Pre-pregnancy BMI, rate of gestational weight gain, and preterm birth among US Pacific Islander individuals.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to examine the association between rate of gestational weight gain (GWG) and preterm birth (PTB) classified by pre-pregnancy BMI among Pacific Islander individuals in the United States. METHODS: Pacific Islander mothers (n = 55,975) and singleton infants (22-41 gestational weeks) without congenital anomalies were included using data from the National Center for Health Statistics (2014-2018). PTB was compared by pre-pregnancy BMI among women in each stratum of rate of GWG using Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS: Compared with mothers with a rate of GWG within the guidelines, mothers with a rate of GWG below the guidelines and either pre-pregnancy underweight (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] = 1.84, 95% CI: 1.10-3.06), healthy weight (aHR = 1.38, 95% CI: 1.15-1.65), obesity class I (aHR = 1.22, 95% CI: 0.97-1.52), or obesity class II (aHR = 1.43, 95% CI: 1.05-1.96) had an increased risk of PTB; mothers with a rate of GWG above the guidelines and either pre-pregnancy underweight (aHR = 1.57, 95% CI: 0.92-2.69) or obesity class II (aHR = 1.31, 95% CI: 0.98-1.76) had an increased risk of PTB. CONCLUSIONS: The association between rate of GWG below or above the guidelines and PTB differs by pre-pregnancy BMI among Pacific Islander individuals.

Global prevalence of preterm birth among Pacific Islanders: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The epidemiology of preterm birth among Pacific Islanders is minimally understood. The purpose of this study was to estimate pooled prevalence of preterm birth among Pacific Islanders and to estimate their risk of preterm birth compared to White/European women. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science Core Collection, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Global Health, and two regional journals in March 2023. Observational studies were included if they reported preterm birth-related outcomes among Pacific Islanders. Random-effects models were used to estimate the pooled prevalence of preterm birth with 95% confidence interval (CI). Bayes meta-analysis was conducted to estimate pooled odds ratios (OR) with 95% highest posterior density intervals (HPDI). The Joanna Briggs Institute checklists were used for risk of bias assessment. We estimated preterm birth prevalence among Pacific Islanders in the United States (US, 11.8%, sample size [SS] = 209,930, 95% CI 10.8%-12.8%), the US-Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI, SS = 29,036, 6.7%, 95% CI 4.9%-9.0%), New Zealand (SS = 252,162, 7.7%, 95% CI 7.1%-8.3%), Australia (SS = 20,225, 6.1%, 95% CI 4.2%-8.7%), and Papua New Guinea (SS = 2,647, 7.0%, 95% CI 5.6%-8.8%). Pacific Islanders resident in the US were more likely to experience preterm birth compared to White women (OR = 1.45, 95% HPDI 1.32-1.58), but in New Zealand their risk was similar (OR = 1.00, 95% HPDI 0.83-1.16) to European women. Existing literature indicates that Pacific Islanders in the US had a higher prevalence of preterm birth and experienced health inequities. Learning from New Zealand's culturally-sensitive approach to health care provision may provide a starting point for addressing disparities. The limited number of studies identified may contribute to higher risk of bias and the heterogeneity in our estimates; more data is needed to understand the true burden of preterm birth in the Pacific region.

Preterm birth among Pacific Islanders in the United States and the US-affiliated Pacific Islands: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To better understand the epidemiology of preterm birth among Pacific Islanders in the United States and the US-Affiliated Pacific Islands. METHODS: Systematic searches of MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, two nonindexed regional journals, and gray literature were conducted and finalized in September 2021. Observational studies published since January 2010 that documented preterm birth outcomes among Pacific Islanders in the United States and the US-Affiliated Pacific Islands were eligible for inclusion. Outcomes of interest included preterm birth prevalence, risk compared with white women, and risk factors for preterm birth among Pacific Islanders. RESULTS: Fourteen of the 3183 screened articles were included in meta-analyses. Random-effects models were used for pooled estimates with 95% confidence intervals. The pooled prevalence of preterm birth among Pacific Islanders was 11.2%, 95% CI: 9.3%-13.6%. Marshallese women had the highest pooled prevalence (20.7%, 95% CI 18.6%-23.0%) among Pacific Islander subgroups. Compared with white women, Pacific Islander women had higher odds of experiencing preterm birth (OR = 1.40, 95% CI: 1.28-1.53). Four risk factors for preterm birth could be explored with the data available: hypertension, diabetes, smoking, and pre-pregnancy body mass index; hypertension and diabetes significantly increased the odds of preterm birth. CONCLUSIONS: Existing literature suggests that United States Pacific Islanders were more likely to experience preterm birth than white women, although the pooled prevalence varied by Pacific Islander subgroup. Data support the need for disaggregation of Pacific Islanders in future research and argue for examination of subgroup-specific outcomes to address perinatal health disparities.

