Environmental Vulnerability Factors Research Articles

Paradigm Shift in Typhoon Forecasting for the Korean Peninsula: A Case Study on the Applicability of the Typhoon-Ready System

Climate change has significantly increased multi-hazard disasters caused by typhoons, exposing the limitations of conventional forecasting systems that often neglect regional socio-economic vulnerabilities. This study develops and validates the Typhoon-Ready System (TRS) as an effective disaster-management framework for the Korean Peninsula. The TRS integrates hazard data with socio-economic and environmental vulnerability factors to produce region-specific risk indices. The analysis of four representative typhoons—Lingling (2019), Rusa (2002), Maemi (2003), and Mitak (2019)—demonstrates TRS’s applicability in identifying high-risk zones and supporting disaster preparedness strategies. The TRS framework incorporates indices, such as the Strong Wind Index (SWI), Heavy Rainfall Index (HRI), Storm Surge Index (SSI), and Air Quality Index (AQI), effectively combining meteorological modeling with vulnerability analysis. Results demonstrate that the TRS outperforms traditional systems by accurately identifying high-risk zones and correlating them with observed damage patterns. For example, the TRS successfully pinpointed high wind risks in Seoul and Incheon during Typhoon Lingling and forecasted severe flooding in Gangneung and Samcheok during Typhoon Rusa. By integrating vulnerability factors, including population density, infrastructure aging, and urbanization levels, the TRS provides a more holistic and accurate risk assessment. This research highlights the necessity of a multi-dimensional forecasting approach for enhancing disaster preparedness and resilience against climate change-induced typhoon impacts.

An Expanded Conceptual Framework for Understanding Irritability in Childhood: The Role of Cognitive Control Processes

Children prone to irritability experience significant functional impairments and internalising and externalising problems. Contemporary models have sought to elucidate the underlying mechanisms in irritability, such as aberrant threat and reward biases to improve interventions. However, the cognitive control processes that underlie threat (e.g., attention towards threats) and reward (e.g., attention towards reward-related cues) biases and the factors which influence the differential activation of positive and negative valence systems and thus leading to maladaptive activation of cognitive control processes (i.e., proactive and reactive control) are unclear. Thus, we aim to integrate extant theoretical and empirical research to elucidate the cognitive control processes underlying threat and reward processing that contribute to irritability in middle childhood and provide a guiding framework for future research and treatment. We propose an expanded conceptual framework of irritability that includes broad intraindividual and environmental vulnerability factors and propose proximal ‘setting’ factors that activate the negative valence and positive valence systems and proactive and reactive cognitive control processes which underpin the expression and progression of irritability. We consider the implications of this expanded conceptualisation of irritability and provide suggestions for future research.

Faktor Kerentanan Banjir Rob Kecamatan Medan Belawan Kota Medan

The rise in sea level has impacted the emergence of a flood disaster in the district of Belawan City Field. The flooding of these robs caused the sinking of settlements, industries and ports. The height of flooding that increases every year has an impact on the increased shortages caused and increased economic losses of communities working in vulnerable sectors. Therefore, vulnerability factors are necessary to determine effective adaptation directions. The research was carried out in the district of the Field of Belawan City of Medan where there are 6 (six) floods affected by the flood of rob: the Kelurahan Belawa I, Belawana II, Blawan Bahari, Balawan Pulau Sicanang and Bagan Deli. The study begins with the theoretical and empirical formulation related to vulnerability to flood areas followed by interviews with stakeholders aimed at finding issues more openly in which the interviewed parties are asked for opinions. The stakeholder used is the stakeholder who knows the phenomenon of the flooding of rob that occurs in the research area consists of 3 (three) groups representing the government and society. Factors affecting the level of vulnerability to flooding in the area are grouped into physical, social, economic and environmental vulnerability factors.

