Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Prevalence and predictors of cost-related medication nonadherence in individuals with cardiovascular disease: Results from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey.
Medication nonadherence is highly prevalent among patients with chronic cardiovascular disease. Poor adherence has been associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Medication cost is a major driver for medication nonadherence. ⋯ We conclude that the prevalence of CRMNA is 10% among U. S. adults overall and is higher among those with common chronic diseases. Risk factors associated with CRMNA should be addressed in order to improve adherence rates and health outcomes among high-risk individuals.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Self-rated mental health among sexual health service clients during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, British Columbia, Canada.
We investigated self-reported mental health during the first three months of the COVID-19 pandemic (March-May 2020), using a survey of HIV-testing and sexual health service clients from British Columbia, Canada (N = 1198). Over half (55%) reported their mental health as poor at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than double that of the general Canadian population in the same time frame (22%). Acknowledging that this burden of poor mental health that is likely to persist in the coming years, we propose that sexual health clinics should facilitate access to mental health supports as a low-barrier point of primary care contact.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2021
Association of change in the school travel mode with changes in different physical activity intensities and sedentary time: A International Children's Accelerometry Database Study.
Our aim was to assess the association between changes in active travel to school and changes in different intensities of physical activity (i.e. moderate - MPA and vigorous - VPA) and time spent sedentary (SED) among adolescents and assess the moderating effect of children's sex, age and weight status. Data from six cohort studies in the International Children's Accelerometry Database were used (4108 adolescents aged 10-13y at baseline, with 1.9±0.7y of follow-up). Participants self-reported travel mode to school at baseline and follow-up. ⋯ There were no associations with SED. An interaction was observed, age group moderated the association with change in VPA: among 12-13y-olds a greater increase in VPA was observed for the passive/active group compared to active/active. Promoting active travel to school can be a strategy to attenuate the decline in physical activity through adolescence.
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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
The Great East Japan Earthquake and suicide: The long-term consequences and underlying mechanisms.
How and why do major natural disasters affect suicide? This study revisits this question by focusing on the Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE) in March 2011 as a historically important natural disaster. Using an event-study analysis, we assessed how the GEJE changed the suicide rates in the regions affected by it and whether its effect persisted, attenuated, or escalated over time. ⋯ Furthermore, following the GEJE, government spending increased while divorce rates decreased in the affected prefectures, both of which were correlated with male suicide rates. These findings indicate that suicide after major natural disasters is preventable when political and social reactions to disasters provide a safety net, especially for men.