Risk factors for football injuries in young players aged 7 to 12 years.

Football (soccer) is very popular among children. Little is known about risk factors for football injuries in children. The aim was to analyze potential injury risk factors in 7- to 12-year-old players. We collected prospective data in Switzerland and the Czech Republic over two seasons. Coaches reported exposure of players (in hours), absence, and injury data via an Internet-based registration system. We analyzed time-to-injury data with extended Cox models accounting for correlations on team- and intra-person levels. We analyzed injury risk in relation to age, sex, playing position, preferred foot, and regarding age-independent body height, body mass, and BMI. Further, we analyzed injury risk in relation to playing surface. In total, 6038 player seasons with 395 295 hours of football exposure were recorded and 417 injuries occurred. Injury risk increased by 46% (Hazard Ratio 1.46 [1.35; 1.58]; P < .001) per year of life. Left-footed players had a higher injury risk (Hazard Ratio 1.53 [1.07; 2.19]; P = .02) for training injuries compared to right-footed players. Injury risk was increased in age-adjusted taller players (higher percentile rank). Higher match-training ratios were associated with a lower risk of match injuries. Injury risk was increased on artificial turf (Rate Ratio 1.39 [1.12; 1.73]; P < .001) and lower during indoor sessions (Rate Ratio 0.68 [0.52; 0.88]; P < .001) compared to natural grass. Age is known as a risk factor in older players and was confirmed to be a risk factor in children's football. Playing surface and leg dominance have also been discussed previously as risk factors. Differences in injury risks in relation to sex should be investigated in the future.

Jeopardizing Christmas: Why spoiled kids and a tight schedule could make Santa Claus fall?

Santa Claus' spatio-temporal gait characteristics, ground reaction forces during treadmill walking as well as postural sway during loaded, unloaded and cognitive interference tasks were examined in order to estimate his fall risk. Seventeen healthy males, disguised as researchers and students (age: 30±10 years; height: 179±6 years; weight: 76±7kg; BMI: 24±2kg/m(2); physical activity: 12±4h/week) and who still believe in Santa Claus randomly underwent balance and gait analyses with and without cognitive interference. The conditions were to be dressed as "Santa Claus" (wearing costume consisting of a beard, cap, robe, heavy sack with a load of 20kg) or dressed in "normal clothing" (no costume). Spatiotemporal gait parameters (walking velocity, gait variability and stride time, length and width), ground reaction forces (GRF) (left- and right-sided heel strike and push off) and postural sway (30s tandem stance on a force plate) were measured. "Santa-effects" (0.001

The effectiveness of workplace smoking cessation programmes: a meta-analysis of recent studies.

OBJECTIVE: Using meta-analytic procedures, we compare the effectiveness of recent controlled trials of worksite smoking cessation during the 1990s with a previous meta-analysis of programmes conducted in the 1980s. DATA SOURCES: ABI/Inform, BRS, CHID, Dissertation Abstracts International, ERIC, Medline, Occupational Health and Safety Database, PsycInfo, Smoking and Health Database, SSCI, and Sociological Abstracts. STUDY SELECTION: Controlled smoking cessation interventions at the workplace with at least six months follow up published from 1989 to 2001 and reporting quit rates (QRs). DATA EXTRACTION: Two reviewers independently scanned titles/abstracts of relevant reports, and we reached consensus regarding inclusion/exclusion of the full text reports by negotiation. A third reviewer resolved disagreements. Two reviewers extracted data according to a coding manual. Consensus was again reached through negotiation and the use of a third reviewer. DATA SYNTHESIS: 19 journal articles were found reporting studies conforming to the study's inclusion criteria. Interventions included self help manuals, physician advice, health education, cessation groups, incentives, and competitions. A total of 4960 control subjects were compared with 4618 intervention subjects. The adjusted random effects odds ratio was 2.03 (95% confidence interval 1.42 to 2.90) at six months follow up, 1.56 (95% CI 1.17 to 2.07) at 12 months, and 1.33 (95% CI 0.95 to 1.87) at more than 12 months follow up. Funnel plots were consistent with strong publication bias at the first two follow ups but not the third. In Fisher et al's 1990 study, the corresponding ORs were 1.18, 1.66, and 1.18. CONCLUSIONS: Smoking cessation interventions at the worksite showed initial effectiveness, but the effect seemed to decrease over time and was not present beyond 12 months. Compared to the Fisher (1990) analysis, the effectiveness was higher for the six month follow up. Disappointingly, we found methodological inadequacies and insufficient reporting of key variables that were similar to those found in the earlier meta-analysis. This prevented us from determining much about the most effective components of interventions. It is advisable for researchers conducting studies in the future to report data on attrition and retention rates of participants who quit, because these variables can affect QRs.

