Experiences from youth advisors in chronic disease prevention research.

Engaging young people in research is a promising approach to tackling issues like chronic disease prevention. Our involvement as youth advisors provided valuable experiences, including being at the forefront of change and learning to work within a research team. Furthermore, our experience provides greater insight and learnings for future youth engagement in research.

We are a group of 16 diverse young people from New South Wales, Australia, who are passionate about youth health. In 2021 and 2022, we formed the Health Advisory Panel for Youth at the University of Sydney (HAPYUS, pronounced 'Happy Us') working with researchers on projects to prevent chronic diseases in young people. We brainstormed health issues from our own experiences and other research and summarised them into the top three youth health concerns. From these, we helped develop and test programs to support healthy behaviours in young people. We used scientific and public events to present our findings. Finally, we presented our results in a research paper and through traditional and social media. One of the most rewarding experiences was the opportunity to be part of all stages of the research process of improving youth health especially because COVID-19 and social media changed the way we need to think about youth mental and physical health. We also learned how to work together amongst ourselves as young people and within a research team. We hope that other young people can learn from our experiences and feel inspired to become active contributors in projects for meaningful change in the lives of young people.

ProjectDRIVE: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial to improve driving practices of high-risk teen drivers with a traffic violation.

BACKGROUND: Teen drivers with a traffic violation are at increased risk for crashes and crash-related injuries; however, most parent-focused interventions target teen drivers with supervised learner's permits. Very few interventions are implemented at the probationary driver's license stage or target high-risk teen drivers, such as those with traffic violations. This paper describes the protocol of ProjectDRIVE, A Randomized Controlled Trial to Improve Driving Practices of High-Risk Teen Drivers with a Traffic Violation, which targets improving parent-teen communication about safe driving practices to reduce unsafe driving behaviors and traffic violation recidivism of teen drivers cited for traffic violation. METHODS: Teen drivers (ages 16 or 17) cited for a moving violation and the parent/legal guardian most involved with the teen's driving are recruited from juvenile traffic courts following their required court hearing. After completing informed consent/assent, enrolled dyads are randomized into one of three groups using stratified block randomization: control, device feedback only, or device feedback plus parent communication training. Participating dyads are followed for 6 months with 3 months of active intervention. Using in-vehicle device and smartphone application technology, the study provides real-time and cumulative driving feedback to intervention teens and collects continually recorded, objectively measured driving outcome data throughout the teen's study participation. Primary outcomes include rates of risky driving events and unsafe driving behaviors per 1000 miles driven. Secondary outcomes include traffic violation recidivism up to 12 months following study completion and frequency and quality of parent-teen communication about safe driving practices. DISCUSSION: Through partnership with the local juvenile traffic courts, this study integrates recruitment and randomization into existing court practices. Successfully completing this study will significantly impact juvenile traffic court's practices and policies by informing judges' decisions regarding the driving safety programs they refer to teens to prevent motor vehicle crashes and crash-related injuries and deaths. Trial registration The study was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT04317664) on March 19, 2020, https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04317664 and updated on April 27, 2021. This protocol was developed per the SPIRIT (Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trials) Checklist.

Mental health and wellbeing outcomes of youth participation: A scoping review protocol.

There is growing recognition that young people should be given opportunities to participate in the decisions that affect their lives, such as advisory groups, representative councils, advocacy or activism. Positive youth development theory and sociopolitical development theory propose pathways through which youth participation can influence mental health and wellbeing outcomes. However, there is limited empirical research synthesising the impact of participation on youth mental health and/or wellbeing, or the characteristics of activities that are associated with better or worse mental health and/or wellbeing outcomes. This scoping review seeks to address this gap by investigating the scope and nature of evidence detailing how youth participation initiatives can influence mental health and/or wellbeing outcomes for participants. To be eligible, literature must describe youth (aged 15-24) in participation activities and the impact of this engagement on participant mental health and/or wellbeing outcomes. A systematic scoping review of peer-reviewed and grey literature will be conducted using Scopus, PsycINFO, Embase, Medline and grey literature databases. The scoping review will apply established methodology by Arksey and O'Malley, Levac and colleagues and the Joanna Briggs Institute. Title, abstract, and full text screening will be completed by two reviewers, data will be extracted by one reviewer. Findings will be reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR), including a qualitative summary of the characteristics of youth participation and their influence on youth mental health outcomes. Youth advisory group members will be invited to deliver governance on the project from the outset; participate in, and contribute to, all stages of the review process; reflect on their own experiences of participation; and co-author the resulting publication. This scoping review will provide essential knowledge on how participation activities can be better designed to maximise beneficial psychosocial outcomes for involved youth.

