Correlation between tobacco control policies and tobacco prevention in Mexico: a sub-national analysis.

This study aims to determinate the correlation between tobacco control policies (TCP) and the prevalence of tobacco use in the 32 Mexican states during the 2016-2017 period. This is an ecological study that measured TCP by the Tobacco Control Scale (TCS) which assigns a score (0-100) based on the level of these component's implementation: price, prohibition in public spaces, expenditures of public information campaigns, publicity prohibitions, health warnings, and treatments. We analyzed the associations between the TCS scores and prevalence of tobacco use extracted from the National Survey of Drug, Alcohol and Tobacco Consumption using Spearman correlations. Prevalence of daily smokers is negatively correlated with global TCS scores for adolescents (p = 0.026). Price showed similar negative correlations with daily prevalence in adolescents (p = 0.003), adults (p = 0.040), men (p < 0.006), and women (p = 0.040). Many Mexican states need to improve on tobacco control policies, especially targeting a key population: adolescents.

Excess Mortality During 2020 in Spain: The Most Affected Population, Age, and Educational Group by the COVID-19 Pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this work was to study mortality increase in Spain during the first and second academic semesters of 2020, coinciding with the first 2 waves of the Covid-19 pandemic; by sex, age, and education. METHODS: An observational study was carried out, using linked populations and deaths' data from 2017 to 2020. The mortality rates from all causes and leading causes other than Covid-19 during each semester of 2020, compared to the 2017-2019 averages for the same semester, was also estimated. Mortality rate ratios (MRR) and differences were used for comparison. RESULTS: All-cause mortality rates increased in 2020 compared to pre-covid, except among working-age, (25-64 years) highly-educated women. Such increases were larger in lower-educated people between the working age range, in both 2020 semesters, but not at other ages. In the elderly, the MMR in the first semester in women and men were respectively, 1.14, and 1.25 among lower-educated people, and 1.28 and 1.23 among highly-educated people. In the second semester, the MMR were 1.12 in both sexes among lower-educated people and 1.13 in women and 1.16 in men among highly-educated people. CONCLUSION: Lower-educated people within working age and highly-educated people at older ages showed the greatest increase in all-cause mortality in 2020, compared to the pre-pandemic period.

Socioeconomic Patterns in the Frequency of Doctor Visits in Germany and Spain in Subjects With and Without Chronic Diseases.

The objective of universal health care systems is to achieve equality in the use of health services at the same level of care need. This study evaluates the relationship of socioeconomic position with the frequency of doctor visits in subjects with and without chronic diseases in Germany and Spain. The dependent variables included number of consultations and if a medical consultation occurred. The socioeconomic factors were income and education. The magnitude of the relationship between socioeconomic position and medical consultation frequency was estimated by calculating the percentage ratio using binomial regression and by calculating the difference in consultations by analysis of the covariance, in the case of number of visits. Statistically significant findings according to education were not observed. The percentage ratio in the medical consultations among those with lower and higher income was 1.03 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01-2.88) in Germany and 1.11 (95% CI 1.03-1.20) in Spain among subjects with any of the studied chronic conditions. Also, in Germany the difference in the average number of consultations comparing lower income subjects with higher was 3.98 (95% CI 2.40-5.57) in those with chronic conditions. In both countries, there were no differences in the frequency of doctor visits according to education. However, a pro-inequality trend exists in favor of subjects with lower income.

Heavy Drinking by Occupation in Spain: Differences Between Weekdays and the Weekend.

Estimating occupational disparity in heavy drinking jointly for weekdays and the weekend may be misleading for prevention purposes, because reasons for disparity in both periods may differ. The main objective was to assess occupational disparity in heavy average drinking (HAD) by week period and sex. 42,108 employees aged 16-64 were recruited from national surveys in Spain between 2011 and 2020. The outcome was HAD, defined as daily alcohol intake over 20 g (men) or 10 g (women). Occupation was classified in 15 categories. HAD adjusted prevalence ratios (HAD-aPRs) taking all occupations as reference, and relative adjusted excess prevalences (HAD-aEPs) comparing the weekend to weekdays in each occupation, were estimated using Poisson regression models with robust variance adjusted for sociodemographic and health covariates. The HAD-aPRs comparing each occupation with all occupations ranged 0.63-1.92 on weekdays and 0.65-1.45 on the weekend, with the highest aPRs on weekdays in construction, hospitality and primary-sector workers (1.92-1.62). The weekend-weekdays HAD-aEPs by occupation ranged 2.60-8.33, with the highest values in technicians/administrators, other professionals, teachers and health professionals (8.33-6.44). The global aEP was higher in women (6.04) than in men (3.92), especially in occupations just mentioned (8.70-11.73 in women vs. 3.64-6.32 in men). There was a considerable relative disparity in HAD risk between occupations on weekdays, with the highest risks in certain low-skilled occupations. Such disparity decreased on the weekend. The relative weekend increase in HAD risk was greater in women and in certain high-skilled occupations. This should be considered when designing prevention interventions on harmful drinking.

