PLoS medicine
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Infection is an important, preventable cause of maternal morbidity, and pregnancy-related sepsis accounts for 11% of maternal deaths. However, frequency of maternal infection is poorly described, and, to our knowledge, it remains the one major cause of maternal mortality without a systematic review of incidence. Our objective was to estimate the average global incidence of maternal peripartum infection. ⋯ In this study, we observed pooled infection estimates of almost 4% in labour and between 1%-2% of each infection outcome postpartum. This indicates maternal peripartum infection is an important complication of childbirth and that preventive efforts should be increased in light of antimicrobial resistance. Incidence risk appears lower than modelled global estimates, although differences in definitions limit comparability. Better-quality research, using standard definitions, is required to improve comparability between study settings and to demonstrate the influence of risk factors and protective interventions.
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The United States Preventive Services Task Force supports individualised decision-making for prostate-specific antigen (PSA)-based screening in men aged 55-69. Knowing how the potential benefits and harms of screening vary by an individual's risk of developing prostate cancer could inform decision-making about screening at both an individual and population level. This modelling study examined the benefit-harm tradeoffs and the cost-effectiveness of a risk-tailored screening programme compared to age-based and no screening. ⋯ Based on the results of this modelling study, offering screening to men at higher risk could potentially reduce overdiagnosis and improve the benefit-harm tradeoff and the cost-effectiveness of a prostate cancer screening program. The optimal threshold will depend on societal judgements of the appropriate balance of benefits-harms and cost-effectiveness.
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Gun violence has shortened the average life expectancy of Americans, and better knowledge about the root causes of gun violence is crucial to its prevention. While some empirical evidence exists regarding the impacts of social and economic factors on violence and firearm homicide rates, to the author's knowledge, there has yet to be a comprehensive and comparative lagged, multilevel investigation of major social determinants of health in relation to firearm homicides and mass shootings. ⋯ This study finds that the rich-poor gap, level of citizens' trust in institutions, economic opportunity, and public welfare spending are all related to firearm homicide rates in the US. Further establishing the causal nature of these associations and modifying these social determinants may help to address the growing gun violence epidemic and reverse recent life expectancy declines among Americans.
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Lifestyle interventions to reduce body mass index (BMI) are critical public health strategies for type 2 diabetes prevention. While weight loss interventions have shown demonstrable benefit for high-risk and prediabetic individuals, we aimed to determine whether the same benefits apply to those at lower risk. ⋯ In a population-scale cohort, lower BMI was consistently associated with reduced diabetes risk across BMI, family history, and genetic risk categories, suggesting all individuals can substantially reduce their diabetes risk through weight loss. Our results support the broad deployment of weight loss interventions to individuals at all levels of diabetes risk.
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Clinical Trial
Adherence to the 2017 French dietary guidelines and adult weight gain: A cohort study.
The French dietary guidelines were updated in 2017, and an adherence score to the new guidelines (Programme National Nutrition Santé Guidelines Score 2 [PNNS-GS2]) has been developed and validated recently. Since overweight and obesity are key public health issues and have been related to major chronic conditions, this prospective study aimed to measure the association between PNNS-GS2 and risk of overweight and obesity, and to compare these results with those for the modified Programme National Nutrition Santé Guidelines Score (mPNNS-GS1), reflecting adherence to 2001 guidelines. ⋯ Our findings suggest that adherence to the 2017 French dietary guidelines is associated with a lower risk of overweight and obesity. The magnitude of the association and the results of the direct comparison reinforced the validity of the updated recommendations.