Endocannabinoid-dependent decrease of GABAergic transmission on dopaminergic neurons is associated with susceptibility to cocaine stimulant effects in pre-adolescent male MAOA hypomorphic mice exposed to early life stress

Vulnerability to cocaine use disorder depends upon a combination of genetic and environmental risk factors. While early life adversity is a critical environmental vulnerability factor for drug misuse, allelic variants of the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene have been shown to moderate its influence on the risk of drug-related problems. However, data on the interactions between MAOA variants and early life stress (ES) with respect to predisposition to cocaine abuse are limited. Here, we show that a mouse model capturing the interaction of genetic (low-activity alleles of the Maoa gene; MAOANeo) and environmental (i.e., ES) vulnerability factors displays an increased sensitivity to repeated in vivo cocaine psychomotor stimulant actions associated with a reduction of GABAA receptor-mediated inhibition of dopamine neurons of the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Depolarization-induced suppression of inhibition (DSI), a 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2AG)-dependent form of short-term plasticity, also becomes readily expressed by dopamine neurons from male MAOANeo ES mice repeatedly treated with cocaine. The activation of either dopamine D2 or CB1 receptors contributes to cocaine-induced DSI expression, decreased GABA synaptic efficacy, and hyperlocomotion. Next, in vivo pharmacological enhancement of 2AG signaling during repeated cocaine exposure occludes its actions both in vivo and ex vivo. This data extends our knowledge of the multifaceted sequelae imposed by this gene-environment interaction in VTA dopamine neurons of male pre-adolescent mice and contributes to our understanding of neural mechanisms of vulnerability for early onset cocaine use.

Social, environmental, socio-environmental and environment vulnerability: Concepts and conceptions

The growing demand for the operationalization of scientific concepts makes them to be proposed as an intervention design. In this context, the objective of this study is to know the concepts and conceptions that identify vulnerability, be it social, environmental or socio-environmental, as well as to distinguish the types of vulnerability; identify social, environmental and socio-environmental vulnerability factors; and, analyze the role of public policies in mitigating vulnerabilities. Therefore, a bibliographic research was carried out with a descriptive approach. It was found that people in general need to be aware of the risks and vulnerabilities that are permanently observed in cities. The rapid and intense alteration of natural landscapes into artificial landscapes generated, above all, by human constructions, and which characterize urban spaces, results in numerous problems for cities, requiring public policies to create defense mechanisms for risk factors. so that all together can overcome vulnerabilities, be they social, environmental or socio-environmental.

The Relationship Between Cannabis, Cognition, and Schizophrenia: It's Complicated.

The consequences of cannabis use, especially in the context of schizophrenia, have gained increased importance with the legalization of cannabis in North America and across the globe. Cannabis use has multifaceted impacts on cognition in schizophrenia patients and healthy subjects. Healthy subjects, particularly those who initiated cannabis use at earlier ages and used high-potency cannabis for longer durations, exhibited poorer cognition mainly in working memory and attention. Cannabis use in schizophrenia has been associated with symptom exacerbation, longer and more frequent psychotic episodes, and poorer treatment outcomes. However, cannabis-using patients have better overall cognitive performance compared to patients who were not cannabis users. Interestingly, these effects were only apparent in lifetime cannabis users, but not in current (or within last 6months) users. Moreover, higher frequency and earlier age of cannabis use initiation (i.e., before 17years of age) were associated with better cognitive performance, although they had an earlier illness onset. Three possible hypotheses seem to come forward to explain this paradox. First, some components of cannabis may have antipsychotic or cognitive-enhancing properties. Secondly, chronic cannabis use may alter endocannabinoid signaling in the brain which could be a protective factor for developing psychosis or cognitive impairments. A third explanation could be their representation of a phenotypically distinct patient group with more intact cognitive functioning and less neurodevelopmental pathology. Multiple factors need to be considered to understand the complex relationship between cannabis, cognitive function, and schizophrenia. In short, age at initiation, duration and rate of cannabis use, abstinence duration, co-use of substances and alcohol, prescribed medications, relative cannabinoid composition and potency of cannabis, presence of genetic and environmental vulnerability factors are prominent contributorsto the variability in outcomes. Animal studies support the disruptive effects of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) administration during adolescence on attention and memory performance. They provide insights about interaction of cannabinoid receptors with other neurotransmitter systems, such as GABA and glutamate, and other regulatory molecules, such as PSD95 and synaptophysin. Cannabidiol (CBD), on the other hand, can improve cognitive deficits seen in neurodevelopmental and chemically-induced animal models of schizophrenia. Future studies focusing on bridging the translational gaps between human and animal studies, through the use of translationally relevant methods of exposure (e.g., vaping), consistent behavioral assessments, and congruent circuit interrogations (e.g., imaging) will help to further clarify this complex picture.

