Alopecia areata (AA) is a common cause of immune-mediated non-scarring hair loss. Links between AA and common mental health, autoimmune and atopic conditions, and common infections have previously been described but remain incompletely elucidated and contemporary descriptions of the epidemiology of AA in the UK are lacking.

Retrospective study series using a large population-based cohort (5.2 million) from the Oxford Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) Research and Surveillance Centre (RSC) database, exploring four themes: AA epidemiology, mental health comorbidities, autoimmune/atopic associations and common infections.

In the epidemiology theme, we will describe the incidence and point prevalence of AA overall and by age, sex and sociodemographic factors. Healthcare utilisation (primary care visits and secondary care referrals) and treatments for AA will also be assessed. In the mental health theme, we will explore the prevalence and incidence of mental health conditions (anxiety, depressive episodes, recurrent depressive disorder, adjustment disorder, agoraphobia, self-harm and parasuicide) in people with AA compared with matched controls. We will also explore the mental health treatment patterns (medication and psychological interventions), time off work and unemployment rates. Within the autoimmune/atopic associations theme, we will examine the prevalence of atopic (atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, asthma) and autoimmune conditions (Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, coeliac disease, type 1 diabetes, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Graves’ disease, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), polymyalgia rheumatica, Sjögren’s syndrome, psoriasis, vitiligo, multiple sclerosis, pernicious anaemia) in people with AA compared with matched controls. We will also estimate the incidence of new-onset atopic and autoimmune conditions after AA diagnosis. Within the common infections theme, we will examine the incidence of common infections (respiratory tract infection, pneumonia, acute bronchitis, influenza, skin infection, urinary tract infection, genital infections, gastrointestinal infection, herpes simplex, herpes zoster, meningitis, COVID-19) in people with AA compared with matched controls.

The Health Research Authority decision tool classed this a study of usual practice, ethics approval was not required. Study approval was granted by the RCGP RSC Study Approval Committee. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications.

NCT04239521.

To study the associations between neighbourhood deprivation and fetal growth, including growth in the first trimester, and adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Prospective cohort study.

The Netherlands, Rotterdam.

8617 live singleton births from the Generation R cohort study.

Living in a deprived neighbourhood.

Fetal growth trajectories of head circumference, weight and length.

Small-for-gestational age (SGA) and preterm birth (PTB).

Neighbourhood deprivation was not associated with first trimester growth. However, a higher neighbourhood status score (less deprivation) was associated with increased fetal growth in the second and third trimesters (eg, estimated fetal weight; adjusted regression coefficient 0.04, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.06). Less deprivation was also associated with decreased odds of SGA (adjusted OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.86 to 0.97, p=0.01) and PTB (adjusted OR 0.89, 95% CI 0.82 to 0.96, p=0.01).

We found an association between neighbourhood deprivation and fetal growth in the second and third trimester pregnancy, but not with first trimester growth. Less neighbourhood deprivation is associated with lower odds of adverse pregnancy outcomes. The associations remained after adjustment for individual-level risk factors. This supports the hypothesis that living in a deprived neighbourhood acts as an independent risk factor for fetal growth and adverse pregnancy outcomes, above and beyond individual risk factors.

We aim to analyse the trends and causes of mortality among adults in Addis Ababa.

This analysis was conducted using verbal autopsy data from the Addis Ababa Mortality Surveillance in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

All deceased adults aged 15 years and above between 2007–2012 and 2015–2017 were included in the analysis.

We collected verbal autopsy and conducted physician review to ascertain cause of death.

A total of 7911 data were included in this analysis. Non-communicable disease (NCD) accounted for 62.8% of adult mortality. Mortality from communicable diseases, maternal conditions and nutritional deficiencies followed this by accounting for 30.3% of total mortality. Injury accounted for 6.8% of total mortality. We have observed a significant decline in mortality attributed to group one cause of death (43.25% in 2007 to 12.34% in 2017, p

We documented an epidemiological shift in cause of mortality from communicable diseases to NCD over 10 years. There is a great progress in reducing mortality due to communicable diseases over the past years. However, the burden of NCDs call for actions for improving access to quality health service, improved case detection and community education to increase awareness. Integrating NCD intervention in to a well-established and successful programme targeting communicable diseases in the country might be beneficial for improving provision of comprehensive healthcare.

