Chrishantha Abeysena

• MBBS, MSc, MD, PgDipStat, BA, MA, MA
• Professor (Full) at University of Kelaniya

Introduction Postpartum depression is easily managed when detected early. Since mothers’ and newborns’ health is influenced by fathers, good knowledge and positive attitudes toward postpartum depression among fathers would help in early detection and early intervention. Objective To describe the knowledge and attitudes of expectant fathers about p...

Improve the quality and coverage of National Cervical Cancer Screening programme

Background Cervical cancer is the 2nd most common female cancer among Sri Lankan females and is almost associated with sexually transmitted cervicovaginal human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. The study objectives were to determine the prevalence of vaginal and cervical HPV infection among 35year old ever-married women and assess the validity of pr...

Objective To determine the effectiveness of a video-based intervention, the V-BIS, in improving the interpersonal communication skills (IPCS) of public health midwives (PHMs). Design A cluster randomised trial. Setting The setting is a Medical Officer of Health (MOH) area, the district’s basic administrative unit in public health. The study was c...

Background Ovarian cancer is the sixth most prevalent and fatal cancer among females worldwide. Antioxidants have some proven anticancer effects by limiting oxidative stress. Selenium is a powerful antioxidant and protects cells from the destruction caused by peroxides. This study aimed to determine the association between selenium intake and Epith...

Background Cervical cancer is the 2 nd most common female cancer among Sri Lankan females and is almost associated with sexually transmitted cervicovaginal human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. The study objective is to determine the prevalence of vaginal HPV infection among ever-married

Background Health policies form the foundation for provisioning best level care and are important for all stakeholders including patients and healthcare providers. Health policy analysis and evaluation allows policy makers to improve an existing policy, terminate a non-effective policy and to successfully implement future policies. The objective wa...

Background: Many lifestyle modification interventions have been introduced for young elderly population (aged from 60 to 74 years) in Sri Lanka to improve their health and well-being. However, little is known about the outcome of those interventions as there is no valid tool available to measure the level of a healthy lifestyle. This study was cond...

Introduction: Selenium (Se) may have a protective effect against some selected cancers. Ovarian cancer is ranked as one of the major killers of all gynecological malignancies worldwide. The objective of this study is to find the relationship between selenium intake and Epithelial Ovarian Cancer risk in women who have not had an oophorectomy.

Background The ability to obtain adequate staff, supplies, structures, and systems to provide sufficient care to meet the immediate needs of an influx of patients is defined as surge capacity. The research aimed to describe the surge capacity of curative-healthcare institutions for disaster management at disease endemic district of Sri Lanka. Metho...

Introduction: Selenium (Se) may have a protective effect against some selected cancers. Ovarian cancer is ranked as one of the major killers of all gynecological malignancies worldwide. The objective of this study is to find the relationship between selenium intake and Epithelial Ovarian Cancer risk in women who have not had an oophorectomy. Method...

Background: The model medication adherence questionnaire (MMA) measures oral medication adherence among patients with type 2 diabetes (DM). The validity of the questionnaire needs to be objectively demonstrated. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out among adult patients with type 2 DM who attended clinics in District General...

Background Interpersonal Communication Skills (IPCS) are one of the core clinical skills that should be developed by the Public Health Midwives (PHMs), who are grass-root level public healthcare providers in primary healthcare settings in Sri Lanka. This study aimed to develop and validate the Interpersonal Communication Assessment Tool (IPCAT), an...

Introduction: Medication adherence among patients with type 2 diabetes (DM) is assessed in everyday clinical practice. Objectives: To develop a questionnaire to measure adherence to oral medication among patients with DM and to assess its psychometric properties Methods: The “Model Medication Adherence (MMA)” questionnaire was developed using the e...

Introduction Dengue has become a major health problem in globally as well as locally. The delay in health-seeking is significantly associated with complications leading to severe dengue and active engagement of communities needs to minimize the delays in management to control epidemics. The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between...

Background Incident management systems and disaster planning processes facilitate maximal use of available resources. Evaluation of the Incident Command System (ICS) is one of the top five key areas of research priority in the field of surge. The study was aimed at assessing the disaster preparedness and ICS of the public healthcare institutions fo...

