Resilience to obesity among socioeconomically disadvantaged women : the READI study

Objective: This cross-sectional study aimed to identify sociodemographic and behavioural characteristics of ‘overweight-resilient’ women, that is, women who were in a healthy body weight range, despite living in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighbourhoods that place them at increased risk of obesity. The study also aimed to test a comprehensive theoretically derived model of the associations between intrapersonal, social and environmental factors and obesity among this target group.Participants: A total of 3235 women aged 18–45 years from 80 urban and rural neighbourhoods throughout Victoria, Australia, participated in the Resilience for Eating and Activity Despite Inequality study.Measurements: Women reported height, weight, sociodemographic characteristics, leisure-time physical activity, dietary behaviours and a range of theoretically derived cognitive, social and neighbourhood environmental characteristics hypothesized to influence obesity risk. A theoretical model predicting body mass index (BMI) was tested using structural equation models.Results: Women classified as ‘resilient’ to obesity tended to be younger, born overseas, more highly educated, unmarried and to have higher or undisclosed household incomes. They engaged in more leisure-time physical activity and consumed less fast foods and soft drinks than overweight/obese women. Neighbourhood characteristics, social characteristics and cognitive characteristics all contributed to explaining variation in BMI in the hypothesized directions.Conclusions: These results demonstrate several characteristics of women appearing ‘resilient’ to obesity, despite their increased risk conferred by residing in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Acknowledging the cross-sectional study design, the results advance theoretical frameworks aimed at investigating obesity risk by providing evidence in support of a comprehensive model of direct and indirect effects on obesity of neighbourhood, as well as social, cognitive and behavioural characteristics

Factors associated with parents’ satisfaction with care provided in a neonatal intensive care unit in Greece

Objectives (a) To evaluate parents’ satisfaction with care provided in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), (b) to explore factors associated with this parents’ satisfaction and (c) to identify specific unmet needs of parents with infants in NICU. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study. The study population consisted of 301 parents. Outcome variable was parents’ satisfaction as measured with the questionnaire that used in the Picker Institute NICU survey. Predictor variables included sociodemographic characteristics of the parents, pregnancy characteristics and medical history of infants. Results Parents were satisfied in a great way with care provided to their infants in the NICU. Non-Greek parents, parents with infants that breast-fed, parents with infants in single birth and parents with infants outside infection isolation room were more satisfied. Conclusions The evidence obtained in this study provide some direction as to what is important and satisfying to parents whose infants hospitalized in the NICU. © 2016 Neonatal Nurses Associatio

Resting respiratory variables and exercise capacity in adult patients with cystic fibrosis

Introduction: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is the most common life-limiting, recessively inherited disease in the white population, associated with significantly high morbidity and mortality rates; CF pulmonary disease, assessed by pulmonary function tests, arterial blood gases and the Schwachman score, remains the most prevalent in terms of morbidity in the adult CF population. Objectives: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between resting respiratory variables and exercise capacity in adult patients with CF. Results: Study investigations undertaken in 18 CF patients and 11 healthy volunteers showed that among the resting lung function parameters, inspiratory capacity (IC) at rest was the only significant predictor of VO 2 peak (r = 0.67, p < 0.007) and VO2/t-slope (r = 0.86, p < 0.0001). The percentage of predicted FEV1 in adult CF patients was 77 ± 33% pred. vs 104 ± 16% pred. in healthy subjects (p < 0.006); the corresponding percentage of IC at rest was 82 ± 36% pred. in patients vs 116 ± 20% pred. in healthy (p < 0.003). CF patients presented with a significantly prolonged rapid breathing after exercise (32br per minute at recovery for CF vs 22 for healthy; p < 0.001), as well as a shortened inspiratory time. Conclusion: Adult patients with CF show a limited exercise capacity with lower peak oxygen consumption and prolonged oxygen kinetics. Interestingly, decreased IC qualified as the only significant predictor of exercise capacity in our study. © 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd