Preventive medicine
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The role of the built environment on walking in rural United States (U.S.) locations is not well characterized. We examined self-reported and measured built environment correlates of walking for utilitarian purposes among adult residents of small rural towns. ⋯ Environmental factors associated with utilitarian walking in cities and suburbs were important in small rural towns. Moreover, manufacturing land use was associated with utilitarian walking. Modifying the built environment of small towns could lead to increased walking in a sizeable segment of the U.S. population.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2014
Observational StudyNon-melanoma skin cancer and NSAID use in women with a history of skin cancer in the Women's Health Initiative.
Evidence for the effect of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) risk is inconsistent. We prospectively examined whether regular, inconsistent, or no/low-use of NSAIDs is associated with lower NMSC risk among 54,728 postmenopausal Caucasian women in the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study enrolled between 1993 and 1998. ⋯ Overall, NSAID use was not associated with NMSC risk. However, in women with a history of skin cancer, regular NSAID use was associated with 18% lower odds of NMSC. Future studies on potential chemopreventative effects of NSAIDs should focus on subjects with prior history of NMSC.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2014
How does the emotive content of televised anti-smoking mass media campaigns influence monthly calls to the NHS Stop Smoking helpline in England?
To investigate the effects of different types of televised mass media campaign content on calls to the English NHS Stop Smoking helpline. ⋯ While positive campaigns were most effective at increasing quitline calls, those with negative emotive content were also found to impact on call rates but only at higher levels of exposure.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2014
Changes in success rates of smoking cessation treatment associated with take up of a national evidencebased training programme.
The English 'stop smoking services' provide behavioural support to some 700,000 smokers annually. Success rates of the services varied considerably before 2010 and had been in slight decline so, to improve performance, a national programme of evidence-based practitioner training was developed to improve knowledge and skills-based competences. This study evaluated whether uptake of the training was associated with improvements in success rates of services. ⋯ English stop smoking services that have greater uptake of a national evidence-based training programme showed greater improvements in success rates.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2014
Routine screening of hospital patients for secondhand tobacco smoke exposure: a feasibility study.
Secondhand tobacco smoke (SHS) exposure causes over 40,000 deaths per year, but healthcare systems rarely address this risk factor. In September 2012, Massachusetts General Hospital initiated routine inpatient screening for SHS exposure by adding a question to the nurses' computerized admission assessment form ("Is smoking allowed in your home or car?"). We measured the implementation of this screening question over 1year. ⋯ Routine screening of SHS among hospitalized patients by nurses is feasible. Doing so offers hospitals an opportunity to intervene and to promote smoke-free policies in patients' homes and cars.