Les modèles théoriques actuels du trouble panique : examen conceptuel et implications cliniques

Parmi les troubles anxieux, le trouble panique est associé à certains des plus grands fardeaux en termes de souffrance personnelle, de déficience professionnelle et de coût sociétal. Cet article passe en revue les modèles théoriques de ce trouble afin de déterminer leurs évolutions, leurs limites et les perspectives théoriques et cliniques qui en découlent. Pour ce faire, une revue de la littérature a été entreprise à partir de la base de données PsycINFO. Sur les 928 articles identifiés, 54 faisaient référence à 14 modèles théoriques du trouble panique. Les résultats montrent que la plupart des modèles ne sont pas empiriquement bien étayés et que peu ont été utilisés de manière cohérente pour guider le traitement de ce trouble. Bien que les traitements basés sur ces modèles bénéficient à un grand pourcentage de patients, au moins 25 % des patients sont classés comme résistants à ces traitements. De plus, les rechutes ne sont pas rares. La conclusion discute des limites des modèles existants et propose des recommandations pour améliorer les modèles actuels du trouble panique. Panic disorder (PD) is defined by recurring and unexpected panic attacks accompanied by anticipatory anxiety about future attacks and their consequences. This generally involves avoiding situations and behaviors that can produce panic attacks (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013). Among anxiety disorders, PD is associated with some of the greatest burdens in terms of personal suffering, occupational disability, and societal cost. Since the introduction of PD in the DSM-III (1980) and the distinction of PD from generalized anxiety disorder following the work of Klein (1964), several biological and psychological theories of PD have been developed. These theories have highlighted several risk factors (for the onset, maintenance and relapse associated with the disorder) that have strongly influenced research on PD and have guided its treatment. However, a comprehensive and universally accepted theoretical framework of PD to guide its treatment is lacking. This article reviews the previously described theoretical frameworks of PD and related treatments while examining the strength of the scientific evidence supporting their validity as well as their limitations. A review of the literature was undertaken by searching PsycINFO database to list all the articles published between January 2000 and November 2020 and referring to a theoretical model or a conceptual framework of PD. The conceptual frameworks identified were reviewed based on the recent scientific researches to determine the strength of the evidence supporting their validity. Of the 928 articles initially identified, 54 referred to fourteen different conceptual frameworks relating to PD. Two models are exclusively biological: the false suffocation alarm and the neuroanatomical hypothesis of PD. Six models are psychological, one of which is psychodynamic and five are derived from the cognitive-behavioral paradigm. Finally, six models are integrative: triple vulnerability of Barlow, integrated cognitive vulnerability of Schmidt & Woolaway-Bickel, unified model of vulnerability of McGinn, causal model of Fava & Morton, causal model based on the evidence by Pilecki and integrated model of Busch. These models highlight biological, environmental, developmental and psychological vulnerability factors. The analysis of these different models shows that few conceptual frameworks have been used consistently to guide the treatment of PD, and that not all frameworks are empirically well supported. The theoretical approaches that have strongly influenced the treatment of PD are the cognitive model of Clark, the expectation model of Reiss as well as the triple vulnerability model of Barlow. Although treatments based on these models benefit a large percentage of patients, at least 25% of patients are classified as resistant to these treatments. In addition, relapses and persistence of symptoms remain common results of these treatments. This suggests that other vulnerability factors such as emotional regulation skills should be taken into consideration and integrated into these models especially as several studies have suggested that research focused on emotion regulation may improve our understanding of panic.

