Prospective transitions in hemoglobin A1c following gestational diabetes using Multistate Markov Models.

OBJECTIVE: We characterized the state-to-state transitions in postpartum A1c levels after gestational diabetes, including remaining in a state of normoglycemia or transitions between prediabetes or diabetes states of varying severity. METHODS: We used data from the APPLE Cohort, a postpartum population-based cohort of individuals with gestational diabetes between 2009-2011and linked HbA1c data with up to 9 years follow-up (N=34,171). We examined maternal sociodemographic and perinatal characteristics as predictors of transitions in A1c progression using Markov multistate models. RESULTS: In the first-year postpartum following gestational diabetes, 45.1% of people had no-diabetes, 43.1% had prediabetes, 4.6% had controlled diabetes and 7.2% had uncontrolled diabetes. Roughly two-thirds of individuals remained in same state in the next year. Black individuals were more likely to transition from pre-diabetes to uncontrolled diabetes (aHR: 2.32 95% CI: 1.21 ,4.47) than White persons. Perinatal risk factors were associated with disease progression and lower likelihood of improvement. For example, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were associated with a stronger transition (aHR: 2.06 95% CI: 1.39, 3.05) from prediabetes to uncontrolled diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: We illustrate factors associated with adverse transitions in incremental A1c stages and describe patient profiles who may warrant enhanced postpartum monitoring.

Racism in obstetric care: a psychometric study of the Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale among Global Majority birthing people in obstetric contexts.

In the United States, maternal health inequities disproportionately affect Global Majority (e.g., Asian, Black, and Hispanic) populations. Despite a substantial body of research underscoring the influence of racism on these inequities, little research has examined how experiences of gendered racial microaggressions during pregnancy and birth impact racially and ethnically diverse Global Majority pregnant and birthing people in obstetric hospital settings. We evaluated the psychometric properties of an adapted version of Lewis & Neville's Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale, using data collected from 417 Global Majority birthing people. Findings from our study indicate that our adapted GRMS is a valid tool for assessing the experiences of gendered racial microaggressions in hospital-based obstetric care settings among Global Majority pregnant and birthing people whose preferred languages are English or Spanish. Item Response Theory (IRT) analysis demonstrated high construct validity of the adapted GRMS scale (Root Mean Square Error of Approximation = 0.1089 (95% CI 0.0921, 0.1263), Comparative Fit Index = 0.977, Standardized Root Mean Square Residual = 0.075, log-likelihood c2 = -85.6, df = 8). IRT analyses demonstrated that the unidimensional model was preferred to the bi-dimensional model as it was more interpretable, had lower AIC and BIC, and all items had large discrimination parameters onto a single factor (all discrimination parameters > 3.0). Given that we found similar response profiles among Black and Hispanic respondents, our Differential Item Functioning analyses support validity among Black, Hispanic, and Spanish-speaking birthing people. Inter-item correlations demonstrated adequate scale reliability, α = 0.97, and empirical reliability = 0.67. Pearsons correlations was used to assess the criterion validity of our adapted scale. Our scale's total score was significantly and positively related to postpartum depression and anxiety. Researchers and practitioners should seek to address instances of gendered racial microaggressions in obstetric settings, as they are manifestations of systemic and interpersonal racism, and impact postpartum health.

