ following vaccine doses.