The 5-HTTLPR-rs25531 S-A-S-A Haplotype and Chronic Stress Moderate the Association Between Acute Stress and Internalizing Mental Disorders Among HIV+ Children and Adolescents in Uganda.

Background: Internalizing mental disorders (IMDs) among HIV-positive (HIV+) children and adolescents are associated with poor disease outcomes, such as faster HIV disease progression. Although it has been suggested that the development of IMDs is moderated by interaction of stressful life events and vulnerability factors, the underlying etiology is largely unknown. Serotonin transporter gene [solute carrier family 6 member A4 (SLC6A4)] and human tryptophan hydroxylase 2 gene (TPH2) polymorphisms have been implicated in the development of IMDs. This study investigated the association between acute stress and IMDs, and moderation by chronic stress and genetic variants in SLC6A4 and TPH2.Hypothesis: Acute stress acts through genetic and environmental vulnerability factors to increase the risk of developing IMDs.Methods: Polymorphisms in SLC6A4 (5-HTTLPR, rs25531, 5-HTTLPR-rs25531, and STin2 VNTR) and TPH2 (rs1843809, rs1386494, rs4570625, and rs34517220) were genotyped in 368 HIV+ children and adolescents (aged 5–17 years) with any internalizing mental disorder (depression, anxiety disorders, or posttraumatic stress disorder), and 368 age- and sex-matched controls, who were also HIV+. Chronic and acute stress categories were derived by hierarchical cluster analysis. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the independent moderating effect of chronic stress and each selected polymorphism on the association between acute stress and IMDs.Results: We observed a statistically significant association between severe acute stress and IMDs (p = 0.001). Children and adolescents who experienced severe acute stress were twice as likely to develop IMDs, compared to children and adolescents who experienced mild acute stress (p = 0.001). Chronic stress interacted with severe acute stress to increase the risk of IMDs (p = 0.033). Acute stress was found to interact with 5-HTTLPR-rs25531 S-A-S-A haplotype to increase the risk for IMDs among Ugandan HIV+ children and adolescents (p = 0.049). We found no evidence for a combined interaction of acute stress, chronic stress, and 5-HTTLPR-rs25531 on IMDs.Conclusion: The odds of having an internalizing mental disorder (IMD) were higher among HIV+ children and adolescents who experienced severe acute stress compared to HIV+ children and adolescents who experienced mild acute stress. Chronic stress and 5-HTTLPR-rs25531 independently moderated the association between acute stress and IMDs.

Cohort profile of the longitudinal Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety (NESDA) on etiology, course and consequences of depressive and anxiety disorders

The Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety (NESDA, www.nesda.nl) is a longitudinal, multi-site, naturalistic, case-control cohort study set up to examine the etiology, course and consequences of depressive and anxiety disorders. This paper presents a cohort profile of NESDA. The NESDA sample recruited initially 2329 persons with a remitted or current DSM-IV based depressive (major depressive disorder, dysthymia) and/or anxiety disorder (panic disorder, social phobia, agoraphobia, generalized anxiety disorder), 367 of their siblings and 652 healthy controls, yielding a total of 3348 participants. Half-day face-to-face assessments of participants started in 2004 and since then have been repeated six times over a period of 9 years. A 13-year follow-up assessment is ongoing, at what time we also recruit offspring of participants. Retention rates are generally high, ranging from 87.1% (after 2 years) to 69.4% (after 9 years). Psychiatric diagnostic interviews have been administered at all face-to-face assessments, as was monitoring of clinical characteristics, psychosocial functioning and somatic health. Assessed etiological factors include e.g. early and current environmental risk factors, psychological vulnerability and resilience factors as well as (neuro)biology through hypothesis-driven biomarker assessments, genome-wide and large-scale '-omics' assessments, and neuroimaging assessments. The naturalistic design allows research into course and consequences of affective disorders but is limited in treatment response interpretation. NESDA provides a strong research infrastructure for research into depressive and/or anxiety disorders. Its data have been used for many scientific papers describing either NESDA-based analyses or joint collaborative consortia-projects, and are in principle available to researchers outside the NESDA consortium.

