Cell Phone and Computer Use Among Parents Visiting an Urban Pediatric Emergency Department.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence of cell phone and computer use among urban families bringing their children to an emergency department and to determine which technologies parents prefer to use to receive health information. METHODS: We visited 2 pediatric emergency departments in Baltimore, Md, and Little Rock, Ark. A convenience sample of parents of children 8 years old or younger completed a self-administered survey in the waiting area. RESULTS: Two hundred thirty-eight surveys were completed. Respondents were primarily female (83%), less than 35 years old (74%), and had at least a high school diploma or General Educational Development (94%). Forty-three percent were employed full time. A majority (95%) of respondents reported owning a cell phone, with most (88%) owning a smartphone and 96% reported having some internet access. Of cell phone owners, 91% reported daily text messaging activity. Over half (63%) of respondents reported having computer internet access at home; 31% reported having internet access at work. Patterns of behavior and preferences emerged for both cell phone and computer use. Respondents were more likely to check their email (75% vs 50%, P < 0.0001) and access the internet (78% vs 67%, P = 0.002) with a smartphone rather than their computer. CONCLUSIONS: Both cell phones and computers are prevalent and used among urban families seen in pediatric emergency departments, offering new ways to deliver health information to these often underserved populations. Providers aiming to deliver health information should consider smartphone applications, text message-based programs, and email to communicate with their patients.

Treatment of preestablished diet-induced fatty liver by oral fatty acid-bile acid conjugates in rodents.

BACKGROUND: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease in industrialized countries. It has no accepted medical therapy. Fatty acid-bile acid conjugates (FABACs) were proven to prevent diet-induced NAFLD in rodents. AIM: This study was undertaken to test whether oral FABACs are also effective in reducing liver fat in preestablished diet-induced NAFLD. METHODS: NAFLD was induced in mice and rats by a high-fat diet and maintained by various proportions thereof. The FABACs used were conjugates of cholic acid with either arachidic or stearic acids. RESULTS: FABAC therapy reduced liver fat in all four series of experiments. The rapidity of the effect was inversely proportional to the concentration of fat in the maintenance diet. In mice on a 25% maintenance diet FABACs decreased total liver lipids by about 30% in 4 weeks (P<0.03). Diglycerides (P<0.003) and triglycerides (P<0.01) were the main neutral liver lipids that decreased during FABAC therapy. Both FABACs tested reduced liver fat in NAFLD at doses of 25 and 150 mg/kg/day. High-fat diet increased, whereas FABAC therapy decreased plasma 16 : 1/(16 : 0+16 : 1) fatty acid ratio - a marker of stearoyl CoA desaturase activity. In HepG2 cells FABACs decreased de-novo fatty acid synthesis dose dependently. CONCLUSION: Oral FABAC therapy decreased liver fat in preestablished NAFLD in mice and rats. Inhibition of stearoyl CoA desaturase activity and fatty acid synthesis are mechanisms that may contribute to this decrease. FABACs may be potential therapeutic agents for human NAFLD.

Multi-modal weight control intervention for people with persistent mental disorders.

Obesity, a major problem worldwide, is more prevalent among people with schizophrenia. This study examined the effect of behavior intervention, nutritional information and physical exercise on the body mass index (BMI) and weight of people who were hospitalized with persistent DSM-IV schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorders. Fifty nine inpatients with a BMI greater than 25 participated, (28 intervention group; 31 control group). Significant reductions in BMI and weight were observed in the intervention group after 3 months and were maintained 1-year post study [F(1,52) = 6.1, p = .017) and F(1,52) = 3.7, P = .006, respectively]. If provided with adequate information and an appropriate framework, people with persistent schizophrenia can significantly reduce BMI and weight and maintain the loss.