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This Month in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2009;163(8):687.
A School-Based Program to Prevent Adolescent Dating Violence: A Cluster Randomized Trial
Adolescent dating violence may be as high as 1 in 5 high school–aged teens each year and is a strong predictor of intimate partner violence in adulthood. In this randomized controlled trial involving 1722 ninth-grade students in 20 high schools, the effect of a 21-lesson curriculum on dating violence was tested. Overall, the intervention reduced the risk of physical violence toward a dating partner as measured 2.5 years later. However, while there was a strong effect on violence by teenage boys, there was no effect among girls. The intervention also appeared to increase the use of condoms by sexually active boys. Because this was a low-cost intervention, further efforts to improve the effectiveness of this type of intervention on dating violence are warranted.
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Atopic Dermatitis in Infants: An Important Role for Staphylococcus aureus Nasal Colonization
With the spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, increasing attention is being given to its role in a variety of diseases and the problem of its carriage in the healthy population. In this prospective cohort, the Generation R Study, infants were followed up from the prenatal period and had nasal swabs for Staphylococcus aureus collected at 1 , 6, and 14 months. By the second year of life, 28.5% of infants had diagnosed atopic dermatitis. S aureus colonization at 6 months was strongly associated with atopic dermatitis in both the first and second year of life. Infants colonized with S aureus at 6 months of age had a significant increased risk of moderate to severe atopic dermatitis compared with noncarriers; this risk was more than 4-fold if infants were found to have positive nasal cultures 2 or more times in the first year. These results suggest that colonization by 6 months may be a critical event in the immune system development of infants.
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Does Maternal Intimate Partner Violence Victimization Affect Child Morbidity?
Prior studies have documented high rates of intimate partner violence (IPV) among South Asian women, a group whose children are at high risk of poor health outcomes. This study used data from the 2004 Bangladesh Demographic Health Survey in 11 440 women and 4297 men. Intimate partner violence in the past year was reported by 42.4% of Bangladeshi mothers with a child younger than 6 years, with a higher risk in women with younger children. Maternal IPV was associated with a 37% increased odds of a child aged younger than 6 years having an acute respiratory infection and a 65% increased odds of a child having diarrhea in the 2 weeks prior to the survey. This increased risk of morbidity to children from maternal IPV may be related to stress effects on immune system function, lower rates of breastfeeding and immunization, a more limited access to food, and poorer health care use.
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Motives for Nonmedical Use of Prescription Opioids Among High School Seniors in the United States
This study, conducted as part of the Monitoring the Future annual surveys, sought to examine the motives for nonmedical use of prescription opioids by adolescents, ie, use without a physician's order. More than 12 000 high school seniors completed the survey between 2002 and 2006. Eight percent of high school seniors reported nonmedical use of prescription opioids in the past year, most commonly to relieve tension, get high, or experiment. However, 45% reported use to relieve physical pain. The prevalence of abuse of other substances was highest among those who reported non–pain relief motives, and lowest among those who did not engage in nonmedical use of prescription opioids. Physician identification of motives for nonmedical use of prescription opioids can help to distinguish individuals who need pain management and those who need a more comprehensive assessment for substance abuse.
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