Influence of urbanization on stream fish assemblages in three microbasins in the Upper Paraná River Basin

The colonization pattern of fish assemblages in streams is often studied in the context of environmental filters. On the other hand, when fish assemblages are subjected to anthropogenic effects, variables associated with environmental quality assume more importance. Therefore, this work evaluated the richness and composition of fish from streams sampled at different urbanization levels, aiming to determine any direct effects on the structure of fish assemblages. To accomplish this, samples were collected from 2003 to 2011 at 31 sites distributed among 3 microbasins in the Rio Ivinhema Basin, Alto Rio Paraná. Based on environmental variables, physicochemical of the water and analysis of the use and occupation of the soil, the microbasins were classified into different urbanization levels (low, medium and high). A total of 4,320 individuals were sampled, out of which 57 fish species were recorded. Sampled sites with medium urbanization level presented higher richness compared to sampled sites with high urbanization level which presented lower richness. Species richness in these sites was explained mainly by water temperature and water velocity. Results confirmed that urbanization does directly affect environmental integrity, which, in turn, can lead to the homogenization of stream assemblages.

The impact of demographic factors on numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Europe and the regions of Ukraine

The accumulated numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths per capita are important characteristics of the pandemic dynamics that may also indicate the effectiveness of quarantine, testing, vaccination, and treatment. The statistical analysis based on the number of cases per capita accumulated to the end of June 2021 showed no correlations with the volume of population, its density, and the urbanization level both in European countries and regions of Ukraine. The same result was obtained with the use of fresher datasets (as of December 23, 2021). The number of deaths per capita and per case may depend on the urbanization level. For European countries these relative characteristics decrease with the increase of the urbanization level. Opposite trend was revealed for the number of deaths per capita in Ukrainian regions.

Research on Environmental Influencing Factors of Overweight and Obesity in Children and Adolescents in China

This study aimed to explore the impact of environmental factors such as latitude, altitude, family socioeconomic status (SES), and level of urbanization on overweight and obesity (ow/ob) in children and adolescents. The participants comprised 26,120 children and adolescents aged 10–18 from 16 provinces in China. Differences in the prevalence of ow/ob under different environmental conditions were evaluated by the chi-square test. The influence of various environmental factors on ow/ob was obtained by logistic regression analysis. We found that (1) the prevalence of ow/ob fell between from 19.2% to 11.9% at 10 years old and from 13.8% to 6% at 18 years old; (2) latitude, family SES, income, and urbanization level are positively correlated with the prevalence of ow/ob; and (3) altitude has a negative correlation with the prevalence of ow/ob. The prevalence of ow/ob decreased with age in children and adolescents aged 10–18, and the risk of ow/ob showed significant differences in latitude, altitude, family SES level, gross domestic product (GDP), and level of urbanization.

Trend of asthma prevalence among children based on regional urbanization level in Japan; 2006–2019

Although it has been known that the prevalence of asthma tends to be higher among children in the metropolitan areas of Japan, trends of the prevalence with respect to the regional urbanization level has not been investigated in recent years. We investigated trends in the prevalence of asthma among children and air pollutant concentrations by regional urbanization levels using data from the School Health Statistics Survey in Japan from 2006 to 2019. We calculated the age-standardized prevalence of asthma for each year, gender, regional urbanization level, and annual percent change (APC). In addition, the slope index of inequality (SII) and relative index of inequality (RII) were calculated for evaluating disparity in age-standardized asthma prevalence depending on regional urbanization levels. Moreover, we calculated the mean of the annual average values by regional urbanization levels for sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), suspended particulate matter (SPM), carbon monoxide (CO), and photochemical oxidant (Ox) from 2006 to 2018. We found that the age-standardized prevalence significantly decreased in the periods in the metropolis for males and females, and the degree of the decrease was largest in the metropolis. Conversely, the age-standardized prevalence increased in towns and villages, and the APC was greater than zero. In addition, both the SII and RII showed significant decreasing trends in the study period, and the regional disparity shrank over the years. Moreover, concentrations of the air pollutants were highest in the metropolis throughout the years except for Ox, whereas the difference in the concentrations of NO2, SPM, and CO decreased between the metropolis and the other areas over the years. In conclusion, disparity in asthma prevalence depending on regional urbanization level decreased from 2006 to 2019, and there is a possibility that regional difference in trend of the air pollutants is related to the result.

