Search

Summary: Background: Substance use, depression, and anxiety in adolescence are major public health problems requiring new scalable prevention strategies. We aimed to assess the effectiveness of a combined online universal (ie, delivered to all pupils) school-based preventive intervention targeting substance use, depression, and anxiety in adolescence. Methods: We did a multicentre, cluster-randomised controlled trial in secondary schools in Australia, with pupils in year 8 or 9 (aged 13–14 years). Participating schools were randomly assigned (1:1:1:1) to one of four intervention conditions: (1) Climate Schools–Substance Use, focusing on substance use only; (2) Climate Schools–Mental Health, focusing on depression and anxiety only; (3) Climate Schools–Combined, focusing on the prevention of substance use, depression, and anxiety; or (4) active control. The interventions were delivered in school classrooms in an online delivery format and used a mixture of peer cartoon storyboards and classroom activities that were focused on alcohol, cannabis, anxiety, and depression. The interventions were delivered for 2 years and primary outcomes were knowledge related to alcohol, cannabis, and mental health; alcohol use, including heavy episodic drinking; and depression and anxiety symptoms at 12, 24, and 30 months after baseline. This trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12613000723785) and an extended follow-up is underway. Findings: Between Sept 1, 2013, and Feb 28, 2014, we recruited 88 schools (12 391 pupils), of whom 71 schools and 6386 (51·5%) pupils were analysed (17 schools dropped out and 1308 pupils declined to participate). We allocated 18 schools (1739 [27·25%] pupils; 1690 [97·2%] completed at least one follow-up) to the substance use condition, 18 schools (1594 [25·0%] pupils; 1560 [97·9%] completed at least one follow-up) to the mental health condition, 16 schools (1497 [23·4%] pupils; 1443 [96·4%] completed at least one follow-up) to the combined condition, and 19 schools (1556 [23·4%] pupils; 1513 [97·2%] completed at least one follow-up) to the control condition. Compared with controls, the combined intervention group had increased knowledge related to alcohol and cannabis at 12, 24, and 30 months (standardised mean difference [SMD] for alcohol 0·26 [95% CI 0·14 to 0·39] and for cannabis 0·17 [0·06 to 0·28] at 30 months), increased knowledge related to mental health at 24 months (0·17 [0·08 to 0·27]), reduced growth in their odds of drinking and heavy episodic drinking at 12, 24, and 30 months (odds ratio for drinking 0·25 [95% CI 0·12 to 0·51], and for heavy episodic drinking 0·15 [0·04 to 0·58] at 30 months), and reduced increases in anxiety symptoms at 12 and 30 months (SMD −0·12 [95% CI −0·22 to −0·01] at 30 months). We found no difference in symptoms or probable diagnosis of depression. The combined intervention group also showed improvement in alcohol use outcomes compared with the substance use and mental health interventions and improvements in anxiety outcomes when compared with the mental health intervention only. Interpretation: Combined online prevention of substance use, depression, and anxiety led to increased knowledge of alcohol, cannabis, and mental health, reduced increase in the odds of any drinking and heavy episodic drinking, and reduced symptoms of anxiety over a 30-month period. These findings provide the first evidence of the effectiveness of an online universal school-based preventive intervention targeting substance use, depression, and anxiety in adolescence. Funding: Australian National Health and Medical Research Council.

