Taking a Stand : An Untapped Strategy to Reduce Waterpipe Smoking in Adolescents

INTRODUCTION: Waterpipe use amongst adolescents is on the rise globally. Thus, there is a need to understand adolescents 'attitudes towards and perceptions of waterpipe use in order to develop specific interventions against this form of tobacco use. METHODS: Focus group interviews were conducted among 37 Swedish adolescents (14 boys and 23 girls) from grades 10 to 12. Waterpipe users and nonusers were interviewed separately, with two groups each for users and nonusers. Interviews were audiotaped, transcribed, and thematically analyzed using content analysis. RESULTS: Six themes emerged including taking a stand, weighing the risks, Lack of knowledge, Social context, Waterpipe new and unknown, and Family influence. Taking a stand was about being able to stand up for one's owns views rather than giving in to peer pressure to smoke waterpipe. Participants feared harming others via secondhand smoke and expressed criticism of the tobacco industry. Participants considered the health consequences and feared addiction. Lack of knowledge concerning health effects of waterpipe smoking due to the unavailability of credible information was also reported. Waterpipe smoking was considered a social event carried out in the company of friends. Perceived as novel and fun, waterpipe was smoked out of curiosity. Parents' and siblings' smoking behaviors influenced adolescent waterpipe use. CONCLUSION: Adolescents reported lacking information about the possible health effects of waterpipe smoking and that gaining such knowledge would make it easier for them to take a stand and refuse smoking waterpipe. Prevention strategies should focus on providing adolescents with factual information about the dangers of waterpipe use

Examining self-reported and biological stress and near misses among Emergency Medicine residents : a single-centre cross-sectional assessment in the USA

Objectives: To examine the relationship between perceived and biological stress and near misses among Emergency Medicine residents. Design: Self-rated stress and stress biomarkers were assessed in residents in Emergency Medicine before and after a day shift. The supervising physicians and residents reported numbers of near misses. Setting: The study took place in the Emergency Department of a large trauma 1 centre, located in Detroit, USA. Participants Residents in Emergency Medicine volunteered to participate. The sample consisted of 32 residents, with complete data on 28 subjects. Residents' supervising physicians assessed the clinical performance of each resident. Primary and secondary outcome measures: Participants' preshift and postshift stress, biological stress (salivary cortisol, plasma interleukin-6, tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein), residents' and supervisors' reports of near misses, number of critically ill and patients with trauma seen during the shift. Results: Residents' self-reported stress increased from an average preshift level of 2.79 of 10 (SD 1.81) to a postshift level of 5.82 (2.13) (p<0.001). Residents cared for an average of 2.32 (1.52) critically ill patients and 0.68 (1.06) patients with trauma. Residents reported a total of 7 near misses, compared with 11 reported by the supervising physicians. After controlling for baseline work-related exhaustion, residents that cared for more patients with trauma and had higher levels of TNF-a reported a higher frequency of near misses (R-2=0.72; p=0.001). Residents' preshift ratings of how stressful they expected the shift to be were related to the supervising physicians' ratings of residents' near misses during the shift. Conclusion: Residents' own ratings of near misses were associated with residents' TNF-alpha, a biomarker of systemic inflammation and the number of patients with trauma seen during the shift. In contrast, supervisor reports on residents' near misses were related only to the residents' preshift expectations of how stressful the shift would be

Patient-reported outcomes of caries prophylaxis among Swedish caries active adults in a long-term perspective

The aim of this study was to measure patient-reported outcomes of caries prophylaxis and to compare them with previously documented efforts in dental offices. A questionnaire was mailed to 134 caries active (CA) and 40 caries inactive (CI) adult patients treated at a Swedish public dental service clinic. The overall response rate was 69%. The questionnaire included items regarding patient perceived caries prophylaxis in relation to: 1) treatment and recommendations given by the dental personnel, 2) performed self-care and 3) perceived and expected effects.The responses were studied for their association to clinical data, extracted retrospectively from the patients' dental records.The mean follow up time was > 16 years. Information about caries prophylaxis (p = 0.01) and recommendations for self-care (p = 0.04) were given more often to the CA group than to the CI group. Supplementary examinations and recommendations of self-care risk treatments were more frequent in the CA group (p 90%) hoped that the outcome of caries prophylactics would be a reduced number of cavities.The patient-perceived experiences of caries prophylaxis-were in concordance with dental records. Both the dentists and the caries active middle-aged Swedish adults were aware of the need for extra prophylaxis.The caries active patients perceived having made extra home care efforts, but had not experienced that they had become free from carie

Correlation between perceived experience of caries disease and recorded caries activity among adult patients at a Swedish Public Dental Clinic : A longitudinal study

