Abdirahman Omer Ali, Yusuf Abdi Hared, Hodo Abdi Abdillahi, Muhyadin Yusuf Dahir, Abdisalam Mahdi Hassan, Md. Moyazzem Hossain
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
Chronic diseases represent a growing public health challenge globally, particularly in developing regions like Sub-Saharan Africa. Somaliland faces a dual burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases amidst post-conflict recovery, yet data on non-communicable disease (NCD) prevalence and determinants remain scarce. This study aimed to ascertain the prevalence and identify socio-demographic factors associated with self-reported chronic diseases among adults in Somaliland.
Methods
This cross-sectional study utilized data from the Somaliland Health and Demographic Survey (SLHDS) 2020. The final sample of 11,153 adults had a highly skewed age distribution (94.6% aged 35–44), a primary limitation of this analysis. The outcome was a self-reported physician diagnosis of any chronic disease. A multilevel mixed-effect logistic regression model was employed to identify significant determinants while adjusting for confounders.
Results
The analysis identified several factors associated with reporting a chronic disease. Higher odds were observed among female-headed households (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 1.26; 95% CI: 1.06–1.48) and divorced individuals (AOR: 1.92; 95% CI: 1.55–2.37). Conversely, lower odds were associated with higher education (AOR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.34–0.82) and nomadic residence (AOR: 0.34; 95% CI: 0.22–0.51). Unexpectedly, lack of electricity and no savings were also associated with lower odds, likely reflecting diagnostic access bias and reverse causation.
Conclusion
Findings suggest that self-reported chronic diseases are associated with specific socio-demographic vulnerabilities in Somaliland. The results should be interpreted with extreme caution and viewed as hypothesis-generating at best. Future research using objective measures and representative sampling is urgently needed to validate these associations and accurately quantify the NCD burden.
期刊介绍:
This journal aims to promote progress from basic research to clinical practice and to provide a forum for communication among basic, translational, and clinical research practitioners and physicians from all relevant disciplines. Chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, stroke, chronic respiratory diseases (such as asthma and COPD), chronic kidney diseases, and related translational research. Topics of interest for Chronic Diseases and Translational Medicine include Research and commentary on models of chronic diseases with significant implications for disease diagnosis and treatment Investigative studies of human biology with an emphasis on disease Perspectives and reviews on research topics that discuss the implications of findings from the viewpoints of basic science and clinical practic.