Development of a Land Suitability Framework for Sustainable Manure Utilization

HighlightsWe developed a land suitability framework for sustainable manure utilization based on seven water quality-related environmental vulnerability factors.ArcGIS-based decision-support tools were developed that use readily available data for the U.S.The tools can be adapted to any location in the U.S. for any livestock agricultural system.In a case study, 19.9% of the study area was identified as potentially suitable for manure utilization.2%, 33%, and 44% of the potential areas were highly, moderately, and marginally suitable, respectively.Abstract. Intensive livestock agriculture is a significant source of nutrient pollution that contributes to water quality degradation worldwide. This study presents a land suitability framework and accompanying decision-support tools for sustainable manure management. The developed framework identifies potentially suitable areas for manure application in a user-defined area and further classifies the land as highly suitable, moderately suitable, marginally suitable, and unsuitable using seven environmental vulnerability factors considering landscape biophysical characteristics and proximity to streams. The decision-support tools, built in ArcGIS, were applied in a case study in western Pennsylvania. The ArcGIS toolbox, available from ScholarSphere (https://doi.org/10.26207/99tk-sn24), classified 2% of the case study area as highly suitable for manure application and 21% as unsuitable. Landscape slope and proximity to streams were the dominant vulnerability factors in the case study area. The framework and accompanying tools are transferable across watershed boundaries and can help identify areas where environmentally sustainable animal agriculture can be developed. Keywords: Decision-support tool, Land suitability analysis, Sustainable manure management, Vulnerability analysis.

The role of psychiatric symptoms and environmental vulnerability factors in explaining the relationship between child maltreatment and suicidality: A prospective investigation

Childhood maltreatment has been associated with suicide thoughts and attempts; however, few longitudinal studies have assessed risk of suicidality into adulthood. Fewer have examined potential mediators (psychiatric symptoms and environmental vulnerability factors). Prospective cohort design. Children with documented cases of maltreatment (N = 495, ages 0-11) were matched with non-maltreated children (N = 395) and followed up into adulthood. Psychiatric symptoms (depression, anxiety, dysthymia, post-traumatic stress,antisocial personality,and substance use) and environmental vulnerability (social isolation, physical disability/illness, and homelessness) were assessed at mean age 29 and suicide thoughts and attempts at 39. Structural equation models tested for mediation, controlling for age, sex, race, and IQ. Childhood maltreatment predicted suicide attempts (Beta = 0.44, p<0.001), but not suicide thoughts only.Individuals with only suicide thoughts differed significantly from those with suicide attempts in psychiatric symptoms, physical disability/ illness, and homelessness. There were significant paths from child maltreatment to suicide attempts through psychiatric symptoms (0.18, p<0.001), ASPD (0.13, p<0.001), substance use (0.07, p<0.01), and homelessness (0.10, p<0.05). Court cases of child maltreatment may not generalize to middle- or upper- class and non-reported cases.Effect sizes were small but significant. Psychiatric risk factors for suicide are well recognized. These new results provide strong evidence that environmental vulnerability factors, particularly homelessness, are associated with increased risk for suicide attempts and warrant attention.Although many people report suicide thoughts, maltreated children with more psychiatric symptoms and experience homelessness are more likely to attempt suicide and warrant targeted interventions.

Local worlds: Vulnerability and food insecurity in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.