Abstract Objective. To compare patients' perceived experiences of caries activity with recorded longitudinal caries prevalence, consequences of caries and length of recall intervals. Materials and methods. A questionnaire was mailed to 134 caries active (CA) and 40 caries inactive (CI) adult patients at a Swedish Public Dental Clinic. The overall response rate was 69%. The questionnaire included items regarding perceived caries activity, general health, dietary and oral hygiene habits, level of education and socioeconomic status. Questionnaire responses were studied for their association to clinical data extracted from patient dental records. Results. There was a correlation between patient-perceived and documented caries activity for all respondents (rho = 0.65; p < 0.001). CA patients had significantly more perceived caries activity (p < 0.001), decayed teeth (p < 0.001), root fillings (p = 0.001) and extractions (p < 0.001) than CI patients. The mean recall interval was 1.5 years for CA and 2.1 years for CI (p < 0.001). In multiple logistic regression analysis, CA patients were at increased risk for xerostomia (OR = 22.66, p = 0.003), sleep disturbances (OR = 4.36, p = 0.04) and more frequent use of daily extra fluoride (OR = 3.58, p = 0.03). Conclusions. Patient-perceived experience of caries correlated well with recorded caries activity in this group of middle-aged Swedish adults. Individuals with active caries were aware of their disease and made more frequent attempts to reduce caries activity by use of daily extra fluoride. Individual risk-based recall intervals did not seem to eliminate consequences of disease activity such as root fillings and extractions during the follow-up period

Determinants of waterpipe use amongst adolescents in Northern Sweden : a survey of use pattern, risk perception, and environmental factors

BACKGROUND: Determinants of waterpipe use in adolescents are believed to differ from those for other tobacco products, but there is a lack of studies of possible social, cultural, or psychological aspects of waterpipe use in this population. This study applied a socioecological model to explore waterpipe use, and its relationship to other tobacco use in Swedish adolescents. METHODS: A total of 106 adolescents who attended an urban high-school in northern Sweden responded to an anonymous questionnaire. Prevalence rates for waterpipe use were examined in relation to socio-demographics, peer pressure, sensation seeking behavior, harm perception, environmental factors, and depression. RESULTS: Thirty-three percent reported ever having smoked waterpipe (ever use), with 30 % having done so during the last 30 days (current use). Among waterpipe ever users, 60 % had ever smoked cigarettes in comparison to 32 % of non-waterpipe smokers (95 % confidence interval 1.4-7.9). The odds of having ever smoked waterpipe were three times higher among male high school seniors as well as students with lower grades. Waterpipe ever users had three times higher odds of having higher levels of sensation-seeking (95 % confidence interval 1.2-9.5) and scored high on the depression scales (95 % confidence interval 1.6-6.8) than non-users. The odds of waterpipe ever use were four times higher for those who perceived waterpipe products to have pleasant smell compared to cigarettes (95 % confidence interval 1.7-9.8). Waterpipe ever users were twice as likely to have seen waterpipe use on television compared to non-users (95 % confidence interval 1.1-5.7). The odds of having friends who smoked regularly was eight times higher for waterpipe ever users than non-users (95 % confidence interval 2.1-31.2). CONCLUSION: The current study reports a high use of waterpipe in a select group of students in northern Sweden. The study adds the importance of looking at socioecological determinants of use, including peer pressure and exposure to media marketing, as well as mental health among users

Determinants of waterpipe use amongst adolescents in Northern Sweden : a survey of use pattern, risk perception, and environmental factors

BACKGROUND: Determinants of waterpipe use in adolescents are believed to differ from those for other tobacco products, but there is a lack of studies of possible social, cultural, or psychological aspects of waterpipe use in this population. This study applied a socioecological model to explore waterpipe use, and its relationship to other tobacco use in Swedish adolescents. METHODS: A total of 106 adolescents who attended an urban high-school in northern Sweden responded to an anonymous questionnaire. Prevalence rates for waterpipe use were examined in relation to socio-demographics, peer pressure, sensation seeking behavior, harm perception, environmental factors, and depression. RESULTS: Thirty-three percent reported ever having smoked waterpipe (ever use), with 30 % having done so during the last 30 days (current use). Among waterpipe ever users, 60 % had ever smoked cigarettes in comparison to 32 % of non-waterpipe smokers (95 % confidence interval 1.4-7.9). The odds of having ever smoked waterpipe were three times higher among male high school seniors as well as students with lower grades. Waterpipe ever users had three times higher odds of having higher levels of sensation-seeking (95 % confidence interval 1.2-9.5) and scored high on the depression scales (95 % confidence interval 1.6-6.8) than non-users. The odds of waterpipe ever use were four times higher for those who perceived waterpipe products to have pleasant smell compared to cigarettes (95 % confidence interval 1.7-9.8). Waterpipe ever users were twice as likely to have seen waterpipe use on television compared to non-users (95 % confidence interval 1.1-5.7). The odds of having friends who smoked regularly was eight times higher for waterpipe ever users than non-users (95 % confidence interval 2.1-31.2). CONCLUSION: The current study reports a high use of waterpipe in a select group of students in northern Sweden. The study adds the importance of looking at socioecological determinants of use, including peer pressure and exposure to media marketing, as well as mental health among users