Impacts of electronic device use on adolescents' sexual knowledge, attitude and perception during the COVID-19 pandemic: A representative sexuality survey.

Background: COVID-19 pandemic has led to school closure and social distancing measures for infection control. Many young people thus spent more time on electronic devices and the Internet. This study aimed to determine if and how sexual knowledge, perception and behavior as well as sexuality among Hong Kong adolescents were affected as a result. Methods: Youth Sexuality Study conducted by The Family Planning Association of Hong Kong (FPAHK) evaluated the sexual knowledge, attitudes and behaviors and sexual health of youth every 5 years since 1981 with adaptations made to the changing environment. We analyzed this cross-sectional data on sexual knowledge, attitude, and experiences as well as the impacts of COVID-19 on daily life, health and relationships. Univariate analysis was conducted to investigate the relationships between the time spent on electronic devices and sexuality, while mediation analyses using the PROCESS procedure were performed to further explore differences in time spent on electronic devices. Results: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of our participants spent more time on social media and browsing the Internet on electronic devices with less time for extracurricular activities and learning. Nonetheless, there was better overall sexual knowledge and a lower degree of sexual stigma with a higher overall acceptance of sexual minorities. The mediation analyses found that sexual content [Conditional effect = 0.024 (95% CI 0.008, 0.043)] and engagement online [Conditional effect = 0.036 (CI 0.021, 0.053)] could indirectly influence the effect of screen time on the frequency of sexual practices. Conclusion: Policymakers and frontline professionals should re-examine the pedagogy of the present sex education and consider online sex education as the key mode of delivery while guiding the proper use of electronic devices in the learning and exploration of sexual knowledge.

Baseline knowledge and receptiveness to genetic testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndromes in Chinese high-risk females.

Limited studies have examined the pre-counselling knowledge and attitudes of high-risk women on hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) syndromes genetic screening in Asia Pacific regions, particularly among Chinese. After controlling cost, an intrinsic barrier to undertake such screening, comprehensive understanding of the baseline characteristics of this cohort towards HBOC genetic counselling and testing service (GT) could be sought. This study aimed at exploring the baseline knowledge, possible motivators, barriers, and decisional factors of undertaking such service. One hundred and forty-two Southern Hong Kong Chinese high-risk females (89.4% with cancer history; 10.6% were cancer-free at-risk family members) completed a questionnaire right before their pre-testing GT. Results showed that perceived benefits to self and family members with reference to cancer prevention are important decisional motivators. A sponsored cancer genetic testing service in this cohort was crucial as 71.3% would not have opted for self-financed screening. Pre-testing and post-testing counselling were essential, particularly for older and less educated high-risk individuals. More importantly, after thorough pre-counselling with Q&A session, the entire cohort in this study gave written consent to undertake GT. Moreover, those proven to be germline pathogenic variant carriers were willing to share the information with family members and successfully persuaded them to pursue GT.

Fighting against COVID-19: preparedness and implications on clinical practice in primary care in Shenzhen, China.

BACKGROUND: The new coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) caused by COVID-19 has affected more than 46 million people worldwide. In China, primary care has played a vital role during the COVID-19 outbreak, and it is important to examine the challenges faced by general practitioners (GPs). This study investigated the roles, preparedness and training needs of GPs in China in managing the NCP outbreak. Based on the outcomes of the study, we hope to take lessons and identify how GPs could be supported in delivering their gatekeeping roles and clinical duties in times of infectious disease outbreak. METHODS: An online survey on the official website of Shenzhen Continuing Education Center. It included questions on GPs' demographics, their awareness of COVID-19 and their preparedness in managing suspected cases of NCP, as well as referrals and their training needs. Conditional multi-variate logistic models were used to investigate the relationships between GPs' preparedness, situational confidence and anxiety. RESULTS: GPs' clinical practice was significantly affected. GPs endeavoured to answer a flood of COVID-19-related enquiries, while undertaking community preventive tasks. In addition to in-person consultations, GP promoted COVID-19 awareness and education through telephone consultations, physical posters and social media. Overall GPs in Shenzhen felt well supported with adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and resources from secondary care services. Higher levels of self-perceived preparedness (OR = 2.19; 95%CI, 1.04-4.61), lower level of anxiety (OR = 0.56; 95%CI, 0.29-1.09) and fewer perceived family worries (OR = 0.37; 95%CI, 0.12-1.12) were associated with better confidence in coping at work. CONCLUSIONS: Training and supporting GPs while reducing their (and their families') anxiety increase their confidence in delivering the important roles of gatekeeping in face of major disease outbreaks.

Effects of REM sleep during a daytime nap on emotional perception in individuals with and without depression.

BACKGROUND: It has been theoretically proposed that alteration in sleep physiology may contribute to the development of biased emotional processing featured in depression. The current study investigated the role of sleep and especially REM in modulating perception of emotional faces in depressed versus non-depressed individuals using a napping paradigm. METHODS: Forty-six individuals with major depressive disorder and 66 age- and education-matched healthy controls completed an emotional face perception task before and after random assignment to one of the three intention-to-treat (ITT) conditions, namely 30-min-nap, 90-min-nap and wake. To delineate the effects of REM, as-treated (30-min-nap, 90-min-REM-nap, 90-min-noREM-nap and wake) analyses were also conducted. RESULTS: Repeated measures multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) showed a significant Time *Group *Condition interaction on angry faces for both analyses of ITT (p = .017) and AT (p = .027). Pairwise comparison with Bonferroni corrections revealed a significant increase in the intensity rating of angry faces only after 90-min-REM-nap in the depressed group. Correlational analyses convergingly showed that the increase of intensity rating of angry faces was associated with the proportion of REM sleep in the depressed group, p = .035. LIMITATIONS: The observed effect of REM sleep during daytime napping may not represent the effect of nighttime REM sleep in depression. CONCLUSIONS: We provide the first evidence of the association of daytime sleep, particularly REM sleep, with a more negative perception of angry faces exclusively in individuals with depression. The differentiated impact of sleep observed may contribute to the development of altered emotional processing in depression.

Attitudes and compliance of clinical management after genetic testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer among high-risk Southern Chinese females with breast cancer history.

Western studies have shown that the uptake rates of surveillance and prophylaxis may vary among BRCA mutation carriers between ethnicities. The present study is the first to investigate the behavioural impact and subjective attitudes in Southern Chinese high-risk families who had undergone BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic testing up to 2.5 years post-testing. Individuals who had such genetic testing and have consented to participate in the prospective database of Hong Kong Hereditary Breast Cancer Family Registry were recruited and surveyed by a face-to-face or telephone interview. Sociodemographic information, genetic test results, pre- and post-testing surveillance, medical regimes, and attitudes towards the choice of clinical management were obtained by interviews and retrieval of medical records using this prospective database. 69 females with breast cancer history were recruited into the study. Twenty-nine female carriers (15 BRCA1 mutated gene-carriers and 14 BRCA2 mutated gene-carriers) and 40 non-carriers of a BRCA 1/2 mutations were interviewed. The uptake rate of high risk breast screening i.e. clinical breast examination, mammography, and breast MRI is significantly higher among female carriers (48.3 %) after knowing genetic testing results than before (p < 0.01). A strong significant relationship between any increase or decrease of ovarian ultrasound screening (OS) and genetic status is found (p < .001), with more females did OS and with a higher frequency after knowing genetic testing results among both carriers (22.7 % â†’ 86.4 %) and non-carriers (37.5 % â†’ 50.0 %). Among carriers, very few opted for prophylactic surgeries. The present cohort might see prophylaxis as last resort and would use traditional Chinese medicine in cancer risk management.