Racial and Ethnic Inequities in Development of Type 2 Diabetes After Gestational Diabetes Mellitus.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate racial and ethnic disparities in type 2 diabetes mellitus after gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and to investigate baseline pregnancy clinical and social or structural characteristics as mediators. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort of individuals with GDM using linked 2009-2011 New York City birth and hospital data and 2009-2017 New York City A1c Registry data. We ascertained GDM and pregnancy characteristics from birth and hospital records. We classified type 2 diabetes as two hemoglobin A 1c test results of 6.5% or higher. We grouped pregnancy characteristics into clinical (body mass index [BMI], chronic hypertension, gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, preterm delivery, caesarean, breastfeeding, macrosomia, shoulder dystocia) and social or structural (education, Medicaid insurance, prenatal care, and WIC [Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children] participation). We used Cox proportional hazards models to estimate associations between race and ethnicity and 8-year type 2 diabetes incidence, and we tested mediation of pregnancy characteristics, additionally adjusting for age and nativity (U.S.-born vs foreign-born). RESULTS: The analytic data set included 22,338 patients with GDM. The 8-year type 2 diabetes incidence was 11.7% overall and 18.5% in Black, 16.8% in South and Southeast Asian, 14.6% in Hispanic, 5.5% in East and Central Asian, and 5.4% in White individuals with adjusted hazard ratios of 4.0 (95% CI 2.4-3.9), 2.9 (95% CI 2.4-3.3), 3.3 (95% CI 2.7-4.2), and 1.0 (95% CI 0.9-1.4) for each group compared with White individuals. Clinical and social or structural pregnancy characteristics explained 9.3% and 23.8% of Black, 31.2% and 24.7% of Hispanic, and 7.6% and 16.3% of South and Southeast Asian compared with White disparities. Associations between education, Medicaid insurance, WIC participation, and BMI and type 2 diabetes incidence were more pronounced among White than Black, Hispanic, and South and Southeast Asian individuals. CONCLUSION: Population-based racial and ethnic inequities are substantial in type 2 diabetes after GDM. Characteristics at the time of delivery partially explain disparities, creating an opportunity to intervene on life-course cardiometabolic inequities, whereas weak associations of common social or structural measures and BMI in Black, Hispanic and South and Southeast Asian individuals demonstrate the need for greater understanding of how structural racism influences postpartum cardiometabolic risk in these groups.

Predictors and Trends in First-Trimester Hemoglobin A1c Screening in New York City, 2009 to 2017.

Glycated hemoglobin is an adjunct tool in early pregnancy to assess glycemic control. We examined trends and maternal predictors for those who had A1c screening in early pregnancy using hospital discharge and vital registry data between 2009 and 2017 linked with the New York City A1C Registry (N = 798,312). First-trimester A1c screening increased from 2.3% in 2009 to 7.7% in 2017. The likelihood of screening became less targeted to high-risk patients over time, with a decrease in mean A1c values from 5.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.8, 5.9) to 5.3 (95% CI: 5.3, 5.4). The prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus increased while testing became less discriminate for those with high-risk factors, including pregestational type 2 diabetes, chronic hypertension, obesity, age over 40 years, as well as Asian or Black non-Hispanic race/ethnicity. KEY POINTS: · First-trimester A1c screening increased from 2.3% in 2009 to 7.7% in 2017 in New York City.. · The likelihood of screening became less targeted to high-risk patients over time.. · The prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus increased, while testing became less discriminate..

Influence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus on Diabetes Risk and Glycemic Control in a Retrospective Population-Based Cohort.

OBJECTIVE: Racial/ethnic-specific estimates of the influence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) on type 2 diabetes remain underexplored in large population-based cohorts. We estimated racial/ethnic differences in the influence of GDM on diabetes risk and glycemic control in a multiethnic, population-based cohort of postpartum women. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Hospital discharge and vital registry data for New York City (NYC) births between 2009 and 2011 were linked with NYC A1C Registry data between 2009 and 2017. Women with baseline diabetes (n = 2,810) were excluded for a final birth cohort of 336,276. GDM on time to diabetes onset (two A1C tests of ≥6.5% from 12 weeks postpartum onward) or glucose control (first test of A1C <7.0% following diagnosis) was assessed using Cox regression with a time-varying exposure. Models were adjusted for sociodemographic and clinical factors and stratified by race/ethnicity. RESULTS: The cumulative incidence for diabetes was 11.8% and 0.6% among women with and without GDM, respectively. The adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) of GDM status on diabetes risk was 11.5 (95% CI 10.8, 12.3) overall, with slight differences by race/ethnicity. GDM was associated with a lower likelihood of glycemic control (aHR 0.85; 95% CI 0.79, 0.92), with the largest negative influence among Black (aHR 0.77; 95% CI 0.68, 0.88) and Hispanic (aHR 0.84; 95% CI 0.74, 0.95) women. Adjustment for screening bias and loss to follow-up modestly attenuated racial/ethnic differences in diabetes risk but had little influence on glycemic control. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding racial/ethnic differences in the influence of GDM on diabetes progression is critical to disrupt life course cardiometabolic disparities.

