Violence against Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Mexico.

This study measured the prevalence of cases of domestic violence against women and some associated factors during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico. Data were collected through a remote survey during 2020. The sample included 47,819 women aged 15 years and older. Jointpoint regression and logistic regression models were used. The prevalence of violence was 11.5%, which decreased in July and subsequently increased. The associated factors were being unemployed (OR = 2.01; 95%CI 1.89-2.16); being partially and totally quarantined (OR = 1.58; 95%CI 1.43-1.75 and OR = 1.47; 95%CI 1.32-1.63); being a caregiver of children; being a caregiver of elderly and/or suffering from a chronic illness (OR = 1.27; 95%CI 1.19-1.36; OR = 1.42; 95%CI 1.33-1.53; OR = 1.59; 95%CI 1.47-1.73); losing a family member to COVID-19 (OR = 1.26; 95%CI 1.13-1.41); and binge drinking (OR = 1.94; 95%CI 1.78-2.12). The confinement measures increased gender inequalities, economic problems and workload which further evidenced violence against women.

Effects of COVID-19 on sensory and cognitive perception of mild and severe diagnosed and recovered patients versus healthy consumers.

The objective of this research was to analyze the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 virus on the sensory and cognitive perception of mild and severe COVID-19 diagnosed and recovered consumers versus healthy consumers. Three groups of 50 consumers each (healthy vs. mild and severe COVID-19 diagnosed with 30 days after recovery) were used for the evaluation of instant coffee stimuli in concentrations: 4.40, 2.93, 2.20, 1.76, and 1.47% weight (w)/volume (v) and determine their discriminating power, emotions, and memories. Sensory tests were performed remotely. Results indicated that healthy consumers perceived higher intensities in most of the sensory attributes (with the exception of Burnt-A, Bitter-T, Acid-T, and Astringent-T attributes) compared to consumers who presented mild and severe COVID-19. Therefore, consumers diagnosed with mild and severe COVID-19 had a higher discrimination power in the attributes smell, basic tastes, and flavor. Healthy consumers could only discriminate two attributes that correspond to basic flavors. Consumers with mild and severe COVID-19 diagnosis elicited the highest number of negatives emotions (such as bored, disgusted, worried, guilty, wild, and aggressive) and negative memories (disease, pain, death, hurt, obesity, conflict personal, addiction, stench poverty, and accident) than healthy consumers. It is concluded that there were no significant differences between the consumer panels for the identification of sensory attributes. However, P-Healthy consumers perceived the highest intensities in most sensory attributes compared to those in the PCOVID19-Mild and PCOVID19-Severe panels. Finally, consumers diagnosed with mild or severe COVID-19 used a higher number of emotions and memories than those of the healthy panel. Practical applications: Investigating the effects of COVID-19 on sensory and cognitive perception can be useful for industry and researchers in the sensory field who wish to understand the effects of the disease in order to generate new protocols for the selection and training of people, as well as the possible development and innovation of new products focused on perception of consumers recovered from COVID-19.

Measurement invariance of the GAD-5 Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale in a Mexican general population sample.

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the measurement of invariance by sex, age, and educational level of an online version of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale in a five-item version (GAD-5). Configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariance were evaluated using data from 79,473 respondents who answered a mental health questionnaire during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico. The sex variable was classified as male or female; age was categorized as minors, youth, young adults, adults, and older adults; and educational level was divided into basic, upper secondary, higher, and graduate education. To test for configural invariance, confirmatory factor models were constructed. For metric invariance, equality restrictions were established for the factor loadings between the construct and its items; for scalar invariance, equality restrictions were established between the intercepts; strict variance implied the additional restriction of the residuals. Statistical analysis was performed in R software with the lavaan package. The results show that with respect to sex, age, and educational level, configural and metric measurement invariance was confirmed (ΔCFI < 0.002; ΔRMSEA < 0.015). However, with respect to scalar and strict invariance, the results showed significant differences regarding the fit model (ΔCFI > 0.002; ΔRMSEA > 0.015). We conclude that the GAD-5 presents configural and metric invariance for sex, age, and educational level, and scalar invariance for sex and age groups. However, the scale does not demonstrate strict invariance. We discuss the implications and suggest that this result could be related to the evaluation of sociodemographic variables.

