BackgroundA high prevalence of stress-related disorders is well known among healthcare professionals. We set out to assess the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and compliance with national dietary and physical activity recommendations in NHS staff in the UK with comparison between clinical and non-clinical staff, and national surveys.DesignA multi-centre cross-sectional study.MethodsA web-based questionnaire was developed to include anonymised data on demographics, job role, cardiovascular risk factors and diseases, dietary habits, physical activity and barriers towards healthy lifestyle. This was distributed to staff in four NHS hospitals via emails.ResultsA total of 1158 staff completed the survey (response rate 13%) with equal distribution between the clinical and non-clinical groups. Most staff were aged 26–60 years and 79% were women. Half of the staff were either overweight or obese (51%) with no difference between the groups (P = 0.176), but there was a lower prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors compared to the general population. The survey revealed a low compliance (17%) with the recommended intake of five-a-day portions of fruit and vegetables, and that of moderate or vigorous physical activity (56%), with no difference between the clinical and non-clinical staff (P = 0.6). However, more clinical staff were exceeding the alcohol recommendations (P = 0.02). Lack of fitness facilities and managerial support, coupled with long working hours, were the main reported barriers to a healthy lifestyle.ConclusionsIn this survey of UK NHS staff, half were found to be overweight or obese with a lower prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors compared to the general population. There was a low compliance with the five-a-day fruit and vegetables recommendation and physical activity guidelines, with no difference between the clinical and non-clinical staff.
SummaryBackgroundProfessional drivers are known to be at high risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). This study was carried out to highlight these risk factors and their predictors among male long–distance professional bus drivers in Lagos, southwest Nigeria, with a view to improving health awareness in this group.MethodsSocio–demographic data, anthropometric indices, blood pressure, fasting plasma blood glucose levels and lipid and physical activity profiles of 293 drivers were measured.ResultsMean age of the study population was 48 ± 9.7 years; 71.0 and 19.5% of the drivers used alcohol and were smokers, respectively; and 50.9% were physically inactive. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 41.7 and 21.1%, respectively, while 39.7 and 13.9% were hypertensive and diabetic, respectively. Ninety (31.3%) subjects had impaired fasting glucose levels while 56.3% had dyslipidaemia. Predictors of hypertension were age and body mass index (BMI). BMI only was a predictor of abnormal glucose profile.ConclusionProfessional male long–distance bus drivers in this study showed a high prevalence of a cluster of risk factors for CVD.
Purpose: To examine relationships between functional outcomes after pediatric acquired brain injury (ABI) and measures of rehabilitation dose. Methods: An observational study of children receiving residential neurorehabilitation after severe ABI. Results: Basic total rehabilitation dose shows a paradoxical inverse relationship to global outcome. This is due to confounding by both initial injury severity and length of stay, and variation in treatment content for a given total rehabilitation dose. Content-aware rehabilitation dose measures show robust positive correlations between fractions of rehabilitation treatment received and plausibly related aspects of outcome: specifically, between rates of recovery of gross motor function and the fraction of rehabilitation effort directed to active practice and motor learning. This relationship was robust to adjustment for therapists' expectations of recovery. Conclusion: Content-aware measures of rehabilitation dose are robustly causally related to pertinent aspects of outcome. These findings are step toward a goal of comparative effectiveness research in pediatric neurorehabilitation.
Objective: The objective of the current service evaluation was to assess whether classical music positively impacts upon exercise intensity in patients undergoing a cardiovascular prevention and rehabilitation programme. Design: A crossover study design was used, in which patients were exposed to both classical music and no music over 2 consecutive weeks, determined through a random order. Setting: This took place in cardiovascular prevention and rehabilitation exercise sessions at two Imperial College NHS Healthcare sites. Patients: The sample consisted of 30 cardiac rehabilitation patients undergoing secondary prevention. Main outcome measures: Comparison of heart rate (average and peak) and Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) recorded in each patient under both music and non-music conditions. Results: Average heart rate, Borg RPE, and energy expenditure showed minimal differences between exercise modes. However, peak heart rate increased on average by 7 beats per minute when comparing exercising under classical to no music. Conclusions: The study found that classical music significantly increased an individual's peak heart rate during a cardiac exercise session, thereby increasing physical activity intensity.
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