Obesity at the age of 4-5 related to asthma diagnosis in later childhood: A longitudinal study using linked routinely collected data from Wales.

Introduction: Obesity and asthma are two of the most common childhood conditions and their prevalence have increased over the last decades. Several cross-sectional studies provide strong evidence for a positive association between these two conditions. However, few longitudinal studies have examined the temporal relationship between them.

Understanding variations in the built environment over time to inform longitudinal studies of young children's physical activity behaviour - The BEACHES project.

We know relatively little about the role the neighbourhood built environment plays in promoting young children's physical activity, particularly its longitudinal effect either through repeated exposure to the same environment or through change in exposure by moving from one neighbourhood to another. This study characterised the neighbourhood environment of young children in the PLAYCE cohort study over three timepoints from 2015 to 2023. There were statistically significant differences in built environment attributes between timepoints and across socio-economic status, however they did not represent practically significant differences.

Children and young people's body mass index measures derived from routine data sources: A national data linkage study in Wales.

Background: Routine monitoring of Body Mass Index (BMI) in general practice, and via national surveillance programmes, is essential for the identification, prevention, and management of unhealthy childhood weight. We examined and compared the presence and representativeness of children and young people's (CYPs) BMI recorded in two routinely collected administrative datasets: general practice electronic health records (GP-BMI) and the Child Measurement Programme for Wales (CMP-BMI), which measures height and weight in 4-5-year-old school children. We also assessed the feasibility of combining GP-BMI and CMP-BMI data for longitudinal analyses.

Motor Competence between Children with and without Additional Learning Needs: A Cross-Sectional Population-Level Study.

The aim of this study was to examine associations in motor competence between children with additional learning needs (ALN) and typically developing children. This cross-sectional study involved a nationally representative cohort of 4555 children (48.98% boys; 11.

Immunisation status of children receiving care and support in Wales: a national data linkage study.

Background: In the UK, a robust childhood immunisation programme ensures children are offered protection against serious infections; identifying inequalities in vaccination coverage is essential. This is one of the first data linkage studies to examine coverage of primary, as well as pre-school booster and second dose of MMR vaccines, in children receiving support from social care services across Wales.

Methods: By accessing records held within the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank, vaccination status of children receiving social care and support between April 2016 and March 2021 ( = 24,540) was ascertained.

Trajectories in chronic disease accrual and mortality across the lifespan in Wales, UK (2005-2019), by area deprivation profile: linked electronic health records cohort study on 965,905 individuals.

Background: Understanding and quantifying the differences in disease development in different socioeconomic groups of people across the lifespan is important for planning healthcare and preventive services. The study aimed to measure chronic disease accrual, and examine the differences in time to individual morbidities, multimorbidity, and mortality between socioeconomic groups in Wales, UK.

Methods: Population-wide electronic linked cohort study, following Welsh residents for up to 20 years (2000-2019).

Risk Factors Associated With Primary Care-Reported Domestic Violence for Women Involved in Family Law Care Proceedings: Data Linkage Observational Study.

Background: Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) has a detrimental impact on the health and well-being of children and families but is commonly underreported, with an estimated prevalence of 5.5% in England and Wales in 2020. DVA is more common in groups considered vulnerable, including those involved in public law family court proceedings; however, there is a lack of evidence regarding risk factors for DVA among those involved in the family justice system.

Pre-COVID-19 pandemic health-related behaviours in children (2018-2020) and association with being tested for SARS-CoV-2 and testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 (2020-2021): a retrospective cohort study using survey data linked with routine health data in Wales, UK.

Objectives: Examine if pre-COVID-19 pandemic (prior March 2020) health-related behaviours during primary school are associated with (1) being tested for SARS-CoV-2 and (2) testing positive between 1 March 2020 and 31 August 2021.

Design: Retrospective cohort study using an online cohort survey (January 2018 to February 2020) linked with routine PCR SARS-CoV-2 test results.

