Global health journal (Amsterdam, Netherlands)最新文献

Objective

We examined the association between body mass index (BMI) and body fat percentage (BF%) measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) among adults and children in China.

Methods

We searched four databases–PubMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, and Vip for studies published in the past 22 years. Meta-analysis was conducted using random- or fixed-effect models.

Results

In total of 21 studies met inclusion criteria and were included in review, and 17 ot them in meta-analysis. They were conducted across China. Their sample size ranged from 62 to 5 726, and participants’ age ranged from 6‒80 years. Meta-analysis revealed strong associations between BMI and BF% measured by DXA in adults (pooled r = 0.71, 95% CI: 0.66 to 0.74) and children (pooled r = 0.60, 95% CI: 0.52 to 0.68). The association was stronger in Northern China than in East China in children (β = −0.40, 95% CI: −0.65 to −0.14) and in Central China in adults (β = −0.25; 95% CI: −0.51 to −0.01). Urban children's BMI was strongly associated with BF% than rural (β = 0.19; 95% CI: 0.04 to 0.35), whereas it was stronger in adults living in rural than in urban (β = −0.35; 95% CI: −0.66 to −0.05).

Conclusions

BMI was strongly associated with BF% measured by DXA, and the association in children and adults in China varied by residence and region.

The monkeypox, a viral zoonotic disease usually found in forest areas of Central and Western Africa, has spread worldwide through new modes of transmission little understood. The WHO on 23 July 2022, declared the virus a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).The declaration has stirred criticism from leading scientists that the criteria for PHEIC as defined by International Health Regulation have not been met and it is non-transparent and contradictory. This paper reviews the criteria of PHEIC and weighs the rationales behind the declaration to increase the clarity of the WHO's decision, justifications, and legitimacy in the ongoing outbreak.

Objective

Hidden hunger remains a severe public health problem that affects millions of people worldwide. In China, challenges related to dietary imbalance and hidden hunger persist. Micronutrient inadequacy deserves more attention among adolescents, given its vital role in their growth and development; however, this problem appears to have been largely ignored. High school students, in particular, are often at a high risk of hidden hunger but have limited assessment tools available. Therefore, this study aims to revise the hidden hunger assessment scale for high school students (HHAS-HSS) in China and assess its reliability and validity.

Methods

Based on a literature review, expert consultation, pre-experiment, and formal survey, a hidden hunger assessment scale was revised for high school students. The formal survey involved 9 336 high school students in 11 of the 16 cities in Anhui Province, China, and 9 038 valid questionnaires were collected and included in the analysis. The item analysis, internal consistency reliability, test–retest reliability, content validity, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis of the HHAS-HSS were examined.

Results

The HHAS-HSS included a total of 4 dimensions and 12 items: “vegetables and food diversity” (three items), “fruits and dairy products” (three items), “micronutrient-dense foods” (four items), and “health condition and eating habits” (two items). The results showed a Cronbach's alpha of 0.758, a split-half reliability of 0.829, and a test-retest reliability of 0.793, indicating good internal consistency. Using the Bartlett's test and Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin test (KMO) to test the exploratory factor analysis presented a four-factor model of the HHAS-HSS, the KMO value was 0.820 (P < 0.001), which indicated the possibility for factor confirmatory factor analysis. Using the maximum variance rotation method, four factors were obtained, and the cumulative variance explained rate was 57.974%. Confirmatory factor analysis also supported the division of the scale into four dimensions, and the fitting indices were χ² = 1417.656, χ²/df = 29.534, goodness-of-fit index = 0.974, adjusted goodness-of-fit index = 0.958, parsimonious goodness-of-fit index = 0.600, normed fit index = 0.938, incremental fit index = 0.940, Tucker–Lewis index = 0.917, comparative fit index = 0.939, and root mean square error of approximation = 0.056. Except for χ²/df, all the indices reached the fitting standard, and the above results showed that the construct validity of the scale reached an acceptable level.

Conclusions

The HHAS-HSS has good validity and reliability for Chinese high school students. It is a convenient self-report measure of hidden hunger risk.

Objective

This study aimed to estimate the prevalence and determinants of Internet addiction among medical students at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of Casablanca, Morocco.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study conducted among students at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy in Casablanca between October and March 2020. An online questionnaire was administered to students to collect data and internet addiction was assessed by the Young questionnaire. A score threshold ≥ 50 was adopted to define addiction. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with internet addiction.