Abrupt peaks in perceived risk of occasional drug use after changing the question order in a repeated self-administered survey.

Background: Question-order changes in repeated surveys can distort comparisons. We want to describe the evolution of drug risk perceptions among Spanish adolescents and assessing whether the 2006 peaks in perceived risk of occasional drug use can be explained by question-order changes. Methods: The subjects were secondary students from a biennial national survey during 2000-2012. A one-off intervention was applied in 2006, replacing the two-adjacent items on perceived risk of occasional and regular use of each drug by non-adjacent items. Annual prevalence of high-risk perception were obtained for occasional and regular use of cannabis, heroin, cocaine and ecstasy. Subsequently, the 2006 percent level change (PC) in such were estimated prevalence using segmented Poisson regression, adjusting for various student and parent covariates. Results: The 2006 PC in prevalence of high-risk perception of occasional drug use ranged from +63% (heroin) to +83% (ecstasy). These PCs were very high in all considered subgroups. However, the 2006 PC in prevalence of high-risk perception of regular drug use ranged from 1% (heroin) to 12% (cannabis). The evolution of preventive interventions does not suggest alternative causal hypotheses for 2006 peaks other than question-order changes. Conclusion: Within the cognitive heuristics framework, the 2006 spikes in perceived risk of occasional drug use were most likely due to a release of the anchor exerted by perceived risk of regular drug use over that of occasional use triggered by 2006 question-order changes. In repeated surveys it is inexcusable to pre-test the effect of any change in questionnaire format.

Increase in educational inequalities in alcohol-related mortality in Spain during a period of economic growth.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Alcohol-related mortality risk is almost always greater in lower than higher socio-economic positions (SEPs). There is little information on the evolution of this SEP gradient and its relationship with the economic cycle. Some results suggest that during economic expansions, there is a hypersensitivity of low-SEP people to harmful drinking. The main objective of this study was to measure the evolution of educational inequality in alcohol-related and non-alcohol related mortality by sex and age group in Spain during 2012-19. DESIGN, SETTING AND MEASUREMENTS: This is a repeated cross-sectional study. This study includes all residents in Spain aged 25 years and over from 2012 to 2019. (1) We calculated age-standardized mortality rates (ASMRs) from strongly/moderately alcohol-related causes (directly alcohol-attributable, unspecified liver cirrhosis, liver and upper aerodigestive tract cancers and moderately alcohol-related), weakly alcohol-related causes and other causes by educational level. (2) We used age-adjusted relative index of inequality (RII) and slope index of inequality (SII) to measure relative and absolute educational inequality in mortality, respectively. (3) Age-adjusted annual percentage change (APC) was also used to measure linear trends in mortality by educational level. RII, SII and APC were obtained from negative binomial regression. FINDINGS: Between 2012-15 and 2016-19, economic growth accelerated, the RII in mortality from strongly/moderately alcohol-related causes increased from 2.0 to 2.2 among men and from 1.1 to 1.3 among women, and the SII in deaths/100 000 person-years from 181.4 to 190.9 among men and from 18.9 to 46.5 among women. It also increased relative and absolute inequality in mortality from weakly alcohol-related and other causes of death in both men and women. These increases in inequality were due primarily to a flattening or even reversal of the downward mortality trend among low- and medium-educated people. CONCLUSIONS: During the economic expansion of 2012-19 in Spain, changes in mortality risk from strongly/moderately alcohol-related causes were especially unfavourable among low- and medium-educated people.

Evolution of mortality attributable to alcohol in Spain according to age, sex, cause of death and type of drinker (2001-2017). / Evolución de la mortalidad atribuible al alcohol en España según edad, sexo, causa de muerte y tipo de bebedor (2001-2017).

