The ‘Lugna Gatan’ Project—An Example of Enterprise in Crime Prevention Work

The potential for a contribution to be made by further education colleges to reduce drug- and alcohol-related harm has recently been recognized at a national level. Little is known, however, about the extent of actual drug- and alcohol-related activities taking place. A national survey for England was undertaken via a semi-structured interview administered by telephone, targeting all medium to large colleges and achieving a 92% response rate. Non-curriculum student welfare staff were identified to be widely available and most commonly involved in activities such as referral, provision of leaflets, with teaching staff delivering formal curriculum and tutorial-based work. External agencies were involved with three quarters of colleges, with a similar proportion of colleges also having a drug policy in place. The known contents of these policies were variable. Although drug and alcohol use were not generally viewed as being greatly problematic within the colleges, it is highly likely that there exist opportunities for early interventions that have not yet been well-explored.     

Changes in sexual behaviour and practice and HIV prevalence indicators among young people aged 15–24 years in Zambia: An in-depth analysis of the 2001–2002 and 2007 Zambia Demographic and Health Surveys

Abstract

HIV and AIDS still pose a major public health problem to most countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Zambia included. The objective of the paper is to determine changes in selected sexual behaviour and practice and HIV prevalence indicators between 2001–2002 and 2007. We used the Demographic and Health Survey Indicators Database for the computation of the selected indicators. We further used STATA 10.0 to compute significance tests to test for statistical difference in the indicators. The results indicate some changes in sexual behaviour, as indicated by an increase in abstinence, use of condoms and the decrease in multiple partnerships. The overall percentage of abstinence among never-married young men and women aged 15–24 years in Zambia increased significantly by 15.2% (p?=?.000) and 5.9% (p?=?.001) respectively, between 2001–2002 and 2007. A statistically significant increase of 6.6% (p =?.029) was observed in the percentage of young women who reported having used a condom during the last time they had had premarital sex. A statistically significant decrease of 11.0% (p?=?.000) and 1.4% (p?=?.000) was observed among young men and women, respectively, who reported having multiple partners in the preceding 12 months. The factorial decomposition using multivariate analysis reveals that the indicators which contributed to the statistically significant 2.6% decline in HIV prevalence among young women aged 15–24 years in Zambia include proportion reporting condom use during premarital sex (+6.6%), abstinence (+5.9%), sex before age 15 (?4.5%), premarital sex (?2.6%), sex before age 18 (?2.4%) and proportion reporting multiple partnerships (?1.4%). Remarkable strides have been achieved towards promoting responsible sexual behaviour and practice among young people in Zambia. Further research focusing on factors that predispose young women in Zambia to higher risk of infection from HIV is required. The results from this paper should be useful in the design of programmes to control the spread of HIV and AIDS, particularly among young people in Zambia and other sub-Saharan countries.     

Asthma Knowledge and Asthma Management Behavior in Urban Elementary School Teachers

Background. Although schools are an important setting for asthma care in youth, teachers’ asthma knowledge and symptom management is poor. This study investigated the knowledge, prevention and management behaviors, and communication regarding asthma of teachers of low-income, ethnic minority students. It was hypothesized that relative to colleagues whose students did not have active asthma (i.e., did not have symptoms during the day), teachers of students with active asthma would have better asthma knowledge and that more would take asthma prevention steps and communicate with parents and school nurses. Methods. Drawing from 25 elementary schools in New York City, 320 pre-Kindergarten through 5th grade classroom teachers with at least one student with asthma completed measures assessing their asthma knowledge, steps taken to manage asthma, communication with the school nurse or parents, information they received about asthma, and whether or not they had at least one student in their class experience asthma symptoms. t test and chi-square were used to test hypotheses. Results. Asthma knowledge varied among teachers. Most could identify potential triggers, yet few knew that medication taken prior to exercise could prevent symptoms and that students with asthma need not avoid exercise. Communication between teachers and school nurses and between teachers and parents was lacking. Relative to colleagues whose students did not have active asthma, teachers whose students had active asthma had better asthma knowledge, more took steps to prevent students from having asthma symptoms, communicated with parents, and more initiated communication with the nurse. Conclusions. Teachers’ knowledge about asthma and asthma management is limited, especially among those whose students did not have active asthma. Teachers respond reactively to students who have symptoms in class by increasing prevention steps and communications with parents and the school nurse. A more proactive approach to managing asthma in schools is warranted.     

“Kiss myAsthma”: Using a participatory design approach to develop a self-management app with young people with asthma

Objective: Young people with asthma often lack engagement in self-management. Smartphone apps offer an attractive, immediate method for obtaining asthma information and self-management support. In this research we developed an evidence-based asthma app tailored to young peoples needs, created using a participatory design approach to optimize user engagement. This paper describes the participatory design process. Methods: This multi-phased research included concept generation and ideation of app design by young people with asthma, and development of asthma information by the research team. Clinical review was sought regarding safety and accuracy of app content. Participants suggestions for improvement and any problems with the app were logged throughout. Our young co-designers were invited back to test a high fidelity prototype app using a “think aloud” process and completed a usability questionnaire. Results: Twenty asthma patients aged 15-24 years contributed to the initial app design. Three respiratory specialists and two pharmacists suggested minor corrections to clinical terminology in the app which were all incorporated. Nine co-designers acted as expert reviewers of the prototype app, of whom eight completed a usability questionnaire. Median usability scores (maximum score 6) indicated high satisfaction with app content, usefulness and ease of use [median item score 5.3 (range 4.7-6.0)]. All feedback was incorporated to create an updated prototype app. Conclusions: A clinically sound asthma app has been developed which is considered highly acceptable to the young co-designers. A six-week test of the engagement, acceptability, and usefulness of the app in young people not involved in the participatory design will follow.     

载脂蛋白E基因多态性与中青年脑梗死的相关性研究

目的:研究载脂蛋白E(apolipoprotein E,apoE)基因多态性与中青年脑梗死的相关性。方法:采用聚合酶链式反应-限制性片段长度多态性(polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism,PCR-RELP)技术检测110例中青年脑梗死患者和126例健康对照者的apoE基因型,并进行基因多态性分析。结果:中青年脑梗死组ε3等位基因频率及ε3/3基因型频率较对照组降低(P<0.05),而ε4等位基因频率及ε4/4基因型频率较对照组升高(P<0.05)。结论:apoE基因多态性与中青年脑梗死的发病存在相关性,ε3可能对中青年脑梗死发病具有抵御作用,而ε4可能在中青年脑梗死的发病中起促进作用。     

超声多普勒检查对幼少女下生殖道肿物的诊断效能

目的 探讨分析幼少女下生殖道肿物临床特点及超声特征,预测超声多普勒检查在相关疾病上的诊断效能,以期指导临床相关诊疗策略。方法 回顾性收集2010年3月—2021年5月在四川大学华西第二医院治疗并确诊的幼少女下生殖肿物患者39例。分析39例幼女下生殖道肿物的疾病种类,相关临床特征、超声表现、术后记录及病理资料。分析与临床诊断符合率,探讨超声检查对幼少女下生殖道发育异常的诊断价值。结果 39例生殖道肿物中恶性肿瘤者10例,其中子宫2例,宫颈8例;良性病变者2例,均来源于外阴;下生殖道发育异常者27例,其中阴道斜隔综合征15例,阴道闭锁6例,处女膜闭锁2例,阴道横隔1例,先天性无阴道1例,副中肾管囊肿2例。结论 对于下生殖道肿瘤,超声检查可凭借包块大小、性质、血流信号等参数对包块良恶性进行初步评估,在基础体检、普查、临床随诊中有意义,亦可指导相关临床策略