Aim: Rotavirus vaccines are effective against severe infections, but have a modest impact on mortality in high-income countries. Parental knowledge and attitudes towards vaccines are crucial for high vaccination coverage. This study aimed to identify why parents refused to let their infant have the vaccination or were unsure. Methods: This cross-sectional study was based on 1,063 questionnaires completed by the parents of newborn children in 2014. Stepwise logistic regression was used to identify the main predictors. Results: Most (81%) parents intended to vaccinate their child against the rotavirus, while 19% were unwilling or uncertain. Parents with less education and children up to five weeks of age were more likely to be unwilling or uncertain about vaccinating their child. Factors associated with a refusal or uncertainty about vaccinating were not having enough information about the vaccine, no intention of accepting other vaccines, paying little heed to the child health nurses' recommendations, thinking that the rotavirus was not a serious illness and not believing that the vaccine provided protection against serious forms of gastroenteritis. Conclusion: Early information, extra information for parents with less education and close positive relationships between parents and child health nurses were important factors in high rotavirus vaccination rates.
Aim Separating infants and their parents after a Caesarean section is still the routine care worldwide. This study investigated three caregiving models on the wakefulness and physiological parameters of full-term infants after an elective Caesarean section. Methods Newborn infants born in a Chilean public hospital in 2009-12 were randomised to three groups: cot, fathers' arms or skin-to-skin contact with their father. They were assessed at 15-minute intervals, from 45 to 120 minutes after the Caesarean section. Their physiological parameters were measured, and their wakefulness was assessed using the Neonatal Behavioural Assessment Scale. Results We studied 95 infant (53% girls) born at a mean gestational age of 38.9 +/- 0.9 weeks. Heart rates were significantly higher in the skin-to-skin than cot or fathers' arms groups and showed greater stability over time. Wakefulness was initially higher in the skin-to-skin group, but there were no significant differences by the end of the observation. There were no differences between the groups in peripheral oxygen saturation. Skin-to-skin contact had no negative impact on the infants. Conclusion The skin-to-skin group showed some advantages over the cot and fathers' arms groups when it came to establishing stable physiological parameters and wakefulness. This approach should be supported during mother-infant separation.
Aim: To study the long-term relationship between symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and the developing self-esteem in a population-based sample of twins. Methods: The cohort is all twin pair families born in Sweden between May 1985 and December 1986 (n = 1.480). Wave 1 took place in 1994 when the twins were 8 years old and wave 2 in 1999 when the children were 13 years old. In wave 1 and 2 the parents completed questionnaires regarding ADHD-symptoms about their children. In wave 2 the twins completed a questionnaire about self-esteem and Youth Self Report (YSR). ADHD-symptoms and self-esteem were analyzed in the total study group. Results: There was a long-term relationship between high scores of parental-reported ADHD-symptoms at 8 and 13 years of age and low scores in measures of self-reported self-esteem at 13 years of age. In the cotwin control method controlling for YSR internalizing problem, paired comparisons within the twin pairs revealed that a high score of ADHD-symptoms at age 8 was related to significantly lower scores at age 13 in the self-esteem. Conclusions: The long-term relationships between ADHD-symptoms and a low self-esteem in a population-based sample were confirmed by the co-twin analyses.
Aim: The aim of the study was to explore the extent to which Swedish childrens perceptions of social capital in the family, school and neighbourhood predicted health complaints and well-being. Methods: The study used data from the Swedish Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey. The sample consisted of 3926 children aged 11-15 years. Correlations and hierarchical multiple linear regression were performed. Results: Higher degrees of family, school and neighbourhood social capital corresponded to lower levels of health complaints and higher levels of well-being. Social capital in these three spheres had a cumulative effect on children's health and well-being. Conclusions: Social capital in the family, school and neighbourhood matters for children's health and well-being and the contributions from each context seem to be additive. Besides the family context, investments for improving child health should primarily be in the school, focusing on social relations and on creating safe and cohesive school environments. Neighbourhood social capital is also of importance and so must be taken into consideration when planning child health promotion interventions.
Aim: To explore the associations between subjective well-being and perceptions of community trust and safety amongst children in rural and urban areas. Methods: The study used self-reported data from the 2001/2002 Swedish cross-national WHO study Health Behaviour in School-aged Children. The sample consisted of 3852 children aged 11-15 years, living in different residential areas. Bivariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression were performed. Results: The results indicated that a greater proportion of children in urban areas perceived low community trust and safety, compared with children in rural areas. Further, the multivariate analysis revealed that perceived community trust and safety significantly impacts upon children's subjective well-being in both rural and urban contexts. Conclusion: Children's perceptions of trust and safety have different magnitudes in urban and rural areas. The associations of perceptions of community trust and safety for children's subjective well-being are relevant in both urban and rural areas. As perceptions of low trust and safety in the community seem to be related to low subjective well-being, efforts to encourage community trust and safety should be included amongst the key priorities in community health promotion.