Sarcopenia is associated with reduced pulmonary function in healthy adults, as well as with increased risk of pneumonia following abdominal surgery. Consequentially, postoperative pneumonia prolongs hospital admission, and increases in-hospital mortality following a range of surgical interventions. Little is known about the function of the diaphragm in the context of sarcopenia and wasting disorders or how its function is influenced by abdominal surgery. Liver surgery induces reactive pleural effusion in most patients, compromising postoperative pulmonary function. We hypothesise that both major hepatic resection and sarcopenia have a measurable impact on diaphragm function. Furthermore, we hypothesise that sarcopenia is associated with reduced preoperative diaphragm function, and that patients with reduced preoperative diaphragm function show a greater decline and reduced recovery of diaphragm function following major hepatic resection. The primary goal of this study is to evaluate whether sarcopenic patients have a reduced diaphragm function prior to major liver resection compared with non-sarcopenic patients, and to evaluate whether sarcopenic patients show a greater reduction in respiratory muscle function following major liver resection when compared with non-sarcopenic patients.

Transcostal B-mode, M-mode ultrasound and speckle tracking imaging will be used to assess diaphragm function perioperatively in 33 sarcopenic and 33 non-sarcopenic patients undergoing right-sided hemihepatectomy starting 1 day prior to surgery and up to 30 days after surgery. In addition, rectus abdominis and quadriceps femoris muscles thickness will be measured using ultrasound to measure sarcopenia, and pulmonary function will be measured using a hand-held bedside spirometer. Muscle mass will be determined preoperatively using CT-muscle volumetry of abdominal muscle and adipose tissue at the third lumbar vertebra level (L3). Muscle function will be assessed using handgrip strength and physical condition will be measured with a short physical performance battery . A rectus abdominis muscle biopsy will be taken intraoperatively to measure proteolytic and mitochondrial activity as well as inflammation and redox status. Systemic inflammation and sarcopenia biomarkers will be assessed in serum acquired perioperatively.

This trial is open for recruitment. The protocol was approved by the official Independent Medical Ethical Committee at Uniklinik (Rheinish Westphälische Technische Hochschule (RWTH) Aachen (reference EK309-18) in July 2019. Results will be published via international peer-reviewed journals and the findings of the study will be communicated using a comprehensive dissemination strategy aimed at healthcare professionals and patients.

ClinicalTrials. gov (EK309-18); Pre-results.

Follow-up care is important for gastric cancer survivors, but follow-up strategies for gastric cancer survivors remain inconsistent, and compliance of gastric cancer survivors with follow-up care is very low. Understanding the needs and preferences of gastric cancer survivors is conducive to developing appropriate and acceptable follow-up strategies, thereby improving patient compliance. Discrete choice experiments can quantify individual needs and preferences. However, to date, there is no discrete choice experiment on the preferences of gastric cancer survivors, and no studies have examined how gastric cancer survivors make choices based on different characteristics of follow-up. This paper outlines an ongoing discrete choice experiment that aims to (1) explore follow-up service-related characteristics that may affect gastric cancer survivors’ choices about their follow-up, (2) elicit how gastric cancer survivors consider the trade-offs among different follow-up service options using discrete choice experiment, (3) determine whether gastric cancer survivors’ needs and preferences for follow-up vary due to the economy, politics, technology and culture in different regions.

Six attributes were developed through a literature review, semistructured interviews and experts and focus group discussions. A fractional factorial design was used to evaluate the interaction between attributes. A multiple logit model will be used to understand the trade-off between the follow-up characteristics of gastric cancer survivors. A mixed logit model will be used to explore the willingness to pay and uptake rate of gastric cancer survivors for follow-up attributes and further explore the preferences of different groups.

This study was approved by the ethics committee of the School of Nursing, Jilin University. The results of this study will be shared through online blogs, policy briefs, seminars and peer-reviewed journal articles and will be used to modify the current strategy of gastric cancer survivors’ follow-up services according to economic development and regional culture.

