Evidence-based health messages increase intention to cope with loneliness in Germany: a randomized controlled online trial.

Loneliness poses a formidable global health challenge in our volatile, post-pandemic world. Prior studies have identified promising interventions to alleviate loneliness, however, little is known about their effectiveness. This study measured the effectiveness of educational entertainment ("edutainment") and/or evidence-based, written health messages in alleviating loneliness and increasing intention to cope with loneliness.

An Entertainment-Education Video and Written Messages to Alleviate Loneliness in Germany: Pilot Randomized Controlled Study.

Background: More than half of adults in Germany have felt lonely during the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous studies highlight the importance of boosting positive emotions and social connectedness to combat loneliness. However, interventions targeting these protective psychosocial resources remain largely untested.

Community Health Worker Use of Smart Devices for Health Promotion: Scoping Review.

Background: Community health workers (CHWs) have become essential to the promotion of healthy behaviors, yet their work is complicated by challenges both within and beyond their control. These challenges include resistance to the change of existing behaviors, disbelief of health messages, limited community health literacy, insufficient CHW communication skills and knowledge, lack of community interest and respect for CHWs, and CHWs' lack of adequate supplies. The rising penetration of "smart" technology (eg, smartphones and tablets) in low- and middle-income countries facilitates the use of portable electronic devices in the field.

Urology case report: Multifactorial bladder dysfunction in the setting of down syndrome.

A 16-year-old male patient with Down syndrome diagnosed with AKI and urinary tract infection was treated with meropenem for ESBL-positive in urine culture. Persistently elevated creatinine and persistent post-void residual (PVR) of >300 mL led to further testing, which revealed urethral stricture and a lower sacral Tarlov cyst. Due to no complete improvement with urethral dilatation, he underwent laminectomy and Tarlov cyst fenestration.

"The Videos Gave Weight to Our Work": Animated mHealth Videos and Tablet Technology Boost Community Health Workers' Perceived Credibility in Khayelitsha, South Africa.

Mobile health (mHealth) interventions are increasingly used to support community health workers (CHWs) in low-and middle-income countries. As near-peers within their communities, the credibility of CHWs is sometimes questioned-a recognized barrier to their efficacy. Nested within a large, randomized-controlled trial, this qualitative study captured the experiences of South African CHWs, called "Mentor-Mothers," using tablets and animated videos to promote exclusive breastfeeding.

Hope as a predictor for COVID-19 vaccine uptake in the US: a cross-sectional survey of 11,955 adults.

Widespread vaccine uptake is critical for ending the COVID-19 pandemic. As public health officials focus on overcoming vaccine hesitancy, simultaneously boosting hope may be equally important in the US. We analyzed data from an online cross-sectional survey conducted in June 2021.

Animated, video entertainment-education to improve vaccine confidence globally during the COVID-19 pandemic: an online randomized controlled experiment with 24,000 participants.

Background: Science-driven storytelling and entertainment-education (E-E) media demonstrate potential for promoting improved attitudes and behavioral intent towards health-related practices. Months after the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), emerging research highlights the essential role of interventions to improve public confidence in the COVID-19 vaccine. To improve vaccine confidence, we designed three short, animated videos employing three research-informed pedagogical strategies.

Participant engagement with a short, wordless, animated video on COVID-19 prevention: a multi-site randomized trial.

COVID-19 misinformation has spread rapidly across social media. To counter misinformation, we designed a short, wordless and animated video (called the CoVideo) to deliver scientifically informed and emotionally compelling information about preventive COVID-19 behaviours. After 15 163 online participants were recruited from Germany, Mexico, Spain, the UK and the USA, we offered participants in the attention placebo control (APC) and do-nothing arms the option to watch the CoVideo (without additional compensation) as post-trial access to treatment.

Participant Engagement and Reactance to a Short, Animated Video About Added Sugars: Web-based Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Short, animated story-based (SAS) videos are a novel and promising strategy for promoting health behaviors. To gain traction as an effective health communication tool, SAS videos must demonstrate their potential to engage a diverse and global audience. In this study, we evaluate engagement with a SAS video about the consumption of added sugars, which is narrated by a child (a nonthreatening character), a mother (a neutral layperson), or a physician (a medical expert).

Reactance to Social Authority in a Sugar Reduction Informational Video: Web-Based Randomized Controlled Trial of 4013 Participants.