There are no recent estimates of alcohol-attributable mortality in Spain with Spanish alcohol consumption data. The objective is to estimate it and know its evolution between 2001 and 2017 in people ≥15 years, according to sex, age, period, cause of death and type of drinker. The cause-specific approach and Levin's equation were used. Survey consumption was corrected for underestimation with respect to sales statistics, and past consumption and binge drinking were considered. The average annual number of deaths attributable to alcohol in 2010-2017 was 14,927, 58.6% of which were premature (<75 years). The age-standardized alcohol-attributable mortality rate was 39.4/100,000 inhabitants, representing 3.9% of overall mortality. Using standardized percentages, 68.7% corresponded to heavy drinkers. The most frequent causes of alcohol-attributable mortality were cancer (44.7%) and digestive diseases (33.2%).  The rate of alcohol-attributable mortality was 3.5 times higher in men than in women (with higher ratios for young people and external causes). Between 2001-2009 and 2010-2017, the average annual rate decreased 16.8% (60.7% in 15-34 years; 19.4% in men and 9.8% in women). The contribution of heavy drinkers, digestive diseases and external causes to the risk of alcohol-attributable mortality decreased slightly between the two periods, while the contribution of cancer and circulatory diseases increased. These estimates are conservative. The contribution of alcohol to overall mortality is significant in Spain, requiring collective action to reduce it.

En España no hay estimaciones recientes de la mortalidad atribuible a alcohol con datos de consumo de alcohol españoles. El objetivo es estimarla y conocer la evolución entre 2001 y 2017 en personas ≥15 años, según sexo, edad, periodo, causa de muerte y tipo de bebedor. Se utilizó el enfoque causa específico y la ecuación de Levin. El consumo de las encuestas se corrigió por subestimación con respecto a las estadísticas de ventas y se consideró el consumo pasado y los atracones de alcohol. El número medio anual de muertes atribuibles a alcohol en 2010-2017 fue 14.927, un 58,6% prematuras (<75 años). La tasa de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol estandarizada por edad fue 39,4/ 100.000 habitantes, representando un 3,9% de la mortalidad general. Usando porcentajes estandarizados un 68,7% correspondió a bebedores de alto riesgo. Las causas de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol más frecuentes fueron cáncer (43,8%) y enfermedades digestivas (32,9%).  La tasa de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol fue 3,5 veces mayor en hombres que en mujeres (con cocientes más elevados para jóvenes y causas externas). Entre 2001-2009 y 2010-2017 la tasa media anual disminuyó un 16,8% (60,7% en 15-34 años; 19,4% en hombres y 9,8% en mujeres). La contribución de los bebedores de alto riesgo y de las enfermedades digestivas y causas externas al riesgo de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol disminuyó ligeramente entre los dos períodos, mientras que aumentó la contribución del cáncer y enfermedades circulatorias. Estas estimaciones son conservadoras. La contribución del alcohol a la mortalidad general es importante en España, requiriendo medidas colectivas para reducirla.

Trends in Activity Limitations From an International Perspective: Differential Changes Between Age Groups Across 30 Countries.

Objectives: Examine trends in limitations among young (15-39), middle-aged (40-64) and older age-groups (>=65) and their socioeconomic differences. Methods: Population-based European Social Survey data (N = 396,853) were used, covering 30 mostly European countries and spanning the time-period 2002-2018. Limitations were measured using a global activity limitations indicator. Results: Age-differential trends in limitations were found. Activity limitations generally decreased in older adults, whereas trends varied among younger and middle-aged participants, with decreasing limitations in some countries but increasing limitations in others. These age-differential trends were replicated across limitation severity and socioeconomic groups; however, stronger limitation increases occurred regarding less-severe limitations. Discussion: Functional health has improved in older adults. Contrarily, the increasing limitations in younger and middle-aged individuals seem concerning, which were mostly observed in Western and Northern European countries. Given its public health importance, future studies should investigate the reasons for this declining functional health in the young and middle-aged.

Free Access to Direct-Acting Antivirals in Spain: More Favorable Impact on Hepatitis C Mortality Among Highly Educated People.