Introduction: Globally, endometrial carcinoma is the most common reproductive tract cancer among women. Risk prediction model is a simple, low-cost tool to identify women with increased risk of developing endometrial carcinoma. Objectives: The aim of the study was to develop a model to predict the risk of endometrial carcinoma among postmenopausal...

Introduction: Complex interventions are widely used in public health practices with noteworthy health impacts. Communication for Behavioural Impact (COMBI) plan is an effective method directed at enacting behaviour change to benefit health and social development which encourage precise behavioural outcomes and is effective in planning a behavioural...

The foremost concern of disaster management is to minimize human suffering, where the health sector has to play a critical role. Doctors play a major role by getting directly involved as the decision-makers and first responders in patient management. The study aimed to assess the individual-level capacity of the doctors for the management of mass c...

The role of modelling in predicting the spread of an epidemic is important for health planning and policies. This study aimed to apply a dynamic Susceptible-Exposed-Infected-Recovered-Deaths (SEIRD) model and simulated it under a range of epidemic conditions using the Python programming language. The predictions were based on different scenarios, f...

Acceptability, simplicity, and relevance of the new human papillomavirus/DNA test among 35-year-old eve married women in a district of Sri Lanka: focus group discussions Cervical cancer is the 2 nd leading cause of female cancer in Sri Lanka. Two major drawbacks of the present cervical cancer screening programme in Sri Lanka are, the suboptimal sen...

Introduction Health systems resilience is the ability to prepare, manage and learn from a sudden and unpredictable extreme change that impacts health systems. Health systems globally have recently been affected by a number of catastrophic events, including natural disasters and infectious disease epidemics. Understanding health systems resilience h...

Protocol registered on Prospero for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis titled "Comprehensive Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the association between Selenium and Epithelial Ovarian Cancer (EOC) among women"

Background: Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) has been identified as a major public health problem for the past few decades. The study aimed to determine the prevalence CKD. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using the multistage cluster sampling technique. Study participants were 767 adults of 30 to 70 years. The estimated glome...

Introduction Complex interventions are widely used in public health practices. Communication for Behavioural Impact (COMBI) is an effective method in planning for dengue control. The aim was to develop an intervention package to change behaviour to prevent dengue in a dengue endemic area of Sri Lanka. Methods Development of the intervention packag...

Introduction Health system resilience is the ability to prepare, manage, and learn from a sudden and unpredictable extreme change which impacts health systems. Health systems globally have recently been affected by a number of catastrophic events, including natural disasters, and infectious disease epidemics. Understanding health system resilience...

Background Two major drawbacks of the present cervical cancer screening programme in Sri Lanka are, the suboptimal sensitivity of the pap smear and the low coverage. The sensitivity of the HPV/DNA screening test is high. The objective of the study was to explore the acceptability relevance and simplicity of the new HPV/DNA screening implementation...

Introduction: Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) are universal. The objective was to describe the knowledge and attitudes and explore the perceptions regarding SRHR among undergraduates. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 1575 undergraduates using stratified cluster sampling of the selected universities. A pre-tested sel...

Introduction: Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) are universal. The objective was to describe the knowledge and attitudes and explore the perceptions regarding SRHR among undergraduates. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 1575 undergraduates using stratified cluster sampling of the selected universities. A pre-tested sel...

Background: Even after 20 years of existence of the cervical cancer programme with pap smears, there is no marked reduction in the incidence of cervical cancer in Sri Lanka. Therefore, the cervical cancer screening programme needs to be reviewed again. Objective: To explore the perceptions of cervical cancer screening programme among health care wo...

Background: Cervical cancer is the 2nd leading cause of female cancer in Sri Lanka. All cervical cancers are virtually associated with human papillomavirus infection. HPV/DNA screening test is highly sensitive for high risk types of HPV (sensitivity 82%-100%). Therefore it’s important to find acceptability, relevance and simplicity of new HPV/DNA t...

Background: Cervical cancer is the 2nd leading cause of female cancer in Sri Lanka and annually 1721 new cases of cervical cancers are diagnosed and 690 women die from the disease, according to the 2012 estimates. Cervical cancers are virtually associated with sexually transmitted human papilloma virus (HPV) infection. Persistent infection with car...

Background: Persistent HPV infection with high risk oncogenic HPV genotypes can cause cervical cancer within 10-15 years, with a progression rate of 10%. Genotypes 16 and 18 contribute to about 70% of all cervical cancers worldwide. Other high-risk types are genotypes 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, and 68. One major drawback of the pre...

