scholarly journals Surveillance data for human leishmaniasis indicate the need for a sustainable action plan for its management and control, Greece, 2004 to 2018

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (18) ◽  
Author(s):  
Myrsini Tzani ◽  
Alicia Barrasa ◽  
Annita Vakali ◽  
Theano Georgakopoulou ◽  
Kassiani Mellou ◽  
...  

Background The World Health Organization (WHO) lists human leishmaniasis as a neglected tropical disease; it is not under surveillance at European level. Aim We present surveillance data for visceral (VL) and cutaneous (CL) leishmaniasis for the period 2004 to 2018 in Greece to assess their public health importance. Methods We extracted data from the mandatory notification system to analyse separately imported and domestic cases of VL and CL. A case was defined by clinical manifestations compatible with VL or CL and laboratory confirmation. Results Between 2004 and 2018, 881 VL (862 domestic, 19 imported) and 58 CL cases (24 domestic, 34 imported) were recorded. The mean annual notification rate of domestic VL was 0.5 per 100,000 (range: 0.12–1.43/100,000) with a statistically significant increasing trend (p = 0.013). Cases were reported by all regions. The highest notification rate occurred in the age group 0–4 years (1.3/100,000). Overall 24% (164/680) of the cases were immunocompromised and their proportion increased after 2010 (p < 0.001). The mean annual notification rate of domestic CL was 0.05 per 100,000 (range: 0.01–0.19/100,000) with the highest rate in the age group 5–14 years (0.03/100,000). Cases were recorded in six of the 13 regions. Among 34 imported CL cases, 29 were foreign nationals. Conclusion VL is endemic in Greece, with an increasing trend and a considerable burden of severe disease and young children being most affected. CL is rarely reported. A sustainable action plan is needed to reduce the burden of VL and prevent local transmission of CL.

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 256
Author(s):  
Pedro Plans-Rubió

In 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) established the Global Vaccine Action Plan with the objective to promote essential vaccinations in all countries and achieve at least 90% vaccination coverage for all routine vaccines by 2020. The study assessed the mean percentages of vaccination coverage in 2019 for 13 routine vaccines, vaccination coverage variation from 2015 to 2019, and herd immunity levels against measles and pertussis in 2019 in countries and regions of WHO. In 2019, the mean percentages of vaccination coverage were lower than 90% for 10 (78.9%) routine vaccines. The mean percentages of vaccination coverage also decreased from 2015 to 2019 for six (46.2%) routine vaccines. The prevalence of individuals with vaccine-induced measles immunity in the target measles vaccination population was 88.1%, and the prevalence of individuals with vaccine-induced pertussis immunity in the target pertussis vaccination population was 81.1%. Herd immunity against measles viruses with Ro = 18 was established in 63 (32.5%) countries but not established in any region. Herd immunity against pertussis agents was not established in any country and in any region of WHO. National immunization programs must be improved to achieve ≥90% vaccination coverage in all countries and regions. Likewise, it is necessary to achieve ≥95% vaccination coverage with two doses of measles vaccines and three doses of pertussis vaccines in all countries and regions.


2012 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-26
Author(s):  
Stevanka Djordjevic ◽  
Tanja Ivanovic ◽  
Aleksandra Zuza ◽  
Dajana Nogo-Zivanovic ◽  
Ljiljana Kulic

Introduction. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of caries and gingivitis among adolescents who attend school in the municipality of Foca, Republika Srpska. Material and Methods. The total number of 352 school children - 135 students of the ninth grade of primary school (aged 15 years) and 217 students of the third and fourth grade of high school (aged 17-18 years) - were included in this cross-section study. The incidence of dental caries using DMFT index and its components was calculated as recommended by the World Health Organization. Periodontal tissue condition was determined using gingival index (GI) by L?e and Silness. Results. The mean DMFT in students age 15 was 6.6, and in students age 17-18 was 9.5. The dominant components of DMFT index in both studied groups were filled and carious teeth. In regards to gender, female students age 15 had significantly greater number of extracted teeth than male students (p<0.05). In older age group, females had significantly more filled teeth than males (p<0.05). Mild gingivitis was present in both studied groups. Conclusion. Our results showed that caries prevalence in the tested groups was high and mild gingivitis was present in most patients.


