scholarly journals Knowledge, beliefs and practices regarding prevention of bacterial meningitis in Burkina Faso, 5 years after MenAfriVac mass campaigns

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. e0253263
Author(s):  
Judith E. Mueller ◽  
Joy Seanehia ◽  
Seydou Yaro ◽  
Caroline L. Trotter ◽  
Ray Borrow ◽  
...  

Background To adapt communications concerning vaccine prevention, we studied knowledge, beliefs and practices around meningitis risk and prevention in a young adult population in Burkina Faso in 2016, 5 years after the MenAfriVac® mass campaign and one year before the vaccine’s inclusion in the infant immunization schedule. Methods In a representative sample of the population aged 15 to 33 years (N = 220) in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, study nurses administered a standardized paper questionnaire consisting of predominantly open questions, collecting information on meningitis risk factors and prevention, and on exposure to dry air and kitchen fire smoke. We identified themes and analyzed their frequency. We created a meningitis knowledge score (range 0 to 4) based on pre-defined best responses and analyzed the determinants of knowledge score levels ≥2 (basic score) and ≥3 (high score) using multivariate logistic regression. Results Biomedically supported facts and good practices were known by the majority of participants (eg vaccine prevention, 84.5%). Younger women aged 15–20 years had a higher frequency of low scores <2 (17.0%) compared to older women aged 21–33 years (6.3%) and men of both age groups (3.8%). Junior secondary School attendance explained the differences between the two groups of women, the gender gap for the older, but not the young women, and explained score differences among young women. Local understandings and practices for risk and prevention were commonly reported and used (risk from unripe mango consumption and prevention through nasal application of shea nut butter). Discussion This study shows a gender gap in knowledge of meningitis risk and prevention, largely due to education-level inequalities. Women below 21 years had particularly low levels of knowledge and may need interventions outside schools and perinatal care. Our study suggests a strong adherence to local understandings of and practices around meningitis risk and prevention, which should be taken into account by vaccination promotion.

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Pronzato ◽  
G. Mustacchi ◽  
A. De Matteis ◽  
F. Di Costanzo ◽  
E. Rulli ◽  
...  

Background. The present paper described the biological characteristics and clinical behavior of young women in the cohort NORA studyPatients and Methods. From 2000–2002, patients () were enrolled at 77 Italian hospitals. Women aged years () were stratified into age groups (, 36–40, 41–45, and 46–50 years). The relationship between age and patient characteristics, cancer presentation, and treatment was analyzed.Results. Younger women more frequently had tumors with ER/PgR-negative(; ), HER2 amplification (; ), and high () Ki67 labelling index (; ). Positive nodal status, large tumors, and elevated Ki67 all associated with the choice for chemotherapy followed by endocrine therapy in hormone receptor-positive patients (). At univariate analysis, ER-ve status, chemotherapy and age resulted as the only statistically significant variables (, , and versus , , resp.). At multivariate analysis, after adjustment for significant clinical and pathological factors, age remains a significant prognostic variable (, ).Conclusion. This cohort study suggests that ageper sèis an important prognostic factor. The restricted role of early diagnosis and the aggressive behavior of cancer in this population make necessary the application of targeted medical strategies crucial.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Höglund ◽  
Camilla Hakelind ◽  
Steven Nordin

Abstract Background Taking a broad approach, the aim of this study was to better understand the extent of severity and prevalence in various types of mental ill-health across age groups and sexes in the general adult population. A first objective was to determine symptom severity of anxiety, depression, insomnia, burnout and somatization in combinations of different age groups and sex. A second objective was to determine prevalence of caseness of these types of mental ill-health in both absolute and relative terms in the combinations of age groups and sex. Methods Cross-sectional data based on validated questionnaire instruments were used from the Västerbotten Environmental Health Study in Sweden. In total, 3406 participants, aged 18 to 79 years, constituted a random sample stratified for age and sex. Results Severity and prevalence of anxiety, insomnia and burnout were high among women, in particular young women, and lower in older age groups. The prevalence rates for insomnia, burnout and somatization were particularly high based on the used cut-off scores. Men aged 30-49 years had the highest prevalence for mental ill-health compared to other age groups among men. Men and women aged 60-69 years had generally the lowest symptom severity and caseness. The prevalence for depression was similar in men and women in all age groups, whereas sex-related differences in extent in general were largest in the youngest age group, and gradually decreased with age. Conclusion The results suggest that focus in primary healthcare needs to be directed primarily towards insomnia, burnout and somatization as well as on young women.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Höglund ◽  
Camilla Hakelind ◽  
Steven Nordin

