Physical activity and sedentary behaviours levels of Kuwaiti adolescents: the study of health and activity among adolescents in Kuwait

Background: There are scarce number of studies describing the lifestyle of adolescents living in Arab countries. We described physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviours patterns among Kuwait adolescents and the associations with parental education. Methods: Cross-sectional data from 435 adolescents (201 boys) from the Study of Health and Activity among Adolescents in Kuwait (SHAAK), conducted between 2012-2013. Outcomes variables included PA (Actigraph GT1M accelerometers) and sedentary behaviours. Exposure variable was parental education. Descriptive and multiple logistic regression analysis to examine the association between parental education and outcomes variables. Results: Total sedentary time (minutes/day) was higher in girls (568.2 ± 111.6) than boys (500.0 ± 102.0), whereas boys accumulated more minutes in light, moderate and vigorous PA (all P-values≤0.001). In total, 3.4% of adolescents spent ≥60 minutes/day of moderate to vigorous PA (by accelerometry) whilst only 21% met screen-time guidelines. Low/medium maternal education was associated with a higher odds of exceeding screen-time guidelines (OR, 95% CI: 2.09, 1.09-4.02). Conclusions: Most Kuwaiti adolescents in this sample were physically inactive and exceeded screen-time guidelines. Objective PA was not socially patterned, yet an inverse association between maternal education and screen-time behaviours was found

HIV-related discrimination reported by people living with HIV in London, UK

The objective was to examine the extent to which people living with HIV in London reported being discriminated against because of their infection. In 2004–2005, people living with HIV attending NHS outpatient HIV clinics in north east London were asked: “Have you ever been treated unfairly or differently because of your HIV status—in other words discriminated against?”. Of the 1,687 people who returned a questionnaire (73% response rate), data from 1,385 respondents were included in this analysis; 448 heterosexual women and 210 heterosexual men of black African origin, 727 gay/bisexual men (621 white, 106 ethnic minority). Overall, nearly one-third of respondents (29.9%, 414/1,385) said they had been discriminated against because of their HIV infection. Of those who reported experiencing HIV-related discrimination, almost a half (49.6%, 200/403) said this had involved a health care worker including their dentist (n = 102, 25.3%) or primary care physician (n = 70, 17.4%)

A national survey of the use of TENS in labour

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is a non-invasive method of pain relief, regularly used by women in labour. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) intrapartum care guidelines do not recommend its use on grounds of ineffectiveness to reduce pain. However, the recent Cochrane review challenges this guidance, as previous studies have limited capability to exclude an effect, and there is evidence that some women choose TENS as their preferred method of pain relief. We aimed to explore whether the NICE guidelines have impacted on health professionals' support for the use of TENS, and to determine support for a possible clinical trial of TENS. We therefore conducted a national survey of all maternity units in England; responses were received from 139 (76%) of the units. The findings demonstrate overwhelming support for TENS use. Furthermore, the survey identified a willingness among midwives to conduct a multi-centre trial of TENS versus usual care. We conclude that the combination of a dearth of robust evidence together with midwives' beliefs that TENS should be an available pain relieving option, confirms the need for a randomized controlled trial. </jats:p