To estimate the frequency of chronic conditions and geriatric syndromes in older patients admitted to hospital because of an exacerbation of their chronic conditions, and to identify multimorbidity clusters in these patients.

Multicentre, prospective cohort study.

Internal medicine or geriatric services of five general teaching hospitals in Spain.

740 patients aged 65 and older, hospitalised because of an exacerbation of their chronic conditions between September 2016 and December 2018.

Active chronic conditions and geriatric syndromes (including risk factors) of the patient, a score about clinical management of chronic conditions during admission, and destination at discharge were collected, among other variables. Multimorbidity patterns were identified using fuzzy c-means cluster analysis, taking into account the clinical management score. Prevalence, observed/expected ratio and exclusivity of each chronic condition and geriatric syndrome were calculated for each cluster, and the final solution was approved after clinical revision and discussion among the research team.

740 patients were included (mean age 84.12 years, SD 7.01; 53.24% female). Almost all patients had two or more chronic conditions (98.65%; 95% CI 98.23% to 99.07%), the most frequent were hypertension (81.49%, 95% CI 78.53% to 84.12%) and heart failure (59.86%, 95% CI 56.29% to 63.34%). The most prevalent geriatric syndrome was polypharmacy (79.86%, 95% CI 76.82% to 82.60%). Four statistically and clinically significant multimorbidity clusters were identified: osteoarticular, psychogeriatric, cardiorespiratory and minor chronic disease. Patient-level variables such as sex, Barthel Index, number of chronic conditions or geriatric syndromes, chronic disease exacerbation 3 months prior to admission or destination at discharge differed between clusters.

In older patients admitted to hospital because of the exacerbation of chronic health problems, it is possible to define multimorbidity clusters using soft clustering techniques. These clusters are clinically relevant and could be the basis to reorganise healthcare circuits or processes to tackle the increasing number of older, multimorbid patients.

NCT02830425.

To develop a nomogram for incident chronic kidney disease (CKD) risk evaluation among community residents with high cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk.

In this retrospective cohort study, 5730 non-CKD residents with high CVD risk participating the National Basic Public Health Service between January 2015 and December 2020 in Guangzhou were included. Endpoint was incident CKD defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m² during the follow-up period. The entire cohorts were randomly (2:1) assigned to a development cohort and a validation cohort. Predictors of incident CKD were selected by multivariable Cox regression and stepwise approach. A nomogram based on these predictors was developed and evaluated with concordance index (C-index) and area under curve (AUC).

During the median follow-up period of 4.22 years, the incidence of CKD was 19.09% (n=1094) in the entire cohort, 19.03% (727 patients) in the development cohort and 19.21% (367 patients) in the validation cohort. Age, body mass index, eGFR 60–89 mL/min/1.73 m², diabetes and hypertension were selected as predictors. The nomogram demonstrated a good discriminative power with C-index of 0.778 and 0.785 in the development and validation cohort. The 3-year, 4-year and 5-year AUCs were 0.817, 0.814 and 0.834 in the development cohort, and 0.830, 0.847 and 0.839 in the validation cohort.

Our nomogram based on five readily available predictors is a reliable tool to identify high-CVD risk patients at risk of incident CKD. This prediction model may help improving the healthcare strategies in primary care.

To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a pilot, free, online photodiagnosis service for genital herpes and warts with postal treatment delivered by a specialist digital sexual health service.

An online sexual health service available free of charge in South East London, UK.

Routinely collected data from 237 users of the pilot service during the study period and qualitative interviews with a purposive sample of 15 users.

A pilot, free, online photodiagnosis service for genital herpes and warts with postal treatment delivered by a specialist digital sexual health service.

Proportion of users who successfully uploaded photographs and the proportion diagnosed, treated and referred to face-to-face clinical services. User experience of this service.

The service was accessed by 237 users during the study period with assessment possible for 86% of users based on the photographs provided. A diagnosis of genital herpes or warts was made for 40.5% and 89.6% were subsequently treated through the service. Eighteen per cent were diagnosed as normal/not needing treatment and 42% were signposted to clinic for further clinical assessment.