Who enrolls in a self-help cessation program for smokeless tobacco?

To further our understanding of the representativeness of the smokeless tobacco (SLT) user recruited to various treatment settings, and to suggest gaps in services available to SLT users, we first compared participants who enrolled in a self-help cessation program with two samples of nontreatment-seeking SLT users: SLT users identified through a random digit dialing (RDD) survey, and SLT users who came to 1 of 75 dental practices for a routine cleaning visit. We found that those in the self-help SLT cessation program were older, more educated, more likely to have made a serious quit attempt, and used more SLT weekly than those who did not seek treatment. Secondly, we compared SLT users seeking treatment in three different treatment settings varying in accessibility and intensity: self-help study participants, SLT users enrolled in a clinic-based study, and callers to the California Help Line for SLT cessation. Participants differed across the three studies on demographics, some measures of dependence, and history of SLT use.

Promoting smoking abstinence in pregnant and postpartum patients: a comparison of 2 approaches.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the implementation, delivery, and implications for dissemination of 2 different maternal smoking-cessation/relapse-prevention interventions in managed care environments. STUDY DESIGN: Healthy Options for Pregnancy and Parenting (HOPP) was a randomized, controlled efficacy trial of an intervention that bypassed the clinical setting. Stop Tobacco for OuR Kids (STORK) was a quasi-experimental effectiveness study of a point-of-service intervention. Both incorporated prenatal and postnatal components. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Subjects in both studies were pregnant women who either smoked currently or had quit recently. The major intervention in HOPP was telephone counseling delivered by trained counselors, whereas the STORK intervention was delivered by providers and staff during prepartum, inpatient postpartum, and well-baby visits. RESULTS: In HOPP, 97% of telephone intervention participants reported receiving 1 or more counselor calls. The intervention delayed but did not prevent postpartum relapse to smoking. Problems with intervention delivery related primarily to identification of the target population and acceptance of repeated calls. STORK delivered 1 or more cessation contacts to 91% of prenatal smokers in year 1, but the rate of intervention delivery declined in years 2 and 3. Modest differences were obtained in sustained abstinence between 6 and 12 months postpartum, but not in point prevalence abstinence at 12 months. CONCLUSIONS: The projects were compared using 4 of the 5 dimensions of the RE-AIM model including reach, adoption, implementation, and maintenance. It was difficult to apply the fifth dimension, efficacy, because of the differences in study design and purpose of the interventions. The strengths and limitations of each project were identified, and it was concluded that a combined intervention that incorporates elements of both HOPP and STORK would be optimal if it could be implemented at reasonable cost.

Maternal smoking cessation and relapse prevention during health care visits.

