Objective:To determine whether characteristics of the social environment surrounding lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youth contribute to their rates of tobacco use after controlling for established community-level risk factors.Design: Cross-sectional.Setting: Population-based study of youth.Participants: A total of 31 852 eleventh-grade students (1413 LGB individuals [4.44%]) in Oregon completed the Oregon Healthy Teens survey in 2006-2008. Main Exposures:We created a composite index of the social environment in 34 Oregon counties. This measure included the proportion of same-sex couples, the presence of gay-straight alliances in schools, and school policies (nondiscrimination and antibullying) that specifically protected LGB students.Main Outcome Measures: Any tobacco use in the past 30 days.Results: A more supportive social environment for LGB youth was significantly associated with reduced tobacco use (odds ratio, 0.92; 95% confidence interval, 0.90-0.94). This effect remained robust after controlling for sociodemographic variables and multiple communitylevel risk factors for tobacco use, including median countylevel income, exposure to cigarette advertisements, exposure to teacher and peer smoking in schools, and school smoking rules. Conclusion:This study documents an association between an objective measure of the social environment and sexual orientation-related disparities in tobacco use. These results highlight the need for structural-level interventions that reduce smoking behaviors in LGB youth.

The antimicrobial activity of gentian violet and brilliant green was tested against various strains of potential skin pathogens, by means of agar diffusion assay. The activity of both compounds was affected by pH. Gentian violet was found to be more active than brilliant green at pH 7.4, particularly against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The spectrum of activity of gentian violet was not increased by the addition of brilliant green. An aqueous solution of gentian violet 0.5% turned out to be an adequate topical anti-infective drug. The preparation is particularly suitable for primary health care in tropical developing countries, because it is cheap, chemically and physically stable, and easy to prepare.

Nowadays, new technologies, like genomics, cannot be developed without the support of the public. However, although interested, the public does not always actively participate in science issues when offered the opportunity via public participation activities. In a study aimed at validating a measurement scale, first, we investigated if public participation existed, and, secondly, we investigated how levels of public participation in genomics research varied among groups. Finally, we studied which factors predicted public participation. Results were based on a questionnaire with four subsamples. Results confirmed, first of all, the internal consistency of the measurement scale to assess levels of public participation. Secondly, the groups differed significantly with regard to their levels of participation in genomics research. Finally, the findings revealed that information-seeking behaviour, knowledge and education were main predictors of public participation, while interest, social involvement, and trust and influence had some influence together with age and gender.

There is increasing evidence that outcomes of health care differ by patient characteristics, such as gender and ethnicity. If evidence-based medicine is to improve quality of care for all patients, it is essential to take this diversity into account when designing clinical studies. So far, this notion has mainly been translated into recommendations for including minority populations in trials. We argue that a more comprehensive view of the production of diversity-sensitive clinical evidence is needed, one that takes heterogeneity as a starting point in research. We call for a mix of methodological approaches aimed at identifying diversity issues that matter and analysing the impact of these diversities on clinical outcomes. Institutional changes are necessary to support this methodological reform.