Research Activities and Responding to Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda): Tohoku-RITM Collaborating Research Center in the Philippines

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 823-827 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariko Saito ◽  
◽  
Mayuko Saito ◽  
Tadatsugu Imamura ◽  
Taro Kamigaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Epidemiological Studies ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Research Center ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Emerging Infections ◽  
Public Health Perspective ◽  
Research Activities

In the six years since the Tohoku-RITM Collaborating Research Center was established, the center has been working on major infectious diseases in the Philippines and conducting molecular and epidemiological studies from a public health perspective. Its target diseases include pneumonia, diarrhea, and rabies, which are a major public health problem in the Philippines. Some studies have also been conducted on emerging and re-emerging infections significantly impacting both on the Philippines and on other countries. In November 2013, typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) hit the Visayas, where one of our research areas is located. The center responded immediately and helped assess and diagnose infectious diseases, based on our experience of Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011.

scholarly journals Characterization ofMycobacterium bovisfrom Humans and Cattle in Namwala District, Zambia

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sydney Malama ◽  
Tone Bjordal Johansen ◽  
John Bwalya Muma ◽  
Musso Munyeme ◽  
Grace Mbulo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Epidemiological Studies ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Infected Cattle ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Impact

Tuberculosis remains a major public health problem in Zambia. While human to human transmission ofMycobacterium tuberculosisis of major importance in driving the tuberculosis epidemic, the impact ofMycobacterium bovistransmission from infected cattle is largely unknown. This cross-sectional study aimed at molecular characterization ofM. bovisin humans and cattle. A total of 100 human sputum samples and 67 bovine tissues were collected and analyzed for the presence of mycobacteria. Of 65 human samples that harbored acid fast bacteria (AFB), 55 isolates were obtained of which 34 were identified asM. tuberculosisand 2 asM. bovis. AFB-positive bovine samples (n=67) yielded 47 mycobacterial isolates among which 25 were identified asM. bovisand noM. tuberculosiswas found. Among theM. bovisisolates, spoligotyping revealed a high homogeneity in genotypes circulating in Namwala district. Human and cattle isolates shared identical MIRU-VNTR genotypes, suggesting that transmission between the two hosts may occur. Therefore, this study has documented zoonotic TB in human patients in Namwala district of Zambia. However, further molecular epidemiological studies in the study area are recommended.

scholarly journals Is Loneliness a Cause or Consequence of Dementia? A Public Health Analysis of the Literature

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina R. Victor
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Longitudinal Studies ◽  
Rating Scales ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Screening Tools ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Public Health Perspective ◽  
Negative Health Outcomes

Loneliness has been reframed from a ‘social problem of old age’ into a major public health problem. This transformation has been generated by findings from observational studies of a relationship between loneliness and a range of negative health outcomes including dementia. From a public health perspective, key to evaluating the relationship between loneliness and dementia is examining how studies define and measure loneliness, the exposure variable, and dementia the outcome. If we are not consistently measuring these then building a body of evidence for the negative health outcomes of loneliness is problematic. Three key criteria had to meet for studies to be included in our analysis. To test the proposition that loneliness is a cause of dementia we only included longitudinal studies. For inclusion studies had to measure loneliness at baseline, have samples free of dementia and assess dementia at follow up (specified as a minimum of 12 months). We identified 11 papers published between 2000 and 2018 that meet these criteria. These studies included seven different countries and only one was specifically focused upon dementia: all other studies were cohort studies focused upon ageing and health and wellbeing. There was extensive heterogeneity in how studies measured loneliness and dementia and in the use of co-variates. Loneliness was measured by either self-rating scales (n = 8) or scales (n = 3). Dementia was assessed by clinical tests (n = 5), diagnostic/screening tools (n = 3), cognitive function tests (n = 1), and self-reported doctor diagnosis (n = 2). Substantial variation in loneliness prevalence (range 5–20%) and dementia incidence (5–30 per 1000 person years at risk). Six studies did not report a statistically significant relationship between loneliness and dementia. Significant excess risk of dementia among those who were lonely ranged from 15% to 64%. None of these studies are directly comparable as four different loneliness and dementia measures were used. We suggest that the evidence to support a relationship between loneliness and dementia is inconclusive largely because of methodological limitations of existing studies. If we wish to develop this evidence base, then using a consistent set of loneliness and dementia outcome measures in major longitudinal studies would be of benefit.