BACKGROUND: Although effects of maternal smoking during pregnancy could be alleviated if women quit early in pregnancy, most do not. Relapse rates among quitters are high. OBJECTIVE: To test the effects of a low-intensity, smoking-cessation/relapse-prevention intervention delivered by clinic staff and providers and based on stages-of-change constructs of the transtheoretical model and brief motivational interviewing techniques. METHODS: A quasi-experimental prospective cohort design employed in obstetric, in-patient, and pediatric care delivery settings of a large health maintenance organization in Portland, Oregon. Subjects were pregnant smokers registered for their first prenatal visit. Primary outcome measures were sustained (self-reported) quit rates during pregnancy and smoking abstinence between 6 and 12 months after delivery. RESULTS: Regression analyses found statistically significant improvement for intervention women in sustained pregnancy quit rates (OR=2.7, CI=1. 2-5.7) and on smoking abstinence between 6 and 12 months after delivery (OR=2.4, CI=1.1-5.3). CONCLUSIONS: While these outcomes are based on self-report only, they emerged despite variable delivery of the intervention across clinics and represent clinically meaningful improvements in rates of nonsmoking. The intervention supports women who want to quit smoking during pregnancy and improves the likelihood of their remaining nonsmokers for the long term.

Conscientiousness, perceived risk, and risk-reduction behaviors: a preliminary study.

Participants (N = 343) from an Oregon community completed surveys at baseline, 3 months, and 12 months to assess personality, the perceived health risk of radon in combination with smoking, and changes in smoking behavior. Conscientiousness predicted instituting a more restrictive household smoking rule (p < .01), and perceived risk predicted reduction in cigarettes smoked per day for men (p < .001). Perceived risk predicted a reduction in the proportion of cigarettes smoked in the home for those who had high (p < .05) but not low or moderate levels of Conscientiousness, a dimension in one personality model. The results demonstrate the importance of Conscientiousness in the prediction of health behavior, particularly behavior that affects others as well as oneself.

Durability of tobacco control efforts in the 22 Community Intervention Trial for Smoking Cessation (COMMIT) communities 2 years after the end of intervention.

Funding organizations increasingly want to know that successful interventions are continued after the end of a research project. Assessments of durability are rare and where done do not include the comparison communities. In this study we ascertain what tobacco control activities continued in intervention communities involved in the Community Intervention Trial for Smoking Cessation (COMMIT), a randomized, controlled community trial aimed at adult smokers, and also assessed level of tobacco control activities in the comparison communities. A mailed survey of key informants including paid staff and community volunteers in the 22 COMMIT communities was conducted. Approximately 79% of key informants responded to the survey. Although there was evidence that tobacco control activities were continuing in the intervention communities, there was an equal amount of tobacco control effort in the comparison communities. Within the specific tobacco control intervention areas, only the youth area showed more activity in intervention communities than comparison communities. We conclude that despite a positive trial outcome, differential durability was not achieved. More work needs to be done to assist communities in maintaining proven intervention activities. More study of methods to measure durability is also needed.

Using radon risk to motivate smoking reduction: evaluation of written materials and brief telephone counselling.

OBJECTIVE: Radon and cigarette smoking have synergistic effects on lung cancer, even when radon concentrations are relatively low. Working through an electric utility company, we sought to reach smoking households with low radon concentrations and motivate smoking cessation or prohibiting smoking in the home. DESIGN: Eligible homes (n = 714) were randomised to receive: (1) the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) "A citizen's guide to radon"; (2) a specially developed pamphlet; or (3) that pamphlet plus brief telephone counselling. PROCEDURE: Utility company "bill stuffers" offered free radon test kits to smoking households. All households received radon test results with an explanatory cover letter. Both the specially developed pamphlet and the telephone counselling emphasised that smoking cessation or prohibiting smoking in the home were the optimal risk reduction strategies. Households were followed up at 3 and 12 months after receiving materials. RESULTS: The specially developed pamphlet and the EPA guide yielded similar outcomes. There was a non-significant trend for telephone counselling to produce greater sustained quitting than the specially developed pamphlet, and phone counselling led to significantly more new household smoking bans. CONCLUSIONS: Working through a public utility company is an efficient way to reach smoking households, and brief telephone counselling is a promising method for promoting household smoking bans and cessation in homes alerted to the risk posed by the combination of radon and smoking.