Measurement invariance of the GAD-5 Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale in a Mexican general population sample

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the measurement of invariance by sex, age, and educational level of an online version of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale in a five-item version (GAD-5). Configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariance were evaluated using data from 79,473 respondents who answered a mental health questionnaire during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico. The sex variable was classified as male or female;age was categorized as minors, youth, young adults, adults, and older adults;and educational level was divided into basic, upper secondary, higher, and graduate education. To test for configural invariance, confirmatory factor models were constructed. For metric invariance, equality restrictions were established for the factor loadings between the construct and its items;for scalar invariance, equality restrictions were established between the intercepts;strict variance implied the additional restriction of the residuals. Statistical analysis was performed in R software with the lavaan package. The results show that with respect to sex, age, and educational level, configural and metric measurement invariance was confirmed (ΔCFI < 0.002;ΔRMSEA < 0.015). However, with respect to scalar and strict invariance, the results showed significant differences regarding the fit model (ΔCFI > 0.002;ΔRMSEA > 0.015). We conclude that the GAD-5 presents configural and metric invariance for sex, age, and educational level, and scalar invariance for sex and age groups. However, the scale does not demonstrate strict invariance. We discuss the implications and suggest that this result could be related to the evaluation of sociodemographic variables.

Social Support and Resilience as Predictors of Prosocial Behaviors before and during COVID-19.

The objective of this research was to analyze the relationship between social support and resilience with prosocial behavior before and during the confinement caused by COVID-19. Materials and Methods: The participants were divided into a confined group (228 women and 84 men) and an unconfined group (153 women and 105 men), all of whom were university students. Instruments were applied to measure the variables proposed. Results: Social support predicted 24.4% of the variance in prosocial behavior among women and 12% among men in the confined group; no evidence of this relationship was found in the unconfined groups. Resilience predicted 7% of the variance in prosocial behavior among confined women, 8.4% among confined men, 8.8% among unconfined women, and 5.1% in unconfined men. Discussion and Conclusion: The results show the importance of social support and resilience in prosocial behaviors, which are key elements for the proper functioning of society, especially in the face of a crisis such as COVID-19.

Disability-Adjusted Life Years for the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Mexican Population.

Mexico is one of the countries most affected by the COVID-19 disease. Although there is vast information on the disease, there still are unknown data on the societal and economic cost of the pandemic. To estimate this impact, the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) can be a useful tool. Objective: To assess the DALYs due to COVID-19 in Mexico. Methods: We used the data released by the Mexican Ministry of Health to estimate the DALYs by the sum of the years of life lived with disability (YLDs) and the years of life lost (YLLs). Results: A total of 1,152,885 confirmed cases and 324,570 suspected cases of COVID-19 have been registered. Half of the cases were men, with a median age of 43.4 ± 16.9 years. About 8.3% died. A total of 39,202 YLDs were attributable to COVID-19. The total YLLs caused by COVID-19 were 2,126,222. A total of 2,165,424.5 DALYs for COVID-19 were estimated. The total DALYs were the highest in people between 50 and 59 years. The DALYs for each COVID-19 case were the highest in individuals between 60 and 79 years. Conclusion: The DALYs generated by the COVID-19 represent a more significant disease burden than that reported for other causes, such as the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic. Although it impacts all age groups in terms of disability, the most affected group are people over 50 years of age, whose risk of death is higher.

Communicating bad news in the context of COVID-19.

