Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · Feb 2020
ReviewMicrofinance and violence prevention: A review of the evidence and adaptations for implementation in the U.S.
Microfinance programs provide access to small amounts of capital in the form of credit, savings, or financial incentives. There is evidence that microfinance reduces financial strain and reduces violence making it a promising public health approach. However, most of this evidence was generated internationally in low-resource countries; thus, it is likely that adaptations are necessary for microfinance to be effective at preventing violence in the U. ⋯ Furthermore, it is important for U. S. microfinance programs to engage multiple sectors and to consider additional content, such as a gender equity component and safety planning to protect those who might be in violent relationships. It is also important that these adaptations be rigorously evaluated for impacts on multiple forms of violence.
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Preventive medicine · Feb 2020
ReviewE-cigarettes and youth: Patterns of use, potential harms, and recommendations.
Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use has risen to unprecedented levels among youth in the United States. In this review, we discuss the patterns of use underlying the current youth vaping epidemic, potential harms from e-cigarette use, and the regulatory, public health, and clinical responses to e-cigarette use among youth. Between 2017 and 2018, past 30-day use of nicotine e-cigarettes among high school seniors nearly doubled, from 11% to 21%, representing the largest recorded increase for any adolescent substance use in over four decades. ⋯ However, it remains unclear if ongoing initiatives are sufficient to curb e-cigarette use by youth. Most health professionals agree that youth exposure to e-cigarettes needs to be addressed but feel uninformed, rely on unconventional information sources such as the media and their patients, and report that routine screening procedures concerning e-cigarettes are lacking. A coordinated effort from policy makers, public health agencies, parents, educators, health practitioners, and researchers is essential to mitigate harms from e-cigarette use in this vulnerable population.
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Preventive medicine · Feb 2020
ReviewFactors associated with adolescent HPV vaccination in the U.S.: A systematic review of reviews and multilevel framework to inform intervention development.
Multilevel factors impact HPV vaccine series initiation and completion among adolescents in the U. S. Synthesis of these factors is needed to inform intervention development and to direct future research. ⋯ First, the framework illustrates salient modifiable factors at multiple levels on which to intervene to increase HPV vaccination. Second, the review identified critical gaps in the literature at each level. Future research should link the body of literature on parental intentions to vaccination outcomes, identify provider psychosocial factors associated with recommendation behaviors and subsequent vaccine uptake in their patient population, and understand clinic factors associated with successful implementation of patient- and provider-targeted system-level interventions.
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Preventive medicine · Feb 2020
ReviewFactors associated with adolescent HPV vaccination in the U.S.: A systematic review of reviews and multilevel framework to inform intervention development.
Multilevel factors impact HPV vaccine series initiation and completion among adolescents in the U. S. Synthesis of these factors is needed to inform intervention development and to direct future research. ⋯ First, the framework illustrates salient modifiable factors at multiple levels on which to intervene to increase HPV vaccination. Second, the review identified critical gaps in the literature at each level. Future research should link the body of literature on parental intentions to vaccination outcomes, identify provider psychosocial factors associated with recommendation behaviors and subsequent vaccine uptake in their patient population, and understand clinic factors associated with successful implementation of patient- and provider-targeted system-level interventions.
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Preventive medicine · Feb 2020
ReviewCurrent recommendations on the selection of measures for well-being.
Measures of well-being have proliferated over the past decades. Very little guidance has been available as to which measures to use in what contexts. ⋯ The recommendations are shaped around the number of items that can be included in a survey, and also based on the differing potential contexts and purposes of data collection such as, for example, government surveys, or multi-use cohort studies, or studies specifically about psychological well-being. The recommendations are not intended to be definitive, but to stimulate discussion and refinement, and to provide guidance to those relatively new to the study of well-being.