BACKGROUND: In 2015, hepatitis C treatment with direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) became free and widespread in Spain, significantly reducing hepatitis C-related mortality. However, health interventions can sometimes widen health inequalities. The objective of this study is to assess the impact of DAA treatment on hepatitis C-related mortality by educational level. METHODS: We analyzed deaths from hepatitis C, unspecified liver cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, alcohol-related liver diseases, other liver diseases, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease among individuals living in Spain during 2012-2019 and aged ≥25 years. We calculated age-standardized mortality rates per million person-years by period, sex, and education. Using quasi-Poisson segmented regression models, we estimated the annual percent change in rates in pre- and postintervention periods by education level and the relative inequality index (RII). RESULTS: Hepatitis C mortality rates among low, middle, and highly educated people decreased from 25.2, 23.2, and 20.3/million person-years in the preintervention period to 15.8, 13.7, and 10.4 in the postintervention period. Mortality rates from other analyzed causes also decreased. Following the intervention, downward trends in hepatitis C mortality accelerated at all education levels, although more in highly educated people, and the RII increased from 2.1 to 2.7. For other analyzed causes of death, no favorable changes were observed in mortality trends, except for liver cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, HIV disease, and alcohol-related liver disease among higher educated people. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that DAA treatments had a very favorable impact on hepatitis C mortality at all education levels. However, even in a universal and free healthcare system, highly educated people seem to benefit more from DAA treatment than less educated people.

Evolución de la mortalidad atribuible al alcohol en España según edad, sexo, causa de muerte y tipo de bebedor (2001-2017) / Evolution of mortality attributable to alcohol in Spain according to age, sex, cause of death and type of drinker (2001-2017)

En España no hay estimaciones recientes de la mortalidad atribuible a alcohol con datos de consumo de alcohol españoles. El objetivo es estimarla y conocer la evolución entre 2001 y 2017 en personas ≥15 años, según sexo,edad, periodo, causa de muerte y tipo de bebedor. Se utilizó el enfoque causa específico y la ecuación de Levin. El consumo de las encuestas se corrigió por subestimación con respecto a las estadísticas de ventas y se consideró el consumo pasado y los atracones de alcohol. El número medio anual de muertes atribuibles a alcohol en 2010-2017 fue 14.927, un 58,6% prematuras(<75 años). La tasa de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol estandarizada por edad fue 39,4/ 100.000 habitantes, representando un 3,9% de la mortalidad general. Usando porcentajes estandarizados un 68,7% correspondió a bebedores de alto riesgo. Las causas de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol más frecuentes fueron cáncer (43,8%) y enfermedades digestivas (32,9%). La tasa de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol fue 3,5 veces mayor en hombres que en mujeres (con cocientes más elevados para jóvenes y causas externas). Entre2001-2009 y 2010-2017 la tasa media anual disminuyó un 16,8% (60,7%en 15-34 años; 19,4% en hombres y 9,8% en mujeres). La contribución de los bebedores de alto riesgo y de las enfermedades digestivas y causas externas al riesgo de mortalidad atribuible a alcohol disminuyó ligeramente entre los dos períodos, mientras que aumentó la contribución del cáncer y enfermedades circulatorias. Estas estimaciones son conservadoras. La contribución del alcohol a la mortalidad general es importante en España, requiriendo medidas colectivas para reducirla. (AU)

There are no recent estimates of alcohol-attributable mortality in Spain with Spanish alcohol consumption data. The objective is to estimate it and knowits evolution between 2001 and 2017 in people ≥15 years, according to sex, age, period, cause of death and type of drinker. The cause-specific approach and Levin’s equation were used. Survey consumption was corrected forunder estimation with respect to sales statistics, and past consumption and binge drinking were considered. The average annual number of deaths attributable to alcohol in 2010-2017 was 14,927, 58.6% of which were premature (<75 years). The age-standardized alcohol-attributable mortality rate was 39.4/100,000 inhabitants, representing 3.9% of overall mortality.Using standardized percentages, 68.7% corresponded to heavy drinkers. The most frequent causes of alcohol-attributable mortality were cancer(44.7%) and digestive diseases (33.2%). The rate of alcohol-attributable mortality was 3.5 times higher in men than in women (with higher ratiosfor young people and external causes). Between 2001-2009 and 2010-2017,the average annual rate decreased 16.8% (60.7% in 15-34 years; 19.4% inmen and 9.8% in women). The contribution of heavy drinkers, digestive diseases and external causes to the risk of alcohol-attributable mortality decreased slightly between the two periods, while the contribution of cancer and circulatory diseases increased. These estimates are conservative. The contribution of alcohol to overall mortality is significant in Spain, requiring collective action to reduce it. (AU)

Heterogeneity in the association between prediabetes categories and reduction on glomerular filtration rate in a 5-year follow-up.

