scholarly journals Association of Adherence to the Mediterranean-Style Diet with Lower Frailty Index in Older Adults

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1129
Author(s):  
Toshiko Tanaka ◽  
Sameera A. Talegawkar ◽  
Yichen Jin ◽  
Stephania Bandinelli ◽  
Luigi Ferrucci
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Frailty Index ◽  
Public Health Importance ◽  
Health Trajectories ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Protective Strategy ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
Adherence Group

Identifying modifying protective factors to promote healthy aging is of utmost public health importance. The frailty index (FI) reflects the accumulation of health deficits and is one widely used method to assess health trajectories in aging. Adherence to a Mediterranean-type diet (MTD) has been associated with favorable health trajectories. Therefore, this study explored whether adherence to a MTD is negatively associated with FI in the InCHIANTI study. Participants (n = 485) included individuals over 65 years of age at baseline with complete data over a follow-up period of 10 years. MTD was computed on a scale of 0–9 and categorized based on these scores into three groups of low (≤3), medium (4–5), and high (≥6) adherence. Being in a high or medium adherence group was associated with 0.03 and 0.013 unit lower FI scores over the follow-up period, compared to the low adherence group. In participants with a low FI at baseline, being in a high or medium MTD-adherence group had 0.004 and 0.005 unit/year slower progression of FI compared to the low adherence group. These study results support adherence to a MTD as a protective strategy to maintain a lower FI.

scholarly journals Does pre-notification increase questionnaire response rates: a nested randomised control trial

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Woolf ◽  
Phil Edwards
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Response Rates ◽  
Risk Of Bias ◽  
Randomised Control Trial ◽  
Questionnaire Response ◽  
Potential Study ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
Unclear Risk

AbstractBackgroundStudy results can be badly affected by non-response. One way to potentially reduce non-response is by sending potential study participants advance communication. During the update of a systematic review examining the effect of pre-notification on response rates, a number of study authors needed to be contacted for further information.ObjectivesTo conduct an RCT to investigate the effect of pre-notification, nested within the request for further information for a systematic review.MethodsStudy authors included in the systematic review, whose studies were at unclear risk of bias, and who were contactable, were randomly sent or not set a pre-notification email prior to being sent the request for further information email.ResultsAt the end of follow up, 14/33 (42.4%) authors in the pre-notification condition had returned responses to the questionnaire, and 18/42 (42.9%). There was not evidence of a difference between these groups.ConclusionsThis study’s results do not support the hypothesis that pre-notification does increase response from participants.

scholarly journals Impact of Mobile Health Devices for the Detection of Atrial Fibrillation: Systematic Review

10.2196/26161 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. e26161
Author(s):  
Tom E Biersteker ◽  
Martin J Schalij ◽  
Roderick W Treskes
Keyword(s):  
Atrial Fibrillation ◽  
Systematic Review ◽  
Mobile Health ◽  
Standard Care ◽  
Detection Rate ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Statistical Heterogeneity ◽  
Study Participants

Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia, and its prevalence is increasing. Early diagnosis is important to reduce the risk of stroke. Mobile health (mHealth) devices, such as single-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) devices, have been introduced to the worldwide consumer market over the past decade. Recent studies have assessed the usability of these devices for detection of AF, but it remains unclear if the use of mHealth devices leads to a higher AF detection rate. Objective The goal of the research was to conduct a systematic review of the diagnostic detection rate of AF by mHealth devices compared with traditional outpatient follow-up. Study participants were aged 16 years or older and had an increased risk for an arrhythmia and an indication for ECG follow-up—for instance, after catheter ablation or presentation to the emergency department with palpitations or (near) syncope. The intervention was the use of an mHealth device, defined as a novel device for the diagnosis of rhythm disturbances, either a handheld electronic device or a patch-like device worn on the patient’s chest. Control was standard (traditional) outpatient care, defined as follow-up via general practitioner or regular outpatient clinic visits with a standard 12-lead ECG or Holter monitoring. The main outcome measures were the odds ratio (OR) of AF detection rates. Methods Two reviewers screened the search results, extracted data, and performed a risk of bias assessment. A heterogeneity analysis was performed, forest plot made to summarize the results of the individual studies, and albatross plot made to allow the P values to be interpreted in the context of the study sample size. Results A total of 3384 articles were identified after a database search, and 14 studies with a 4617 study participants were selected. All studies but one showed a higher AF detection rate in the mHealth group compared with the control group (OR 1.00-35.71), with all RCTs showing statistically significant increases of AF detection (OR 1.54-19.16). Statistical heterogeneity between studies was considerable, with a Q of 34.1 and an I2 of 61.9, and therefore it was decided to not pool the results into a meta-analysis. Conclusions Although the results of 13 of 14 studies support the effectiveness of mHealth interventions compared with standard care, study results could not be pooled due to considerable clinical and statistical heterogeneity. However, smartphone-connectable ECG devices provide patients with the ability to document a rhythm disturbance more easily than with standard care, which may increase empowerment and engagement with regard to their illness. Clinicians must beware of overdiagnosis of AF, as it is not yet clear when an mHealth-detected episode of AF must be deemed significant.