Substance Abuse and Drug-Related Death, Suicidal Ideation, and Suicide: A Review

Crisis ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annie Mino ◽  
Arnaud Bousquet ◽  
Barbara Broers
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Substance Abuse ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Family Support ◽  
Drug Users ◽  
Suicide Attempts ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Hiv Epidemic

The high mortality rate among drug users, which is partly due to the HIV epidemic and partly due to drug-related accidental deaths and suicides, presents a major public health problem. Knowing more about prevalence, incidence, and risk factors is important for the development of rational preventive and therapeutic programs. This article attempts to give an overview of studies of the relations between substance abuse, suicidal ideation, suicide, and drug-related death. Research in this field is hampered by the absence of clear definitions, and results of studies are rarely comparable. There is, however, consensus about suicidal ideation being a risk factor for suicide attempts and suicide. Suicidal ideation is also a predictor of suicide, especially among drug users. It is correlated with an absence of family support, with the severity of the psychosocial dysfunctioning, and with multi-drug abuse, but also with requests for treatment. Every clinical examination of a drug user, not only of those who are depressed, should address the possible presence of suicidal ideation, as well as its intensity and duration.

Crucial role of physiotherapy in treating COVID-19 patients

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (SPL1) ◽  
pp. 967-971
Author(s):  
Poonam Thakre ◽  
Waqar M. Naqvi ◽  
Trupti Deshmukh ◽  
Nikhil Ingole ◽  
Sourabh Deshmukh
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Distress Syndrome ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Public Health Emergency ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Front Line ◽  
The Many ◽  
Sixth International

The emergence in China of 2019 of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus2 (SARS-CoV-2) previously provisionally names 2019-nCoV disease (COVID19) caused major global outbreak and is a major public health problem. On 30 January 2020, the WHO declared COVID19 to be the sixth international public health emergency. This present pandemic has engrossed the globe with a high rate of mortality. As a front line practitioner, physiotherapists are expected to be getting in direct contact with patients infected with the virus. That’s why it is necessary for understanding the many aspects of their role in the identification, contains, reduces and treats the symptoms of this disease. The main presentation is the involvement of respiratory system with symptoms like fever, cough, sore throat, sneezing and characteristics of pneumonia leads to ARDS(Acute respiratory distress syndrome) also land up in multiorgan dysfunction syndrome. This text describes and suggests physiotherapy management of acute COVID-19 patients. It also includes recommendations and guidelines for physiotherapy planning and management. It also covers the guidelines regarding personal care and equipment used for treatment which can be used in the treatment of acute adult patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19.

scholarly journals TraceAll: A Real-Time Processing for Contact Tracing Using Indoor Trajectories

Information ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 202
Author(s):  
Louai Alarabi ◽  
Saleh Basalamah ◽  
Abdeltawab Hendawi ◽  
Mohammed Abdalla
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Infected Patient ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Real Data ◽  
Exposure Period ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Real Time Processing ◽  
Recent Developments

The rapid spread of infectious diseases is a major public health problem. Recent developments in fighting these diseases have heightened the need for a contact tracing process. Contact tracing can be considered an ideal method for controlling the transmission of infectious diseases. The result of the contact tracing process is performing diagnostic tests, treating for suspected cases or self-isolation, and then treating for infected persons; this eventually results in limiting the spread of diseases. This paper proposes a technique named TraceAll that traces all contacts exposed to the infected patient and produces a list of these contacts to be considered potentially infected patients. Initially, it considers the infected patient as the querying user and starts to fetch the contacts exposed to him. Secondly, it obtains all the trajectories that belong to the objects moved nearby the querying user. Next, it investigates these trajectories by considering the social distance and exposure period to identify if these objects have become infected or not. The experimental evaluation of the proposed technique with real data sets illustrates the effectiveness of this solution. Comparative analysis experiments confirm that TraceAll outperforms baseline methods by 40% regarding the efficiency of answering contact tracing queries.

scholarly journals Anemia as a risk factor for tuberculosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yemataw Gelaw ◽  
Zegeye Getaneh ◽  
Mulugeta Melku
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Risk Factor ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Low Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Double Burden ◽  
Mesh Terms