Results

Out of a total of 4 093 FMPC students enrolled in the 2020‒2021 academic year, 506 agreed to participate in this study, including 303 females and 203 males. The mean addiction score assessed on the Young scale was (49.08 ± 16.11). The prevalence of Internet addiction was 44.5% (225/506, 95% CI: 40% to 49%). Multiple regression analysis showed that being older than 20 years (OR = 0.17, 95% CI: 0.40 to 0.64), being female (OR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.04 to 2.78), being in the dissertation year (6th year) (OR = 5.17, 95% CI: 2.23 to 11.44), having a history of psychiatric consultation (OR = 2.64, 95% CI: 1.34 to 5.21), having divorced parents (OR = 2.64, 95% CI: 1.05 to 5.87), use of sleeping medication (OR = 2.9, 95% CI: 1.05 to 3.70), sleep disorders (OR = 2.06, 95% CI: 1.25 to 3.79), sleep deprivation (OR = 2.26, 95% CI: 1.39 to 3.65), excessive daytime sleepiness (OR = 5.39, 95% CI: 2.19 to 13.24), anxiety disorders (OR = 1.47, 95% CI: 1.18 to 2.30), duration of internet connection (> 4 h) (OR = 11.43, 95% CI: 4.85 to 27.66), and having frequent conflicts with parents (OR = 2.37, 95% CI: 1.49 to 3.79) and friends (OR = 0.26, 95% CI: 0.11 to 0.65) were independently associated with internet addiction.

Conclusion

The prevalence of Internet addiction among medical students in Casablanca remains high. Targeted action on the determinants would be of great value in prevention.

The purpose of this review is to identify prevalent trends and risk factors in depression, anxiety, and eating disorders in the adolescent population in the post coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) scenario. We examined the literature published on adolescent mental health since the COVID-19 pandemic. We chose to summarize studies published from 2019 to 2022, using bibliographic search tools. We developed criteria for selecting articles for our review using diagnostic indicators and keywords. Mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety and eating disorders are commonly prevalent in this population and have shown increasing rates in the past three years. Some risk factors associated with these diagnoses include reduction in social interaction, increased workloads, routine shifts, sleep quality, social media usage and parental involvement. Routines, sleep cycles, physical activity, and social media should all be considered as a part of prevention in this population. Approaches that seem to be successful include maintaining social ties and avoiding negative social media usage with harmful content. Increased global public awareness, as well as parental awareness, through media campaigns, is critical to slowing the spread of mental health challenges in adolescents and teenagers in the post-COVID-19 era.

Objective

Community-based rehabilitation (CBR) is a strategy by which persons living with disability (PWDs) access comprehensive rehabilitation services with limited evidence regarding its impact on the quality of life (QOL) and self-esteem (SE) of PWDs and their family members. This study compared the QOL and SE of Nigerian PWDs in communities with and without a CBR programme (CBR and non-CBR respectively), and the family quality of life (FQOL) of their family members.

Methods

Cross-sectional study involving 2 604 PWDs (1 302 in CBR and 1 302 in non-CBR); 5 208 family members of PWDs (2 604 in CBR and 2 604 non-CBR), recruited from four randomly selected geo-political zones in Nigeria, purposive/consecutive selection of eight CBR programmes, PWDs and their family members (CBR and non-CBR). Outcomes assessed using Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument- short form (WHOQOL-BREF) and Beach Centre Family Quality of Life Instrument (BCFQOL). Mann-Whitney U test and Spearman's rank order correlation were used to analyse data at P < 0.05.

Results

PWDs in CBR scored higher in all domains of WHOQOL-BREF (P < 0.0001 in all cases) and RSES than non-CBR group (P < 0.0001). The CBR families scored significantly higher than non-CBR families in all domains (P < 0.05) except Emotional Well-Being of the BCFQOL. The CBR group scores on Psychological and Social Health domains of the WHOQOL-BREF showed significant positive correlation with CBR families’ Family Interaction (P = 0.06) and Parenting (P = 0.07) domains and total FQOL (P = 0.07).

Conclusion

Community-based rehabilitation positively impacted on SE and QOL of PWDs and their family members.

