Solutions From Mexican-Descent Perinatal Women To Pandemic-Related Food, Mental Health, And Health And Safety Stressors.

Latina women in the US were disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic because of structural racism, including discrimination, reduced care access, and elevated risk for illness and death. Although several US policies were implemented to offset the economic toll of the pandemic, few addressed complex stressors, particularly those among Mexican-descent mothers. This qualitative study with thirty-eight perinatal women and mothers of young children who were of Mexican descent sought to identify pandemic-related stressors and solicit recommendations for addressing them during future large-scale crises. Identified stressors included food access issues, mental health needs, and health and safety concerns. The women's recommendations revealed feasible and actionable strategies, including increased access to behavioral and health care services and accessible information about food-related resources. The findings highlight the critical need for responsive policies and programs to ensure the well-being of Mexican-descent perinatal women and mothers of young children during large-scale crises.

A review of the utilization of digital health technologies for college students with disabilities.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to understand current research on the utilization of mobile health (mHealth) technologies for college students with disabilities. METHODS: We conducted a bibliometric analysis to understand the longitudinal research trends and dominant topics in mHealth research for college students. Next, we performed a scoping review to gain a more in-depth understanding of the current research on the use of mobile technologies for college students with disabilities. RESULTS: Despite the increasing number of publications on the development of mobile health applications and mHealth interventions for college students, we found only five studies on disabilities. Most previous studies discussed mental health problems, and we could not find any research utilizing mHealth technologies for college students with physical disabilities. CONCLUSION: Due to a lack of scientific evidence on the digitalized self-care of college students with disabilities, future studies focusing on this minority population are needed.

Parent Experiences and Perceptions of Safety When Transporting Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

IMPORTANCE: Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of unintentional deaths of children ages 1 and older, particularly children with health care needs. OBJECTIVE: To explore family caregivers' experiences and current practices while transporting children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). DESIGN: A concurrent nested mixed-methods approach was used to gain insight into caregiver experiences. SETTING: Participants completed an online Qualtrics survey. PARTICIPANTS: A convenience sample of 54 caregivers of children with ASD from 17 U.S. states. RESULTS: Themes that emerged include sensory behaviors of children, education related to child passenger safety, and participation in the community. Statistically significant findings suggest a correlation between caregivers (n = 39) being less likely to participate in activities away from home if the child had attempted to elope (p = .013), displayed aggressive behaviors (p = .005), or demonstrated self-injurious behaviors (p = .001). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The findings suggest a correlation between caregivers limiting the distance traveled during vehicular transportation and behavioral safety concerns. If caregivers must limit travel, they may refrain from accessing the community and engaging in leisure pursuits. What This Article Adds: The findings suggest that therapists who treat children with ASD should be familiar with child passenger safety restraints, particularly for elopement.

HPTE-Induced Embryonic Thymocyte Death and Alteration of Differentiation Is Not Rescued by ERα or GPER Inhibition but Is Exacerbated by Concurrent TCR Signaling.

Organochlorine pesticides, such as DDT, methoxychlor, and their metabolites, have been characterized as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs); suggesting that their modes of action involve interaction with or abrogation of endogenous endocrine function. This study examined whether embryonic thymocyte death and alteration of differentiation induced by the primary metabolite of methoxychlor, HPTE, rely upon estrogen receptor binding and concurrent T cell receptor signaling. Estrogen receptor inhibition of ERα or GPER did not rescue embryonic thymocyte death induced by HPTE or the model estrogen diethylstilbestrol (DES). Moreover, adverse effects induced by HPTE or DES were worsened by concurrent TCR and CD2 differentiation signaling, compared with EDC exposure post-signaling. Together, these data suggest that HPTE- and DES-induced adverse effects on embryonic thymocytes do not rely solely on ER alpha or GPER but may require both. These results also provide evidence of a potential collaborative signaling mechanism between TCR and estrogen receptors to mediate adverse effects on embryonic thymocytes, as well as highlight a window of sensitivity that modulates EDC exposure severity.