scholarly journals Serum magnesium at 18-20 weeks of gestation: can it be a predictor of gestational hypertension and fetomaternal outcome?

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 1402
Author(s):  
Sasikala Kathiresan ◽  
Agalya Angelina Sanjevrajah ◽  
Jeyashree Kathiresan
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Gestational Hypertension ◽  
Serum Magnesium ◽  
Colorimetric Method ◽  
Fetal Outcome ◽  
Mean Value ◽  
Term Birth ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Study Participants

Background: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) is a major cause of maternal, fetal morbidity and mortality complicating 10% of all gestations. As effective treatments are very limited, prediction of HDP occurrence is most importance. Though many biomarkers have shown relationship with HDP, serum magnesium (Mg) has shown better predictor as involved in maintaining vascular contractility, tone. This study is intended to analyse incidence of GHT and fetomaternal outcome in pregnant women with normal and low serum magnesium level measured at mid trimester (18-20 weeks).Methods: A total of 105 consecutive singleton pregnant women in between 18-20 weeks of gestation attending OBG outpatient department were enrolled. After obtaining the informed consent, structured proforma was used to collect demographic, clinical details. Serum magnesium was measured by the colorimetric method and study participants were divided into two groups based on Mg cut off 1.5 mg/dl and followed up throughout pregnancy for fetomaternal outcome.Results: This study results revealed that 35.2% (37/105) pregnant women had serum Mg level < 1.5 mg/dl and mean value of Mg of all participant is 1.7 mg/dl, just above the lower limit. During follow-up of these two groups, statistically significant correlation between serum Mg levels (< 1.5 mg/dl) with GHT (8/12) occurrence and pre term birth was found. Other fetomaternal outcome not had significant correlation.Conclusions: As per the findings, serum Mg concentration measurement in between 18-20 weeks can be considered as a one of the predictors for subsequent occurrence of maternal outcome of GHT and fetal outcome of pre-term birth.

scholarly journals THE ASSOCIATION OF MORTALITY WITH DEMENTIA IN VETERANS ENROLLED IN A MEMORY DISORDERS CLINIC: THE EFFECT OF FRAILTY

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S874-S875
Author(s):  
Aakashi Shah ◽  
Raquel Apracio-Ugarriza ◽  
Amar Morani ◽  
Mercedes Rodriguez-Suarez ◽  
Jorge G Ruiz
Keyword(s):  
Proportional Hazards ◽  
Neuropsychological Testing ◽  
Frailty Index ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Cox Proportional Hazards ◽  
Memory Disorders ◽  
Frailty Status ◽  
Proportional Hazards Regression ◽  
Study Results

Abstract Dementia is a syndrome of deterioration in cognition and ability to perform everyday activities. Frailty, a state of vulnerability to stressors leading to increased morbidity, mortality and utilization is a determinant of dementia. The aim was to determine if dementia leads to increased mortality in Veterans and whether frailty affects this association. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 308 Veterans enrolled in VA memory disorders clinic during 2016-2019. Dementia was diagnosed based on complete clinical assessments, brain imaging and neuropsychological testing. A 44–item frailty index (FI) was constructed using demographics, comorbidities, medications, laboratory tests, and activities of daily living. Patients were divided into non-Frail (FI&lt;0.21) and Frail (FI≥0.21). After adjusting for age, race, ethnicity, income, education, substance abuse, BMI, comorbidities, hospitalizations, medication use, the association of dementia with mortality was assessed using Cox proportional hazards regression. Patients were 55.2% White, 74% non-Hispanic, and the mean age was 74.4 ± 8.3 years. 113 patients were diagnosed with dementia out of which 27 died. Over a median follow-up period of 526 days (Interquartile Range: 431.5 days), there were 27 deaths. There was a significant and positive association of dementia with mortality significant even after all adjustments, HR=2.65 (95% CI: 1.02-6.92), p: 0.045. After subgroup analysis, there was no significant association between mortality and dementia according to frailty status. Our study results suggest that dementia is associated with a higher risk for mortality in Veterans at a Memory Disorders clinic. Frailty did not modify the effect.