Prediabetes and not just diabetes can cause kidney damage. This study assess the association of prediabetes with development of impaired renal function (IRF). We used data from PREDAPS prospective study a cohort of 1072 subjects with prediabetes and another cohort of 772 subjects without prediabetes were follow-up from 2012 to 2017. Prediabetes was defined according to American Association of Diabetes criteria. IRF was defined as having a glomerular filtration rate < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2. Incidence rates of IRF in both cohorts and in different categories of prediabetes, based on impaired glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and/or fasting plasma glucose (FPG), were calculated. Hazard ratios (HR) for the association of the prediabetes with IRF, adjusting for potential confounders, were estimated by Cox regression models. Incidence rates of IRF per 100 person-years were 1.72 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.34-2.21) and 1.79 (95%CI: 1.45-2.20) for those without and with prediabetes, respectively .The HR of IRF in subjects with prediabetes with respect to subjects without prediabetes was 0.76 (95% CI: 0. 54-1.07). Corresponding HRs for type of prediabetes was 0.68 (95%CI: 0.40-1.15) for those with both altered parameters, 0.68 (95%CI: 00.40-1.15) for those with only impaired HbA1c and 1.12 (95%CI: 0.68-1.85) for those with only impaired FPG. The present study reflects an overall trend towards a slightly decreased risk of IRF onset associated to prediabetes except for individuals with only isolated impaired FPG. Further studies are warranted to fully assess the renal progression of each group.

Educational Gradients in Drinking Amount and Heavy Episodic Drinking among Working-Age Men and Women in Spain.

Alcohol-related harm decreases as socioeconomic position increases, although sometimes the opposite happens with alcohol intake. The objective was to know the educational gradient in monthly measures of drinking amount and heavy episodic drinking (HED) among people aged 25−64 years in Spain from 1997−2017. Such gradient was characterized with the relative percent change (PC) in drinking measures per year of education from generalized linear regression models after adjusting for age, year, region, marital status and immigration status. Among men, the PCs were significantly positive (p < 0.05) for prevalence of <21 g alcohol/day (2.9%) and 1−3 HED days (1.4%), and they were negative for prevalences of 21−40 g/day (−1.1%), >40 g/day (−6.0%) and ≥4 HED days (−3.2%), while among women they ranged from 3.6% to 5.7%. The gradient in prevalences of >40 g/day (men) and >20 g/day (women) was greatly attenuated after additionally adjusting for HED, while that of ≥4 HED days was only slightly attenuated after additionally adjusting for drinking amount. Among women, the gradients, especially in HED measures, seem steeper in 2009−2017 than in 1997−2007. Educational inequality remained after additional adjustment for income and occupation, although it decreased among women. These results can guide preventive interventions and help explain socioeconomic inequalities in alcohol-related harm.

Favorable impact in hepatitis C-related mortality following free access to direct-acting antivirals in Spain.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Free treatments for HCV infection with direct-acting antivirals became widespread in Spain in April 2015. We aimed to test whether, after this intervention, there was a more favorable change in population mortality from HCV-related than from non-HCV-related causes. APPROACH AND RESULTS: Postintervention changes in mortality were assessed using uncontrolled before-after and single-group interrupted time series designs. All residents in Spain during 2001-2018 were included. Various underlying death causes were analyzed: HCV infection; other HCV-related outcomes (HCC, liver cirrhosis, and HIV disease); and non-C hepatitis, other liver diseases, and nonhepatic causes as control outcomes. Changes in mortality after the intervention were first assessed by rate ratios (RRs) between the postintervention and preintervention age-standardized mortality rates. Subsequently, using quasi-Poisson segmented regression models, we estimated the annual percent change (APC) in mortality rate in the postintervention and preintervention periods. All mortality rates were lower during the postintervention period, although RRs were much lower for HCV (0.53; 95% CI, 0.51-0.56) and HIV disease than other causes. After the intervention, there was a great acceleration of the downward mortality trend from HCV, whose APC went from -3.2% (95% CI, -3.6% to -2.8%) to -18.4% (95% CI, -20.6% to -16.3%). There were also significant accelerations in the downward trends in mortality from HCC and HIV disease, while they remained unchanged for cirrhosis and slowed or reversed for other causes. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the favorable changes in HCV-related mortality observed for Spain after April 2015 are attributable to scaling up free treatment with direct-acting antivirals and reinforce that HCV eradication is on the horizon.