Exploring the accuracy of self-reported maternal and newborn care in select studies from low and middle-income country settings: do respondent and facility characteristics affect measurement?

BACKGROUND: Accurate data on the receipt of essential maternal and newborn health interventions is necessary to interpret and address gaps in effective coverage. Validation results of commonly used content and quality of care indicators routinely implemented in international survey programs vary across settings. We assessed how respondent and facility characteristics influenced the accuracy of women's recall of interventions received in the antenatal and postnatal periods. METHODS: We synthesized reporting accuracy using data from a known sample of validation studies conducted in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia, which assessed the validity of women's self-report of received antenatal care (ANC) (N = 3 studies, 3,169 participants) and postnatal care (PNC) (N = 5 studies, 2,462 participants) compared to direct observation. For each study, indicator sensitivity and specificity are presented with 95% confidence intervals. Univariate fixed effects and bivariate random effects models were used to examine whether respondent characteristics (e.g., age group, parity, education level), facility quality, or intervention coverage level influenced the accuracy of women's recall of whether interventions were received. RESULTS: Intervention coverage was associated with reporting accuracy across studies for the majority (9 of 12) of PNC indicators. Increasing intervention coverage was associated with poorer specificity for 8 indicators and improved sensitivity for 6 indicators. Reporting accuracy for ANC or PNC indicators did not consistently differ by any other respondent or facility characteristic. CONCLUSIONS: High intervention coverage may contribute to higher false positive reporting (poorer specificity) among women who receive facility-based maternal and newborn care while low intervention coverage may contribute to false negative reporting (lower sensitivity). While replication in other country and facility settings is warranted, results suggest that monitoring efforts should consider the context of care when interpreting national estimates of intervention coverage.

The validity of self-reported SARS-CoV-2 results among postpartum respondents.

BACKGROUND: Rapid and reliable health data on SARS-CoV-2 infection among pregnant individuals are needed to understand the influence of the virus on maternal health and child development, yet the validity of self-reported COVID-19 testing and diagnosis remains unknown. OBJECTIVES: We assessed the validity of self-reported COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing and diagnosis during delivery among postpartum respondents as well as how diagnostic accuracy varied by respondent characteristics. METHODS: We validated receipt of a COVID-19 PCR test and test results by comparing self-reported results obtained through an electronic survey to electronic medical record data (gold standard) among a cross-sectional sample of postpartum respondents who delivered at four New York City hospitals between March 2020 and January 2021. To assess validity, we calculated each indicator's sensitivity, specificity and the area under the receiver-operating curve (AUC). We examined respondent characteristics (age, race/ethnicity, education level, health insurance, nativity, pre-pregnancy obesity and birth characteristics) as predictors of reporting accuracy using modified Poisson regression. RESULTS: A total of 276 respondents had matched electronic record and survey data. The majority, 83.7% of respondents received a SARS-CoV-2 PCR test during their delivery stay. Of these, 12.1% had detected SARS-CoV-2. Among those tested, sensitivity (90.5%) and specificity (96.5%) were high for SARS-CoV-2 detection. The adjusted risk ratio (aRR) of accurate result reporting was somewhat lower among Hispanic women relative to white non-Hispanic women (aRR 0.90, 95% CI 0.90, 1.00) and among those who had public or no insurance vs. private (aRR 0.91, 95% CI 0.82, 1.01), controlling for recall time. CONCLUSION(S): High recall accuracy result reporting for COVID-19 PCR tests administered during labour and delivery suggest the potential for population-based surveys as a rapid mechanism to obtain accurate data on COVID-19 diagnostic history. Additional psychometric research is warranted to ensure accurate recall across respondent subgroups.

The development of adolescent agency and implications for reproductive choice among girls in Zambia.

