Effect of Mindfulness Versus Loving-kindness Training on Leukocyte Gene Expression in Midlife Adults Raised in Low-Socioeconomic Status Households.

Objectives: People raised in low socio-economic status (SES) households are at an increased risk for physical illness in adulthood. A shift in gene expression profiles in the immune system is one biological mechanism thought to account for elevated disease susceptibility, with a frequently-investigated profile being the conserved transcriptional response to adversity (CTRA), characterized by increased expression of proinflammatory genes and decreased expression of antiviral and antibody-related genes.

Methods: The present study investigated, in a sample of at-risk midlife adults ( = 88), whether those randomized to learn loving-kindness meditation (LKM) in a 6-week workshop, would show a reduction in CTRA gene expression, compared to those randomized to learn mindfulness meditation (MM).

Levels of neonatal care among birth facilities in 20 states and other jurisdictions: CDC levels of care assessment tool (CDC LOCATe).

Objective: Describe discrepancies between facilities' self-reported level of neonatal care and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Levels of Care Assessment Tool (CDC LOCATe)-assessed level.

Study Design: CDC LOCATe data from 765 health facilities in the United States, including 17 states, one territory, one large multi-state hospital system, and one perinatal region within a state, was collected between 2016 and 2021 for this cross-sectional analysis.

Result: Among 721 facilities that self-reported level of neonatal care, 33.

Examining the Ratio of Obstetric Beds to Births, 2000-2019.

The number of U.S. births has been declining.

County-Level Associations Between Pregnancy-Related Mortality Ratios and Contextual Sociospatial Indicators.

Objective: To characterize county-level differences in pregnancy-related mortality as a function of sociospatial indicators.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional multilevel analysis of all pregnancy-related deaths and all live births with available ZIP code or county data in the Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System during 2011-2016 for non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic (all races), and non-Hispanic White women aged 15-44 years. The exposures included 31 conceptually-grounded, county-specific sociospatial indicators that were collected from publicly available data sources and categorized into domains of demographic; general, reproductive, and behavioral health; social capital and support; and socioeconomic contexts.

CDC LOCATe: discrepancies between self-reported level of maternal care and LOCATe-assessed level of maternal care among 463 birth facilities.

Objective: Describe sources of discrepancy between self-assessed LoMC (level of maternal care) and CDC LOCATe-assessed (Levels of Care Assessment Tool) LoMC.

Study Design: CDC LOCATe was implemented at 480 facilities in 13 jurisdictions, including states, territories, perinatal regions, and hospital systems, in the U.S.

Urban-rural differences in pregnancy-related deaths, United States, 2011-2016.

Background: The US pregnancy-related mortality ratio has not improved over the past decade and includes striking disparities by race and ethnicity and by state. Understanding differences in pregnancy-related mortality across and within urban and rural areas can guide the development of interventions for preventing future pregnancy-related deaths.

Objective: We sought to compare pregnancy-related mortality across and within urban and rural counties by race and ethnicity and age.

Geographic access to critical care obstetrics for women of reproductive age by race and ethnicity.

Background: The goal of risk-appropriate maternal care is for high-risk pregnant women to receive specialized obstetrical services in facilities equipped with capabilities and staffing to provide care or transfer to facilities with resources available to provide care. In the United States, geographic access to critical care obstetrics varies. It is unknown whether this variation in proximity to critical care obstetrics differs by race, ethnicity, and region.

Loving-kindness meditation slows biological aging in novices: Evidence from a 12-week randomized controlled trial.

Combinations of multiple meditation practices have been shown to reduce the attrition of telomeres, the protective caps of chromosomes (Carlson et al., 2015). Here, we probed the distinct effects on telomere length (TL) of mindfulness meditation (MM) and loving-kindness meditation (LKM).

Implementing CDC's Level of Care Assessment Tool (LOCATe): A National Collaboration to Improve Maternal and Child Health.

Perinatal regionalization, or risk-appropriate care, is an approach that classifies facilities based on capabilities to ensure women and infants receive care at a facility that aligns with their risk. The CDC designed the Levels of Care Assessment Tool (LOCATe) to assist jurisdictions working in risk-appropriate care in assessing a facility's level of maternal and neonatal care aligned with the most current American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists/Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (ACOG/SMFM) and American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines. LOCATe produces standardized assessments for each hospital that participates and facilitates conversations among stakeholders in risk-appropriate care.

