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Self-administered Questionnaire (self-administered + questionnaire)
Selected AbstractsClient satisfaction and risk behaviours of the users of syringe dispensing machines: a pilot studyDRUG AND ALCOHOL REVIEW, Issue 1 2008MD MOFIZUL ISLAM MSc Abstract Introduction and Aims. The study examines risk behaviours of the users of syringe dispensing machines (SDMs) and evaluates the usefulness of these machines in providing injecting drug users (IDUs) with sterile injecting equipment. Design and Methods. Self-administered questionnaires were used among users of SDMs in an Area Health Service of Sydney. Results. The majority of the 167 participants reported being happy with the quality of the SDM services. Problems identified with machines were that they were often broken or jammed (32.8% respondents), not in the right place (21.9%) or require money (16.7%). Just over half (50.9%) of the IDUs use SDMs only from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m., the time when almost all other outlets for accessing sterile injecting equipment remain closed. Relatively young IDUs (age , 30 years) were more likely to prefer SDMs over staffed needle syringe programmes (NSPs) compared with older users (age > 30) and to identify stigma (a desire to hide their identity or not liking the way people treat them at staffed NSPs or chemists) as a main reason for using these machines. Primary users of SDMs do not differ from primary users of NSP/chemists in terms of sharing of needles. Those users who had shared in the last month were nearly four times as likely to have never used condoms in sexual encounters over that period (95% confidence interval: 1.2,14.5). Discussion and Conclusion. SDMs appear to complement other outlets of NSPs. Providing free-of-cost equipment from SDMs should be considered carefully, as needing money to buy equipment was a reason given for sharing of needles by 35% of those who shared. [source] Estimation of the number of working hours critical for the development of mental and physical fatigue symptoms in Japanese male workers,application of benchmark dose methodAMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 3 2007Yasushi Suwazono PhD Abstract Background To clarify the influence of working hours on subjective fatigue symptoms and obtain the critical dose (number of hours) to determine the number of permissible working hours, we calculated the benchmark dose (BMD) and the 95% lower confidence limit on BMD (BMDL) of working hours for subjective mental and fatigue symptoms using multivariate logistic regression. Methods Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to all 843 male daytime workers aged ,60 years in a single chemical factory, and 715 provided complete replies. The odds ratios of daily working hours were determined using positive findings of the Self-rating Depression Scale and 8 subscales of the Cumulative Fatigue Symptom Index as dependent variables, and other potential covariates as independent variables. Using significant parameters for the working hours and those for other covariates, the BMD and BMDL (BMD/BMDL) values were calculated for corresponding dependent variables. The benchmark response (BMR) was set at 5% or 10%. Results The BMDL with a BMR of 5% was shown to be 9.6,11.6 hr per day, which corresponds to 48,58 working hours per week and 36,78 overtime hours per month. Conclusions These results suggest that special attention should be paid to the workers whose working hours exceed these BMD/BMDL values. Am. J. Ind. Med. 50: 173,182, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Family and school determinants of overweight in 13-year-old Portuguese adolescentsACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 2 2007Elisabete Ramos Abstract Aims: To identify familial and school determinants of overweight in 13-year-old adolescents. Methods: All 27 public and 19 (79%) private schools allowed to contact age eligible students, 77.5% accepting to participate (1116 girls, 1045 boys). Self-administered questionnaires were completed and physical examination performed, including weight and height measurements. Overweight (>95th percentile) and at risk of overweight (85th,95th) were defined using CDC standards. Its determinants were identified using logistic regression models, entering parents' education and all variables significantly associated in crude analysis. Results: Prevalence of overweight (10.2%) and at risk of overweight (16.5%) was not influenced by type of school, vending machines and number of school canteen meals. In girls, the prevalence of body mass index (BMI) >85th percentile increased significantly with decreasing age at menarche (45.7% if menstruating before 11-year and 13.2% when pre-menarche), and increasing parental BMI or time spent on sedentary activities. In multivariate analysis, age at menarche and increasing parental BMI remained significant risks in girls. In boys, besides parental BMI, ever smoking, sleeping <9 h and sedentary leisure activities were significant determinants. Conclusions: Food offered at school had no significant impact on adolescents overweight, which was mainly dependent on parental anthropometrics and leisure time activities. [source] The use of protective gloves and the prevalence of hand eczema, skin complaints and allergy to natural rubber latex among dental personnel in the county of Uppsala, SwedenCONTACT DERMATITIS, Issue 1 2000Magnus Lindberg During the past decade, there has been an increasing problem with acrylate allergy and natural rubber latex (NRL) allergy among dental personnel. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the prevalence of these problems among dentists, dental nurses and dental hygienists in Uppsala county, Sweden. The study was based on a self-administered questionnaire sent to 690 persons with 527 responders (76%). The most common skin problem was dry skin, fissures and/or itching on the hands. Of the 72 persons (13.6%) reporting to have suffered from hand eczema during the past 12 months, 41 were patch tested with the TRUE Test standard series and the Swedish dental screening series. In the patch tested group, 9.8% reacted to 1 or more of the acrylates. In addition, 389 persons were tested for NRL allergy with the Pharmacia Upjohn CAP-RAST test, and of these, we found 7.2% to be positive. The prevalence of self-reported hand eczema and the number of positive CAP-RAST tests differed between the 3 occupations, with higher figures for the dentists. There was also a correlation between atopic eczema and hand eczema. Of those reporting skin symptoms, 67.7% connected them to the place of work and 28.8% related them to the use of gloves. [source] Health Status among Emergency Department Patients Approximately One Year after Consecutive Disasters in New York CityACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 10 2005William George Fernandez MD Abstract Objectives: Emergency department (ED) patients with disaster-related experiences may present with vague symptoms not clearly linked to the event. In 2001, two disasters in New York City, the World Trade Center disaster (WTCD) and the subsequent American Airlines Flight 587 crash, presented an opportunity to study long-term consequences of cumulative disaster exposure (CDE) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among ED patients. Methods: From July 15 to October 30, 2002, a systematic sample of stable, adult patients from two EDs in New York City were enrolled. