ORCID Profile
0000-0002-5191-211X
Current Organisations
Telethon Kids Institute
,
University of Western Australia
,
University of Wollongong
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Publisher: BMJ
Date: 10-2020
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2020-038846
Abstract: To investigate the prevalence of, and associations between, prenatal and perinatal risk factors and developmental vulnerability in twins at age 5. Retrospective cohort study using bivariate and multivariable logistic regression. Western Australia (WA), 2002–2015. 828 twin pairs born in WA with an Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) record from 2009, 2012 or 2015. The AEDC is a national measure of child development across five domains. Children with scores th percentile were classified as developmentally vulnerable on, one or more domains (DV1), or two or more domains (DV2). In this population, 26.0% twins were classified as DV1 and 13.5% as DV2. In the multivariable model, risk factors for DV1 were maternal age years (adjusted OR (aOR): 7.06, 95% CI: 2.29 to 21.76), child speaking a language other than English at home (aOR: 6.45, 95% CI: 2.17 to 19.17), male child (aOR: 5.08, 95% CI: 2.89 to 8.92), age younger than the reference category for the study s le (≥5 years 1 month to years 10 months) at time of AEDC completion (aOR: 3.34, 95% CI: 1.55 to 7.22) and having a proportion of optimal birth weight (POBW) th percentile of the study s le (aOR: 2.06, 95% CI 1.07 to 3.98). Risk factors for DV2 were male child (aOR: 7.87, 95% CI: 3.45 to 17.97), maternal age (aOR: 5.60, 95% CI: 1.30 to 24.10), age younger than the reference category (aOR: 5.36, 95% CI: 1.94 to 14.82), child speaking a language other than English at home (aOR: 4.65, 95% CI: 1.14 to 19.03), mother’s marital status as not married at the time of twins’ birth (aOR: 4.59, 95% CI: 1.13 to 18.55), maternal occupation status in the lowest quintile (aOR: 3.30, 95% CI: 1.11 to 9.81) and a POBW th percentile (aOR: 3.11, 95% CI: 1.26 to 7.64). Both biological and sociodemographic risk factors are associated with developmental vulnerability in twins at 5 years of age.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 10-2022
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2022-061978
Abstract: Childhood obesity and physical inactivity are two of the most significant modifiable risk factors for the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Yet, a third of children in Wales and Australia are overweight or obese, and only 20% of UK and Australian children are sufficiently active. The purpose of the Built Environments And Child Health in WalEs and AuStralia (BEACHES) study is to identify and understand how complex and interacting factors in the built environment influence modifiable risk factors for NCDs across childhood. This is an observational study using data from five established cohorts from Wales and Australia: (1) Wales Electronic Cohort for Children (2) Millennium Cohort Study (3) PLAY Spaces and Environments for Children’s Physical Activity study (4) The ORIGINS Project and (5) Growing Up in Australia: the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. The study will incorporate a comprehensive suite of longitudinal quantitative data (surveys, anthropometry, accelerometry, and Geographic Information Systems data) to understand how the built environment influences children’s modifiable risk factors for NCDs (body mass index, physical activity, sedentary behaviour and diet). This study has received the following approvals: University of Western Australia Human Research Ethics Committee (2020/ET000353), Ramsay Human Research Ethics Committee (under review) and Swansea University Information Governance Review Panel (Project ID: 1001). Findings will be reported to the following: (1) funding bodies, research institutes and hospitals supporting the BEACHES project (2) parents and children (3) school management teams (4) existing and new industry partner networks (5) federal, state and local governments to inform policy as well as (6) presented at local, national and international conferences and (7) disseminated by peer-reviewed publications.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 10-05-2022
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0268325
Abstract: This study investigated whether the timing of birth of the younger siblings was associated with the risk of the older siblings’ developmental vulnerability in early childhood. Linkage of population-level birth registration, hospital, and perinatal datasets to Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) records (2009–2015), enabled follow-up of a cohort of 32,324 Western Australia born singletons. Children with scores th percentile on an in idual AEDC domain (Physical Health and Wellbeing Social Competence Emotional Maturity Language and Cognitive Skills (school-based) and Communication Skills and General Knowledge) were classified as developmentally vulnerable. Modified Poisson Regression was used to estimate relative risks (RR) for associations between post-birth interpregnancy intervals (IPIs) and developmental vulnerability. Relative to post-birth IPIs of 18–23 months, post-birth IPIs of and 6–11 months were associated with an increased risk of children being classified as DV1 (aRR 1.21, 95% CI: 1.11–1.31) and DV2 (aRR 1.31, 95% CI: 1.15–1.49) and DV1 (aRR 1.10, 95% CI: 1.03–1.17) and DV2 (aRR 1.21, 95% CI: 1.09–1.34), respectively. Post-birth IPIs of months were associated with an increased risk on four of the five AEDC domains. Post-birth IPIs of 48–60 months were associated with an increased risk of developmental vulnerability however, the risk was statistically significant for DV1, DV2 and the domains of Emotional Maturity and Language and Cognitive Skills (school-based). Developmental vulnerability was associated with having a closely spaced younger sibling ( months post-birth IPIs). Optimising birth spacing should be further investigated as a potential means for improving child development outcomes.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 02-03-2023
