scholarly journals Factors influencing self-harm thoughts and behaviours over the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK: longitudinal analysis of 49 324 adults

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Elise Paul ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Social Consequences ◽  
Adverse Experiences ◽  
Related Risk ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Self Harm ◽  
The Uk

Background There is concern that the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath will result in excess suicides by increasing known risk factors such as self-harm, but evidence on how pandemic-related risk factors contribute to changes in these outcomes is lacking. Aims To examine how different COVID-19-related experiences of and worries about adversity contribute to changes in self-harm thoughts and behaviours. Method Data from 49 324 UK adults in the University College London COVID-19 Social Study were analysed (1 April 2020 to 17 May 2021). Fixed-effects regressions explored associations between weekly within-person variation in five categories of adversity experience and adversity worries with changes in self-harm thoughts and behaviours across age groups (18–29, 30–44, 45–59 and 60+ years). Results In total, 26.1% and 7.9% of respondents reported self-harm thoughts and behaviours respectively at least once over the study period. The number of adverse experiences was more strongly related to outcomes than the number of worries. The largest specific adversity contributing to increases in both outcomes was having experienced physical or psychological abuse. Financial worries increased the likelihood of both outcomes in most age groups, and having had COVID-19 increased the likelihood of both outcomes in young (18–29 years) and middle-aged (45–59 years) adults. Conclusions Findings suggest that a significant portion of UK adults may be at increased risk for self-harm thoughts and behaviours during the pandemic. Given the likelihood that the economic and social consequences of the pandemic will accumulate, policy makers can begin adapting evidence-based suicide prevention strategies and other social policies to help mitigate its consequences.

scholarly journals Factors influencing self-harm thoughts and self-harm behaviours over the first 45 weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK: a longitudinal analysis of 48,446 adults

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elise Paul ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Social Consequences ◽  
Adverse Experiences ◽  
Related Risk ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Self Harm ◽  
The Uk

BackgroundThere is concern that the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath will result in excess suicides by increasing known risk factors such as self-harm. However, evidence on how pandemic-related risk factors contribute to changes in these outcomes is lacking.AimsWe sought to examine how different adverse experiences and worries about adversity brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic contribute to changes in self-harm thoughts and behaviours over the first 45 weeks of the pandemic.MethodData from 48,446 UK adults in the UCL COVID-19 Social Study were analysed across the first 45 weeks (1 April to 7 February 2021) of the pandemic. Fixed effects regressions explored associations between weekly within-person variation in five categories of adversity experiences and adversity worries with changes in self-harm thoughts and behaviours across age groups (18-29, 30-44, 45-59, and 60+ years).ResultsMore adverse experiences were more strongly related to outcomes than worries. Specific categories of worries and adversities had stronger associations with outcomes than others. The largest contributing factor to increases in both self-harm thoughts (odds ratio (OR) range = 3.38 to 4.00) and behaviours (OR range = 3.72 to 6.82) was physical or psychological abuse amongst all ages. Having had COVID-19 and financial worries were associated with increased likelihood of both outcomes, the latter being more consistently associated with outcomes than actual financial adversity.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that a significant portion of UK adults may be at increased risk for self-harm thoughts and behaviours during the pandemic, which is concerning given the link between self-harm and suicide. Policies currently place to protect and reassure citizens may be insufficient in assuaging fears and anxieties. Given the likelihood that as time goes on, the economic and social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic will accumulate, policy makers can begin adapting a variety of existing evidence-based suicide prevention strategies and other social policies to help mitigate its consequences.

Variation of cardiac magnetic resonance radiomics features by age and sex in healthy participants from the UK Biobank

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (Supplement_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Z Raisi-Estabragh ◽  
A Jaggi ◽  
N Aung ◽  
S Neubauer ◽  
S Piechnik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Cardiac Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Texture Features ◽  
Funding Source ◽  
Uk Biobank ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Age And Sex ◽  
Apparently Healthy