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire. The Short Form 36 (SF-36) was used to assess overall health status. Bivariate analyses were conducted to identify individual correlates of worsening health status. Multivariate regression was performed to identify the association between various factors and overall health status, while controlling for relevant sociodemographic variables. Results: Four hundred seventy-one patients (54.6% female) participated. The participation rate was 73.4%. One hundred sixty-one participants (36%) reported direct, indirect, or occupational exposure to the WTCD; 55 (13.3%) had direct, indirect, or occupational exposure to the plane crash; 33 (8.1%) had both exposures. In separate multivariate models, CDE predicted lower SF-36 scores for general health (p < 0.0096), mental health (p < 0.0033), and bodily pain (p < 0.0046). Conclusions: In the year following mass traumatic events, persons with CDE had lower overall health status than those with one or no disaster exposure. Clinicians should consider the impact that traumatic events have on the overall health status of ED patients in the wake of consecutive disasters. [source] Failure to reduce drinking and driving in France: a 6-year prospective study in the GAZEL cohortADDICTION, Issue 1 2010Aymery Constant ABSTRACT Aim An unprecedented decline in alcohol consumption and road mortality has been observed recently in France, but it is still unclear whether or not these changes affected driving while alcohol-intoxicated (DWI). The objective of the study was to estimate prospectively trends of excessive speed on the roads, alcohol consumption and DWI between 2001 and 2007 in a large cohort of experienced drivers. Methods Participants were current employees or recent retirees of the French national electricity and gas company, who volunteered to participate in a research cohort established in 1989 under strict conditions of anonymity. An annual cohort questionnaire is sent to participants that includes two questions about overall alcohol consumption. In 2001 and 2007, 10 684 participants reported their driving behaviours using the same self-administered questionnaire. Results Between 2001 and 2007, the proportion of participants (n = 10 684) who reported having driven at speeds at least 20 km/hour above the limit decreased from 23.7% to 4.1% in built-up areas (P < 0.001), from 34.3% to 9.3% on rural roads (P < 0.001) and from 24.3% to 2.7% on highways (P < 0.001). Regular and non-regular excessive alcohol consumption decreased from 22.7% to 19.7% and from 18.0% to 14.9%, respectively, whereas DWI increased from 22.9% to 25.3% over the same period (P < 0.001). Conclusions A recent crackdown on road violations by the French government has failed to deter DWI. Given that DWI seems to be a sporadic and rarely punished behaviour, its prevention requires more coercive measures, such as using a breath alcohol ignition interlock device. [source] Awareness of breast and cervical cancer risk factors and screening behaviours among nurses in rural region of TurkeyEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER CARE, Issue 3 2008A. YAREN md Breast and cervical cancer are the most common causes of cancer mortality among women worldwide, but actually they are largely preventable diseases. There is limited data on breast and cervical cancer knowledge, screening practices and attitudes of nurses in Turkey. A self-administered questionnaire was used to investigate the knowledge and attitude of nurses on risk factors of the breast and cervical cancer as well as screening programmes such as breast self-examination (BSE), clinical breast examination, mammography (MMG) and papanicolaou (pap) smear test. In total, 125 out of 160 nurses participated in the study (overall response rate was 80.6%). The risk factors and symptoms of breast cancer was generally well known, except for early menarche (23.2%) and late menopause (28.8%). For cervical cancer, the correct risk factors mostly indicated by the nurses were early age at first sexual intercourse (56%), smoking (76%), multiple sexual partners (71.2%). As for screening methods, it was believed that BSE was a beneficial method to identify the early breast changes (84.8%) and MMG was able to detect the cancer without a palpable mass (57.6%). Little was known about the fact that women should begin cervical cancer screening approximately 3 years after the onset of sexual intercourse (23.2%) and if repeated pap smear test were normal, it could be done every 2,3 years. Most of the nurses considered that MMG decreases the mortality in breast cancer (65.6%) and also believed that pap smear test decreases the mortality in cervical cancer (75.2%). Despite high level of knowledge of breast cancer risk factors, symptoms and screening methods, inadequate knowledge of cervical cancer screening method were found among nurses. [source] Black Women and White Women: Do Perceptions of Childhood Family Environment Differ?FAMILY PROCESS, Issue 2 2007CASSANDRA M. CLAY M.S.W. Introduction: Few studies have examined racial differences in perceptions of childhood. Little is known about how Blacks perceive their own families, particularly the family environment that they experienced in childhood. Methods: A community sample of 290 women (55% White, 45% Black) from two-parent families, heterogeneous in age and social class, was examined using a self-administered questionnaire, including the Family Environment Scale (FES), followed by a focused interview. Siblings were used as collateral informants. Results: The psychometric properties of the FES showed remarkably little variation by race: The internal scale reliability, correlations between scales, and factor structures were quite similar. Although both White and Black women reported good childhood family environments, Black women when compared with White women rated their families of origin as more cohesive, organized, and expressive, and lower in conflict. Sibling responses corroborated these findings. Discussion: This study addresses a gap in the research literature and provides important evidence of strengths in Black family relationships as reported by a community sample of women. The psychometric