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Frontiers in Public Health 2023Although numerous studies have investigated the association between problematic internet use (PIU) and social anxiety, the findings have no yet reached consistent. The... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
OBJECTIVE
Although numerous studies have investigated the association between problematic internet use (PIU) and social anxiety, the findings have no yet reached consistent. The present meta-analysis aims to examine the association between PIU and social anxiety within adolescents and young adults (age range: 14-24 years old).
METHOD
The meta-analysis systematically retrieved the studies prior to September 7, 2023 from Web of Science, PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus, CNKI, and CQVIP. The meta-analysis based on random-effects model to conduct the research. Stata Version 17.0 and JASP 16.3.0 was used to analysis.
RESULTS
The meta-analysis ultimately included 37 studies (37 effect sizes in total), involving a total of 36,013 subjects. Our findings indicated that the overall correlation between PIU and social anxiety was significant positive [ = 0.333, 95% CI (0.292, 0.373), < 0.001]. Their association was significantly moderated by publication year, measurement tools for PIU and social anxiety but not significantly by culture context, developmental level and gender.
CONCLUSION
This meta-analysis suggests that social anxiety is a predictor of the development of PIU in adolescents and young adults. Furthermore, the study also finds the possibility that contemporary adolescents and youth may exhibit a more "global" behavior pattern, potentially emphasizing fewer differences between cultures, generations and genders.
Topics: Humans; Male; Adolescent; Female; Young Adult; Adult; Internet Use; Behavior, Addictive; Anxiety
PubMed: 37841708
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1275723 -
International Journal of Nursing... Jan 2025This systematic review of qualitative studies explored interventions to improve student nurses' knowledge, attitudes or willingness to work with older people. Student...
OBJECTIVES
This systematic review of qualitative studies explored interventions to improve student nurses' knowledge, attitudes or willingness to work with older people. Student nurses are likely to encounter older people in all health and aged care settings, however, research demonstrates that few have career aspirations in gerontological nursing.
METHODS
Qualitative systematic review method based on the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions.
RESULTS
Search of Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, EBSCOhost and Scopus yielded 1841 articles which were screened to include primary research about educational interventions to improve student nurses' knowledge, attitudes and/or willingness to work with older people. Data extraction was performed on the 14 included studies, and data were analysed using directed content analysis. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used the assess the quality of the studies.
CONCLUSIONS
Educational interventions included theory or practice courses, or a combination of theory and practice. While most interventions changed nursing students' negative attitudes towards older people, few increased their willingness to work with them. Practice courses had the most significant impact on willingness to work with older people. Quality assessment revealed methodical limitations. More research is needed to better understand the elements of practice interventions that enhance student nurses' knowledge, attitudes, and willingness to work with older people, so that they can be replicated.
Topics: Aged; Humans; Attitude of Health Personnel; Clinical Competence; Nurses; Students, Nursing; Geriatrics
PubMed: 38459787
DOI: 10.1515/ijnes-2023-0042 -
International Journal of Qualitative... Dec 2023Loneliness is a fundamentally subjective experience that is common at various life stages. Studies have qualitatively explored loneliness, but a comprehensive overview... (Review)
Review
PURPOSE
Loneliness is a fundamentally subjective experience that is common at various life stages. Studies have qualitatively explored loneliness, but a comprehensive overview is lacking. This research therefore provides a fine-grained review of studies on loneliness experiences across the lifespan.
METHODS
A systematic review and thematic synthesis were performed on studies that qualitatively investigated experiences of loneliness in people of any age from non-clinical populations. Sensitivity analysis assessed the impact of lower-quality studies and specific age groups on the findings.
RESULTS
Twenty-nine studies of 1,321 participants aged between 7 and 103 were included. Fifteen descriptive themes and three overarching analytical themes were developed: (1) Loneliness is both psychological and contextual, (2) Loneliness centres on feelings of meaningful connection and painful disconnection, and (3) Loneliness can exist in a general, pervasive sense or can relate to specific other people or relationship types. Some features were particularly pertinent to children, younger adults, and older adults, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS
Loneliness involves a primarily aversive psychological experience of perceived disconnection which is linked to physical, personal, and socio-political contexts and can be pervasive or relate to specific relationships or relationship types. An awareness of context, life stage, and personal experiences is essential to understand loneliness.