Abstract Background Tuberculosis is a major public health problem caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, occurring predominantly in population with low socioeconomic status. It is the second most common cause of death from infectious diseases. Tuberculosis becomes a double burden among anemic patients. Anemia increases an individual’s susceptibility to infectious diseases including tuberculosis by reducing the immunity level. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine whether anemia is a risk factor for tuberculosis. Method Relevant published articles were searched in electronic databases like PubMed, Google Scholar, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library using the following MeSH terms: risk factor, predictors, tuberculosis, TB, Anaemia, Anemia, hemoglobin, Hgb, and Hb. Articles written in the English, observational studies conducted on the incidence/prevalence of tuberculosis among anemic patients, or papers examined anemia as risk factors for tuberculosis were included. From those studies meeting eligibility criteria, the first author’s name, publication year, study area, sample size and age of participants, study design, and effect measure of anemia for tuberculosis were extracted. The data were entered using Microsoft Excel and exported to Stata version 11 for analysis. The random-effects model was applied to estimate the pooled OR and HR, and 95% CI. The sources of heterogeneity were tested by Cochrane I-squared statistics. The publication bias was assessed using Egger’s test statistics. Results A total of 17 articles with a 215,294 study participants were included in the analysis. The odd of tuberculosis among anemic patients was 3.56 (95% CI 2.53–5.01) times higher than non-anemic patients. The cohort studies showed that the HR of tuberculosis was 2.01 (95% CI 1.70–2.37) times higher among anemic patients than non-anemic patients. The hazard of tuberculosis also increased with anemia severity (HR 1.37 (95% CI 0.92–2.05), 2.08 (95% CI 1.14–3.79), and 2.66 (95% CI 1.71–4.13) for mild, moderate, and severe anemia, respectively). Conclusion According to the current systematic review and meta-analysis, we can conclude that anemia was a risk factor for tuberculosis. Therefore, anemia screening, early diagnose, and treatment should be provoked in the community to reduce the burden of tuberculosis.

scholarly journals Development of a Healthy Eating and Lifestyle Program (HELP) Online Website for Filipinos: A Case Report

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noelle Lyn Santos
Keyword(s):  
Case Report ◽  
Nutrition Education ◽  
User Satisfaction ◽  
Scientific Information ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Nutrition Information ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
The Public ◽  
Nutrition Research

Background and Purpose: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a major public health problem in the Philippines and around the world. Preventive measures to reduce its continuous rise require improvement in the health system. Utilization of information and communication technology-(ICT)-based tools will allow dissemination of evidenced-based information in the population. This case report contains the description of the development process of a Web-based nutrition Website. Case Description: ICT-based tools were explored as means of communicating nutrition information to the public because of the increasing access and usage of the Internet among Filipinos. An iterative process with five major phases were followed in the development. Outcome: The Website HELP Online can be accessed through (http://i.fnri.dost.gov.ph/helponline). There is integration of two modules: one for the general public and the other for registered nutritionist dietitians (RND) of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI). The first module contained the nutrition counseling platform that connects and records all interactions of online and walk-in clients with their RNDs. The second module contained nutrition calculators, a health tracker, and nutrition education materials. Discussion: The developed HELP Online Website was used for online users to easily access nutrition information and services offered by Department of Science and Technology (DOST)-FNRI. The user-centered design focus in combination with a responsive Web platform resulted in improved user satisfaction. In terms of content, use of the current and accepted scientific information translated to simpler and easier messages were found to be more effective among the target group. Although many issues exist with the continuous use of ICT-based tools, the main purpose is to improve the delivery of evidence-based information to the public.

scholarly journals Anaemia among Egyptian adolescents: prevalence and determinants

2000 ◽  
Vol 6 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 1017-1025
Author(s):  
F. El Sahn ◽  
S. Sallam ◽  
A. Mandif ◽  
O. Galal
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Educational Level ◽  
Inverse Relationship ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Public Health Education ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Socioeconomic Level ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Wide Scale

We aimed to estimate the nationwide prevalence of anaemia among adolescents in Egypt and to study possible risk factors. A cross-sectional approach was used. Blood samples were collected from 1980 adolescents for haemoglobin estimation. The overall prevalence of anaemia was 46.6%, most of which was mild or moderate, with severe cases in less than 1.0% of the sample. Gender difference was almost nonexistent. A significant inverse relationship was observed between the level of anaemia and age [especially among boys], socioeconomic level and educational level. Anaemia was more prevalent in rural areas and in Upper [southern] Egypt. Anaemia is a major public health problem among Egyptian adolescents and wide-scale public health education is warranted.

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