Nova scotia

INTRODUCTION: Our objective was to assess the incidence of kidney stones requiring acute care, trends in the surgical treatment of stones, and the demographics of stone formers in Canada. METHODS: We conducted a population-based, retrospective cohort study using administrative data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information. We included Canadian residents age >18, outside of Quebec, who presented between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2018, with a kidney stone episode...

Purpose: To explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Nova Scotian dietitian's roles, responsibilities, and professional development needs. Methods: We conducted a province-wide, online, exploratory survey with registered dietitians during the initial waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Differences were explored with descriptive statistics by work sector (hospital/acute care; primary health/community or public health (PH); long-term care [LTC]; other [e.g., private practice, retail]). Results: Dietitians ( n  = 122) reported being most frequently challenged by stress and anxiety, changing work expectations, and rapidly evolving safety protocols during the pandemic...

PURPOSE: The incidence of childhood-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is rising. We described variation in health services utilization and need for surgery among children with IBD between six and 60 months following IBD diagnosis across Canadian pediatric centers and evaluated the associations between care provided at diagnosis at each center and the variation in these outcomes. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Using population-based deterministically-linked health administrative data from four Canadian provinces (Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario) we identified children diagnosed with IBD <16 years of age using validated algorithms...

We investigated the stable isotope hydrology of Sable Island, Nova Scotia, Canada over a five year period from September, 2017 to August, 2022. The δ 2 H and δ 18 O values of integrated monthly precipitation were weakly seasonal and ranged from -66 to -15 ‰ and from -9.7 to -1.9 ‰, respectively. Fitting these monthly precipitation data resulted in a local meteoric water line (LMWL) defined by: δ 2 H = 7.22 ± 0.21 · δ 18 O + 7...

BACKGROUND: Patterns of health services utilization among children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are important to understand as the number of children with IBD continues to increase. We compared health services utilization and surgery among children diagnosed <10 years of age (Paris classification: A1a) and between 10 and <16 years of age (A1b). METHODS: Incident cases of IBD diagnosed <16 years of age were identified using validated algorithms from deterministically linked health administrative data in 5 Canadian provinces (Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec) to conduct a retrospective cohort study...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Household food insecurity (HFI) has been associated with suboptimal breastfeeding practices. Postpartum factors reported by caregivers include stressful life circumstances and maternal diet quality concerns. It is unknown whether prenatal breast milk feeding intentions, a well-established predictor of breastfeeding outcomes, differ by HFI status. We explored associations between HFI and prenatal intentions to feed any and only breast milk in the first 6 months postpartum, and achievement of these intentions...

Factors influencing vaccine uptake in Black individuals remain insufficiently documented. Understanding the role of COVID-19 related stress, conspiracy theories, health literacy, racial discrimination experiences, and confidence in health authorities can inform programs to increase vaccination coverage. We sought to analyze these factors and vaccine uptake among Black individuals in Canada. A representative sample of 2002 Black individuals from Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, British Columbia, and Manitoba, aged 14 years or older completed questionnaires assessing vaccine uptake, health literacy, conspiracy theories, racial discrimination experiences, COVID-19-related stress, and confidence in health authorities...

Iron supplementation is routinely recommended for breast-milk-fed preterm infants. However, the Canadian Pediatric Society recommends no additional iron supplementation for preterm infants fed primarily with iron-rich formula. Other pediatric societies don't provide specific guidance on supplemental iron for formula-fed preterm infants. This study investigated how feeding type influences iron status of very preterm infants at 4-6-months corrected age (CA). A retrospective cohort study was conducted using a population-based database on all very preterm infants (<31 weeks gestational age) born in Nova Scotia, Canada from 2005-2018...

Background: In 2023, wildfires led to widespread destruction of property and displacement of residents in Alberta and Nova Scotia, Canada. Previous research suggests that wildfires increase the psychological burden of impacted communities, necessitating population-level interventions. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)-based text message interventions, Text4HopeAB and Text4HopeNS, were launched in Alberta and Nova Scotia, respectively, during the 2023 wildfire season to support the mental health of impacted individuals...

