Health status of children left behind in rural areas of Sichuan Province of China: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Background Adolescent pregnancy is a risk factor for suicide. We aimed to assess the prevalence of suicide attempts among young women with adolescent pregnancy in Bangladesh and to explore its associated factors. Methods In this cross-sectional study, we surveyed young women with adolescent pregnancy in urban and rural areas in Bangladesh to assess suicide attempts, socio-demographic and pregnancy-related characteristics, perceived health status, and perceived social support. Binary logistic regression analysis was conducted to explore the relationship between potentially related factors and suicide attempts. Results Of the participants, 6.5% (61/940) reported suicide attempts in the past 12 months, and the majority (88.5%) of the attempts happened within one year after the pregnancy. Participants with more years after first pregnancy (odds ratio (OR) = 0.47, 95% CI: 0.37–0.61) and more perceived social support from friends (OR = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.55–0.86) were less likely to have suicide attempts, and those perceived bad health status compared with good/fair health status (OR = 8.38, 95% CI: 3.08–22.76) were more likely to attempt suicide. Conclusions Women with adolescent pregnancy were at high risk of suicide attempts, especially those during the first postnatal year. The risk of suicide attempts attenuated with the time after pregnancy, and perceived social support from friends was a protective factor and perceived bad health status was a risk factor for suicide attempts among young women who have experienced adolescent pregnancy.

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Characteristics of Confidence and Preparedness in Paramedics in Metropolitan, Regional, and Rural Australia to Manage Mental-Health-Related Presentations: A Cross-Sectional Study

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18041882 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 1882

Author(s):

Kate Emond ◽

Melanie Bish ◽

Michael Savic ◽

Dan I. Lubman ◽

Terence McCann ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Categorical Variables ◽

Considerable Proportion ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Health Related ◽

Manage Mental ◽

Manage Mental Health

Mental-health-related presentations account for a considerable proportion of the paramedic’s workload in prehospital care. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the perceived confidence and preparedness of paramedics in Australian metropolitan and rural areas to manage mental-health-related presentations. Overall, 1140 paramedics were surveyed. Pearson chi-square and Fisher exact tests were used to compare categorical variables by sex and location of practice; continuous variables were compared using the non-parametric Mann–Whitney and Kruskal–Wallis tests. Perceived confidence and preparedness were each modelled in multivariable ordinal regressions. Female paramedics were younger with higher qualifications but were less experienced than their male counterparts. Compared to paramedics working in metropolitan regions, those working in rural and regional areas were generally older with fewer qualifications and were significantly less confident and less prepared to manage mental health presentations (p = 0.001). Compared to male paramedics, females were less confident (p = 0.003), although equally prepared (p = 0.1) to manage mental health presentations. These results suggest that higher qualifications from the tertiary sector may not be adequately preparing paramedics to manage mental health presentations, which signifies a disparity between education provided and workforce preparedness. Further work is required to address the education and training requirements of paramedics in regional and rural areas to increase confidence and preparedness in managing mental health presentations.

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PROMIS Scales for Assessment of Persistent Post-COVID Symptoms: A Cross Sectional Study

Journal of Primary Care & Community Health ◽

10.1177/21501327211030413 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

pp. 215013272110304

Author(s):

Ravindra Ganesh ◽

Aditya K. Ghosh ◽

Mark A. Nyman ◽

Ivana T. Croghan ◽

Stephanie L. Grach ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Status ◽

Social Roles ◽

Disease Process ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Large Sample Size ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Data Set ◽

Patient Reported ◽

The Impact

Objective Persistent post-COVID symptoms are estimated to occur in up to 10% of patients who have had COVID-19. These lingering symptoms may persist for weeks to months after resolution of the acute illness. This study aimed to add insight into our understanding of certain post-acute conditions and clinical findings. The primary purpose was to determine the persistent post COVID impairments prevalence and characteristics by collecting post COVID illness data utilizing Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®). The resulting measures were used to assess surveyed patients physical, mental, and social health status. Methods A cross-sectional study and 6-months Mayo Clinic COVID recovered registry data were used to evaluate continuing symptoms severity among the 817 positive tested patients surveyed between March and September 2020. The resulting PROMIS® data set was used to analyze patients post 30 days health status. The e-mailed questionnaires focused on fatigue, sleep, ability to participate in social roles, physical function, and pain. Results The large sample size (n = 817) represented post hospitalized and other managed outpatients. Persistent post COVID impairments prevalence and characteristics were determined to be demographically young (44 years), white (87%), and female (61%). Dysfunction as measured by the PROMIS® scales in patients recovered from acute COVID-19 was reported as significant in the following domains: ability to participate in social roles (43.2%), pain (17.8%), and fatigue (16.2%). Conclusion Patient response on the PROMIS® scales was similar to that seen in multiple other studies which used patient reported symptoms. As a result of this experience, we recommend utilizing standardized scales such as the PROMIS® to obtain comparable data across the patients’ clinical course and define the disease trajectory. This would further allow for effective comparison of data across studies to better define the disease process, risk factors, and assess the impact of future treatments.