2004 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 629-632 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sjobbe Besseling ◽  
Leander Dubois

Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of caries in South Vietnamese children with a known oral cleft. Setting The children were screened at local dental hospitals in five different cities in southern Vietnam. Participants One hundred fifty-four children aged 4 to 6, 11 to 13, and 14 to 16 years old with a cleft lip, cleft palate, or both were included in the study. Outcome Measurements For every age group, clefts were divided in four types. The dmft/DMFT was specified according to criteria of the World Health Organization (1997). Results The mean number of teeth affected by caries was 9.95 for 4- to 6-year-old children, 2.97 for 11- to 13-year-old children, and 4.93 for 14- to 16-year-old children, respectively. Four- to 6-year-old children with a unilateral or bilateral cleft lip and palate had significantly more caries and a higher dmft (decayed, missing, and filled teeth index) than children of the same age with only a cleft lip or a cleft lip and alveolus. Conclusions Vietnamese children with an oral cleft have high numbers of teeth affected by dental caries, and special attention will be necessary for their oral health.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Linzy Elton ◽  
◽  
Najmul Haider ◽  
Richard Kock ◽  
Margaret J. Thomason ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The emergence of high consequence pathogens such as Ebola and SARS-CoV-2, along with the continued burden of neglected diseases such as rabies, has highlighted the need for preparedness for emerging and endemic infectious diseases of zoonotic origin in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) using a One Health approach. To identify trends in SSA preparedness, the World Health Organization (WHO) Joint External Evaluation (JEE) reports were analysed. JEEs are voluntary, collaborative processes to assess country’s capacities to prevent, detect and rapidly respond to public health risks. This report aimed to analyse the JEE zoonotic disease preparedness data as a whole and identify strengths and weaknesses. Methods JEE zoonotic disease preparedness scores for 44 SSA countries who had completed JEEs were analysed. An overall zoonotic disease preparedness score was calculated as an average of the sum of all the SSA country zoonotic disease preparedness scores and compared to the overall mean JEE score. Zoonotic disease preparedness indicators were analysed and data were collated into regions to identify key areas of strength. Results The mean ‘Zoonotic disease’ preparedness score (2.35, range 1.00–4.00) was 7% higher compared to the mean overall JEE preparedness score (2.19, range 1.55–3.30), putting ‘Zoonotic Diseases’ 5th out of 19 JEE sub-areas for preparedness. The average scores for each ‘Zoonotic Disease’ category were 2.45 for ‘Surveillance Systems’, 2.76 for ‘Veterinary Workforce’ and 1.84 for ‘Response Mechanisms’. The Southern African region scored highest across the ‘Zoonotic disease’ categories (2.87). A multisectoral priority zoonotic pathogens list is in place for 43% of SSA countries and 70% reported undertaking national surveillance on 1–5 zoonotic diseases. 70% of SSA countries reported having public health training courses in place for veterinarians and 30% had veterinarians in all districts (reported as sufficient staffing). A multisectoral action plan for zoonotic outbreaks was in place for 14% countries and 32% reported having an established inter-agency response team for zoonotic outbreaks. The zoonotic diseases that appeared most in reported country priority lists were rabies and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) (both 89%), anthrax (83%), and brucellosis (78%). Conclusions With ‘Zoonotic Diseases’ ranking 5th in the JEE sub-areas and a mean SSA score 7% greater than the overall mean JEE score, zoonotic disease preparedness appears to have the attention of most SSA countries. However, the considerable range suggests that some countries have more measures in place than others, which may perhaps reflect the geography and types of pathogens that commonly occur. The category ‘Response Mechanisms’ had the lowest mean score across SSA, suggesting that implementing a multisectoral action plan and response team could provide the greatest gains.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 26
Author(s):  
Amara Naseer ◽  
Jacinta McLoughlin ◽  
Orna A. Donoghue ◽  
Rose Anne Kenny ◽  
Brian O'Connell

Background: Little is known about the current oral health status of adults in Ireland. The aim of this study was to assess the dental health of community-dwelling adults aged 50 years and over in Ireland and to compare the current status to previous national surveys.  Methods: The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) Wave 3 assessed the dental health of a subset of participants. Respondents attending for health assessments were offered a dental examination. The World Health Organization examination criteria were used. Results: Of the 3111 people who were offered the dental assessment, 2525 were examined. Adults below 50 years of age and respondents whose dental health data were unavailable at the time of analysis were omitted, giving a final sample of 2504.  Among the dental assessment sample, 9.9% (249) were edentate. Of those aged 65 years and older, 15.6% were edentate while for the same age group 40.9% were edentate in the 2000-02 national survey. The mean number of teeth present in those aged 65 years or older was 14.9 for males and 14.2 for females, whereas in 2000-02 it was 9.9 and 7.4, respectively.  56.8% of the dentate sample had 10 or more tooth contacts. The mean DMFT of those aged 50 years or more was 18.5 and the Root Caries Index was 6.3. Between 2000-02 and 2014-5 (this study) in adults aged 65 years and over, the mean DMFT decreased from 25.9 to 20.1 and the Root Caries Index decreased from 11.6 to 9.1. Conclusion: The results indicate improvements in the dental health of community-dwelling adults aged 50 years and over in Ireland as compared to the previous survey of 2000-02. These improvements mean a change in the treatment needs of this age group and will require policy and service adjustments to meet these needs


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 264-268
Author(s):  
Amar Kumar Sinha ◽  
Chandra Prakash Gaire ◽  
Babu Ram Pokhrel

Anemia of schedule caste women in Rural area ofeastern Nepal is a prominent problem in developing countries. On the present study is to determine the prevalence of anemia of schedule caste women of Baijnathpur, eastern Nepal.  A Cross sectional study was conducted to the schedule caste non -pregnant women of the age group 20 - >70 years during August - November 2015.A total 432 women were participant in the present study. Cyanmethamoglobin used for the determination of anaemia. The prevalence of anaemia was found to be 242(56%) out of N= 432 women. Anaemia was classified as per the world health organization (WHO), mild, moderate and severe. The highest prevalence of anaemia 66.7% was found at the age group of 50-59 years and second highest 59.3% was found at the age group of 20-29 years of the anaemic population. The mean and SD of haemoglobin were 11.49±2.05gm/dl and 10.14±1.57 gm/dl of total and anaemic population respectively  Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 7(2): 264-268


2020 ◽  
Vol 56 (4) ◽  
pp. 2001086
Author(s):  
Fajri Gafar ◽  
Taichi Ochi ◽  
Natasha van't Boveneind-Vrubleuskaya ◽  
Onno W. Akkerman ◽  
Connie Erkens ◽  
...  

BackgroundTuberculosis (TB) in children and adolescents is a sentinel event for ongoing transmission. In the Netherlands, epidemiological characteristics of childhood and adolescent TB have not been fully evaluated. Therefore, we aimed to assess TB epidemiology within this population to provide guidance for TB elimination.MethodsA retrospective time-series analysis using national surveillance data from 1993–2018 was performed in children (aged <15 years) and adolescents (aged 15–19 years) with TB. Poisson regression models offset with log-population size were used to estimate notification rates and rate ratios. Trends in notification rates were estimated using average annual percentage changes (AAPC) based on the segmented linear regression analysis.ResultsAmong 3899 children and adolescents with TB notified during 1993–2018, 2418 (62%) were foreign-born (725 (41.3%) out of 1755 children and 1693 (78.9%) out of 2144 adolescents). The overall notification rate in children was 2.3 per 100 000 person-years, declining steadily during the study period (AAPC −10.9%, 95% CI −12.6–−9.1). In adolescents, the overall notification rate was 8.4 per 100 000 person-years, strongly increasing during 1993–2001 and 2012–2018. Compared to Dutch-born children and adolescents, substantially higher notification rates were observed among African-born children and adolescents (116.8 and 316.6 per 100 000 person-years, respectively). Additionally, an increasing trend was observed in African-born adolescents (AAPC 18.5%, 95% CI 11.9–25.5). Among the foreign-born population, those from countries in the horn of Africa contributed most to the TB caseload.ConclusionTB notification rate among children was low and constantly declining across different demographic groups. However, heterogeneities were shown in adolescents, with an increasing trend in the foreign-born, particularly those from Africa.


Med Phoenix ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-35
Author(s):  
Abdul Sami Khan ◽  
Bikash Sah ◽  
Tej Prakash Chataut ◽  
Shyam Babu Prasad ◽  
Gopal Rana ◽  
...  