OBJECTIVE: To explore how sexual health in the postpartum period is influenced by and negotiated through relations of power. DESIGN: Discourse analysis informed by feminist poststructuralism. SETTING: Telephone interviews conducted in Nova Scotia, Canada. PARTICIPANTS: Eleven women who gave birth in the last 1 to 6 months and lived in Nova Scotia. METHODS: We recruited participants through social media and invited them to share their experiences after birth through individual interviews...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The eastern provinces of Canada exhibit a heightened prevalence and mortality rate of lung cancer compared to their western counterparts. While established risk factors for lung cancer exist in Canada, there remains ambiguity regarding the underlying provincial and territorial trends. This review aims to identify and analyze potential contributors to healthcare inequality, guiding policymakers towards a strategic and sustainable approach at the provincial level. RECENT FINDINGS: Existing studies emphasize the significant roles played by socio-economic and environmental factors in influencing lung cancer disparities across Canadian provinces...

Proliferations of benthic cyanobacteria are increasingly in the public eye, with rising animal deaths associated with benthic rather than planktonic blooms. In early June 2021, two dogs died after consuming material on the shores of Shubenacadie Grand Lake, Nova Scotia. Preliminary investigations indicated anatoxins produced by benthic cyanobacterial mats were responsible for the deaths. In this study, we monitored the growth of a toxic benthic cyanobacterial species (Microcoleus sp.) along a stream-lake continuum where the canine poisonings occurred...

BACKGROUND: Long-term care (LTC) residents with dementia can benefit from rehabilitation to improve function and quality of life. However, specific goals for rehabilitation with this population are not always clear. The purpose of this study was to describe the goals for rehabilitation for LTC residents with dementia from the perspective of residents, family, and staff. METHODS: This was a phenomenological qualitative study. LTC residents with moderate to severe dementia, family members, and staff were recruited from two LTC homes in Halifax, Nova Scotia...

OBJECTIVE: To understand Nova Scotian family physicians' and emergency department (ED) physicians' knowledge of, attitudes about, and experience with organ donation and transplantation in the context of the Human Organ and Tissue Donation Act (HOTDA). DESIGN: An electronic, self-administered survey. SETTING: Nova Scotia. PARTICIPANTS: All family physicians and ED physicians practising in Nova Scotia. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Demographic characteristics, experience with organ donation and transplantation, knowledge about organ donation and HOTDA, attitudes toward organ donation and HOTDA, and opportunities for and barriers to the implementation of the HOTDA in clinical practice...

OBJECTIVE: Paleopathological analysis of a below-knee amputation was conducted to explore the sociocultural reasons why the amputation took place. MATERIALS: Older adolescent male (18-21 years) from the New Englander mass burial at the 18th century Fortress of Louisbourg. METHODS: Macroscopic assessment and archival data. RESULTS: A surgical amputation of the right tibia and fibula, distal to the knee was identified...

OBJECTIVES: Limited data exist on pre-hospital pediatric trauma mortality in Canada. The Nova Scotia Trauma Registry is a provincial population-based registry that captures data from the Medical Examiner Service. This study examined the characteristics of pediatric trauma patient mortality in the pre-hospital and in-hospital settings. METHODS: We conducted a cohort study of major pediatric traumas recorded in our provincial database from April 1, 2001 to March 31, 2018...

Municipal biosolids are a nitrogen (N)-rich agricultural fertilizer which may emit nitrous oxide (N2 O) after rainfall events. Due to sparse empirical data, there is a lack of biosolids-specific N2 O emission factors to determine how land-applied biosolids contribute to the national greenhouse gas inventory. This study estimated N2 O emissions from biosolids-amended land in Canada using Tier 1, Tier 2 (Canadian), and Tier 3 (Denitrification and Decomposition model [DNDC]) methodologies recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)...

The call characteristics and vocal behaviour of sei whales (Balaenoptera borealis) off eastern Canada, including potential spatiotemporal variation, is poorly understood. Such information can improve the performance of automated detector-classifiers, enhancing the accuracy and efficiency of identifying sei whales in large acoustic datasets. Ultimately, these data can be used to understand the occurrence, distribution, and population structure of sei whales in Atlantic Canada. We measured sei whale downsweep characteristics recorded from six locations off Nova Scotia (NS) and Newfoundland and Labrador (NFLD), Canada over a two-year period (2015-2017), and examined variation between call subtypes (singlets, doublets, triplets+), and seasons (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter)...

BACKGROUND: The relationship between post-operative urine output (UO) following kidney transplantation and long-term graft function has not been well described. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we examined the association between decreased UO on post-operative day 1 (POD1) and post-transplant outcomes. DESIGN: This is a retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Atlantic Canada. PATIENTS: Patients from the 4 Atlantic Canadian provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Prince Edward Island) who received a live or deceased donor kidney transplant from 2006 through 2019 through the multiorgan transplant program at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre (QEII) hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia...