Scandinavian systems monitoring the oral health in children and adolescents; an evaluation of their quality and utility in the light of modern perspectives of caries management

Background: Recording reliable oral health data is a challenge. The aims were a) to outline different Scandinavian systems of oral health monitoring, b) to evaluate the quality and utility of the collected data in the light of modern concepts of disease management and to suggest improvements. Material and methods: The information for in this study was related to (a) children and adolescents, (b) oral health data and (c) routines for monitoring such data. This meant information available in the official web sites of the “KOSTRA-data” (Municipality-State-Report) in Norway, the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare (“Socialstyrelsen”) and Oral Health Register (the SCOR system, National Board of Health) in Denmark. Results: A potential for increasing the reliability and validity of the data existed. Routines for monitoring other oral diseases than caries were limited. Compared with the other Scandinavian countries, the data collection system in Denmark appeared more functional and had adopted more modern concepts of disease management than other systems. In the light of modern concepts of caries management, data collected elsewhere had limited utility. Conclusions: The Scandinavian systems of health reporting had much in common, but some essential differences existed. If the quality of epidemiological data were enhanced, it would be possible to use the data for planning oral health care. Routines and procedures should be improved and updated in accordance with the modern ideas about caries prevention and therapy. For appropriate oral health planning in an organised dental service, reporting of enamel caries is essential.publishedVersio

Almajiri Health; A Scoping Review On Disease, Health Literacy And Space For Participatory Research

Introduction Almajirai are male children who leave the care of their parents to learn the Qur’an and study Islam under the tutelage of a Mallam or Imam at a Tsangaya. Almajiranci refers to the system of education based on this relationship between almajiri and mallam, and which was the dominant mode of education in precolonial Hausaland – Northern Nigeria and Southern Niger. This system remains widespread and popular in both countries. In recent years, discourse around almajirai has featured prominently in media from and about this region, and has associated almajiranci with non-participation in formal education, abuse, poverty, and underdevelopment. Despite this, the peer-reviewed literature around health among almajirai remains limited. Here, we conduct a scoping review of the academic literature as it concerns almajirai health to synthesize evidence for specific health problems, draw links between related findings, identify gaps in the literature, indicate areas for potential intervention, and assess if and how this literature has engaged almajirai as partners and participants in research. Methods We searched MEDLINE, Embase, OVID Global Health, Scopus, Web of Science and EBSCO’s Africa-Wide Information Database for articles that concerned almajiri heath as operationalized using a framework leveraging the biopsychosocial and socio-ecological models of health to integrate biological, social, and environmental factors that influence health. We included articles in English and French published between 2000 and 2022. For each study we collected information regarding (i) authorship (ii) study year and location(s), (iii) study design and aims, (iv) sample characteristics, (v) findings, and (vi) almajiri participation in research design, execution, interpretation and dissemination. Results Of 1,944 identified studies, a final set of 17 were deemed relevant for data extraction. These included 14 cross-sectional studies, 2 descriptive articles, and one case-control study. All 17 were conducted in Nigeria, though one included almajirai from Niger. Just one study concerned an intervention to improve almajiri health, and no study engaged almajirai in participatory roles beyond acquiring their consent. Domains evaluated in this set of studies included infectious disease (10 studies), oral health (2 studies), workplace injury, nutrition, general health status, health determinants, and mental health (1 study each). The ages of almajirai represented in these studies ranged from as young as 3 years to as old as 28, though some studies did not clearly state participants’ ages. Included studies find high rates of malaria, intestinal parasitosis, urinary tract infection, and occupational injury among almajirai. Studies comparing almajirai to controls find significantly higher rates of cholera, urinary schistosomiasis, and psychiatric disorders, as well as lower levels of rabies awareness and poorer oral hygiene among almajirai than in controls (p Conclusion Our scoping review identifies several notable features of the literature around almajiri health. We find that this literature has concerned a wide range of domains, though the number of studies concerned with specific phenomena within each domain remains limited. We further note limitations in the geographic scope of the current literature around almajiri health, in the study of interventions meant to improve almajiri health, and in the consideration of demographic features, such as age, that may influence almajirai’s experiences and health. We stress the need for further study in all these areas, and for participatory approaches to this study, which, by involving almajirai in the research process, can help develop trust between almajirai and the research enterprise, build interventions tailored to their priorities and preferences, and may be more likely to sustainably and successfully improve almajiri health and wellbeing

Nutrition Education in Clark County, Nevada

Over 51 million school hours are missed annually by school-aged children due to a dental problem or visit, with 117 hours missed per 100 children (NIDCR, 2002). Approximately half a million of California\u27s 7.2 million school-age children missed at least one day of school in 2007 because of dental issues such as toothaches (Pourat, & Nicholson, 2009). Independent research regarding various educational and intervention programs have been conducted in elementary schools across the country that focus on nutrition and/or physical activity, some of which have found that the programs positively impacted students’ dietary behaviors (Edwards, Mauch, & Winkelman, 2011; Muth, Chatterjee, Williams, Cross, & Flower, 2008; Tuuri et al., 2009). However, there does not appear to be literature regarding the standardization of nutrition and oral health education curricula for elementary school children. Nevertheless, there are school districts that have well structured health education curricula that cover nutrition and oral health education (California Department of Education, 2009; Central Michigan University, 2005). All of these reports are in agreement with Dietz, et al (2008) which reported that nutrition and oral hygiene education should be an integral part of keeping growing children healthy and forming good nutrition habits that will carry into adulthood

Computer-assisted versus oral-and-written dietary history taking for diabetes mellitus