Qualitative data showed that users felt able and willing to provide genital images for diagnosis. Those who were treated or reassured expressed high satisfaction with the service, valuing the convenience, discreetness and support provided. However, users, particularly those who required referral to other services requested more personal and detailed communication when a clinical diagnosis is given remotely.

Findings suggest that online photodiagnosis was feasible and acceptable. However, effective and acceptable management of those who require referral needs careful remote communication.

Adult open-heart surgery is a major surgery that causes surgical stress response and activation of the immune system, contributing further to postoperative complications. Transversus thoracis muscle plane block (TTPB) may potentially benefit in reducing the surgical stress response. This study aims to know the effectiveness of preoperative TTPB in adult open-heart surgery for reducing the surgical stress response.

This study is a prospective, double-blind, randomised control trial comparing the combination of general anaesthesia and TTPB versus general anaesthesia only in adult open-heart surgery. Forty-two eligible subjects will be randomly assigned to the TTPB group or control group. The primary outcomes are the difference between the two groups in the means of postoperative cortisol and interleukin-6 plasma levels at 24 hours and 48 hours after cardiac intensive care unit admission. The secondary outcomes are the difference between the two groups in the means of total 24-hour postoperative morphine consumption and time of first postoperative patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) dose.

The study protocol and informed consent forms have been reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of Faculty of Medicine Universitas Indonesia/Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital. The result will be released to the medical community through presentation and publication in peer-reviewed journals.

NCT04544254.

Guidelines for a structured assessment in community paramedicine home visit programmes have not been established and evidence to inform their creation is lacking. We sought to investigate the relevance of assessment items to the practice of community paramedics according to a pre-established clarity-utility matrix.

We designed a modified-Delphi study consisting of predetermined thresholds for achieving consensus, number of rounds of for scoring items, a defined meeting and discussion process, and a sample of participants that was purposefully representative.

We established a panel of 26 community paramedics representing 20 municipal paramedic services in Ontario, Canada. The sample represented a majority of paramedic services within the province that were operating a community paramedicine home visit programme.

Drawing from a bank of standardised assessment items grouped according to domains aligned with the International Classification on Functioning, Disability, and Health taxonomy, 64 previously pilot-tested assessment items were scored according to their clarity (being free from ambiguity and easy to understand) and utility (being valued in care planning or case management activities). Assessment items covered a broad range of health, social and environmental domains. To conclude scoring rounds, assessment items that did not achieve consensus for relevance to assessment practices were discussed among participants with opportunities to modify assessment items for subsequent rounds of scoring.

Resulting from the first round of scoring, 54 assessment items were identified as being relevant to assessment practices and 3 assessment items were removed from subsequent rounds. The remaining 7 assessment items were modified, with some parts removed from the final items that achieved consensus in the final rounds of scoring.

A broadly representative panel of community paramedics identified consensus for 61 assessment items that could be included in a structured, multidomain, assessment instrument for guiding practice in community paramedicine home visit programmes.

ISRCTN58273216.

To gather evidence on whether a brief intervention (Apprendre en paix et éduquer sans violence, developed by the Ivorian Ministry of Education and Graines de Paix) to promote peace in primary schools by reducing teacher violence perpetration and improving pedagogical techniques was acceptable to teachers and affected change in intermediate outcomes.

Mixed-methods formative research.

Primary schools in Tonkpi region, Cote d’Ivoire.

160 teachers participating in the peace training, surveyed three times during implementation; qualitative in-depth interviews with 19 teachers and teacher-counsellors.

Learn in peace, educate without violence–a brief intervention with primary school teachers designed to promote peace in primary schools.

For survey data, we generated composite measures of intermediate outcomes (teachers’ awareness of consequences of violence, self-efficacy in applying positive classroom management methods, acceptance of physical discipline practices in school) and used random intercept linear mixed-effects models to compare responses over time. Qualitative research included open-ended questions about acceptability and perceived need for such an intervention. A framework analysis was undertaken.

Four-months post-training (vs pretraining), teachers had higher self-efficacy in applying positive classroom management methods (pre-mean=26.1; post-mean=27.5; p

Data suggest that the intervention is acceptable and leads to change in intermediate outcomes for teachers. Further evaluation in a randomised controlled trial is warranted.