scholarly journals Seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among school and daycare children and personnel: protocol for a cohort study in Montreal, Canada

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. e053245
Author(s):  
Kate Zinszer ◽  
Britt McKinnon ◽  
Noémie Bourque ◽  
Monica Zahreddine ◽  
Katia Charland ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
School Level ◽  
Public Health Decision ◽  
Health Lifestyle ◽  
Centre Hospitalier Universitaire ◽  
Health Decision ◽  
Study Participants

IntroductionFurther evidence is needed to understand the contribution of schools and daycares for the spread of COVID-19 in the context of diverse transmission dynamics and continually evolving public health interventions. The Enfants et COVID-19: Étude de séroprévalence (EnCORE) study will estimate the seroprevalence and seroconversion of SARS-CoV-2 among school and daycare children and personnel. In addition, the study will examine associations between seroprevalence and sociodemographic characteristics and reported COVID-19 symptoms and tests, and investigates changes in health, lifestyle and well-being outcomes.Methods and analysisThis study includes children and personnel from 62 schools and daycares in four neighbourhoods in Montreal, Canada. All children aged 2–17 years attending one of the participating schools or daycares and their parents are invited to participate, as well as a sample of personnel members. Participants respond to brief questionnaires and provide blood samples, collected via dried blood spot, at baseline (October 2020–March 2021) and follow-up (May–June 2021). Questionnaires include sociodemographic and household characteristics, reported COVID-19 symptoms and tests, potential COVID-19 risk factors and prevention efforts and health and lifestyle information. Logistic regression using generalised estimating equations will be used to estimate seroprevalence and seroconversion, accounting for school-level clustering.Ethics and disseminationThis study was approved by the research ethics boards of the Université de Montréal (CERSES) and the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine. Results will contribute to our knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 transmission in schools and daycares and will be made available to study participants and their families, school and public health decision-makers and the research community.

scholarly journals Psychosocial Working Conditions and Social Participation. A 10-Year Follow-Up of Senior Workers

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (17) ◽  
pp. 9154
Author(s):  
Pia Hovbrandt ◽  
Per-Olof Östergren ◽  
Catarina Canivet ◽  
Maria Albin ◽  
Gunilla Carlsson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Social Participation ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Psychosocial Working Conditions ◽  
Public Health Survey ◽  
The Impact

Social participation is important for health, and it is well known that high strain jobs impact negatively on mental and physical health. However, knowledge about the impact of psychosocial working conditions on social participation from a long-term perspective is lacking. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations between different job types and social participation from a long-term perspective. A comprehensive public health questionnaire “The Scania Public Health Survey”, was used, and psychosocial working conditions were measured with a Swedish translation of the Job Content Questionnaire. Based on data from 1098 working respondents aged 55 at baseline and a 10-year follow-up when the respondents were not working, the analyses revealed that social participation varied by job type. Jobs with high decision latitude, as in active and relaxed jobs, seem to predict high social participation, even after cessation of employment. Besides that, the result suggests that high social participation during working life is a predictor of high social participation from a long-term perspective which promotes healthy aging. Incentives for working longer are strongly related to good working conditions. A supportive work environment with possibilities for employees to participate in decision making, i.e., high control, is vital for a sustainable working life. This may contribute to an extended working life and may also support social participation prior to retirement as well as after retirement and thus to healthy aging.

scholarly journals Evaluating Community–Academic Partnerships of the South Carolina Healthy Brain Research Network