AIM: To study uptake of care at the antenatal and child health clinic (CHC), and maternal and child health up to 5 years after the birth, as reported by mothers with a non-Swedish speaking background (NSB). METHODS: A sample of 300 women with a NSB, 175 originated from a poor country and 125 originated from a rich country, were compared with a reference group of 2761 women with a Swedish speaking background. Four postal questionnaires were completed: during pregnancy, and 2 months, 1 year and 5 years after the birth. RESULTS: Mothers with a NSB from a poor country of origin did not differ from the reference group of mothers with a Swedish speaking background regarding number of clinic visits, but they had a lower attendance rate at antenatal and postnatal education classes. Depressive symptoms, parental stress and poor self-rated health were more common in these women, and they reported more psychological and behavioral problems in their 5-year olds. Women with a rich country origin did not differ from the reference group regarding maternal and child health, but had a lower uptake of all out-patient care, except parental classes after the birth. CONCLUSION: Women originating from a poor country seem to be under great stress during pregnancy and the child's first years.
Aim: To describe how children and adolescents cope with pain and to examine the biopsychosocial factors that correlate with pain-related disability (PRD) in a sample of primary care patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 133 patients, aged from eight to 16 years, who consulted primary care physiotherapy on a pain-related problem. Data were collected with the Functional Disability Inventory, the Pain Coping Questionnaire and a study-specific questionnaire. Linear multivariate regression analyses were applied to study the associations between PRD and (i) pain coping, (ii) individual-, pain-related and psychosocial variables. Results: Behavioural distraction, externalizing and catastrophizing explained 13% of the variance in PRD (regression model 1). In addition, pain intensity, worrying and the ability to reduce pain explained 21% of the variance in PRD (regression model 2). Conclusion: Variance in PRD was partly explained by pain intensity, worrying and ability to reduce pain and by behavioural distraction, externalizing and catastrophizing. Future prospective longitudinal studies are needed to identify possible additional variables explaining PRD, establish causality and the potential benefits of addressing these variables in interventions in primary care.
AimPrevious studies have shown an association between childhood attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and a down-regulated hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis) with low diurnal cortisol levels. Given the role of the FK506 binding protein 5 (FKBP5) as an important regulator of the negative feedback system of the HPA axis, we set out to investigate possible associations between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in FKBP5 in relation to ADHD and diurnal cortisol levels. MethodsChildren with ADHD (n=81) and healthy comparisons (n=88) collected saliva four times during a regular school day for radioimmunoassay analysis of cortisol and for genotyping of five SNPs in FKBP5 (rs9296158, rs1360780, rs9470080, rs7748266 and rs9394309). ResultsWe found associations between SNP genotypes and ADHD as well as between genotypes and diurnal cortisol levels. One of these SNPs, rs9470080, was significantly associated with both ADHD and lower cortisol levels. ConclusionThis study contributes to previous findings on a down-regulated HPA axis in children with ADHD by demonstrating an association between ADHD, lower cortisol levels and SNPs of the FKBP5-gene. The relevance of these findings for the development and shaping of ADHD symptoms needs to be approached in larger samples, preferably also taking stress reactivity into consideration.
Aim: To investigate the prevalence of children who are in need of special support in the totalpopulation of children attending preschools (CA 1–6) in two Swedish counties, and the functionalproblems exhibited by the children in relation to demographical and environmental factors in thepreschool context.Method: Survey distributed to (N = 1138) preschools in two Swedish counties.Results: The majority of children perceived by preschool teachers and in need of special supportwere undiagnosed children with functional difficulties related to speech, language and interactionwith peers.Conclusion: Undiagnosed and diagnosed children share the same type of difficulties. Thus, in estimating theprevalence of children in need of special support in a preschool context, traditional disability categories captureonly a small proportion of the children experiencing difficulties. Therefore, a functional approach in studies ofchildren in need of special support is recommended.
