Fathers’ involvement in and influence on the health and development of their children have increased in a myriad of ways in the past 10 years and have been widely studied. The role of pediatricians in working with fathers has correspondingly increased in importance. This report reviews new studies of the epidemiology of father involvement, including nonresidential as well as residential fathers. The effects of father involvement on child outcomes are discussed within each phase of a child’s development. Particular emphasis is placed on (1) fathers’ involvement across childhood ages and (2) the influence of fathers’ physical and mental health on their children. Implications and advice for all child health providers to encourage and support father involvement are outlined.

Objective To review literature on the impact of FDA drug risk communications on medication utilization, health care services use, and health outcomes. Data Sources The authors searched MEDLINE and the Web of Science for manuscripts published between January 1990 and November 2010 that included terms related to drug utilization, the FDA, and advisories or warnings. We manually searched bibliographies and works citing selected articles and consulted with experts to guide study selection. Study Selection Studies were included if they involved an empirical analysis evaluating the impact of an FDA risk communication. Data Extraction We extracted the drug(s) analyzed, relevant FDA communication(s), data source, analytical method, and main outcome(s) assessed. Results Of the 1432 records screened, 49 studies were included. These studies covered sixteen medicines or therapeutic classes; one-third examined communications regarding antidepressants. Most used medical or pharmacy claims and few rigorously examined patient-provider communication, decision-making or risk perceptions. Advisories recommending increased clinical or laboratory monitoring generally led to decreased drug use, but only transient and modestly increased monitoring. Communications targeting specific subpopulations often spilled over to other groups. Repeated or sequential advisories tended to have larger but delayed effects and decreased incident more than prevalent use. Drug-specific warnings were associated with particularly large decreases in utilization, though the magnitude of substitution within therapeutic classes varied across clinical contexts. Conclusions While some FDA drug risk communications had immediate, strong impacts, many had either delayed or no impact on health care utilization or health behaviors. These data demonstrate the complexity of using risk communication to improve the quality and safety of prescription drug use, and suggest the importance of continued assessments of the effect of future advisories and label changes. Identifying factors that are associated with rapid and sustained responses to risk communications will be important for informing future risk communication efforts.

The majority of fathers from our sample have attended a WCV, and most have been to their child's doctor in the past year; WCVs and doctor appointments are ways in which fathers are involved in their child's health care. Fathers detailed specific reasons for why they attend WCVs, such as to support their child, ask questions, express concerns, and gather information firsthand. The fathers reported more positive than negative experiences with the health care staff, and, overall, they are satisfied with their experiences with the health care system. Reasons for satisfaction include feeling as though their questions had been dealt with seriously and answered appropriately. However, the fathers in our study did report a variety of barriers to health care involvement, including conflicting work schedules, a lack of confidence in their parental role, and health care system barriers. Professionals who care for children and families need to explore creative ways to engage fathers in the structured health care of their children. For example, pediatricians can stress the benefits of both parents being involved in their child's health care while reframing the importance of WCVs. Understanding that many fathers have situational flexibility when it comes to health care encounters may encourage physicians to suggest more actively that fathers attend WCVs. Pediatricians can also support existing public policies such as the national 2003 Responsible Fatherhood Act that provides grants and programs that promote the father's role in the family and advocate for additional policies that would foster quality father involvement. Continued collaboration among families, physicians, and other health care professionals is essential to support father involvement and ensure positive health outcomes for children.

Men's health is a new and evolving area of specialty that goes beyond men's cancers and sexual activities. Men's health in the 21st century incorporates a broader conceptualization of health, health behaviors, and lifestyle choices. This new focus results from the fact that men continue to lag behind women in life expectancy and in health care use, a situation that is worse for minority men. Understanding how gender socialization and masculine ideology affects men's health is an important step toward providing effective care for men. In this article, the authors review these areas and then discuss each of the top actual causes of death for men: tobacco use, poor diet, alcohol use, and physical inactivity. They then discuss the important issue of steroid use among men. Throughout the review, the authors highlight racial and ethnic differences in health behaviors. Furthermore, they provide empirically supported clinical implications to assist clinicians who see men with health concerns in their practices. Finally, they offer suggestions for creating ways to include men in the health care system in hopes of improving their use.

WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT:There is growing understanding of the detrimental effect of paternal depression on children. The transition to fatherhood is a unique time for men. Identifying which fathers are at-risk and when will inform effective methods to help men and their families.WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS: Nonresident fathers have the highest depression symptom scores, peaking before entering fatherhood. Although resident fathers' scores decrease preceding entry into fatherhood, there is a significant increase from 0 to 5 years of their child' s life when key parent-infant attachment occurs. abstract BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Rates of paternal depression range from 5% to 10% with a growing body of literature describing the harm to fathers, children, and families. Changes in depression symptoms over the life course, and the role of social factors, are not well known. This study examines associations with changes in depression symptoms during the transition to fatherhood for young fathers and whether this association differed by key social factors. METHODS:We combined all 4 waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to support a 23-year longitudinal analysis of 10 623 men and then created a "fatherhood-year" data set, regressing ageadjusted standardized depressive symptoms scores on fatherhood status (nonresidence/residence), fatherhood-years, and covariates to determine associations between Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale scores and fatherhood life course intervals. RESULTS:Depressive symptom scores reported at the entry into fatherhood are higher for nonresident fathers than nonfathers, which in turn are higher than those of resident fathers. Resident fathers have a significant decrease in scores during late adolescence (b = -0.035, P = .023), but a significant increase in scores during early fatherhood (b = 0.023, P = .041). From entrance into fatherhood to the end of early fatherhood (+5 years), the depressive symptoms score for resident fathers increases on average by 68%. CONCLUSIONS:In our longitudinal, population-based study, resident fathers show increasing depressive symptom scores during children' s key attachment years of 0-5. Identifying at-risk fathers based on social factors and designing effective interventions may ultimately improve health outcomes for the entire family. Pediatrics 2014;133:836-843 AUTHORS: