Publications by authors named "Rainford Wilks"

Recent studies have suggested that high levels of social support can encourage better health behaviours and result in improved cardiovascular health. In this study we evaluated the association between social support and ideal cardiovascular health among urban Jamaicans. We conducted a cross-sectional study among urban residents in Jamaica's south-east health region.

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Introduction: Epidemiological transition to NCDs is a challenge for fragile health systems in the Caribbean. The Congregations Taking Action against NCDs (CONTACT) Study intervention proposes that trained health advocates (HAs) from places of worship (PoWs), supervised by nurses at nearby primary healthcare centres (PHCs), could facilitate access to primary care among vulnerable communities. Drawing on participatory and systems thinking, we explored the capacity of local PHCs in three Caribbean countries to support this intervention.

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This study aimed to estimate dietary sodium and potassium consumption among Jamaicans and evaluate associations with sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. A cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey 2016-2017. Participants were noninstitutionalized Jamaicans aged ≥15 years.

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Background: Despite limited data on neighborhood factors and health risk in Caribbean populations, previous analyses from Jamaica have shown that neighborhood and home disorder were associated with lower physical activity and higher cumulative biological risk among women, while poorer neighborhood infrastructure was associated with higher overweight/obesity among men.

Design: Cross-sectional survey design.

Objectives: In this study, we explored whether community stressors, as measured by community violence, victimization and neighborhood disorder scores, were associated with cardiometabolic outcomes (obesity, diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol) in urban Jamaican communities.

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There is evidence of an elevated risk of hypertension in populations that are primarily of African origin. Hypertension is predominantly asymptomatic, necessitating increased awareness. May Measurement Month was a descriptive, population-based, cross-sectional study of blood pressure (BP) screening and awareness campaign conducted in 2019 in a sample of 2550 participants (≥18 years) in Jamaica.

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Objective: To examine whether proximity and density of public open spaces, public parks, street connectivity, and serious and violent crimes were associated with Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist Circumference (WC) within and across levels of urbanicity, sex and socioeconomic status (SES) in Jamaica, a small island developing state (SIDS).

Methods: Secondary analysis was conducted using data from the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey 2008 (JHLS II). All respondents were geocoded to area of residence in Enumeration Districts (EDs).

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Objective: Ideal cardiovascular health (ICH) is associated with greater longevity and reduced morbidity, but no research on ICH has been conducted in Jamaica. We aimed to estimate the prevalence of ICH in urban Jamaica and to evaluate associations between ICH and community, household, and individual socioeconomic status (SES).

Design: Cross-sectional study.

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Introduction: Neighbourhood characteristics are associated with several diseases, but few studies have investigated the association between neighbourhood and health in Jamaica. We evaluated the relationship between neighbourhood socioeconomic status (SES) and blood pressure (BP) among youth, 15-24 years old, in Jamaica.

Methods: A pooled analysis was conducted using data from three studies (two national surveys and a birth cohort), conducted between 2005-2008, with individual level BP, anthropometric and demographic data, and household SES.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to assess how the retail food environment impacts mean body mass index (BMI) among Jamaicans, particularly in the context of rising obesity rates.
  • Data from the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey indicated that women, especially from middle-class backgrounds, had higher mean BMI when they lived further away from supermarkets, with significant correlations between distance and BMI levels.
  • The findings suggest that obesity interventions in Jamaica should focus on supermarket accessibility and consider factors like gender and socioeconomic status to better address the obesity issue effectively.
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Background: Hypertension (HTN) is responsible for a significant disease burden in Jamaica. We are reporting the results of the 2017 blood pressure (BP) screening campaign May Measurement Month in Jamaica that aimed to increase the awareness of HTN.

Methods: Adults, 18 years old and older, from different parishes of Jamaica were invited to participate during May to June 2017.

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  • Asthma affects people differently depending on their race, and there haven't been enough studies on people of African ancestry.
  • A new study looked at data from 7,009 people with asthma and 7,645 without, and found strong links to four previously known gene areas.
  • The study also discovered two new gene areas that might be especially important for asthma risk in people of African ancestry.
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  • The study investigates how neighborhood characteristics relate to cumulative biological risk (CBR) and gender differences in CBR in Jamaica, amidst rising non-communicable diseases.
  • A cross-sectional survey involved 2,544 participants, where CBR was measured using various health indicators and analyzed for clustering by neighborhood.
  • Results showed that women had higher CBR than men, and those in disordered neighborhoods had a 26% increased risk, while greater recreational space was linked to a 25% reduced risk, highlighting the need for policy focus on neighborhood factors.
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Background: Prostate cancer remains the leading cause of cancer deaths among Caribbean men. However, little data exists on the influence of social factors on prostate cancer in the Caribbean setting. This article supports the 2011 Rio Political Declaration on addressing health inequalities by presenting a systematic review of evidence on the role of social determinants on prostate cancer in Caribbean men.