DOI: 10.1017/S095457942200013X
Abstract: The study aimed to investigate the association between interpregnancy interval (IPI) and parent-reported oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) in offspring at 7 and 10 years of age. We used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), an ongoing population-based longitudinal study based in Bristol, United Kingdom (UK). Data included in the analysis consisted of more than 3200 mothers and their singleton children. The association between IPI and ODD was determined using a series of log-binomial regression analyses. We found that children of mothers with short IPI ( months) were 2.4 times as likely to have a diagnosis of ODD at 7 and 10 years compared to mothers with IPI of 18–23 months (RR = 2.45 95%CI: 1.24–4.81 and RR = 2.40 95% CI: 1.08–5.33), respectively. We found no evidence of associations between other IPI categories and risk of ODD in offspring in both age groups. Adjustment for a wide range of confounders, including maternal mental health, and comorbid ADHD did not alter the findings. This study suggests that the risk of ODD is higher among children born following short IPI ( months). Future large prospective studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms explaining this association.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 09-2017
Abstract: The best management of vitamin D deficiency, defined as a 25-hydroxyvitamin D [(25(OH)D] level & nM, is unclear. Intramuscular (IM) injection of a large bolus of vitamin D (≥100 000 IU) is used,but its safety is uncertain. In 10 adults given an IM injection of 600 000IU vitamin D3, we measured at baseline and at 1, 2, 3, and 4 weeks postinjection the serum levels of vitamin D3,25(OH)D3, 25(OH)D2, total 25(OH)D, 3-epi-25(OH)D3, and 24,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [24,25(OH)2D3] using a standardized LC with tandem MS (MS/MS)assay serum levels of 25(OH)D using the Abbott ARCHITECT i2000 immunoassay and markers of bone metabolism. Bone markers and 25(OH)D (immunoassay) were remeasured at 24 weeks. All participants had baseline total 25(OH)D levels & nM. Serum 25(OH)D levels increased at 3, 4, and 24 weeks postinjection, peaking at 4 weeks [mean ± SEM of 126 ± 7.9nM (immunoassay) and 100 ± 5.5 nM (LC-MS/MS)]but generally remained & nM, the upper limit recommended by the U.S. Institute of Medicine. Serum 24,25(OH)2D3 levels increased at 3 and 4 weeks postinjection. Serum ionized calcium levels were higher than baseline at 1, 3, and 4 weeks postinjection but remained within the clinicallynormal range. Other biochemical parameters, including other vitamin D metabolites, plasma alkaline phosphatase, and parathyroid hormone levels, were unchanged. IM injection of a large bolus of vitamin D effectively increases serum 25(OH)D levels without evidence of metabolic abnormality.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-10-2023
DOI: 10.1111/OBR.13650
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2022
Publisher: Bioscientifica
Date: 03-2020
DOI: 10.1530/JOE-19-0470
Abstract: In previous preclinical studies, low (non-burning) doses of UV radiation (UVR) limited weight gain and metabolic dysfunction in mice fed with a high-fat diet. Here, we explored the effects of low-dose UVR on physical activity and food intake and mechanistic pathways in interscapular brown adipose tissue (iBAT). Young adult C57Bl/6J male mice, housed as in iduals, were fed a high-fat diet and exposed to low-dose UVR (sub-oedemal, 1 kJ/m 2 UVB, twice-a-week) or ‘mock’ treatment, with or without running wheel access (2 h, for ‘moderate’ physical activity) immediately after phototherapy. There was no difference in distance run in mice exposed to UVR or mock-treated over 12 weeks of exposure to running wheels ( P = 0.14). UVR (alone) did not significantly affect food intake, adiposity, or signs of glucose dysfunction. Access to running wheels increased food intake (after 10 weeks, P ≤ 0.02) and reduced gonadal white adipose tissue and iBAT mass ( P ≤ 0.03). Body weight and hepatic steatosis were lowest in mice exposed to UVR with running wheel access. In the iBAT of mice exposed to UVR and running wheels, elevated Atgl , Cd36 , Fasn , Igf1 , Pparγ , and Ucp1 mRNAs and reduced CD11c on F4-80 + MHC class II+ macrophages were observed, while renal Sglt2 mRNA levels were increased, compared to high-fat diet alone ( P ≤ 0.03). Blood levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D were not increased by exposure to UVR and/or access to running wheels. In conclusion, when combined with physical activity, low-dose UVR may more effectively limit adiposity (specifically, body weight and hepatic steatosis) and modulate metabolic and immune pathways in iBAT.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-11-2019
DOI: 10.1007/S00125-019-05022-5
