Trends in Health-Risk Behaviors and Psychological Distress among Australian First-Year University Students.

University students are recognized as a high-risk population group who experience greater rates of poor health outcomes and mental ill-health. Commencing university is recognized as a major life transition, where students experience new financial, academic, environmental, and social pressures that can cause changes in their normal behaviors. This study explored trends in health-risk behaviors and psychological distress in commencing university students over four survey years. First-year undergraduate students, aged 17-24, from an Australian university were included. A secondary analysis was performed on data collected via cross-sectional surveys on four occasions (2016, 2017, 2019, 2020). Crude logistic regression models were utilized to investigate the association between meeting guidelines and survey year. Odds ratios for the pairwise comparison between each year are reported. In this analysis, 1300 (2016), 484 (2017), 456 (2019), and 571 (2020) students were included. Analyses showed two clear trends: students' probability of being at high/very high risk of psychological distress (35-55%) and consuming breakfast daily (44-55%) consistently worsened over the four survey years. These findings suggest that the odds of psychological distress and daily breakfast consumption worsened over time, whilst the proportion of students engaging in some health-risk behaviors was high, highlighting the importance of early intervention during the transition to university.

Evidence that oral immunoglobulins (KMP01) suppress pro-tumor inflammation in rectal carcinoma: Case report and treatment concept.

BACKGROUND: A female patient aged 49 years with a rectal adenocarcinoma underwent tumor resection and multiple follow-up surgical operations whilst receiving compassionate therapy with polyvalent immunoglobulins derived from bovine colostrum (KMP01), a potential modulator of the pro-tumor inflammatory response. AIMS: Assessment of safety of the treatment, effect on tumor recurrence, and effect on parameters associated with the pro-tumor inflammatory response. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The dose of KMP01 varied from 72 g daily in the perioperative period to 12 - 24 g daily thereafter. The pro-tumor inflammatory response was measured using changes in C-reactive protein (CRP) and the lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR). RESULTS: Surgical intervention caused large increases in CRP (up to 400 mg/L) and decreases in the LMR (below target levels of 2.83). However, such changes rapidly returned to normal, where they remained during prolonged treatment with immunoglobulins. Despite the generally poor prognosis associated with a stenotic tumor, cachexia, and multiple surgery, there was no tumor recurrence during the 3-year follow-up. The condition of the patient is good, albeit with a reduced quality of life due to the stoma. CONCLUSION: Polyvalent immunoglobulins constitute a potential and safe prophylactic agent against the pro-tumor inflammatory response. This is the first time that polyvalent immunoglobulins have been used in a colorectal carcinoma patient. The findings can be a basis for further investigations.

Scholarly activity as a selection criterion in the Canadian Residency Matching Service (CaRMS): A review of published criteria by internal medicine, family medicine, and pediatrics programs.

BACKGROUND: Undergraduate medical students seek as much information as possible as to how residency programs select candidates. The Canadian Residency Matching Service (CaRMS) website is one of their primary sources of information. Students may be more competitive in the match if they know whether scholarly activity is used in the selection process by their preferred programs, as described on the CaRMS website. METHODS: For all 17 Canadian faculties of medicine, 2019 R1 entry internal medicine, family medicine and pediatrics program descriptions were reviewed on the CaRMS website looking for keywords related to scholarly activity. RESULTS: Forty-one percent of family medicine, 65% of internal medicine and 71% of pediatric programs explicitly stated having interest in applicants with scholarly experience. In Western Canada, 80% of internal medicine and 60% of pediatrics programs included scholarly activity in their CaRMS description of criteria considered in ranking applications. Similarly, in Ontario, 66% of internal medicine and 83% of pediatrics programs mentioned scholarly activity as a valuable quality. In Quebec 100% of family medicine and 50% of pediatrics programs include scholarly activity in their descriptions. Pediatrics and family medicine programs (100%) in Atlantic Canada mentioned scholarly activities but neither of the two Atlantic Canada internal medicine programs mentioned scholarly activities. CONCLUSION: Undergraduate medical students can use this project to prioritize extracurricular activities and scholarly work to be competitive for application to family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics residency programs.

CONTEXTE: Les étudiants de premier cycle en médecine cherchent autant de renseignements que possible sur la manière dont les programmes de résidence sélectionnent les candidats. Le site Web du Service canadien de jumelage des résidents (CaRMS) représente l'une de leur principale source de renseignements. Les étudiants peuvent être plus compétitifs dans le jumelage s'ils savent comment les activités d'érudition sont utilisées dans le processus de sélection par leurs programmes préférés, comme il est décrit sur le site Web de CaRMS. MÉTHODES: Pour l'ensemble des 17 facultés de médecine canadiennes, les descriptions des programmes d'entrée R1 de 2019 en médecine interne, en médecine familiale et en pédiatrie ont été examinées sur le site Web du CaRMS pour la recherche de mots clés liés aux activités d'érudition. RÉSULTATS: 41 % des programmes de médecine familiale, 65 % de ceux en médecine interne et 71 % de ceux en pédiatrie énonçaient explicitement avoir un intérêt pour les candidats avec une expérience en érudition. Dans l'Ouest canadien, 80 % des programmes en médecine interne et 60 % de ceux en pédiatrie comportaient une activité d'érudition dans leur description CaRMS des critères dont ils tenaient compte dans le classement des demandes. De même, en Ontario, 66 % des programmes en médecine interne et 83 % de ceux en pédiatrie mentionnaient que les activités d'érudition représentaient une qualité importante. Au Québec, 100 % des programmes en médecine familiale et 50 % de ceux en pédiatrie présentent une activité d'érudition dans leur description. Les programmes de pédiatrie et de médecine familiale (100 %) dans le Canada atlantique mentionnent les activités scientifiques, mais aucun des deux programmes de médecine interne du Canada atlantique ne mentionnait des activités scientifiques. CONCLUSION: Les étudiants de premier cycle en médecine peuvent utiliser le présent projet pour prioriser leurs activités extracurriculaires et le travail d'érudition pour être compétitifs lors de leurs applications dans des programmes de médecine familiale, de médecine interne et de pédiatrie.