The overwhelming finding is that after more than a decade of democracy, the Eastern Cape (EC) province remains trapped in structural poverty. This shows in all aspects of its demographic, health and socio-economic profiles. Methods, measurements and statistics vary, but from the various studies and data sets one can attest that the majority of the population still lives in poverty. Despite the democratic transformation that began in South Africa in 1994, poverty, unemployment and inequality exist today along with the food insecurity that is symptomatic of them. Food insecurity in South Africa varies across its nine provinces, with the EC province frequently measured as the poorest province in the country. This article examines the extent to which the EC can be defined as vulnerable to food insecurity by using a review of current literature. These vulnerabilities are compounded by the environmental vulnerability factors of climate change and drought, which affect households’ ability to grow food. The elderly and children are affected by life cycle vulnerability factors, with children prone to malnutrition and the elderly unable to work to produce food. Race and gender are associated with vulnerability to food insecurity. Most of the people in the EC who are poor and are African, and a high percentage of women-headed households is poor. The vulnerability factors identified suggest that job creation and agricultural productivity may be useful ways of targeting food insecurity. Interventions need to take local contexts into account and focus on particular communities and their unique needs.

Double jeopardy in the United States: Early onset bipolar disorder and treatment delay

Evidence is emerging that early onset bipolar disorder and the duration of the delay to first treatment are both risk factors for poor treatment outcome. We report on the incidence and implications of these two risk factors in patients from the United States (US) versus Europe. Age of onset and age at first treatment for depression or mania was assessed in 967 outpatients with bipolar disorder who gave informed consent for participation and filling out a detailed questionnaire. Age at onset and treatment delay were compared in the 675 patients from the US and 292 from the Netherlands and Germany (abbreviated as Europe). Both were then graphed and analyzed. Age of onset of bipolar disorder was earlier in the US than in Europeans by an average of 6-7 years with similar results in those with first onsets of depression or of mania. Delay to first treatment was strongly inversely related to age of onset and was twice as long in the US than in Europe, and especially different for mania in adolescents. The longer delay to treatment in the US was not solely due to earlier age of onset. Treatment delay is a remedial risk factor and could be shortened with better recognition of the higher incidence of early onset bipolar disorder in the US, which also associated with more genetic and environmental vulnerability factors compared to Europe. New treatment and research initiatives are needed to address these liabilities so that children with bipolar achieve more positive long-term outcomes.

The Role of Individual and Small-Area Social and Environmental Factors on Heat Vulnerability to Mortality Within and Outside of the Home in Boston, MA.

Climate change is resulting in heatwaves that are more frequent, severe, and longer lasting, which is projected to double-to-triple the heat-related mortality in Boston, MA if adequate climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies are not implemented. A case-only analysis was used to examine subject and small-area neighborhood characteristics that modified the association between hot days and mortality. Deaths of Boston, Massachusetts residents that occurred from 2000–2015 were analyzed in relation to the daily temperature and heat index during the warm season as part of the case-only analysis. The modification by small-area (census tract, CT) social, and environmental (natural and built) factors was assessed. At-home mortality on hot days was driven by both social and environmental factors, differentially across the City of Boston census tracts, with a greater proportion of low-to-no income individuals or those with limited English proficiency being more highly represented among those who died during the study period; but small-area built environment features, like street trees and enhanced energy efficiency, were able to reduce the relative odds of death within and outside the home. At temperatures below current local thresholds used for heat warnings and advisories, there was increased relative odds of death from substance abuse and assault-related altercations. Geographic weighted regression analyses were used to examine these relationships spatially within a subset of at-home deaths with high-resolution temperature and humidity data. This revealed spatially heterogeneous associations between at-home mortality and social and environmental vulnerability factors.