Setting: Children attending primary schools in Wales (2018-2020), UK, who were part of the Health and Attainment of Pupils in a Primary Education Network (HAPPEN)_school network.

Risk of thrombocytopenic, haemorrhagic and thromboembolic disorders following COVID-19 vaccination and positive test: a self-controlled case series analysis in Wales.

There is a need for better understanding of the risk of thrombocytopenic, haemorrhagic, thromboembolic disorders following first, second and booster vaccination doses and testing positive for SARS-CoV-2. Self-controlled cases series analysis of 2.1 million linked patient records in Wales between 7th December 2020 and 31st December 2021.

Clusters of Activity-Related Social and Physical Home Environmental Factors and Their Association With Children's Home-Based Physical Activity and Sitting.

Purpose: Understanding which physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior correlates cluster in children is important, particularly in the home, where children spend significant time. Therefore, this study aimed to assess clustering of physical and social activity-related factors at home, and whether these clusters are related to home-based sitting and PA in children. A secondary aim was to explore whether the clusters were associated with child, parent, and family characteristics.

Linking cohort data and Welsh routine health records to investigate children at risk of delayed primary vaccination.

Background: Delayed primary vaccination is one of the strongest predictors of subsequent incomplete immunisation. Identifying children at risk of such delay may enable targeting of interventions, thus decreasing vaccine-preventable illness.

Objectives: To explore socio-demographic factors associated with delayed receipt of the Diphtheria, Tetanus and Pertussis (DTP) vaccine.

Data resource: Children receiving care and support and children in need, administrative records in Wales.

Introduction: In Wales, the Children in Need (CIN) dataset includes information relating to needs of children and social care support. Before the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 came into force in April 2016, this data collection was named the Children in Need census, changing to Children Receiving Care and Support (CRCS) after this date to reflect better the children eligible for inclusion. This paper describes these datasets, their potential for research and their limitations.

A Socioecological Perspective of How Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour at Home Changed during the First Lockdown of COVID-19 Restrictions: The HomeSPACE Project.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced school closures, resulting in home schooling, more time spent at home and fewer opportunities for physical activity (PA). This study explored factors influencing PA and sedentary behaviours (SB) within the home environment during the first lockdown, starting in March 2020. Twenty semi-structured interviews (20 parents and 23 children, 12 years ± 1.

A population level study into health vulnerabilities of mothers and fathers involved in public law care proceedings in Wales, UK between 2011 and 2019.

Introduction: Under section 31 of the Children Act 1989, public law care proceedings can be issued if there is concern a child is subject to, or at risk of significant harm, which can lead to removal of a child from parents. Appropriate and effective health and social support are required to potentially prevent some of the need for these proceedings. More comprehensive evidence of the health needs and vulnerabilities of parents will enable enhanced response from family courts and integrated other services.

Early-life respiratory tract infections and the risk of school-age lower lung function and asthma: a meta-analysis of 150 000 European children.

Background: Early-life respiratory tract infections might affect chronic obstructive respiratory diseases, but conclusive studies from general populations are lacking. Our objective was to examine if children with early-life respiratory tract infections had increased risks of lower lung function and asthma at school age.

Methods: We used individual participant data of 150 090 children primarily from the EU Child Cohort Network to examine the associations of upper and lower respiratory tract infections from age 6 months to 5 years with forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV), forced vital capacity (FVC), FEV/FVC, forced expiratory flow at 75% of FVC (FEF) and asthma at a median (range) age of 7 (4-15) years.

COVID-19 vaccine uptake and effectiveness in adults aged 50 years and older in Wales UK: a 1.2m population data-linkage cohort approach.