Topics: Child; Humans; Aged; Adolescent; Young Adult; Adult; Middle Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Loneliness; Longevity; Emotions; Qualitative Research; Pain
PubMed: 37327403
DOI: 10.1080/17482631.2023.2223868 -
Journal of Clinical Tuberculosis and... May 2024Virtual modes of tuberculosis (TB) treatment monitoring have become increasingly relevant in the last decade with the advancements and increasing accessibility of... (Review)
Review
Virtual modes of tuberculosis (TB) treatment monitoring have become increasingly relevant in the last decade with the advancements and increasing accessibility of technology. We conducted a systematic review comparing people with TB's perceptions of standard directly observed therapy (DOT) versus video directly observed therapy (vDOT). Studies were obtained from MEDLINE and EMBASE between January 1, 1974 and February 4, 2021. Of the 22 articles reviewed, a qualitative thematic analysis was performed, drawing on common themes from people with TB's perception of their care. 21 studies showed relative preference for and acceptance of vDOT over DOT. Factors that increased acceptability toward vDOT included cost and time saving, personal sense of empowerment, convenience, and privacy. Studies also showed greater adherence to treatment and subsequent improved health outcomes. vDOT has the potential to be an empowering, person-centered treatment modality for TB therapy. The role of social determinants such as place of residence, access to technology, and patient-provider communication requires further exploration.
PubMed: 38380432
DOI: 10.1016/j.jctube.2023.100406 -
Journal of Patient-reported Outcomes Dec 2023The onset of COVID-19 has caused an international upheaval of traditional in-person approaches to care delivery. Rapid system-level transitions to virtual care provision... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
The onset of COVID-19 has caused an international upheaval of traditional in-person approaches to care delivery. Rapid system-level transitions to virtual care provision restrict the ability of healthcare professionals to evaluate care quality from the patient's perspective. This poses challenges to ensuring that patient-centered care is upheld within virtual environments. To address this, the study's objective was to review how virtual care has impacted patient experiences and outcomes during COVID-19, through the use of patient-reported experience and outcome measures (PREMs and PROMs), respectively.
METHODS
A systematic review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines to evaluate patient responsiveness to virtual care during COVID-19. Using an exhaustive search strategy, relevant peer-reviewed articles published between January 2020 and 2022 were pulled from MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, and PsychInfo databases. Study quality was independently assessed by two reviewers using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. A patient partner was consulted throughout the study to provide feedback and co-conduct the review.
RESULTS
After removing duplicates, 6048 articles underwent title and abstract review, from which 644 studies were included in the full-text review stage. Following this, 102 articles were included in the study. Studies were published in 20 different countries, were predominantly cross-sectional, and reported on the delivery of virtual care in specialized adult outpatient settings. This review identified 29 validated PREMs and 43 PROMs. Several advantages to virtual care were identified, with patients citing greater convenience, (such as saving travel time and cost, less waiting experienced to see care providers) and increased protection from viral spread. Some studies also reported challenges patients and caregivers faced with virtual care, including feeling rushed during the virtual care appointment, lack of physical contact or examination presenting barriers, difficulty with communicating symptoms, and technology issues.
CONCLUSION
This review provides supportive evidence of virtual care experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic from patient and caregiver perspectives. This research provides a comprehensive overview of what patient-reported measures can be used to record virtual care quality amid and following the pandemic. Further research into healthcare professionals' perspectives would offer a supportive lens toward a strong person-centered healthcare system.
Topics: Adult; Humans; COVID-19; Pandemics; Cross-Sectional Studies; Health Personnel; Patient Reported Outcome Measures
PubMed: 38038800
DOI: 10.1186/s41687-023-00659-8 -
Journal of Physical Activity & Health Aug 2023The objectives were (1) to establish the strength of the association between incident cases of osteoarthritis (OA) and low back pain (LBP), and physical activity (PA)... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
The objectives were (1) to establish the strength of the association between incident cases of osteoarthritis (OA) and low back pain (LBP), and physical activity (PA) and to assess the likelihood of the associations being causal; and (2) to quantify the impact of PA on the burden of OA and LBP in Australia.