Birth-Based vs Fetuses-at-Risk Approaches for Assessing Neonatal Mortality Rate by Race.

This cohort study assesses 5-year race-stratified neonatal mortality and prevalence of preterm births in the US using birth-based and fetuses-at-risk approaches.

Preterm birth among Pacific Islander women and related perinatal outcomes: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Infants born alive <37 weeks are classified as premature. The global estimate of preterm birth in 2014 was 10.6%, and it is the leading cause of death of children under the age of 5 years. Preterm birth disproportionately affects women of minority populations, yet knowledge about the incidence and associated outcomes among Pacific Islanders is limited. The objectives of this scoping review are to identify studies that describe risk factors, maternal-child health outcomes and existing interventions to prevent preterm birth among Pacific Islanders, and to summarise the barriers and facilitators to decrease the burden. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will follow the Joanna Briggs Institute Manual for Evidence Synthesis for scoping reviews and the Preferred Reporting Items for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) to conduct this scoping review. The Covidence web application will be used for data management and consensus review. We will search on MEDLINE ALL (Ovid), EMBASE (Ovid), Web of Science Core Collection (as licensed at Yale), the Cochrane Library, CINAHL (EBSCOhost) and two non-indexed regional journals (Pacific Journal of Reproductive Health and Pacific Health Dialog). Title-abstract and full-text screening of eligible studies will be performed by two authors, and data will be extracted by the first author. Outcomes extracted will be presented using evidence mapping. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Findings will drive suggestions for new data collection needed to fill knowledge gaps and improve future study designs to decrease the burden of preterm birth among Pacific Islanders. There are no ethical concerns. This protocol will be disseminated in related peer-reviewed journals.

Persistence of anaemia among Samoan preschool age children: a longitudinal study.

OBJECTIVE: To characterise the prevalence and persistence of anaemia among Samoan children over a 2-3-year period. DESIGN: Data were from two consecutive waves (2015 and 2017-2018) of the Ola Tuputupua'e 'Growing up' study. Anaemia (Hb < 11·0 or 11·5 g/dl for 2-4 and ≥ 5 years old, respectively) was considered 'transient' when it occurred at only one wave or 'persistent' if it was present at two consecutive waves. Child, maternal and household correlates of anaemia were examined using log-binomial and modified Poisson regressions. SETTING: Eleven Samoan villages. PARTICIPANTS: Mother-child pairs (n 257) recruited in 2015 and reassessed in 2017-2018. RESULTS: Anaemia prevalence was 33·9 % in 2015 and 28·0 % in 2017-2018; 35·6 % of cases identified in 2015 were persistent. Risk of anaemia at only one wave was lower among children who were older in 2015 (age 4 v. 2 years, adjusted relative risk (aRR) = 0·54, (95 % CI 0·35, 0·84), P = 0·007), had older mothers (≥ 40 v. 18-29 years, aRR = 0·61, (95 % CI 0·39, 0·95), P = 0·029) and had higher daily sodium intake (for every 100 mg/d, aRR = 0·97, (95 % CI 0·95, 0·99), P = 0·003) than children with no anaemia. Children whose anaemia persisted were more likely to have had a mother with anaemia (aRR = 2·13, (95 % CI 1·17, 3·89), P = 0·013) and had higher daily dietary iron intake (for every 10 mg/d, aRR = 4·69, (95 % CI 1·33, 16·49), P = 0·016) than those with no anaemia. CONCLUSIONS: Alongside broadly targeted prevention efforts, which are warranted given the moderate-high anaemia prevalence observed, specific attention should be paid to children with risk factors for persistent anaemia. Routine screening of children whose mothers have anaemia should be encouraged.

Fabrication and Thermal Insulation Properties of Bamboo-Shaped Polymer Fibers by Selective Solvent Vapor Annealing.

