Sexual Violence as a Key Predictor of Depressive Symptoms in Women: Korean Longitudinal Survey of Women and Families

The purpose of this study was to identify the influence of violence on depressive symptoms in women. We analyzed panel data from the Korean Longitudinal Survey of Women and Families ( n = 6,632). Exposure to sexual violence was a significant predictor of the onset of depressive symptoms. After adjusting for all covariates, other predictors included the perception of a poor or very poor health status than normal and participants in their 40s and 50s versus participants younger than 40 years. Assessing exposure to sexual violence might be beneficial for evaluating depressive symptoms in women who are newly diagnosed with depression.

Defining Poverty as an Eligibility Requirement for Supportive Services

Deciding which individuals qualify as “poor” often depends on how each country or municipality defines the term ‘poverty’. In the United States, program eligibility is often tied to the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), using 100% of the FPL as a cut-off for receipt of services. However, research has shown that incomes of 200% of the FPL and higher are often needed to establish even minimum levels of economic security. Using data from an omnibus health study conducted in 2018 that included 1,581 persons ages 60+ who were asked about their health and service needs, we compared persons making 100% of the FPL or less to persons making 101%-199% and 200%+, respectively. Results show that poor health status and need for services among persons in the 101%-199% are similar to those with incomes less than 100% FPL, and significantly higher than persons with incomes at 200%+ of the FPL.

Understanding Functional Mobility and Quality of Life Among Isolated Aging Population in the US

Background Social isolation among older adults linked to serious health conditions. However, little is known if functional mobility among isolated aging adults impacts quality of life. Objectives: This study will examine the association between levels of functional mobilities and risks for developing depression, poor health status, and physical inactivity by controlling socioeconomic factors. Methods This is a cross-sectional study, using Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data 2017. Target population are over age 65 who are living alone (N=50,784). Outcome variables are depression, self-reported health status, and physical inactivity whereas main predictors are activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) controlling for gender, race, marital status, employment status, annual income, and educational level. Weight adjustment analysis and logistic regression were conducted. Results Depression, self-reported poor health status, and physical inactivity are higher among isolated aging adults who have limitations with ADL/IADL. Specifically, those with difficulties concentrating/decision making (OR=3.62; CI=3.35-3.91) have higher chance of developing depression than those who do not have this limitation. Female are at risk for developing depression (OR=1.41-1.61; CI=1.51), yet they are likely to report for better health status (OR=1.54; CI=1.45-1.64) than males. Asian (OR=0.56; CI=0.39-0381), Black or African American (OR=0.54; CI=0.48-0.60) are less likely to be diagnosed with depressive disorder than White. Discussion/Recommendation: Physical and cognitive changes that come with aging can pose challenge, as functional capacity diminishes in home environment. Further research should be explored in longitudinal studies on mobility and improving quality of living among isolated aging population.

Social Determinants of Health and Health Equity among the Elderly People in Mountain Region of Uttarakhand

According to World Health Organization (WHO), the Social Determinants of Health (SDH) have an important influence on health inequities – the unfair and avoidable differences in health status seen within and between countries. In countries at all levels of income, health and illness follow a social gradient: the lower the socioeconomic position, the worse the health. The main objective of this paper is to understand these determinants that are prevailing and its relation with the health status of the elderly people in mountain region of Uttarakhand. In order to accomplish the study the data have been collected from 183 households from the three different geographic mountain areas of six administrative regions. The collected data have been further analyzed with SPSS latest version. The findings of study shows that & the self stated very poor health status majority were from the Garhwal mountain region, females those were widows, those were above 81 years, Shudra by caste followed by Khatriya caste, residing in joint family, living in Kuchha houses, civil pensioners, educated above high school & above and average income group followed by high and low income group of the elderly households. However, with respect to the poor health status, occupation, education and income of the household of elderly as the p-values associated with the Ch-square statistics are found to be less than the level of significance. The study concluded with that in built environment of the elderly people like the region, caste, being a female and widow and age above 81 years followed by living amenities like Kuchha house and residing in a joint family system are more significant with respect to the poor health status, while occupation, education and income of the household of elderly as the p-values associated with the Ch-square statistics is found to be less than the level of significance in the mountain region of Uttarakhand.

