Neighborhood Conditions and Psychosocial Outcomes Among Middle-Aged African Americans: A Cross-sectional Analysis

Objective: We examined associations between observed neighborhood conditions (good/adverse) and psychosocial outcomes (stress, depressive symptoms, resilience, and sense of control) among middle-aged and older African Americans. Methods: The sample included 455 middle-aged and older African Americans examined in Wave 10 of the African American Health (AAH) study. Linear regression was adjusted for attrition, self-selection into neighborhoods, and potential confounders, and stratified by the duration at current address (5 years at current residence despite being associated with better psychosocial outcomes

Obesity is associated with insulin resistance and components of the metabolic syndrome in Lebanese adolescents

adolescents has been reported to range between 18–42%, depending on country of origin, thus suggesting an ethnicbased association between obesity and MS. Aim: This study aims to investigate the magnitude of the association between obesity, insulin resistance and components of MS among adolescents in Lebanon. Subjects and methods: The sample included 263 adolescents at 4 th and 5 th Tanner stages of puberty (104 obese; 78 overweight; 81 normal weight). Anthropometric, biochemical and blood pressure measurements were performed. Body fat was assessed using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Results: According to International Diabetes Federation criteria, MS was identified in 21.2 % of obese, 3.8 % of overweight and 1.2 % of normal weight subjects. The most common metabolic abnormalities among subjects having MS were elevated waist circumference (96.2%), low HDL (96.2%) and hypertriglyceridemia (73.1%). Insulin resistance was identified in all subjects having MS. Regression analyses showed that percentage body fat, waist circumference and BMI were similar in their ability to predict the MS in this age group. Conclusions: MSwas identified in asubstantial proportion of Lebanese obese adolescents, thus highlighting the importance of early screening for obesity-associated metabolic abnormalities and of developing successful multi-component interventions addressing adolescent obesity

Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Correlates of Mental Health Services Use among Pregnant Women with Depressive Symptoms

Objectives To examine correlates of lifetime mental health services (MHS) use among pregnant women reporting prenatal depressive symptoms by race/ethnicity. Methods This cross-sectional population-based study included 81,910 pregnant women with prenatal depressive symptoms using data from the Florida Healthy Start prenatal screening program (2008–2012). Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to ascertain adjusted odds ratios and corresponding 95 % confidence intervals for racial/ethnic differences in the correlates of lifetime MHS use. Results Findings of this study revealed racial/ethnic differences in MHS use among women with prenatal depressive symptoms, the highest rates being among non-Hispanic Whites and the lowest rates among Mexicans and other Hispanics. Most need for care factors, including illness, tobacco use, and physical or emotional abuse, consistently predicted MHS use across racial/ethnic groups after adjusting for covariates. Adjusted associations between predisposing and enabling/restricting factors and MHS use were different for different racial/ethnic groups. Conclusions Racial/ethnic differences in MHS use were found, with pregnant Hispanic women reporting prenatal depressive symptoms being the least likely to use MHS. Our study findings have significant public health implications for targeted intervention for pregnant women with prenatal depressive symptoms

A rare association of subclavian steal syndrome with bilateral carotid artery stenosis: a case report

Bilateral carotid artery stenosis in the context of subclavian steal syndrome is an extremely rare finding. We report the case of a 75-year-old woman who presented with a transient ischemic attack. Bilateral internal carotid stenosis associated with left subclavian steal syndrome was diagnosed. Left internal carotid endarterectomy was performed under locoregional anesthesia. Inflation of a blood pressure cuff reversed the neurologic symptoms that appeared after internal carotid clamping. This rarely reported case remains a challenge to diagnose and treat because of its complex mechanisms and multiple risk factors. Our case highlights the importance of the surgical strategy adopted and the need for a good initial assessment

Association between outdoor light at night and hypertension and high‐normal blood pressure: A nationwide cross‐sectional study among Chinese adults

Abstract The authors aimed to investigate the association between outdoor light at night (LAN) intensity and blood pressure. The study included 13 507 participants aged 45 and above from the 2011–2012 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study baseline survey. Blood pressure measurements were obtained by averaging the last two readings recorded (three measurements with an interval of 45–60 s between each measurement) during the survey. Outdoor LAN intensity was assessed using Defense Meteorological Satellite Program data. The study categorized participants based on quartiles of outdoor LAN intensity and employed statistical methods like linear regression, restricted cubic splines, and logistic models to analyze the connections. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, higher levels of outdoor LAN intensity were associated with increase in systolic blood pressure (0.592 mmHg/interquartile range [IQR], 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.027,1.157), diastolic blood pressure (0.853 mmHg/IQR, 95% CI: 0.525,1.180) and mean arterial pressure (0.766 mmHg/IQR, 95% CI: 0.385,1.147). Interestingly, the relationship between LAN intensity and odds of hypertension followed a non‐linear pattern, resembling a reverse “L” shape on cubic splines. Participants with the highest quartile of outdoor LAN intensity had 1.31‐fold increased odds of hypertension (95% CI: 1.08–1.58) compared to the lowest quartile. Additionally, there was an observable trend of rising odds for high‐normal blood pressure with higher levels of LAN intensity in the crude model, but no statistically significant differences were observed after adjusting for confounding factors. In conclusion, this study underscores a significant connection between outdoor LAN intensity and the prevalence of hypertension

Distribution of exposure variables among study exposed groups.

<p>P-values in bold are significant. Medians are presented with their interquartile ranges in parentheses. For all other variables, numbers indicate N(%).</p

Distribution of demographic and health variables among study groups.

<p>P-values in bold are significant. For age, numbers indicate mean and standard deviation (SD); for all other variables, numbers indicate N(%).</p