Specialist gender services for children and young people (CYP) worldwide have experienced a significant increase in referrals in recent years. As rates of referrals increase, it is important to understand the characteristics and profile of CYP attending these services in order to inform treatment pathways and to ensure optimal outcomes.

A retrospective observational study of clinical health records from specialist gender services for CYP in the UK and the Netherlands. The retrospective analysis will examine routinely collected clinical and outcome measures data including demographic, clinical, gender identity-related and healthcare resource use information. Data will be reported for each service and also compared between services. This study forms part of a wider programme of research investigating outcomes of gender identity in children (the Longitudinal Outcomes of Gender Identity in Children study).

The proposed study has been approved by the Health Research Authority and London—Hampstead Research Ethics Committee as application 19/LO/0181. The study findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at both conferences and stakeholder events.

This study aimed to examine how age and gender moderate the associations between alcohol use disorders (AUD) and several somatic diseases.

We performed a retrospective, register-based cohort study with 6-year follow-up of patients with AUD and the general population. Data were acquired from the Norwegian Patient Registry. Cox regressions were used to estimate HRs of somatic diseases.

Patients with AUD (17 023; 0.4%) were compared with the population without AUD (4 271 559; 99.6%), with adults aged 18 years or older who were registered residents of Norway on 1 January 2008.

Dichotomous variables of 12 specific somatic diseases (cardiovascular diseases, endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases, cancer, and infectious diseases) were assessed. Diagnoses were set in specialist healthcare services.

Patients with AUD, compared with a population without AUD, experienced a significantly greater burden of all studied somatic diseases. Middle-aged adults with AUD had increased risks (p0.05). Males with AUD had significantly higher risks for pulmonary heart diseases (HR=3.9, 95% CI 3.3 to 4.6) and metabolic disorders (HR 4.7, 95% CI 4.5 to 5.0), while females with AUD had a significantly higher risk for viral hepatitis (HR=4.4, 95% CI 3.8 to 5.1).

Age moderated the associations between AUD and most somatic diseases, with middle-aged adults with AUD having a greater increased risk of somatic diseases compared with younger and older adults with AUD. Gender only moderated associations between AUD and pulmonary heart diseases, metabolic disorders and viral hepatitis. This has implications for the prioritisation of somatic resources among patients with AUD.

Teenage pregnancy has become a public health concern in Uganda because of its negative consequences to both the mother and child. The objective of this study was to examine the determinants of change in the inequality and associated predictors of teenage pregnancy in Uganda for the period 2006–2016.

A retrospective national cross-sectional study.

Uganda.

Uganda Demographic and Health Survey secondary data of only female teenagers aged 15–19 years. The samples selected for analyses were 1936 in 2006; 2048 in 2011 and 4264 in 2016.

The primary outcome was teenage pregnancy. Analysis was performed using the logistic regression, equiplots, concentration curve, normalised concentration index, decomposition of the concentration index and Oaxaca-type decomposition.

The prevalence of teenage pregnancy has seemingly remained high and almost constant from 2006 to 2016 with the risk worsening to the disadvantage of the poor. Household wealth-index, teenagers’ years of education, early sexual debut and child marriage were the main key predictors and contributors of the large inequality in teenage pregnancy from 2006 to 2016.

Teenage pregnancy is disproportionately prevalent among different subpopulations of adolescent girls in Uganda. We therefore recommend policy actions to sensitise communities and enforcement of child rights and child protection laws to stop child marriages. There is also need to promote girl child education, improving household incomes, and intensifying mass media awareness on the risks of early pregnancies. Further, ensuring that villages have operational adolescent and youth friendly services as well as incorporating sex education and other different adolescent reproductive health programmes in school curriculum will be key measures in reducing the large inequality in teenage pregnancy.

To summarise the current evidence regarding interventions for accurate and timely cancer diagnosis among symptomatic individuals.

A scoping review following the Joanna Briggs Institute’s methodological framework for the conduct of scoping reviews and reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews checklist.

MEDLINE (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCOhost) and PsycINFO (Ovid) bibliographic databases, and websites of relevant organisations. Published and unpublished literature (grey literature) of any study type in the English language were searched for from January 2017 to January 2021.