BACKGROUND: A substantial proportion of adolescent girls in Zambia lack the ability to decide their reproductive future. We examined the role of agency in early and unwanted adolescent childbearing. METHODS: Using latent transition analysis, we characterized a multi-dimensional profile of adolescent agency annually over a four-year period. We investigated the influence of early life access to resources and time-varying predictors (school retention, violence, early marriage and unwanted/mistimed pregnancy and childbearing) on agency profile membership as well as transitions in agency status over time. RESULTS: Four agency profiles were identified, with differences by age cohort (10-14 years vs. 15-19 years). Three profiles identified in both age cohorts were: Low-moderate agency, Self-assured gender conformers, and High agency. Unique to younger girls was the Gender conscious, low belief in abilities status, while among older girls was the Self-assured selective gender conscious status. While younger girls were likely to transition to the highest agency status over time, high agency membership declined among older girls. Early life resources were associated with augmented agency while exposure to negative events, particularly early marriage, were associated with detraction from high agency status. Girls who expressed high self-efficacy but gender-conforming values were most at risk of early marriage and unwanted/mistimed pregnancy while High agency girls were at comparatively low risk. CONCLUSIONS: Results show agency is dynamic but less mutable with increasing age. Early adolescent strategies which address inequitable gender norms and limit early marriage, may guard against losses to agency which contribute to unwanted fertility outcomes.

The relationship between hormonal contraception and cervical dysplasia/cancer controlling for human papillomavirus infection: A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: Studies on the effect of long-term use of combined oral contraceptives (COCs) on cervical dysplasia and/or cancer risk have been inconsistent. Less is known about the effects of other forms of hormonal contraception (HC). We examine whether HC use increases the risk of incident cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 2, 3 and/or cancer after accounting for preexisting human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review of prospective studies on HC use as risk factor for cervical dysplasia with HPV infection documented prior to outcome assessment including PubMed and EMBASE records between January 2000 and February 2020 (Prospero #CRD42019130725). RESULTS: Among nine eligible studies, seven described recency and type of HC use and therefore comprise the primary analysis; two studies limit comparisons to ever versus never use and are summarized separately. All seven studies explored the relationship between oral contraceptive (OC) use and cervical dysplasia/cancer incidence: two found increased risk (adjusted odds ratio, aOR = 1.5-2.7), one found no association but decreased risk when restricted to women with persistent HPV (adjusted hazard ratio = 0.5), and four found no association. None of the seven studies differentiated between COC and progestin-only pills (POPs) by use recency or duration. The only study that included injectable progestin-only contraception (DMPA) found increased CIN3 incidence among current versus never users (aOR = 1.6). The one study that included Norplant found no association. Two studies included intrauterine device (IUD) use, but did not differentiate between hormonal and copper IUDs, and found no association. CONCLUSION: We found no consistent evidence that OC use is associated with increased risk for cervical dysplasia/cancer after controlling for HPV infection. There were too few studies of progestin-only injectables, implants or IUDs to assess their effect on cervical dysplasia/cancer risk. IMPLICATIONS: Use of single self-reported HC measures and insufficient distinction by hormonal constituent cloud our understanding of whether some HCs increase risk for cervical cancer. Methodologically rigorous studies with distinct HCs measured as time-varying exposures are needed to inform cervical cancer prevention efforts and improve our understanding of cervical cancer etiology.

Pandemic Birthing: Childbirth Satisfaction, Perceived Health Care Bias, and Postpartum Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on birth satisfaction and perceived health care discrimination during childbirth, and in turn, the influence of these birth experiences on postpartum health. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a cross-sectional, bilingual web survey of 237 women who gave birth at two hospitals in New York City and assessed patient-reported experience and outcomes following the first wave of SARS-CoV-2 infections in the New York region. We ascertained SARS-CoV-2 status at delivery from the electronic medical record using participant-reported name and date of birth. We compared birth experience during the COVID-19 pandemic (March 15, 2020-May 11, 2020) to a pre-pandemic response period (January 1, 2020-March 14, 2020). We estimated risk ratios for associations between birth experience and anxiety, depressive symptoms, stress, birth-related PTSD, emergency department visits, timely postpartum visit, and exclusive breastfeeding. Multivariable models adjusted for age, race-ethnicity, insurance, education, parity, BMI, previous experience of maltreatment/abuse and cesarean delivery. RESULTS: Women who gave birth during the peak of the pandemic response, and those that were SARS-CoV-2 positive, Black, and Latina, had lower birth satisfaction and higher perceived health care discrimination. Women with lower birth satisfaction were more likely to report higher postpartum anxiety, stress, depressive symptoms, and lower exclusive breastfeeding. Experiencing one or more incident of health care discrimination was associated with higher levels of postpartum stress and birth-related PTSD. CONCLUSION: Hospitals and policy-makers should institute measures to safeguard against a negative birth experience during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among birthing people of color.

