Estimating the variations and autocorrelations in dietary intakes on weekdays and weekends.

The high incidence of breast cancer in the U.S. and the possible link with dietary fat has led to the development of educational programmes for reducing women's fat intakes by agencies such as the National Cancer Institute and the U.

Investigation of nonresponse bias: Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

This report presents an investigation of potential nonresponse bias in the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HHANES) conducted during the period 1982-84. Data from a household and medical history interview were used to investigate factors related to examination status. The study includes a comparison of data for examinees in HHANES with data from interviewees in the National Health Interview Survey during 1982, 1983, and 1984.

Comparison of tooth surface-specific dental caries attack patterns in US schoolchildren from two national surveys.

The 1979-1980 and the 1986-1987 National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR) surveys of school-aged children revealed that virtually all tooth surfaces experienced a decrease in caries prevalence during the inter-survey period. Overall, there was a 28% decrease in the proportion of tooth surfaces attacked by caries for the primary dentition between the two surveys. The decrease for primary incisors was numerically small (5 surfaces per thousand surfaces at risk) and not statistically significant, whereas decreases in the canines and primary molars were considerably larger (23 surfaces per thousand) and statistically significant.

Adjusting for nonresponse bias in a health examination survey.

There is a potential for nonresponse bias in most population studies using health examinations. This is true of the Mexican American portion of the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HHANES), conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics, in which unit nonresponse to the examination accounted for 24 percent of the sample. Even though the full effect of nonresponse can never be really known, ancillary information from the interview sample can be used in an attempt to adjust for bias in estimates.

National standards of blood pressure for children and adolescents in Spain: international comparisons. The Spanish Group for the Study of Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Childhood and Youth.

This study determined age-specific patterns of blood pressure (BP) in Spanish children aged 1-18 years for the purpose of developing BP guidelines for this population. Age- and sex-specific BP levels were constructed by pooling data from 15 studies conducted in Spain. Pooled mean BP levels were then compared with those reported by the US Second Task Force on Blood Pressure Control in Children and those recently reported from a separate pooled analysis of the relevant published surveys collected worldwide.

A profile of black and Hispanic subgroups' access to dental care: findings from the National Health Interview Survey.

This study examined which black and Hispanic minority subgroups were least likely to obtain dental care and why, based on logistic regression analyses of the 1986 National Health Interview Survey. Blacks and Hispanics were less apt to have private dental insurance coverage, to be knowledgeable about the purpose of fluoride, to have been to a dentist in the past year, and, when they did go, were more apt to have gone in response to symptoms rather than for preventive reasons, compared to whites. Logistic regression analyses for adults 18 years of age and older and for children and adolescents 2 to 17 years of age showed that the following individuals had the lowest probability of having been to a dentist in the past year: males, members of larger families, adults who were unemployed or in blue-collar jobs, those who lived in the South or nonmetropolitan areas, people who perceived their health to be fair or poor, and those with no private dental insurance.

Promoting physical activity and a healthful diet among children: results of a school-based intervention study.

Background: National health objectives call for improved diet and more regular physical activity among children. We tested the effects of a school-based program to improve students' diet and physical activity behavior at school.

Methods: Two of the four elementary schools in one Texas school district were assigned to intervention and two to control conditions.

Dose-response relation of the angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor ramipril in mild to moderate essential hypertension.

The effects of various dosage levels of ramipril on blood pressure were examined in a double-blind multicenter clinical trial. Patients with mild to moderate essential hypertension were first entered into a single-blind washout placebo phase of 4 weeks duration. The patients were then randomized to 1 of 3 treatment groups and received either 1.

Living arrangements and dietary patterns of older adults in the United States.

Living arrangements and dietary patterns were examined for 3,477 adults aged 65 to 74 from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1971 to 1974 (NHANES I). Several indicators of dietary variety, diet composition, and energy and nutrient intake from both the 24-hour recall, and the dietary frequency questionnaires were analyzed. Dietary patterns of older men were associated more strongly with type of living arrangement and income compared with older women.

