Sharon Cadogan

• BSc Public Health; Masters in Public Health; PhD Health Services Research
• Fellow at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Background Research suggests that variation in laboratory requesting patterns may indicate unnecessary test use. Requesting patterns for serum immunoglobulins vary significantly between general practitioners (GPs). This study aims to explore GP’s views on testing to identify the determinants of behaviour and recommend feasible intervention strategi...

Abstract Background: Laboratory testing is an integral part of day-to-day primary care practice, with approximately 30% of patient encounters resulting in a request. However, research suggests that a large proportion of requests does not benefit patient care and is avoidable. The aim of this systematic review was to comprehensively search the liter...

Background: Hypodermic needles of different sizes (gauges and lengths) can be used for vaccination procedures. The gauge (G) refers to the outside diameter of the needle tubing. The higher the gauge number, the smaller diameter of the needle (eg a 25 G needle is 0.5 mm in diameter and is narrower than a 23 G needle (0.6 mm)). Many vaccines are rec...

Physical activity plays an important role in optimising physical and mental health during childhood, adolescence, and throughout adult life. This study aims to identify individual, family and environmental factors that determine physical activity levels in a population sample of children in Ireland. Cross-sectional analysis of the first wave (2008)...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence and determinants of haematinic deficiency (lack of B12 folate or iron) and macrocytosis in blood from a national population-based study of middle-aged and older adults. METHODS: A cross-sectional study involving 1,207 adults aged ≥45 years, recruited from a sub-study of the Irish National Survey of Lifestyle Atti...

Background Substantial evidence suggests association between increased inflammatory markers and Alzheimer’s disease. However, evidence for association between the inflammatory skin disease psoriasis and dementia is limited and conflicting. Additionally, few studies investigate how psoriasis severity influences risk. Method We used primary care ele...

Objective Evidence for an association between psoriasis and dementia is limited and conflicting. We aimed to investigate the association using large and representative population‐based data and describe risk by dementia subtype and over time. Methods We compared dementia risk between people with and without psoriasis using an age‐, sex‐ and primar...

Objective: To investigate whether herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection was associated with rates of cognitive decline or whole brain atrophy among individuals from the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network (DIAN). Methods: Among two subsets of the DIAN cohort (age range 19.6-66.6 years; median follow-up 3.0 years) we examined (i) rate...

Background Associations between human herpesviruses (HHVs) and cardiovascular disease/mortality have been reported, but evidence is inconsistent. We investigated associations between three common herpesviruses and i) incident stroke or myocardial infarction (MI) and ii) all-cause mortality. Methods We included participants from the UK Biobank Infe...

Background Herpes zoster (commonly called shingles) is caused by the reactivation of varicella zoster virus, and results in substantial morbidity. While the risk of zoster increases significantly with age and immunosuppression, relatively little is known about other risk factors for zoster. Moreover, much evidence to date stems from electronic heal...

Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the association between oral anticoagulant type (direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) vs vitamin K antagonists (VKAs)) and incident dementia or mild cognitive impairment (MCI) among patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods Using linked electronic health record (EHR) data from...

Background There are concerns that the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK might have worsened physical and mental health, and reduced use of health services. However, the scale of the problem is unquantified, impeding development of effective mitigations. We aimed to ascertain what has happened to general practice contacts for acute physic...

Background Globally around 50 million people have dementia. Risk factors for dementia such as hypertension and diabetes are more common in Black, Asian, and other ethnic minorities. There are also marked ethnic inequalities in care seeking, likelihood of diagnosis, and uptake of treatments for dementia. Nevertheless, ethnic differences in dementia...

Background Dementia risk is approximately doubled among patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) 1‐3 , who are often recommended to take blood‐thinning drugs (anticoagulants) to prevent stroke. Recent evidence has also shown that taking anticoagulant drugs may help to delay the onset of dementia among individuals with AF ⁴ , however, we do not know w...

Background Concerns have been raised that the response to the UK COVID-19 pandemic may have worsened physical and mental health, and reduced use of health services. However, the scale of the problem is unquantified, impeding development of effective mitigations. We asked what has happened to general practice contacts for acute physical and mental h...

Background Implementation science experts recommend that theory-based strategies, developed in collaboration with healthcare professionals, have greater chance of success. Aim This study evaluated the impact of a theory-based strategy for optimising the use of serum immunoglobulin testing in primary care. Design and setting An interrupted time se...

The prevalence of smoking in Indonesia is one of the highest in the world. Since 2007, some tobacco control policies have been implemented by the Indonesian government. However, evidence on the effectiveness of such policies at reducing tobacco use in Indonesia is scarcely available. Using both cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis of individua...

Background: This is an update of a Cochrane Review first published in 2015. The conclusions have not changed.Hypodermic needles of different sizes (gauges and lengths) can be used for vaccination procedures. The gauge (G) refers to the outside diameter of the needle tubing. The higher the gauge number, the smaller the diameter of the needle (e.g....

Introduction The Indonesian government has introduced tobacco control policies corresponding to MPOWER since 2007. However, the impact of these measures on trends of cigarette smoking behaviour among Indonesian adults remains scarcely investigated. This study assessed the changes in smoking cessation and initiation among Indonesian adults and ident...

Background: Primary care test requests for serum immunoglobulins are rising rapidly, with concerns that many requests may be unnecessary. Evidence suggests some characteristics of general practitioners (GPs) and practices are associated with higher test ordering. Objective: To identify the physician and practice characteristics associated with i...

Background Laboratory testing is an integral part of day-to-day primary care practice underlying approximately 70% of diagnoses and treatment decisions. Research suggests that a large proportion of requests are avoidable. The aim of this systematic review was to comprehensively search the literature for studies evaluating the effectiveness of inter...

Background Research suggests that variation in laboratory requesting patterns may indicate unnecessary test use. Requesting patterns for serum immunoglobulins vary significantly between General Practitioners (GPs). This study aims to explore GP views on testing to identify the determinants of behaviour and recommend feasible intervention strategies...

Healthcare budgets worldwide are facing increasing pressure to reduce costs and improve efficiency, while maintaining quality. Laboratory testing has not escaped this pressure. A major component of healthcare budgets, the demand for testing, is increasing at a faster rate than medical activity. And, while laboratory testing is undoubtedly a valuabl...