International Journal of Public Health最新文献

Objectives: To explore the support needs that patients and relatives experience throughout their medical aid in dying (MAID) trajectories.

Methods: A qualitative study in Belgium in 2022 using 1) semi-structured interviews with and personal written narratives of patients requesting MAID and 2) semi-structured interviews with relatives of patients requesting MAID. We performed a qualitative content analysis.

Results: We included in our analysis the lived experiences of 15 patients and 21 of their relatives. We identified eight types of support needs: support for 1) maximizing daily functioning (only reported by patients), 2) making sense of the unbearable suffering (only reported by relatives), 3) managing meaningful activities, 4) navigating existential questions, 5) psycho-emotional regulation, 6) facilitating social interaction, 7) understanding the process toward MAID, 8) and handling organizational and practical matters.

Conclusion: Patients and relatives might experience multidimensional support needs throughout their MAID trajectories. Our findings suggest that they experience these trajectories more as social/existential pathways than as medical ones. A palliative care approach may be an effective way to fulfill the support needs of patients and relatives throughout their MAID trajectories.

Objective: The study aims to analyze the interconnectedness of farmers' socioeconomic factors and their awareness of the One Health framework.

Method: This study conducted a survey with 1,166 observations across Thailand, Lao, and Vietnam and employed binary logit regression for data analysis. Odds ratios were used for interpreting the results.

Results: The results indicated that certain socioeconomic factors-particularly household income, age, gender roles within the household, and household size-significantly influenced farmers' awareness and engagement with One Health literacy. Awareness levels varied across the three countries: for example, the composition of adults in Thai farming households was correlated with awareness of environmental health and infectious diseases. In Lao PDR, gender was significantly associated with awareness of animal health, while in Vietnam, it was linked to awareness of animal disease transmission.

Conclusion: These determinants contribute to the application of a more integrated One Health approach among farmers in these areas.

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of a nutrition counseling intervention on food consumption according to the Nova classification that reflects levels of food processing.

Methods: Controlled community trial was conducted in quilombola communities in the South of Brazil. Four communities were allocated to the control group (CG) and the intervention group (IG), two communities comprised each group. A total of 158 individuals (CG = 87; IG = 68) were included in the study. The intervention consisted of six theoretical and practical workshops on food and nutrition education, conducted over a 4-month period. We used a 24-hour recall at baseline and another post-intervention.

Results: There was an increase in the consumption of traditional quilombola food as an effect of the intervention (from 14.5% to 20.7% in the IG, and from 12.7% to 16.0% in the CG, p = 0.05). There was no significant variation in the other Nova food groups according to time and intervention.

Conclusion: An increase in traditional quilombola food indicates a resumption of traditional food intake and appreciation of local culture as an effect of this intervention at the community level. Clinical Trial Registration: www.clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT02489149.

Objectives: This review aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD).

Methods: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science were searched from 2020 to 2024. Data was extracted following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses guidelines. The random-effects model (when I² ≥ 50%) or fixed effect model (I² < 50%) was used.

Results: 29 studies were included in this review. Compared to healthy controls (HCs), patients with CLD had a higher incidence of mild adverse events (RR = 1.60, p < 0.001), while the incidence of severe adverse events was similar (RR = 1.08, p = 0.92). Seropositivity rates of three antibodies in patients were lower than in HCs [neutralizing antibody (RR = 0.86, p = 0.002), anti-spike antibody (RR = 0.97, p = 0.06) and anti-receptor binding domain antibody (RR = 0.95, p = 0.04)]. Compared to unvaccinated patients, vaccinated patients had lower rates of SARS-CoV-2 infection, hospitalization and death (p ≤ 0.05).

Conclusion: SARS-CoV-2 vaccines showed good safety and efficacy in CLD patients, but antibody response appeared to be decreased. Therefore, SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and booster doses should be given priority in this vulnerable population.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to comprehensively assess how COVID-19 affected the levels of different mental health variables in prison inmates.

Methods: A systematic review was conducted following the PRISMA format in the Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, and ScienceDirect electronic databases between August and September 2023. Methodological quality was assessed using the critical appraisal tools for studies of the Joanna Briggs Institute.

Results: Thirteen studies were included. The studies found increased levels of stress, anxiety, fear, depression, and negative emotions associated with lack of information about the pandemic and isolation leading to reduced social interaction. In addition, lack of access to common recreational spaces, limited access to support resources, especially mental health resources, fear of contracting the virus, and lack of trust in prison staff and in themselves to be protected were identified.

