Association Between Passive Smoking and Menstrual Discomfort: A Cross-Sectional Study of 2,571 Non-smoking Chinese Nurses.

Introduction: Menstrual discomfort affects women's quality of life, which is an important public health issue. Evidence confirming the link between passive smoking and menstrual discomfort is limited. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the aforementioned topic on the basis of a cross-sectional study of 2,571 non-smoking Chinese nurses. Methods: Demographic information and passive smoking were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire. Menstrual discomfort was characterized as dysmenorrhea, illness or weakness, bed rest, and restlessness during menstruation, which was assessed using a modified version of the Cornell Medical Index-Health Questionnaire. Multivariate-adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using the logistic regression model. Results: A total of 1:195 nurses (46.48%) were exposed to passive smoking. Compared with non-passive smoking nurses, passive smoking nurses were more likely to have menstrual discomfort symptoms (72.38 vs. 64.39%), especially symptoms of dysmenorrhea (49.54 vs. 42.08%), illnesses or weakness (48.28 vs. 42.08%), and restlessness during menstruation (53.05 vs. 46.22%). Exposure to passive smoking was significantly associated with menstrual discomfort (OR = 1.41, 95%CI: 1.19-1.67), especially symptoms of dysmenorrhea (OR = 1.32, 95%CI: 1.13-1.56), illness or weakness (OR = 1.24, 95%CI: 1.06-1.46), and restlessness (OR = 1.26, 95%CI: 1.08-1.48) during menstruation. The subgroup analyses, stratified by age, children, and marital status, agreed with the main findings. Conclusions: Exposure to passive smoking was related to symptoms of dysmenorrhea and menstrual discomfort.

Association Between Passive Smoking and Health Among Chinese Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study.

This study aimed to investigate the association between passive smoking and physical and psychological health in Chinese nurses. Participants of this cross-sectional study comprised 2,484 non-smoking nurses. Passive smoking and demographic information were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire. Physical, psychological, and overall health status of nurses were measured using the Cornell Medical Index (CMI) health questionnaire. Multivariate-adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for nurses' health were estimated by exposure to passive smoking using unconditional logistic regression models. A total of 1,219 nurses (49.07%) were exposed to passive smoking. Of these, 609 (24.52%), 160 (6.44%), and 587 (23.63%) nurses had poorer physical, mental, and overall health, respectively. After adjusting for other confounding factors, compared with the non-passive smoking group, passive smoking was associated with poor physical (OR = 1.51, 95% CI: 1.25-1.83), mental (OR = 1.48, 95% CI: 1.07-2.07), and overall (OR = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.30-1.93) health of nurses, respectively. We also carried out subgroup analyses stratified by age, department, and professional title, which showed that most findings supported the main results. This study demonstrated that exposure to passive smoking was a risk factor for overall decreased physical and mental health status among Chinese nurses.

[Effects of enteral nutrition starting time on digestive function and growth rate in very low birth weight infants].

OBJECTIVE: To study the appropriate time of starting enteral nutrition and observe the effects of different enteral nutrition starting times on the digestive function, growth rate, and nosocomial infection rate in very low birth weight infants (VLBWI). METHODS: All the VLBWI admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit between February and December, 2012 were selected. Depending on different times of starting enteral nutrition, these infants were divided into three groups: ≤ 3 days (n=116), 4-6 days (n=36), and ≥ 7 days (n=26). The effects of different enteral nutrition starting times on digestive function, growth rate and nosocomial infection rate were analyzed. RESULTS: The ≤ 3 days group had significantly higher milk intake than the other two groups at one week after birth; the ≤ 3 days and 4-6 days group had significantly higher milk intake than the ≥ 7 days group at two and three weeks after birth. The growth rate showed no significant differences between the three groups. The ≤ 3 days group had a significantly shorter time of central venous catheterization than the other two groups, and the ≥ 7 days group had a significantly longer time to full enteral feeding than the other two groups. The nosocomial infection rate of the ≤ 3 days group (13.8%) was significantly lower than that of the ≥ 7 days group (46.2%). CONCLUSIONS: For VLBWI, the time of starting enteral nutrition has no impact on growth rate, but starting enteral nutrition early can promote the development of gastrointestinal function, increase milk intake, shorten the time to full enteral feeding, reduce the time of central venous catheterization, and significantly reduce nosocomial infection rate.

[Juvenile psoriatic arthritis].

A case of juvenile psoriatic arthritis in a 12 year-old boy was reported. The patient had a history of one and half a year of bilateral heel pain, followed by pain in the right knee and ankle and right hip joint. He developed psoriatic lesions affecting his nails and skin. He had increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) contents. Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) B27 was detected but serum rheumatoid factor was not in the patient. A skin biopsy revealed psoriasis and ultrasonography demonstrated synovitis in right knee and ankle. Juvenile psoriatic arthritis was diagnosed based on his physical, laboratory and skin biopsy findings. A treatment with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and sulfasalazine produced no effect. Leflunomide in conjunction with anti-TNF biologic agents (Etanercept) was administered, followed by symptomatic improvement 2 weeks later.