properties of the FES, found to be strong for families of both races, lends support to our findings and those of other researchers who have used this measure. [source] Knowledge of disease and adherence in adult patients with haemophiliaHAEMOPHILIA, Issue 4 2010K. LINDVALL Summary., Patients with moderate and severe haemophilia are evaluated on a regular basis at their haemophilia centres but patients with mild haemophilia are seen less often because of fewer problems related to their disease. The needs of patients with milder forms of haemophilia, however, are often underestimated, both by the patient and staff at healthcare facilities. This study evaluated the knowledge of disease and adherence to treatment among patients with severe, moderate and mild haemophilia. This was a prospective multicentre study performed in Haemophilia Centres in Scandinavia. A total of 413 (67%) of 612 patients aged >25 years with mild, moderate and severe haemophilia completed a self-administered questionnaire. The mean age of the respondents was 49.7 years (range 25,87 years). Of the 413 respondents, 150 had a mild, 86 had a moderate and 177 had a severe form of haemophilia. A total of 22 (5%) patients did not know the severity of their disease, and 230 (56%) patients knew the effect of factor concentrate in the blood. Of the 413 respondents, 53 (13%) of the cohort never treated a haemorrhage. Patients with mild haemophilia, P , 0.001, were the least likely to treat a haemorrhage. The relative number of patients who were afraid of virus transmission by factor concentrate was about similar in the three groups, 27% of those with severe haemophilia, 26% with moderate and 24% with mild haemophilia. This study shows that the amount of knowledge among haemophilia patients about their disease and treatment is somewhat limited, and demonstrates the importance of continually providing information about haemophilia and treatment, especially to patients with a mild form of the disease. [source] The utility of the Dutch Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales 2 for assessing health status in individuals with haemophilia: a pilot studyHAEMOPHILIA, Issue 6 2000N. L. U. Van Meeteren The aim of this pilot study was to examine the usefulness of the Dutch version of the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales 2 (D-AIMS2)in assessing the health status of Dutch individuals with haemophilia. Sixty-eight individuals with mild, moderate, and severe haemophilia attending our clinic for their annual check-up participated. They first completed the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM). The D-AIMS2 was filled in afterwards at home. With the COPM, individuals rated their specific problematic activities of daily life (ADL), as well as the severity and importance of each problem. The D-AIMS2 is a comprehensive, self-administered questionnaire that evaluates functional health status. Fifty-seven individuals completed and returned the D-AIMS2. Reliability analysis demonstrated good internal consistency for the scales (Cronbach's ,=0.76,1.00), as well as for the components (,=0.80,0.88), except for the component ,social interaction' (,=0.44). Criterion validity of the D-AIMS2 was assessed by comparison with COPM outcomes; 80% of the problematic ADLs were included in the questionnaire, 20% were missing. Correlations between the D-AIMS2 components ,physical health' and ,symptoms' with predicted scores of those individuals by a highly experienced physiotherapist (r=0.63 and 0.53, respectively) substantiated its concurrent validity. Based on these results we concluded that the D-AIMS2, with minor adjustments, can be an appropriate tool for assessing the health status of Dutch haemophilia patients. [source] Primary Headache in Italian Early Adolescents: The Role of Perceived Teacher UnfairnessHEADACHE, Issue 3 2009Massimo Santinello BA Background., The impact of perceived teacher unfairness on headache incidence has previously been insufficiently investigated. Objective., The aims of the study are to analyze the prevalence of headache among Italian early adolescents as well as to examine the role of perceived teacher unfairness and classmate social support in predicting this health outcome. Methods., Data were taken from the "Health Behaviour in School Aged Children," a cross-sectional survey investigating health behaviors among early adolescents in selected European countries. Headache, perceived teacher unfairness, and classmate social support were measured through a self-administered questionnaire filled out by a representative sample of 4386 (48.4% males) Italian students (11, 13, and 15 years old). Covariates included demographic characteristics (age, gender) and socioeconomic status (parental educational attainment), and other confounding psychological factors (eg, family empowerment, bullying). Results., Prevalence of frequent headaches (at least once a week) was about 40%. Girls were more likely to report frequent headaches compared with boys. Prevalence of frequent headaches increased with age. After adjusting for age and gender, teacher unfairness showed a significant association with frequent headache (P < .001). This relationship remained significant even after additional adjustment for several psychosocial factors. Classmate social support seems to act as a protective factor, but not as a buffering mechanism against the negative effects of teacher unfairness. Conclusions., Italian early adolescents show a quite high prevalence of frequent headache. Results show that characteristics of the school setting, such as teacher unfairness and classmate social support, can be significant predictors of frequent headache among early adolescents. Longitudinal research is needed to delineate causal relationships between school factors and recurrent headache. [source] Migraine in Adolescents: Validation of a Screening QuestionnaireHEADACHE, Issue 2 2009Luca Valentinis MD Background., Few studies in adolescents deal with the level of agreement between questionnaire and interview information in relation to headache symptoms. Objective., To evaluate the validity of a self-administered questionnaire on headache for use in epidemiological studies of Italian high school students. Methods., The questionnaire incorporated all items required for diagnosing migraine according to the criteria from the 2004 International Classification of Headache Disorders. The migraine diagnoses obtained from questionnaires were validated against the gold standard diagnoses by a headache specialist. Results., Out of 104 students answering the questionnaires, 93 (89.4%) participated in extensive semi-structured interviews by a neurologist. The chance-corrected agreement rate (kappa) was 0.66, which is considered good. The questionnaire-based migraine diagnosis had a sensitivity of 67.3%, specificity of 100%, positive