Inadequate folic acid intake around the time of conception, particularly among less highly educated women

Objective. To describe the knowledge and use of folic acid by women in the North of the Netherlands who wish to become pregnant, in relation to their social-economic status. Design. Descriptive. Method. Pregnant women who were attending one of 3 gynaecological and 7 midwifery practices for their first or second pregnancy check-up in October or November 2000 in the provinces Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe were asked to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge, sources of information and use of folic acid. Four hundred and sixty-one of the 473 women were prepared to take part. The highest level of education achieved was used as an indicator of social-economic status. Results. Three hundred and fifty-seven (77%) respondents had heard about folic acid before becoming pregnant, 289 (63%) knew about its protective effect in terms of neural-tube defects, and 151 (33%) knew the full length of the advised period of folic acid intake. Two hundred and sixty-five (61%) respondents had taken folic acid for some part of the advised period and 164 (36%) had taken it for the entire duration of the advised period. More women with a higher education than women with lower levels of education knew about folic acid and had used it. Conclusion. Three quarters of the respondents had heard about folic acid before their pregnancy, and less than half took it during the advised period around the time of conception. Women with a higher education were more likely to follow the advice.</p

Inadequate folic acid intake around the time of conception, particularly among less highly educated women

Objective. To describe the knowledge and use of folic acid by women in the North of the Netherlands who wish to become pregnant, in relation to their social-economic status. Design. Descriptive. Method. Pregnant women who were attending one of 3 gynaecological and 7 midwifery practices for their first or second pregnancy check-up in October or November 2000 in the provinces Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe were asked to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge, sources of information and use of folic acid. Four hundred and sixty-one of the 473 women were prepared to take part. The highest level of education achieved was used as an indicator of social-economic status. Results. Three hundred and fifty-seven (77%) respondents had heard about folic acid before becoming pregnant, 289 (63%) knew about its protective effect in terms of neural-tube defects, and 151 (33%) knew the full length of the advised period of folic acid intake. Two hundred and sixty-five (61%) respondents had taken folic acid for some part of the advised period and 164 (36%) had taken it for the entire duration of the advised period. More women with a higher education than women with lower levels of education knew about folic acid and had used it. Conclusion. Three quarters of the respondents had heard about folic acid before their pregnancy, and less than half took it during the advised period around the time of conception. Women with a higher education were more likely to follow the advice.</p

Inadequate folic acid intake around the time of conception, particularly among less highly educated women

Objective. To describe the knowledge and use of folic acid by women in the North of the Netherlands who wish to become pregnant, in relation to their social-economic status. Design. Descriptive. Method. Pregnant women who were attending one of 3 gynaecological and 7 midwifery practices for their first or second pregnancy check-up in October or November 2000 in the provinces Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe were asked to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge, sources of information and use of folic acid. Four hundred and sixty-one of the 473 women were prepared to take part. The highest level of education achieved was used as an indicator of social-economic status. Results. Three hundred and fifty-seven (77%) respondents had heard about folic acid before becoming pregnant, 289 (63%) knew about its protective effect in terms of neural-tube defects, and 151 (33%) knew the full length of the advised period of folic acid intake. Two hundred and sixty-five (61%) respondents had taken folic acid for some part of the advised period and 164 (36%) had taken it for the entire duration of the advised period. More women with a higher education than women with lower levels of education knew about folic acid and had used it. Conclusion. Three quarters of the respondents had heard about folic acid before their pregnancy, and less than half took it during the advised period around the time of conception. Women with a higher education were more likely to follow the advice.</p

Inadequate folic acid intake around the time of conception, particularly among less highly educated women

Objective. To describe the knowledge and use of folic acid by women in the North of the Netherlands who wish to become pregnant, in relation to their social-economic status. Design. Descriptive. Method. Pregnant women who were attending one of 3 gynaecological and 7 midwifery practices for their first or second pregnancy check-up in October or November 2000 in the provinces Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe were asked to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge, sources of information and use of folic acid. Four hundred and sixty-one of the 473 women were prepared to take part. The highest level of education achieved was used as an indicator of social-economic status. Results. Three hundred and fifty-seven (77%) respondents had heard about folic acid before becoming pregnant, 289 (63%) knew about its protective effect in terms of neural-tube defects, and 151 (33%) knew the full length of the advised period of folic acid intake. Two hundred and sixty-five (61%) respondents had taken folic acid for some part of the advised period and 164 (36%) had taken it for the entire duration of the advised period. More women with a higher education than women with lower levels of education knew about folic acid and had used it. Conclusion. Three quarters of the respondents had heard about folic acid before their pregnancy, and less than half took it during the advised period around the time of conception. Women with a higher education were more likely to follow the advice.</p

Inadequate folic acid intake around the time of conception, particularly among less highly educated women

Objective. To describe the knowledge and use of folic acid by women in the North of the Netherlands who wish to become pregnant, in relation to their social-economic status. Design. Descriptive. Method. Pregnant women who were attending one of 3 gynaecological and 7 midwifery practices for their first or second pregnancy check-up in October or November 2000 in the provinces Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe were asked to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge, sources of information and use of folic acid. Four hundred and sixty-one of the 473 women were prepared to take part. The highest level of education achieved was used as an indicator of social-economic status. Results. Three hundred and fifty-seven (77%) respondents had heard about folic acid before becoming pregnant, 289 (63%) knew about its protective effect in terms of neural-tube defects, and 151 (33%) knew the full length of the advised period of folic acid intake. Two hundred and sixty-five (61%) respondents had taken folic acid for some part of the advised period and 164 (36%) had taken it for the entire duration of the advised period. More women with a higher education than women with lower levels of education knew about folic acid and had used it. Conclusion. Three quarters of the respondents had heard about folic acid before their pregnancy, and less than half took it during the advised period around the time of conception. Women with a higher education were more likely to follow the advice.</p

Inadequate folic acid intake around the time of conception, particularly among less highly educated women

Objective. To describe the knowledge and use of folic acid by women in the North of the Netherlands who wish to become pregnant, in relation to their social-economic status. Design. Descriptive. Method. Pregnant women who were attending one of 3 gynaecological and 7 midwifery practices for their first or second pregnancy check-up in October or November 2000 in the provinces Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe were asked to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge, sources of information and use of folic acid. Four hundred and sixty-one of the 473 women were prepared to take part. The highest level of education achieved was used as an indicator of social-economic status. Results. Three hundred and fifty-seven (77%) respondents had heard about folic acid before becoming pregnant, 289 (63%) knew about its protective effect in terms of neural-tube defects, and 151 (33%) knew the full length of the advised period of folic acid intake. Two hundred and sixty-five (61%) respondents had taken folic acid for some part of the advised period and 164 (36%) had taken it for the entire duration of the advised period. More women with a higher education than women with lower levels of education knew about folic acid and had used it. Conclusion. Three quarters of the respondents had heard about folic acid before their pregnancy, and less than half took it during the advised period around the time of conception. Women with a higher education were more likely to follow the advice.</p

Non-AIDS defining cancers in the D:A:D Study-time trends and predictors of survival : a cohort study

BACKGROUND:Non-AIDS defining cancers (NADC) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in HIV-positive individuals. Using data from a large international cohort of HIV-positive individuals, we described the incidence of NADC from 2004-2010, and described subsequent mortality and predictors of these.METHODS:Individuals were followed from 1st January 2004/enrolment in study, until the earliest of a new NADC, 1st February 2010, death or six months after the patient's last visit. Incidence rates were estimated for each year of follow-up, overall and stratified by gender, age and mode of HIV acquisition. Cumulative risk of mortality following NADC diagnosis was summarised using Kaplan-Meier methods, with follow-up for these analyses from the date of NADC diagnosis until the patient's death, 1st February 2010 or 6 months after the patient's last visit. Factors associated with mortality following NADC diagnosis were identified using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression.RESULTS:Over 176,775 person-years (PY), 880 (2.1%) patients developed a new NADC (incidence: 4.98/1000PY [95% confidence interval 4.65, 5.31]). Over a third of these patients (327, 37.2%) had died by 1st February 2010. Time trends for lung cancer, anal cancer and Hodgkin's lymphoma were broadly consistent. Kaplan-Meier cumulative mortality estimates at 1, 3 and 5 years after NADC diagnosis were 28.2% [95% CI 25.1-31.2], 42.0% [38.2-45.8] and 47.3% [42.4-52.2], respectively. Significant predictors of poorer survival after diagnosis of NADC were lung cancer (compared to other cancer types), male gender, non-white ethnicity, and smoking status. Later year of diagnosis and higher CD4 count at NADC diagnosis were associated with improved survival. The incidence of NADC remained stable over the period 2004-2010 in this large observational cohort.CONCLUSIONS:The prognosis after diagnosis of NADC, in particular lung cancer and disseminated cancer, is poor but has improved somewhat over time. Modifiable risk factors, such as smoking and low CD4 counts, were associated with mortality following a diagnosis of NADC