Racism and Postpartum Blood Pressure in a Multiethnic Prospective Cohort.

Background: Postpartum hypertension is a key factor in racial-ethnic inequities in maternal mortality. Emerging evidence suggests that experiences of racism, both structural and interpersonal, may contribute to disparities. We examined associations between gendered racial microaggressions (GRMs) during obstetric care with postpartum blood pressure (BP).

Assessing the Impact and Cost-Effectiveness of Exposome Interventions on Alzheimer's Disease: A Review of Agent-Based Modeling and Other Data Science Methods for Causal Inference.

The exposome (e.g., totality of environmental exposures) and its role in Alzheimer's Disease and Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (AD/ADRD) are increasingly critical areas of study.

The Built Environment and Childhood Obesity.

Counseling on physical activity (PA) to promote a child's overall growth, development, and wellness is a routine part of a well child visit. Given less than a quarter of children in the United States ages 6 to 17 years get 60 minutes of PA daily, there is increased focus on the built environment, that is, neighborhood level supports and barriers to PA and risk for obesity. Broad-based consideration of the built environment's contribution to childhood obesity can inform public health prevention strategies at the individual, family, community, and societal levels that promote children's health, especially in high-risk communities.

Preconception HbA1c Levels in Adolescents and Young Adults and Adverse Birth Outcomes.

Importance: Subclinical hyperglycemia before pregnancy may be associated with the likelihood of maternal morbidity but is understudied among young people.

Objective: To explore the association of preconception hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels among adolescents and young adults with risk of gestational diabetes at first live birth.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospective cohort study used linked 2009 to 2017 birth registry, hospital discharge, and New York City Department of Health A1C Registry data for birthing individuals aged 10 to 24 years with no history of diabetes and at least 1 preconception HbA1c test in New York, New York.

Prospective transitions in hemoglobin A1c following gestational diabetes using Multistate Markov Models.

Objective: We characterized the state-to-state transitions in postpartum A1c levels after gestational diabetes, including remaining in a state of normoglycemia or transitions between prediabetes or diabetes states of varying severity.

Methods: We used data from the APPLE Cohort, a postpartum population-based cohort of individuals with gestational diabetes between 2009-2011and linked HbA1c data with up to 9 years follow-up (N=34,171). We examined maternal sociodemographic and perinatal characteristics as predictors of transitions in A1c progression using Markov multistate models.

Racism in obstetric care: a psychometric study of the Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale among Global Majority birthing people in obstetric contexts.

In the United States, maternal health inequities disproportionately affect Global Majority (e.g., Asian, Black, and Hispanic) populations.

Racial and Ethnic Inequities in Development of Type 2 Diabetes After Gestational Diabetes Mellitus.

Objective: To estimate racial and ethnic disparities in type 2 diabetes mellitus after gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and to investigate baseline pregnancy clinical and social or structural characteristics as mediators.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort of individuals with GDM using linked 2009-2011 New York City birth and hospital data and 2009-2017 New York City A1c Registry data. We ascertained GDM and pregnancy characteristics from birth and hospital records.

Predictors and Trends in First-Trimester Hemoglobin A1c Screening in New York City, 2009 to 2017.

Glycated hemoglobin is an adjunct tool in early pregnancy to assess glycemic control. We examined trends and maternal predictors for those who had A1c screening in early pregnancy using hospital discharge and vital registry data between 2009 and 2017 linked with the New York City A1C Registry ( = 798,312). First-trimester A1c screening increased from 2.

Influence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus on Diabetes Risk and Glycemic Control in a Retrospective Population-Based Cohort.

Objective: Racial/ethnic-specific estimates of the influence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) on type 2 diabetes remain underexplored in large population-based cohorts. We estimated racial/ethnic differences in the influence of GDM on diabetes risk and glycemic control in a multiethnic, population-based cohort of postpartum women.

Research Design And Methods: Hospital discharge and vital registry data for New York City (NYC) births between 2009 and 2011 were linked with NYC A1C Registry data between 2009 and 2017.

Exploring the accuracy of self-reported maternal and newborn care in select studies from low and middle-income country settings: do respondent and facility characteristics affect measurement?

Background: Accurate data on the receipt of essential maternal and newborn health interventions is necessary to interpret and address gaps in effective coverage. Validation results of commonly used content and quality of care indicators routinely implemented in international survey programs vary across settings. We assessed how respondent and facility characteristics influenced the accuracy of women's recall of interventions received in the antenatal and postnatal periods.

The validity of self-reported SARS-CoV-2 results among postpartum respondents.

Background: Rapid and reliable health data on SARS-CoV-2 infection among pregnant individuals are needed to understand the influence of the virus on maternal health and child development, yet the validity of self-reported COVID-19 testing and diagnosis remains unknown.

Objectives: We assessed the validity of self-reported COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing and diagnosis during delivery among postpartum respondents as well as how diagnostic accuracy varied by respondent characteristics.

Methods: We validated receipt of a COVID-19 PCR test and test results by comparing self-reported results obtained through an electronic survey to electronic medical record data (gold standard) among a cross-sectional sample of postpartum respondents who delivered at four New York City hospitals between March 2020 and January 2021.

The development of adolescent agency and implications for reproductive choice among girls in Zambia.

Background: A substantial proportion of adolescent girls in Zambia lack the ability to decide their reproductive future. We examined the role of agency in early and unwanted adolescent childbearing.

Methods: Using latent transition analysis, we characterized a multi-dimensional profile of adolescent agency annually over a four-year period.

The relationship between hormonal contraception and cervical dysplasia/cancer controlling for human papillomavirus infection: A systematic review.