Avoidable mortality for causes amenable to medical care and suicide in physicians in Spain.

OBJECTIVE: To compare avoidable mortality for causes amenable to medical care and suicide in physicians versus other professionals with similar university studies and socioeconomic position in Spain. METHODS: All people aged 25-64 years who were employed on 1 November 2001 (8,697,387 men and 5,282,611 women) were included. Their vital status was followed for 10 years and the cause of death of deceased was recorded. Using a Poisson regression to estimate the mortality rate ratio (MRR), we compared mortality due to causes of death amenable to medical care, all other causes, and suicide in physicians versus other professionals. Mortality in physicians was used as a reference. RESULTS: The lowest MRR for causes amenable to medical care was observed in engineers/architects (men: 0.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.72, 0.97; women: 0.93, 95% CI 0.64, 1.35) and healthcare professions other than physicians/pharmacists/nurses (men: 0.86, 95% CI 0.56, 1.34; women: 0.69, 95% CI 0.32, 1.46). Regarding mortality for all other causes of death, professionals from these and other occupations presented lower mortality than physicians. Other healthcare professions, entrepreneurs, and managers/executives completed suicide at a higher rate than physicians. CONCLUSION: Although the accessibility to the healthcare system and to the pharmacological drugs could suggest that physicians would present low rates for causes amenable to medical care and high rates of suicide, our results show that this is not the case in Spain.

Mediterranean diet and diabetes risk in a cohort study of individuals with prediabetes: propensity score analyses.

AIMS: Randomized controlled trials have demonstrated the efficacy of several dietary patterns plus physical activity to reduce diabetes onset in people with prediabetes. However, there is no evidence on the effect from the Mediterranean diet on the progression from prediabetes to diabetes. We aimed to evaluate the effect from high adherence to Mediterranean diet on the risk of diabetes in individuals with prediabetes. METHODS: Prospective cohort study in Spanish Primary Care setting. A total of 1184 participants with prediabetes based on levels of fasting plasma glucose and/or glycated hemoglobin were followed up for a mean of 4.2 years. A total of 210 participants developed diabetes type 2 during the follow up. Hazard ratios of diabetes onset were estimated by Cox proportional regression models associated to high versus low/medium adherence to Mediterranean diet. Different propensity score methods were used to control for potential confounders. RESULTS: Incidence rate of diabetes in participants with high versus low/medium adherence to Mediterranean diet was 2.9 versus 4.8 per 100 persons-years. The hazard ratios adjusted for propensity score and by inverse probability weighting (IPW) had identical magnitude: 0.63 (95% confidence interval, 0.43-0.93). The hazard ratio in the adjusted model using propensity score matching 1:2 was 0.56 (95% confidence interval, 0.37-0.84). CONCLUSIONS: These propensity score analyses suggest that high adherence to Mediterranean diet reduces diabetes risk in people with prediabetes.

The limits of measuring binge drinking prevalence for epidemiological surveillance: An example from Spain.

BACKGROUND: The public health impact of binge drinking depends on its population prevalence and its frequency and intensity among binge drinkers. The objective is to assess the consistency of time trends and age-sex disparities between binge-drinking prevalence and binge-drinking exposure indicators that combine such prevalence with the number of binge-drinking days among binge drinkers. METHODS: Data come from 11 biennial national household surveys from 1997 to 2017 in young (15-34 years) and middle-aged adults (35-64 years) in Spain (n = 211,961). Binge-drinking was the intake of 5+ standard drinks (4+ in women from 2009 onwards) in approximately two hours. Three monthly indicators were analyzed: binge-drinking prevalence, population rate of binge-drinking days, and proportion of drinking days with binge drinking. Results were stratified for sex and two age groups. Annual percent changes (APCs), ratios of young to middle-aged people (age ratios) and men-to-women ratios were obtained from negative binomial regression. RESULTS: Although the three indicators showed considerable consistency as an intense increase in binge drinking from 2009 to 2017 among middle-aged people, especially women, there were relevant inconsistencies. In 2009-2017 the APCs for prevalence and rate were +1.3 % and -1.6 %, respectively, in young women, and -0.6 % and -3.0 % in young men. Age ratios were significantly higher for prevalence and proportional ratio than rates, while men-to-women ratios were lower, especially in middle-aged people. CONCLUSIONS: Adequate monitoring of binge drinking should incorporate indicators of absolute exposure, which better reflect its impact on public health, such as the population rate of binge-drinking days.

