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Child maltreatment fatalities are a significant public health issue. Case level characteristics of abuse-related deaths can increase our understanding of maltreatment fatalities and inform region-specific prevention initiatives. Explore child abuse fatalities in the Illinois Violent Death Reporting System (IVDRS) for commonalities and distinctive features. A mixed methods study was conducted using IVDRS data from 2015 to 2018. All fatalities with a homicide or undetermined manner of death among decedents 10 years old or younger were included. Both discrete and narrative data were analyzed separately for victim, suspect, circumstance, and household characteristics. Of the 106 deaths that met inclusion criteria, 74 % of homicide deaths (64/86) and 50 % of undetermined deaths (10/20) were due to abuse. Psychosocial characteristics most often identified in abusive deaths included family relationship problems, mental illness, and history of substance abuse. Other common characteristics included use of personal weapons or blunt instruments and death due to punishment. Including narrative data rather than discrete data alone identified 148 % more deaths with three characteristics commonly found in abusive deaths: history of abuse, shaken baby syndrome, and family history of violence. This study demonstrates the capability of multi-source state-level data to enrich our understanding of child abuse fatalities. Employing the narrative review method in other states using the National Violent Death Reporting System may increase the identification of abuse fatalities. Improved recognition and characterization of abuse fatalities has the potential to help address systemic factors involved and enhance targeted prevention efforts. Child abuse fatalities represent a significant and preventable public health issue in the United States. Case-specific characteristics are limited in national data sets, and their absence curtails prevention opportunities. State-wide reporting systems of violent deaths offer rich and multisource data regarding child abuse fatalities including detailed victim, suspect, circumstance, and household characteristics. This data can be used to enhance our knowledge of maltreatment fatalities and may inform region-specific public health and prevention initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative study explores and describes the transactional and cumulative psychosocial stressors that later-life Egyptian immigrants encounter upon coming to the United States, and how they impede their adaptive capacities, hinder their adjustment efforts, and impact their psychosocial well-being. Such stressors are more pronounced among those who immigrated to the United States from Egypt after reaching the retirement age of 60 for two reasons. First, they experience pre-immigration stressors that force or expedite their departure from Egypt under duress, thus incurring numerous financial and symbolic losses. Secondly, in the last developmental stage, when age-related losses are triggered, they are concomitantly exposed to a starkly different lifestyle, language, cultural norms, living and financial arrangements, roles, and relationships. All such circumstances contribute to a sense of confusion, guilt, shame, and being a burden on others, which culminate in withdrawal, isolation, and distress. The findings of this study can be used to inform psychosocial and therapeutic interventions and guide the development of appropriate social work programs, services, and policies for later-life Egyptian immigrants in particular and older Arabic-speaking immigrants in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This study investigates the relationships between maternal cognitive, behavioral, and psychosocial factors and brushing practices in low-income African-American preschool children. Methods: Data are from a population-based sample of 1021 African-American families with at least one child <6 years of age and living in the 39 low-income Census tracts in Detroit, Michigan. Analyses were limited to 1–5-year-old children and their mothers ( n = 719). Mothers were surveyed about oral health-related self-efficacy (OHSE), knowledge about appropriate bottle use (KBU), knowledge about children's oral hygiene (KCOH), oral health fatalism (OHF), their own toothbrushing behavior, depressive symptoms (CES-D), parenting stress, practical social support, and their child's dental history. Children's 1-week reported brushing frequency was the main outcome measure. Analyses were conducted insudaan to account for the complex sampling design. Results: Children's 1-week brushing frequency (range 0–40) averaged 8.50 times per week among 1–3-year olds and 9.75 among the 4–5-year olds. Maternal OHSE was a strong and significant predictor of children's brushing frequency; for each unit increase in OHSE, 1–3-year olds were expected to brush 18% more frequently on average during 1 week [incidence density ratios (IDR) = 1.18, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.08–1.28; P < 0.001], and 4–5-year olds were expected to brush 9% more often (IDR = 1.09, 95% CI 1.00–1.19; P < 0.10). Mothers’ KCOH score was also significantly positively associated with brushing frequency; for each unit increase on the KCOH scale, 1–3-year olds were expected to brush 22% more frequently (IDR = 1.22, 95% CI 1.10–1.35; P < 0.001) and 4–5-year olds were expected to brush 13% more frequently (IDR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.02–1.26; P < 0.05). If a mother brushed her own teeth at bedtime during the week, her 1–3-year old child's brushing frequency was expected to increase by one-third (IDR = 1.34, 95% CI 1.12–1.60; P < 0.01) and among the 4–5-year olds, the child's frequency was expected to increase by one-quarter (IDR = 1.26, 95% CI 1.12–1.42; P < 0.001). Availability of help with transportation and financial support were also relevant variables for 1–3-year olds. Higher family income and dental insurance coverage were both positively associated with brushing among 4–5-year olds. Conclusions: Several maternal cognitive, behavioral, and psychosocial factors were associated with young children's brushing practices. Oral health-specific self-efficacy and knowledge measures are potentially modifiable cognitions; findings suggest that intervening on these factors could help foster healthy dental habits and increase children's brushing frequency early in life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Misuse of prescription stimulant medication is a prevalent problem on American college campuses; however, few studies have been conducted beyond the United States. Although Iceland has the highest methylphenidate prescription rates in the world, prevalence of stimulant misuse within the Icelandic college student population remains to be investigated. Method: We examined the prevalence of prescription stimulant misuse among N = 521 college students in Iceland, using an online survey. Results: Overall prevalence of lifetime stimulant misuse was approximately 13%; 11% among participants without a prescription for stimulant medication, and 42% among participants holding a prescription. The primary reported reason for misuse was academic enhancement; risk factors included male sex, anxiety symptoms, and ADHD symptomatology. Conclusion: The present findings have implications for public health policy in Iceland, particularly as it relates to the college population. Prevention and intervention programs that provide college students with safer strategies to manage academic demands are warranted.