Intrinsic Environmental Vulnerability as Shallow Landslide Susceptibility in Environmental Impact Assessment

This work investigated the susceptibility factors that trigger shallow landslides. In particular, the objective of the research was the implementation of a method to determine the relevant factors that can trigger shallow landslide events. However, with respect to the existing methods, the integration with historical datasets and the inclusion of spatial factors displaying dynamics in the same characteristic timescales were specific features of the developed tool. The study area included the watersheds of the Sessera and Strona rivers in the alpine area of the Province of Biella (Piedmont, NW Italy). The method was developed and tested from two sub-datasets derived from an integrated dataset that referred to an intense event, involving the same area, that occurred in 1968 (2–3 November). This allowed the implementation of an integrated representation of landslides’ predisposing factors and the identification and classification in different groups of the areas susceptible to geo-hydrological instability processes. The previously existing databases were verified and integrated into a geographic information system (GIS) environment, giving a potentially sharable source of information for planning purposes. The obtained maps represent a metric of one of the possible intrinsic environmental vulnerability factors for the area under study. Consequently, this method can represent a future instrument for determining the intrinsic environmental vulnerability dependent on landslides within an environmental impact assessment (EIA), as required by the most recent European regulation on EIA. Moreover, the shared information can be used to implement informed policy and planning processes, based on a bottom-up approach. In particular, the availability online of landslide susceptibility maps could support the generation of augmented information—useful for both local administrators and planners as well as for stakeholders willing to implement specific projects or infrastructure in vulnerable areas, such as mountains.

Pengaruh Faktor Kerawanan Pangan Dan Lingkungan Terhadap Stunting

Background: Globally, it is estimated that one in five children will fail to grow or be known as stunting in 2020. In Indonesia based on Nutritional Status Monitoring (PSG) data for the past three years. The prevalence of short-term toddlers has increased from 2016 to 27.5% to 29.6% in 2017. Method: The interaction between environment and nutrition, especially food insecurity presents interesting dynamics that can be studied further. In this review, the authors are interested in providing scientific evidence-based information about the effects of food and environmental vulnerability factors on the incidence of stunting. Search for published articles is done through databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, CINAHL (EBSCO), the official website of national health organizations, online libraries, and the UNICEF library from February 10 to March 25, 201. Result: Stunting AND Risk Factors, Factors affecting stunting, Stunting AND food insecure, stunting AND environment factors, Stunting AND Indonesia. Inclusion criteria were systematic reviews, clinical reviews, cohort studies, cross-sectional studies, clinical studies, health reports, and program guidelines. Conclusion: Factors influencing stunting including: food insecurity increases the risk of stunting (OR = 1.17 95% CI: 1.09-1.25) and less weight (OR = 1.17 95% CI: 1.01-1.36). lack of sanitation, flooring type and mycotoxin exposure in the form of AF-alb.

Work-Related Stressors and Increased Risk of Benzodiazepine Long-Term Use: Findings From the CONSTANCES Population-Based Cohort.

Objectives. To examine whether stressful job exposure to the public could be associated with having long-term benzodiazepine use.Methods. From the participants included between 2012 and 2016 in the French population-based CONSTANCES cohort, 13 934 men and 19 261 women declared a daily job exposure to the public and rated the frequency of stressful exposure. We examined benzodiazepine long-term use by using drug reimbursement administrative registries. Logistic regressions provided odds ratios (ORs) of benzodiazepine long-term use, with stratification for gender and adjustment for age, education, and area deprivation index. Occupational grade, job strain, depression, self-rated health, and alcohol use disorder were additional stratification variables.Results. Benzodiazepine long-term use was positively associated with stressful exposure to the public ("often or always" vs "rarely or never") in men (OR = 2.2; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.8, 2.8) and women (OR = 1.6; 95% CI = 1.4, 1.9), with dose-dependent relationships (P trends < .001). Adjustments and analyses in subgroups without other individual or environmental vulnerability factors led to similar results.Conclusions. Stressful job exposure to the public increases the risk of benzodiazepine long-term use. Prevention programs aiming at reducing the burden of benzodiazepine long-term use would benefit in targeting this specific population.

Heat Wave Vulnerability Mapping for India.

