Xueqing Deng

Problematic Internet Use in High School Students in Guangdong Province, China

Background Problematic Internet Use (PIU) is a growing problem in Chinese adolescents. There are many risk factors for PIU, which are found at school and at home. This study was designed to investigate the prevalence of PIU and to investigate the potential risk factors for PIU among high school students in China. Methodology/Principal Findings A cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 14,296 high school students were surveyed in four cities in Guangdong province. Problematic Internet Use was assessed by the 20-item Young Internet Addiction Test (YIAT). Information was also collected on demographics, family and school-related factors and Internet usage patterns. Of the 14,296 students, 12,446 were Internet users. Of those, 12.2% (1,515) were identified as problematic Internet users (PIUs). Generalized mixed-model regression revealed that there was no gender difference between PIUs and non-PIUs. High study-related stress, having social friends, poor relations with teachers and students and conflictive family relationships were risk factors for PIU. Students who spent more time on-line were more likely to develop PIU. The habits of and purposes for Internet usage were diverse, influencing the susceptibility to PIU. Conclusions/Significance PIU is common among high school students, and risk factors are found at home and at school. Teachers and parents should pay close attention to these risk factors. Effective measures are needed to prevent the spread of this problem.

Behavioural development of school-aged children who live around a multi-metal sulphide mine in Guangdong province, China: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundThe deleterious biological effects of low-level, long-term exposure to heavy metals are well known, and children are the most susceptible population. Dabaoshan Mine in the southeast of Guangdong Province is at high risk of discharging multi-metals pollutants into a local river (Hengshihe) and the surrounding area. The present study aimed to estimate relationships between measured multi-metal exposures and the presence of behavioural problems for the school-aged children in the polluted area.MethodsA cross-sectional study was performed. Children aged 7–16 years living in three villages of the Hengshihe area with different degrees of heavy-metal pollution participated in this study. Local environmental samples (water and crops) and childrens hair were collected, and concentrations of heavy metals were determined. The Child Behaviour Check-list (CBCL) was used to assess the presence of behaviour problems. General linear regression was used to analyze the contribution of hair metals to each CBCL subscale with adjustment for socio-demographic confounding factors.ResultsMultiple regression analyses revealed significant effects of hair lead, cadmium and zinc levels on CBCL subscales. Log-transformed hair lead, cadmium and zinc levels accounted for an incremental of 8% to 15% variance in anxious/depressed, withdrawn, somatic complaints, social problems, thought problems, attention problems, delinquent behaviour and aggressive behaviour. The concurrent log-transformed hair lead and zinc levels were strongly associated with all subscales while the concurrent log-transformed hair cadmium was only significantly associated with withdrawn, social problems and attention problems.ConclusionThis study reveals that heavy metal exposure was associated with increased risk of behavioral problems for school-aged children.

Adolescent Bullying Involvement and Psychosocial Aspects of Family and School Life: A Cross-Sectional Study from Guangdong Province in China

Background School bullying is an emerging problem in China. The present study aimed to measure the prevalence of bullying behaviors among Chinese adolescents and to examine the association of bullying and being bullied with family factors, school factors and indicators of psychosocial adjustment. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 8,342 middle school students were surveyed in four cities in the Guangdong Province. Self-reports on bullying involvement and information regarding family factors, school factors and psychosocial adjustment were collected. Descriptive statistics and multi-level logistic regression analysis were used to evaluate the prevalence of school bullying and explore potentially influential factors. Results Of the total sample, 20.83% (1,738) reported being involved in bullying behaviors. Of the respondents, 18.99% were victims of bullying, 8.60% were bullies and 6.74% both bullied themselves and bullied others. Factors that were determined to be correlated with bullying behaviors included grade, parental caring, consideration of suicide, running away from home, time spent online per day and being in a physical fight. Conclusion Bullying was determined to be prevalent among Chinese adolescents. Given the concurrent psychosocial adjustment, family and school factors associated with bullying, as well as the potential long-term negative outcomes for these youth, this issue merits serious attention, both for future research and preventive intervention.

Prevalence and correlates of sleep disturbance and depressive symptoms among Chinese adolescents: a cross-sectional survey study

Study objective To investigate the prevalence and the correlates of sleep disturbance and depressive symptoms among Chinese adolescents and to examine the association between the two problems. Design Cross-sectional survey. Participants A total of 3186 school students in grades 7–12 were sampled from the schools in Guangdong. A stratified-cluster random-sampling strategy was used to select the schools. Main outcome measures A self-administered questionnaire was used. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality index (PSQI) was used to assess the occurrence of sleep disturbance, and the Center for Epidemiology Scale for Depression (CES-D) was used to identify whether individuals had depressive symptoms. Results The mean PSQI global score was 8.7 (±2.4) points, and 39.6% of the total sample had sleep disturbance. The mean CES-D score of students was 15.2 (±9.4) points, and 6.4% of the students had depressive symptoms. Additionally, girls and older adolescents were more likely to suffer from sleep disturbance, and the students who had depressive symptoms were 2.47 (95% CI 1.61 to 3.79) times more likely to suffer from sleep disturbance. Factors that were correlated with sleep disturbance and depressive symptoms were having a poor relationship with teachers, feeling lonely, suicide ideation and having run away from home. Conclusions Sleep disturbance was determined to be more prevalent among Chinese adolescents with depressive symptoms. Sleep disturbance and depressive symptoms were associated with each other, while school factors, family factors and psychosocial adjustment were comprehensively correlated with both.