The Validity of Women's Reports of Family Planning Service Quality in Cambodia and Kenya.

Population-based indicators of the coverage of key elements of high-quality family planning services are tracked via household surveys with female respondents, yet little work has been done to establish their validity. We take advantage of existing data sets from Cambodia and Kenya to compare women's responses at exit interviews following a health facility visit against the observations of a trained third-party observer during the visit. The results, which treat the observations as the reference standard, show that indicators that measure contraceptive methods received are accurately reported while indicators of whether the woman received her preferred method and whether information was "discussed" or "explained" during counseling are less reliably reported. Studies designed explicitly to assess the validity of family planning questions in household surveys, especially questions in large survey programs critical for monitoring demographic trends and programmatic coverage, are needed.

Addressing Intimate Partner Violence and Power in Intimate Relationships in HIV Testing Services in Nairobi, Kenya.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) undermines women's uptake of HIV services and violates their human rights. In a two-arm randomized controlled trial we evaluated a short intervention that went a step beyond IPV screening to discuss violence and power with women receiving HIV testing services during antenatal care (ANC). The intervention included training and support for HIV counselors, a take-home card for clients, and an on-site IPV counselor. One third (35%) of women (N = 688) reported experiencing IPV in the past year; 6% were living with HIV. Among women experiencing IPV, program participants were more likely to disclose violence to their counselor than women receiving standard care (32% vs. 7%, p < 0.001). At second ANC visit, intervention group women were significantly more likely to report that talking with their counselor made a positive difference (aOR 2.9; 95% CI 1.8, 4.4; p < 0.001) and felt more confident in how they deserved to be treated (aOR 2.7; 95% CI 1.7, 4.4; p < 0.001). Exploratory analyses of intent to use ARVs to prevent mother-to-child transmission and actions to address violence were also encouraging.

The Influence of Schooling on the Stability and Mutability of Gender Attitudes: Findings From a Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Girls in Zambia.

PURPOSE: Inequitable gender norms are thought to harm lifelong health and well-being. We explore the process of gender attitude change and the role of schooling in shifting or reinforcing gender norms among adolescent girls in Zambia. METHODS: We used longitudinal data collected from unmarried, vulnerable girls (aged 10-19 years) as part of the Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program. We conducted random effects multinomial logistic regression to determine whether schooling-related factors were associated with shifts in adolescent girls' gender attitudes across three survey rounds and explored whether these relationships varied by age. RESULTS: Mean gender attitude scores at the aggregate level remained stable over time among rural girls and improved slightly for urban girls. At the individual level, about half the girls had relatively unchanged scores, whereas the other half shifted to higher or lower scores between rounds. Rural and urban girls currently attending school were more likely to have relatively stable equitable attitudes than stable, inequitable attitudes, or attitudes that shifted to inequitable. Educational attainment was not associated with shifts in gender attitudes among rural girls. Urban girls with higher educational attainment were more likely to have relatively stable equitable attitudes than stable, inequitable attitudes, or attitudes that shifted to inequitable or more equitable. CONCLUSIONS: Patterns of gender attitude stability and change differed more for urban girls than rural girls and varied by age and schooling-related factors. In general, schooling appears to be an institutional lever that holds promise for shifting gender attitudes toward greater equality. Our study highlights the importance of looking longitudinally at the effects of social context and reinforces calls for targeted, context-specific interventions for this age group.