Communicating bad news is one of the most frequent activities in hospitals, for which some recommendations have been adapted to the needs within the coronavirus-2 disease (COVID-19) context. This document presents nine steps to deliver bad news (face to face or remotely) adapted to the COVID-19 context from two international protocols (SPIKES and GRIEV_ING). The importance of promoting physical and emotional self-care skills in health personnel is also described, as well as psychological first aid strategies to address the emotional response of the family member who receives the news. Finally, the limitations and advantages of the proposal should be considered.

La comunicación de malas noticias es una de las actividades más frecuentes en los hospitales dentro del contexto de la COVID-19. A pesar de su alta frecuencia, existen pocas recomendaciones adaptadas a las necesidades que el contexto de la COVID-19 demanda. Debido a lo anterior, en el presente escrito se presentan nueve pasos para dar malas noticias (cara a cara o por vía remota) de dos protocolos internacionales (SPIKES y GRIEV_ING) adaptados a las necesidades de transmisión de información de la COVID-19. Se describe también la importancia de promover habilidades de autocuidado físico y emocional en el personal de salud, así como estrategias de primeros auxilios psicológicos para el abordaje de la respuesta emocional del familiar que recibe la noticia. Finalmente, se deben considerar las limitaciones y ventajas de la propuesta.

Needs assessment: knowledge of self-management of asthma for children with co-morbid physical and intellectual disabilities: brief report.

OBJECTIVES: The main goal of this study was to conduct a needs assessment to ascertain professionals' and parents' knowledge of and perceptions about education for self-management of asthma for children with physical and intellectual disabilities (IDs). Another goal was to understand needs for education of children with IDs about severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2; coronavirus) and other infectious diseases. METHODS: Surveys, presented in the RedCap system, were administered online. Respondents (n = 498) were recruited through sites and listservs for children with disabilities and individuals with asthma. Respondents answered eight questions about knowledge and education for self-management of asthma for children with physical disabilities and IDs. Respondents answered four questions pertaining to management of coronavirus for children with IDs. RESULTS: Respondents' indicated that it would be easier to educate youth with mild or moderate versus severe levels of disabilities. Children with IDs may not receive the education they need to manage their asthma. When comparing those in different occupations, teachers reported lower knowledge for educating children with IDs about asthma management and coronavirus. CONCLUSIONS: Doctors and nurses can develop programs for children with physical disabilities and IDs. Programming for youth with severe impairments is needed and perhaps developmentally appropriate programming for youth with IDs will improve education of youth and, concomitantly improve their self-management of asthma and potentially quality of life. Educating teachers is critical specifically about asthma triggers, how to involve youth in self-care, and how to educate children with IDs about coronavirus.Abbreviations:U.S.: United States;IDs: intellectual disabilities.

Correction to: A survival analysis of COVID-19 in the Mexican population.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article.

A survival analysis of COVID-19 in the Mexican population.

BACKGROUND: At present, the Americas report the largest number of cases of COVID-19 worldwide. In this region, Mexico is the third country with most deaths (20,781 total deaths). A sum that may be explained by the high proportion of people over 50 and the high rate of chronic diseases. The aim of this analysis is to investigate the risk factors associated with COVID-19 deaths in Mexican population using survival analysis. METHODS: Our analysis includes all confirmed COVID-19 cases contained in the dataset published by the Epidemiological Surveillance System for Viral Respiratory Diseases of the Mexican Ministry of Health. We applied survival analysis to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the Mexican population. From this analysis, we plotted Kaplan-Meier curves, and constructed a Cox proportional hazard model. RESULTS: The analysis included the register of 16,752 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with mean age 46.55 ± 15.55 years; 58.02% (n = 9719) men, and 9.37% (n = 1569) deaths. Male sex, older age, chronic kidney disease, pneumonia, hospitalization, intensive care unit admission, intubation, and health care in public health services, were independent factors increasing the risk of death due to COVID-19 (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The risk of dying at any time during follow-up was clearly higher for men, individuals in older age groups, people with chronic kidney disease, and people hospitalized in public health services.