Background: Cervical cancer is the 2nd leading cause of female cancer in Sri Lanka. Hence, in 1998, Sri Lanka took the initiative to include screening for cervical cancer with conventional papaniculaou (pap) smear in the Well Woman Clinics. However, even after 20 years of cervical cancer screening (with pap smears), there is no marked reduction in...

Background: Persistent HPV infection with high risk oncogenic HPV genotypes can cause cervical cancer within 10-15 years, with a progression rate of 10%. Genotypes 16 and 18 contribute to about 70% of all cervical cancers worldwide. Other high-risk types are genotypes 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, and 68. One major drawback of the pre...

Background: Currently, pap smears are used to screen cervical cancers in Sri Lanka. Two major drawbacks of pap smear screening method are the suboptimal sensitivity and the low coverage. HPV/DNA screening method can be used as a cervical cancer screening method and high sensitivity (92.9%) is the major advantage of it. Specimens can be collected fo...

Background: Cervical cancer is the 2nd leading cause of female cancer in Sri Lanka and annually thousand seven hundred and twenty one new cases of cervical cancers are diagnosed and 690 women are died from the disease, according to 2012 estimates. Even after 20 years of cervical cancer screening (with pap smears), there is no marked reduction in in...

Background: Cervical cancer is the 2nd leading cause of female cancer in Sri Lanka. Hence, in 1998, Sri Lanka took the initiative to include screening for cervical cancer with conventional papaniculaou (pap) smear in the Well Woman Clinics. However, even after 20 years of cervical cancer screening (with pap smears), there is no marked reduction in...

Background: Even after 20 years of cervical cancer screening with pap smears, there is no marked reduction in incidence, morbidity and mortality of cervical cancer in Sri Lanka. Two major drawbacks of the present programme are the suboptimal sensitivity (53%) of the pap smear to detect Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia (CIN) and the low coverage....

Background: HPV/DNA screening test has an optimum sensitivity (92.9%) to detect cervical lesions. The objective of the study was to estimate the cost of cobas 4800 HPV/DNA test in thin prep cell collection media.

ISSN 2522-9400 European Modern Studies Journal Vol 5 No 1available at journal-ems.com73 European Modern Studies Journal, 2021, 5(2) Perception of Cervical Cancer Screening Program among Healthcare Workers in a District of Sri Lanka: A Qualitative Study[1]Perera, K.C.M., [2] Abeysena, H.T.C.S., [3] Mapitigama, N.[1]Directorate of Non-Communicable D...

Objective The aim of this study was to determine the risk factors for neonatal sepsis. Methods A case–control study was performed in secondary and tertiary care hospitals of a district in Sri Lanka. Neonates who diagnosed with sepsis based on clinical criteria or culture positivity were taken as the case group (n = 240) and neonates born during the...

Background Cervical cancer is the second commonest female cancer in Sri Lanka. Two major drawbacks of the present cervical cancer screening programme are the suboptimal sensitivity of the pap smear and the low coverage. The objective of the study is to determine the feasibility of a new HPV/DNA test among 35 -years -old ever-married women in a dist...

Introduction: Identifying women who are at risk of developing endometrial carcinoma helps to personalize the management strategies by increasing the survival of high-risk women. Objectives: To estimate the 'at risk' prevalence and prevalence of selected risk factors for endometrial carcinoma among postmenopausal women in the district of Colombo Met...

Evaluation of COVID-19 tests: Epidemiological approach Introduction: Diagnostic tests are never perfect, leading to inaccurate decisions by healthcare workers. Study aimed to compile the evidence and facilitate the epidemiological interpretation of testing available for the COVID-19. Methods:Published systematic reviews, especially Cochrane revie...

HIV/AIDS Politics and Policy in South Asia

SURGE-CAPACITY OF THE PREVENTIVE HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF DENGUE IN KURUNEGALA DISTRICT Rajapaksha RMNU1*, Abeysena HTCS2, Balasuriya A3 1 Senior Registrar in Community Medicine, Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka; 2Senior Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Raga...

Annual Academic Sessions of CCPSL, 2021

Best Poster of the AASCCPSL, 2021

Background: In 1998, conventional papanic0laou smear screening was included in the Well Woman Clinic (WWC) program as a cervical cancer screening method. The objective of the study was to explore the perception of cervical cancer screening programs among healthcare workers in a district of Sri Lanka.

