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IntroductionExposure to armed conflict has manifold implications for both military and civilian populations. Prenatal stress has detrimental effects on both obstetric outcomes, fetal development and the development of an individual later in life. As well as causing stress to the mother, armed conflicts can decimate local infrastructures making it increasingly difficult to access antenatal and general healthcare. The present review is particularly salient in light of the many ongoing current conflicts. It examines the impacts of exposure to armed conflicts on the pregnancy outcomes.MethodsA thorough literature search was carried out on three databases using MeSH and truncation terms. 13 studies were included in the final analysis relating to mothers exposed to armed conflicts since 1990.ResultsThe studies include data from 1 172 151 patients: mothers from Libya, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Israel, Palestine, Kosovo, Yugoslavia, Nepal, Somalia, Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan. There is evidence of an increased risk of mothers giving birth to babies of low birth weight as reported in nine included studies. All have a degree of bias, with four at lower and five at higher risk of bias, either not adjusting for confounders or not employing robust measures of exposure to conflict. Further evidence suggested an increase in the incidence of miscarriage, stillbirth, prematurity, congenital abnormalities, miscarriage and premature rupture of membranes among mothers exposed to armed conflict.ConclusionDespite the varying degrees of bias which must be considered for the available evidence, the data with the lowest risk of bias suggest a relationship between exposure to armed conflict and low birth weight. In light of the current level of displacement experienced by such populations, the identification of pregnancies at risk could improve the efficacy of antenatal care. Clinicians should consider additional ultrasound scanning where appropriate to monitor for restricted growth in such pregnancies.

Investigates the information behaviour of Kuwaiti engineers, with a focus on information sources and finding information from these sources, management of information found, and re-finding of information from personal collections. Source: National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa, licensed by the Department of Internal Affairs for re-use under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 New Zealand Licence.

In 1996 we conducted a cross-sectional survey to study the epidemiology of smoking among Kuwaiti adults. The 4000 participants were selected using a three-stage stratified cluster sampling design. Altogether 3859 participants (1798 males, 2061 females) returned a completed self-administered questionnaire. The prevalence of smoking was 34.4% (95% confidence interval (CI) = 32.2-36.6) among men and 1.9% (95% CI = 1.3-2.5) among women. Among men, the highest prevalence (56.5%; 95% CI = 36.2-76.8) was observed in the youngest age group (< or = 20 years). Among women the highest prevalence was observed in one of the older age groups (46-50 years) (7.1%; 95% CI = 3.1-11.1). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the following factors were independently associated with smoking: lower levels of education (odds ratio (OR) 3.5; 95% CI = 1.5-8.4), lower employment grade (OR = 4.1; 2.5-6.7), and being a separated, divorced, or widowed woman (OR = 4.9; 95% CI = 2.0-11.8). The majority of smokers (68%) began smoking when younger than 20 years; significantly more men (70%) than women (33%) began smoking at these ages (P < 0.0001). On average, men began smoking at an earlier age (18 years vs 21 years; P < 0.001) and therefore had smoked for a longer period (15 years vs 12 years; P < 0.05); men also consumed a higher number of cigarettes each day (26 vs 17; P < 0.05). A large proportion of smokers were ignorant about the health consequences of passive smoking: about 77% of those with children reported that they smoked in the presence of their children. Almost half (47%) of all smokers stated that they wanted to stop smoking, and about 56% had attempted to quit. The biggest perceived barrier to quitting was uncertainty about \"how to quit\". A total of 338 respondents (8.8%; 95% CI = 5.8-11.9) were classified as former smokers. About half of the former smokers had quit between the ages of 20 and 29 years; the average age of quitting was 28 years. Former smokers were more likely to have smoked fewer cigarettes per day and to have smoked for significantly less time than current smokers. Given the fact that free education is provided at all levels by the government, anti-tobacco education and awareness should be included as an integral part of the curriculum in schools and colleges.

Factor V Leiden mutation (FVL; G1691A) is an established risk factor for venous thromboembolic disorders. FVL was reported with high prevalence in Caucasians (1–15%) but was absent in non-Caucasians like Africans and Asians. Studies reported FVL in 5–27% of Arabs and non-Arabs living in the Middle Eastern countries northern to the Arabian Peninsula, but was almost absent in Arabs in the Arabian Peninsula itself. Kuwait is an Arabic country present on the northern border of the Arabian Peninsula, and Kuwaitis are originally from Saudi Arabia (Southern to Kuwait and within the Arabian Peninsula) or from Iran and Iraq (northern to Kuwait and the Arabian Peninsula). This study was conducted to study FVL in Kuwaitis in relation to their origin. Real-time PCR was performed on DNA samples of 285 apparently healthy Kuwaitis using specially designed primers and probes for FVL. There were 109 Kuwaitis of Iranian origin, 71 of Iraqi origin and 105 of Saudi origin. FVL was present in 7 and 5 Kuwaitis of Iranian and Iraqi origin, respectively. None of the Kuwaitis of Saudi origin had the mutation. Prevalence of FVL in Kuwaitis of Iranian (6.42%) and Iraqi (7.04%) origin were statistically different from prevalence in Kuwaitis of Saudi (0%) origin ( P -value < 0.05). No difference was found between females and males ( P -value > 0.6). In conclusion, FVL is present in Kuwaitis of Iranian or Iraqi origin only. Therefore, testing and providing genetic consultation for FVL may be needed in those Kuwaitis only which should save time, cost and efforts. However, this assumption should be confirmed by other studies and on larger number of cases.

Apolipoproteins (lipid-free) are lipid-binding proteins that circulate in the plasma of human blood and are responsible for the clearance of lipoproteins. Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) is one of the several classes of this protein family. It acts as a ligand for the low-density lipid (LDL) receptors and is important for the clearance of very low-density lipid (VLDL) and chylomicron remnants. The APOE gene locus is polymorphic, with three major known alíeles, APOE*3, *4, and *2. We investigated the distribution of the alíele frequency of the APOE gene locus and describe here the genetic variation in four Kuwaiti subpopulations: Arab origin (Arabian peninsula), Arab Bedouin tribes, Iranian origin, and the heterogeneous population. We also describe the use of Spreadex gels in resolving the amplified and digested products of the APOE gene locus. DNA was extracted from whole blood and subjected to PCR and then to RFLP analysis. Allele and genotype frequencies were estimated for the total population and for each subpopulation.Statistical analysis showed no difference in the alíele frequencies between the four groups. The frequency of APOE*3 in the Kuwaiti population was highest (88.4%) followed by the frequency of APOEH (6.5%) and APOE*2 (5.1%). The genotype and alíele frequencies obtained for the Kuwaiti population fell within the reported worldwide distribution for the APOE gene locus. Moreover, the results obtained in this study showed no statistical difference (p > 0.05) between the APOE allele and genotype frequencies between the subgroups for all six genotypes and three alíeles, supporting the assumption of admixture in the Kuwaiti population and that the obtained frequencies were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Finally, we found that the distribution of the APOE alíeles in Kuwait differs somewhat from those reported in other Arab populations, suggesting that the Arabs originating from the Arabian peninsula are different from those of Lebanon, Morocco, and Sudan.