Objective: Studies on the effect of long-term use of combined oral contraceptives (COCs) on cervical dysplasia and/or cancer risk have been inconsistent. Less is known about the effects of other forms of hormonal contraception (HC). We examine whether HC use increases the risk of incident cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 2, 3 and/or cancer after accounting for preexisting human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.

Pandemic Birthing: Childbirth Satisfaction, Perceived Health Care Bias, and Postpartum Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Objective: To examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on birth satisfaction and perceived health care discrimination during childbirth, and in turn, the influence of these birth experiences on postpartum health.

Study Design: We conducted a cross-sectional, bilingual web survey of 237 women who gave birth at two hospitals in New York City and assessed patient-reported experience and outcomes following the first wave of SARS-CoV-2 infections in the New York region. We ascertained SARS-CoV-2 status at delivery from the electronic medical record using participant-reported name and date of birth.

The Validity of Women's Reports of Family Planning Service Quality in Cambodia and Kenya.

Population-based indicators of the coverage of key elements of high-quality family planning services are tracked via household surveys with female respondents, yet little work has been done to establish their validity. We take advantage of existing data sets from Cambodia and Kenya to compare women's responses at exit interviews following a health facility visit against the observations of a trained third-party observer during the visit. The results, which treat the observations as the reference standard, show that indicators that measure contraceptive methods received are accurately reported while indicators of whether the woman received her preferred method and whether information was "discussed" or "explained" during counseling are less reliably reported.

Addressing Intimate Partner Violence and Power in Intimate Relationships in HIV Testing Services in Nairobi, Kenya.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) undermines women's uptake of HIV services and violates their human rights. In a two-arm randomized controlled trial we evaluated a short intervention that went a step beyond IPV screening to discuss violence and power with women receiving HIV testing services during antenatal care (ANC). The intervention included training and support for HIV counselors, a take-home card for clients, and an on-site IPV counselor.

The Influence of Schooling on the Stability and Mutability of Gender Attitudes: Findings From a Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Girls in Zambia.

Purpose: Inequitable gender norms are thought to harm lifelong health and well-being. We explore the process of gender attitude change and the role of schooling in shifting or reinforcing gender norms among adolescent girls in Zambia.

Methods: We used longitudinal data collected from unmarried, vulnerable girls (aged 10-19 years) as part of the Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program.

Gender norms and health: insights from global survey data.

Despite global commitments to achieving gender equality and improving health and wellbeing for all, quantitative data and methods to precisely estimate the effect of gender norms on health inequities are underdeveloped. Nonetheless, existing global, national, and subnational data provide some key opportunities for testing associations between gender norms and health. Using innovative approaches to analysing proxies for gender norms, we generated evidence that gender norms impact the health of women and men across life stages, health sectors, and world regions.

The links between women's employment and children at home: Variations in low- and middle-income countries by world region.

As fertility declines in low- and middle-income countries, the time women devote to childbearing and rearing may also be reduced. This shift has been described as one of the positive consequences of the demographic transition, as it opens opportunities for women to pursue educational and employment opportunities that were previously constrained by the demands of bearing and raising children. We estimate the numbers of children residing at home (with their mother) for women in 58 countries in Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa.

Hormonal Contraceptives and the Acquisition of Sexually Transmitted Infections: An Updated Systematic Review.

Background: Evidence suggests that some forms of hormonal contraception (HC) increase women's risk of non-human immunodeficiency virus sexually transmitted infections (STIs), yet evidence has not been reviewed since 2008. We conducted an updated systematic review to incorporate studies published between January 2009 and June 2017 to examine the relationship between HCs and incident or recurrent STIs.

Methods: We searched PubMed and EMBASE to identify prospective studies comparing risk of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, human papillomavirus (HPV), herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), Treponema pallidum, or Trichomonas vaginalis, between women using HC versus nonhormonal methods or no methods.

Gender, power, and violence: A systematic review of measures and their association with male perpetration of IPV.

Introduction: Harmful gender norms, views on the acceptability of violence against women, and power inequities in relationships have been explored as key drivers of male perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV). Yet such antecedents have been inconsistently measured in the empirical literature. This systematic review aimed to identify which measures of gender inequitable norms, views, relations and practices are currently being used in the field, and which are most closely tied with male IPV perpetration.

Women's recall of maternal and newborn interventions received in the postnatal period: a validity study in Kenya and Swaziland.

Background: Despite the concentration of maternal and infant deaths in the early postnatal period, information on the content and quality of postnatal care interventions is not routinely collected in most low and middle-income countries. At present, data on the coverage of postnatal care interventions mostly rely on women's reports collected in household surveys, such as the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS), which collect limited information. We assessed the validity of a set of postnatal care indicators that reflect a range of recommended interventions for both mother and newborn and have potential to be included in household surveys for monitoring of population-level coverage.

A Systematic Review of Adolescent Girl Program Implementation in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Evidence Gaps and Insights.

Increasing attention to adolescent girls has generated an abundance of programs and a growing body of research on adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries. Despite this, questions remain about what implementation approaches in program design are most effective, hindering efficient resource allocation, program scale-up, and replication across settings. To address these questions, we conducted a systematic review to identify lessons learned and gaps in the evidence base.

Identifying inequities in maternal and child health through risk stratification to inform health systems strengthening in Northern Togo.

Objective: In Togo, substantial progress in maternal and child health is needed to reach global development goals. To better inform clinic and community-based health services, this study identifies factors associated with maternal and child health care utilization in the Kara region of Northern Togo.

Methods: We conducted a population-representative household survey of four health clinic catchment areas of 1,075 women of reproductive age in 2015.