Abstract Background Taking a broad approach, the aim of this study was to better understand the extent of severity and prevalence in various types of mental ill-health across age groups and sexes in the general adult population. A first objective was to determine symptom severity of anxiety, depression, insomnia, burnout and somatization in combinations of different age groups and sex. A second objective was to determine prevalence of caseness of these types of mental ill-health in both absolute and relative terms in the combinations of age groups and sex. Methods Cross-sectional data based on validated questionnaire instruments were used from the Västerbotten Environmental Health Study in Sweden. In total, 3406 participants, aged 18 to 79 years, constituted a random sample stratified for age and sex. Results Severity and prevalence of anxiety, insomnia and burnout were high among women, in particular young women, and lower in older age groups. The prevalence rates for insomnia, burnout and somatization were particularly high based on the used cut-off scores. Men aged 30-49 years had the highest prevalence for mental ill-health compared to other age groups among men. Men and women aged 60-69 years had generally the lowest symptom severity and caseness. The prevalence for depression was similar in men and women in all age groups, whereas sex-related differences in extent in general were largest in the youngest age group, and gradually decreased with age. Conclusion The results suggest that focus in primary healthcare needs to be directed primarily towards insomnia, burnout and somatization as well as on young women.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-142
Author(s):  
Stephanie Couch ◽  
Audra Skukauskaite ◽  
Leigh B. Estabrooks

The lack of diversity among patent holders in the United States (1-3) is a topic that is being discussed by federal policymakers. Available data suggests that prolific patent holders and leading technology innovators are 88.3% male and nearly 94.3% Asian, Pacific Islander, or White, and half of the diversity that does exist is among those who are foreign born (3). The data shows that there is a need for greater diversity among patent holders. Few studies, however, are available to guide the work of educators creating learning opportunities to help young people from diverse backgrounds learn to invent. Educators must navigate issues that have complex sociocultural and historical dimensions (4), which shape the ideas of those surrounding them regarding who can invent, with whom, under what conditions, and for what purposes. In this paper, we report the results of an ongoing multimethod study of an invention education pro- gram that has worked with teachers and students in Grades 6 through 12 for the past 16 years. Findings stem from an analysis of end-of-year experience surveys and interview transcripts of six students (three young men and three young women) who participated in high school InvenTeams®. The data were used to investigate three topics: 1) ways high school students who have participated on an InvenTeam conceptualize the term "failure" and what it means to "learn from failure," 2) what supported and constrained the work of the three young women during their InvenTeams experience and the implications for policy makers concerned about the gender gap in patenting, and 3) ways the young men and young women took up (or didn't take up) the identity of "inventor" after working on a team that developed a working prototype of an invention during the previous school year.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sébastien Czernichow ◽  
Adeline Renuy ◽  
Claire Rives-Lange ◽  
Claire Carette ◽  
Guillaume Airagnes ◽  
...  

AbstractThis study provides trends in obesity prevalence in adults from 2013 to 2016 in France. 63,582 men and women from independent samples upon inclusion from the Constances cohort were included. Anthropometrics were measured at Health Screening Centers and obesity defined as a Body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m2; obesity classes according to BMI are as follows: class 1 [30–34.9]; class 2 [35–39.9]; class 3 [≥ 40 kg/m2]. Linear trends across obesity classes by sex and age groups were examined in regression models and percentage point change from 2013 to 2016 for each age category calculated. All analyses accounted for sample weights for non-response, age and sex-calibrated to the French population. Prevalence of obesity ranged from 14.2 to 15.2% and from 14 to 15.3% in women and men respectively from 2013 to 2016. Class 1 obesity category prevalence was the only one to increase significantly across survey years in both men and women (p for linear trend = 0.04 and 0.01 in women and men respectively). The only significant increase for obesity was observed in the age group 18–29 y in both women and men (+ 2.71% and + 3.26% point increase respectively, equivalent to an approximate rise of 50% in women and 93% in men, p = 0.03 and 0.02 respectively). After adjustment for survey non-response and for age and sex distribution, the results show that class 1 obesity prevalence has significantly increased in both women and men from 2013 to 2016, and only in young adults in a representative sample of the French population aged 18–69 years old.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktoriya Kolarova ◽  
Christine Eisenmann ◽  
Claudia Nobis ◽  
Christian Winkler ◽  
Barbara Lenz

