Additive interaction of family medical history of cardiovascular diseases with hypertension and diabetes on the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases among older adults in India.

Introduction: The present study aimed to examine the additive interaction of family medical history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and self-reported hypertension and diabetes on the diagnosis of CVD among older adults aged 45 years and above in India. A family medical history of CVD in individuals with hypertension and diabetes could identify a subpopulation with a higher risk of CVD.

Methods: The study used the data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) Wave 1 (2017-2018).

Spatial heterogeneity in unintended pregnancy and its determinants in India.

Background: Understanding the geographic variation of unintended pregnancy is crucial for informing tailored policies and programs to improve maternal and child health outcomes. Although spatial analyses of unintended pregnancy have been conducted in several developing countries, such research is lacking in India. This study addresses this gap by investigating the geographic distribution and determinants of unintended pregnancy in India.

Are Anti-Tobacco Messages Delivered through Different Mass-Media Channels Effective in India? Results from GATS-II Survey.

Background: Anti-tobacco mass-media campaigns are an integral part of tobacco control. There is still a need to understand which mode of mass-media channels aids in promoting tobacco cessation. This study aimed to examine if exposure to anti-tobacco messages delivered through different media channels is associated with tobacco user's thoughts and attempts to quit.

A Mixed Methods Exploration of Young Women's Agency and Mental Health during COVID-19 in Low-Income Communities in Mumbai, India.

Introduction: Adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in India face additional health inequities compared to their male peers, as gender norms constrain agency for prevention and self-care. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns deepened health inequities and often worsened mental health, but the impacts on agency are unclear. This exploratory sequential mixed methods paper examined mental health and COVID-19 elements that exacerbated or mitigated adverse consequences for AGYW in low-income communities in Mumbai.

Mobility and sexually transmitted infections: Exploring intersectional axes of alcohol consumption and risky sexual behavior among Indian men.

Objective: Studies in India and other low-income countries find an inconsistent association between mobility/migration and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among men. This study comprehensively examined the association between mobility and STIs among men in India. It also assessed heterogeneous associations of mobility, alcohol consumption, and risky sexual behavior with STIs using interaction analysis.

Association Between Multimorbidity and Presence of Diagnosed Vision Problems Among the Middle-Aged and Older Population in India.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of diagnosed vision problems and to examine the association of single and multiple chronic conditions with vision problems among middle-aged and older adults in India.

Methods: The study utilized data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) Wave 1, (2017-18). Descriptive statistics along with bivariate and multivariable analyses were conducted to achieve the study objectives.

Rising premature menopause and variations by education level in India.

The proportion of women experiencing premature menopause is on the rise in India, particularly in the age groups of 30-39 years. Consequently, there is a need to understand the factors influencing the prevalence of premature menopausal status among women. Our study uses the data from 180,743 women gathered during the latest Indian version of the Demography Health Survey (National Family Health Survey-5).

Tracking Missing Deaths: An Exploratory Study on the Mortality Impact of COVID-19 in Kozhikode City, India.

Background: The debate over the extent of the mortality impact of COVID-19 in India is still unsettled.

Objectives: This article contributes to the debate, seeking to explore the true mortality impact of the pandemic, by answering four interrelated questions. First, is there any discrepancy between recorded and actual death count? Second, if so, how large it is? Third, what is the extent of misclassification of COVID-19 mortality, and fourth, what is the magnitude of deaths that could be indirectly linked to COVID-19?

Materials And Methods: To answer the questions, we explored three sources of data-all-cause mortality data from the civil registration system, records maintained at the burial grounds/cemeteries and crematoriums, and a household survey.

The crossroads of work and home: linkages between smoke-free policies at work and household environments.

Background: Tobacco use causes over eight million global deaths annually, with seven million directly attributed to tobacco use and 1.2 million to second hand smoke (SHS). Smoke-free environments are crucial to counter SHS.

Prevalence and Predictors of Risky Sexual Behavior Among Young Men in India: Evidence From National Family Health Survey.

Objective: The study examines the prevalence and factors associated with high-risk sexual behavior among sexually active young Indian men.

Methods: This study used samples of 14,584 men aged 15 to 29 from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 2019-21.

Results: 14% of men engaged in early sexual debut (<18 years), 68% had unprotected sex, and 4% had multiple sexual partners in the past 12 months.

