American journal of preventive medicine
-
Opioid use disorder has grown rapidly over the years and is a public health crisis in the U.S. Although opioid use disorder is widely studied, relatively little is known about it among older adults. The goal of this study is to gain a better understanding of opioid use disorder among older Medicare beneficiaries over time and across several sociodemographic dimensions. ⋯ The descriptive trends between 2013 and 2018 indicate that estimated opioid use disorder prevalence has increased greatly over the study period in all sociodemographic subgroups of older adults, highlighting an urgent challenge for public health professionals and gerontologists.
-
Previous research has found COVID-19 cases to be disproportionately prevalent among U.S. prisoners. Similar to prisoners, prison staff experience ventilation and social distancing hazards and may have limited access to testing, paid sick leave, personal protective equipment, and other workplace protections. Yet, systematic case surveillance among prison staff remains unexplored. The objective of this study is to document the trends in COVID-19 cases among U.S. correctional staff relative to those among prisoners and the U.S. ⋯ Prison staff experienced substantially higher COVID-19 case prevalence than the U.S. population overall. Across prison staff and resident populations, cases were rapidly rising in November 2020, indicating poor outbreak containment within the prison environment. An Emergency Temporary Standard, issued by federal and state Occupational Safety and Health Administrations, and priority vaccination are urgently needed to reduce COVID-19 occupational risk. Reduced occupational transmission of COVID-19 will benefit workers, incarcerated people, and community members alike.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
The Fueling Learning Through Exercise Study Cluster RCT: Impact on Children's Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity.
Most children do not meet the recommendations for school-time and daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, with significant demographic disparities and declines over the elementary school years. Investigators examined the impact of Fueling Learning through Exercise study school-based physical activity programs on school-time and total daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity among lower-income school children. ⋯ Two different school-based physical activity programs were effective in preventing the decline in school-time moderate-to-vigorous physical activity that is typical across the elementary years, with similar reach by sex and weight status. Multiple opportunities for physical activity during school are needed to promote meeting school-time moderate-to-vigorous physical activity recommendations among diverse children.
-
There has been a decade-long federal commitment to prevent and end homelessness among U.S. military veterans. Substantial progress has been made; so, a question that stakeholders ask is: Is veteran homelessness still a problem? ⋯ There is a continued need to dedicate resources to address veteran homelessness across sociodemographic groups, and these data serve as a benchmark before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
-
The optimum physical activity dose to achieve during young adulthood to prevent hypertension using the 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines remains undefined. This study aims to determine the association between level and change in physical activity through the adult life course and the onset of hypertension using these 2017 definitions. ⋯ Moderate physical activity levels may need to exceed current minimum guidelines to prevent hypertension onset using 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association definitions.