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Oral Health Status of 12-Year-Old Hani Children in the Yunnan Province of China: A Cross-Sectional Study

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18105294 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (10) ◽

pp. 5294

Author(s):

Kitty Jieyi Chen ◽

Ni Zhou ◽

Biao Xu ◽

Yuexiao Li ◽

Shinan Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Status ◽

Oral Health ◽

Dental Caries ◽

Yunnan Province ◽

Dental Fluorosis ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Oral Health Status ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Gingival Bleeding

Background: The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the oral health status of Hani 12-year-old children in Yunnan, a province in Southwest China. Method: This study employed a multistage sampling method to recruit children from local primary schools. Two calibrated dentists examined the status of dental caries, gingival bleeding and dental fluorosis by adopting the diagnosis criteria recommended by the World Health Organization. A self-administrated questionnaire was distributed. The chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression were conducted. Results: This study invited 480 Hani children, and recruited 413 children (52% boys) (response rate: 86%). The dental caries prevalence was 52%, and the caries experience associated with the mean (standard deviation) decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT) score was 1.10 (1.46). Gingival bleeding was diagnosed in 252 children (61%), and dental fluorosis was found in two children (0.5%). The results of the regression model indicated the prevalence of dental caries were associated with sugary snacking habits (p = 0.002). The prevalence of gingival bleeding was related to the mother’s education level as well as the child’s monthly pocket money (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Dental caries and gingival bleeding were prevalent among 12-year-old Hani children in the Yunnan province in China. Dental fluorosis was uncommon.

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Factors Influencing HIV Drug Resistance among Pregnant Women in Luanda, Angola: Findings from a Cross-Sectional Study

Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease ◽

10.3390/tropicalmed6010029 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 29

Author(s):

Cruz S. Sebastião ◽

Joana Morais ◽

Miguel Brito

Keyword(s):

Drug Resistance ◽

Pregnant Women ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Drug Resistant ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Hiv Drug Resistance ◽

Hiv 1 ◽

High Educational

The increase in HIV infection and drug-resistant strains is an important public health concern, especially in resource-limited settings. However, the identification of factors related to the propagation of infectious diseases represents a crucial target offering an opportunity to reduce health care costs as well as deepening the focus on preventing infection in high-risk groups. In this study, we investigate the factors related to drug resistance among HIV-infected pregnant women in Luanda, the capital city of Angola. This was a part of a cross-sectional study conducted with 42 HIV-positive pregnant women. A blood sample was collected, and HIV-1 genotyping was carried out using an in-house method. Multivariate analyses were performed to determine the interaction between sociodemographic characteristics and drug resistance. HIV drug resistance was detected in 44.1% of the studied population. High probabilities of drug resistance were observed for HIV-infected pregnant women living in rural areas (AOR: 2.73; 95% CI: 0.50–14.9) with high educational level (AOR: 6.27; 95% CI: 0.77–51.2) and comorbidities (AOR: 5.47; 95% CI: 0.28–106) and infected with a HIV-1 non-B subtype other than subtype C (AOR: 1.60; 95% CI: 0.25–10.3). The present study reports high HIV drug resistance. Furthermore, older-age, rural areas, high educational levels, unemployed status, having comorbidities, and HIV-1 subtypes were factors related to drug resistance. These factors impact on drug susceptibility and need to be urgently addressed in order to promote health education campaigns able to prevent the spread of drug-resistant HIV strains in Angola.

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Functional status and oral health in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A cross-sectional study

Neurorehabilitation ◽

10.3233/nre-201537 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Alessandro de Sire ◽

Marco Invernizzi ◽

Martina Ferrillo ◽

Francesca Gimigliano ◽

Alessio Baricich ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Health Status ◽

Oral Health ◽

Functional Status ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Oral Health Status ◽

Multidisciplinary Management ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Lateral Sclerosis

BACKGROUND: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting upper and lower motor neurons. The current practice of caring for patients affected by ALS involves a multidisciplinary team without any indication about oral health care. OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate the functional status and oral health in patients with ALS to define a specific multidisciplinary management. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, we included patients affected by ALS, evaluating their functional status, using the Revised ALS Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) and their oral health status through specific parameters, including Brief Oral Health Status Examination (BOHSE), Winkel Tongue Coating Index (WTCI), and Oral Food Debris Index (OFDI). RESULTS: All 37 patients (mean age: 61.19±11.56 years) showed a poor oral status, independent from the functional status and strictly correlated to the severity of sialorrhea (p = 0.01). OFDI index was negatively correlated with the ALSFRS-R upper limb (p = 0.03). Patients with bulbar onset had significantly lower ability to perform adequate tongue movements in terms of protrusion (p = 0.006) and lateralization (p < 0.001). Significant negative correlations between survival rate and BOHSE (p = 0.03) was found. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our findings showed that a poor oral health status might be correlated to a worse functional status and survival time. Thus, an adequate oral health care and rehabilitation should be considered as crucial in the multidisciplinary management of patients with ALS.

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