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BackgroundChildhood obesity is a major problem in rich countries due to its high prevalence and its harmful health consequences. An exploratory analysis conducted in the PubMed database highlighted that the number of papers published on the relationship between socioeconomic position (SEP) and childhood-adolescent weight status had risen substantially with respect to an earlier review which had covered the period 1990–2005.MethodsTo describe the findings on the relationship between SEP and childhood-adolescent weight status in papers published in rich countries from 1990 through 2013, studies were identified in the following databases: PubMed; Web of Knowledge (WOK); PsycINFO; Global Health; and Embase. We included observational studies from the 27 richest OECD countries, which covered study populations aged 0 to 21 years, and used parental education, income and/or occupation as family SEP indicators. A total of 158 papers met the inclusion criteria and reported 134 bivariable and 90 multivariable analyses.ResultsExamination of the results yielded by the bivariable analyses showed that 60.4 % of studies found an inverse relationship, 18.7 % of studies did not found relationship, and 20.9 % of studies found a relationship that varied depending on another variable, such as age, sex or ethnic group; the corresponding percentages in the multivariable analyses were 51.1, 20.0 and 27.8 %, respectively. Furthermore, 1.1 % found a positive relationship.ConclusionThe relationship between SEP and childhood-adolescent weight status in rich countries is predominantly inverse and the positive relationship almost has disappeared. The SEP indicator that yields the highest proportion of inverse relationships is parents’ education. The proportion of inverse relationships is higher when the weight status is reported by parents instead using objective measurements.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12887-015-0443-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

RESUMENFundamento: El término Burnout se refiere a una situación que es cada vez más frecuente entre los profesionales que prestan sus servicios a través de una relación directa y mantenida con las personas, entre los que se encuentran todos los profesionales sanitarios. El objetivo de nuestro estudio ha sido determinar la prevalencia del sín-drome de Burnout y de sus tres componentes (cansancio emocional, despersonalización y falta de realización personal) entre los profesionales del área de enfermería del Hospital Clínico Universitario San Carlos de Madrid y su relación con determinados factores sociodemográficos, laborales e institucionales. Métodos:Se realizó un estudio tranversal entre los profesionales adscritos al área de enfermería del mencionado hospital. Las variables implicadas se recogieron mediante un cuestionario de elaboración propia. En cuanto al síndrome de Burnout se midió mediante el Maslach Burnout Inventory, en su versión validada en español.Resultados: El personal de enfermería está más despersonalizado (p=0,004) y menos realizado (p=0,036) que el grupo de auxiliares/técnicos. Cuando se analizaron los resultados de las 4 escalas por servicios comprobamos que el agotamiento es superior en los trabajadores de oncología y urgencias (p=0,001), la despersonalización en urgencias (p=0,007), y el Burnout es de nuevo más alto en las áreas de oncología y urgencias (p=0,000). Los profesionales que respondí-an que su labor asistencial era poco reconocida obtenían las peores puntuaciones en el Burnout y sus tres dimensiones (p =0,000). A menor grado de satisfacción laboral más altas son las puntuaciones en las 4 escalas (p=0,000). Conclusiones:Podemos concluir que en nuestro estudio el perfil del sujeto afecto de Burnout se corresponde con el de un profesional con experiencia laboral que sin embargo manifiesta un escaso grado de reconocimiento a su labor asistencial y un alto nivel de insatisfacción con la gestión de su centro de trabajo.Palabras clave: Agotamiento profesional. Enfermeras. Demografía. Satisfacción en el trabajo. Hospitales. ABSTRACT Burnout Syndrome among Nursing Staff at a Hospital in MadridBackground: The term «burnout» is related to a situation arising increasingly more often among the professionals performing their duties by way of a long-term, direct, people-to-people relationship, which includes all healthcare professionals. This study is aimed at determining the prevalence of the Burnout syndrome and of the three components involved therein (emotional exhaustion, impersonalization and lack of personal fulfillment) among the nursing staff at the «Hospital Clínico Universitario San Carlos» in Madrid and the relationship thereof to certain socio-demographic, job-related and institutional factors. Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted among the professionals assigned to the nursing staff at the above-mentioned hospital. The variables involved were gathered by means of a questionnaire prepared by those conducting this study. The Burnout syndrome was measured by means of the M...

In the city of Madrid, socio-economic context of neighbourhood of residence shows an inverse relationship with obesity but not with physical inactivity among children. The relationship observed with obesity is not explained by the availability of area facilities.