Abstract Introduction Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) radiomics use voxel-level data to derive quantitative indices of myocardial tissue texture, which may provide complementary risk information to traditional CMR measures. Purpose In this first stage of our work, establishing the performance characteristics of CMR radiomics in relation to disease outcomes, we aimed to elucidate differences in radiomic features by sex and age in apparently healthy adults. Methods We defined a healthy cohort from the first 5,065 individuals completing the UK Biobank Imaging Enhancement, limiting to white Caucasian ethnicity, and excluding those with major co-morbidities, or cardiovascular risk factors/symptoms. We created evenly distributed age groups: 45–54 years, 55–64 years, 65–74 years. Radiomics features were extracted from left ventricle segmentations, with normalisation to body surface area. We compared mean values of individual features between the sexes, stratified by age and separately between the oldest and youngest age groups for each sex. Results We studied 657 (309 men, 358 women) healthy individuals. There were significant differences between radiomics features of men and women. Different features appeared more important at different age groups. For instance, in the youngest age group “end-systolic coarseness” showed greatest difference between men and women, whilst “end-diastolic run percentage” and “end-diastolic high grey level emphasis” showed most variation in the oldest and middle age groups. In the oldest age groups, differences between men and women were most predominant in the texture features, whilst in the younger groups a mixture of shape and texture differences were observed. We demonstrate significant variation between radiomics features by age, these differences are exclusively in texture features with different features implicated in men and women (“end-diastolic mean intensity” in women, “end-systolic sum entropy in men”). Conclusions There are significant age and sex differences in CMR radiomics features of apparently healthy adults, demonstrating alterations in myocardial architecture not appreciated by conventional indices. In younger ages, shape and texture differences are observed, whilst in older ages texture differences dominate. Furthermore, texture features are the most different features between the youngest and oldest hearts. We provide proof-of-concept data indicating CMR radiomics has discriminatory value with regard to two characteristics strongly linked to cardiovascular outcomes. We will next elucidate relationships between CMR radiomics, cardiac risk factors, and clinical outcomes, establishing predictive value incremental to existing measures. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: Other. Main funding source(s): European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (825903),British Heart Foundation Clinical Research Training Fellowship (FS/17/81/33318)

scholarly journals Age-Related Risk Factors and Complications of Patients With COVID-19: A Population-Based Retrospective Study

2022 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Han Zhang ◽  
Yingying Wu ◽  
Yuqing He ◽  
Xingyuan Liu ◽  
Mingqian Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Retrospective Study ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Clinical Manifestations ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Male Gender ◽  
Poor Correlation ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Related Risk ◽  
Independent Risk Factors

Objective: To study the differences in clinical characteristics, risk factors, and complications across age-groups among the inpatients with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).Methods: In this population-based retrospective study, we included all the positive hospitalized patients with COVID-19 at Wuhan City from December 29, 2019 to April 15, 2020, during the first pandemic wave. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to explore the risk factors for death from COVID-19. Canonical correlation analysis (CCA) was performed to study the associations between comorbidities and complications.Results: There are 36,358 patients in the final cohort, of whom 2,492 (6.85%) died. Greater age (odds ration [OR] = 1.061 [95% CI 1.057–1.065], p < 0.001), male gender (OR = 1.726 [95% CI 1.582–1.885], p < 0.001), alcohol consumption (OR = 1.558 [95% CI 1.355–1.786], p < 0.001), smoking (OR = 1.326 [95% CI 1.055–1.652], p = 0.014), hypertension (OR = 1.175 [95% CI 1.067–1.293], p = 0.001), diabetes (OR = 1.258 [95% CI 1.118–1.413], p < 0.001), cancer (OR = 1.86 [95% CI 1.507–2.279], p < 0.001), chronic kidney disease (CKD) (OR = 1.745 [95% CI 1.427–2.12], p < 0.001), and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) (OR = 1.96 [95% CI 1.323–2.846], p = 0.001) were independent risk factors for death from COVID-19. Patients aged 40–80 years make up the majority of the whole patients, and them had similar risk factors with the whole patients. For patients aged <40 years, only cancer (OR = 17.112 [95% CI 6.264–39.73], p < 0.001) and ICH (OR = 31.538 [95% CI 5.213–158.787], p < 0.001) were significantly associated with higher odds of death. For patients aged >80 years, only age (OR = 1.033 [95% CI 1.008–1.059], p = 0.01) and male gender (OR = 1.585 [95% CI 1.301–1.933], p < 0.001) were associated with higher odds of death. The incidence of most complications increases with age, but arrhythmias, gastrointestinal bleeding, and sepsis were more common in younger deceased patients with COVID-19, with only arrhythmia reaching statistical difference (p = 0.039). We found a relatively poor correlation between preexisting risk factors and complications.Conclusions: Coronavirus disease 2019 are disproportionally affected by age for its clinical manifestations, risk factors, complications, and outcomes. Prior complications have little effect on the incidence of extrapulmonary complications.

scholarly journals Metabolome-defined obesity and the risk of future diabetes and mortality

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filip Ottosson ◽  
Einar Smith ◽  
Ulrika Ericson ◽  
Salvatore Di Somma ◽  
Paola Antonini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Normal Weight ◽  
Plasma Metabolites ◽  
Italian Population ◽  
Related Risk ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
All Cause Mortality ◽  
Future Diabetes