Background: Short and animated story-based (SAS) videos can be an effective strategy for promoting health messages. However, health promotion strategies often motivate the rejection of health messages, a phenomenon known as reactance. In this study, we examine whether the child narrator of a SAS video (perceived as nonthreatening, with low social authority) minimizes reactance to a health message about the consumption of added sugars.

Effect of a story-based, animated video to reduce added sugar consumption: A web-based randomized controlled trial.

Background: Short and animated story-based (SAS) videos, which can be rapidly distributed through social media channels, are a novel and promising strategy for promoting health behaviors. In this study, we evaluate the effectiveness of a SAS video intervention to reduce the consumption of added sugars.

Methods: In December 2020, we randomized 4159 English-speaking participants from the United Kingdom (1:1:1) to a sugar intervention video, a content placebo video about sunscreen use (no sugar message), or a placebo video about earthquakes (no health or sugar message).

Evaluation of a community-based mobile video breastfeeding intervention in Khayelitsha, South Africa: The Philani MOVIE cluster-randomized controlled trial.

Background: In South Africa, breastfeeding promotion is a national health priority. Regular perinatal home visits by community health workers (CHWs) have helped promote exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) in underresourced settings. Innovative, digital approaches including mobile video content have also shown promise, especially as access to mobile technology increases among CHWs.

The Effect of a Wordless, Animated, Social Media Video Intervention on COVID-19 Prevention: Online Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Innovative approaches to the dissemination of evidence-based COVID-19 health messages are urgently needed to counter social media misinformation about the pandemic. To this end, we designed a short, wordless, animated global health communication video (the CoVideo), which was rapidly distributed through social media channels to an international audience.

Objective: The objectives of this study were to (1) establish the CoVideo's effectiveness in improving COVID-19 prevention knowledge, and (2) establish the CoVideo's effectiveness in increasing behavioral intent toward COVID-19 prevention.

Reactance to Social Authority in Entertainment-Education Media: Protocol for a Web-Based Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Entertainment-education media can be an effective strategy for influencing health behaviors. To improve entertainment-education effectiveness, we seek to investigate whether the social authority of a person delivering a health message arouses the motivation to reject that message-a phenomenon known as reactance.

Objective: In this study, using a short animated video, we aim to measure reactance to a sugar reduction message narrated by a child (low social authority), the child's mother (equivalent social authority to the target audience), and a family physician (high social authority).

Head and Spinal Injuries in Equestrian Sports: Update on Epidemiology, Clinical Outcomes, and Injury Prevention.

Equestrian sports represent a variety of activities involving a horse and rider. Due to the unpredictable nature of horses, their height, and potential high speeds involved, equestrian athletes are at risk of head and spinal injuries. This review describes the epidemiology, injury mechanisms, and risk factors for equestrian sports-related head and spinal injuries.

An exploration of the lived experiences of non-binary individuals who have presented at a gender identity clinic in the United Kingdom.

: Despite an increased awareness of non-binary identity in the current social landscape, the experiences and needs of this heterogeneous community are poorly understood and represented in the research literature. Evidence indicates that social exclusion is not uncommon for individuals expressing a non-binary gender identity, with reflections in the literature that this may in turn have an impact on their psychological wellbeing. : As non-binary individuals are increasingly presenting at UK gender identity clinics and requesting medical interventions, the aim of this study was to better understand their experiences and needs.

When Yawning Occurs in Elephants.

Yawning is a widely recognized behavior in mammalian species. One would expect that elephants yawn, although to our knowledge, no one has reported observations of yawning in any species of elephant. After confirming a behavioral pattern matching the criteria of yawning in two Asian elephants () in a zoological setting, this study was pursued with nine captive African elephants () at a private reserve in the Western Cape, South Africa, the Knysna Elephant Park.

Risk factors for hepatitis C infection and perception of antibody status among male prison inmates in the Hepatitis C Incidence and Transmission in Prisons Study cohort, Australia.

The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of risk factors for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among male prison inmates enrolling into a prospective cohort in Australia. We tested 121 inmates who were previously untested or were previously known to be anti-HCV antibody negative for anti-HCV antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. HCV-positive inmates were classified as cases (n = 25) and HCV-negative inmates as controls (n = 96).

Endocrine-disrupting effects of cattle feedlot effluent on an aquatic sentinel species, the fathead minnow.

Over the last decade, research has examined the endocrine-disrupting action of various environmental pollutants, including hormones, pharmaceuticals, and surfactants, in sewage treatment plant effluent. Responding to the growth of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and the pollutants present in their wastewater (e.g.