Classifying and communicating risks in prediabetes according to fasting glucose and/or glycated hemoglobin: PREDAPS cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Information about prognostic outcomes can be of great help for people with prediabetes and for physicians in the face of scientific controversy about the cutoff point for defining prediabetes. We aimed to estimate different prognostic outcomes in people with prediabetes. DESIGN: Prospective cohort of subjects with prediabetes according to American Diabetes Association guidelines. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The probabilities of diabetes onset versus non-onset, the odds against diabetes onset, and the probability of reverting to normoglycemia according to different prediabetes categories were calculated. RESULTS: The odds against diabetes onset ranged from 29:1 in individuals with isolated FPG of 100-109 mg/dL to 1:1 in individuals with FPG 110-125 mg/dL plus HbA1c 6.0-6.4%. The probability of reversion to normoglycemia was 31.2% (95% CI 24.0-39.6) in those with isolated FPG 100-109 mg/dL and 6.2% (95% CI 1.4-10.0) in those with FPG 110-125 mg/dL plus HbA1c 6.0-6.4%. Of every 100 participants in the first group, 97 did not develop diabetes and 31 reverted to normoglycemia, while in the second group those figures were 52 and 6. CONCLUSIONS: Using odds of probabilities and absolute numbers might be useful for people with prediabetes and physicians to share decisions on potential interventions.Key pointsCommunicating knowledge on the course of the disease to make clinical decisions is not always done appropriately.Prediabetes is an example where risk communication is important because the prognosis of subjects with prediabetes is very heterogeneous.Depending on fasting plasma glucose and HbA1c levels, the odds of probabilities against diabetes onset ranged from 29: 1 to 1: 1.Depending on fasting plasma glucose and HbA1c levels, the number of subjects in 100 who revert to normoglycemia ranged from 31 to 6.Using probabilities and number absolutes on the prognosis of prediabetes may be useful for people with prediabetes and physicians to share decisions on potential interventions.

Socioeconomic patterns and COVID-19 outcomes before, during and after the lockdown in Italy (2020).

The objective was to investigate the association between deprivation and COVID-19 outcomes in Italy during pre-lockdown, lockdown and post-lockdown periods using a retrospective cohort study with 38,534,169 citizens and 222,875 COVID-19 cases. Multilevel negative binomial regression models, adjusting for age, sex, population-density and region of residence were conducted to evaluate the association between area-level deprivation and COVID-19 incidence, case-hospitalisation rate and case-fatality. During lockdown and post-lockdown, but not during pre-lockdown, higher incidence of cases was observed in the most deprived municipalities compared with the least deprived ones. No differences in case-hospitalisation and case-fatality according to deprivation were observed in any period under study.

Trends and equity in the use of health services in Spain and Germany around austerity in Europe.

BACKGROUND: Following the 2008 economic crisis many countries implemented austerity policies, including reducing public spending on health services. This paper evaluates the trends and equity in the use of health services during and after that period in Spain - a country with austerity policies - and in Germany - a country without restriction on healthcare spending. METHODS: Data from several National Surveys in Spain and several waves of the Socio-Economic Panel in Germany, carried out between 2009 and 2017, were used. The dependent variables were number of doctor's consultations and whether or not a hospital admission occurred. The measure of socioeconomic position was education. In each year, the estimates were made for people with and without pre-existing health problems. First, the average number of doctor's consultations and the percentage of respondents who had had been hospitalized were calculated. Second, the relationship between education and use of those health services was estimated by calculating the difference in consultations using covariance analysis - in the case of number of consultations - and by calculating the percentage ratio using binomial regression - in the case of hospitalization. RESULTS: The annual mean number of consultations went down in both countries. In Spain the average was 14.2 in 2009 and 10.4 in 2017 for patients with chronic conditions; 16.6 and 13.5 for those with a mental illness; and 6.4 and 5.9 for those without a defined illness. In Germany, the averages were 13.8 (2009) and 12.9 (2017) for the chronic group; 21.1 and 17.0 for mental illness; and 8.7 and 7.5 with no defined illness. The hospitalization frequency also decreased in both countries. The majority of the analyses presented no significant differences in relation to education. CONCLUSION: In both Spain and Germany, service use decreased between 2009 and 2017. In the first few years, this reduction coincided with a period of austerity in Spain. In general, we did not find socioeconomic differences in health service use.