The association between smoking quantity and hypertension mediated by inflammation in Chinese current smokers.

Objectives: Previous studies indicated that cigarette smokers were more likely to develop hypertension, and both smoking and hypertension were associated with inflammation. Whether inflammation mediates the relationship of them is unclear. This study aims to examine whether inflammation mediates the association between smoking and hypertension. Methods: Nine hundred and eighty-four Chinese current smokers from a community-based chronic diseases survey in Guangzhou and Zhuhai were interviewed about sociodemographics, smoking, chronic conditions, and other health-related variables. Hypertension was defined according to 2007 European Society of Hypertension and European Society of Cardiology (ESH-ESC) Practice Guidelines. Inflammatory markers including C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1&bgr;, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), tumor necrosis factor-&agr; (TNF-&agr;), and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) were measured by flow cytometry. Logistic regressions were performed to assess the mediation of inflammation on the relationship between smoking quantity and hypertension. Results: We observed a positive association between smoking quantity and hypertension (P < 0.05). After controlling for potential confounders, daily cigarette consumption was significantly associated with higher level of CRP and VCAM-1 and lower level of TNF-&agr; among six measured inflammatory markers, and the current smokers with hypertension had significantly higher level of MCP-1 and CRP than those smokers who were normotensive. Furthermore, the association between smoking quantity and hypertension was mediated by CRP, which accounted for 58.59% of the estimated causal effect of smoking on hypertension. Conclusion: We have confirmed previous observations that smoking quantity was positively associated with hypertension, and the results of our study suggested that the association between smoking and hypertension was probably mediated by CRP.

Associations between Sleep Duration and Overweight/Obesity: Results from 66,817 Chinese Adolescents.

The findings about the shapes of associations between sleep duration and overweight/obesity in adolescents were largely inconsistent in the existing literature. We examined the functional forms of the associations between sleep duration and overweight/obesity in 66,817 Chinese adolescents by modelling sleep duration categorically and continuously. The adjusted ORs (95% CI) of overweight (with 7.0–8.9 h of sleep being considered the reference group) for subjects reporting <5.0 hours, 5.0–6.9 hours and ≥9.0 hours of sleep were 1.26 (1.05–1.51), 1.06 (1.00–1.11) and 1.27 (1.14–1.42), respectively. The adjusted ORs (95% CI) of obesity (with 7.0–8.9 h of daily sleep being considered as the reference group) for adolescents reporting <5.0 hours, 5.0–6.9 hours and ≥9.0 hours of sleep were 1.24 (0.97–1.57), 0.94 (0.87–1.01) and 1.42 (1.24–1.63), respectively. Continuous splines regressions support non-linear U shape associations between sleep duration and overweight/obesity, with the bottom at around 7.0–8.0 hours sleep (overweight: likelihood ratio = 32.7 p < 0.01; obesity: likelihood ratio = 40.4 p < 0.01). U-shape associations were found between sleep duration and overweight/obesity in Chinese adolescents and an optimal sleep duration of 7.0–8.0 hours sleep may prevent overweight/obesity.

Infection status and risk factors of HIV HBV HCV and syphilis among drug users in Guangdong China--a cross-sectional study.

BackgroundChina has witnessed a remarkable increase in sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV. The study is to assess the prevalence of HIV, HBV, HCV and syphilis and related risk factors among drug users in mandatory detoxification center Qingyuan, Guangdong, China.MethodA cross-sectional study on drug use behaviors, sex behaviors, and presence of antibodies to HIV, HCV, Treponema pallidum, and surface antigen of HBV (HBsAg) was conducted among drug users recruited from 3 detoxification centers in Qingyuan, Guangdong, China. Risk factors for each of four infections were analyzed with logistic regression model.ResultsA total of 740 subjects were recruited, the median age was 31 years old (range 24-38). The seroprevalence rates of HIV, HBsAg, HCV and syphilis were 4.6%, 19.3%, 71.6% and 12.6%, respectively. Risk factors for HIV were intravenous drug use and co-infection with syphilis. Having a regular sexual partner who was a drug user was considered to be a risk factor for HBV. Intravenous drug use was a risk factor for HCV. However, the consistent use of condoms with commercial sex partners was protective for HCV infection. Compared to drug users living in urban area, those living in rural areas were more likely to be infected with syphilis, and there was an association between commercial sex and syphilis.ConclusionThe prevalence of HIV, HBV, HCV and syphilis were high among drug users in detoxification centers in Qingyuan, thus, risk reduction programs for the drug user population is urgently required.