Introduction: The quality of paediatric asthma management in the in-ward settings has not been assessed in Sri Lanka.Objectives: To describe the quality of care in the management of asthmatic children with regard to compliance with the guidelinesMethods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in state hospitals with paediatric units in...

Introduction: Health Technology Assessment (HTA) is a policy tool for informed decision making that supports the entry and use of health-technologies. Three main forces have driven the development of HTA; rising healthcare demands and expectations, scarcity of resources, and increasing entry of new technologies to the healthcare market. With a comm...

This study aimed to describe knowledge and attitudes on sexually transmitted infections (STI) and HIV among undergraduates in state universities of Western province, Sri Lanka. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among second and third year undergraduates in 2014. The stratified cluster sampling method was applied to select 1575 under...

Introduction: Sedentary behaviour is a risk factor for several diseases. Validation of questionnaires on sedentary activity is a great challenge. Objectives: To translate, culturally adapt and validate the Adolescent Sedentary Activity Questionnaire (ASAQ) among school children Methods: Back translation method was used to translate ASAQ into Sinhal...

Introduction: Postpartum weight gain places a woman at risk of developing overweight and obesity in later life. Objectives: To determine the factors associated with weight retention at six months after childbirth among mothers who attended child welfare clinics in two medical officer of health (MOH) areas. Methods: This was a descriptive-cross sect...

Introduction : Patient satisfaction is considered to be a vital component in the evaluation of the quality of care.Objectives: To describe the maternal satisfaction on care received by the neonates and mothers during their stay in the secondary and tertiary care hospitals in a district of Sri Lanka.Methods: This was a descriptive study conducted am...

Medical Officers (MOs) need to update their knowledge with diagnosis of diseases, current treatment modalities, guidelines on management etc. in order to provide a better service to the intended communities. The present study attempts to identify the information needs, perceived barriers and challenges of MOs attached to “Divisional Hospital Type-C...

Background: Hepatitis A virus (HAV) is one of the commonest food and water borne infectious diseases. The objective of the study was to determine the risk factors of HAV infection in the Gampha District in Sri Lanka. Methods: This was an unmatched case control study conducted between January 2015 and November 2016 comprising of 504 participants...

Introduction: Adherence to infection control practices are crucial for neonatal care. Objectives: To describe the adherence to clean birth and postnatal care practices by healthcare workers in selected procedures in major hospitals in a district of Sri Lanka Methods: This was a qualitative observational study. The study sample comprised healthcare...

Introduction: Variations in endometrial carcinoma awareness among postmenopausal women may explain the variations in care seeking pattern for symptoms associated with endometrial carcinoma. Objectives: To describe the awareness and care seeking pattern for symptoms associated with endometrial carcinoma among postmenopausal women in the district...

Background: Endometrial carcinoma burden is on the rise globally. The objective of this study was to determine the risk factors for endometrial carcinoma among postmenopausal women in Western province in Sri Lanka. Methods: A case control study was conducted recruiting 83 incident cases of endometrial carcinoma and 332 unmatched hospital control...

Introduction: The postpartum period is generally a time of happiness and bonding between mother and the newborn, but complicated pregnancies can alter this. Postpartum depression (PPD) is a common complication of childbirth. Objectives: To determine the effect of neonatal sepsis on PPD of mothers Methods: This was a descriptive study conducted in s...

Introduction: In recent years, Sri Lanka has experienced a surge in the incidence of dengue. Among other reasons, internal migration of people into dengue-high risk areas is thought to be an important factor for the rising case load. Objectives: To identify the factors associated with internal migration of low-income adults among dengue patients in...

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of a reproductive health educational package to reduce RSB among undergraduates in selected state universities in Sri Lanka. Methods: A quasi-randomized controlled trial was conducted among undergraduates in 2014. Two universities were selected randomly either to the intervention or as the control group. From...

Objective: To describe knowledge and attitudes on contraceptives among undergraduates in the state universities of the Western Province Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted among 1575 second and third year undergraduates using stratified cluster sampling of the selected universities. A pre-tested self-administered questionnair...

Introduction: Asthma is considered to be one of the major public health problems. The accurate knowledge of caregiver on asthma is important for the management. Objectives: To describe the knowledge on primary and secondary prevention of asthma among caregivers of asthmatic children admitted to the paediatric wards in the district of Gampaha Method...