Subsequent risky driving behaviors, recidivism and crashes among drivers with a traffic violation: A scoping review.

PURPOSE: Drivers who have committed a traffic violation are a particularly high-risk group, yet studies conducted among this group are scarce. We analyzed and synthesized the current literature concerning subsequent risky driving behaviors, recidivism, and crashes among drivers with a traffic violation. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), Academic Search Complete, Web of Science, and Scopus for articles published in English between January 1, 1999, and May 31, 2023. A total of 25 articles met the selection criteria and were included in the final analysis. Two coders independently extracted and analyzed the selected articles to identify common categories across the articles, including study design, study population, type of traffic violation, and study outcomes including subsequent driving behaviors, recidivism, and crash risks. RESULTS: Of the 25 selected articles, 19 (76%) involved both male and female participants. Fourteen (56%) studies were interventions/evaluation studies, with the other 11 (44%) being observational. Nineteen (76%) studies included alcohol-impaired driving violations, and 23 (92%) studies examined recidivism as an outcome measure. Over half of the observational studies demonstrated that traffic offenders were more likely to commit a subsequent traffic violation or had elevated risk of crashes. Most of the intervention/evaluation studies demonstrated a significant reduction in driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol among the study participants. However, such positive effects observed during the active intervention period were not always sustained. CONCLUSIONS: Traffic offenders are a high-risk group for subsequent violations and crashes. Evidence from this review calls for more effective interventions implemented following a traffic violation to prevent recidivism, crashes, and crash-related injuries and deaths.

Perceptions of the double value coupon program in southern Illinois.

Introduction: Purchasing produce at farmers markets represents one method by which individuals can purchase and have access to healthful and seasonal fruits. Despite the extension of nutrition assistance programs to local farmers markets, fruit and vegetables consumption has remained below the recommended guidelines, specifically in rural geographical locations. Statement of purpose: The purpose of the study was to explore the aspects of the Link Up Illinois Double Value SNAP Nutrition Incentives Program (DVCP) and its effects on food selection at rural farmers markets for individuals enrolled in nutrition assistance programs. Methods/approach: The current study uses a qualitative methodology in order to uncover barriers local health departments and farmers markets face to implementing the DVCP in their communities and to discover the perspectives of low-income individuals who utilize the DVCP. This paper explores the organizational and community member perceptions of the DVCP and its administration. Semi-structured interviews and one focus group were conducted with health educators from county health departments, DVCP stakeholders, farmers market managers, local farmers, and residents who used the DVCP. A purposeful sampling method was used, intentionally selecting individuals with lived experiences of the research objective. Data were analyzed using a three-cycle coding process, then categorized into overarching themes until thematic saturation was reached. Results: There were a total of 19 individuals who participated in the study. Five themes and four subthemes emerged from data analysis, including organizational capacity, exposure to the DVCP, purchasing power, DVCP advancements, and values. Conclusion/implications: These findings contextualize the facilitators and barriers of multiple stakeholders when implementing nutrition assistance programs at farmers markets. Other similar "double value" programs can utilize these lessons when seeking to increase participation of underrepresented populations at local farmers markets.

A model of posttraumatic epilepsy after penetrating brain injuries: effect of lesion size and metal fragments.