predictive value of 100%, and negative predictive value of 73.3%. Conclusions., The results indicate that our self-administered questionnaire may be an acceptable instrument in determining the prevalence of migraine sufferers in the northeast Italy adolescent population, useful in identifying subjects with "definite" migraine. [source] Migraine Disability Awareness Campaign in Asia: Migraine Assessment for ProphylaxisHEADACHE, Issue 9 2008Shuu-Jiun Wang MD Objectives., This study aimed to survey the headache diagnoses and consequences among outpatients attending neurological services in 8 Asian countries. Methods., This survey recruited patients who consulted neurologists for the first time with the chief complaint of headache. Patients suffering from headaches for 15 or more days per month were excluded. Patients answered a self-administered questionnaire, and their physicians independently completed a separate questionnaire. In this study, the migraine diagnosis given by the neurologists was used for analysis. The headache symptoms collected in the physician questionnaire were based on the diagnostic criteria of migraine proposed by the International Classification of Headache Disorders, second edition (ICHD-2). Results., A total of 2782 patients (72% females; mean age 38.1 ± 15.1 years) finished the study. Of them, 66.6% of patients were diagnosed by the neurologists to have migraine, ranging from 50.9% to 85.8% across different countries. Taken as a group, 41.4% of those patients diagnosed with migraine had not been previously diagnosed to have migraine prior to this consultation. On average, patients with migraine had 4.9 severe headaches per month with 65% of patients missing school, work, or household chores. Most (87.5%) patients with migraine took medications for acute treatment. Thirty-six percent of the patients had at least one emergency room consultation within one year. Only 29.2% were on prophylactic medications. Neurologists recommended pharmacological prophylaxis in 68.2% of patients not on preventive treatment. In comparison, migraine prevalence was the highest with ICHD-2 "any migraine" (ie, migraine with or without migraine and probable migraine) (73.3%) followed by neurologist-diagnosed migraine (66.6%) and ICHD-2 "strict migraine" (ie, migraine with or without aura only) (51.3%). About 88.6% patients with neurologist-diagnosed migraine fulfilled ICHD-2 any migraine but only 67.1% fulfilled the criteria of ICHD-2 strict migraine. Conclusions., Migraine is the most common headache diagnosis in neurological services in Asia. The prevalence of migraine was higher in countries with higher referral rates of patients to neurological services. Migraine remains under-diagnosed and under-treated in this region even though a high disability was found in patients with migraine. Probable migraine was adopted into the migraine diagnostic spectrum by neurologists in this study. [source] A Pivotal Moment in 50 Years of Headache History: The First American Migraine StudyHEADACHE, Issue 5 2008Stewart J. Tepper MD Objective., To describe the magnitude and distribution of the public health problem posed by migraine in the United States by examining migraine prevalence, attack frequency, and attack-related disability by gender, age, race, household income, geographic region, and urban vs rural residence. Design., In 1989, a self-administered questionnaire was sent to a sample of 15,000 households. A designated member of each household initially responded to the questionnaire. Each household member with severe headache was asked to respond to detailed questions about symptoms, frequency, and severity of headaches. Setting., A sample of households selected from a panel to be representative of the US population in terms of age, gender, household size, and geographic area. Participants., After a single mailing, 20,468 subjects (63.4% response rate) between 12 and 80 Years of age responded to the survey. Respondents and nonrespondents did not differ by gender, household income, region of the country, or urban vs rural status. Whites and the elderly were more likely to respond. Migraine headache cases were identified on the basis of reported symptoms using established diagnostic criteria. Results., In total, 17.6% of females and 5.7% of males were found to have 1 or more migraine headaches per year. The prevalence of migraine varied considerably by age and was highest in both men and women between the ages of 35 to 45 years. Migraine prevalence was strongly associated with household income; prevalence in the lowest-income group (less than $10,000) was more than 60% higher than in the 2 highest-income groups (greater than or equal to $30,000). The proportion of migraine sufferers who experienced moderate to severe disability was not related to gender, age, income, urban vs rural residence, or region of the country. In contrast, the frequency of headaches was lower in higher-income groups. Attack frequency was inversely related to disability. Conclusions., A projection to the US population suggests that 8.7 million females and 2.6 million males suffer from migraine headache with moderate to severe disability. Of these, 3.4 million females and 1.1 million males experience 1 or more attacks per month. Females between ages 30 and 49 years from lower-income households are at especially high risk of having migraines and are more likely than other groups to use emergency care services for their acute condition. [source] Epidemiology and Symptomatology of Migraine Among School Children: Denizli Urban Area in TurkeyHEADACHE, Issue 8 2004Mehmet Zencir MD Objective.,This study was aimed at finding the prevalence, associated factors, and symptomatology of migraine among 5 to 8 grades of secondary and 9 to 11 grades of high school children (age range between 11 and 18 years old) in the Denizli urban area in the western part of Turkey. Background.,Data from the developed countries indicate that migraine is the most common cause of recurrent headaches in children. Also, childhood migraine is sufficiently severe to prevent the half of the suffering children from carrying on their usual daily activities. Methods.,A cross-sectional school-based study was conducted between May 2000 and June 2000. There were 2,490 participants selected by a multistage stratified clustered sampling procedure. A validated self-administered questionnaire designed according to the International Headache Society criteria was given to the school children of age between 11 and 18 years. Results.,Overall migraine prevalence was 8.8%; it was 6.7% in boys and 11.0% in girls (OR: 1.7; 95% CI: 1.3 to 2.3). Among girls, the highest prevalence (17.7%) occurred at 15 years of age, but among boys, the highest prevalence (11.9%) occurred at 16 years of age. Of children with migraine, 56.5% had a positive family history, and only 