Non-communicable disease burden among middle-aged and older adults living with HIV in the Western Pacific region: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: Middle-aged and older adults living with HIV in the Western Pacific Region (WPR) are experiencing accelerated aging and a rising burden of non-communicable disease (NCD)-related comorbidities. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess the burden of major NCDs-measured by prevalence, incidence, and mortality-among people living with HIV(PLWH) aged 40 years and older, in comparison to their HIV-negative counterparts.

Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted across Medline (1966-), Embase (1974-), Cochrane Library (1996-), Epistemonikos (established in 2012, with retrospective coverage), and Web of Science (1900-) to identify relevant studies published up to May 9, 2025.

Prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances: Association with child behavior in the environmental influences on child health outcomes (ECHO) Cohort.

Background: Prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) may adversely impact child neurodevelopment; however, epidemiologic findings remain inconclusive because of small sample sizes, limited exposure variability, and differing neurodevelopmental measures. We aimed to investigate the relationship between prenatal PFAS exposure and child behavior.

Methods: We pooled data from nine study sites in the nationwide Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Cohort.

Centering Community Voices: Evaluating Stakeholder Engagement in Pediatric Palliative Care Research.

Introduction: Black and Native American children in the United States experience disparities in serious illness care and outcomes which are compounded by systemic inequities. These disparities necessitate research approaches that center the voices of racially minoritized families, combat systems of oppression, and promote culturally humble care. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) emphasizes engaging affected communities throughout the research process.

Metabolic responses to energetic stimuli in female athletes using or not hormonal contraceptives during a high training load period.

Background: Despite growing interest in women's physiology in exercise sciences, the understanding of female athletes' energy metabolism remains limited. This study aimed to analyze substrate oxidation in response to energetic stimuli in female athletes using or not hormonal contraceptives, and to determine the influence of the estradiol-to-progesterone ratio fluctuations on energy metabolism.

Methods: Body composition (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), energy expenditure and substrate oxidation rates (resting, low-intensity walking exercise (4 km/h), and postprandial conditions; indirect calorimetry) were assessed among 32 athletes (23±3 years) during a high-training load period, in athletes using or not hormonal contraceptives (nine and 23, respectively).

Working towards affordable healthy diets: a review on innovations in food price monitoring, policy and research in Australia and beyond.

Healthy diets are unaffordable for billions of people worldwide, with food prices rising in high-, middle- and low-income nations in recent times. Despite widespread attention to this issue, recent actions taken to inform policy prioritisation and government responses to high food inflation have not been comprehensively synthesised. Our review summarises (i) innovative efforts to monitor national food and healthy diet price, ii) new policy responses adopted by governments to address food inflation and (iii) future research directions to inform new evidence.

Prepandemic levels of cytokines and immunoglobulins and risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 in the general population of Barcelona.

Background: From a public health perspective it is remarkable that there are yet no longitudinal studies in the general population investigating the influence of the basal immune state, measured before the pandemic, on the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19.

Objective: To investigate the specific and combined effects of personal levels of cytokines and immunoglobulins-measured in individuals' blood 4 years before the pandemic-on the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 in a general population.

Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study in 240 individuals from the general population of Barcelona.

Role of Morbidity Clusters in Midlife on Ischemic Stroke Incidence and Severity: The ARIC Study.

Background: There is a strong association between vascular risk factors, particularly in midlife, and stroke risk; therefore, the co-occurrence of multiple risk factors may be especially informative. This study used a machine-learning-based cluster analysis to group individuals into clusters based on similar clinical profiles in midlife and assessed the clusters' associations with stroke risk and severity.

Methods: Participants (N=15 404) without prevalent stroke from the ARIC study (Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities) were included.

Pathways between intimate partner violence and HIV care and treatment during pregnancy and postpartum: A qualitative study in southwestern Kenya.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is associated with suboptimal HIV treatment behaviors and health outcomes among perinatal women. Less is known about the postpartum phase or how distinct types of perinatal IPV exposure may inhibit HIV-related care. We conducted a qualitative study nested within an ongoing trial among perinatal women in rural Kenya to explore the influence of IPV on adherence to HIV treatment during pregnancy and postpartum.

INFERRING SYNERGISTIC AND ANTAGONISTIC INTERACTIONS IN MIXTURES OF EXPOSURES.

There is abundant interest in assessing the joint effects of multiple exposures on human health. This is often referred to as the mixtures problem in environmental epidemiology and toxicology. Classically, studies have examined the adverse health effects of different chemicals one at a time, but there is concern that certain chemicals may act together to amplify each other's effects.

Estimating cardiovascular effects of influenza vaccination in older adults: a target trial emulation using proximal causal inference.

Background: The substantial burden of cardiovascular diseases highlights the urgent need for cost-effective interventions to mitigate their impact. While existing evidence on the cardioprotective effect of the influenza vaccine comes primarily from populations with cardiovascular comorbidities, these studies remain susceptible to several sources of bias, including immortal time bias and unmeasured confounding. To attenuate these limitations, our study aimed to assess the effect of influenza vaccination on cardiovascular events in an older population in China, utilizing a target trial emulation framework in conjunction with a proximal causal inference (PCI) approach.

Spatial and policy analysis of livability in the city of St. Louis, Missouri, USA.