Evaluating two self-help interventions for smokeless tobacco cessation.

The need for effective, low-cost self-help treatment methods for smokeless tobacco (ST) addiction becomes more evident as rates of product use and associated morbidities increase. This study evaluated two self-help methods for ST cessation. One hundred ninety-eight ST users were randomized into two conditions: half received the LifeSign, a credit card-sized computer designed for gradual ST cessation, and half received the Enough Snuff self-help manual and a video. Subjects in both conditions received telephone support for their quit effort. The study was conducted entirely through phone and mail, allowing delivery of the intervention to both rural and urban users. Self-reported rates of sustained abstinence (no tobacco use at two months and six months) were 24.5% for the manual/video condition, and 18.4%, for the LifeSign condition.

Radon and cigarette smoking: perceptions of this synergistic health risk.

Past approaches to the measurement of the perceived risk of combined hazards have failed to demonstrate awareness of synergy (S. E. Hampson et al., 1998; D. Hermand, E. Mullet, & B. Coutelle, 1995; D. Hermand, E. Mullet, & S. Lavieville, 1997). Respondents (N = 650) were provided with information about the synergistic risk of lung cancer from the combination of smoking and radon, and their risk perceptions were assessed on two occasions. At Time 1, using Likert-type scales, there was no evidence of synergistic risk perception. At Time 2, using a scale based on the appraisal of relative risk with anchors allowing for the expression of synergy, the combined hazard of radon and smoking was rated as significantly more of a health risk than the single hazards. The findings are discussed in terms of methodological issues in assessing synergistic risk.

A brief smoking cessation intervention for women in low-income planned parenthood clinics.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to evaluate a brief smoking cessation intervention for women 15 to 35 years of age attending Planned Parenthood clinics. METHODS: Female smokers (n = 1154) were randomly assigned either to advice only or to a brief intervention that involved a 9-minute video, 12 to 15 minutes of behavioral counseling, clinician advice to quit, and follow-up telephone calls. RESULTS: Seventy-six percent of those eligible participated. Results revealed a clear, short-term intervention effect at the 6-week follow-up (7-day self-reported abstinence: 10.2% vs 6.9% for advice only, P < .05) and a more ambiguous effect at 6 months (30-day biochemically validated abstinence: 6.4% vs 3.8%, NS). CONCLUSIONS: This brief, clinic-based intervention appears to be effective in reaching and enhancing cessation among female smokers, a traditionally underserved population.

A self-help cessation program for smokeless tobacco users: comparison of two interventions.

While the use of smokeless tobacco products has increased, there has been a paucity of research evaluating interventions to help users quit. This study is the first large-scale randomized trial evaluating two levels of self-help cessation intervention with adult smokeless tobacco (SLT) users. Smokeless users in five Northwest states were recruited to call a toll-free number and 1069 users were randomized to receive one of two interventions, Manual Only (MAN) or Assisted Self-Help (ASH), who received a video and two support phone calls in addition to the manual. The study demonstrated that low-cost minimal interventions done by mail and phone can help a sizable proportion of SLT users quit both SLT and all tobacco use. Follow-up data at 6 months showed that subjects in the ASH condition had a significantly higher quit rate for both smokeless (23.4% vs. 18.4%, p < 0.05) and all tobacco use (21.1% vs. 16.5%, p < 0.05), using an intent-to-treat model. Further analysis revealed that use of the recommended cessation procedures mediated the effect of intervention condition on outcomes. This may be the result of phone counselors getting subjects to carry out behavioral cessation procedures. Public health implications for this intervention are discussed.

Radon-smoking synergy: A population-based behavioral risk reduction approach.