Conclusion: Further research may be necessary in prison populations with added vulnerability, such as the elderly, women, transgender and non-binary persons, to determine specific interventions, after assessing the prevalent psychological sequelae. Prevention strategies and mental health promotion are also encouraged.

Objectives: Fuel poverty, defined in this study as a household's inability to meet basic energy needs, presents a significant challenge. We aimed to map research on the impact of fuel poverty on mental health.

Methods: We searched peer review and grey literature repositories. Studies were considered eligible if they focused on both fuel poverty and mental health.

Results: 47 studies were included. 64% were published in the last 3 years. 43% focused on the UK sub-geography, with the next most common being Spain (17%) and China (13%). 55% had a quantitative study design. Conceptualisation and operationalisation of fuel poverty varied across studies and contexts. 58% focused on specific vulnerable populations. 46 studies reported evidence of a detrimental association between fuel poverty and mental health. We broadly summarise the role of fuel poverty on mental health under four headings: economic, social, behavioural and environmental.

Conclusion: We highlight a need for clear and explicit conceptualisation of fuel poverty, in conjunction with consideration of pathways connecting fuel poverty to mental health, to advance the field and facilitate research which can improve population health.

Objectives: To determine the association of housing items and amenities with psychological wellbeing (PWB) and their relationship with all-cause and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality.

Methods: This study was based on the framework of the HAPIEE study. Data from the Lithuanian Mortality Register were used to evaluate CVD and all-cause mortality from baseline survey (2006-2008) till 2023. The logistic regression model and multivariate Cox regression model were applied for data analysis.

Results: The multivariable regression models showed that the material aspects of people's lives influenced their PWB status: increasing the number of housing items per 1 unit significantly increased the odds ratio (OR) of higher PWB status for males [OR = 1.14 (95% CI 1.11-1.18)] and females [OR = 1.13 (95% CI 1.11-1.17)] and decreased the risk of all-cause and CVD mortality in females [respectively HR = 0.93 (95% CI 0.91-0.96) and HR = 0.91 (95% CI 0.87-0.95)] and in males [respectively HR = 0.92 (95% CI 0.90-0.94) and HR = 0.90 (95% CI 0.87-0.93)].

Conclusion: These data suggest that the household items and amenities influenced PWB and may be used as risk factors in assessing the risk of all-cause and CVD mortality.

Various communication and behavioral theories have been adopted to address health infodemics. However, there is no framework specially designed for social listening studies using social media data, machine learning, and natural language processing techniques. We aimed to propose a novel yet theory-based conceptual framework for infodemic research. We collected theories and models used in COVID-19 related studies published in peer-reviewed journals, ranging from health behavior, communication, to infodemic studies. These were analyzed and critiqued for their components, and we subsequently proposed a conceptual framework with a demonstration. Accordingly, we proposed our "Social Media Listening for Public Health Behavior" conceptual framework by not only integrating important attributes of existing theories, but also adding new attributes. The proposed conceptual framework can be used to better understand public discourse on social media, and can be integrated with other data analyses to gather a more comprehensive picture.

Objectives: To assess diagnostic mycology capacity and available fungal diagnostic services of microbiology laboratories in eight tertiary hospitals in Nigeria and one in Ghana.

Methods: On-site audits were performed in the microbiology laboratories of nine tertiary hospitals using a structured observation checklist.

Results: A total of nine tertiary hospitals' laboratories in Nigeria and Ghana were assessed between June 2022 and December 2023. The majority of audited laboratories lacked basic infrastructure and materials needed for fungal diagnostic testing, with less than half of the labs having a dedicated mycology bench, space or room, 3/9 (33.3%), appropriate bench workflow 1/9 (11.1%), functional biosafety cabinet type two 2/9 (22.2%), dedicated incubators 3/9 (33.3%), standard operating procedures 1/9 (11.1%), mycology atlases 2/9 (22.2%). Trained laboratory personnel for mycology were also lacking with only one of the laboratories 1/9 (11.1%) observed to have a designated trained personnel for the mycology bench.

Conclusion: The audit revealed deficits in basic infrastructure, material resources, dedicated human resources, and laboratory capacity to detect serious fungal infections.