Public Health Archives - Page 14 of 52 - Dr Amin Azhari

Sitting more linked to increased feelings of depression, anxiety

As people adhered to stay-at-home orders or self-isolated during the early months of the COVID-19 outbreak, daily commutes turned into shuffles between the bedroom and the living room. Clicking Zoom links erased time spent walking to meeting rooms, and Netflix spilled into time otherwise dedicated to the gym.

In short, a lot of people suddenly became more sedentary during the onset of the pandemic. Recently published research found people who continued to spend a higher amount of time sitting between April and June 2020 were likely to have higher symptoms of depression. A closer investigation into this association could play a role in helping people improve their mental health.

To get a snapshot of those changes, Meyer and a team of researchers received survey responses from more than 3,000 study participants from all 50 states and the District of Colombia. Participants self-reported how much time they spent doing activities, like sitting, looking at screens and exercising, and how those behaviors compared to pre-pandemic times. Using standard clinical scales, they also indicated changes to their mental wellbeing (e.g., depression, anxiety, feeling stressed, lonely).

This paper in Frontiers in Psychiatry served as a follow up to see whether the participants’ behaviors and mental health changed over time. Participants filled out the same survey each week between April and June.

This study recommended people take breaks when sitting for long periods of time.

Release date: 08 November 2021
Source: Iowa State University

Public Health

Just a game?

As the latest Call of Duty video game is released today, with Battlefield 2042 and a remastered Grand Theft Auto trilogy to follow later this month, research from City, University of London finds no evidence that violence increases after a new video game is released.

Mass media and general public often link violent video games to real-life violence, although there is limited evidence to support the link.

Debate on the topic generally intensifies after mass public shootings, with some commentators linking these violent acts to the perpetrators’ interests in violent video games.

However, others have pointed out that different factors, such as mental health issues and/or easy access to guns, are more likely explanations.

In the light of these conflicting claims, President Obama called in 2013 for more government funding for research on video games and violence.

But before governments introduce any policies restricting access to violent video games, it is important to establish whether violent video games do indeed make players behave violently in the real world.

The study, published in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, focused on boys aged 8-18 years – the group most likely to play violent video games.

Release date: 05 November 2021
Source: City University London

Neurologic disorders, Public Health, Sport Medicine

Vibration Training for Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease that affects the body’s central nervous system. It can limit a person’s mobility, impair physical and cognitive functions, and increase the risk of falling, collectively compromising quality of life.

Cognitive impairment has been particularly difficult for researchers to address, with few intervention strategies proven effective in preserving or restoring cognitive functions for people with MS.

Associate Professor Feng Yang worked with Francois Bethoux from the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and Georgia State University faculty members Pey-Shan Wen and Yichuan Zhao to study whether vibration training – an intervention used to improve physical function for people with MS – could also improve cognitive function and overall quality of life.

Vibration training requires individuals to sit or stand on a platform that vibrates at a fast pace but with a small movement for a specific amount of time.

For Yang’s study, believed to be the first of its kind, 18 adults with MS completed assessments to determine their perceived disability status, cognitive function and quality of life. Then, some of the participants attended vibration training three times a week for six weeks.

The study, published in the International Journal of MS Care, found that the vibration training improved not only physical abilities, such as increased walking speeds, but also cognitive functions, such as memory capacity and executive function.

Release date: 28 October 2021
Source: Georgia State University

Geriatrics, Musculoskeletal diseases, Public Health, Sport Medicine

Does physical activity impact risk of knee osteoarthritis?

In an analysis published in Arthritis & Rheumatology, investigators did not find any link between the amount and duration of physical activity with individuals’ risk of developing knee osteoarthritis.

The analysis included six global community-based studies including a total of 5,065 participants with and without knee osteoarthritis who were followed for five to 12 years.

“Knowing that the amount of physical activity and time spent doing it is not associated with the development of knee osteoarthritis is important evidence for both clinicians and the public who may need to consider this when prescribing physical activity for health,” said co–lead author Thomas Perry, BSc, PhD, of the University of Oxford, in the UK.

Next, it will be important to understand the role of injury and specific types of activity within this association, noted co–lead author Lucy S. Gates, PhD, of the University of Southampton, and co–senior author Maria Sanchez-Santos, of the University of Oxford.

Release date: 03 November 2021
Source: Wiley

Public Health

Can Eating Alone Be Bad for Your Heart?

New study suggests that older women who eat alone have poorer nutritional knowledge and intake and a
higher prevalence of angina. As women age, their risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) exceeds
men’s largely because of decreased levels of estrogen that regulate vascular function. As a result, much
research is focused on various risk factors. A new study suggests that eating alone may contribute to an
increased risk of heart disease in older women. Study results are published online in Menopause.

Release date: 03 November 2021
Source: The North American Menopause Society (NAMS)

Covid-19, Public Health

Study finds the SARS-CoV-2 virus can infect the inner ear

The prevalence of auditory symptoms in Covid-19 patients is unknown, but infection of the inner ears may be responsible for hearing and balance problems.