Abstract: Exposure to sunlight has the potential to suppress metabolic dysfunction and obesity. We previously demonstrated that regular exposure to low-doses of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) reduced weight gain and signs of diabetes in male mice fed a high-fat diet, in part via release of nitric oxide from skin. Here, we explore further mechanistic pathways through which low-dose UVR exerts these beneficial effects. We fed mice with a luciferase-tagged Ucp1 gene (which encodes uncoupling protein-1 [UCP-1]), referred to here as the Ucp1 luciferase transgenic mouse ('Thermomouse') a high-fat diet and examined the effects of repeated exposure to low-dose UVR on weight gain and development of metabolic dysfunction as well as UCP-1-dependent thermogenesis in interscapular brown adipose tissue (iBAT). Repeated exposure to low-dose UVR suppressed the development of glucose intolerance and hepatic lipid accumulation via dermal release of nitric oxide while also reducing circulating IL-6 (compared with mice fed a high-fat diet only). Dietary nitrate supplementation did not mimic the effects of low-dose UVR. A single low dose of UVR increased UCP-1 expression (by more than twofold) in iBAT of mice fed a low-fat diet, 24 h after exposure. However, in mice fed a high-fat diet, there was no effect of UVR on UCP-1 expression in iBAT (compared with mock-treated mice) when measured at regular intervals over 12 weeks. More extensive circadian studies did not identify any substantial shifts in UCP-1 expression in mice exposed to low-dose UVR, although skin temperature at the interscapular site was reduced in UVR-exposed mice. The appearance of cells with a white adipocyte phenotype ('whitening') in iBAT induced by consuming the high-fat diet was suppressed by exposure to low-dose UVR in a nitric oxide-dependent fashion. Significant shifts in the expression of important core gene regulators of BAT function (Dio2, increased more than twofold), fatty acid transport (increased Fatp2 [also known as Slc27a2]), lipolysis (decreased Atgl [also known as Pnpla2]), lipogenesis (decreased Fasn) and inflammation (decreased Tnf), and proportions of macrophages (increased twofold) were observed in iBAT of mice exposed to low-dose UVR. These effects were independent of nitric oxide released from skin. Our results suggest that non-burning (low-dose) UVR suppresses the BAT 'whitening', steatotic and pro-diabetic effects of consuming a high-fat diet through skin release of nitric oxide, with some metabolic and immune pathways in iBAT regulated by UVR independently of nitric oxide.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 04-2021
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2020-042423
Abstract: Fetal growth restriction, preterm birth, low birth weight and stillbirth are adverse birth outcomes that are prevalent in low-income and middle-income settings such as the Pacific Island region. It is widely accepted that the excess burden of adverse birth outcomes is attributable to socioeconomic and environmental factors that predispose families to excess risk. Our review seeks to determine the prevalence of adverse birth outcomes in the Pacific Island region and to identify the risk factors of adverse birth outcomes in the Pacific Island region. This scoping review will follow the five-staged Arksey and O’Malley’s framework and consultation with Solomon Islands’ health stakeholders. A preliminary literature review was undertaken to understand the scope of the review. We will use Medical Subject Heading and keyword terms for adverse birth outcomes to search CINAHL, Medline, Scopus, ProQuest and Springer Link databases for articles published from 1 January 2000. The subsequent searches will be undertaken via Google Scholar and the internet browser to world health organisation and regional health organisations for published and unpublished reports on non-indexed studies. All articles retrieved will be managed with EndNote software. Eligible studies will be screened using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses flow chart for final selection. In the charting phase, we will extract the data into Excel spreadsheets. The results will be presented as numerical and thematic summaries that map risk factors and prevalence to the population and cultures of the Pacific Island region. Formal ethical approval is not required as primary or administrative data will not be collected. However, we will seek ethics approval for the stakeholder consultation from the Research Office of Curtin University and the Solomon Islands. The findings of this study will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented in national and regional conferences and disseminated to stakeholders. There will be no direct contact with human or patients in the case of the scoping review therefore, no ethics will be required. However, we will seek ethical approval from the Research Ethics Office of Curtin University and the Health Research and Ethics Committee in the Solomon Islands for stakeholder consultation. Dissemination will be made through regional conferences and publication in peer-reviewed journals.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 25-11-2022
