Feasibility of a Community Healthy Eating and Cooking Intervention Featuring Traditional African Caribbean Foods from Participant and Staff Perspectives

Culturally appropriate healthy eating resources are intended to help people from different ethnic backgrounds consume diets reflecting government dietary recommendations, yet evidence on use in the target groups is lacking. This study evaluated the feasibility of a new brief culturally appropriate community intervention that aimed to introduce food-based healthy eating and recipe resources featuring African Caribbean foods, which were recently co-developed with people from these ethnic backgrounds. Working with a community organization in the UK, a single-arm study was used to collect verbal data from participants and staff on the acceptability of intervention whilst knowledge, skills and behaviours related to healthy eating were evaluated using pre-, post- and follow-up questionnaires. A total of 30 participants were recruited, and 22 completed all three questionnaires; who were mostly female aged 55 years+ (n = 17) and of African Caribbean ethnicity (45%, n = 10), with 32% (n = 7) reporting no educational attainment. At post-intervention and follow-up, most participants reported high satisfaction (n = 21, 95%) with the intervention sessions and high levels of confidence in using the resources at home within budget. The number of participants who were familiar with the healthy eating guidance featuring Caribbean foods increased from pre- (36%, n = 8) to post-intervention/follow-up (n = 22, 100%) (p < 0.05). Findings suggest the intervention is feasible in a community setting and could help increase awareness and use of culturally appropriate healthy eating guidance amongst a diverse group.

Thigh and Calf Myosteatosis are Strongly Associated with Muscle and Physical Function in African Caribbean Men

BACKGROUND

African Caribbeans have higher levels of myosteatosis than other populations; however, little is known about the impact of myosteatosis on physical function in African Caribbeans. Herein, we examined the association between regional myosteatosis of the calf, thigh, and abdomen versus physical function in 850 African-Ancestry men aged 64.2 ± 8.9 (range 50-95) living on the Caribbean Island of Tobago.

METHODS

Myosteatosis was measured using computed tomography and included intermuscular adipose tissue (IMAT) and muscle density levels of the thigh, calf, psoas, and paraspinous muscles. Outcomes included grip strength, time to complete 5 chair-rises, and 4-meter gait speed. Associations were quantified using separate linear models for each myosteatosis depot and were adjusted for age, height, demographics, physical activity, and chronic diseases. Beta coefficients were presented per standard deviation of each myosteatosis depot.

RESULTS

Higher thigh IMAT was the only IMAT depot significantly associated with weaker grip strength (β = -1.3 ± 0.43 kg, p = .003). However, lower muscle density of all 4 muscle groups was associated with weaker grip strength (all p < .05). Calf and thigh myosteatosis (IMAT and muscle density) were significantly associated with both worse chair rise time and gait speed (all p < .05), whereas psoas IMAT and paraspinous muscle density were associated with gait speed.

CONCLUSION

Myosteatosis of the calf and thigh-but not the abdomen-were strongly associated with grip strength and performance measures of physical function in African Caribbean men. However, posterior abdominal myosteatosis may have some utility when abdominal images are all that are available.

How people of African Caribbean or Irish ethnicity cope with long-term health conditions in UK community settings: A systematic review of qualitative, quantitative and mixed method studies

Living with a chronic or mental health condition can be challenging and requires considerable adjustment. As ways of coping are culturally influenced, it is important to understand how minority ethnic populations cope, to inform appropriate services. This review aimed to explore the coping strategies used by UK residents from an African Caribbean or Irish background between 1960 and 2020. A systematic literature search on strategies used to cope with chronic health conditions in both populations living in the United Kingdom identified 26 relevant studies. Data were extracted, quality of papers was appraised and critical interpretive synthesis was applied. Two major foci of the studies were coping strategies and barriers to coping. The main coping strategies were denial/scepticism, self-management, spirituality and religion. Within each population, there was variation in ways of coping. The review highlights the complex role of religion in influencing coping strategies. It demonstrates how personal and minority ethnic populations' experiences of service use are connected with stigma, fear and mistrust, which also act as barriers to seeking help and to coping. Coping with a chronic or mental health condition in the Irish and African Caribbean populations is under-researched. Stigma, fear and mistrust in services act as key barriers to help-seeking and religion is a prominent coping strategy. However, few detailed examples were given on how it was used to assist individuals when managing a chronic or mental health condition. Also due to a lack of research, firm conclusions cannot be drawn for the Irish population.