Background Obesity is a key risk factor for type 2 diabetes, however, up to 20% of patients are normal weight. Our aim was to identify metabolite patterns reproducibly predictive of BMI, and subsequently to test if lean individuals who carry an obese metabolome are at hidden high risk of obesity related diseases, such as diabetes. Methods We measured 109 metabolites in fasted plasma samples of 7663 individuals from two Swedish and one Italian population-based cohort. Ridge regression models were used to predict BMI using the plasma metabolites. Individuals with a predicted BMI either more than 5 kg/m2 higher (overestimated) or lower (underestimated) than their actual BMI were characterized as outliers and further investigated for obesity related risk factors and future risk of diabetes and mortality. Results The plasma metabolome could predict BMI in all cohorts (r2 = 0.48, 0.26 and 0.19). The overestimated group had a BMI similar to individuals correctly predicted as normal weight, similar waist circumference, were not more likely to change weight over time but had a 2 times higher risk of future diabetes and an 80 % increased risk of all-cause mortality. These associations remained after adjustments for obesity-related risk factors and lifestyle parameters. Conclusions We found that lean individuals with an obese metabolome, have an increased risk for diabetes and all-cause mortality compared to lean individuals with a healthy metabolome. Metabolomics may be used to identify hidden high-risk individuals, in order to initiate lifestyle and pharmacological interventions.

scholarly journals Association Between Subconjunctival Hemorrhage and Acute Coronary Syndrome: A 14-Year Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ping-Hao Chiang ◽  
Jung-Nien Lai ◽  
Yun-Chi Chiang ◽  
Kai-Chieh Hu ◽  
Min-Yen Hsu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Acute Coronary Syndrome ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Research Database ◽  
Coronary Syndrome ◽  
Subconjunctival Hemorrhage ◽  
Related Risk ◽  
Patients With Diabetes

Purpose: Subconjunctival hemorrhage (SCH) is usually a benign ocular disorder that causes painless, redness under the conjunctiva. However, since SCH and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) share many vascular risk factors, studies have suggested that these two disorders may be significantly associated with each other, and evaluate the concomitance of ACS in patients with SCH.Methods: This population-based cohort study, enrolled 35,260 Taiwanese patients, and used the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database to identify patients with ACS and SCH. Outcomes were compared between the with and without SCH groups. The study population was followed until the date of ACS onset, the date of withdrawal, death, or December 31st 2013, whichever came first.Results: Of the 85,925 patients identified with SCH between 1996 and 2013, 68,295 were excluded based on the study's exclusion criteria, and a total of 17,630 patients with SCH who were diagnosed by ophthalmologists between 2000 and 2012 were eligible for analysis. After 1:1 propensity score matching for 5-year age groups, gender, and the index year, the results showed that SCH was more common in the 40–59 age group (53.82%) and females (58.66%). As for the ACS-related risk factors, patients with diabetes mellitus (aHR = 1.58, 95% CI = [1.38, 1.81]), hypertension (aHR = 1.71, 95% CI = [1.49, 1.96]) and patients taking aspirin (aHR = 1.67, 95% CI = [1.47, 1.90]) had a notably higher risk of ACS. However, it was found that there were no significant differences in the occurrence of ACS between the non-SCH and SCH patients.Conclusion: This results of this study regarding the risk factors and epidemiology of SCH and ACS were in keeping with previously reported findings. However, the results revealed no significant association between SCH and ACS.

Going outdoors, neighbourhood satisfaction and mental health and wellbeing during a COVID-19 lockdown: A fixed-effects analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Stock ◽  
Feifei Bu ◽  
Daisy Fancourt ◽  
Hei Wan Mak
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Living Arrangement ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Anxiety Symptoms ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Longitudinal Association ◽  
The Uk

The COVID-19 pandemic led to national lockdowns in countries around the world. Whilst lockdowns were shown to be effective in reducing the spread of disease, they were also associated with adverse effects on people’s mental health and wellbeing. Previous studies have suggested that time spent outside may have played a role in mitigating these negative effects, but research on this topic remains limited. Therefore, this study was designed to explore the longitudinal associations between going outdoors and people’s mental health and wellbeing during the first national lockdown (March-May 2020) in the UK. Data from 35,301 participants from the COVID-19 Social Study were analysed. Fixed effects regression was used to explore the longitudinal association between changes in going outdoors (the number of days spent outside) and changes in depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, life satisfaction and loneliness. A range of household and neighbourhood moderators were examined. Results show that an increase in the number of days spent outside was associated with decreases in depressive and anxiety symptoms and an increase in life satisfaction. No longitudinal association was found with loneliness. Further analysis revealed some moderating effects of household and neighbourhood factors, including living arrangement, perceived walkability satisfaction, and satisfaction with green space/park within neighbourhood. Overall, our analyses showed a positive association between going outdoors and improved mental health and wellbeing during the first COVID-19 lockdown in the UK. Associations were more salient amongst people living with others, and those with greater satisfaction with their neighbourhood walkability and green spaces. These findings are important for formulating guidance for people to stay well at home during pandemics and for the on-going nature-based social prescribing scheme.

