Search

This study investigated the extent to which adolescent social network positions are associated with the risk of lifetime daily smoking and nicotine dependence (ND), and whether these associations differ by gender. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 6,267), this study estimated multinomial logistic regression models. An increase in in-degree nominations, out-degree nominations, and Bonacich centrality was associated with a lower relative risk of never smoking daily versus ever smoking daily. By contrast, adolescents with greater in-degree nominations, out-degree nominations, Bonacich centrality, and network reach in three steps were at decreased risk for lifetime ND. Gender-stratified models indicate that the negative association between network position and never smoking daily was driven largely by women, whereas the positive association between network position and lifetime ND was driven largely by men. Incorporating social network structural approaches into adolescent smoking prevention efforts may be beneficial.

Background: Universal health coverage (UHC) ensures affordability of a variety of essential health services for the general population. Although UHC could mitigate the harmful effects of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on patients and their socioeconomic position, the debate on UHC's scope and ability to improve health outcomes is ongoing. This study aimed to identify the impact of UHC policy withdrawal on the health outcomes of South Korea's severely ill COVID-19 patients. Methods: We used a propensity score matching (PSM) and difference-in-differences combined model. This study's subjects were 44,552 hospitalized COVID-19 patients contributing towards health insurance claims data, COVID-19 notifications and vaccination data extracted from the National Health Information Database and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency from 1 December 2020 to 30 April 2022. After PSM, 2460 patients were included. This study's exposures were severity of illness and UHC policy change. The primary outcome was the case fatality rate (CFR) for COVID-19, which was defined as death within 30 days of a COVID-19 diagnosis. There were four secondary outcomes, including time interval between diagnosis and hospitalization (days), length of stay (days), total medical expenses (USD) and the time interval between diagnosis and death (days). Results: After the UHC policy's withdrawal, the severely ill patients' CFR increased to 284 per 1000 patients [95% confidence interval (CI) 229.1–338.4], hospitalization days decreased to 9.61 days (95% CI −11.20 to −8.03) and total medical expenses decreased to 5702.73 USD (95% CI −7128.41 to −4202.01) compared with those who were not severely ill. Conclusions: During the pandemic, UHC may have saved the lives of severely ill COVID-19 patients; therefore, expanding services and financial coverage could be a crucial strategy during public health crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the extent to which adolescent social network positions are associated with the risk of lifetime daily smoking and nicotine dependence (ND), and whether these associations differ by gender. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 6,267), this study estimated multinomial logistic regression models. An increase in in-degree nominations, out-degree nominations, and Bonacich centrality was associated with a lower relative risk of never smoking daily versus ever smoking daily. By contrast, adolescents with greater in-degree nominations, out-degree nominations, Bonacich centrality, and network reach in three steps were at decreased risk for lifetime ND. Gender-stratified models indicate that the negative association between network position and never smoking daily was driven largely by women, whereas the positive association between network position and lifetime ND was driven largely by men. Incorporating social network structural approaches into adolescent smoking prevention efforts may be beneficial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]