Megan E. Slater

Walking and Bicycling to School: A Review

Walking and bicycling (active commuting) to school has been proposed as a strategy for increasing youth physical activity and decreasing the prevalence of overweight. Citations for this review were retrieved through PubMed, Transport, ERIC, and ISI database searches using relevant keywords (1975 to March 2007), government and organization Web sites, and bibliographic citations. This review presents (1) prevalence estimates for active commuting to school; (2) the correlates of active commuting to school, presented using a new conceptual framework; (3) the associations between active commuting to school and health (ie, physical activity, weight status, environmental); and (4) a summary of the findings and recommendations for further research. Considerable heterogeneity exists among the reviewed studies for sample size and demographics, the methods used to measure active commuting, and the definition used to identify a positive case (active commuter). In general, active commuting to school is much less prevalent in the United States compared with European countries. A wide range of correlates of active commuting to school have been studied (individual to policy level). Active commuters tend to be more active than nonactive commuters, although no difference in weight status was observed in most studies. More research is needed to corroborate these findings and build on the knowledge base so that effective walk-to-school interventions can be implemented independently or as part of other health promotion efforts, including physician counseling for physical activity.

Physical activity and cardiovascular risk factors in childhood cancer survivors

Childhood cancer survivors (CCS) are at high risk of developing treatment‐related late effects, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Late effects can be exacerbated by low physical activity (PA) levels. Relationships between PA and cardiovascular risk factors during childhood have not been well described in CCS.

Feasibility of neonatal dried blood spot retrieval amid evolving state policies (2009-2010): a Children's Oncology Group study.

Dried blood spots (DBS) are collected uniformly from US newborns to test for metabolic and other disorders. Because evidence exists for prenatal origins of some diseases, DBS may provide unique prenatal exposure records. Some states retain residual DBS and permit their use in aetiological studies. The primary study aim was to assess the feasibility of obtaining residual DBS from state newborn screening programmes for paediatric and adolescent cancer patients nationwide with parental/subject consent/assent. Families of leukaemia and lymphoma patients aged ≤21 years diagnosed from 1998 to 2007 at randomly selected Childrens Oncology Group institutions across the US were questioned (n = 947). Parents/guardians and patients aged ≥18 years were asked to release DBS to investigators in spring 2009. DBS were then requested from states. Overall, 299 families (32%) released DBS. Consenting/assenting patients were born in 39 US states and 46 DBS were obtained from five states; 124 DBS were unobtainable because patients were born prior to dates of state retention. State policies are rapidly evolving and there is ongoing discussion regarding DBS storage and secondary research uses. Currently, population-based DBS studies can be conducted in a limited number of states; fortunately, many have large populations to provide reasonably sized paediatric subject groups.

Location, location, location: Does it matter for childhood cancer survivors considering pediatric vs. adult care settings?: Hilgers et al.

1Department of Pediatrics, University ofMinnesotaMasonic Children’sHospital,Minneapolis,Minnesota 2CSR Incorporated, Arlington, Virginia 3Division ofHematology andOncology, Department of Pediatrics, University ofMinnesotaMasonic Children’sHospital,Minneapolis,Minnesota 4Masonic CancerCenter, University ofMinnesota,Minneapolis,Minnesota Correspondence KarimThomasSadak,DivisionofPediatricHematologyandOncology,University ofMinnesota,MMC484MayoBuilding, 420DelawareSt. SE,Minneapolis,MN55455. Email: ktsadak@umn.edu

Long-term stability of folate in dried blood spots stored in several conditions

We examined stability of folate in 50 subjects’ dried cord blood spots stored for 9 months at −80 °C, 4 °C, ambient and humid conditions. Mean folate declined progressively, but most subjects were +/− 3 ranks of their −80 °C position. Meaningful information about relative concentrations was retained across conditions.

Feasibility of neonatal dried blood spot retrieval amid evolving state policies (2009-2010)

Dried blood spots (DBS) are collected uniformly from US newborns to test for metabolic and other disorders. Because evidence exists for prenatal origins of some diseases, DBS may provide unique prenatal exposure records. Some states retain residual DBS and permit their use in aetiological studies. The primary study aim was to assess the feasibility of obtaining residual DBS from state newborn screening programmes for paediatric and adolescent cancer patients nationwide with parental/subject consent/assent. Families of leukaemia and lymphoma patients aged ≤21 years diagnosed from 1998 to 2007 at randomly selected Childrens Oncology Group institutions across the US were questioned (n = 947). Parents/guardians and patients aged ≥18 years were asked to release DBS to investigators in spring 2009. DBS were then requested from states. Overall, 299 families (32%) released DBS. Consenting/assenting patients were born in 39 US states and 46 DBS were obtained from five states; 124 DBS were unobtainable because patients were born prior to dates of state retention. State policies are rapidly evolving and there is ongoing discussion regarding DBS storage and secondary research uses. Currently, population-based DBS studies can be conducted in a limited number of states; fortunately, many have large populations to provide reasonably sized paediatric subject groups.

Feasibility of neonatal dried blood spot retrieval amid evolving state policies (2009-2010): a Children's Oncology Group study: Feasibility of neonatal blood spot retrieval

Dried blood spots (DBS) are collected uniformly from US newborns to test for metabolic and other disorders. Because evidence exists for prenatal origins of some diseases, DBS may provide unique prenatal exposure records. Some states retain residual DBS and permit their use in aetiological studies. The primary study aim was to assess the feasibility of obtaining residual DBS from state newborn screening programmes for paediatric and adolescent cancer patients nationwide with parental/subject consent/assent. Families of leukaemia and lymphoma patients aged ≤21 years diagnosed from 1998 to 2007 at randomly selected Childrens Oncology Group institutions across the US were questioned (n = 947). Parents/guardians and patients aged ≥18 years were asked to release DBS to investigators in spring 2009. DBS were then requested from states. Overall, 299 families (32%) released DBS. Consenting/assenting patients were born in 39 US states and 46 DBS were obtained from five states; 124 DBS were unobtainable because patients were born prior to dates of state retention. State policies are rapidly evolving and there is ongoing discussion regarding DBS storage and secondary research uses. Currently, population-based DBS studies can be conducted in a limited number of states; fortunately, many have large populations to provide reasonably sized paediatric subject groups.