Vaccination programs against COVID-19 vary globally with estimates of vaccine effectiveness (VE) affected by vaccine type, schedule, strain, outcome, and recipient characteristics. This study assessed VE of BNT162b2 and ChAdOx1 vaccines against PCR positive SARS-CoV-2 infection, hospital admission, and death among adults aged 50 years and older in Wales, UK during the period 7 December 2020 to 18 July 2021, when Alpha, followed by Delta, were the predominant variants. We used individual-level linked routinely collected data within the Secure Anonymized Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank.

Anxiety and depression among children and young people involved in family justice court proceedings: longitudinal national data linkage study.

Background: Little is known about mental health problems of children and young people (CYP) involved with public and private law family court proceedings, and how these CYP fare compared to those not involved in these significant disruptions to family life.

Aims: This study examined records of depression/anxiety in CYP involved in public and private law proceedings using linked population-level data across Wales.

Method: Retrospective e-cohort study.

COVID-19 vaccine uptake, effectiveness, and waning in 82,959 health care workers: A national prospective cohort study in Wales.

Background: While population estimates suggest high vaccine effectiveness against SARS-CoV-2 infection, the protection for health care workers, who are at higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure, is less understood.

Methods: We conducted a national cohort study of health care workers in Wales (UK) from 7 December 2020 to 30 September 2021. We examined uptake of any COVID-19 vaccine, and the effectiveness of BNT162b2 mRNA (Pfizer-BioNTech) against polymerase chain reaction (PCR) confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Associations between swimming & cycling abilities and fitness in 9-11 year old boys and girls.

The associations between swimming and cycling abilities and fitness levels in 9-11-year-old children were examined. A cross-sectional study involving 2258 children (50.7% boys; aged 10.

The Potential of Research Drawing on Clinical Free Text to Bring Benefits to Patients in the United Kingdom: A Systematic Review of the Literature.

The analysis of clinical free text from patient records for research has potential to contribute to the medical evidence base but access to clinical free text is frequently denied by data custodians who perceive that the privacy risks of data-sharing are too high. Engagement activities with patients and regulators, where views on the sharing of clinical free text data for research have been discussed, have identified that stakeholders would like to understand the potential clinical benefits that could be achieved if access to free text for clinical research were improved. We aimed to systematically review all UK research studies which used clinical free text and report direct or potential benefits to patients, synthesizing possible benefits into an easy to communicate taxonomy for public engagement and policy discussions.

Are individual and social factors specific to the home associated with children's behaviour and physical environment at home.

This study used linear regression analyses to investigate the influence of parent-reported home-specific social and individual factors on: (i) 235 children's home-based objectively measured overall sitting time, breaks in sitting, and PA, and; (ii) the home physical environment via an audit. Parental importance assigned to active play for children was positively associated with PA equipment (accessibility and availability), as well as light physical activity (LPA) and sitting breaks on both weekdays and weekend days. Parental preference for being active at home and limits on screen-time were associated with less household media equipment and portable media equipment, respectively.

Deriving household composition using population-scale electronic health record data-A reproducible methodology.

Background: Physical housing and household composition have an important role in the lives of individuals and drive health and social outcomes, and inequalities. Most methods to understand housing composition are based on survey or census data, and there is currently no reproducible methodology for creating population-level household composition measures using linked administrative data.

Methods: Using existing, and more recent enhancements to the address-data linkage methods in the SAIL Databank using Residential Anonymised Linking Fields we linked individuals to properties using the anonymised Welsh Demographic Service data in the SAIL Databank.

Toward the Development of Data Governance Standards for Using Clinical Free-Text Data in Health Research: Position Paper.

Background: Clinical free-text data (eg, outpatient letters or nursing notes) represent a vast, untapped source of rich information that, if more accessible for research, would clarify and supplement information coded in structured data fields. Data usually need to be deidentified or anonymized before they can be reused for research, but there is a lack of established guidelines to govern effective deidentification and use of free-text information and avoid damaging data utility as a by-product.

Objective: This study aimed to develop recommendations for the creation of data governance standards to integrate with existing frameworks for personal data use, to enable free-text data to be used safely for research for patient and public benefit.