Predictors of Psychological Distress in Health Care Staff in Qatar during COVID-19 Pandemic

Background & Objective: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused widespread psychological distress. The aims of the study were a) to assess mental health symptoms experienced by expatriate hospital staff and b) to determine the impact of staff wellbeing interventions specific to pandemic related stress. Methods: The study was conducted from June 2020 until August 2020. A 16-question survey was disseminated online via Survey Monkey to assess the mental health needs of hospital staff during the pandemic. Based on results, a virtual, tiered mental health support model was developed, and staff feedback was collected. Results: Almost 46.2% of respondents (N: 1001) reported at least one mental health symptom in the initial survey. The most common symptoms were anxiety, low mood and feelings of isolation. Being single and in poor health status were predictors of developing mental health symptoms (P <0.01). Female gender was a predictor for experiencing fear of getting infected. Time constraints at work was the most common reason for not accessing mental health support. Conclusions: As in other parts of the world, hospital staff in Qatar experienced mental health symptoms and significant fear related to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Being single and in poor health status were risk factors. Mental health interventions at work must take into account time constraints experienced by staff. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.7.4533 How to cite this:Latif F, Ahmed SR, Farhan S, Watt F, Azeem MW. Predictors of Psychological Distress in Health Care Staff in Qatar during COVID-19 Pandemic. Pak J Med Sci. 2021;37(7):---------. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.7.4533 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Association Between Preoperative Factors and In-hospital Mortality in Neonates After Cardiac Surgery in China

Background: Little is known about preoperative factors affecting cardiac surgery outcomes of neonates in China. We sought to examine the association between characteristics of neonates with congenital heart disease (CHD) and early postoperative outcomes after cardiac repair in a tertiary care paediatric hospital.Methods: A single-centre retrospective cohort study of neonates who underwent cardiac surgery between January 2006 and December 2019 was performed. Demographic, institutional, and surgical characteristics of neonates were examined and their association with in-hospital mortality was analysed using multivariable logistic regression models.Results: During the study period, we analysed the outcomes of 1,078 neonates. In-hospital mortality decreased to 13.8% in the era 2017–2019. The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 16.3%. Normal weight at surgery [odds ratio (OR), 0.63; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.47–0.85; P = 0.003] was associated with lower mortality risk. Poor health status (emergent: OR, 3.11; 95% CI, 1.96–4.94; P &lt; 0.001; elective: OR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.11–2.40; P = 0.013), higher Society of Thoracic Surgeons-European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (STAT) categories (STAT 5 category: OR, 2.58; 95% CI, 1.04–6.43; P = 0.042), and limited individual surgeon experience (surgeon with 5–10 operations per year: OR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.06–1.95; P = 0.021) were associated with higher odds of early death.Conclusion: In-hospital mortality after neonatal cardiac surgery remained high in our centre over the past 10 years. Some preoperative aspects, including low-weight at surgery, poor health status, increased surgical complexity, and limited surgeon experience were significantly associated with higher mortality. Based on the observed associations, the necessary practises to be modified, especially in preoperative care, should be identified and assessed in future research.

A Case Report of Chronic Stress in Honey Bee Colonies Induced by Pathogens and Acaricide Residues

In this case report, we analyze the possible causes of the poor health status of a professional Apis mellifera iberiensis apiary located in Gajanejos (Guadalajara, Spain). Several factors that potentially favor colony collapse were identified, including Nosema ceranae infection, alone or in combination with other factors (e.g., BQCV and DWV infection), and the accumulation of acaricides commonly used to control Varroa destructor in the beebread (coumaphos and tau-fluvalinate). Based on the levels of residues, the average toxic unit estimated for the apiary suggests a possible increase in vulnerability to infection by N. ceranae due to the presence of high levels of acaricides and the unusual climatic conditions of the year of the collapse event. These data highlight the importance of evaluating these factors in future monitoring programs, as well as the need to adopt adequate preventive measures as part of national and international welfare programs aimed at guaranteeing the health and fitness of bees.