Gender norms and health: insights from global survey data.

Despite global commitments to achieving gender equality and improving health and wellbeing for all, quantitative data and methods to precisely estimate the effect of gender norms on health inequities are underdeveloped. Nonetheless, existing global, national, and subnational data provide some key opportunities for testing associations between gender norms and health. Using innovative approaches to analysing proxies for gender norms, we generated evidence that gender norms impact the health of women and men across life stages, health sectors, and world regions. Six case studies showed that: (1) gender norms are complex and can intersect with other social factors to impact health over the life course; (2) early gender-normative influences by parents and peers can have multiple and differing health consequences for girls and boys; (3) non-conformity with, and transgression of, gender norms can be harmful to health, particularly when they trigger negative sanctions; and (4) the impact of gender norms on health can be context-specific, demanding care when designing effective gender-transformative health policies and programmes. Limitations of survey-based data are described that resulted in missed opportunities for investigating certain populations and domains. Recommendations for optimising and advancing research on the health impacts of gender norms are made.

The links between women's employment and children at home: Variations in low- and middle-income countries by world region.

As fertility declines in low- and middle-income countries, the time women devote to childbearing and rearing may also be reduced. This shift has been described as one of the positive consequences of the demographic transition, as it opens opportunities for women to pursue educational and employment opportunities that were previously constrained by the demands of bearing and raising children. We estimate the numbers of children residing at home (with their mother) for women in 58 countries in Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa. We then examine the association between women's employment and having children at home. Finally, we assess trends over recent decades in the relationship between employment and childbearing, and differences in this relationship by mother's occupation. We find a negative association between women's employment and having children at home; this association varies substantially by world region, age of child, and mother's occupation.

Hormonal Contraceptives and the Acquisition of Sexually Transmitted Infections: An Updated Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Evidence suggests that some forms of hormonal contraception (HC) increase women's risk of non-human immunodeficiency virus sexually transmitted infections (STIs), yet evidence has not been reviewed since 2008. We conducted an updated systematic review to incorporate studies published between January 2009 and June 2017 to examine the relationship between HCs and incident or recurrent STIs. METHODS: We searched PubMed and EMBASE to identify prospective studies comparing risk of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, human papillomavirus (HPV), herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), Treponema pallidum, or Trichomonas vaginalis, between women using HC versus nonhormonal methods or no methods. We summarize results by type of STI and HC and study quality using an adapted Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale. RESULTS: Thirty articles met the inclusion criteria. Depo-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) reduces the risk of trichomoniasis (consistent evidence) and may increase the risk of HSV-2 (strong effect, few studies); inconclusive evidence exists for HPV, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. Data on oral contraceptive pills (OCPs; generally not differentiated whether combined or progestin-only pills) suggest that use is associated with a reduced risk of trichomoniasis with inconclusive findings for HSV-2, HPV, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. Very few studies included norethisterone enanthate (Net-En) injectable, implants or the levonorgestrel intrauterine device. CONCLUSIONS: Depo-medroxyprogesterone acetate and OCPs reduce the risk of trichomoniasis and DMPA may increase the risk of HSV-2. However, the potential for confounding cannot be ruled out. Future studies should specify the type of injectable or OCP used to increase understanding of biological pathways; more research is needed on implants and hormonal intrauterine devices.

Gender, power, and violence: A systematic review of measures and their association with male perpetration of IPV.