The use of simulation-based team training in neonatal resuscitation has increased in Sweden during the last decade, but no formal evaluation of this training method has been performed. This study evaluated the effect of simulation-based team training on the self-assessed ability of personnel to perform neonatal resuscitation. Methods: We evaluated a full-day simulation-based team training course in neonatal resuscitation, by administering a questionnaire to 110 physicians, nurses and midwives before and after the training period. The questionnaire focused on four important domains: communication, leadership, confidence and technical skills. The study was carried out in Sweden from 2005 to 2007. Results: The response rate was 84%. Improvements in the participants self-assessed ability to perform neonatal resuscitation were seen in all four domains after training (p < 0.001). Professionally inexperienced personnel showed a significant improvement in the technical skills domain compared to experienced personnel (p = 0.001). No differences were seen between professions or time since training in any of the four domains. Personnel with less previous experience with neonatal resuscitation showed improved confidence (p = 0.007) and technical skills (p = 0.003). Conclusion: A full-day course on simulation-based team training with video-supported debriefing improved the participants' self-assessed ability to perform neonatal resuscitation.
AIM: To investigate both quantatively and qualitatively the differences between participation in team-based visist (TBVs) an perceived needs for TBVs from the perspectives of healthcare professionals, in the context of the Swedish three-tier national child healthcare program.
METHODS: A studfy-specific qustionnaire, including multipel-choice questions with fixed and free-text response options, was developed and used. To capture healthcare professionals' experiences and find explanations for the quantitative results in qualitative data, a convergent parallel mixed-methods study design was ued. Descriptive statistics and Mcnemar's test were used to analyze the quantitative data, and content analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data.
RESULTS: Healthcare professionals perceived the needs fot TBVs in the Swedish child helathcare services (CHS), especially in cases with complex needs. The largest differences between the perceived needs for TBVs and experienced TBVs was seen for targeted TBVs on indications associated with psyjosocial problems. The quantitative findings were explored by the qualitative findings. Both individual and organisational factors influenced TBVs.
CONCLUSION: Perceived needs for TBVs in Swedish (CHS) exceeds ints existence. Healthcare professionals require TBVs delivered by interprofessional teams, in line with proprtionate universalism. To realize this, organisational structurer (e.g. co-location and clear instructions on how to distribute TBVs) and human resources (e.g. psychologists and social workers) are needed.
Aim: To compare motor performance in supine position at the age of 4-months corrected age (CA) in very preterm (VPT) infants cared for in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) before and after the implementation of the Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program (NIDCAP). Methods: Assessments of motor performance in supine position according to level of motor development and quality of motor performance were made, using the Structured Observation of Motor Performance in Infants (SOMP-I). Subjects: VPT infants cared for in a NICU at a Swedish university hospital before, Group A (n = 68), and after, Group B (n = 58), the implementation of developmentally supportive care based on NIDCAP. Results: The infants who were treated after the introduction of NIDCAP showed higher level of motor development in the arms/hands and trunk. No significant group differences were noted in total deviation score for the respective limbs, but lower frequency of lateral flexion in head movements, extension-external rotation-abduction, extension-internal rotation-adduction and varus and valgus position in the feet was found in the NIDCAP group, compared with those treated before the introduction. Conclusion: The infants who were treated after NIDCAP care had been implemented showed a higher level of motor development in arms/hand and trunk and fewer deviations in head, legs and feet at 4-months CA than infants treated before NIDCAP implementation. The observed changes may be due to NIDCAP and/or improved perinatal and neonatal care during the studied time period.
Abstract Adults with intellectual disabilities (IDs) have poor lifestyle-related health compared with the general population. Our aim was to study whether such differences are present already in adolescents. Aim: To compare the prevalence and severity of cardio-metabolic risk factors and cardio-vascular fitness in adolescents with and without IDs. Methods: Intellectual disability (ID) students (n = 66) and non-intellectual disability (non-ID) students from practical (non-ID-p) (n = 34) and theoretical (non-ID-t) (n = 56) programmes were recruited from three upper secondary schools. Anthropometric data, blood pressure, body composition, fasting-insulin, fasting-glucose, fasting-lipids and cardio-vascular fitness were measured. Results: Participants with and without ID differed significantly in the prevalence of cardio-metabolic risk factors with participants with ID having a higher percentage of total fat mass, wider waist circumferences (WCs), lower levels of fat-free mass (FFM), lower bone mineral density (BMD) and higher insulin and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA) levels and poorer cardio-vascular fitness. The healthiest levels were found in the non-ID-t group compared to the group with ID and the group with non-ID-p in between. Conclusion: The prevalence of cardio-metabolic risk factors and poor cardio-vascular fitness was found to be high in this young population with intellectual disabilities. Measures should be taken to improve the health messages directed towards children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities.