American Journal of Preventive Medicine

INTRODUCTION: This study sought to assess the association between the changes in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and risk of type 2 diabetes in young individuals with prediabetes. METHODS: Data from the Korean National Health Insurance System database were collected from 2009 to 2019 and analyzed in 2022. A total of 446,813 young adults aged 20-39 years with prediabetes who underwent two National Health Screening examinations from 2009 to 2012 were followed-up...

INTRODUCTION: Prior studies have shown that, compared to non-disabled women, women with disabilities have a higher burden of preconception mental and physical health risks that are associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. This cross-sectional study assesses how the extent of disability relates to pre-pregnancy health risks. METHODS: This study used 2019-2020 PRAMS data from 22 sites that included the Washington Group Short Set of Questions on Disability (n=37,006)...

INTRODUCTION: Acute alcohol intoxication is a contributing factor in firearm-involved suicides. However, knowledge of the relationship between alcohol intoxication and firearm-involved suicide by age and sex is limited. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the sex- and age group-specific relationship between alcohol intoxication and firearm-involved suicide. METHODS: Data from the National Violent Death Reporting System, 2003-2020, on suicide decedents (18+ years of age) were utilized...

INTRODUCTION: Although a combined treatment of prescription medication and psychotherapy provides long-term benefits for adults with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), little is known about the prevalence of receiving such multimodal treatment. This study investigated trends in the prevalence and correlates of multimodal treatment among US insured adults newly diagnosed with ADHD. METHODS: 495,180 US adults from the Komodo Healthcare Map with newly diagnosed ADHD in 2017-2021 were included...

INTRODUCTION: Considerable research has linked many risk factors to Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). Without a clear etiology of ADRD, it is advantageous to rank the known risk factors by their importance and determine if disparities exist. Statistical based ranking can provide insight into which risk factors should be further evaluated. METHODS: This observational, population-based study assessed 50 county-level measures and estimates related to ADRD in 3,155 counties in the United States using data from 2010-2021...

INTRODUCTION: Few studies have examined whether neighborhood deprivation is associated with severe maternal morbidity (SMM) in already socioeconomically disadvantaged populations. Little is known about to what extent neighborhood deprivation accounts for Black-White disparities in SMM. This study investigated these questions among a statewide Medicaid-insured population, a low-income population with heightened risk of SMM. METHODS: Data were from Michigan statewide linked birth records and Medicaid claims between 01/01/2016 and 12/31/2019, and were analyzed between 2022 and 2023...

INTRODUCTION: Salutogenic effects of volunteering and helping activities have been well recognized in the pre-COVID-19 era. This study examines associations between helping others as well as additional volunteer activities during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and six psychological distress and well-being outcomes one year later. METHODS: Longitudinal data collected between 2019 and 2021 were used. Analyses were based on data from 42,005 middle-aged and older adults from 27 European countries who participated in the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and two SHARE Corona Surveys...

INTRODUCTION: This study assesses disparities in medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) in adults with OUD and examines associations between state-level COVID lockdown and telehealth policies and MOUD utilization rates during the COVID pandemic. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study of 396,872 adults with OUD analyzed monthly MOUD utilization rates between 01/2019-06/2022 using data from Clinformatics® Data Mart Database. Primary outcome measure was monthly MOUD utilization rates...

INTRODUCTION: Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) veterans face numerous challenges due to stigma and marginalization, which have a significant impact on their health and well-being. However, there is insufficient data on cause-specific mortality in TGD veteran populations in the United States. The purpose of this study was to describe the leading causes of death in a sample of TGD veterans who received care from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). METHODS: A secondary data analysis was conducted using VHA electronic health record (EHR) data matched with death certificate records from the National Death Index (NDI) from October 1, 1999 to December 31, 2019...

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to explore the association between access to paid sick leave (AtPSL) and self-reported feelings of depression and anxiety in a nationally representative U.S. working population. METHODS: In 2023, this study examined data from the 2019-2020 Longitudinal National Health Interview Survey. A Generalized Linear Latent and Mixed Model (GLLAMM) was used to analyze the longitudinal data. RESULTS: The descriptive analysis of population averages showed that fewer workers with AtPSL reported daily feelings of depression (45%), anxiety (24%), and both depression and anxiety (52%) than workers without AtPSL...