A Case Report of Chronic Stress in Honey Bee Colonies Induced by Pathogens and Acaricide Residues

In this Case Report we analyze the possible causes of the poor health status of a professional Apis mellifera iberiensis apiary located in Gajanejos (Guadalajara, Spain). Several factors that potentially favor colony collapse were identified, including Nosema ceranae infection, alone or in combination with other factors (eg, BQCV and DWV infection), and the accumulation of acaricides commonly used to control Varroa destructor in the beebread (coumaphos and tau-fluvalinate). Based on the levels of residues, the average toxic unit estimated for the apiary, suggests a possible increase in vulnerability to infection by N. ceranae due to the presence of high levels of acaricides. These data highlight the importance of evaluating these factors in future monitoring programs, as well as the need to adopt adequate preventive measures as part of national and international welfare programs aimed at guaranteeing the health and fitness of bees.

ASAS Health Index performance in real-life Spondyloarthritis patients

Introduction: the “Assessment of Spondyloarthritis International Society Health Index” (ASASHI) questionnaire was developed to globally measure function and health status in patients with spondyloarthritis (SpA). Cut-off points have been proposed to determine different health states that were poorly evaluated in real-life patients. Objectives: to describe the health status measured by ASAS-HI in Argentine patients with axial SpA (AxSpA) and peripheral SpA (SpAp) in daily practice and to evaluate the factors associated with poor health. Materials and methods: cross-sectional, analytical and multicenter study. Patients with SpAax and SpAp were consecutively included according to ASAS criteria, from 15 Argentine centers. Statistical analysis: descriptive statistics, bivariate and multivariate analysis (multiple logistic regression) were performed to evaluate the factors associated with poor health status (ASAS-HI≥12). To analyze the construct validity of the tool, Spearman correlation was performed between the ASAS-HI and other disease evaluation parameters. Results: 274 patients with SpA were included, with a mean age of 49 (± 14) years and a median duration of the disease of 62 months (p25-75: 24-135), 155 (56.6%) were male, 129 patients (47%) with AxSpA and 145 (52.9%) SpAp. According to the ASAS-HI, 119 patients (43.4%) had good health, 117 (42.7%) had moderate health and 38 (13.9%) had poor health. In patients with SpAp, the mean ASAS-HI value was 7 (p25-75: 3-10). The ASAS-HI positively correlated with: DAS28: rho: 0.5 (p <0.001) and HAQ: rho: 0.54 (p <0.001). The variable independently associated with poor health status was DAS28 (OR: 1.9, 95% CI 1.1-3.4, p: 0.029). In patients with AxSpA, the mean ASAS-HI value was 6 (p25-75: 2.75-10). The ASAS-HI showed correlation with: BASDAI: rho: 0.7 (p <0.001), ASDAS-ERS: rho: 0.7 (p <0.001), ASQoL: rho: 0.8 (p<0.001), BASFI rho: 0.75 (p <0.001) 0.001). The variable that was independently associated with poor health was the ASDAS-ERS (OR 6.6, 95% CI 2-22, p 0.002). Conclusion: poor health status was independently associated with higher disease activity in patients with AxSpA and SpAp. The ASAS-HI correlated with other parameters of the disease, which reinforces the construct validity of this new tool.

The Origin and Maintenance of Tuberculosis is Explained by Its Subclinical Course, the Neolithic Revolution Being the Trigger for Its Devastating Deadly Drift

The origin of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection has recently been dated to the Middle Paleolithic; around 70,000 years before the common era (BCE). At that time Homo sapiens was just another primate living in reduced groups in balance with nature, with discrete growth and a very low-density geographic occupation. Therefore, it is difficult to understand the origin of a highly virulent obligate human pathogen. We have designed a new SEIR model (TBSpectr) that considers tuberculosis (TB) clinical spectrum, by including a protection factor (p). The model fits current accepted growth rates for Middle Paleolithic (0.003%/year) and Neolithic (0,1%/year). The data obtained links the origin of M. tuberculosis ancient lineages in the Middle Paleolithic to the induction of mild TB forms (Sputum negative), thanks to a high p factor that was further enhanced by evolution towards modern lineages. The poor health status linked to the unequal society existing after the Neolithic revolution increased the incidence of more severe forms of TB (Sputum positive). This data supports the origin of TB as a well-tolerated highly persistent infection which could coevolve towards mutualism, shows the difficulty of eradicating it and highlights the imperative of providing better health conditions to humans to avoid its severity.