Psychosocial difficulties, obesity and disadvantage in a cohort of Irish children

Background

Childhood obesity is stabilising in Ireland, but less so in children from disadvantaged backgrounds. There is also evidence for a relationship between psychosocial difficulties and obesity in youth, but findings are often mixed. This study aimed to describe the relationships between psychosocial difficulties, obesity, and disadvantage in a national cohort of children in Ireland.

Methods

Participants (n = 7275) were surveyed and measured at age nine and thirteen as part of the Growing Up in Ireland study (GUI). Psychosocial difficulties were measured using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Disadvantage was represented by the education status of the primary caregiver. BMI was calculated using measured height and weight. Weight status categories were created using the UK 1990 Growth Data. Correlation analyses were used to examine the relationship between child BMI and SDQ scores. Associations between weight categories, psychosocial difficulties and education status were examined using Chi-square analysis.

Results

In children whose parents had secondary education, the obesity rate was 27.9%, compared to 24.7% in those with a college degree (p < 0.01). This relationship was also significant at age thirteen (<0.01). Furthermore, BMI was positively correlated with SDQ total score, (r=.107, p = 0.01) at age nine and at age thirteen (r=.089, p = 0.01). A significant association was also found between weight status categories and psychosocial difficulties at ages nine (p < 0.1), and thirteen (p < 0.1). Further findings will be reported following a preliminary longitudinal analysis.

Conclusions

Obesity is associated with psychosocial difficulties, as well as the education status of the primary caregiver, in a large sample of Irish children. These findings are important for understanding the relationship between childhood obesity and psychological health and have implications for the treatment of obesity in young people.

Key messages

There are higher rates of obesity in children whose parents do not have a college degree. Childhood obesity remains a serious public health issue, and is associated with psychosocial difficulties in an Irish cohort of children.

Impact of reducing the threshold for acetylcysteine treatment in acute paracetamol poisoning: the recent United Kingdom experience

BACKGROUND

On 3 September 2012, the licensed indication for acetylcysteine was changed in the United Kingdom (UK) so that all patients with a plasma paracetamol concentration above a "100 mg/L" (4 h post ingestion) nomogram treatment line after an acute paracetamol (acetaminophen) overdose should be treated. This is a lower threshold than that used in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Here we report the impact of this change in the UK on the management of patients with acute overdose in different paracetamol concentration ranges.

METHODS

This is a cohort study, consisting of a retrospective analysis conducted on prospectively collected audit data in three UK hospitals. Following appropriate ethical and data protection authority approval, data for patients presenting within 24 h of an acute timed single paracetamol overdose were extracted. Numbers of admissions and use of antidote in relation to different paracetamol concentration bands (< 100 mg/L; 100-149 mg/L; 150-199 mg/L; and ≥ 200 mg/L at 4 h) were analyzed for one-year periods before and after the change.

RESULTS

Comparing the year before with the year after the change, there was no change in the numbers of patients presenting to hospital within 24 h of acute timed paracetamol overdose (1246 before and 1251 after), but more patients were admitted (759 before and 849 after) and treated with acetylcysteine (389 before and 539 after). Of the 150 additional patients treated with acetylcysteine in the year following the change, 114 (76%, 95% CI: 68.4-82.6) were in the 100-149 group and 9 (6.0%, 95% CI: 2.8-11.1) in the 150-199 group.

CONCLUSIONS

Changes to national guidelines for managing paracetamol poisoning in the UK have increased the numbers of patients with acute overdose treated with acetylcysteine, with most additional treatments occurring in patients in the 100-149 mg/L dose range, a group at low risk of hepatotoxicity and higher risk of adverse reactions.

The predictive value of hospital admission serum alanine transaminase activity in patients treated for paracetamol overdose

BACKGROUND

Paracetamol is a major cause of poisoning. Treatment decisions are predominately based on the dose ingested and a timed blood paracetamol concentration because most patients present to hospital soon after overdose, before hepatotoxicity can be confirmed/excluded using serum alanine transaminase (ALT). Nonetheless, ALT is measured at hospital presentation; we investigated its value in predicting hepatotoxicity.

METHODS

From March 2011 to May 2012, patients admitted to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh for paracetamol overdose treatment were identified. We determined the value of admission ALT (below or above our upper limit of normal-50 IU/l) at predicting three endpoints: 1-doubling of ALT; 2-peak ALT >1000 IU/l; 3-peak international normalized ratio (INR) >2.

RESULTS

From 500 patients, 410 met the entry criteria; 264 presented within 8 h of overdose, 54 between 8 and 24 h, 53 after 24 h and 39 were staggered ingestions. Admission ALT was increased in 71. For endpoint 1 (ALT doubling), the positive predictive value (PPV) of admission ALT was 19% [95% confidence interval (CI) 12-30] with a negative predictive value (NPV) of 98% (95% CI 96-99); endpoint 2 (ALT >1000 IU/l: PPV 23% (95% CI 14-34) and NPV 100% (95% CI 99-100) and for endpoint 3 (INR >2): PPV 14% (95% CI 7-25) and NPV of 100% (95% CI 99-100). The NPV remained high when only late presenters were included.

CONCLUSION

Admission ALT within the normal range has a high NPV and could be used, alone or in combination with newer biomarkers, to identify lower risk patients at hospital presentation.

Lipopolysaccharides and plant responses to phytopathogenic bacteria

Abstract Treatment of the leaves of pepper (Capsicum annuum) cv. ECW10R with lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from both plant pathogenic and enteric bacteria alters several aspects of the plant response to subsequent inoculation with phytopathogenic xanthomonads. LPS pre-treatment prevents the hypersensitive reaction caused by strains of Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria carrying the avirulence gene avrBs1 (a gene-for-gene interaction) and by X. campestris pv. campestris (a non-host interaction). Associated with this effect are the earlier synthesis of feruloyl- and coumaroyl-tyramine, phenolic conjugates that are potentially antimicrobial, and alterations in the expression patterns of genes for some pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins. Similar effects on the timing of phenolic conjugate synthesis are also seen in the compatible interaction with X. campestris pv. vesicatoria, although the level of the response is lower. Recognition of LPS by plants may allow expression of resistance in the absence of catastrophic tissue damage. However phytopathogenic bacteria may have evolved mechanisms to suppress the effects of LPS (and of other non-specific bacterial elicitors) on plant cells.

The epidemiology of mumps in southern Alberta 1980-1982

The full spectrum of mumps in Southern Alberta was studied over the years 1980-1982. In the community, a random sample of 3,497 children was tested for prevalence of immunity to mumps. The 1,816 who were not immune were retested after one year. The incidence of new immunity was 16.5%. Most seroconverters had no illness suggestive of mumps. History of previous mumps or immunization were found to be unreliable predictors of serologic immune status. In the family study, information was obtained on 342 cases diagnosed as mumps by family physician recorders. The overall complication rate was 10.8% and the secondary attack rate within families was 11.7%. Hospital records of all 25 patients admitted in Calgary with mumps during the same period were analyzed. Estimated costs of unopposed mumps over 20 years compared with the estimated costs of vaccination showed that a vaccination program could give a benefit-cost ratio between 6.4 and 247. These studies show that mumps is a mild disease with relatively few serious complications or sequelae. Even so, there would be definite medical and economic benefit with immunization. A low-cost addition of mumps vaccine to the immunization program would be justified.