Perinatal regionalization: a geospatial view of perinatal critical care, United States, 2010-2013.

Background: Perinatal services exist today as a dyad of maternal and neonatal care. When perinatal care is fragmented or unavailable, excess morbidity and mortality may occur in pregnant women and newborns.

Objective: The objective of the study was to describe spatial relationships between women of reproductive age, individual perinatal subspecialists (maternal-fetal medicine and neonatology), and obstetric and neonatal critical care facilities in the United States to identify gaps in health care access.

Evaluation of the 2012 18th Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Epidemiology and 22nd CityMatCH MCH Urban Leadership Conference: six month impact on science, program, and policy.

The 18th Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Epidemiology and 22nd CityMatCH MCH Urban Leadership Conference took place in December 2012, covering MCH science, program, and policy issues. Assessing the impact of the Conference on attendees' work 6 months post-Conference provides information critical to understanding the impact and the use of new partnerships, knowledge, and skills gained during the Conference. Evaluation assessments, which included collection of quantitative and qualitative data, were administered at two time points: at Conference registration and 6 months post-Conference.

How positive emotions build physical health: perceived positive social connections account for the upward spiral between positive emotions and vagal tone.

The mechanisms underlying the association between positive emotions and physical health remain a mystery. We hypothesize that an upward-spiral dynamic continually reinforces the tie between positive emotions and physical health and that this spiral is mediated by people's perceptions of their positive social connections. We tested this overarching hypothesis in a longitudinal field experiment in which participants were randomly assigned to an intervention group that self-generated positive emotions via loving-kindness meditation or to a waiting-list control group.

Mapping US pediatric hospitals and subspecialty critical care for public health preparedness and disaster response, 2008.

Objective: The objective is to describe by geographic proximity the extent to which the US pediatric population (aged 0-17 years) has access to pediatric and other specialized critical care facilities, and to highlight regional differences in population and critical resource distribution for preparedness planning and utilization during a mass public health disaster.

Methods: The analysis focused on pediatric hospitals and pediatric and general medical/surgical hospitals with specialized pediatric critical care capabilities, including pediatric intensive care units (PICU), pediatric cardiac ICUs (PCICU), level I and II trauma and pediatric trauma centers, and general and pediatric burn centers. The proximity analysis uses a geographic information system overlay function: spatial buffers or zones of a defined radius are superimposed on a dasymetric map of the pediatric population.

Neonatal and pediatric regionalized systems in pediatric emergency mass critical care.

Introduction: Improved health outcomes are associated with neonatal and pediatric critical care in well-organized, cohesive, regionalized systems that are prepared to support and rehabilitate critically ill victims of a mass casualty event. However, present systems lack adequate surge capacity for neonatal and pediatric mass critical care. In this document, we outline the present reality and suggest alternative approaches.

Adverse events following administration to pregnant women of influenza A (H1N1) 2009 monovalent vaccine reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System.

Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate and summarize reports to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), a spontaneous reporting system, in pregnant women who received influenza A (H1N1) 2009 monovalent vaccine to assess for potential vaccine safety problems.

Study Design: We reviewed reports of adverse events (AEs) in pregnant women who received 2009-H1N1 vaccines from Oct. 1, 2009, through Feb.

A pilot study of loving-kindness meditation for the negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

This pilot study examined loving-kindness meditation (LKM) with 18 participants with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders and significant negative symptoms. Findings indicate that the intervention was feasible and associated with decreased negative symptoms and increased positive emotions and psychological recovery.

Loving-kindness meditation to enhance recovery from negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

In this article, we describe the clinical applicability of loving-kindness meditation (LKM) to individuals suffering from schizophrenia-spectrum disorders with persistent negative symptoms. LKM may have potential for reducing negative symptoms such as anhedonia, avolition, and asociality while enhancing factors consistent with psychological recovery such as hope and purpose in life. Case studies will illustrate how to conduct this group treatment with clients with negative symptoms, the potential benefits to the client, and difficulties that may arise.

Sexually transmitted infections and other health conditions of women entering prison in Georgia, 1998-1999.

Objectives: To assess health needs of women entering the Georgia prison system, prevalence of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections was estimated.

Study: Results of admission screening tests of women entering the Georgia prison system in 1998 to 1999 were abstracted retrospectively from prison records.

Results: Of 3636 women whose data were abstracted from prison records, 4.