Study participants were individuals of any age presenting at clinics with symptoms indicative of cancer. Interventions included practice guidelines, care pathways or other initiatives focused on achieving predefined benchmarks or targets for wait times, streamlined or rapid cancer diagnostic services, multidisciplinary teams and patient navigation strategies. Outcomes included accuracy and timeliness of cancer diagnosis.

We summarised findings graphically and descriptively.

From 21 298 retrieved citations, 88 unique published articles and 16 unique unpublished documents (on 18 study reports), met the eligibility for inclusion. About half of the published literature and 83% of the unpublished literature were from the UK. Most of the studies were on interventions in patients with lung cancer. Rapid referral pathways and technology for supporting and streamlining the cancer diagnosis process were the most studied interventions. Interventions were mostly complex and organisation-specific. Common themes among the studies that concluded intervention was effective were multidisciplinary collaboration and the use of a nurse navigator.

Multidisciplinary cooperation and involvement of a nurse navigator may be unique features to consider when designing, delivering and evaluating interventions focused on improving accurate and timely cancer diagnosis among symptomatic individuals. Future research should examine the effectiveness of the interventions identified through this review.

Alcohol use in patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) is a significant problem in many countries. There is a need for valid and reliable surveillance of the prevalence of alcohol use in patients presenting to the ED, to provide a more complete picture of the risk factors and inform targeted public health interventions. This PACE study will use two biomarkers, blood ethanol and phosphatidylethanol (PEth), to determine the patterns, presence and level of alcohol use in patients presenting to an Australian ED.

This is an observational prevalence study involving the secondary use of routinely collected blood samples from patients presenting to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH) Emergency and Trauma Centre (ETC). Samples will be tested for acute and medium-term alcohol intake using the two biomarkers blood ethanol and PEth respectively, over one collection period of 10–12 days. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, means, SD, medians and IQRs, will be used to describe the prevalence, pattern and distribution of acute and medium-term alcohol intake in the study sample. The correlation between acute and medium-term alcohol intake levels will also be examined.

This study has been approved by the RBWH Human Research Ethics Committee (reference, LNR/2019/QRBW/56859). Findings will be disseminated to key stakeholders such as RBWH ETC, Australasian College for Emergency Medicine, Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Statewide Clinical Networks, and used to inform clinicians and hospital services. Findings will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals and presentation at appropriate conferences.

The Global Platform for the Prevention of Autoimmune Diabetes-SINT1A Study is designed as a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind, multicentre, multinational, primary prevention study aiming to assess whether daily administration of Bifidobacterium infantis from age 7 days to 6 weeks until age 12 months to children with elevated genetic risk for type 1 diabetes reduces the cumulative incidence of beta-cell autoantibodies in childhood.

Infants aged 7 days to 6 weeks from Germany, Poland, Belgium, UK and Sweden are eligible for study participation if they have a >10.0% expected risk for developing multiple beta-cell autoantibodies by age 6 years as determined by genetic risk score or family history and HLA genotype. Infants are randomised 1:1 to daily administration of B. infantis EVC001 or placebo until age 12 months and followed for a maximum of 5.5 years thereafter. The primary outcome is the development of persistent confirmed multiple beta-cell autoantibodies. Secondary outcomes are (1) Any persistent confirmed beta-cell autoantibody, defined as at least one confirmed autoantibody in two consecutive samples, including insulin autoantibodies, glutamic acid decarboxylase, islet tyrosine phosphatase 2 or zinc transporter 8, (2) Diabetes, (3) Transglutaminase autoantibodies associated with coeliac disease, (4) Respiratory infection rate in first year of life during supplementation and (5) Safety. Exploratory outcomes include allergy, antibody response to vaccines, alterations of the gut microbiome or blood metabolome, stool pH and calprotectin.

The study was approved by the local ethical committees of the Technical University Munich, Medical Faculty, the Technische Universität Dresden, the Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, the Medical University of Warsaw, EC Research UZ Leuven and the Swedish ethical review authority. The results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals and conference presentations and will be openly shared after completion of the study.

NCT04769037.

