Journal of women's health
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Journal of women's health · May 2024
Observational StudyPeriod Poverty: Surveying the Prevalence in Toledo-Area Schools.
Background: The lack of access to period products, which has been colloquially termed "period poverty," is a problem that millions of people face worldwide. Investigators have found that period poverty is a pervasive issue in the United States, despite its status as a high resource country. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of period poverty in school-aged adolescents in Toledo, Ohio. ⋯ Participants also reported high rates of absence from sports, work, spending time with family/friends, and theater/music practice due to their menstrual period. Discussion: As people across the globe experience period poverty, our study demonstrates evidence of this phenomenon among Toledo adolescents. Owing to the lack of access to menstrual hygiene products, students report repurposing miscellaneous items in place of pads or tampons, missing school or work, and associating negative connotations with their cycles.
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Journal of women's health · May 2024
Observational StudyOrganizational Leadership Gender Differences in Medical Schools and Affiliated Universities.
Objective: To compare gender compositions in the leadership of the top 25 medical schools in North America with the leadership of their affiliated university senior leadership and other faculties. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional observational study used publicly available gender data from 2018 to 2019 of universities drawn from the U. S. ⋯ No correlation was found between a university's leadership gender composition and its ranking. Conclusion: The under-representation of women is greater in medical school leadership than the leadership of their affiliated universities. The faculty of medicine has greater male over-representation than the average of the other faculties.
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Journal of women's health · May 2024
Adjusting Current Hemoglobin Thresholds: A Way to Improve Outcome in Women Undergoing Major Surgery.
Background/Objective: In the perioperative setting, a suboptimal total hemoglobin (Hb) mass puts women and men at an unreasonable disadvantage. Anemia is an independent risk factor for transfusion, postoperative complications, and mortality. The Hb cut-off value for women was set at <12.0 g/dL by the World Health Organization (WHO) and has been rigorously debated for decades. ⋯ Conclusion: Taken together, our data show that Hb values below 12.9 g/dL are associated with increased probability of RBC transfusions and increased risk of postoperative complications. In addition, our results indicate that postoperative outcomes for women might be optimized by increasing cut-off values for anemia. The call to revise the anemia threshold for women by the WHO can no longer be disregarded.
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Journal of women's health · May 2024
Relationship Between Ultra-Processed and Minimally Processed Food Intake and Cardiovascular Health Among US Women of Reproductive Age.
Objectives: Ultra-processed food (UPF) intake is associated with worse cardiovascular health (CVH), but associations between unprocessed/minimally processed foods (MPFs) and CVH are limited, especially among women of reproductive age (WRA). Materials and Methods: For 5,773 WRA (20-44 years) in National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2018, we identified UPFs and MPFs using the Nova classification and based on 24-hour dietary recalls. We calculated usual percentages of calories from UPFs and MPFs using the National Cancer Institute's usual intake method. ⋯ Patterns of association remained consistent across subgroups and in sensitivity analyses. Conclusions: Higher UPF intake was associated with worse CVH, while higher MPF intake was associated with better CVH among WRA in the United States. Our analyses highlight an opportunity for WRA to improve nutrition and their CVH.
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Journal of women's health · May 2024
Social Determinants Associated with Substance Use and Treatment Seeking in Females of Reproductive Age in the United States.
Introduction: Females of reproductive age (FoRA; 15-49 years) are the demographic most likely to be diagnosed with a substance use disorder. Preventative treatment prior to or during pregnancy is critical. Stigma and social inequities can delay access to care. ⋯ Higher depression severity was associated with all the three models. Conclusions: Using the ODPHP's SDoH framework, we begin to elicit critical connections that can describe substance use and treatment-seeking practices in FoRA. We encourage additional research to inform public health, health care, behavioral health, and other support service programming.