INTRODUCTION: There are meager individual-level data on long-term predictors of firearm suicide. METHODS: This was an analysis of males (n=189,558) in the Project Talent (PT) cohort, a national probability sample of high school schools in 1960 when students completed a baseline PT self-report inventory. Mortality follow-up was contingent on survival until 1979, the onset of the National Death Index, when the cohort was mean age 35.7. Mortality follow-up continued until death or age 75, reached by all surviving members by 2018...

INTRODUCTION: The progress made by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) towards ending veteran homelessness requires attention be paid to preventing returns to homelessness. METHODS: Using national VA data on 293,820 exits from a VA homeless program to a permanent housing destination between January 2018 thru December 2022, rates and predictors of returns to homelessness among veterans were examined. Analyses were conducted June-August 2023. A return to homelessness was operationally defined as a return encounter with a VA homeless program...

INTRODUCTION: Investments in historically oppressed neighborhoods through food retail, housing, and commercial development are hypothesized to improve residents' health, nutrition, and perceptions of their neighborhood as a place to live. Although place-based development (e.g., housing, retail, business assistance) is happening in many communities, there is little evidence on the long-term correlates of multiple investments such as health and nutrition among residents. METHODS: We conducted a quasi-experimental longitudinal study using a cohort of randomly sampled households in two low-income, predominantly African American neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, PA, with surveys assessing residents' food insecurity, perception of their neighborhood as a place to live, perception of access to healthy foods, and dietary outcomes in 2011 and seven years later (2018), with an interim assessment in 2014...

INTRODUCTION: This study demonstrates the feasibility of a novel, business-partnered and worksite-based approach to healthcare access to facilitate chronic disease screening and diagnosis among rural hourly workers. The prevalence of undiagnosed and untreated diabetes and hypertension among screening participants was determined. METHODS: From February 2021-June 2023, investigators partnered with 29 businesses to screen 1,114 workers. Health screenings included a demographic questionnaire, A1c testing for prediabetes (A1c 5...

INTRODUCTION: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality increased during the initial years of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, but whether these trends endured in 2022 is unknown. The analysis describes temporal trends in CVD death rates from 2010 to 2022 and estimates excess CVD deaths from 2020 to 2022. METHODS: Using national mortality data from the National Vital Statistics System, deaths among adults aged ≥35 years were classified by underlying cause of death International Classification of Diseases 10th Revision codes for CVD (I00-I99), heart disease (I00-I09, I11, I13, I20-I51), and stroke (I60-I69)...

INTRODUCTION: Exploring sociodemographic effect modification is important to provide evidence for developing targeted recommendations and reducing health inequalities. This study evaluated how sociodemographic factors including age, sex, race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES) modify the association between leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and all-cause and major cause-specific mortality. METHODS: The study sample included 471,992 people from the 1997-2018 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) and 41,830 people from the 1999-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)...

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in changes in prescription patterns and fillings for certain medications, but little is known about its effect on dispensing of cardiovascular drugs. METHODS: Trends in dispensing of cardiovascular drugs before and during the pandemic were examined using a population-based cohort in Norway. Using interrupted time series analyses and considering March 1st , 2020, as the interruption point, the effect of the pandemic on defined daily dose (DDD) dispensing of prescribed cardiovascular drugs was estimated in a population of adults with and without pre-existing cardiovascular disease from January 2018 to December 2021...

INTRODUCTION: Sexual violence is a major public health problem in the United States (U.S.) that is associated with numerous health impacts, including pregnancy. U.S. population-based estimates (2010-2012) found that 3 million women experienced a rape-related pregnancy during their lifetimes. The current study presents more recent estimates of rape and sexual coercion-related pregnancy and examines prevalence by demographic characteristics. METHODS: Data years 2016/2017 were pooled from the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, a random-digit-dial telephone survey of U...

INTRODUCTION: Self-sampling for human papillomavirus (HPV) testing is increasingly recognized as a strategy to expand cervical cancer screening access and utilization. Acceptability is a key determinant of uptake. This study assesses acceptability of and experiences with mailed self-sampling kits for HPV testing among underscreened patients in a safety net health system. METHODS: A nested telephone survey was administered between 2021-2023 to a sample (n=272) of the 2,268 participants enrolled in the Prospective Evaluation of Self-Testing to Increase Screening (PRESTIS) trial...

INTRODUCTION: Puerto Rico (PR) has an ambiguous status within Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) public health monitoring and surveillance systems. However, as a U.S. territory, PR relies on federal health resource allocation processes that are informed by these data sources. This study sought to quantify the coverage of PR within CDC-supported systems compared with the 50 states, describe coverage across critical system-types, and assess the availability of data collection instruments in Spanish...