Abstract Introduction The global Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is having a great impact on all areas of the everyday life, including travel behaviour. Various measures that focus on restricting social contacts have been implemented in order to reduce the spread of the virus. Understanding how daily activities and travel behaviour change during such global crisis and the reasons behind is crucial for developing suitable strategies for similar future events and analysing potential mid- and long-term impacts. Methods In order to provide empirical insights into changes in travel behaviour during the first Coronavirus-related lockdown in 2020 for Germany, an online survey with a relative representative sample for the German population was conducted a week after the start of the nationwide contact ban. The data was analysed performing descriptive and inferential statistical analyses. Results and Discussion The results suggest in general an increase in car use and decrease in public transport use as well as more negative perception of public transport as a transport alternative during the pandemic. Regarding activity-related travel patterns, the findings show firstly, that the majority of people go less frequent shopping; simultaneously, an increase in online shopping can be seen and characteristics of this group were analysed. Secondly, half of the adult population still left their home for leisure or to run errands; young adults were more active than all other age groups. Thirdly, the majority of the working population still went to work; one out of four people worked in home-office. Lastly, potential implications for travel behaviour and activity patterns as well as policy measures are discussed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adja Mariam Ouédraogo ◽  
Adama Baguiya ◽  
Rachidatou Compaoré ◽  
Kadari Cissé ◽  
Désiré Lucien Dahourou ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The effective use of contraception among adolescents and young women can reduce the risk of unintended pregnancies. However, the prevalence of contraceptive use remains low in this age group. The objective of this study was to estimate the rate of contraceptive method discontinuation among adolescents and young women and to identify its associated factors in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. Method This was a secondary analysis of data from Demographic and Health Surveys of Burkina Faso (2010), Mali (2012–2013), and Niger (2012). The dependent variable was the time to discontinuation of contraceptive methods. Independent variables were represented by sociodemographic, socioeconomic, and cultural characteristics. Mixed-effects survival analysis with proportional hazards was used to identify the predictors. Results A total of 2,264 adolescents and young women aged 15 to 24 years were included in this analysis, comprising 1,100 in Burkina Faso, 491 in Mali, and 673 in Niger. Over the last five years, the overall contraceptive discontinuation rate was 68.7% (50.1% in Burkina Faso, 59.6% in Mali, and 96.8% in Niger). At the individual level, in Burkina Faso, occupation (aHR = 0.33), number of living children (aHR = 2.17), marital status (aHR = 2.93), and region (aHR = 0.54) were associated with contraceptive discontinuation. Except for education and marital status, we found the same factors in Mali. In Niger, a women's education level (aHR = 1.47) and her partner (aHR = 0.52) were associated with discontinuation. At the community level, the region of origin was associated with discontinuation of contraceptive methods. Conclusion Most adolescents and young women experienced at least one episode of discontinuation. Discontinuation of contraceptive methods is associated with the level of education, occupation, number of children, marital status, and desire for children with the spouse. Promotion of contraceptive interventions should target adolescents, young women, and their partners, as well as those with a low education level or in a union.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamar Kricheli-Katz ◽  
Tali Regev

AbstractResearch suggests that gendered languages are associated with gender inequality. However, as languages are embedded in cultures, evidence for causal effects are harder to provide. We contribute to this ongoing debate by exploring the relationship between gendered languages and the gender gap in mathematics achievements. We provide evidence for causality by exploiting the prominent (but not exclusive) practice in gendered languages of using masculine generics to address women. In an experiment on a large representative sample of the Hebrew-speaking adult population in Israel, we show that addressing women in the feminine, compared to addressing them in the masculine, reduces the gender gap in mathematics achievements by a third. These effects are stronger among participants who acquired the Hebrew language early in childhood rather than later in life, suggesting that it is the extent of language proficiency that generates one’s sensitivity to being addressed in the masculine or in the feminine. Moreover, when women are addressed in the masculine, their efforts (in terms of time spent on the maths test) decrease and they report feeling that “science is for men” more than when addressed in the feminine. We supplement the analysis with two experiments that explore the roles of general and task-specific stereotypes in generating these effects.