Many Covid-19 patients have reported symptoms affecting the ears, including hearing loss and tinnitus. Dizziness and balance problems can also occur, suggesting that the SARS-CoV-2 virus may be able to infect the inner ear.

A new study from MIT and Massachusetts Eye and Ear provides evidence that the virus can indeed infect cells of the inner ear, including hair cells, which are critical for both hearing and balance. The researchers also found that the pattern of infection seen in human inner ear tissue is consistent with the symptoms seen in a study of 10 Covid-19 patients who reported a variety of ear-related symptoms.

The researchers used novel cellular models of the human inner ear that they developed, as well as hard-to-obtain adult human inner ear tissue, for their studies. The limited availability of such tissue has hindered previous studies of Covid-19 and other viruses that can cause hearing loss.

The study and results are published in the Journal of Communications Medicine.

Release date: 29 October 2021
Source: assachusetts Institute of Technology

Public Health

People prefer friendliness, trustworthiness in teammates over skill competency

People who are friendly and trustworthy are more likely to be selected for teams than those who are known for just their skill competency and personal reputation, according to new research from Binghamton University, State University of New York.

While people who are both trustworthy and competent are the most sought after when it comes to team assembly, friendliness and trustworthiness are often more important factors than competency.

Maupin and her colleagues focused on a cohort of MBA students to conduct their study. Students were randomly assigned to teams at the beginning of the semester to work on class projects and assignments. Toward the end of the semester, students were asked to form their own teams and assess why they selected each member of their group.

The study, “Voices as a Signal of Human and Social Capital in Team Assembly Decisions,” was published in the Journal of Management.
Release date: 02 November 2021
Source: Binghamton University

Covid-19, Public Health

COVID vaccines 5 times more effective at protecting against COVID-related hospitalization than prior infection alone

findings suggest people who recovered from the virus should still receive vaccines. A nationwide study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are associated with significantly more immunity than a prior COVID-19 infection.

Researchers from the CDC’s VISION Network gathered data from more than 201,000 hospitalizations in nine different states. About 7,000 people in that group fit the criteria for this study. The research team analyzed the number of unvaccinated individuals who had a positive COVID-19 test more than three months before being hospitalized for the virus as well as the number of individuals who received the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine and were not diagnosed with COVID prior to being admitted to the hospital. The research team found that overall, unvaccinated adults with a previous COVID-19 infection were about five times more likely to be hospitalized than those who were vaccinated.

Release date: 29 October 2021
Source: Regenstrief Institute

Public Health

Men Experience More Emotional Pain During Breakups

The stereotype of men being less emotionally invested in relationships than women may not be accurate, say psychologists.

A new study of online relationship support finds that men tend to experience emotional pain more than women when their relationship takes a turn for the worse.

An international team of psychologists led by researchers at Lancaster University conducted the first-ever “big data” analysis of relationship problems. The study began as an attempt to create a map of the most common relationship problems experienced by people outside of clinical and counselling settings.

Using natural language processing methods, the team analyzed the demographic and psychological characteristics of over 184,000 people who posted their relationship problems to an anonymous online forum. The researchers were then able to statistically determine the most common themes that came up across each post, creating a “map” of the most common relationship problems.

Results showed that communication problems were the #1 most frequent problem mentioned, with nearly 1 in 5 people noting difficulty discussing problems, and 1 in 8 mentioning trust issues in their relationships.

Previously unexpected patterns emerged from the data as well, including key gender differences in which themes were used the most.

The study and results are published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships.

Release date: 02 November 2021
Source: Lancaster University

Covid-19, Public Health

A quick, high-yield synthesis of molnupiravir, an investigational COVID antiviral pill

As SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread and mutate, it’s important to identify new treatment options. Molnupiravir is an investigational oral antiviral being developed for the treatment of COVID-19, and has been submitted for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Researchers now report in ACS Central Science that they have engineered enzymes to help manufacture the pill, resulting in a much shorter and higher-yielding synthesis than current methods.

Originally developed to treat influenza, molnupiravir works by causing viruses to make errors when copying their own RNA, introducing mutations that inhibit replication. Recently, interim phase 3 clinical trial findings indicated that molnupiravir reduced the risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19 for newly diagnosed, at-risk patients, and that it worked equally well against different SARS-CoV-2 variants. John McIntosh, Patrick Fier and colleagues at Merck and Codexis set out to develop a shorter, higher-yielding and sustainable way to synthesize the molecule.

The researchers developed a three-step synthesis of molnupiravir from a sugar molecule called ribose. They identified enzymes or chemical treatments to sequentially add the appropriate chemical groups to ribose to generate the molecule. For the second step of the synthesis, the team identified bacterial enzymes that weakly catalyzed the desired reactions. Using in vitro evolution, they greatly enhanced these enzymes’ activities. The new synthetic route, which also included a phosphate recycling strategy, was 70% shorter and had a seven-fold higher overall yield than the original route.

Release date: 03 November 2021
Source: American Chemical Society