29.1% visited a doctor for headache. Conclusion.,Migraine is a common health problem among school children in Denizli urban area and it often goes underdiagnosed. [source] Preterm birth but not mode of delivery is associated with an increased risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease later in lifeINFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASES, Issue 11 2007Barbara Sonntag MD Abstract Background: Exposure to bacterial antigens and other environmental factors in combination with a genetic susceptibility have been implicated in the etiology of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). As certain perinatal circumstances, e.g., delivery by cesarean section, predispose to a different intestinal colonizations the aim of this analysis was to define a potential influence on the development of IBD in later life. Methods: In a case-control study design, birth data were recorded from patients diagnosed with IBD (Crohn's disease [CD], n = 1096; ulcerative colitis [UC], n = 763) and healthy controls ([C], n = 878) by a self-administered questionnaire. Results: Preterm birth (CD: odds ratio [OR] 1.5 [95% confidence interval 1.1,2.0], UC: OR 1.3 [0.9,1.9]), mother's disease during pregnancy (CD: OR 1.9 [1.3,2.9], UC: OR 1.6 [1.0,2.4]), and disease in the first year of life (CD: OR 2.2 [1.6,2.9], UC: OR 1.7 [1.3,2.3]) are associated with the development of IBD in later life. No significant associations were found for the mode of delivery and breast feeding. In a logistic regression analysis female sex, smoking, appendectomy, maternal IBD, and disease in the first year of life were independently associated with CD. Female sex, appendectomy, and disease in the first year of life were independently associated with UC. Conclusions: Preterm birth and other perinatal circumstances are associated with the development of IBD, of which disease in the first year of life is an independent risk factor in multivariate analysis. (Inflamm Bowel Dis 2007) [source] Infertility among couples in a population-based study in Iran: prevalence and associated risk factorsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANDROLOGY, Issue 3 2008Mohammad Reza Safarinejad Summary To explore the prevalence and risk factors of infertility in Iran, a total of 12 285 ever-married women aged 15,50 years old and their husbands (if available) were interviewed by 82 female general practitioners and answered a self-administered questionnaire on several aspects of infertility. They were identified from the national population in 30 counties, and invited to a confidential interview. Data were obtained about their age, education, marital status, toxic habits, medical history, disabilities and illnesses, help-seeking, economy, ethnicity, geographic location, contraceptive use and age at which they had first intercourse. This study used the definition of childlessness proposed by World Health Organization: ,the woman has never conceived despite cohabitation and exposure to pregnancy for a period of 2 years'. The overall prevalence of infertility was 8% (95% CI: 3.2,15.0). The weighted national estimate of primary infertility was 4.6% (95% CI: 3.6,5.2). There was a pronounced regional pattern in the levels of primary infertility. The primary infertility increased significantly from 2.6 to 4.3 to 5.5% for the 1985,1989, 1990,1994 and 1995,2000 marriage cohorts. The prevalence of secondary infertility was 3.4% (95% CI: 2.4,5.1). Overall the prevalence of infertility falls within a relatively wide range being high in the Southern counties, and low in the Northern counties. The probability of first pregnancy at the end of 2 years of marriage was 0.78 for all ever-married women. The prevalence of infertility increased with age (linear chi-square 198.012, 1 d.f., p = 0.01). The age pattern of infertility also varies quite markedly across the counties analysed. No effect of race was detected; neither the intercept (analysis of covariance p = 0.36) nor the slope of the age relationship was influenced by race (analysis of covariance p = 0.41). Infertility were observed as significantly higher in the presence of history of tubo-ovarian surgery [odds ratio (OR): 1.43; 95% CI: 1.28,2.23; p = 0.01], salpingitis (OR: 2.34; 95% CI: 1.31,4.3; p = 0.016), ectopic pregnancy (OR: 2.45; 95% CI: 1.90,3.44; p = 0.04), varicocele (OR: 2.85; 95% CI: 1.61,5.20; p = 0.01) and cryptorchidism (OR: 3.81; 95% CI: 2.51,4.28; p = 0.031). This study provides a quantitative estimate of the prevalence and main risk factors for infertility in Iranian couples. Yet, further studies on the cause of primary and secondary infertility and geographical variations in the incidence and prevalence of infertility in Iran are needed. [source] Citrus consumption and cancer incidence: the Ohsaki cohort studyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER, Issue 8 2010Wen-Qing Li Abstract Basic research and case,control studies have suggested that citrus consumption may protect against cancer. However, the protective effect has been observed from few prospective studies. This study investigated the association of citrus consumption with cancer incidence among 42,470 Japanese adults in the Ohsaki National Health Insurance Cohort, which covered an age range of 40,79 years, and was followed up from 1995 to 2003 for all-cancer and individual cancer incidence. Citrus consumption was assessed using a self-administered questionnaire. The Cox proportional hazard model was applied to estimate relative risks (RRs) and 95% CIs. During the 323,204 person-years of follow-up, 3,398 cases were identified totally. Citrus consumption, especially daily consumption, was correlated with reduced all-cancer incidence, the RRs were 0.89 (95% CI = 0.80,0.98) for total participants, 0.86 (0.76,0.98) for males and 0.93 (0.79,1.09) for females, as well as multiple cancers at individual sites, especially pancreatic (RR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.38,1.00) and prostate cancer (RR = 0.63, 95% CI = 0.41,0.97). Joint effect analysis showed a reduced risk of overall cancer existed only for subjects who consumed ,1 cup green tea/day (RR = 0.83, 95% CI = 0.73,0.93) as well as for males (RR = 0.83, 95% CI = 0.71,0.97) or females (RR = 0.82, 95% CI = 0.68,0.99). These findings suggest that citrus consumption is associated with reduced all-cancer incidence, especially for subjects having simultaneously high green tea consumption. Further work on the specific citrus constituents is warranted, and clinical trials are ultimately necessary to confirm the protective effect. [source] Cigarette smoking, alcohol drinking and the risk of gallbladder cancer death: A prospective cohort study in JapanINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER, Issue 4 2008Kiyoko Yagyu Abstract Gallbladder cancer is a rare cancer with a poor prognosis, and few risk factors have been identified to date. This prospective study was conducted to evaluate the association of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption with the risk of gallbladder cancer death. A baseline survey in 45 areas throughout Japan was conducted from 1988 to 1990 using a self-administered questionnaire, and a total of 113,496 participants (65,740 women) aged 40,89 years at entry were followed for 15 years. During the follow-up period, 165 gallbladder cancer deaths (95 women) were observed. Among women, the hazard ratio (HR) [95 percent confidence interval: 95% CI] of current smoker was 2.00 [0.91,4.42], when adjusted for age and drinking. There was no clear association between alcohol consumption and the risk. Among men, HR of current smoker was 2.27 [1.05,4.90]. HRs of those who smoked 21 cigarettes or more per day and those with 801,1,000 cigarette-years were 3.18 [1.18,8.53] and 3.44 [1.40,8.45], respectively, and positive linear associations were observed between that risk and the number of cigarettes per day (p for trend = 0.007) or "cigarette-years" (p for trend = 0.012). The alcohol dose was linearly associated with risk (p for trend = 0.004), where the HR among those who consumed 72.0 g or more of alcohol per day was 3.60 [1.29,9.85]. Among both men and women, cigarette smoking may elevate the risk of death from gallbladder cancer. Drinking may pose an elevated risk among men, but that seems to be less true among women. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Coffee consumption and breast cancer risk among BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriersINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER, Issue 1 2006André Nkondjock Abstract Although there are several plausible biologic mechanisms whereby coffee consumption might influence the risk of breast cancer, epidemiologic evidence is limited. We assessed the association between coffee consumption and breast cancer risk among high-risk women who carry BRCA mutations. We performed a matched case-control analysis on 1,690 women with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation from 40 centers in 4 countries. Average lifetime coffee consumption was estimated via a self-administered questionnaire. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using conditional logistic regression. After adjustment for potential confounders, the ORs for breast cancer in BRCA carriers who habitually drank 0, 1,3, 4,5 and 6 or more cups of coffee were 1.00, 0.90 (95% CI 0.72,1.12), 0.75 (95% CI 0.47,1.19) and 0.31 (95% CI 0.13,0.71; p -trend = 0.02). The effect was limited to the consumption of caffeinated coffee. These results suggest that among women with BRCA gene mutation, coffee consumption is unlikely to be harmful and that high levels of consumption may in fact be related to reduced breast cancer risk. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Coffee consumption and the risk of primary liver cancer: Pooled analysis of two prospective studies in JapanINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER, Issue 1 2005Taichi Shimazu Abstract Although case-control studies suggested that coffee consumption is associated with a decreased risk of liver cancer, no prospective cohort study has been carried out. To examine the association between coffee consumption and the risk of liver cancer, we conducted a pooled analysis of data available from 2 cohort studies in Japan. A self-administered questionnaire about the frequency of coffee consumption and other health habits was distributed to 22,404 subjects (10,588 men and 11,816 women) in Cohort 1 and 38,703 subjects (18,869 men and 19,834 women) in Cohort 2, aged 40 years or more, with no previous history of cancer. We identified 70 and 47 cases of liver cancer among the subjects in Cohort 1 (9 years of follow-up with 170,640 person-years) and Cohort 2 (7 years of follow-up with 284,948 person-years), respectively. We used Cox proportional hazards regression analysis to estimate the relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of liver cancer incidence. After adjustment for potential confounders, the pooled RR (95% CI) of drinking coffee never, occasionally and 1 or more cups/day were 1.00 (Reference), 0.71 (0.46,1.09) and 0.58 (0.36,0.96), respectively (p for trend = 0.024). In the subgroup of subjects with a history of liver disease, we found a significant inverse association between coffee consumption and the risk of liver cancer. Our findings support the hypothesis that coffee consumption decreases the risk of liver cancer. Further studies to investigate the role of coffee in prevention of liver cancer among the high-risk population are needed. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Consumers' awareness and information need about food hygiene in Korea: focused on pesticide residues and food borne illnessINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 3 2003Meera Kim This study investigated consumers' awareness and information need about food hygiene especially focused on pesticide residues and food borne illness in Korea. The data were collected from 350 adults living in Daegu and Busan, Korea by a self-administered questionnaire. Frequency and chi-square tests were conducted by SPSS. The results of the survey were as follows: Firstly the consumers' concerns about food hygiene were high. About three-fourths of the respondents answered that they were ,somewhat' or ,highly' concerned about pesticide residues and food borne illness. Especially women and the older showed more concerns than men and the younger. Secondly, the respondents worried about eating vegetables, fruits and grains in turn because of pesticide residues, and did not trust the results from food hygiene tests by the Government. Thirdly, three-fourths of the respondents used the way to wash food stuffs with water several times to clean pesticide residues. Fourth, about four-fifths of the subjects worried about food borne illness caused by fish to the extreme and about two-thirds answered that un-fresh or contaminated food stuffs were the major factor of food borne illness in cooking. Finally, the respondents primarily wanted to get the information about harmfulness of pesticide residues in foods, and methods to choose fresh food regarding food borne illness. Under the situation of the lack of educational programs for food hygiene in Korea, the educational contents for food hygiene to improve public health can be developed on the basis of this study. [source] Consumer attitudes and acceptance of genetically modified organisms in KoreaINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 3 2003Hyochung Kim Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) were first used to designate micro organisms that had had genes from other species transferred into their genetic material by the then-new techniques of ,gene-splicing.' Cultivation of GMOs has so far been most widespread in the production of soybeans and maize. The United States holds almost three-fourths of the total crop area devoted to GMOs. Because many crops have been imported from the US, there is a large possibility for consumers to intake the products of GMOs in Korea. The safety of GMOs is not scientifically settled at this time, however. Additionally, the research regarding the GMOs issue of consumers has rarely been conducted in Korea. This study therefore focused on the consumer attitudes about GMOs and willingness to purchase them. The data were collected from 506 adults living in Seoul, Daegu and Busan, Korea, by means of a self-administered questionnaire. Frequencies and chi-square tests were conducted by SPSS. The results of the survey were as follows. First, the consumer concerns about GMOs were high but recognition was low; many respondents answered they did not have exact information about GMOs, although they had heard about them. Second, almost 93% of the respondents desired the labelling of GMOs. Third, the level of acceptance of GMOs was high; two-thirds of the respondents showed that they were willing to buy GMOs. Finally, many respondents worried about the safety of GMOs in that 73% of the respondents primarily wanted to be informed about safety of GMOs. This study suggests that the consumer education about GMOs should be conducted through mass media and consumer protection organisations. [source] The effect of management commitment to service quality on frontline employees' affective and performance outcomes: an empirical investigation of the New Zealand public healthcare sectorINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NONPROFIT & VOLUNTARY SECTOR MARKETING, Issue 4 2006Nicholas J. Ashill Very little attention has been given to understand the antecedents of service recovery performance in a public healthcare setting. In this study, a cross-sectional survey investigates a model of service recovery performance. Frontline hospital employees completed a self-administered questionnaire on how factors characterising management commitment to service quality (MCSQ) affect their service recovery efforts. The results suggest the influence of MCSQ is mediated by frontline employees' affective commitment to their hospital. The research advances understanding of frontline service recovery performance in a public healthcare setting and the findings indicate that public healthcare managers can take actions on a number of fronts to assist progress towards the achievement of frontline service recovery excellence. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] A survey of patient satisfaction in a metropolitan Emergency Department: Comparing nurse practitioners and emergency physiciansINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NURSING PRACTICE, Issue 3 2009Natasha Jennings RN BN CCC(Emerg) GradDipAdvClinNurs MN(Melb) The Emergency Nurse Practitioner role was introduced to an Emergency Department, Melbourne in 2004 as an alternative health-care model to provide accessible and efficient patient care. The aim of the study was to explore patient satisfaction using a questionnaire from their emergency department experience comparing Emergency Nurse Practitioners and emergency department doctors. Patients who received care from either Emergency Nurse Practitioners or emergency department doctors were given a self-administered questionnaire to complete. Descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests were used for data analysis. A total of 202 patients completed the survey with 103 seen by the Emergency Nurse Practitioners and 99 seen by emergency department doctors. Significant differences were reported in 12 of the 16 questions comparing patient satisfaction with either Emergency Nurse Practitioners or emergency department doctors with greater patient satisfaction demonstrated with the Emergency Nurse Practitioners. The Emergency Nurse Practitioner model demonstrates consistent levels of patient satisfaction with patients reporting more favourable satisfaction with the Emergency Nurse Practitioners compared with emergency department doctors. [source] Identifying measures for evaluating new models of nursing care: A survey of NSW nurse practitionersINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NURSING PRACTICE, Issue 6 2007Sandy Middleton RN BAppSc(Nursing) MN PhD Health-care reforms in Australia and worldwide have seen the creation of the position of nurse practitioner (NP). To date, no protocol has been developed in Australia to guide the evaluation of this new role. All NSW authorized NPs were invited to participate in a self-administered questionnaire. Generic process and outcome measures of NP services were taken from a review of the literature. NPs were asked to determine how ,essential' each of these measures would be to describe their clinical practice. Of the 36 eligible authorized NPs in NSW, 30 returned completed questionnaires (83% response rate). The following measures were rated ,essential' by all (100%) NPs: presenting issue as stated by patient; current medications; patient satisfaction with education, quality of care received, and provider knowledge and skill. Our results provide a unique set of indicators with which to evaluate process and outcome measures of NP services. Standard outcome measures will enable NPs to evaluate their service efficiently and to benchmark against other NPs. [source] A sociodental approach to assessing dental needs of children: concept and modelsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PAEDIATRIC DENTISTRY, Issue 2 2006S. GHERUNPONG Summary. Objectives., Traditional normative methods of assessing dental needs do not correspond to current concepts of ,health' and ,need'. Although there is dental research on quality of life, evidence-based practice, and oral behaviours, those concepts are rarely applied to dental needs estimation. Dental needs are usually calculated mainly from clinical data and are likely to be inaccurate. A structured comprehensive method for assessing dental needs is required. The objectives of this study are to develop and test a new sociodental system of needs assessment for overall dental needs of primary schoolchildren. Furthermore, normative and sociodental estimates of need are compared. Design., The study developed a theoretical framework and pathway algorithms of sociodental needs assessment and applied them to assessing overall dental needs. Normative dental needs were assessed using standard normative criteria. The child oral impacts on daily performances (Child-OIDP) was used to assess oral impacts, and a self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information on demographic variables and oral behaviours. Data were analysed according to the developed algorithms. Setting., A