Background: Blunt trauma is a frequent emergency and is linked with significant morbidity and mortality. The World Health Organization estimates that, by 2020, trauma will be the first or second leading cause of years of productive life lost for the entire population of the world. This study focuses to evaluate 150 cases of death due to blunt traumaMethods: A descriptive cross sectional study of 150 blunt trauma cases autopsied at department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology of BP Koirala Institute of earth Sciences, Dharan during a period of April 2012 and April 2013 was done.Results: Among the 150 victims of blunt trauma, 110 were of RTA, 20 were from fall from height, 15 were physically assaulted and 5 were victims from collapse of roof/wall. 80% of the victims were males and 20% were females, the Male: Female ratio being 4:1. The mean age was 35.76 years, standard deviation being 17.49.  .7% belonged to the age group of 21-40 years. 40% incident happened in summer with 12.7% in the month of March. 33.3% incident happened during evening hours of 3 pm-6pm. 42.7% victims survived for less than 3 hours after the incident. 36.36% of RTA victims sustained injury from heavy four wheelers like buses, trucks, tractors. 50% of the falls were from the height of 21-30 feet. 53.33% of the victims of physical assault were assaulted with hands and legs. 46.6% sustained injury to brain.Conclusions: Research finding have shown that 80% of the victims were males and 20% were females, the male is to female ratio being 4:1. The mean age was 35.76 years, standard deviation being 17.49. 42.7% belonged to the age group 21-40 years. Age group was not a significant predictor of the gender involved in the cases. Med Phoenix. Vol. 3, Issue. 1, 2018, Page: 21-35 


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Arzu Yurci ◽  
Nur Dokuzeylul Gungor

Aim: To investigate the effect of increasing male age on the semen parameters including semen volume, sperm concentration, and progressive sperm motility. Materials and Methods: 1038 patients who applied to our IVF clinic for semen analysis or for infertility treatment were included in the study. The participants were divided into three age categories as follows: 680 participants (65.5%) aged 22-30, 139 participants (13.4%) aged 31-45 years, and 219 participants (21.1%) aged ≥45 years. Demographic and baseline clinical characteristics were recorded. The variables considered in this study were age and the following semen parameters: volume (ml); sperm concentration (millions/ml); and progressive sperm motility A+B (%). Normal semen values were defined based on the WHO criteria (World Health Organization, 2010). Results: The mean age of the participants was 33.1(± 4.8). The mean BMI of the participants was 24.1(± 2.8). The mean semen volume was 3.3 (± 1.5), the mean semen concentration was 43.6 (± 31.7), and the mean progressive sperm motility was 43.6 (± 10.1). There was a moderate negative correlation between paternal age and semen volume (r=-0.13) and sperm motility (r=-0.32), while there was a moderate positive correlation between paternal age and sperm concentration (r=0.24). The proportion of likelihood ratio measured between semen volume, sperm concentration, sperm motility and age was found to be 1 in patients between the ages of 22-30. The 22-30 age group does not have a decreasing or increasing effect on semen volume (OR: 1), sperm concentration (OR: 1) and motility (OR: 1). Regression analysis of patients in the 31-45 age group revealed no change in semen volume (OR: 0.99, 95% CI: 0.43-2.3, p <0.9), but an increase in sperm concentration (OR: 1.74, 95% CI: 1.13-2.7, p <0.01), and decreased sperm motility (OR: 0.28, 95% CI: 0.16-0.47, p <0.00). In the regression analysis of participants over the age of 45, semen volume (OR: 0.31, 95% CI: 0.19-0.53, p <0.00) and sperm motility (OR: 0.05, 95% CI: 0.03-0.08, p <0.00) decreased with age. No change was detected in the concentration (OR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.63- 1.2, p <0.3). Conclusion: With increasing male age, semen volume and sperm motility begin to decrease. However, a significant decrease in sperm concentration does not occur until the age of 45.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Bamidele Sanya Osalusi ◽  
Lukman Ogunjimi ◽  
Ale Ayotunde Uantioje Ikhifa ◽  
Olawale Afe T.O Ogunsemi ◽  
Olufunke Adeleye

Recent studies have shown an increasing trend in the prevalence of hypertension in rural communities. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of risks factors for hypertension among the residents of Likosi town, Sagamu local government area, Ogun state, Nigeria. A descriptive crosssectional design was used. 350 respondents aged from 20-80 years were recruited. Hypertension was defined as Systolic blood pressure (SBP) 140 and/or Diastolic blood pressure (DBP) 90. statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS package. The prevalence of hypertension was 23.3% (male 11.2% and female 12.1%). The mean age of the respondents was 37.5years. Mean systolic and diastolic BP were 124.25 ± 15.05mmHg and 83.45 ± 9.49mmHg, respectively. Higher odds of being hypertensive were found in 31-40 age group,   The prevalence of the various classes of body mass index of the respondents were 18.5%, 45.1%, 15.1% and 24.3% for underweight, normal, overweight and obese respectively. Alcohol and tobacco use were found in 34.5% and 15.4% respectively. Hypertension was significantly associated with age groups 30-49 years (OR 2.258, 95% CI: 1.311 - 3.884),. Tobacco and alcohol consumption, overweight and obesity were also associated with hypertension


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