scholarly journals Health risk perceptions in the era of the new coronavirus: are the Italian people ready for a novel virus? A cross-sectional study on perceived personal and comparative susceptibility for infectious diseases

Public Health ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 187 ◽  
pp. 8-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Commodari ◽  
V.L. La Rosa ◽  
M.A. Coniglio
Author(s):  
Md Hasanuzzaman ◽  
Md Hafizur Rahman ◽  
Md Shafiqul Islam Khan ◽  
Musammet Rasheda Begum ◽  
Farjana Alam ◽  
...  

Background: Over 200 million under-five-children born in low-income countries are at risk of not reaching their development potential and infectious diseases are the leading cause of development deficits in these regions.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate personal and household hygiene practices among 154 mothers and their association with the incidence of infectious diseases among 167 children aged 6 months to 59 months in Patuakhali district, Bangladesh.Results: Only 13.6% of the mothers had proper hand washing knowledge. Besides, 14% and 53.9% of the mothers washed their hands with soap and only with water respectively before feeding their child. About 68.2% of mothers prepared food on the ground and half (49.5%) of the toilet did not have a hand washing location beside it. The risk of childhood infectious disease was significantly associated with hand washing of mothers before feeding a child (OR: 2.3, 95% CI: 1.5-4.1, p<0.05) and hand washing of child before eating (OR: 3.4, 95% CI: 1.8-5.7, p<0.05).Conclusions: Hand washing agents were inadequate and compliance to hand washing was poor. Therefore, the continuous focus is needed on the mother's awareness construction to increase the compliance to hand washing practice among mothers as well as their child with soap, especially during child feeding.


F1000Research ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 739 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Adamson ◽  
Claudia Kanitscheider ◽  
Krishna Prasad ◽  
Oscar M. Camacho ◽  
Elisabeth Beyerlein ◽  
...  

Background - In recent years there has been a proliferation of alternative tobacco and nicotine products that reduce consumers’ exposure to harmful substances and therefore have the potential to reduce risk to health. Post-market surveillance enables the evaluation of newly introduced tobacco and nicotine products (aka potentially reduced risk products (PRRPs)) at a population level. This study aims to investigate tobacco and nicotine consumer demographics and discover how people are using these products, and characterise behavioral trends as transitions between tobacco heated products (THPs) and other nicotine products. These behavioural aspects, in conjunction with the intrinsic risk of the product, are essential for assessing the potential health effects and establishing a population risk assessment. Design and methods - This epidemiological cross-sectional study will collect data using a self-administered study instrument from the general Japanese population aged 20 years and older. The targeted sampling size is up to 5,000 participants per study wave. The study addresses the following objectives: estimation of tobacco and nicotine use prevalence; characterisation of  product usage by product type; changes in use behaviour in general, with particular emphasis on the introduction of THPs in the time period of one year; risk perceptions of different tobacco products and no tobacco usage; and participant perceived health status and quality of life. Discussion - The description of tobacco and nicotine product use behaviour, the estimation of prevalence data, the measuring of product-specific risk perception and the change of tobacco use behaviour within one year will allow for a comprehensive assessment of the effect of introducing THPs into a market. These data could also be used to inform a system dynamics population model in order to estimate the public health impact of introducing a THP into the Japanese market.


Author(s):  
Muhammad Syafiq N ◽  
◽  
Shaharuddin MS ◽  
Zaenal Abidin ◽  
◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Introduction: Contamination of nitrate is one of the most common groundwater problems worldwide. Around 70% of residents in the state of Kelantan still rely on groundwater as their primary source of water supply. Extensive usage of fertilizer in agricultural areas may cause nitrate leaching into the groundwater. This study aimed to determine the level of nitrate in groundwater and health risk assessment at three villages in Tanah Merah District, Kelantan, Malaysia. Subjects and Method: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at Tanah Merah district, Kelantan, in January 2020. A total of 52 residents was selected by purposive sampling. The inclusion criteria for study subjects were long life residents, age ≥18 years old, and groundwater as a primary source of drinking supply. The study variables were (1) Level of nitrate in groundwater measured according to age (year), depth (meter), and distance (meter) of well from the agricultural area; and (2) Health risk assessment measured by hazard quotient (HQ). A set of questionnaires consisted of four sections to gather information related to socio-demographic, water usage, living environment, and health status. Groundwater samples were collected in duplicates and were analysed using a Hanna Instruments portable pH/ORP/ISE meter with an attached nitrate electrode. The data were reported descriptively. Results: Nitrate levels were found to be under the maximum acceptable value of 10 mg/L, as stated by the Drinking Water Quality Standard of Malaysia. Nitrate level ranged from 0.22 to 8.81 mg/L (Mean= 2.94; SD= 2.27). Spearman rho correlation showed that nitrate level was significantly and negatively correlated the age of wells (r= -0.31; p= 0.025). Nitrate level was not significantly correlated with the depth (r= 0.19; p= 0.183) and distance of wells (r= -0.05; p= 0.751). Hazard quotient (HQ) for all study subjects was <1, which means that exposure to nitrate contained drinking water in study subjects was not detrimental to health. Conclusion: Nitrate levels were below the maximum acceptable value, but continuous monitoring from health authorities is essential since other seasons of paddy planting may contribute higher deposition of nitrate into groundwater. Keywords: nitrate, groundwater, levels, hazard quotient, Tanah Merah Correspondence: Muhammad Syafiq N. Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia. UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. Email: [email protected]. Mobile: +601140731881. DOI: https://doi.org/10.26911/the7thicph.01.27


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S225-S225
Author(s):  
Jolanta Piszczek ◽  
Eric Partlow ◽  
Shay-Anne Daniels ◽  
Milena Semproni ◽  
Wayne Ghesquiere

Abstract Background Moderate to severe cellulitis is a common reason for presentation to the emergency department and administration of intravenous antibiotics. Misdiagnosis of cellulitis occurs frequently as the disease can masquerade as a wide variety of noninfectious and infectious problems. There are currently no studies evaluating the impact of infectious diseases physicians on the diagnostic accuracy and management of cellulitis referred to an outpatient parenteral antibiotic clinic from the emergency department. The objective of this study was to quantify the prevalence of misdiagnosed moderate to severe cellulitis through an evaluation by an infectious diseases specialist, characterize the alternative diagnoses, and assess variables associated with misdiagnosis. Methods A prospective cross-sectional study of adults referred from emergency departments with presumed moderate to severe cellulitis to an outpatient parenteral antibiotic clinic staffed by infectious diseases specialists. Results 301 consecutive patients with presumed cellulitis were evaluated over a 6-month period. A concurring diagnosis of cellulitis was found in 170 patients (56.5%), for a misdiagnosis rate of 43.5% (131/301). Table 1 summarizes the alternative diagnoses. Infectious conditions other than cellulitis were the most common (63/301; 20.9%), with abscess being present in 23 (7.6%) of patients. Fifty-two of 301 (17.3%) of the diagnoses were noninfectious and 16/301 (5.3%) patients had a dual diagnosis where minor cellulitis was present, but secondary to another, predomintating condition. The presence of stasis dermatitis (OR 6.62, P = 0.013) and a history of physical trauma (OR 1.76, P = 0.046) were associated with a misdiagnosis. 31.9% (107/335) of antibiotic regimens prescribed by emergency physicians were inappropriate or sub-optimal compared with 7.9% (22/280) of those ordered by infectious disease doctors. Conclusion Moderate to severe cellulitis was incorrectly diagnosed in nearly half of the patients referred for intravenous antibiotics and resulted in a high rate of unstewardly antimicrobial use. Infectious diseases physicians at an outpatient antibiotic clinic improved the diagnostic accuracy and management of this complicated condition. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document