Parental Monitoring and Its Associations With Adolescent Sexual Risk Behavior: A Meta-analysis.

Pediatrics. 2015 Dec;136(6):e1587-99. doi: 10.1542/peds.2015-0305.

Dittus PJ, Michael SL, Becasen JS, Gloppen KM, McCarthy K, Guilamo-Ramos V.

CONTEXT: Increasingly, health care providers are using approaches targetingparents in an effort to improve adolescent sexual and reproductive health.Research is needed to elucidate areas in which providers can target adolescentsand parents effectively. Parental monitoring offers one such opportunity, givenconsistent protective associations with adolescent sexual risk behavior. However,less is known about which components of monitoring are most effective and mostsuitable for provider-initiated family-based interventions.
OBJECTIVE: We performed a meta-analysis to assess the magnitude of associationbetween parental monitoring and adolescent sexual intercourse, condom use, andcontraceptive use.
DATA SOURCES: We conducted searches of Medline, the Cumulative Index to Nursingand Allied Health Literature, PsycInfo, Cochrane, the Education ResourcesInformation Center, Social Services Abstracts, Sociological Abstracts, Proquest, and Google Scholar.
STUDY SELECTION: We selected studies published from 1984 to 2014 that werewritten in English, included adolescents, and examined relationships betweenparental monitoring and sexual behavior.

DATA EXTRACTION: We extracted effect size data to calculate pooled odds ratios(ORs) by using a mixed-effects model.

RESULTS: Higher overall monitoring (pooled OR, 0.74; 95% confidence interval[CI], 0.69-0.80), monitoring knowledge (pooled OR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.73-0.90), and rule enforcement (pooled OR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.59-0.75) were associated withdelayed sexual intercourse. Higher overall monitoring (pooled OR, 1.12; 95% CI,1.01-1.24) and monitoring knowledge (pooled OR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.01-1.31) wereassociated with greater condom use. Finally, higher overall monitoring wasassociated with increased contraceptive use (pooled OR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.09-1.86),as was monitoring knowledge (pooled OR, 2.27; 95% CI, 1.42-3.63).

LIMITATIONS: Effect sizes were not uniform across studies, and most studies were cross-sectional.
CONCLUSIONS: Provider-initiated family-based interventions focused on parentalmonitoring represent a novel mechanism for enhancing adolescent sexual andreproductive health.

Home visiting and outcomes of preterm infants: a systematic review.

Pediatrics. 2013 Sep;132(3):502-16. doi: 10.1542/peds.2013-0077. Epub 2013 Aug12.
Goyal NK, Teeters A, Ammerman RT.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Home visiting is 1 strategy to improve child health
and parenting. Since implementation of home visiting trials 2 decades ago, US
preterm births (<37 weeks) have risen by 20%. The objective of this study was to 
review evidence regarding home visiting and outcomes of preterm infants
METHODS: Searches of Medline, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health
Literature, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Controlled Trial
Register, PsycINFO, and Embase were conducted. Criteria for inclusion were (1)
cohort or controlled trial designs; (2) home-based, preventive services for
infants at medical or social risk; and (3) outcomes reported for infants born
preterm or low birth weight (<2500 g). Data from eligible reports were abstracted
by 2 reviewers. Random effects meta-analysis was used to synthesize data for
developmental and parent interaction measures.
RESULTS: Seventeen studies (15 controlled trials, 2 cohort studies) were
reviewed. Five outcome domains were identified: infant development, parent-infant
interaction, morbidity, abuse/neglect, and growth/nutrition. Six studies (n =
336) demonstrated a pooled standardized mean difference of 0.79 (95% confidence
interval 0.57 to 1.02) in Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment
Inventory scores at 1 year in the home-visited groups versus control. Evidence
for other outcomes was limited. Methodological limitations were common.
CONCLUSIONS: Reviewed studies suggest that home visiting for preterm infants
promotes improved parent-infant interaction. Further study of interventions
targeting preterm infants within existing programs may strengthen the impact and 
cost benefits of home visiting in at-risk populations.