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Background: Elevated blood pressure (BP) is common among emergency department (ED) patients. While some data exist on the association between ED BP and hypertension (HTN) in the USA, little is known about this relationship in Afro-Caribbean nations. The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between elevated systolic BP in the ED and a previous diagnosis of HTN, accounting for potential factors that could contribute to poor HTN control among those with a previous diagnosis: socioeconomic status, health-seeking behavior, underlying HTN illness beliefs, medication adherence, and perceived adherence self-efficacy.

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Background: Although several studies have identified risk factors for high blood pressure (BP), data from Afro-Caribbean populations are limited. Additionally, less is known about how putative risk factors operate in young adults and how social factors influence the risk of high BP. In this study, we estimated the relative risk for elevated BP or hypertension (EBP/HTN), defined as BP ≥ 120/80 mmHg, among young adults with putative cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in Jamaica and evaluated whether relative risks differed by sex.

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Introduction: Obesity is rising globally and is associated with increased risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. This study aims to investigate overweight and obesity and its consequences among Jamaican women of reproductive age, particularly development of diabetes, hypertension and the risk of maternal death.

Materials And Methods: A national lifestyle survey (2007/8) of 1371 women of reproductive age provided data on the prevalence of high BMI, associated risk factors and co-morbidities.

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Objectives: Socioeconomic disparities in health have emerged as an important area in public health, but studies from Afro-Caribbean populations are uncommon. In this study, we report on educational health disparities in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hypercholesterolemia, and obesity), among Jamaican adults.

Methods: We analyzed data from the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey 2007-2008.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Breast cancer is a major health issue in the Caribbean, being the leading cause of cancer deaths among women, yet there is limited understanding of the social inequalities associated with it and how these impact risk and outcomes in this population.
  • - A systematic review analyzed multiple studies to identify how social determinants like socioeconomic status, marital status, and others relate to breast cancer risk factors and outcomes, resulting in 34 studies being included in their analysis.
  • - Findings showed a significant connection between lower socioeconomic status and higher risk factors for breast cancer (like alcohol use and obesity), but there was less evidence regarding breast cancer frequency and mortality linked to social determinants, with unmarried women facing a higher likelihood of diagnosis.
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Background: Studies have suggested that social inequalities in chronic disease outcomes differ between industrialized and developing countries, but few have directly compared these effects. We explored inequalities in hypertension and diabetes prevalence between African-descent populations with different levels of educational attainment in Jamaica and in the United States of America (USA), comparing disparities within each location, and between countries.

Methods: We analyzed baseline data from the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) in the USA and Spanish Town Cohort (STC) in Jamaica.

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  • Two cardiac risk prediction models were developed for 182 countries, one requiring lab measurements and the other based solely on office measurements.
  • The lab-based model incorporates factors like age, sex, smoking, and cholesterol, while the non-lab model substitutes diabetes and cholesterol with BMI.
  • Analysis shows that HICs generally have lower predicted risks compared to LMICs, with the highest risks observed in central and southeast Asia and eastern Europe.
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To dissect the genetic architecture of blood pressure and assess effects on target organ damage, we analyzed 128,272 SNPs from targeted and genome-wide arrays in 201,529 individuals of European ancestry, and genotypes from an additional 140,886 individuals were used for validation. We identified 66 blood pressure-associated loci, of which 17 were new; 15 harbored multiple distinct association signals. The 66 index SNPs were enriched for cis-regulatory elements, particularly in vascular endothelial cells, consistent with a primary role in blood pressure control through modulation of vascular tone across multiple tissues.

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Background: Despite the large body of research on racial/ethnic disparities in health, there are limited data on health disparities in Caribbean-origin populations. This scoping review aimed to analyze and synthesize published and unpublished literature on the disparities in hypertension and its complications among Afro-Caribbean populations.

Methods: A comprehensive protocol, including a thorough search strategy, was developed and used to identify potentially relevant studies.

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