2020 ◽  
pp. 140349482097149
Author(s):  
Hanna Lagström ◽  
Jaana I. Halonen ◽  
Sakari Suominen ◽  
Jaana Pentti ◽  
Sari Stenholm ◽  
...  

Aims: To investigate the association of six-year cumulative level of socioeconomic neighbourhood disadvantage and population density with subsequent adherence to dietary recommendations, controlling for preceding dietary adherence, in adults in Finland. Methods: Population-based Health and Social Support (HeSSup) study participants from four age groups (20–24, 30–34, 40–44 and 50–54 years at baseline in 1998). Data on diet and alcohol consumption were obtained from the 2003 and 2012 surveys and information on neighbourhoods from Statistics Finland Grid database ( n = 10,414 men and women). Participants diet was measured as adherence to Nordic Nutrition recommendation (score range 0–100). Neighbourhood disadvantage was measured by median household income, proportion of those with primary education only and unemployment rate, and population density by the number of adult population between years 2007 and 2012. Linear models were used to assess the associations of neighbourhood characteristics with the score for adherence to dietary recommendations in 2012. Results: Cumulative neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage was associated with slightly weaker (1.49 (95% confidence interval (CI) −1.89 to −1.09) point decrease in dietary score) adherence while higher population density was associated with better (0.70 (95% CI 0.38−1.01) point increase in dietary score) adherence to dietary recommendations. These associations remained after controlling for prior dietary habits, sociodemographic, chronic cardio-metabolic diseases, and severe life events. Conclusions: These longitudinal findings support the hypothesis that neighbourhood characteristics affect dietary habits.


2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
L Kazmer ◽  
I Kulhanova ◽  
M Lustigova

Abstract Background In Czechia, alcohol-induced deaths account for a significant portion of preventable mortality. As inequalities in health are both socially and spatially determined, the paper aims at the detailed examination of socio-geographic inequalities of this phenomenon. Methods The 2011-2015 annual data on both ICD-10 cause-specific deaths (K70; F10; X45/64; Y15) and mid-year population were obtained from the official Czech registries - the data were cross-classified by gender, 5-year age-groups, and permanent residence (N = 6,302 small area spatial units). The selected socio-demographic indicators (education, unemployment, religious population) from the Czech 2011 Census were spatially merged to the mortality dataset. From the data on education and unemployment, composite deprivation index (DI) was derived. In the adult population aged 25+, the age-standardised mortality ratios (SMR) were computed for each of the spatial units, separately by genders. The SMRs were spatially modelled by the Besag-York-Mollié (BYM) autoregressive approach, applying a fully bayesian framework integrated within the INLA R-package. The study applied cross-sectional design and employed ecological regression conducted on observational data. Results Compared to the Czech average, the highest SMRs were located in the historical regions of Moravia [SMR=1.15; 95%CI: 1.11-1.19] and Silesia [SMR=1.59; 95%CI: 1.52-1.66]. The SMRs were significantly correlated with DI among males [Rel.Risk=1.15; 95%CI: 1.11-1.19], and with religiousness rate among females [Rel.Risk=0.83; 95%CI: 0.77-0.90]. Conclusions Significant socio-geographic inequalities were detected, particularly with respect to the Czech historical regions. Among males, higher mortality was associated with a structural deprivation. Among females, protective effect of religiousness rate was found to be significant. The results highlight an importance of both socially and spatially integrated efforts for public health promotion. Key messages The inequalities in health are both socially and spatially contextualised. The paper presents robust empirical evidence in favour of the proposition, as examined on alcohol-related mortality data. The health determinants may be gender sensitive. Males might be more responsive to a structural disadvantage. Among females, cultural factors related to a local community might be more relevant.


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