Bullying as a risk for poor sleep quality among high school students in China

Objective To determine whether involvement in bullying as a bully, victim, or bully-victim was associated with a higher risk of poor sleep quality among high school students in China. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 23,877 high school students were surveyed in six cities in Guangdong Province. All students were asked to complete the adolescent health status questionnaire, which included the Chinese version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and bullying involvement. Descriptive statistics were used to evaluate sleep quality and the prevalence of school bullying. Multi-level logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the association between being victimized and bullying others with sleep quality. Results Among the 23,877 students, 6,127 (25.66%) reported having poor sleep quality, and 10.89% reported being involved in bullying behaviors. Of the respondents, 1,410 (5.91%) were pure victims of bullying, 401 (1.68%) were bullies and 784 (3.28%) were bully-victims. Frequently being involved in bullying behaviors (being bullied or bullying others) was related to increased risks of poor sleep quality compared with adolescents who were not involved in bullying behaviors. After adjusting for age, sex, and other confounding factors, the students who were being bullied (OR=2.05, 95%CI=1.81-2.32), bullied others (OR=2.30, 95%CI=1.85-2.86) or both (OR=2.58, 95%CI=2.20-3.03) were at a higher risk for poor sleep quality. Conclusions Poor sleep quality among high school students is highly prevalent, and school bullying is prevalent among adolescents in China. The present results suggested that being involved in school bullying might be a risk factor for poor sleep quality among adolescents.

Bullying behaviors among Chinese school-aged youth: A prevalence and Correlates Study in Guangdong Province

Bullying among school-aged youth is a common issue worldwide and is increasingly being recognized as an important problem affecting both victims and perpetrators. Most of the bullying studies have been conducted in western countries, and their implications in other regions are limited due to different cultural contexts. The goal of our study is to identify the prevalence of bullying and its correlates school-aged youth in Guangdong province. In total, 1098 (7.1%) students reported having bullied other students, 744 (4.8%) students reported having been bullied by other students and 396 (2.6%) students reported having both bullied other students and been bullied by other students. There was a strong association between bullying others as well as being bullied and suicidal ideations, suicidal attempts, and self-harm behaviors. The prevalence of bullying and its associations with delinquent behaviors warrant the importance of school facility based preventive intervention taking into account both victims and perpetrators.

Sexual minority status and suicidal behaviour among Chinese adolescents: a nationally representative cross-sectional study

Objectives Suicidality among sexual minority adolescents has generated worldwide concern in recent decades, and previous Western studies have demonstrated that sexual minority status is associated with adolescent suicidality. However, whether this association exists in Chinese adolescents remains largely unknown. This study aimed to estimate the associations between sexual minority status and suicidal behaviour among Chinese adolescents. Design Cross-sectional survey. Setting A total of 506 high schools in 7 provinces of China. Participants A total of 150 822 students in grades 7–12 who completed the questionnaires (response rate of 95.9%) were included. Main outcome measures Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts were used to measure suicidal behaviour, and sexual attraction (opposite sex, same sex or both sex) was used as a measure for sexual minority status. Results Of the 150 822 adolescents analysed, 4.1% self-reported as sexual minorities and 17.3% were unsure. Compared with heterosexual and unsure adolescents, same-sex romantic attraction (SSA) and both-sex romantic attraction (BSA) adolescents reported a higher prevalence of past-year suicidal ideation (SSA: 21.6% for males and 30.4% for females; BSA: 34.7% for males and 42.3% for females) and suicide attempts (SSA: 6.9% for males and 8.9% for females; BSA: 12.2% for males and 10.9% for females). After adjustment for covariates, SSA and BSA adolescents were more likely to have past-year suicidal ideation and suicide attempts than their heterosexual and unsure peers. BSA adolescents reported the highest risk of suicidal ideation (males: adjusted OR (AOR) 2.42, 95% CI 2.03 to 2.88; females: AOR 2.61, 95% CI 2.41 to 2.82) and suicide attempts (males: AOR 3.83, 95% CI 2.85 to 5.14; females: AOR 2.59, 95% CI 2.19 to 3.06). Conclusions Our study suggested that Chinese sexual minority adolescents were at increased risk of suicidality, and those with BSA had an especially high risk in this population. These findings emphasised the urgent need to develop targeted interventions to effectively address suicide-related problems among Chinese sexual minority adolescents.