Providing doula support to publicly insured women in central Texas: A financial cost-benefit analysis.

Background: Disparities in birth outcomes continue to exist in the United States, particularly for low-income, publicly insured women. Doula support has been shown to be a cost-effective intervention in predominantly middle-to-upper income White populations, and across all publicly insured women at the state level. This analysis extends previous studies by providing an estimate of benefits that incorporates variations in averted outcomes by race and ethnicity in the context of one region in Texas.

Oleic acid stimulates monoamine efflux through PPAR-α: Differential effects in diet-induced obesity.

Obesity continues to be a growing health concern around the world, and elevated levels of free fatty acids as a result of high-fat intake might play a role in neuroendocrine alterations leading to obesity. However, it is unclear how fatty acids affect neuroendocrine functions and energy metabolism. Since hypothalamic monoamines play a crucial role in regulating neuroendocrine functions relating to energy balance, we investigated the direct effects of oleic acid on hypothalamic monoamines and hypothesized that oleic acid would activate peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPAR-α), a nuclear transcription factor involved with fatty acid metabolism, to affect monoamines.

Reliability of height and weight measurements collected by physical education teachers for a school-based body mass index surveillance and screening system.

Background: To address the obesity epidemic among children and youth, school-based body mass index (BMI) screening and surveillance is proposed or mandated in 30 states. In Cambridge, MA, physical education (PE) teachers are responsible for these measurements. This research reports the reliability of height and weight measures collected by these PE teachers.

Predicting maintenance or achievement of healthy weight in children: the impact of changes in physical fitness.

Physical fitness is often inversely associated with adiposity in children cross-sectionally, but the effect of becoming fit or maintaining fitness over time on changes in weight status has not been well studied in children. We investigated the impact of changes in fitness over 1-4 years of follow-up on the maintenance or achievement of healthy weight among 2,793 schoolchildren who were first measured as 1st to 7th graders. Students were classified as "fit" or "underfit" according to age- and gender-specific norms in five fitness domains: endurance, agility, flexibility, upper body strength, and abdominal strength.

The anatomic and radiologic basis of the circumflex scapular artery perforator flap.

Microsurgical development has recently focused upon the perforator paradigm and primary thinning. Existing perforator flaps may require intramuscular dissection or lack reliable surface markings, whereas traditional scapular/parascapular flaps have low donor morbidity and reliable anatomy, but can be excessively bulky. Clinical application of a new flap based on a perforator from the circumflex scapular axis (CSA) has recently been published, but the vessel's anatomy has not been adequately characterized.

Bench press training program with attached chains for female volleyball and basketball athletes.

Attaching chains to barbells to increase strength and power has become popular for athletes; however, little scientific evidence supports this practice. The present purpose was to compare chain training to traditional training for the bench press. Women collegiate athletes in volleyball and basketball (N = 19) participated in a 16-session bench press program.

Healthy Living Cambridge Kids: a community-based participatory effort to promote healthy weight and fitness.

The objective of this study was to assess the impact of a community-based healthy weight intervention on child weight and fitness. Cambridge Public Schools (CPS) have monitored BMI and fitness annually since 2000. Annual increases of overweight and obesity from 2000 (37.

Is there a relationship between physical fitness and academic achievement? Positive results from public school children in the northeastern United States.

Objectives: To determine relationships between physical fitness and academic achievement in diverse, urban public school children.

Methods: This cross-sectional study used public school data from 2004 to 2005. Academic achievement was assessed as a passing score on Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) achievement tests in Mathematics (fourth, sixth, and eighth grade, n = 1103) and in English (fourth and seventh grade, n = 744).

Comfort and utility of school-based weight screening: the student perspective.

Background: Weight screening in schools has been proposed as one strategy to address childhood obesity. Students' response to such screening is unexplored, however. In this study we evaluated the perceived comfort, utility and impact of school-based weight screening from the perspective of middle school-aged students.

Relationship of physical fitness to prevalence and incidence of overweight among schoolchildren.

Objectives: We examined the relationship between comprehensive fitness tests and overweight using a school surveillance system in a racially diverse city in the United States.

Research Methods And Procedures: Trained physical education teachers measured weight, height, and fitness annually from 2001 to 2003. We compiled data for a cross-sectional analysis (11,845 measurements on 6297 students, 5 to 14 years of age) and a 1-year prospective analysis (4215 measurements on 2927 students not overweight at baseline, 5 to 13 years of age).

Incidence and remission rates of overweight among children aged 5 to 13 years in a district-wide school surveillance system.

Objectives: To monitor annual changes in weight status, we determined incidence and remission rates of overweight among school-aged children with longitudinal school-based surveillance.

Methods: We estimated 1-year changes in weight status among students enrolled in public schools in Cambridge, Mass. Physical education teachers measured height and weight annually.

Strengthening hospital-physician relationships.

Hospital-physician relationships are mutually beneficial when physicians are treated as an important part of the management team. Hospitals need to implement a strategy that will not only align economic incentives but also build trust and include physicians in strategic decision making.

Promoting healthy weight among elementary school children via a health report card approach.

Background: As overweight continues to rise among children, schools seek effective and sensitive ways to engage parents in promoting healthy weight.

Objective: To evaluate a school-based health report card on the family awareness of and concern about the child weight status, plans for weight control, and preventive behaviors.

Design: Quasi-experimental field trial with a personalized weight and fitness health report card intervention (PI), a general-information intervention (GI), and a control group (CG).