Adherence to Updated Childcare Nutrition Regulations in Colorado, United States.

Background: Preschool years are an important time for shaping healthy eating behaviors. Childcare centers can be a venue for policy change for broad and sustained positive impact on healthy eating environment. The objectives of this study were to assess how self-reported current practices align with updated statewide childcare center licensing regulations in Colorado, US, and to explore correlates of adherence. Methods: Using a post-test only study design, a survey was sent to all full-day, licensed childcare centers in Colorado (N = 1,398) with a valid street or email address. The survey included questions on allowable food and beverages, mealtime practices, and perceptions of the updated regulations. Frequencies were calculated and logistic regression models computed for a composite score of each of these factors. Results: Respondents (N = 344) were mostly center directors, with over 8 years of experience, from urban areas. Compliance was high for most food and beverage criteria (over 90%) and all meal practices. One third participated in the federal Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), and were more likely to comply with the state meal regulations than non-CACFP centers. Conclusion: Although our results show high self-reported compliance, a more thorough study of the policy process would provide comprehensive evidence on effective development, enactment, and implementation of these regulations.

Association of State Legislation of Human Papillomavirus Vaccination with Vaccine Uptake Among Adolescents in the United States.

We assessed the association of state legislation with adolescent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates in states that legislated information dissemination or administration of HPV vaccination. Using insurance claims, we calculated monthly HPV vaccination rates (November 2009-December 2017) among adolescents in states that passed HPV vaccination legislation during that period: Missouri (July 2010), Kentucky (February 2012), Indiana (March 2013), Oregon (June 2013). We used segmented regression to estimate levels and trends of HPV vaccination rates, comparing pre-legislation to post-legislation segments, adjusting for seasonal vaccination patterns and changes to the vaccination recommendation among males during the study period. Indiana's legislation allowed pharmacists to administer HPV vaccination; legislation in Kentucky, Missouri, and Oregon included provisions HPV and cervical cancer education. No statistically significant increases in HPV vaccination levels or trends were observed in the post-legislation segments among adolescents overall; however, a significant post-legislation increase in vaccination trends was observed among boys in Missouri (ß = 0.16, p = 0.03). Evidence for a positive impact of legislation on HPV vaccination rates is limited. The scarcity of policies that directly facilitate or promote HPV vaccination, and the breadth of exemptions to school vaccination requirements, may limit the effectiveness of these policies. Continuing efforts to introduce and pass legislation that directly facilitates HPV vaccination, combined with promoting existing evidence-based interventions, can provide opportunities to identify the most effective strategies to increase adolescent HPV vaccination rates.

Can Building Design Impact Physical Activity? A Natural Experiment.

BACKGROUND: Workplace design can impact workday physical activity (PA) and sedentary time. The purpose of this study was to evaluate PA behavior among university employees before and after moving into a new building. METHODS: A pre-post, experimental versus control group study design was used. PA data were collected using surveys and accelerometers from university faculty and staff. Accelerometry was used to compare those moving into the new building (MOVERS) and those remaining in existing buildings (NONMOVERS) and from a control group (CONTROLS). RESULTS: Survey results showed increased self-reported PA for MOVERS and NONMOVERS. All 3 groups significantly increased in objectively collected daily energy expenditure and steps per day. The greatest steps per day increase was in CONTROLS (29.8%) compared with MOVERS (27.5%) and NONMOVERS (15.9%), but there were no significant differences between groups at pretest or posttest. CONCLUSIONS: Self-reported and objectively measured PA increased from pretest to posttest in all groups; thus, the increase cannot be attributed to the new building. Confounding factors may include contamination bias due to proximity of control site to experimental site and introduction of a university PA tracking contest during postdata collection. Methodology and results can inform future studies on best design practices for increasing PA.

Administrative Evidence-based Practices in State Chronic Disease Practitioners.

INTRODUCTION: Research and lessons from community implementation have informed evidence-based practices that can improve the effectiveness of health initiatives. Administrative evidence-based practices (A-EBPs) facilitate the role of public health departments in implementing the most effective programs and policies. The purpose of this study is to describe A-EBPs in relation to characteristics of chronic disease practitioners in state health departments. METHODS: Randomly selected chronic disease practitioners who worked in state health departments were invited to complete an online survey in 2016. The survey included questions on five domains of A-EBPs: workforce development, leadership, culture and climate, relationships and partners, and financial practices. State-level variables that could potentially affect the use of A-EBPs were collected and used in a regression model. RESULTS: Analysis was conducted in 2016 on data from 571 respondents. Mean percentages of those who strongly agreed/agreed were lowest for financial practices (41.49%) and leadership (42.33%) with higher means for culture and climate (54.52%) and relationships and partners (58.71%). State poverty level was the only significant predictor of A-EBP scores after adjusting for other covariates in a regression model. CONCLUSIONS: These results show several areas of high agreement with A-EBP within the domains measured as well as opportunities for improvement. Highlighting the importance of A-EBPs to public health leadership level may enhance practice. There is also need for developing plans for an aging workforce and cultivating partnerships with health care and other sectors. Findings can be used to target training for enhancement of A-EBPs within state health departments.

Chondroblastic and fibroblastic osteosarcoma of the jaws: Report of two cases and review of literature.

This study aims to report of two variants of gnathic osteosarcoma with highlights on the varied histopathological presentation of osteosarcomas (OS). OS present with diverse histological appearances. Despite significant advances in molecular pathogenesis and biomarkers, clinicopathologic correlation is still considered as the important criteria in diagnosis. Chondroblastic osteosarcoma in a 52-year-old female and fibroblastic osteosarcoma in a 35-year-old female. Osteosarcoma is a relatively rare disease of the oral and maxillofacial region. Regular screening and follow-up is highly recommended, as recurrence rates are higher. Thorough understanding of the histologic spectrum of osteosarcoma reduces the diagnostic difficulties in categorizing the OS and separating these neoplasms from benign bone diseases.

Association of serum and salivary tumor necrosis factor-α with histological grading in oral cancer and its role in differentiating premalignant and malignant oral disease.

BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is an important malignancy throughout the world; early detection is an important criterion for achieving high cure rate. Out of the many reported markers for OSCC, this study validated the efficacy of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF- α) in differentially diagnosing premalignant oral lesions and OSCC. Also, the study aimed to correlate the levels of salivary and serum TNF- α with clinicopathologic factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective experimental laboratory study was designed. Serum and salivary samples from 100 subjects in each group of healthy control, premalignant disease (PMD) and OSCC were collected for the study following appropriate exclusion and inclusion criteria. Serum and salivary level of TNF-α was analysed by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. The data obtained were subjected to appropriate statistical analysis. RESULTS: Increased level of both serum and salivary TNF- α was observed in OSCC subjects compared to healthy control and PMD group. Receiver operator characteristic curve analysis and area under curve values showed high specificity and sensitivity for salivary TNF-α in differentiating OSCC from PMD and healthy controls. There was significant increase in TNF- α level in moderately and poorly differentiated lesion compared to well differentiated lesion and in stage IV of clinical stage. A positive correlation was observed only with histological grading of OSCC and TNF- α. CONCLUSIONS: Salivary TNF-α is proved to be superior for detecting OSCC. Increase in TNF-α with histological grading and clinical staging suggests a role in prognosis.