Bmc Public Health
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Low and middle-income countries carry over ninety per cent of the burden of injury related mortality and disability. Motorcycles are gradually becoming a major mode of transportation in Cameroon and other African countries in the absence of an organized public transport. Consequently, the contribution of motorcycle crash to injury-related deaths seems to be on the rise. Currently, data addressing motorcycle crash characteristics, pattern, and severity of motorcycle-related injuries in Cameroon are scarce. We hypothesised that head and limb injuries are the most frequent cause of morbidity and mortality and equally affect riders and pillion passengers. ⋯ This study has identified females aged above 40 years as a special vulnerable group in Douala. It also carries strong messages useful for the implementation of preventive measures and management of patients injured in motorcycle-related crash in general.
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Assessment of causes of death and changes in pattern of causes of death over time are needed for programmatic purposes. Limited national level data exist on the adult female causes of death in Bangladesh. ⋯ The shift in the pattern of causes of adult female deaths is in agreement with the overall change in the disease pattern from communicable to non-communicable diseases in Bangladesh. Suicide and other violent deaths as the primary cause of deaths among teenage girls demands specific interventions to prevent such premature deaths. Prevention of deaths due to non-communicable diseases should also be a priority.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
HPV.edu study protocol: a cluster randomised controlled evaluation of education, decisional support and logistical strategies in school-based human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination of adolescents.
The National Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccination Program in Australia commenced in 2007 for females and in 2013 for males, using the quadrivalent HPV vaccine (HPV 6,11,16,18). Thus far, we have demonstrated very substantial reductions in genital warts and in the prevalence of HPV among young Australian women, providing early evidence for the success of this public health initiative. Australia has a long history of school-based vaccination programs for adolescents, with comparatively high coverage. However, it is not clear what factors promote success in a school vaccination program. The HPV.edu study aims to examine: 1) student knowledge about HPV vaccination; 2) psycho-social outcomes and 3) vaccination uptake. ⋯ This study is the first to evaluate the relative effectiveness of various strategies to promote best practice in school-based vaccination against HPV. The study aims to improve vaccination-related psychosocial outcomes, including adolescent knowledge and attitudes, decision-making involvement, self-efficacy, and to reduce fear and anxiety. The study also aims to improve school vaccination program logistics including reduction in time spent vaccinating adolescents and increased number of consent forms returned (regardless of decision). Less anxiety in adolescents will likely promote more efficient vaccination, which will be more acceptable to teachers, nurses and parents. Through these interventions, it is hoped that vaccination uptake will be increased.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The Tobacco Status Project (TSP): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial of a Facebook smoking cessation intervention for young adults.
Tobacco use remains the leading cause of premature morbidity and mortality in the United States. Young adults are less successful at quitting, use cessation treatment less often than smokers of other ages, and can be a challenge to retain in treatment. Social media, integrated into the lives of many young adults, represents a promising strategy to deliver evidence-based smoking cessation treatment to a large, diverse audience. The goal of this trial is to test the efficacy of a stage-based smoking cessation intervention on Facebook for young adults age 18 to 25 on smoking abstinence, reduction in cigarettes smoked, and thoughts about smoking abstinence. ⋯ This randomized controlled trial is testing a novel Facebook intervention for treating young adults' tobacco use. If efficacious, the social media intervention could be disseminated widely and expanded to address additional health risks.
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Globally, 15 million babies were born prematurely in 2012, with 37.6 % of them in South Asia. About 32.4 million infants were born small for gestational age (SGA) in 2010, with more than half of these births occurring in South Asia. In Nepal, 14 % of babies were born preterm and 39.3 % were born SGA in 2010. We conducted a study in a tertiary hospital of Nepal to assess the level of risk for neonatal mortality among babies who were born prematurely and/or SGA. ⋯ ISRCTN97846009.