METHODS
We conducted a systematic literature review in EMBASE and PubMed databases from January 01, 2000, to April 28, 2020. We used the Bradford Hill viewpoints to assess causality. We used a proportional multistate life table model to estimate the impact of changes in the PA levels on OA and LBP burdens for the 2019 Australian population (aged ≥ 20 y) over their remaining lifetime.
RESULTS
We found that both OA and LBP are possibly causally related to physical inactivity. Assuming causality, our model projected that if the 2025 World Health Organization global target for PA was met, the burden in 25 years' time could be reduced by 70,000 prevalent cases of OA and over 11,000 cases of LBP. Over the lifetime of the current adult population of Australia, the gains could add up to approximately 672,814 health-adjusted life years (HALYs) for OA (ie, 27 HALYs per 1000 persons) and 114,042 HALYs for LBP (ie, 5 HALYs per 1000 persons). The HALY gains would be 1.4 times bigger if the 2030 World Health Organization global target for PA was achieved and 11 times bigger if all Australians adhered to the Australian PA guidelines.
CONCLUSION
This study provides empirical support for the adoption of PA in strategies for the prevention of OA and back pain.
Topics: Adult; Humans; Exercise; Life Tables; Low Back Pain; Occupational Diseases; Australia; Osteoarthritis
PubMed: 37268300
DOI: 10.1123/jpah.2022-0541 -
Cureus Dec 2023Photoplethysmography (PPG) is the wearable devices' most widely used technology for monitoring heart rate. The systematic review used the Preferred Reporting Items for... (Review)
Review
Photoplethysmography (PPG) is the wearable devices' most widely used technology for monitoring heart rate. The systematic review used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) standards and guidelines. This systematic review seeks to establish the effects of wearable health devices on cardiac arrhythmias concerning their impact on the personalization of cardiac management, their refining effect on stroke prevention strategies, and their influence on research and preventive care of cardiac arrhythmias and their re-evaluation of the patient-physician relationship. The population, exposure, control, outcomes, and studies (PECOS) criteria were used in the systematic review. This review considered studies that covered the tests conducted on individuals who presented with cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and also healthy people. The intervention for studies included wearable health devices that could detect and diagnose cardiac arrhythmias. The study considered articles that reported on the personalization of cardiac management, stroke prevention strategies, influence in research and preventive care of cardiac arrhythmias, and the re-evaluation of the patient-physician relationship. Two independent researchers were used in the extraction of the data. In case of dispute, the issue was resolved using a third party. The study's quality analysis was conducted using AXIS. The management of atrial fibrillation (AF) lies heavily in the prevention of stroke. The accuracy being reported in the prediction of arrhythmias and the monitoring of heart rates makes wearable devices an efficient means to personalize health care. Personalization of health and treatment in preventing and managing arrhythmias becomes possible due to the portability of smart wearable devices. However, limitations may be observed due to the high costs incurred in their purchase and use. Using smart wearable devices for the detection of cardiac arrhythmias was very significant.
PubMed: 38249280
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.50952 -
BMC Public Health Feb 2024Parenting is both a complex and stressful endeavor, so parents sometimes experience parenting burnout. The main objective of this study was to provide an overview of...
BACKGROUND
Parenting is both a complex and stressful endeavor, so parents sometimes experience parenting burnout. The main objective of this study was to provide an overview of factors related to general parental burnout (PB) among parents with at least one child based on the Ecological Systems Theory (EST).
METHODS
PubMed, Web of Science, EBSCO, CNKI and WanFang were systematically searched for studies published from 2010 to July 2023 for peer-reviewed articles using keywords extracted from Medical Subject Headings such as "parenting", "parental", "burnout", "psychological burnout", "burn-out syndrome". Studies were included if they described associations between factors and PB among parents of children aged 0-18 years old in the general population, and published in an English or Chinese language peer-reviewed journal. The Quality Assessment Tool for Studies with Diverse Designs (QATSDD) was employed to assess the risk of bias of included studies.