Abstract: This study aimed to systematically review the literature on the associations between birth spacing and developmental outcomes in early childhood (3–10 years of age). Studies examining the associations between interpregnancy intervals and child development outcomes during and beyond the perinatal period have not been systematically reviewed. We searched Ovid/MEDLINE, Global Health, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL Plus, Educational Source, Research Starters, ERIC, Scopus, PubMed, Social Science Research Network database, and ProQuest's Social Sciences Databases for relevant articles published between 1 January 1989 and 25 June 2021. Studies published in English, conducted in populations residing in high-income countries with any measure of birth spacing, and child development outcomes among children aged & years were included. Two authors independently assessed the eligibility of studies and extracted data on the study design, setting and population, birth spacing, outcomes, and results. The search yielded 1,556 records, of which seven studies met the inclusion criteria. Five of these seven studies used birth intervals as the exposure measure. Definitions of exposure differed between the studies. Three studies reported an association between short birth spacing and poorer child development outcomes, and two studies reported an association between long birth spacing and poorer child development outcomes. Currently, limited evidence suggests that the adverse effects of sub-optimal birth spacing are observable beyond infancy.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 03-2021
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2020-045319
Abstract: To investigate the associations between interpregnancy intervals (IPIs) and developmental vulnerability in children’s first year of full-time school (age 5). Retrospective cohort study using logistic regression. ORs were estimated for associations with IPIs with adjustment for child, parent and community sociodemographic variables. Western Australia (WA), 2002–2015. 34 574 WA born singletons with a 2009, 2012 or 2015 Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) record. The AEDC measures child development across five domains Physical Health and Wellbeing, Social Competence, Emotional Maturity, Language and Cognitive Skills (school-based) and Communication Skills and General Knowledge. Children with scores th percentile were classified as developmentally vulnerable on, one or more domains (DV1), or two or more domains (DV2). 22.8% and 11.5% of children were classified as DV1 and DV2, respectively. In the adjusted models (relative to the reference category, IPIs of 18–23 months), IPIs of months were associated with an increased risk of children being classified as DV1 (adjusted OR (aOR) 1.17, 95% CI 1.08 to 1.34), DV2 (aOR 1.31, 95% CI 1.10 to 1.54) and an increased risk of developmental vulnerability for the domains of Physical Health and Wellbeing (aOR 1.25, 95% CI 1.06 to 1.48) and Emotional Maturity (aOR 1.36, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.66). All IPIs longer than the reference category were associated with and increased risk of children being classified as DV1 and DV2 (aOR .15). IPIs of 60–119 months and ≥120 months, were associated with an increased risk of developmental vulnerability on each of the five AEDC domains, with greater odds for each domain for the longer IPI category. IPIs showed independent J-shaped relationships with developmental vulnerability, with short ( months) and longer (≥24 months) associated with increased risks of developmental vulnerability.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-07-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-021-93701-Y
Abstract: Studies have reported a dose-dependent relationship between gestational age and poorer school readiness. The study objective was to quantify the risk of developmental vulnerability for children at school entry, associated with gestational age at birth and to understand the impact of sociodemographic and other modifiable risk factors on these relationships. Linkage of population-level birth registration, hospital, and perinatal datasets to the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC), enabled follow-up of a cohort of 64,810 singleton children, from birth to school entry in either 2009, 2012, or 2015. The study outcome was teacher-reported child development on the AEDC with developmental vulnerability defined as domain scores 10 th percentile of the 2009 AEDC cohort. We used modified Poisson Regression to estimate relative risks (RR) and risk differences (RD) of developmental vulnerability between (i) preterm birth and term-born children, and (ii) across gestational age categories. Compared to term-born children, adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics attenuated RR for all preterm birth categories. Further adjustment for modifiable risk factors such as preschool attendance and reading status at home had some additional impact across all gestational age groups, except for children born extremely preterm. The RR and RD for developmental vulnerability followed a reverse J-shaped relationship with gestational age. The RR of being classified as developmentally vulnerable was highest for children born extremely preterm and lowest for children born late-term. Adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics attenuated RR and RD for all gestational age categories, except for early-term born children. Children born prior to full-term are at a greater risk for developmental vulnerabilities at school entry. Elevated developmental vulnerability was largely explained by sociodemographic disadvantage. Elevated vulnerability in children born post-term is not explained by sociodemographic disadvantage to the same extent as in children born prior to full-term.
No related grants have been discovered for Gursimran Dhamrait.