Effects of smoking on pulmonary function and symptomatology in occupationally exposed groups.

Records of 3006 employees of nine companies in southeast Texas screened by a local lung association during the years 1974-1975 were examined to assess the effect of smoking, age, and occupational and residential ambient air pollution exposure. The effects of smoking and occupational exposure were strong when tested against a respiratory morbidity response questionnaire considered to be diagnostic for early-stage bronchitis. Occupational exposure lost statistical significance after place of residence was controlled in the analysis.

DRGs in psychiatry. An empirical evaluation.

On October 1, 1983, Medicare began paying general hospitals by a prospective payment system based on DRGs. Psychiatric settings are exempted automatically or by request. By January 1985, however, a decision is required on how to integrate psychiatric settings into this system.

Diagnosis-related groups for mental disorders, alcoholism, and drug abuse: evaluation and alternatives.

Under the new federal prospective payment system, 15 of the 467 diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) cover mental disorders, including alcohol and substance abuse. The authors compare these 15 DRGs with some criteria of an ideal patient classification system. According to their assessment, the DRGs for mental disorders pose no administrative problems, but are not sufficiently homogeneous within categories or heterogeneous between categories.

Investigation of nonresponse bias in NHANES II.

In the second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES II), there was a 27% nonresponse rate in the examination phase. This report investigates the potential bias in these data due to this large nonresponse rate. Data from a household and medical history interview are used in the investigation of factors related to examination status.

Indicators of response to a mass media CPR recruitment campaign.

Respondents to a mass media cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) recruitment campaign in Harris County, Texas were more likely than non-respondents to be White, female, and under 45 years of age, to have had previous CPR training, experienced an incident in which knowledge of CPR might have been useful, or to have a friend or relative with a relevant medical history. The majority of the respondents were housewives, and professionals or technical workers, particularly in the health field. Findings can be used to identify audiences for future mass media CPR campaigns.

Relationship between dietary and biochemical measures of nutritional status in HANES I data.

Data from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were examined for individual 24-h dietary intakes of protein, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, and iron, and for laboratory indices of the same nutrients in blood and urine. Mean intake values were close to or above reference standards for all nutrients except iron. Substandard laboratory values were recorded for: serum albumin and vitamin A--less than 3% of subjects; urinary thiamin/creatinine excretion--3 and 8% of white and Black subjects, respectively; Hb, hematocrit, and percentage transferrin saturation--5 to 15% of whites and 18 to 27% of Black subjects; serum iron--less than 6% of subjects.

Catastrophic health insurance and HMO's.

The catastrophic health insurance bills introduced during the 96th U.S. Congress failed to consider the current role that Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO's) play in providing catastrophic protection and the potential negative impact such legislation may have on their competitive position.

Leisure behavior and attitudes toward leisure of alcoholics and nonalcoholics.

Alcoholics participated in fewer leisure activities than did nonalcoholics except that white-collar alcoholics participated in more leisure activities than did white-collar nonalcoholics. Alcoholics viewed leisure less positively than did nonalcoholics.

Utilization of services of an HMO by new enrollees.

This study investigates whether there is a built-up demand for health services that surfaces when people enroll through a group plan in a Health Maintenance Organization. The study population consists of newly enrolled subscriber units of the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (Oregon Region). The utilization variables examined include the number of inpatient and outpatient contacts with the Plan, the number and type of specific services performed, and the type of outpatient contact.

Life table analysis of membership in an HMO retention.

The retention patterns of the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (Oregon Region) were studied over a six-year period using a life table analysis. A 5% random sample, consisting of subscriber units that were enrolled at the initiation of the study of subsequently joined during the six-year period, were followed with respect to enrollment retention. The analysis presented here focuses on the 2,112 subscribers enrolled during the 1967-1970 period.