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Background: The need to study the link between gender, depression, and oral health is becoming increasingly evident. This study therefore aimed to determine the prevalence and evolution over time of depression among women and men with oral health problems and to evaluate the association between depression status, lifestyle-related variables health-related variables and use of dental health services in those people., Methods: We performed a nationwide cross-sectional study on 25,631 adults with oral health problems residing in Spain from the Spanish National Health Survey 2017 and the European Health Survey of Spain 2020, including as the main variable self-reported diagnosis of depression. We analysed independent variables such as lifestyle-related variables, health-related variables, and variables related to dental health services. Sociodemographic characteristics were considered as control variables., Results: The prevalence of depression among adults with oral health problems in Spain was 7.81% (10.14% for women, 5.39% for men), with a notable decrease from 2017 to 2020 in women. Depressed women had a slightly higher percentage of filled or capped teeth, and had more covers (crowns), bridges or other types of prostheses or dentures, while men had more caries. Women also made more frequent, regular dental visits for check-ups and mouth cleaning, whereas men often needed extractions. Unfavourable associated factors in both genders were: perceiving their health as good, average, poor, or very poor, and having 1-2 and ≥ 3 comorbidities. Conversely, not being a current smoker was related to less likelihood of depression. In women only, not engaging in leisure-time physical activity produced more unfavourable associated factors., Conclusion: The prevalence of depression among adults with oral health problems in Spain from 2017 to 2020 was 7.81%, but this figure has been steadily decreasing over time. In addition, the favourable and unfavourable associated factors could help us inform health professionals and authorities in order to prevent depression and enhance the care of this population according to gender., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Cebrino and Portero de la Cruz.)

Background: University students are a vulnerable population and faced a significant psychological impact from the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the level of fear of COVID-19 among university students and to evaluate the possible relationship between fear of COVID-19 and socio-demographic, health-related determinants, variables related to the COVID-19 and variables related to the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic., Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study between December 2020 and December 2021 on a sample of 950 university students from two universities in southern Spain. Participants completed a form that collected socio-demographic, health-related and COVID-related variables, a validated questionnaire related to the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the fear of COVID Scale (FCV-19S). Descriptive, inferential, and multivariable linear regression analyzes were conducted., Results: The mean FCV-19S score was 14.86 ± 5.16 points. The factors identified as predictors of FCV-19S were being female ( p  < 0.001), holding religious beliefs ( p  = 0.04), living in towns with over 10,000 inhabitants ( p  < 0.01), living with someone vulnerable to COVID-19 ( p  = 0.02), watching TV to keep informed about COVID-19 ( p  < 0.01), believing in a low probability of surviving if infected with COVID-19 ( p  < 0.001), having a higher level of death anxiety ( p  < 0.001) and suffering from insomnia ( p  < 0.001)., Conclusion: An average fear of COVID-19 score of 14.86 ± 5.16 points has been found among university students in Spain. These findings can aid in identifying specific factors contributing to fear of COVID-19 and in developing coping strategies to alleviate the stress of the pandemic., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Cebrino and Portero de la Cruz.)

Background: Although population screening has improved the early diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC), most cases are diagnosed in symptomatic patients. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence and evolution over time of uptake patterns to fecal immunochemical test (FIT) as a screening test for CRC among individuals aged 50-69 in Spain, and to determine the predictive factors for uptake patterns to this type of screening based on sociodemographic, health, and lifestyle characteristics., Methods: A cross-sectional study with 14,163 individuals from the 2017 Spanish National Health Survey and the 2020 European Health Survey was performed, including as the main variable uptake pattern to FIT screening within the last 2 years, with which we analyzed sociodemographic factors, health status and lifestyle habits., Results: 38.01% of participants had undergone FIT in the previous 2 years, and from 2017 to 2020, a significant increase in the uptake rate for CRC was observed (2017: 32.35%, 2020: 43.92%, p < 0.001). The positive predictors to FIT uptake pattern included factors such as being between 57 and 69 years, having a higher educational level or a higher social class, having at least one chronic illness, frequent contact with the primary care physician, alcohol consumption and physical activity, while immigration and smoking habit were negative predictors., Conclusion: In Spain, although the evolution of FIT uptake pattern over time is positive, the prevalence of FIT uptake is still low (38.01%), not reaching the level considered as acceptable in the European guidelines. Moreover, there are disparities in CRC screening uptake among individuals., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Portero de la Cruz and Cebrino.)