A livable city ensures safety, health, inclusivity, sustainability, housing, mobility, and opportunities for all. The Global Observatory of Healthy and Sustainable Cities (GOHSC) launched the 1000 Cities Challenge to assess urban health and sustainability globally. This study uses the GOHSC's spatial and policy indicators to evaluate livability in St.

Researcher and community partner perspectives on community-engaged research during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: We sought to explore how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted community-engaged research (CEnR) from both researcher and community partner perspectives, identify challenges and facilitators affecting their experiences, and describe desired supports for CEnR during future health crises.

Methods: We conducted semi-structured, virtual interviews with ten researchers and eight partners who conducted or collaborated on CEnR during the COVID-19 pandemic. Interviews were recorded and transcribed for analysis.

Human immunodeficiency virus vulnerability and pre-exposure prophylaxis awareness among adolescent girls and young women in Cameroon: A cross-sectional study.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the HIV vulnerability and PrEP awareness among AGYW in Cameroon.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional survey in which 637 AGYW were recruited. We conducted descriptive and logistic regression models to identify the factors associated with HIV vulnerability and PrEP awareness.

Penile microbiota dysbiosis associates with subclinical HPV infection in HIV-negative men.

BackgroundHuman papillomavirus (HPV) is the most frequent sexually transmitted virus, with high importance due its oncogenic risk. Previous studies have reported an association between genital dysbiosis and HPV infection in women and also in men co-infected with HPV and HIV. However, it remains to be determined whether penile skin dysbiosis is associated with HPV infection in men who are HIV-negative.

Prevalence of Chronic Overlapping Pain Conditions in Participants With Chronic Low Back Pain Enrolled in a Pragmatic Trial of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction.

Background: Chronic low back pain (cLBP) is extremely common and is one of the Chronic Overlapping Pain Conditions (COPCs), 10 conditions thought to have similar underlying pathophysiology. Little is known about the prevalence and co-occurrence of cLBP with other commonly accepted conditions referred to as COPCs.

Methods: We assessed participants enrolled in a pragmatic trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction for cLBP to determine the prevalence of co-occurring COPCs using a validated COPC screener.

International Trends in Opioid Prescribing by Age and Sex from 2001 to 2019: An Observational Study Using Population-Based Databases from 18 Countries and One Special Administrative Region.

Objective: To characterize multinational trends and patterns of opioid analgesic prescribing by sex and age.

Design, Setting, And Participants: We studied opioid analgesic prescribing from 2001 to 2019 with common protocol using population-based databases from eighteen countries and one special administrative region.

Main Outcome Measures: We measured opioid prescribing by geographical region, sex and age, estimating annual prevalent, incident, and nonincident opioid prescribing per 100 population with a 95% confidence interval (CI) and meta-analyzed the multinational and regional opioid prescribing with a random-effects model.

Home Availability of Different Forms of Fruits and Vegetables and Parent/Child Diet by Income: Findings from 4 Studies.

Objective: Assessed the availability of any form, fresh, frozen, canned, and dried fruits and vegetables (FVs), their associations with parent/child sodium and added sugar intakes across household incomes.

Design: Cross-sectional data analysis.

Setting And Participants: 960 parent/child dyads across 4 studies.

Addressing complexity: The development and pilot testing of a user-friendly Medicare Part D patient decision aid tool.

Background: Selecting a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan can be challenging because of limited health insurance literacy and complex plan features. Existing online tools, such as the Medicare Plan Finder (MPF), often lack personalization.

Objective: To describe the conceptualization and development of a personalized Medicare Part D decision aid (DA) to supplement the MPF.

Patient-Driven Sharing of Health Information: A National Effort to Advance Equitable Interoperability.

The goal of national interoperability is to improve care quality and decrease administrative burden and costs. Patients, providers, and other stakeholders are increasingly concerned that indiscriminate sharing of data may have deleterious, permanent consequences, as well as fail to provide granular control over the sharing of individual health data. Data segmentation and consent standards to date have been limited in scope and implementation, which has hindered efforts to scale data sharing preferences.

Comparative perceptions of wait times for family planning services among contraceptive users and mystery clients in Kisumu, Kenya: a mixed methods analysis.

Background: Long wait times at health facilities negatively affect contraceptive access and cause dissatisfaction with care. Conventional data collection methods, such as population-based surveys and exit interviews, may not accurately capture wait times due to methodological challenges including recall and social desirability bias.

Methods: We compared mystery client observations conducted in all public facilities in Kisumu County, Kenya with data from a population-based sample of women of reproductive age (18-49, n = 744) in Kisumu County.

An Enhanced Social Network Strategy to Increase the Uptake of HIV Services: Protocol for Type I Hybrid Implementation Study (Carolinas RESPOND).

Background: In the United States, persisting new HIV diagnoses among gay, bisexual, and other cisgender men who have sex with men (GBMSM) and transgender women make it unlikely that the United States will meet the Ending the HIV Epidemic's (EHE) goal to reduce new HIV diagnoses by 90% by 2030. Innovative strategies are needed to address this challenge, particularly in the US South, where Black and Latinx GBMSM and transgender women are disproportionately impacted by HIV. Social network approaches have led to increased HIV testing uptake.