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 607-614 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzan Neda Soltani ◽  
Kristie Kannaley ◽  
Weizhou Tang ◽  
Andrea Gibson ◽  
Kate Olscamp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
South Carolina ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Brain Research ◽  
Research Network ◽  
Research Translation ◽  
The South ◽  
Cognitive Health ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Academic Partnerships

Community–academic partnerships have a long history of support from public health researchers and practitioners as an effective way to advance research and solutions to issues that are of concern to communities and their citizens. Data on the development and evaluation of partnerships focused on healthy aging and cognitive health were limited. The purpose of this article is to examine how community partners view the benefits and barriers of a community–academic partner group established to support activities of the South Carolina Healthy Brain Research Network (SC-HBRN). The SC-HBRN is part of the national Healthy Brain Research Network, a thematic research network funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It is focused on improving the scientific and research translation agenda on cognitive health and healthy aging. Semistructured interviews, conducted at end of Year 2 of the 5-year partnership, were used to collect data from partners of the SC-HBRN. Reported benefits of the partnership were information sharing and networking, reaching a broader audience, and humanizing research. When asked to describe what they perceived as barriers to the collaborative, partners described some lack of clarity regarding goals of the network and opportunities to contribute to the partnership. Study results can guide and strengthen other public health-focused partnerships.

Introduction

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Jill A. Fisher
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Phase I ◽  
Social Inequalities ◽  
Model Organism ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Phase I Trials ◽  
Health It ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Study Participants

This introduction describes what Phase I trials are and what is expected of healthy people who participate. It also details who typically enrolls in these trials, mapping out the demographic characteristics of healthy volunteers and explaining the seriality of their enrollment in US trials. This background information informs the argument of the book—that US Phase I trials are fundamentally built upon and shaped by social inequalities and that these social inequalities generate risk to study participants as well as invalid study results that may threaten public health. It introduces the two organizing concepts of the book—imbricated stigma and the healthy volunteer as a model organism—and concludes with an overview of the book itself.

scholarly journals Public health importance and risk factors for cercarial dermatitis associated with swimming in Lake Leman at Geneva, Switzerland

1998 ◽  
Vol 120 (3) ◽  
pp. 305-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. CHAMOT ◽  
L. TOSCANI ◽  
A. ROUGEMONT
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Barometric Pressure ◽  
Atmospheric Temperature ◽  
Skin Lesions ◽  
Public Health Importance ◽  
Cercarial Dermatitis ◽  
Local Water

Fifteen cohorts of healthy bathers were recruited at four Lake Leman beaches between 3 July and 23 August 1996 to assess the public health importance of cercarial dermatitis in Geneva, Switzerland. Telephone follow-up interviews were carried out after 2–7 days. Overall, 153 bathers out of 555 reported probable cercarial dermatitis at follow-up. Median daily attack rate was 27·7% (2·2–57·7%). Of the cases, 11·1% noticed more than 30 skin lesions, 19·6% described severe itching, 50·3% used a drug treatment, 3·9% visited a doctor and 15% claimed they would reduce their bathing activities. History of cercarial dermatitis, time spent in the water, hour of the day, barometric pressure and maximum daily atmospheric temperature predicted disease occurrence in multivariate analysis. While a benign disease, cercarial dermatitis may have a negative impact on the local water recreation industry. The identification of risk factors for the disease may help produce better preventive recommendations for the bathers.

scholarly journals Pneumothorax in critically COVID-19 patients with mechanical ventilation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allen Widysanto ◽  
Titis Dewi Wahyuni ◽  
Leonardo Helasti Simanjuntak ◽  
Samuel Sunarso ◽  
Sylvia Sagita Siahaan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mechanical Ventilation ◽  
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome ◽  
Respiratory Failure ◽  
Distress Syndrome ◽  
Public Health Emergency ◽  
Protective Strategy ◽  
Ventilator Settings

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a public health emergency caused by SARS-CoV-2. A few studies reported pneumothorax in patients with COVID-19. Pneumothorax is associated with an increased morbidity and mortality. Hence, it should be considered during the treatment and follow-up of patients with COVID-19. Herein, we reported four cases of pneumothorax in critical COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the ICU and treated with a mechanical ventilation. All patients were diagnosed with COVID-19, type 1 respiratory failure, and acute respiratory distress syndrome. All patients developed pneumothorax during mechanical ventilation, although the ventilator settings were set to lung-protective strategy.

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