A model of online protection to reduce children's online risk exposure: empirical evidence from Asia

Children are surrounded by a variety of digital media and are exposed to potential risks that come with such easy accessibility. Learning how to be safe online is an important consideration for both children and their caregivers. The present study proposes an integrated model of online safety based on constructs from protection motivation theory and the health belief model, namely perceived severity of (and susceptibility to) risk, online self-efficacy, online privacy concern, and digital literacy. The study comprised a survey conducted among 420 schoolchildren aged 9–16 years. Using partial least squares-structural equation modelling, the results illustrated the presence of a negative effect of ‘perceived severity of online risk’ toward online risks, whereas the effect of ‘digital literacy’ was found to be positive. Children whose perception of online risks was more severe were less exposed to online risks if they had higher ‘online privacy concerns’ than the children with higher ‘digital literacy’ who are more exposed to online risk. Results of the study show that engaging in safe online behaviour requires children to have a high perception regarding severity of online risks as well as knowledge of online privacy concerns. Online risks and opportunities occur in parallel. Consequently, the factors that increase or decrease risk may also increase or decrease the benefits

Ultra-brief intervention for problem drinkers: research protocol

Background: Helping the large number of problem drinkers who will never seek treatment is a challenging issue. Public health initiatives employing educational materials or mass media campaigns have met with mixed success. However, clinical research has developed effective brief interventions to help problem drinkers. This project will employ an intervention that has been validated in clinical settings and then modified into an ultra-brief format suitable for use as a public health intervention. The major objective of this study is to conduct a randomized controlled trial to establish the effectiveness of an ultra-brief, personalized feedback intervention for problem drinkers. Methods/design: Problem drinkers recruited on a baseline population telephone survey conducted in a major metropolitan city in Canada will be randomized to one of three conditions - a personalized feedback pamphlet condition, a control pamphlet condition, or a no intervention control condition. In the week after the baseline survey, households in the two pamphlet conditions will be sent their respective pamphlets. Changes in drinking will be assessed post intervention at three-month and six-month follow-ups. Drinking outcomes will be compared between experimental conditions using Structural Equation Modeling. The primary hypothesis is that problem drinkers from households who receive the personalized feedback pamphlet intervention will display significantly improved drinking outcomes at three and six-month follow-ups as compared to problem drinkers from households in the no intervention control condition. Secondary hypotheses will test the impact of the intervention on help seeking, and explore the mediating or moderating role of perceived drinking norms, perceived alcohol risks and the problem drinker's social reasons for drinking. Discussion: This trial will provide information on the effectiveness of a pamphlet-based personalized feedback intervention for problem drinkers in a community setting. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov registration #NCT00688584.This study is funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Grant #R01 AA015680-01A2

The effect of autologous costal perichondrium graft with butyl-2-cyanoacrylate in provoked injury in the articular cartilage of rabbit s knee

The purpose of this study was to verify the effect of the perichondrium graft with butyl-2-cyanoacrylate in provoked injury in the articular cartilage of rabbit`s knee. Male adult animals were used, divided in 2 groups, called Group A and Group B, with 17 animals each. The Group A animals were reoperated in 4 weeks and the Group B animals in 8 weeks. A 2 cm fragment was taken out from the 7th costal cartilage from which the perichondrium was removed. Two osteo-cartilaginous cylinders were taken out from each medialis condyles of the femurs in the same animal. The articular cartilage of the cylinder was replaced in one side by the perichondrium with a thin layer of sticking-tissue in its external face and only the articular cartilage was removed from the other side. The cylinders were replaced in the femurs. Macroscopically, in Group A, most of the injuries which received the perichondrium were found completely covered with tissue and all the lesions without perichondrium were only partilly covered. In Group B, no macroscopic significant difference in the covering of the injuries was found. Statistically, There was no microscopical significant difference between the injuries with and without perichondrium of the Group A and Group B and neither groups A and B.A finalidade desse estudo foi verificar o efeito do enxerto autólogo de pericôndrio com butil-2-cianoacrilato em lesão provocada na cartilagem articular do joelho de coelhos. Foram utilizados animais machos, adultos, divididos em 2 grupos, denominados de Grupo A e de Grupo B, de 17 animais cada um. Os animais do Grupo A foram reoperados com 4 semanas e os do Grupo B com 8 semanas. Foi retirado um fragmento de 2 cm da 7ª cartilagem costal esquerda do qual se descolou o pericôndrio. Retiraram-se dois cilindros ósseo-cartilaginosos, um de cada côndilo femural medial do mesmo animal. De um lado a cartilagem articular do cilindro foi substituida por pericôndrio com um fina camada do adesivo tecidual na sua face externa e do outro lado só foi retirada a cartilagem articular. Os cilindros foram recolocados nos fêmures. Macroscopicamente, no Grupo A, encontrou-se a maioria das lesões com pericôndrio recobertas totalmente com tecido e todas as lesões sem pericôndrio recobertas parcialmente. No Grupo B, não se encontrou diferença macroscópica significante entre a cobertura total e parcial com tecido, das lesões. Estatisticamente, não houve diferença microscópica significante entre as lesões com pericôndrio e sem pericôndrio do Grupo A e do Grupo B e nem entre os Grupos A e B.Faculdade de Ciências Médicas de Pouso AlegreUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)UNIFESPSciEL