Fibrillar materials have gained much attention recently because of their unique properties and potential applications. Although many methods have been developed to fabricate materials, it remains challenging to prepare fibrillar materials containing multicomponent materials or even with complex structures. Here, a facile strategy is developed to fabricate bamboo-shaped fibers by treating electrospun polymer core-shell fibers with solvent vapor annealing. Electrospun polystyrene (PS)/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) core-shell fibers are first prepared by electrospinning PS/PMMA blend solutions via a phase separation process. When the PS/PMMA core-shell fibers are annealed with the vapor of cyclohexane, which swells and delocalizes the PS domains selectively, the fibers transform into bamboo-shaped structures. The bamboo-shaped structures can be further examined by swelling and delocalizing the PMMA domains selectively, revealing the undulated PS structures. The thermal insulation properties of the fibers with bamboo-shaped structures are observed to be enhanced compared with the original polymer core-shell fibers.

Solvent-Induced Shape Recovery of Anisotropic Polymer Particles Prepared by a Modified Thermal Stretching Method.

Anisotropic polymer particles have attracted great attention because of their unique properties and potential applications in various areas, such as microelectronics, drug delivery, and medical imaging. The fabrication and morphology control, especially the shape recovery, of anisotropic polymer particles, however, remains a challenging task. In this work, we develop a novel strategy to fabricate anisotropic polymer particles by thermally stretching poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) films embedding polystyrene (PS) microspheres using a weight. Depending on the preannealing condition, anisotropic PS particles with two different shapes, sharp-headed and blunt-headed PS particles, can be obtained. The PVA films can be selectively removed by isopropanol/water, releasing the anisotropic PS particles. By adding tetrahydrofuran (THF), a good solvent for PS, into the PS particle-containing solutions, the anisotropic particles gradually transform back to spheres to reduce the total interfacial energies. The shape recovery rates of the polymer particles can be controlled by the amount of the added THF. This work not only provides a simple and feasible route to fabricate anisotropic polymer particles but also contributes to a deeper understanding in the solvent-induced shape recovery process from anisotropic polymer particles to polymer spheres.

Analysis of the codon usage of the ORF2 gene of feline calicivirus.

Feline calicivirus (FCV) is a highly prevalent pathogen of the domestic cat that causes acute infections of the oral and upper respiratory tract. The E region of the ORF2 protein is responsible for the induction of virus-neutralizing antibodies, thus it is important to understand the codon usage of this gene. Here, analysed 90 coding sequences of ORF2 and show that it undergoes a low codon usage bias. In addition, although mutational bias is one of the factors shaping the codon usage bias of this gene, natural selection plays a more significant role. Our results reveal part of the mechanisms driving FCV evolution, which will lay foundation for the further research of FCV.

Plateau-Rayleigh Instability Morphology Evolution (PRIME): From Electrospun Core-Shell Polymer Fibers to Polymer Microbowls.

Electrospun core-shell fibers have great potentials in many areas, such as tissue engineering, drug delivery, and organic solar cells. Although many core-shell fibers have been prepared and studied, the morphology transformation of core-shell fibers have been rarely studied. In this work, the morphology evolution of electrospun core-shell polymer fibers driven by the Plateau-Rayleigh instability is investigated. Polystyrene/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PS/PMMA) core-shell fibers are first prepared by using blend solutions and a single axial electrospinning setup. After PS/PMMA core-shell fibers are annealed on a PS film, the fibers undulate and sink into the polymer film, forming core-shell hemispheres. The evolution process, which can be observed in situ by optical microscopy, is mainly driven by achieving lower surface and interfacial energies. The morphologies of the transformed structures can be confirmed by a selective removal technique, and polymer microbowls can be obtained.

Reusable electrochemical sensor for bisphenol A based on ionic liquid functionalized conducting polymer platform.

The toxicity of bisphenol A (BPA) has attracted considerable attention, and the reported electrochemical sensors for BPA need further improvement in reusability due to serious surface fouling. In this study, a composite film is designed aiming to provide both an accurate and repeatable platform for BPA determination. The conducting poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) film (PEDOT) and ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide (BMIMBr) were modified onto screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCE) by electropolymerization and drop/spin methods, respectively. The surface characteristics of the composite film were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and surface water contact angle experiments. The composite film-modified electrodes exhibited a linear response to BPA in the range of 0.1-500µM in pH 7.0 phosphate buffer solution (PBS) under optimized flow-injection amperometry. The method sensitivity and detection limit (S/N=3) were 0.2661µA µM(-1) (2.419µA µM(-1)cm(-2)) and 0.02µM, respectively. A relative standard deviation of 1.95% was obtained for 77 successive measurements of 10µM BPA, and the repeatability outperformed previously reported work. The proposed method was applied to detect BPA released from plastic water bottles using the standard addition method, and satisfactory recoveries were obtained. The electrochemical assay was validated by comparison with the chromatographic method, and the results showed good agreement between the two methods.