Summary: Background: Lifestyle risk behaviours typically emerge during adolescence, track into adulthood, and commonly co-occur. Interventions targeting multiple risk behaviours in adolescents have the potential to efficiently improve health outcomes, yet further evidence is required to determine their effect. We reviewed the effectiveness of eHealth school-based interventions targeting multiple lifestyle risk behaviours. Methods: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane Library databases between Jan 1, 2000, and March 14, 2019, with no language restrictions, for publications on school-based eHealth multiple health behaviour interventions in humans. We also screened the grey literature for unpublished data. Eligible studies were randomised controlled trials of eHealth (internet, computers, tablets, mobile technology, or tele-health) interventions targeting two or more of six behaviours of interest: alcohol use, smoking, diet, physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep. Primary outcomes of interest were the prevention or reduction of unhealthy behaviours, or improvement in healthy behaviours of the six behaviours. Outcomes were summarised in a narrative synthesis and combined using random-effects meta-analysis. This systematic review is registered with PROSPERO, identifier CRD42017072163. Findings: Of 10 571 identified records, 22 publications assessing 16 interventions were included, comprising 18 873 students, of whom on average 56·2% were female, with a mean age of 13·41 years (SD 1·52). eHealth school-based multiple health behaviour change interventions significantly increased fruit and vegetable intake (standard mean difference 0·11, 95% CI 0·03 to 0·19; p=0·007) and both accelerometer-measured (0·33, 0·05 to 0·61; p=0·02) and self-reported (0·14, 0·05 to 0·23; p=0·003) physical activity, and reduced screen time (−0·09, −0·17 to −0·01; p=0·03) immediately after the intervention; however, these effects were not sustained at follow-up when data were available. No effect was seen for alcohol or smoking, fat or sugar-sweetened beverage or snack consumption. No studies examined sleep or used mobile health interventions. The risk of bias in masking of final outcome assessors and selective outcome reporting was high or unclear across studies and overall we deemd the quality of evidence to be low to very low. Interpretation: eHealth school-based interventions addressing multiple lifestyle risk behaviours can be effective in improving physical activity, screen time, and fruit and vegetable intake. However, effects were small and only evident immediately after the intervention. Further high quality, adolescent-informed research is needed to develop eHealth interventions that can modify multiple behaviours and sustain long-term effects. Funding: Paul Ramsay Foundation and Australian National Health and Medical Research Council.

Abstract Objectives: To compare the lifetime prevalence of affective, anxiety and substance use disorders and the use of mental health services between people who had served in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) or received Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) benefits and the general population. Method: The 2007 National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing obtained data from a nationally representative household survey of 8,841 respondents. Results: Fewer than 20% of men who had served in the ADF reported receiving benefits from DVA. ADF men were older and more likely to report poorer health than other men. They were 50% more likely to be diagnosed with any lifetime mental disorder, any affective disorder, depression, PTSD, any substance use and alcohol disorder. Almost 90% of women who received DVA benefits had not served in the ADF. DVA women were older, and more likely to report moderate/severe psychological distress and less life satisfaction than other women. There was no evidence of greater lifetime use of mental health services by ADF men or DVA women compared to the general population. Conclusions: Health care providers should ask their patients if they have connections with the military in order to better detect and treat potential mental health problems.

The aims of the current study were to 1) establish the efficacy of two Internet-based prevention programmes to reduce anxiety and depressive symptoms in adolescents; and 2) investigate the distribution of psychological symptoms in a large sample of Australian adolescents prior to the implementation of the intervention. A cluster randomised controlled trial was conducted with 976 Year 9–10 students from twelve Australian secondary schools in 2009. Four schools were randomly allocated to the Anxiety Internet-based prevention programme (n = 372), five schools to the Depression Internet-based prevention programme (n = 380) and three to their usual health classes (n = 224). The Thiswayup Schools for Anxiety and Depression prevention courses were presented over the Internet and consist of 6–7 evidence-based, curriculum consistent lessons to improve the ability to manage anxiety and depressive symptoms. Participants were assessed at baseline and post-intervention. Data analysis was constrained by both study attrition and data corruption. Thus post-intervention data were only available for 265/976 students. Compared to the control group, students in the depression intervention group showed a significant improvement in anxiety and depressive symptoms at the end of the course, whilst students in the anxiety intervention demonstrated a reduction in symptoms of anxiety. No significant differences were found in psychological distress. The Thiswayup Schools Depression and Anxiety interventions appear to reduce anxiety and depressive symptoms in adolescents using a curriculum based, blended online and offline cognitive behavioural therapy programme that was implemented by classroom teachers. Given the study limitations, particularly the loss of post-intervention data, these findings can only be considered preliminary and need to be replicated in future research.