Study on Urban Spatial Pattern Based on DMSP/OLS and NPP/VIIRS in Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

In recent years, much attention has been given to the current situation and trend regarding economic development in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), of which urbanization is an important indicator. In the present study, (i) the urbanized area is estimated using DMSP/OLS and NPP/VIIRS, (ii) the current spatial pattern and the change characteristics of typical cities are revealed, and (iii) the scale and developmental stage of major cities in the DPRK are judged through comparison. Although the DPRK is relatively closed, the financial crisis in 2008 indirectly affected its economic development, and a large gap remains between the urbanization level of the DPRK and that of China and the Republic of Korea. The large cities in the DPRK are located mainly in its eastern coastal areas and western plains, and there has been no significant expansion in Pyongyang, Chungjin, and Hamhung in the past 28 years. Although economic construction has begun again recently in the DPRK, further reform and opening are required. As the DPRK’s relations with its neighbors and countries around the world improve, its economic development and urban construction will present a new pattern.

Optimizing the palm sugar industry through the implementation of appropriate technology

The potential of palm sugar in Ngancar, Candimulyo, Magelang Regency is broad and labor-intensive, guaranteed to reduce the urbanization level. Since production is manual, it requires more time and energy. This Integrated Community Service (PPMT) activity aims to diffuse production process technology to partners through technology transfer and provide motivation for entrepreneurship. Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) is the method used by the PPMT group in developing/empowering rural communities and especially in observing the partner conditions extensively, quickly, and efficiently. The design of appropriate technology for the palm sugar sieving machine is one of the product outputs produced by the group during the mentoring period. They also created entrepreneurial motivation for the assisted partners. Conclusively, the results proved that the utilization of appropriate technology accelerates the completion time of the production process in a more cost-effective manner.

Acupuncture Treatment to Reduce the Risk of Dementia in Patients With Migraine: A Propensity Score–Matched Cohort Study

BackgroundMigraine is a recurrent headache disease that has been identified as a risk factor for subsequent dementia. In Taiwan, some patients with migraine receive acupuncture treatment for other illnesses. Therefore, the association between the effects of acupuncture treatment and the risk of dementia in patients with migraine warrants investigation. The present study collected data from Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) to investigate the incidence of dementia in patients with migraine who did and did not concurrently receive acupuncture treatment.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective matched-cohort study that included 37,266 patients, selected from the NHIRD, who were newly diagnosed with migraine at some time between 2000 and 2012. The follow-up period ranged from the index date (the date when patients first received acupuncture after their migraine diagnosis) to dementia diagnosis, withdrawal from the insurance program, or December 31, 2013. A 1:1 propensity score method was used to match an equal number of patients (N = 11,280) in the acupuncture and nonacupuncture cohorts based on sex, age, migraine diagnosis year, index year, insurance amount, urbanization level, baseline comorbidities, and medication usage. We employed Cox proportional hazards models to evaluate the risk of dementia. The cumulative incidence of dementia in both cohorts was estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method, and the difference was assessed through a log-rank test.ResultsPatients with migraine who received acupuncture treatment were found to have a lower risk of dementia (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] = 0.48, 95% CI = 0.40–0.57) than those who did not undergo acupuncture treatment, after adjusting for age, sex, insurance amount, urbanization level, baseline comorbidities, and medication usage. The cumulative incidence of dementia was significantly lower in the acupuncture cohort than in the nonacupuncture cohort (log-rank test, p < 0.001).ConclusionsThis propensity score–matched cohort study demonstrated an association between acupuncture treatment and dementia development in patients with migraine in Taiwan. The results suggest that acupuncture treatment significantly reduced the development of dementia in patients with migraine. However, future study is required to provide more empirical evidence.

The Magnitude of Black/Hispanic Disparity in COVID-19 Mortality Across United States Counties During the First Waves of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Objectives: To quantify the Black/Hispanic disparity in COVID-19 mortality in the United States (US).Methods: COVID-19 deaths in all US counties nationwide were analyzed to estimate COVID-19 mortality rate ratios by county-level proportions of Black/Hispanic residents, using mixed-effects Poisson regression. Excess COVID-19 mortality counts, relative to predicted under a counterfactual scenario of no racial/ethnic disparity gradient, were estimated.Results: County-level COVID-19 mortality rates increased monotonically with county-level proportions of Black and Hispanic residents, up to 5.4-fold (≥43% Black) and 11.6-fold (≥55% Hispanic) higher compared to counties with &lt;5% Black and &lt;15% Hispanic residents, respectively, controlling for county-level poverty, age, and urbanization level. Had this disparity gradient not existed, the US COVID-19 death count would have been 92.1% lower (177,672 fewer deaths), making the rate comparable to other high-income countries with substantially lower COVID-19 death counts.Conclusion: During the first 8 months of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the US experienced the highest number of COVID-19 deaths. This COVID-19 mortality burden is strongly associated with county-level racial/ethnic diversity, explaining most US COVID-19 deaths.