scholarly journals Patient perspectives on priorities for research on conventional and sex- and gender-related cardiovascular risk factors

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (12) ◽  
pp. 656-661
Author(s):  
R. Bolijn ◽  
I. Schalkers ◽  
H. L. Tan ◽  
A. E. Kunst ◽  
I. G. M. van Valkengoed
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Cardiovascular Risk ◽  
Cardiovascular Risk Factors ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Sex And Gender ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Related Risk ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
And Gender ◽  
New Research

Abstract Background Recently, cardiovascular disease (CVD) research has focused on sex- and gender-related cardiovascular risk factors, in addition to conventional risk factors. This raises the question which factors are perceived by the target group (patients with CVD) as priorities for further research. Methods We carried out a survey to study priority setting for more research into conventional and sex- and gender-related risk factors according to 980 men and women with CVD or those at increased risk of CVD in the Netherlands. Data on conventional and sex- and gender-related risk factors were descriptively analysed, stratified by gender group. Results The most frequently prioritised conventional factors according to men were heritability, overweight and unhealthy diet, while women most frequently listed stress, heritability and hypertension. The most frequently prioritised sex- and gender-related risk factors were depression or depressive feelings, migraine and having many caretaking responsibilities (men), and pregnancy complications, contraceptive pill use and early age at menopause (women). New research on sex- and gender-related risk factors was perceived roughly as relevant as that on conventional factors by men (mean 7.4 and 8.3 on a 1–10 scale, respectively) and women (8.2 and 8.6, respectively). Ethnic and gender minority groups placed more emphasis on risk factors related to sociocultural aspects (gender) than the majority group. Conclusion Men and women with CVD or those at increased risk of CVD perceived new research on conventional and sex- and gender-related risk factors as a priority. These findings may guide researchers and funders in further prioritising new CVD research.

scholarly journals Impact of Sex and Metabolic Comorbidities on COVID-19 Mortality Risk Across Age Groups: 66,646 Inpatients Across 613 U.S. Hospitals

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine E Goodman ◽  
Laurence S Magder ◽  
Jonathan D Baghdadi ◽  
Lisa Pineles ◽  
Andrea R Levine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Risk Factor ◽  
Mortality Risk ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Patient Characteristics ◽  
Chronic Complications ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
Relative Risks ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Metabolic Comorbidities

Abstract Background The relationship between common patient characteristics, such as sex and metabolic comorbidities, and mortality from COVID-19 remains incompletely understood. Emerging evidence suggests that metabolic risk factors may also vary by age. This study aimed to determine the association between common patient characteristics and mortality across age-groups among COVID-19 inpatients. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study of patients discharged from hospitals in the Premier Healthcare Database between April – June 2020. Inpatients were identified using COVID-19 ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes. A priori-defined exposures were sex and present-on-admission hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and interactions between age and these comorbidities. Controlling for additional confounders, we evaluated relationships between these variables and in-hospital mortality in a log-binomial model. Results Among 66,646 (6.5%) admissions with a COVID-19 diagnosis, across 613 U.S. hospitals, 12,388 (18.6%) died in-hospital. In multivariable analysis, male sex was independently associated with 30% higher mortality risk (aRR, 1.30, 95% CI: 1.26 – 1.34). Diabetes without chronic complications was not a risk factor at any age (aRR 1.01, 95% CI: 0.96 – 1.06), and hypertension without chronic complications was only a risk factor in 20-39 year-olds (aRR, 1.68, 95% CI: 1.17 – 2.40). Diabetes with chronic complications, hypertension with chronic complications, and obesity were risk factors in most age-groups, with highest relative risks among 20-39 year-olds (respective aRRs 1.79, 2.33, 1.92; p-values ≤ 0.002). Conclusions Hospitalized men with COVID-19 are at increased risk of death across all ages. Hypertension, diabetes with chronic complications, and obesity demonstrated age-dependent effects, with the highest relative risks among adults aged 20-39.

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