INTRODUCTION: Harmful gender norms, views on the acceptability of violence against women, and power inequities in relationships have been explored as key drivers of male perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV). Yet such antecedents have been inconsistently measured in the empirical literature. This systematic review aimed to identify which measures of gender inequitable norms, views, relations and practices are currently being used in the field, and which are most closely tied with male IPV perpetration. METHODS: We searched five electronic databases to identify studies published between 2000 and 2015 that reported the association between such gender inequities and male perpetration of IPV. Identified scales were categorized by content area and level of generality, as well as other attributes, and we compared the consistency of scale performance across each category. RESULTS: Twenty-three studies were identified, employing 64 measures. Scales were categorized into three main thematic areas: views on gender roles/norms, acceptance of violence against women, and gender-related inequities in relationship power and control. We also classified whether the scale was oriented to respondents' own views, or what they believed others do or think. While overall, measures were positively associated with IPV perpetration in 45% of cases, this finding varied by scale type. Measures inclusive of acceptance of violence against women or beliefs about men's sexual entitlement, followed by scales that measured respondents' views on gender roles/norms, were most consistently associated with IPV perpetration. Measures of relationship power showed less consistent associations. We found few scales that measured peer or community norms. CONCLUSION: Validated scales that encompass views on the acceptance of violence against women, and scales inclusive of beliefs about men's sexual entitlement, may be particularly promising for unpacking pathways to IPV perpetration, targeting interventions, and monitoring progress in IPV prevention efforts. A number of gaps in the literature are identified.

Women's recall of maternal and newborn interventions received in the postnatal period: a validity study in Kenya and Swaziland.

BACKGROUND: Despite the concentration of maternal and infant deaths in the early postnatal period, information on the content and quality of postnatal care interventions is not routinely collected in most low and middle-income countries. At present, data on the coverage of postnatal care interventions mostly rely on women's reports collected in household surveys, such as the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS), which collect limited information. We assessed the validity of a set of postnatal care indicators that reflect a range of recommended interventions for both mother and newborn and have potential to be included in household surveys for monitoring of population-level coverage. METHODS: We compared women's reports in exit interviews on the content of postnatal care received in health facilities located in Kenya and Swaziland against a gold standard of direct observation by a trained third party. We calculated sensitivity, specificity and the area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) to assess individual-level reporting accuracy and the inflation factor (IF) to assess population-level accuracy. We also examined whether women's reporting accuracy varied significantly by her sociodemographic characteristics. RESULTS: 18 indicators in Kenya and 19 in Swaziland had sufficient sample size for analysis. Of these, 12 indicators in Kenya and five in Swaziland met criteria for acceptable individual and population-level reporting accuracy. Two indicators met acceptability criteria in both Kenya and Swaziland: whether the provider performed a breast exam or an abdominal exam. There was no significant association between women's characteristics and reporting accuracy, across indicators. CONCLUSION: Women are able to accurately report on multiple aspects of care received during a postnatal visit. Findings inform the recommendation of indicators for tracking progress of critical postnatal care interventions for mothers and newborns. Improved measurement of the coverage of maternal and newborn postnatal care is warranted to monitor progress in maternal and newborn care globally.

A Systematic Review of Adolescent Girl Program Implementation in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Evidence Gaps and Insights.

Increasing attention to adolescent girls has generated an abundance of programs and a growing body of research on adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries. Despite this, questions remain about what implementation approaches in program design are most effective, hindering efficient resource allocation, program scale-up, and replication across settings. To address these questions, we conducted a systematic review to identify lessons learned and gaps in the evidence base. We searched four electronic databases to identify studies published between 1990 and 2014 that evaluated health, social, and/or economic development programs targeting adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries. Seventy-seven (77) studies meeting specified criteria were identified, of which 19 presented results that allowed conclusions relevant to implementation science. Studies examining the following questions were assessed: To what extent, if any, do multicomponent interventions (as opposed to single-component interventions) improve outcomes for girls? What is the added value of involving actors in addition to the girl herself such as parents, guardians, husbands (i.e., multilevel interventions)? What is the threshold proportion of girls who need to participate in a program to bring about normative and behavior changes at the community level? Is a greater level of program exposure associated with greater programmatic benefit for girls? Can supplemental "booster" activities extend the benefits of a program after it ends? We found evidence to support associations between multicomponent (vs. single component) programs, and longer program exposure (vs. less program exposure), with more favorable outcomes for girls, although both conclusions include methodological limitations. Overall, few studies assessed boosters or program saturation, and evidence on multilevel versus single-level programs was inconclusive. Few studies assessed implementation science questions by design, exposing large gaps in the evidence base. We call for future research to explicitly test such implementation science questions to inform more effective use of resources and to improve outcomes for girls.