BACKGROUND: Radon and cigarette smoking have a synergistic, multiplicative effect on lung cancer rates. Smokers, and perhaps nonsmoking residents, of smoking households are at increased risk for lung cancer even when radon levels are relatively low. A behavioral risk reduction strategy emphasizing smoking cessation is proposed and data are presented from pilot studies and a short-term evaluation of a randomized intervention trial. METHODS: Pilot studies, including radon testing, interviews, questionnaires, and focus groups, led to a three-arm randomized intervention trial comparing two kinds of written materials and telephone counseling. Smoking households were recruited by offering free radon test kits through an electric utility companies billing system. Three-month follow-up data were obtained by mail and phone. RESULTS: Of an estimated 2,600 smoking households in the utility district, 1,220 requested a radon test kit, and 714 were randomized into three treatment conditions. Brief phone counseling (up to two short calls) significantly increased smoking quit rates, compared to written materials only, and was also related to other risk reduction behaviors (e.g., household ban on smoking). CONCLUSIONS: Offering free radon testing through a public utility billing system is an effective recruitment tool for reaching households at risk due to radon-smoking synergy. Brief telephone counseling is superior to written materials in reducing smoking and encouraging indoor smoking bans. Methods are needed to better inform smokers of their additional risk from exposure to even low levels of radon.

The smoking cessation efficacy of varying doses of nicotine patch delivery systems 4 to 5 years post-quit day.

BACKGROUND: This study was undertaken to evaluate the long-term smoking cessation efficacy of varying doses of transdermal nicotine delivery systems 4 to 5 years post-quit day. METHODS: A follow-up study was conducted 48 to 62 months after quit day among patients who were enrolled in the Transdermal Nicotine Study Group investigation. The latter study included group smoking cessation counseling and randomized assignment to 21, 14, or 7 mg nicotine patches or placebo patches. Seven of nine smoking cessation research centers participated in the long term follow-up investigation. RESULTS: The self-reported continuous quit rate among patients originally assigned 21 mg (20.2%) was significantly higher than rates for patients assigned 14 mg (10.4%), 7 mg (11.8%), or placebo patches (7.4%). Log rank survival analysis found no difference in relapse rates after 1 year postcessation. Smokers under age 30 years were significantly less likely to be abstinent at long term follow-up compared to smokers > or = 30 years of age (3 vs 13%, respectively). Mean weight gain in confirmed continuous quitters was 10.1 kg in men and 8.0 kg in women. Of the 63 continuous abstainers surveyed, 30 respondents (48%) reported that they no longer craved cigarettes, and no individual reported daily craving for cigarettes. CONCLUSIONS: Nicotine patch therapy with 21 mg/day patches resulted in a significantly higher long-term continuous abstinence rate compared to lower dose patches and placebo. Relapse rates among the various treatment conditions were similar after 1 year postcessation.

Adolescent health care visits: opportunities for brief prevention messages.

CONTEXT: It has been suggested that clinicians should increase efforts to modify and prevent risky behavior in adolescents. Professional organizations have proposed recommendations about access to care and preventive services, but it is difficult to know where and how to most effectively deliver such services. PRACTICE PATTERN EXAMINED: Clinic visits among adolescent HMO members (14 to 17 years of age). SETTING: Kaiser Permanente Northwest Division, a medium-sized, nonprofit, group-model HMO in the Pacific Northwest. DATA SOURCES: Two administrative databases (one for membership and one for outpatient utilization). RESULTS: A total of 22,626 adolescents who met the inclusion criteria were identified. Of these, 62% (more than 14,000 adolescents) were seen in a primary care clinic within 1 year; almost 83% (more than 18,000 adolescents) were seen within 2 years. There were several opportunities for follow-up for adolescents who had at least one visit in 1995: 60% had more than one visit during 1995, and 80% had more than one visit over the 2-year span of 1995 and 1996. The largest number of adolescent visits occurred in August through November, and most visits took place in the afternoon. CONCLUSIONS: Primary care visits in an HMO present an excellent opportunity to reach many teenagers outside of a school setting. Short-term educational or prevention programs would be optimal during late summer and fall; additional staff members may be able to present these programs after school once school begins.