Background: Diabetes is a chronic illness characterised by insulin resistance or deficiency, resulting in elevated glycosylated haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels. Diet and adherence to dietary advice is associated with lower HbA1c levels and control of disease. Dietary history may be an effective clinical tool for diabetes management and has traditionally been taken by oral-and-written methods, although it can also be collected using computer-assisted history taking systems (CAHTS). Although CAHTS were first described in the 1960s, there remains uncertainty about the impact of these methods on dietary history collection, clinical care and patient outcomes such as quality of life. Objectives: To assess the effects of computer-assisted versus oral-and-written dietary history taking on patient outcomes for diabetes mellitus. Search methods: We searched The Cochrane Library (issue 6, 2011), MEDLINE (January 1985 to June 2011), EMBASE (January 1980 to June 2011) and CINAHL (January 1981 to June 2011). Reference lists of obtained articles were also pursued further and no limits were imposed on languages and publication status. Selection criteria: Randomised controlled trials of computer-assisted versus oral-and-written history taking in patients with diabetes mellitus. Data collection and analysis: Two authors independently scanned the title and abstract of retrieved articles. Potentially relevant articles were investigated as full text. Studies that met the inclusion criteria were abstracted for relevant population and intervention characteristics with any disagreements resolved by discussion, or by a third party. Risk of bias was similarly assessed independently. Main results: Of the 2991 studies retrieved, only one study with 38 study participants compared the two methods of history taking over a total of eight weeks. The authors found that as patients became increasingly familiar with using CAHTS, the correlation between patients' food records and computer assessments improved. Reported fat intake decreased in the control group and increased when queried by the computer. The effect of the intervention on the management of diabetes mellitus and blood glucose levels was not reported. Risk of bias was considered moderate for this study. Authors' conclusions: Based on one small study judged to be of moderate risk of bias, we tentatively conclude that CAHTS may be well received by study participants and potentially offer time saving in practice. However, more robust studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm these. We cannot draw on any conclusions in relation to any other clinical outcomes at this stage

Providing Language Services in Small Health Care Provider Settings: Examples From the Field

Assesses recent innovations in language service programs and activities at healthcare provider settings with ten or fewer clinicians. Includes an eight-step plan to help providers develop a strategy to meet the needs of their patients

Assessing the Readiness of Nairobi Deaf Youth to Accept a Best-practice HIV/AIDS Intervention

After nearly forty years of HIV/AIDS research in the global community, data on HIV/AIDS in the Deaf population is still disproportionately neglected. No surveillance system is in place to monitor prevalence, awareness or mode of HIV infection in the Deaf community. Additionally, prevention and education interventions have yet to be tailored to meet the specific needs of this highly vulnerable population. Purpose: This project attempted to assess the readiness of the Nairobi Deaf youth community to accept a best-practice HIV/AIDS intervention. The broad objective of this research was to assess HIV awareness, perceptions and behaviors of Deaf youth in regards to HIV/AIDS in Nairobi, Kenya. Method: This project used the snowball sampling method to conduct a survey using a combination of pre-coded, and open-answer questions conducted with 60 Deaf youth (18-35) in Nairobi, Kenya. Interviews included topics of HIV/AIDS knowledge, risk perception, and risk behaviors. Results: The Nairobi Deaf youth community is unequipped to accept a best practice HIV/AIDS intervention at this time. Efforts need to be made to increase risk perception and develop social support. Also, comprehensive prevalence research needs to be conducted in this population. Conclusion: Based on the data collected in this survey and a review of literature, a peer-led, extracurricular education campaign seems to be the most acceptable best-practice intervention for targeting Deaf youth. Additionally, a supplementary, video-based, multifaceted language component would be suggested

The Human Oral Microbiome Database: a web accessible resource for investigating oral microbe taxonomic and genomic information

The human oral microbiome is the most studied human microflora, but 53% of the species have not yet been validly named and 35% remain uncultivated. The uncultivated taxa are known primarily from 16S rRNA sequence information. Sequence information tied solely to obscure isolate or clone numbers, and usually lacking accurate phylogenetic placement, is a major impediment to working with human oral microbiome data. The goal of creating the Human Oral Microbiome Database (HOMD) is to provide the scientific community with a body site-specific comprehensive database for the more than 600 prokaryote species that are present in the human oral cavity based on a curated 16S rRNA gene-based provisional naming scheme. Currently, two primary types of information are provided in HOMD—taxonomic and genomic. Named oral species and taxa identified from 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis of oral isolates and cloning studies were placed into defined 16S rRNA phylotypes and each given unique Human Oral Taxon (HOT) number. The HOT interlinks phenotypic, phylogenetic, genomic, clinical and bibliographic information for each taxon. A BLAST search tool is provided to match user 16S rRNA gene sequences to a curated, full length, 16S rRNA gene reference data set. For genomic analysis, HOMD provides comprehensive set of analysis tools and maintains frequently updated annotations for all the human oral microbial genomes that have been sequenced and publicly released. Oral bacterial genome sequences, determined as part of the Human Microbiome Project, are being added to the HOMD as they become available. We provide HOMD as a conceptual model for the presentation of microbiome data for other human body sites

Role of School-Based Health Centers Under Universal Coverage for Children and Youth in California: Issues and Options

Examines challenges of and provides suggestions for a universal model of health care delivery for all children and youth in California. Addresses the role of schools, school-based health centers, and their partners

Iowa Health Focus, March 2003

Monthly newsletter for Iowa Department of Public Healt

Advances in Teaching & Learning Day Abstracts 2005

Proceedings of the Advances in Teaching & Learning Day Regional Conference held at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston in 2005