Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Identifying malleable factors that could arrest progression to type 2 diabetes: A cluster analysis of Australian adults.
Lifestyle-based disease prevention and self-management strategies play an important role in the mitigation of health, social, and economic burdens associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and other chronic diseases. However, there are significant implementation and translational challenges associated with the design and delivery of effective interventions. In this study, data-driven techniques for the identification of optimal target audiences and intervention targets for T2DM prevention interventions were applied. ⋯ Within each cluster, psychosocial variables explained approximately 25% of the variance in T2DM status, with future orientation identified as a significant modifiable predictor of T2DM. For the male cluster, health literacy was also significant (p ≤0.01). Findings indicate that men and women should be targeted separately in T2DM prevention or management programs and that future interventional research targeting future orientation is warranted.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Firearm ownership and access to healthcare in the U.S.: A cross-sectional analysis of six states.
Provider-led firearm storage counseling is a form of firearm suicide prevention intervention. Little research examines whether barriers to healthcare access for at-risk individuals limit this intervention's impact. This study explores the relationship between household firearm presence/storage practices and healthcare access/utilization using a cross-sectional analysis of the 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), which included state-representative data from six states that completed the Firearm Safety and Healthcare Access Modules: California, Idaho, Kansas, Oregon, Texas, and Utah. ⋯ Among firearm-owning households, those with firearms stored loaded and unlocked had higher odds of lacking a personal healthcare provider (aOR 1.52, 95%CI 1.07-2.15) compared to individuals in homes where firearms were stored unloaded. Results indicate that while individuals in firearm-owning households are more likely than non-firearm owning households to have healthcare access, those in homes with the riskiest firearm storage practices had less access. Provider-led counseling may have limited reach for individuals in homes with risky firearm storage practices.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Imaging-guided evaluation of subclinical atherosclerosis to enhance cardiovascular risk prediction in asymptomatic low-to-intermediate risk individuals: A systematic review.
Carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT), plaque quantification and coronary artery calcium (CAC) scoring have been suggested to improve risk prediction of cardiovascular disease (CVD), particularly for asymptomatic individuals classified as low-to-intermediate risk. We aimed to compare the predictive value of cIMT, carotid plaque identification, and CAC scoring for identifying sub-clinical atherosclerosis and assessing future risk of CVD in asymptomatic, low-to-intermediate risk individuals. We conducted a comprehensive search of Ovid (Embase and Medline), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) and Medline complete (EBSCO health). ⋯ The c-statistic enhanced predictive value by a minimum increase of 0.7. Finally, the NRI ranked higher with CAC (≥11.2%), followed by carotid plaque (≥2%) and cIMT (3%). CAC scoring was superior compared to carotid plaque and cIMT measurements in asymptomatic individuals classified as being at low-to-intermediate risk.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Differences in pediatric cholesterol screening rates between family physicians and pediatricians correlate with conflicting guidelines.
Conflicting guidelines regarding universal pediatric cholesterol screening were released between 2011 and 2019, but the impact on screening rates remains understudied. The purpose of this study was to examine trends in pediatric cholesterol screening rates within a single institution in the United States and their association with release of national guidelines, local educational tools, and electronic health record (EHR) modifications. Order placement was defined as ordering a high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level in a patient aged 9-21 years with ≥1 well visit in prior 3 years. ⋯ For both specialties, OPR increased after 2011 guidelines, educational initiatives, and EHR changes, but decreased after 2016, with a larger decrease for family physicians (p < 0.001 for all). OPR was consistently higher for pediatricians than for family physicians during the study period, with largest OPR changes correlating with release of guidelines. The findings from the study suggest that conflicting guidelines may contribute to lower overall OPR, and to different screening rates for children cared for by pediatricians compared to family physicians.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Do predictors of adherence to pandemic guidelines change over time? A panel study of 22,000 UK adults during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the absence of a vaccine, governments have focused on behaviour change (e.g. social distancing and enhanced hygiene procedures) to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. Existing research on the predictors of compliance with pandemic measures has often produced discrepant results. One explanation for this may be that the determinants of compliance are context specific. ⋯ Low compliance was strongly related to younger age and also to risk attitudes, empathic concern, and high income, among other factors. The size of some of these associations was larger in later months when less stringent lockdown and household mixing measures were in place. The results showed that compliance was lower and fell faster across some groups, suggesting the importance that public health communications adopt a plurality of messages to maximize broad adherence.