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To address the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, development and regulatory evaluations have been accelerated for vaccines, authorizing emergency use. To anticipate vaccine preparedness in adolescents, we studied COVID-19 vaccination awareness and willingness to vaccinate before the vaccine became available. We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 9153 (4575 boys, 50%) students with a mean age of 14.2 years old in four cities in China to collect information on demographic characteristics and their COVID-19 vaccination concerns. Multinomial logistic regression was used to analyze the influencing factors of vaccine hesitancy ("not sure") and resistance ("do not want it"). The results showed that 2891 (31.6%) were hesitant and 765 (8.4%) were resistant to being vaccinated. Additionally, multivariable analyses showed that vaccine hesitancy and vaccine resistance were associated with living in the Beijing area (OR = 1.62; 95% CI: 1.40–1.88; OR = 1.81; 95% CI: 1.44–2.28), lack of influenza vaccination experience (OR = 1.33; 95% CI: 1.14–1.55; OR = 1.57; 95% CI: 1.25–1.98), no perceived susceptibility (OR = 1.72; 95% CI: 1.50–1.97; OR = 3.57; 95% CI: 2.86–4.46), and perceiving no cues to action (OR = 3.24; 95% CI: 2.56–4.11; OR = 27.68; 95% CI: 21.81–35.13). Postulating a highly effective vaccine (OR = 0.84; 95% CI: 0.72–0.98; OR = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.52–0.83) decreased both vaccine hesitancy and resistance. Vaccine hesitancy alone was associated with girls (OR = 1.21; 95% CI: 1.09–1.36) and was less common among students boarding at school (OR = 0.79; 95% CI: 0.68–0.92), postulating convenient vaccine access (OR = 0.84; 95% CI: 0.73–0.96), and having doctors' recommendation (OR = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.76–0.98). In conclusion, the results of the study showed that vaccine hesitancy among students in China was associated with limited health literacy and lower risk awareness. Our findings in China suggest that educating youth regarding COVID-19 and the safety and effectiveness of immunization help reduce concerns and increase vaccine confidence and acceptance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many per- and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFASs) may disrupt maternal thyroid hormone homeostasis in pregnancy. Concerns should be raised regarding the PFASs exposure in pregnant women because thyroid hormones are involved in the early development of the fetus. In this study, we measured the concentrations of 13 PFASs, including five novel short-chain PFASs, in serum from 123 pregnant women in Beijing, China. Linear regression models were used to investigate the association between thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) or free thyroxine (FT4) levels and PFASs concentrations under consideration of the impacts of pregnancy-induced physiological factors. We found that perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) (β=0.189, 95%CI=-0.039, 0.417, p =0.10) and perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA) (β=-0.554, 95%CI=-1.16, 0.049, p =0.071) were suggestive of significant association with TSH in thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb) negative women. No association was observed between all PFASs and FT4 levels after controlling for these confounding factors, such as BMI, gestational weight gain and maternal age. These findings suggest that it should pay more attention to the association between thyroid hormone levels and short-chain PFASs concentrations. Future studies could consider a greater sample and the inclusion of other clinical indicators of thyroid function, such as free T3 and total T3. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of children's sleep disturbances among students newly enrolled in elementary school, and explored the association between the two during the child's transition from kindergarten to elementary school. In 2019, a cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,510 newly enrolled school kids and their parents in Beijing. Children's sleep characteristics were evaluated using the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), and parenting stress characteristics were assessed with the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF). Logistic regression models were used to analyze the association between children's sleep and parenting stress. A total of 77.9% of children newly enrolled in elementary school had sleep disturbances and 15.6% of parents had experienced parenting stress. When examining the relationship between children's sleep disturbances and parenting stress, monthly family income over US$1,550 was a protective factor and children with sleep disturbances were associated with higher risk of parenting stress. Two subscales from the CSHQ were associated with higher parenting stress risk: sleep duration and daytime sleepiness. Similarly, parents experiencing parenting stress had children with higher risk of sleep disturbances. This risk was also higher for children from parents screening positive in the PSI-SF subscales for parental distress and difficult child. We found that children's sleep disturbances and parenting stress were common and there was a bidirectional association between the two during this transition time. Schools and communities need to provide timely psychological support for children and parents to address major stressors. • At starting elementary school, the prevalence of children's sleep disturbances and parenting stress were 77.9% and 15.6%, respectively. • There is a bidirectional association between children's sleep disturbances and parenting stress. • Both parent's educational attainment and monthly family income were associated with more parenting stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]