OBJECTIVE: Penetrating brain injury (PBI) has the highest risk for inducing posttraumatic epilepsy, and those PBIs with retained foreign materials such as bullet fragments carry the greatest risk. This study examines the potential contribution of copper, a major component of bullets, to the development of epilepsy following PBI. METHODS: Anesthetized adult male rats received a penetrating injury from the dorsal cortex to the ventral hippocampus from a high speed small bit drill. In one group of animals, copper wire was inserted into the lesion. Control animals had only the lesion or the lesion plus stainless steel wire (biologically inert foreign body). From 6 to up to 11 months following the injury the rats were monitored intermittently for the development of epilepsy with video-electroencephalography (EEG). A separate set of animals was examined for possible acute seizures in the week following the injury. RESULTS: Twenty-two of the 23 animals with copper wire developed chronic epilepsy, compared to three of the 20 control rats (lesion and lesion with stainless steel). Copper was associated with more extensive injury. The control rats with epilepsy had larger lesions. In the acute injury group, there was no difference in the incidence of seizures (83% lesion plus stainless steel, 70% lesion plus copper). SIGNIFICANCE: Copper increases the risk for epilepsy and may increase damage over time, but there were no differences between the groups in the incidence of acute postinjury seizures. Lesion size may contribute to epilepsy development in lesion-only animals. Copper may be an independent risk factor for the development of epilepsy and possible secondary injury, but lesion size also contributes to the development of epilepsy. The consequences of prolonged exposure of the brain to copper observed in these animals may have clinical implications that require further evaluation.

Does using pressure-controlled ventilation to rest respiratory muscles improve sleep in ICU patients?

PURPOSE: Sleep is commonly altered in critically ill patients. Ventilatory mode may impact on quality of sleep. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect on sleep of pressure-controlled ventilation (PCV) to spontaneous ventilation with 6 cm H2O inspiratory pressure (low-PSV). METHODS: Thirty-five patients intubated and mechanically ventilated for acute-on-chronic respiratory failure were included in this prospective randomized cross-over study. Nine were discarded, 13 received PCV first (10 p.m.-2 a.m.) and then low-PSV (2-6 a.m.) and 13 patients received low-PSV first and then PCV. RESULTS: Sleep architecture was altered (50.4% of the night was spent in wakefulness). PCV was associated with significantly improved sleep quality and quantity compared to low-PSV: sleep efficiency (total sleep time/total recording time) was 63% (range: 9-100) vs. 37% (0-96; p = 0.0002), stage 2 NREM sleep was 33% vs. 13% (p = 0.0005), stages 3 and 4 NREM sleep were 9% vs. 3.5% (p = 0.003) and REM sleep was 6.5% vs. 0% (p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: Sleep quantity and quality were significantly improved with PCV compared to low-PSV. Nocturnal respiratory muscles rest through PCV is recommended to improve sleep in ICU patients with acute-on-chronic respiratory failure.

Nocturnal hyperglycaemia in type 2 diabetes with sleep apnoea syndrome.

We assessed glycaemic status in 26 overweight or obese people with type 2 diabetes suspected of having sleep apnoea syndrome (SAS). In people with SAS (n=13), nocturnal glycaemia was 38% higher, independent of body mass index (particularly during rapid eye movement sleep) compared with non-SAS subjects (p<0.008).

Assist-control ventilation vs. low levels of pressure support ventilation on sleep quality in intubated ICU patients.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the impact of assist-control ventilation (ACV) and pressure support ventilation with 6 cmH2O inspiratory pressure (low PSV) on sleep quality. DESIGN: Prospective randomized cross-over study. PATIENTS: Twenty intubated and mechanically ventilated patients for acute on chronic respiratory failure. MEASUREMENTS: Patients were monitored by standard polysomnography at the end of their weaning period. Patients were assigned to receive either ACV from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. and low PSV from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. (ACV/low PSV group) or low PSV from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. and ACV from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. (low PSV/ACV group). RESULTS: There were significant increases in stages 1 and 2 non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and reduction in wakefulness during the first part of the night and significant increases in stages 3 and 4 NREM sleep during the second part of the night were observed with ACV compared to low PSV. A significant negative correlation was observed between the perceived sleep quality and the amount of wakefulness while the amount of stage 2 NREM sleep was positively correlated with perceived sleep quality. CONCLUSIONS: ACV was significantly associated with a better sleep quality than those recorded during pressure support. The perception of sleep quality appeared to be better with ACV than with low PSV. On the basis of these results we recommend that intubated and mechanically ventilated patients for acute on chronic respiratory failure should be reventilated at night during their weaning period.