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of health education intervention for caregivers of children with asthma, focused on preventing recurrent attacks and improving knowledge. Methods: A quasi-randomized trial of 177 caregivers of asthmatic children was conducted in government hospitals in a district of Sri Lanka. At the time of discharge from...

Background Hepatitis A Virus (HAV) is one of the most common food and water borne infectious disease prevailing globally. The objective of the study was to determine sero-prevalence of HAV infection in a district of Sri Lanka. Methods This was a descriptive cross sectional study conducted on 1403 participants aged 1 year and above selected by mult...

Objective To describe available facilities and equipment in ambulances, to provide essential emergency care, which transport patients to the National Hospital of Sri Lanka Methods A descriptive cross-sectional hospital based study was carried out at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka from August to October 2008. All ambulances that arrived at the h...

Objective: To describe the symptoms of dengue at acute and post-infection stage and to identify preventive strategies adopted by the patients in the Western Province, Sri Lanka. Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in the Western Province of Sri Lanka in November 2017. The study population consisted of 473 confirmed dengu...

Background: Good health is essential for older people to remain independent and to play a significant role in the family as well as in the community. Home accident is one that causes significant morbidity and mortality in the elderly population and a burden to the family and country. Objective: To determine the incidence and factors associated with...

Rationale, aims, and objectives Clinical practice guidelines (CPG) play a major role in patient care in Sri Lanka. This study evaluates the methodological quality of the Sri Lankan CPGs developed in 2007. Methods A total of 94 CPGs developed by several professional colleges in Sri Lanka in the year 2007 were evaluated by 2 independent reviewers us...

Background: Physical inactivity is a major risk factor for NCD related global mortality. Sri Lanka is on the verge of an epidemic of NCDs. It is imperative that the pattern of physical activity is assessed among adolescents. Objective: To describe the pattern of physical activity among school children aged 14-15 years in the district of Kalutara Me...

Abstract Objective: To describe the knowledge and attitudes on unsafe abortions among undergraduates in the state universities of the Western Province. Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted among 1575 second and third year undergraduates using stratified cluster sampling of the selected universities. Pre-tested self-administe...

Background: Risky sexual behaviors (RSB) are becoming an important problem all over the world. RSB are defined as behaviors leading to sexually transmitted diseases and unintended pregnancies. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and associated factors of RSB among undergraduate students in state universities of Western Prov...

Background Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Hence, CKD patients are often in chronic psychological distress. The objective of the study was to describe factors associated with psychological distress of CKD patients attending National Nephrology Unit. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was condu...

Objective To determine the risk of sedentary behavior during leisure time, physical activity and dietary habits on overweight among school children aged 14–15 years in Kalutara District, Sri Lanka. Results School based case–control study was conducted during September to November 2013 including 176 overweight children as cases and 704 children wit...

Background: Overweight in childhood is an emerging health problem in developing countries. The increasing trend in overweight is associated with three important factors; dietary habits, physical activity and socio-economic changes. Objective: To determine the risk factors for overweight among Grade 5 students in schools of Gampaha Medical Officer...

Introduction Fishermen are special group of people who are more vulnerable to non-communicable diseases due to occupation specific conditions.Objective To determine the prevalence of accidental injuries, hypertension, malnutrition, smoking and alcohol consumption among fishermen in Divisional Secretariat Division of Kalpitiya.Methodology This was a...

Authorship is the fulfillment of the responsibility to communicate research results to the scientific community for external evaluation and the primary basis for assessing a scientist’s contributions to developing new knowledge (1). It is also a way of giving credit for intellectual work. Research publications are also important for academic promot...

Objective To determine prevalence of bronchial asthma (BA) and its correlates and respiratory functions among selected garment factory workers (GFW) at the Free Trade Zone, Ekala.Methods This consisted of a cross sectional descriptive and an analytical study. It was conducted at three selected garment factories and a clinic setting in Ekala. Study...

Guideline development, implementation and research in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC)- A pilot survey by G-I-N LMIC Working Group G-I-N LMIC Working Group with inputs from (alphabetic); Brian Bilal, Carl Nwana, Chrishantha Abeysena, Emmanuel Effa, Irene Maweu, Joseph L Mathew, Olena Lishchyshyna, Patrick Okwen, Sue Huckson, Yasser Sami Amer,...