The relationship between ingroup identity and Paranoid ideation among people from African and African Caribbean backgrounds

OBJECTIVES

People from ethnic minority groups experience higher rates of paranoid delusions compared with people from ethnic majority groups. Identifying with social groups has been shown to protect against mental health symptoms; however, no studies have investigated the relationship between social identification and paranoia in ethnic minority populations. Here, we investigated the association between British identification and paranoia in a sample of people from African and African Caribbean backgrounds living in the United Kingdom. We also assessed the role of potential mediating (self-esteem and locus of control) and moderating (contact with White British people) factors.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional quantitative survey design.

METHODS

We recruited 335 people from African and African Caribbean backgrounds who completed online self-report measures of identification with Great Britain, self-esteem, locus of control, positive and negative contact with White British people, and paranoia.

RESULTS

A parallel moderated mediation model indicated that British identification was associated with lower paranoia when participants experienced primarily positive contact with White British people. British identification was associated with higher paranoia when participants had primarily negative contact with White British people. Both effects were mediated by changes in locus of control, but self-esteem was not implicated in either pathway.

CONCLUSIONS

Identification with the majority culture is associated both positively and negatively with paranoid beliefs depending on the types of social interactions people experience. The findings have implications for preventative social prescribing initiatives and for understanding the causes of the high rates of psychosis in ethnic minority populations.

PRACTITIONER POINTS

People from African and African Caribbean backgrounds experience high rates of paranoia, which may stem from social causes such as lack of belonging and negative social experiences. Among people from African backgrounds living in the UK, British identification is associated with lower paranoia when people's social experiences with White British people are positive and higher paranoia when their social experiences with White British people are negative. It is recommended that social interventions designed to reduce paranoia in vulnerable groups foster positive social contact and community belonging, which should enhance feelings of personal control. Understanding the complex interplay between social identity and social contact in the development of paranoia may help therapists and researchers better understand the phenomenology and risk factors of paranoid symptomology.

Leiomyomas in an African Caribbean hysterectomy population considered to be ethnically related to African Americans

BACKGROUND

Uterine leiomyoma has been reported to be a worse problematic disease for African American than Caucasian women in the US. Data are almost non-existent for other populations of African ancestry. Our aim was to investigate the hypothesis of an equivalent influence of ethnicity on uterine leiomyomas for women of a French African-Caribbean population.

BASIC PROCEDURES

Retrospective analysis of hysterectomies performed from 2010 to 2015 at the teaching hospital of Guadeloupe (French West Indies), where most inhabitants are of West African origin, was carried out. Data of the 899 hysterectomies, including those for malignancy, were collected, in particular, uterine weight.

MAIN FINDINGS

The indications were leiomyoma in 66.5 % of cases and leiomyomas were found in 91 % of all cases. The mean age and uterine weight were 51.7 years and 464 g for the entire population, 50.2 years and 488 g for the population without malignancies, and 47.0 years and 567 g for the population with leiomyomas.

PRINCIPAL CONCLUSIONS

The data were compared to those reported in the literature for several populations, notably African Americans and Caucasians in the US and mainland France. This comparison supports the hypothesis that Guadeloupean women, an African-Caribbean population, have characteristics in terms of uterine leiomyoma that are close to those of African Americans. Although confirmation is required, these results highlight the need for specific research, therapeutic approaches, and improved early management of these populations.

Grade groups at diagnosis in African Caribbean men with prostate cancer: Results of a comparative study

BACKGROUND

There are no comparative data on pathological predictors at diagnosis, between African Caribbean and Caucasian men with prostate cancer (PCa), in equal-access centers. The objective of this study was to evaluate the grade groups of an African Caribbean cohort, newly diagnosed with PCa on prostate biopsy, compared with a Caucasian French Metropolitan cohort.

METHODS

A retrospective, a comparative study was conducted between 2008 and 2016 between the University Hospital of Martinique in the French Caribbean West Indies, and the Saint Joseph Hospital in Paris. Clinical, biological, and pathological data were collected at diagnosis. The primary outcome was the grade groups for Gleason score; the secondary outcome was the PCa detection rate. Multivariate analysis was performed using linear regression.

RESULTS

Of the 1880 consecutive prostate biopsy performed in the African Caribbean cohort, 945 had a diagnosis of PCa (50.3%) and 500 of 945 in the French cohort (33.8%). African Caribbean patients were older (mean 68.5 vs 67.5 years; P = .028), had worse clinical stage (13.2% vs 5.2% cT3-4; P < .001) and higher median prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level (9.23 vs 8.32 ng/mL; P = .019). On univariate analysis, African Caribbean patients had worse pathological grade groups than French patients (P < .001). Nevertheless, after adjustment on age, stage, and PSA, there were no significant differences between the two cohorts (P = .903).

