St. Luke's Magic Valley Medical Center

ABSTRACTAccess to education has been shown to strongly influence adolescent health across the world, and strong relationships with teachers has been found to lead to better academic and psychosocial outcomes for students. In many low-income countries where adolescents have less access to education and are more likely to experience poor health outcomes, risky sexual behaviors can exacerbate these challenges by increasing the risk of unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. This study sought to examine risky behaviors, such as substance use and risky sexual practices, of in-school youth in Liberia, a country in West Africa. Nine focus groups were conducted with public school students in Monrovia, Liberia in April 2012 using a semi-structured guide. The sessions took place in three public schools with n = 72 participants aged 12–20 years old. Following thematic content analysis, a pattern emerged of transactional sex between female students and male teachers, which often led to contrived and coercive relationships for the students. Conversely, participants reported that educators were not disciplined for having sex with students. Interventions to reduce the prevalence of transactional sex within the academic environment would likely protect the well being of school-going youth, particularly female youth, and support students’ academic pursuits in Liberia.

Introduction. Cervical complications secondary to motor vehicle accidents (MVA) continues to be an area where patients experience long-term complications despite having received therapy. Many of these problems relate to the delicate structures associated with the cervical spine and the precise alignment needed. We report on the findings of a specific cohort of patients from our larger multicenter study that presented specifically with MVA related complications and how these patients were successfully treated with what is defined as Stereotactic Cervical Alignment (SCALE) methods.Method. A total of 221 patients were seen in private chiropractic practice. Inclusion criteria included existing head, neck, and shoulder pain caused by MVA. Patients who failed to complete treatment or study questionnaires were excluded. The equipment and techniques were consistent with standard SCALE methods. Patients received an average of 2.76 of treatment sessions over 11.1 weeks.Results. Upon entry, patients had significant debilitating pain and complications from neck injuries secondary to MVA. After application of SCALE methods, 84% of the patients experienced complete or near complete resolution of their pain and other neck related complications. All patients reported significant improvements in their conditions with 53% of the patients experiencing complete recovery. Range of motion (ROM) and other measurements of cervical spine function also improved. These findings showed durability for the duration of the measured post-treatment period.Conclusions. From these findings, it would appear that SCALE methods are a useful adjunct for treating specific types of neck injuries that are secondary to MVA. Further testing of this technique is currently underway to further determine its use in treating MVA and other spinal injuries.