Assessing geographic variability in heat wave vulnerability forms the basis for planning appropriate targeted adaptation strategies. Given several recent deadly heatwaves in India, heat is increasingly being recognized as a public health problem. However, to date there has not been a country-wide assessment of heat vulnerability in India. We evaluated demographic, socioeconomic, and environmental vulnerability factors and combined district level data from several sources including the most recent census, health reports, and satellite remote sensing data. We then applied principal component analysis (PCA) on 17 normalized variables for each of the 640 districts to create a composite Heat Vulnerability Index (HVI) for India. Of the total 640 districts, our analysis identified 10 and 97 districts in the very high and high risk categories (> 2SD and 2-1SD HVI) respectively. Mapping showed that the districts with higher heat vulnerability are located in the central parts of the country. On examination, these are less urbanized and have low rates of literacy, access to water and sanitation, and presence of household amenities. Therefore, we concluded that creating and mapping a heat vulnerability index is a useful first step in protecting the public from the health burden of heat. Future work should incorporate heat exposure and health outcome data to validate the index, as well as examine sub-district levels of vulnerability.

Influence of 5-HTT variation, childhood trauma and self-efficacy on anxiety traits: a gene-environment-coping interaction study.

Environmental vulnerability factors such as adverse childhood experiences in interaction with genetic risk variants, e.g., the serotonin transporter gene linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR), are assumed to play a role in the development of anxiety and affective disorders. However, positive influences such as general self-efficacy (GSE) may exert a compensatory effect on genetic disposition, environmental adversity, and anxiety traits. We, thus, assessed childhood trauma (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, CTQ) and GSE in 678 adults genotyped for 5-HTTLPR/rs25531 and their interaction on agoraphobic cognitions (Agoraphobic Cognitions Questionnaire, ACQ), social anxiety (Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, LSAS), and trait anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, STAI-T). The relationship between anxiety traits and childhood trauma was moderated by self-efficacy in 5-HTTLPR/rs25531 LALA genotype carriers: LALA probands maltreated as children showed high anxiety scores when self-efficacy was low, but low anxiety scores in the presence of high self-efficacy despite childhood maltreatment. Our results extend previous findings regarding anxiety-related traits showing an interactive relationship between 5-HTT genotype and adverse childhood experiences by suggesting coping-related measures to function as an additional dimension buffering the effects of a gene-environment risk constellation. Given that anxiety disorders manifest already early in childhood, this insight could contribute to the improvement of psychotherapeutic interventions by including measures strengthening self-efficacy and inform early targeted preventive interventions in at-risk populations, particularly within the crucial time window of childhood and adolescence.

Association of low-activity MAOA allelic variants with violent crime in incarcerated offenders

The main enzyme for serotonin degradation, monoamine oxidase (MAO) A, has recently emerged as a key biological factor in the predisposition to impulsive aggression. Male carriers of low-activity variants of the main functional polymorphism of the MAOA gene (MAOA-uVNTR) have been shown to exhibit a greater proclivity to engage in violent acts. Thus, we hypothesized that low-activity MAOA-uVNTR alleles may be associated with a higher risk for criminal violence among male offenders. To test this possibility, we analyzed the MAOA-uVNTR variants of violent (n = 49) and non-violent (n = 40) male Caucasian and African-American convicts in a correctional facility. All participants were also tested with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), Barratt Impulsivity Scale (BIS-11) and Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ) to assess their levels of childhood trauma exposure, impulsivity and aggression, respectively. Our results revealed a robust (P < 0.0001) association between low-activity MAOA-uVNTR alleles and violent crime. This association was replicated in the group of Caucasian violent offenders (P < 0.01), but reached only a marginal trend (P = 0.08) in their African American counterparts. While violent crime charges were not associated with CTQ, BIS-11 and BPAQ scores, carriers of low-activity alleles exhibited a mild, yet significant (P < 0.05) increase in BIS-11 total and attentional-impulsiveness scores. In summary, these findings support the role of MAOA gene as a prominent genetic determinant for criminal violence. Further studies are required to confirm these results in larger samples of inmates and evaluate potential interactions between MAOA alleles and environmental vulnerability factors.