ObjectiveThe relationship of socioeconomic position with the use of health services may have changed with the emergence of the economic crisis. This study shows that relationship before and during the economic crisis, in Germany and in Spain.MethodsData from the 2006 and 2011 Socio-Economic Panel carried out in Germany, and from the 2006 and 2011 National Health Surveys carried out in Spain were used. The health services investigated were physician consultations and hospitalization. The measures of socioeconomic position used were education and household income. The magnitude of the relationship between socioeconomic position and the use of each health services was estimated by calculating the percentage ratio by binary regression.ResultsIn Germany, in both periods, after adjusting for age, sex, type of health insurance and need for care, subjects belonging to the lower educational categories had a lower frequency of physician consultations, while those belonging to the lower income categories had a higher frequency of hospitalization. In the model comparing the two lower socioeconomic categories to the two higher categories, the percentage ratio for physician consultation by education was 0.97 (95%CI 0.96–0.98) in 2006 and 0.96 (95%CI 0.95–0.97) in 2011, and the percentage ratio for hospitalization by income was 1.14 (95%CI 1.05–1.25) in 2006 and 1.12 (95%CI 1.03–1.21) in 2011. In Spain, no significant socioeconomic differences were observed in either period in the frequency of use of these health services in the fully adjusted model.ConclusionThe results suggest that the economic crisis did not alter accessibility to the health system in either country, given that the socioeconomic pattern in the use of these health services was similar before and during the crisis in both countries.

BackgroundTo evaluate trends in diabetes-related health behaviours and mortality from diabetes and other chronic diseases in the Spanish population before, during and after the 2008 economic crisis.MethodsAnnual population measurements were obtained from national surveys and administrative registries for 2004–2016. Using segmented regression analysis, we calculated the annual percentage change (APC) in 2004–2007, 2008–2010, 2011–2013 and 2014–2016 in risk behaviours (smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity and meals away from home), in healthy behaviours (fruit and vegetable intake and physical activity) and in mortality rates from diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer.ResultsIn general, during the economic crisis (2008–2013), the Spanish population reduced risk behaviours and improved healthy behaviours as compared with the trend observed before and afterwards. Diabetes mortality decreased more during the crisis than before or afterwards. The APC in each time interval was −3.3, –3.7, −4.4 and −2.6 in all-age mortality and −2.9, –5.2, −6.7 and −1.3 in premature mortality (less than 75 years). Only in older people (≥75 years) diabetes mortality showed similar decline before and during the crisis. Mortality from cardiovascular disease also declined more during the crisis, except for all-age mortality and older people in the second part of the crisis, whereas the downward trend in cancer mortality was smaller during the crisis years.ConclusionsDuring the 6 years of the economic crisis in Spain, the favourable changes in health behaviours were accompanied by an important reduction in diabetes mortality in the population.

BackgroundConsumption of Plantago ovata may protect against colorectal cancer. To test this hypothesis, an ecological study was performed to determine mortality rates and distribution of colorectal cancer, and the consumption and distribution of P ovata, in different provinces in Spain. The putative association between P ovata consumption and mortality from colorectal cancer was then evaluated.MethodsWe conducted a comparative ecological study of Spanish provinces, with colorectal cancer mortality as the dependent variable and per capita consumption of P ovata by province and year as the independent variable. Associations were analyzed by calculating Spearman’s correlation coefficients and a Poisson multiple regression model.ResultsConsumption of P ovata tended to be inversely correlated with mortality from colorectal cancer. In the Poisson regression analysis this tendency remained and reached statistical significance for the top quintile of P ovata consumption in the adjusted analysis (P = 0.042).ConclusionsOur results show an inverse trend between the consumption of P ovata and colorectal cancer mortality. We recommend additional observational studies of individuals, in order to better control confounding factors.

BackgroundIn Germany copayment for medical consultation was eliminated in 2013, and in Spain universal health coverage was partly restricted in 2012. This study shows the relationship between income and the use of health services before and after these measures in each country.MethodsData were taken from the 2009 and 2014 Socio-Economic Panel conducted in Germany, and from the 2009 and 2014 European Health Surveys in Spain. The health services investigated were physician consultations and hospital admissions, and the measure of socioeconomic position used was household income. The magnitude of the relationship between socioeconomic position and the use of each health service in people from 16 to 74 years old was estimated by calculating the percentage ratio using binary regression.ResultsIn Germany, after adjusting for age, sex, and need for care, in the model comparing the two lower income categories to the two higher categories, the percentage ratio for physician consultation was 0.97 (95% CI 0.96–0.99) in 2009 and 0.98 (95% CI 0.97–0.99) in 2014, and the percentage ratio for hospitalization was 1.01 (95% CI 0.93–1.10) in 2009 and 1.16 (95% CI 1.08–1.25) in 2014. In Spain, after adjusting for age, sex, and self-rated health, the percentage ratio for physician consultation was 0.99 (95% CI 0.94–1.05) in 2009 and 1.08 (95% CI 1.03–1.14) in 2014, and the percentage ratio for hospitalization was 1.04 (95% CI 0.92–1.18) in 2009 and 0.99 (95% CI 0.87–1.14) in 2014.ConclusionThe results suggest that elimination of the copayment in Germany did not change the frequency of physician consultations, whereas after the restriction of universal health coverage in Spain, subjects with lower incomes had a higher frequency of physician consultations.