RESULTS
Of 2037 articles, 26 articles met the inclusion criteria. Based on the Ecological Systems Theory (EST), we found that microsystem-individual factors such as gender, educational level, income, parental personality, internalization of maternal parental motivation, unmitigated communion, self-compassion and concern for others, alexithymia, anxiety and depressive symptoms, parental perfectionism, resilience, low self-esteem and high need for control, mother's attachment style were identified as being associated with parenting burnout. Mesosystem-interpersonal factors involve parent-child relationship and marital satisfaction. The exosystem-organizational or community factors include the number of children in the household, neighborhood and the number of hours spent with children, child's illness, child's behavior problems and social support. The macrosystem-society/policy or culture factors are mainly personal values and cultural values.
CONCLUSIONS
This systematic review found several factors that have been investigated in relation to PB. However, the majority of the factors were reported by one or two studies often implementing a cross-sectional design. Nevertheless, we still recommend that health policymakers and administrators relieve parenting burnout among parents with children by adjusting these modifiable factors.
Topics: Humans; Infant, Newborn; Infant; Child, Preschool; Child; Adolescent; Cross-Sectional Studies; Parents; Parenting; Parent-Child Relations; Burnout, Psychological
PubMed: 38317118
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-17829-y -
Frontiers in Endocrinology 2023Noonan syndrome (NS) is a genetic multisystem disorder characterised by variable clinical manifestations including dysmorphic facial features, short stature, congenital...
BACKGROUND
Noonan syndrome (NS) is a genetic multisystem disorder characterised by variable clinical manifestations including dysmorphic facial features, short stature, congenital heart disease, renal anomalies, lymphatic malformations, chest deformities, cryptorchidism in males.
METHODS
In this narrative review, we summarized the available data on puberty and gonadal function in NS subjects and the role of the RAS/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signalling pathway in fertility. In addition, we have reported our personal experience on pubertal development and vertical transmission in NS.
CONCLUSIONS
According to the literature and to our experience, NS patients seem to have a delay in puberty onset compared to the physiological timing reported in healthy children. Males with NS seem to be at risk of gonadal dysfunction secondary not only to cryptorchidism but also to other underlying developmental factors including the MAP/MAPK pathway and genetics. Long-term data on a large cohort of males and females with NS are needed to better understand the impact of delayed puberty on adult height, metabolic profile and well-being. The role of genetic counselling and fertility related-issues is crucial.
Topics: Male; Child; Adult; Female; Humans; Noonan Syndrome; Cryptorchidism; Gonads; Puberty; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases
PubMed: 37576960
DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1213098 -
Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics Nov 2023Debates persist regarding the performance of existing glomerular filtration rate (GFR) estimating equations in older individuals. We performed this meta-analysis to... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study Meta-Analysis Review
BACKGROUND
Debates persist regarding the performance of existing glomerular filtration rate (GFR) estimating equations in older individuals. We performed this meta-analysis to assess the accuracy and bias of six commonly used equations, including the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration creatinine equation (CKD-EPI) and its combination with cystatin C (CKD-EPI), with the corresponding pair of the Berlin Initiative Study equations (BIS1 and BIS2) and the Full Age Spectrum equations (FAS and FAS).
METHODS
PubMed and the Cochrane Library were searched for studies comparing estimated GFR (eGFR) with measured GFR (mGFR). We analyzed the difference in P30 and bias among the six equations and investigated subgroups based on the area (Asian and non-Asian), mean age (60-74 years and ≥75 years), and levels of mean mGFR (<45 mL/min/1.73m and ≥45 mL/min/1.73m).
RESULTS
27 studies with 18,112 participants were included, all reporting P30 and bias. BIS1 and FAS exhibited significantly higher P30 than CKD-EPI. While no significant differences were observed between FAS and BIS1, or among the three combined equations in terms of either P30 or bias. Subgroup analyses revealed FAS and FAS achieved better results in most situations. However, in the subgroup of mGFR<45 mL/min/1.73m, CKD-EPI had relatively higher P30 and significantly smaller bias.
CONCLUSIONS
Overall, BIS and FAS provided relatively more accurate estimates of GFR than CKD-EPI in older adults. FAS and FAS may be better suited for various conditions, while CKD-EPI would be a better option for older individuals with impaired renal function.
Topics: Aged; Humans; Asian; Creatinine; ErbB Receptors; Glomerular Filtration Rate; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic; Middle Aged; Reproducibility of Results; Models, Biological
PubMed: 37379796
DOI: 10.1016/j.archger.2023.105107