cross-sectional survey in Suphanburi Province, Thailand. Participants., All 1126 children aged 11,12 years in a town. Main results., The sociodental approach was acceptable and not costly. In all, 54·4% had normative need under the dental needs model for life-threatening and progressive conditions, but only 16·6% had high propensity-related need; the remaining 37·8% would require dental health education or oral health promotion (DHE/OHP) or both and appropriately adjusted clinical interventions. Under the basic model of dental needs, 45·1% had normative need. Two-thirds of them (30·9%) had impact-related need and the remaining 14·2% did not have oral impacts and therefore should only receive dental health education. Only one-third of those with impact-related need had high propensity and were suitable for evidence-based conventional treatments; the remaining two-thirds should receive DHE/OHP and alternative clinical interventions. Conclusions., A sociodental system of dental needs assessment was developed and tested on school children. It decreased the estimates of conventionally assessed dental treatment needs and introduced a broader approach to care. [source] Dental caries and associated factors in 12-year-old schoolchildren in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, IndiaINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PAEDIATRIC DENTISTRY, Issue 6 2005J. DAVID Summary Objectives. The aims of the present study were to describe the dental health status of 12-year-old schoolchildren in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India, and to identify sociodemographic factors, oral health behaviours, attitudes and knowledge related to dental caries experience. Methods. The study took the form of a cross-sectional survey of 838 children in upper primary schools. A two-stage cluster sampling technique was used. Dental caries was measured using World Health Organization criteria. Sociodemographic factors, oral health behaviours, attitudes and knowledge were assessed by a self-administered questionnaire. Results. The prevalence of dental caries in the permanent dentition was 27%. The mean number of decayed, missing and filled teeth was 0·5 (SD = 0·9). The decayed component (D) constituted 91% of the total number of decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that children had a higher risk of having dental caries if they lived in urban area [OR = 1·5, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1·1,2·1], had visited a dentist (OR = 1·6, 95% CI = 1·2,2·2), did not use a toothbrush (OR = 1·9, 95% CI = 1·2,2·9), consumed sweets (OR = 1·4, 95% CI = 1·0,1·9) or performed poorly in school (OR = 1·7, 95% CI = 1·0,2·3). Conclusions. The prevalence of caries in this sample of 12-year-old schoolchildren was low compared to that in other developing countries. The present study indicated that urban living conditions were associated with more dental caries. Since urbanization is rapid in India, oral health promotion at the present time would be valuable to prevent increased caries prevalence. [source] Avulsed permanent incisors: knowledge and attitudes of primary school teachers with regard to emergency managementINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PAEDIATRIC DENTISTRY, Issue 5 2001C. Blakytny Summary. Objectives. This study was designed to examine the knowledge and attitudes of primary school teachers with regard to the emergency management of avulsed permanent incisors. Design. Data were collected by self-administered questionnaire. Setting. The study was conducted in primary schools lying within a 2-mile radius of the University Dental Hospital, Cardiff. Sample and methods. A total of 388 teachers in 31 participating schools were asked to complete a questionnaire, which was subsequently collected by two of the authors (CS and AT). Results. Two hundred and seventy-four teachers returned completed questionnaires, a response rate of 70·6%. One hundred and eighty-one respondents (60·1%) had received no advice about the emergency management of dental avulsion. Of the 133 teachers (48·5%) who possessed a first aid certificate, 39 (29·3%) had been given relevant advice as part of this training. Less than one-third of respondents (85 (31%)) cited an optimum extra-oral time of 30 min or less, with only 43 (15·7%) considering that this should be 10 min or less. However, 125 (45·6%) knew milk to be the best transport medium. Two hundred and four teachers (74·5%) stated that they would not be prepared to replant an avulsed tooth themselves, 133 (80%) basing this decision on lack of expertise and training. Two hundred and sixty-two teachers (95·6%) expressed a desire for further information. Conclusions. The majority of respondents possessed, at best, rudimentary knowledge of the emergency management of dental avulsion. Teachers, and other individuals who supervise children in schools, should receive simple instruction in dental first aid. [source] Impact of salvage therapy for biochemical recurrence on health-related quality of life following radical prostatectomyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF UROLOGY, Issue 3 2007Shunichi Namiki Objective: To determine the impact of salvage therapy for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) recurrence on the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of patients after radical retropubic prostatectomy (RP). Methods: Between January 2000 and December 2003, a total of 249 patients who underwent RP were available for 2-year follow up. Of the respondents, 203 men did not show evidence of recurrence (group A), and 46 men received salvage hormonal therapy and/or radiotherapy after RP because of a rise in PSA (group B). The general and prostate-target HRQOL was assessed with the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form and University of California, Los Angeles Prostate Cancer Index, respectively. Patients completed the HRQOL instruments by mail at baseline and at 24 months after RP. Results: All of the patients completed both questionnaires. At baseline no significant differences were found between the two groups in any of the HRQOL domains. There were significant improvements in mental health and social function for the patients without biochemical recurrence postoperatively. Repeated measure anova revealed significantly different patterns of alteration in several general HRQOL domains among the treatment groups. The urinary and bowel domains were equivalent between the two treatment groups at baseline and 24 months after RP. The patients treated with salvage hormonal therapy tended to show delayed recovery of sexual function. Conclusion: Using a self-administered questionnaire, biochemical recurrence following RP was found to impose a substantial burden in patients with localized prostate cancer. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||