CONCLUSION

African Caribbean patients presented higher PCa detection rate, and higher grade groups at diagnosis than French patients in equal-access centers on univariate analysis but not on multivariate analysis. African Caribbean patients with equivalent clinical and biological characteristics than Caucasian patients at diagnosis might expect the same prognosis for PCa.

ReGAE 12: preventing glaucoma blindness in the Caribbean through implementation of the Moorfields Safer Surgery System and skills transfer from the UK to Trinidad and Tobago

Objective

The objective of the study was to present evidence of successful skills transfer of the Moorfields Safer Surgery System (MSSS) from the UK to Trinidad and Tobago and the safety and efficacy of this technique.

Methods

Hospital-based retrospective, consecutive, non-comparative case series study of 33 eyes (24 African-Caribbean patients; 16 male patients) with primary open-angle glaucoma undergoing trabeculectomy + mitomycin C (MSSS) by a single surgeon with UK Glaucoma Fellowship training. The clinical outcome measures included intraocular pressure (IOP), bleb morphology, postsurgical interventions, postoperative complications, and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at the final follow-up.

Results

All patients were self-identified as African-Caribbean. The median age was 56 years (range 34-79 years). The mean preoperative IOP on maximum tolerated medical treatment was 22.4 mmHg (SD=5.9 mmHg). With or without medication, IOP was ≤21 mmHg in 92.6% at 1 year and 87.5% at 5 years. At 1 year, IOP was ≤18 mmHg in 78%, ≤15 mmHg in 73% and ≤14 mmHg in 52%. Removal of scleral flap releasable suture(s) was performed in 84%, 5-fluorouracil injection(s) in 88% and bleb needling revision in 38%. The most common complication was early transient bleb leak (52%). No patient developed endophthalmitis, hypotony maculopathy, suprachoroidal hemorrhage, or malignant glaucoma. At the final follow-up, 91% had excellent or satisfactory bleb morphology, and 73% had equal or better BCVA.

Conclusion

Skills transfer between different geographical and economic regions contributes to the prevention of avoidable blindness through disease control - one of the core strategies of the World Health Organization's Vision 2020 initiative. In the Caribbean (Trinidad and Tobago), the MSSS was utilized by a surgeon with Glaucoma Fellowship training and achieved outcomes similar to best-published data. This success can be reproduced in other geographic locations.

An Assets-Based Approach to Co-Producing a Culturally Adapted Family Intervention (CaFI) with African Caribbeans Diagnosed with Schizophrenia and Their Families

Objective

To determine how to improve the cultural appropriateness and acceptability of an extant evidence-based model of family intervention (FI), a form of 'talking treatment,' for use with African Caribbean service users diagnosed with schizophrenia and their families.

Design

Community partnered participatory research (CPPR) using four focus groups comprising 31 key stakeholders.

Setting

Community locations and National Health Service (NHS) mental health care settings in northwest England, UK.

Participants

African Caribbean service users (n=10), family members, caregivers and advocates (n=14) and health care professionals (n=7).

Results

According to participants, components of the extant model of FI were valid but required additional items (such as racism and discrimination and different models of mental health and illness) to improve cultural appropriateness. Additionally, emphasis was placed on developing a new ethos of delivery, which participants called 'shared learning.' This approach explicitly acknowledges that power imbalances are likely to be magnified where delivery of interventions involves White therapists and Black clients. In this context, therapists' cultural competence was regarded as fundamental for successful therapeutic engagement and outcomes.

Conclusions

Despite being labelled 'hard-to-reach' by mainstream mental health services and under-represented in research, our experience suggests that, given the opportunity, members of the African Caribbean community were highly motivated to engage in all aspects of research. Participating in research related to schizophrenia, a highly stigmatized condition, suggests CPPR approaches might prove fruitful in developing interventions to address other health conditions that disproportionately affect members of this community.

Incidence of Lung Adenocarcinoma Biomarker in a Caribbean and African Caribbean Population

INTRODUCTION

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States and worldwide. Biomarker testing is critical to personalized therapy in lung adenocarcinoma and has been extensively investigated in whites and Asians. However, little information addresses the underlying genetic changes among Caribbean and African Caribbean patients. In this study, we identified targetable biomarkers in Caribbean patients with lung adenocarcinoma.