Objective

The problems associated with child health continue to constitute a global concern, and child morbidity and mortality remain problematic in Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA). Utilizing a community-based survey conducted in Ibadan North Local government, Southwest Nigeria the study examined the influences of maternal perceived self-efficacy (MPSE) and maternal perceived vulnerability (MPV) on child health outcomes (CHO).

Methods

The study appraised data from 683 nursing mothers aged 15‒45 obtained from 20 major primary healthcare centers in the region undergoing routine health checks for their children. Three regression models were fitted to examine the effects of MPV, MPSE, and confounding variables of maternal preventive actions such as insecticide-treated nets (ITN) usage and child immunization, among other maternal and child sociodemographic attributes on CHO.

Results

The study finds that MPV has no correlation with CHO and MPSE but positively correlates with maternal age (r = 0.123, P < 0.05). However, CHO has a negative correlation with MPSE (r = −0.200, P < 0.05) while positively correlated with child age (r = 0.134, P < 0.05). MPSE has a unique effect on CHO (β = −0.203, P < 0.05), maternal preventive action of ITN usage show a positive association with CHO in the study Model 2 (β = −0.163, P < 0.05), while in Model 3, child's age has a positive association with CHO (β = 0.180, P < 0.05). The net effect of the study models accounted for approximately 10% of the variance in CHO reported among the children.

Conclusion

Overall, MPSE and ITN usage are essential factors for understanding and reducing the potential adverse CHO. Global effort must continue to improve maternal education to support child health and preventive care practices in SSA.

Nanotechnology has extensive application as nanomedicine in the medical field. Some nanoparticles have possible applications in novel diagnostic instruments, imagery and methodologies, targeted medicinal products, pharmaceutical products, biomedical implants, and tissue engineering. Today treatments of high toxicity can be administered with improved safety using nanotechnology, such as chemotherapeutic cancer drugs. Further, wearable gadgets can detect crucial changes in vital signs, cancer cell conditions, and infections that are genuinely happening in the body. We anticipate these technologies to provide doctors with considerably much better direct access to critical data on the reasons for changes in the signs of life or illness because of the technological presence at the source of the problem. Biomedicine can be utilised for therapies with predictive analytics and artificial intelligence. For carrying out this study, relevant papers on Nanotechnology in the medical field from Scopus, Google scholar, ResearchGate, and other research platforms are identified and studied. The study discusses different types of Nanoparticles used in the medical field. This paper discusses nanotechnology applications in the medical field. The class, features, and characteristics of Nanotechnology for medicine are also briefed. Scientists, governments, civil society organisations, and the general public will need to collaborate across sectors to assess the significance of nanotechnology and guide its advancement in various fields. The current research includes several possible Nanotechnology uses in the medical field. As a result, the study provides a brief and well-organised report on nanotechnology that should be valuable to researchers, engineers, and scientists for future research projects.

Background

Understanding and minimizing existing global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination disparities is critical to global population health and eliminating health inequities. The study aims to investigate the disparities of vaccination coverage and progression and the associated economic and educational determinants to inform global COVID-19 vaccination strategies.

Methods

COVID-19 vaccination coverage data from 206 countries used in the study were derived from “Our World in Data” website. After obtaining the vaccination coverage indicators, we fitted the progression indicators for vaccination. Correlation and multiple linear regression analysis were used to examine the effects of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, Gini index, education, and their interactions on the coverage and progression of the COVID-19 vaccination.

Results

The coverage of COVID-19 vaccination ranged from less than 30 doses to more than 150 doses per hundred people, from less than 15% to more than 75% for proportion of people vaccinated, from less than 15% to more than 60% for proportion of people fully vaccinated. Similarly, the progression of vaccination ranged from less than 0.1 to more than 0.6 for progression of total number of doses, from less than 0.1 to more than 0.3 for progression of proportion of people vaccinated, and from less than 0.1 to more than 0.4 for progression of proportion of people fully vaccinated. GDP per capita and education were positively associated with the coverage and progression, while Gini index was negatively associated with the coverage and progression. Negative interaction between GDP per capita and education was also observed for coverage (β = −0.012 to −0.011, P < 0.05) and progression (β = −0.012 to −0.011, P < 0.05).

Conclusions

Substantial geographic disparities existed for the coverage and progression of COVID-19 vaccination. Economy and education are two important factors contributing to the disparities. Different countries may adopt varied strategies to promote the national distribution and vaccination of COVID-19 vaccines.