To estimate the prevalence of various indicators of malnutrition (stunting, wasting, low birth weight, concurrent stunting and wasting, overweight/obesity and double burden malnutrition) among newborns and to investigate factors associated with these nutritional disorders.

A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted from 10 March through to May 2020. A total of 419 newborns were recruited into the study to estimate the prevalence of low birth weight and stunting. After excluding 28 newborns whose length was less than 45 cm, 394 newborn–mother dyads were approached to estimate wasting and overweight/obesity. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select participants. All independent variables were entered into the multivariable logistic regression model and variables that had significant associations were identified based on a p value.

A very small proportion of the newborns 2.5% (0.9% to 4.1%) were concurrently wasted and stunted. The prevalence rates of low birth weight and wasting were 20.8% (16.8% to 24.6%) and 10.9% (7.82% to 14.01%), respectively. The magnitude of overweight/obesity was 12.7% (9.3% to 15.9%) where 2.8% (1.1% to 4.4%) of newborns have the double burden of malnutrition. Having a father with a primary level of education 2.82 (1.19 to 6.65) and being stunted at birth 3.17 (1.6 to 6.0) were variables that were associated with increased odds of low birth weight. The odds of being overweight/obese are significantly higher among newborns born to mothers who are urban dwellers 0.35 (0.12 to 0.99).

The study underscores that malnutrition is a pressing public health concern that demands due emphasis. Fathers’ educational status (low level) and being stunted are associated with a high burden of low birth weight. Mothers’ residency (being urban) is associated with an elevated risk of overweight/obesity among newborns. Thus, improving the health literacy of fathers and preventing stunting at birth are recommended to mitigate low birth weight.

Myopia is the common cause of reduced uncorrected visual acuity among school-age children. It is more prevalent in urban than in rural areas. Although many myopia studies have focused on the effect of urbanisation, it remains unclear how visual experience in urban regions could affect childhood myopia. This study aims to investigate the incidence and prevalence of myopia among school-age children in urban and rural settings, thereby identifying the environmental factors that affect the onset and progression of myopia.

A school-based cohort study will be conducted. We will enroll all first-grade students from an urban (10 primary schools) and a rural (10 primary schools) regions of Zhaoqing city, China. Over 3-year follow-up period, students will receive detailed eye examinations annually and complete questionnaires about living habits and environment. In a 5% random subsample of the cohort, physical activity, light intensity and eye-tracking data will be obtained using wearable devices, and high-resolution macular images will be obtained by optical coherence tomography (OCT). The primary outcome is incident myopia, defined as myopia (spherical equivalent refractive of at least –0.5D) detected during follow-up among those without myopia at baseline.

Ethics approval was obtained from the ethics committee of the Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center (number: 2019KYPJ171). Study findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

NCT04219228.

Considerable observational evidence suggests that cancer online support groups reduce feelings of isolation, depression and anxiety, enhance coping and self-management, and lead to better informed patients. Other studies indicate that cancer online support groups can increase distress. Yet no studies theorise the complex, context-dependent mechanisms by which cancer online support groups generate their—sometimes contrasting—outcomes.

Guided by an integrated knowledge translation approach and the strategy for patient-oriented research, we will conduct a realist review of cancer online support groups in partnership with stakeholders. We will follow Pawson’s five steps and existing quality standards to develop a program theory that explains how cancer online support groups work, for whom and in what circumstances. The specific research questions will be: what positive and negative outcomes have been reported on cancer online support groups? What are the mechanisms that are associated with these outcomes, in which contexts and for whom? Through a rigorous review of relevant scientific and grey literature, as well as ongoing dialogue with stakeholders, a program theory will be developed to explain who benefits from cancer online support groups and who does not, what benefits they derive (or do not), and the factors that affect these outcomes.

The use of secondary data for this review precludes the need for ethical approval. Dissemination will be informed by the knowledge-to-action framework and will consist of tailored knowledge products that are conceived of collaboratively with stakeholders. These will include peer-reviewed publications on how cancer online support groups can be optimised and best practice recommendations to maximise the benefits experienced by people with cancer. These traditional scientific outputs, along with their respective evidence summaries, will be amplified through strategic social media events hosted and promoted by knowledge users.

CRD42021250046.