METHODS

DNA extracted from lung adenocarcinoma specimens collected from 157 patients in whom primary lung adenocarcinoma was diagnosed from 2013 to 2015 in the University Hospital of Martinique was tested for mutation of the epidermal growth factor receptor gene (EGFR), Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog gene (KRAS), B-Raf proto-oncogene, serine/threonine kinase gene (BRAF), phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase catalytic subunit alpha gene (PIK3CA), ROS proto-oncogene 1, receptor tyrosine kinase gene (ROS), and MMNG HOS Transforming gene (MET). Clinical characteristics of our patients have been retrospectively gathered and correlated with mutational status.

RESULTS

Mutations in EGFR were identified in 57 cases (36%). Women accounted for 68% of patients with mutations versus 38% of those without mutations (p < 0.001). Eighteen percent of patients with mutations were smokers versus 62% of patients without mutations (p < 0.001). Sex, smoking habit, and age were significantly associated with differences in mutational status in univariate analysis, and the difference remained statistically significant in multivariate analysis (p = 0.0411, p = 0.001, and p = 0.0483, respectively). After the analysis was restricted to patients born in the French West Indies, the mutation rates reached 41%.

CONCLUSION

Patients in Martinique, and specifically those of African descent, show very high levels of EGFR mutation as opposed to what can be found in mainland France or in African Americans. These findings may be ascribed to low tobacco consumption as well as to genetic factors. Systematic screening in patients of African Caribbean origin should be prescribed.

Intimate partner violence among African American and African Caribbean women: prevalence, risk factors, and the influence of cultural attitudes

BACKGROUND

Women of African descent are disproportionately affected by intimate partner abuse; yet, limited data exist on whether the prevalence varies for women of African descent in the United States and those in the US territories.

OBJECTIVE

In this multisite study, we estimated lifetime and 2-year prevalence of physical, sexual, and psychological intimate partner abuse (IPA) among 1,545 women of African descent in the United States and US Virgin Islands (USVI). We also examined how cultural tolerance of physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence (IPV) influences abuse.

DESIGN

Between 2009 and 2011, we recruited African American and African Caribbean women aged 18-55 from health clinics in Baltimore, MD, and St. Thomas and St. Croix, USVI, into a comparative case-control study. Screened and enrolled women completed an audio computer-assisted self-interview. Screening-based prevalence of IPA and IPV were stratified by study site and associations between tolerance of IPV and abuse experiences were examined by multivariate logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

Most of the 1,545 screened women were young, of low-income, and in a current intimate relationship. Lifetime prevalence of IPA was 45% in St. Thomas, 38% in St. Croix, and 37% in Baltimore. Lifetime prevalence of IPV was 38% in St. Thomas, 28% in St. Croix, and 30% in Baltimore. Past 2-year prevalence of IPV was 32% in St. Thomas, 22% in St. Croix, and 26% in Baltimore. Risk and protective factors for IPV varied by site. Community and personal acceptance of IPV were independently associated with lifetime IPA in Baltimore and St. Thomas.

CONCLUSIONS

Variance across sites for risk and protective factors emphasizes cultural considerations in sub-populations of women of African descent when addressing IPA and IPV in given settings. Individual-based interventions should be coupled with community/societal interventions to shape attitudes about use of violence in relationships and to promote healthy relationships.

From bench to bedside: the realities of reducing global prostate cancer disparity in black men

Prostate cancer in black men of African descent has a different tumour biology compared to those of other races. Its clinical manifestations depict a more aggressive disease with higher morbidity and mortality. This study proposes, through a literature search, identifying applied laboratory and clinical research in prostate cancer directed to improve outcomes and decrease global disparities of prostate cancer in black men of African descent. This review identified five categories pertinent for research: prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing for early detection and screening, the potential of epigenetics, cultural determinants and health-seeking behaviours, other biomarkers for prostate cancers, and the economics of treating advanced prostate cancer. The analysis revealed that in developed countries, men of African descent are underrepresented in the sampling pools in both laboratory and clinical research, and thus the applicability and relevance of these results to men of African descent are circumspect. However, developing countries with high populations of black males have limited laboratory and clinical research publications. This is due to limited funding to support research programmes and basic clinical services for early detection and treatment. The study concludes that for the involvement of developing countries in bench research, they should do it in collaboration, like fostering partnerships with credible academic-based institutions and organisations. This requires a realm of transparency, respect, protection of the rights and dignity of the patients, and an equity in participation and sharing of the benefits to be accrued. The current transatlantic and Caribbean collaborations in research, education, and health service delivery in prostate cancer care for men of African descent exemplify the successes of such partnerships.