Additive interaction of family medical history of diabetes with hypertension on the diagnosis of diabetes among older adults in India: longitudinal ageing study in India.

Background: The present study aimed to estimate the additive interaction of family history of diabetes and hypertension on the diagnosis of diabetes among individuals aged 45 years and above in India. The coexistence of these two exposures may act synergistically on the risk of diabetes, leading to adverse health outcomes.

Methods: The study utilized the data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) Wave 1 (2017-2018).

Determinants of Quit Attempts and Short-Term Abstinence among Smokeless Tobacco Users in India: Global Adult Tobacco Survey, 2016-17.

Objective: Smokeless tobacco is the preponderant form of tobacco in India. The cessation indicators are weaker for smokeless tobacco users than smokers. There is a dearth of literature on the effectiveness of the interventions that motivate and assist smokeless tobacco users in quitting in program settings.

An empowerment model for managing menopause.

Menopause eventually happens to all people with typically functioning ovaries, and almost one billion women worldwide are postmenopausal. Although the biology of typical menopause is ubiquitous, the experience varies substantially. Factors contributing to the experience include not only individual factors, such as the nature and severity of symptoms, but also psychological, social, and contextual considerations, many of which are modifiable.

Perinatal depression and its associated risk factors during the COVID-19 pandemic in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: Perinatal depression significantly impacts maternal and child health, with further complexities arising during the COVID-19 pandemic. This review is the first to comprehensively synthesize evidence on the prevalence of perinatal depression and its associated risk factors in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) during the pandemic period.

Methods: The study protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42022326991).

Effect of chronic lung diseases on angina pectoris among Indian adults: longitudinal ageing study in India.

The study aimed to evaluate the effect of chronic lung diseases, namely chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) and asthma, on angina pectoris in individuals aged 45 years and above. Identifying vulnerable subpopulations suffering from COPD and asthma at higher risk of future cardiovascular events using the rose angina questionnaire is imperative for tailored primary and secondary prevention approaches. The present study utilizes the data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India, wave 1, conducted during 2017-2018.

Is the quality of public health facilities always worse compared to private health facilities: Association between birthplace on neonatal deaths in the Indian states.

Background: The role of place of delivery on the neonatal health outcomes are very crucial. Although the quality of care is being improved, there is no consensus about who is the better healthcare provider in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), public or private facilities. The aim of this study is to assess the differentials in neonatal mortality by the type of healthcare providers in India and its states.

Social Determinants and the Prevalence of Paan Masala Use among Adults in India: Results from Global Adult Tobacco Survey, 2016-17.

Background: Gutkha or Paan masala with tobacco is commonly used smokeless tobacco product in India. Given the restrictions on advertisement and promotion of Gutkha and the necessity of warning labels on tobacco products, the tobacco industry has popularised paan masala without tobacco as a surrogate product. Paan masala itself is harmful for health but remains beyond scope of current tobacco control policies.

Factors Influencing Tobacco Cessation in India: Findings from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey-2.

Objective: The study aimed to assess the socio-demographic and other correlates of cessation behavior across tobacco products among the adult population in India.

Methods: We used data of adults (aged ≥15 years) who were current or former tobacco users (smoking and/or smokeless tobacco) from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) India, conducted during 2016-17. The detailed analysis was done for current daily smokers (N=7,647), former daily smokers (N=1,353), and current daily smokeless tobacco users (N=1,2721).

Mapping Choice of Healthcare Institutes for Cancer Care: A Study in Northeast India.

Objective: To map and identify the sequence of visitation to institutes by patients with common cancers.

Methods: This paper used a mixed method to follow a descriptive multiple-embedded case study. Participants selected in phase one were 388 by stratified random sampling, and in phase two, by purposive sampling, a semi-structured interview was conducted for 21 participants (15 participants and six key informants-oncologists: radiation - 2, medical - 2, surgical - 1 and gynaecology - 1).

Decomposition analysis of the decline in binary and triad undernutrition among preschool children in India.

Background: To examine the socio-demographic factors associated with the decline in undernutrition among preschool children in India from National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-3, 2005-06 to NFHS- 5, 2019-21.

Methods: For this study data were obtained from India's nationally representative datasets such as NFHS-3 and NFHS-5. The outcome variables for this study were Binary undernutrition which were defined as the coexistence of anemia and either stunting or wasting and Undernutrition triad which were defined as the presence of Iron deficiency anemia, stunting and wasting, respectively.