Browsing by Author "Basu A"

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    Physical Activity, Mental Health and Wellbeing during the First COVID-19 Containment in New Zealand: A Cross-Sectional Study
    (MDPI (Basel, Switzerland), 2021-11) O'Brien WJ; Badenhorst CE; Draper N; Basu A; Elliot CA; Hamlin MJ; Batten J; Lambrick D; Faulkner J
    Strategies implemented worldwide to contain COVID-19 outbreaks varied in severity across different countries, and established a new normal for work and school life (i.e., from home) for many people, reducing opportunities for physical activity. Positive relationships of physical activity with both mental and physical health are well recognised, and therefore the aim was to ascertain how New Zealand’s lockdown restrictions impacted physical activity, mental health and wellbeing. Participants (n = 4007; mean ± SD: age 46.5 ± 14.7 years, 72% female, 80.7% New Zealand European) completed (10–26 April 2020) an online amalgamated survey (Qualtrics): International Physical Activity Questionnaire: Short Form; Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-9; World Health Organisation-Five Well-Being Index; Stages of Change Scale. Positive dose–response relationships between physical activity levels and wellbeing scores were demonstrated for estimates that were unadjusted (moderate activity OR 3.79, CI 2.88–4.92; high activity OR 8.04, CI 6.07–10.7) and adjusted (confounding variables: age, gender, socioeconomic status, time sitting and co-morbidities) (moderate activity 1.57, CI 1.11–2.52; high activity 2.85, CI 1.97–4.14). The study results support previous research demonstrating beneficial effects of regular physical activity on mental health and wellbeing. Governments may use these results to promote meeting physical activity guidelines in order to protect mental health and wellbeing during the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions and future pandemics.
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    Telehealth and Precision Prevention: Bridging the Gap for Individualised Health Strategies
    (Georg Thieme Verlag KG, 2024-08-01) Lau ECH; Rajput VK; Hunter I; Florez-Arango JF; Ranatunga P; Veil KD; Kulatunga G; Gogia S; Kuziemsky C; Ito M; Iqbal U; John S; Iyengar S; Ramachandran A; Basu A
    INTRODUCTION: Precision prevention has shown an upsurge in popularity among epidemiologists in both developed and developing countries in the past decade. OBJECTIVES: Initially practiced in oncology, this approach is increasingly adopted in public health to guard against other common non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. It aims to tailor preventive measures according to each individual's unique characteristics, such as genomic data, socio-demographic features, environmental factors, and cultural background. METHODS: Healthcare information technologies, including telehealth and artificial intelligence (AI), have served as a vital catalyst in the expansion of this field in the past decade. Under this framework, real-time contemporaneous clinical data is collected via a wide range of digital health devices, such as telehealth monitors, wearables, etc., and then analyzed by AI or non-AI prediction models, which then generate preventive recommendations. RESULTS: The utilization of telehealth technologies in the precision prevention of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) is a very illustrative application. This paper explores these topics as well as certain limitations and unintended consequences (UICs) and outlines telehealth as a core enabler of precision prevention as well as public health.