The Danger Social Media Poses to National Sovereignty and Global Security

Social media networks have the capability to allow the spread of both factual information and disinformation amongst general populations at a pace unforeseen at any previous time in history. Those who are responsible for continuing to protect democratic principles can benefit from studying, understanding, and adapting to counteract this unheralded spread of data. Developing tactics and strategies to counter the antics of those who propagate disinformation to further their own causes will become necessary to protect the integrity of elections and other national and international interests. This chapter explores and reveals some of the general threats and potential counter measures to keep general populations protected from the negative effects of such campaigns.

COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness among immunocompromised populations: a targeted literature review of real-world studies

IntroductionFrom July through October of 2021, several countries issued recommendations for increased COVID-19 vaccine protection for individuals with one or more immunocompromised (IC) conditions. It is critically important to understand the vaccine effectiveness (VE) of COVID-19 vaccines among IC populations as recommendations are updated over time in response to the evolving COVID-19 pandemic.Areas coveredA targeted literature review was conducted to identify real-world studies that assessed COVID-19 VE in IC populations between December 2020 and September 2021. A total of 10 studies from four countries were identified and summarized in this review.Expert opinion/commentaryVE of the widely available COVID-19 vaccines, including BNT162b2 (Pfizer/BioNTech), mRNA-1273 (Moderna), Ad26.COV2.S (Janssen), and ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (Oxford/AstraZeneca), ranged from 64%-90% against SARS-CoV-2 infection, 73%-84% against symptomatic illness, 70%-100% against severe illness, and 63%-100% against COVID-19-related hospitalization among the fully vaccinated IC populations included in the studies. COVID-19 VE for most outcomes in the IC populations included in these studies was lower than in the general populations. These findings provide preliminary evidence that the IC population requires greater protective measures to prevent COVID-19 infection and associated illness, hence should be prioritized while implementing recommendations of additional COVID-19 vaccine doses.

SELF CLEANING OF EARS BY VARIOUS OBJECTS CAUSES MULTIPLE DISEASES OF EXTERNAL EAR

Objective: To find out the association of multiple diseases of external ear with the use of various objects and cotton buds. Study Design: Case control study. Place and Duration of Study: Ear Nose Throat Department, Pakistan Naval Ship Shifa Karachi, from Jan to Oct 2020. Methodology: All the patients having multiple diseases of external ear were included as cases. Controls were selected from the healthy volunteers from general populations. Results: Total number of subjects in this study was 140 with the mean age 25.11 ± 11.21 years (2-55 years of age range). Out of them, 82 were male and 58 were female. Odds ratio was 16.07. Conclusion: There is a solid relationship of illnesses of external ear with the utilization of cotton buds. This detrimental practice should be incapacitated by featuring the notice by brands owners of cotton bud and safety instructions at different instructive levels.

Assessment of General Populations Knowledge, Attitude, and Perceptions Toward the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19): A Cross-Sectional Study From Pakistan

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global health threat and caused a universal psychosocial impact on the general population. Therefore, the knowledge, attitude, and perceptions (KAPs) of the general population are critical for the development and effective implementation of standard operating procedures (SOP) to contain the contagion and minimize the losses. Therefore, the current study was conducted to understand and evaluate the KAPs of Pakistani populations toward the COVID-19.Methods: An online cross-sectional study was carried out among participants from 1 May to 30 July 2020 in different areas of Pakistan. The respondents of the study were the general population with age ≥ 18 years. The poll URL was posted on several channels after a call for participation. Other social media platforms such as WeChat, WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Messenger, and LinkedIn were engaged to maximize general population engagement. The questionnaire included details about sociodemographic, knowledge about COVID-19, perceptions toward universal safety precautions of COVID-19, and beliefs attitude toward the COVID-19. The obtained data were exported into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and SPSS software version 21 for windows. The descriptive statistics values were presented in frequencies and percentages. Binary logistic regression, Chi-square test, and one-way ANOVA were applied to analyze the participants' socio-demographic characteristics and variables related to KAPs. P-value < 0.05 was recorded as significant.Results: A total of 1,000 participants were invited of which 734 participated in this study. The response rate was 73.4% (734/1,000). The gender, marital status, education, and residence showed a significant association with the knowledge score. The majority of the study participants were thinking that COVID-19 may be more dangerous in elderly individuals 94.5% (n = 700), and individuals with chronic diseases or severe complications 96.7% (n = 710) (p = 0.00). More than half of the participants 52.5% (n = 385) showed their concern that either they or their family members might get the infection. More than 98% (n = 703), (P-value = 0.00) of the participants held that COVID-19 would be successfully controlled in Pakistan by following the standard SOPs and government guidelines.Conclusion: This study showed that the general population of Pakistan has good awareness and reasonable attitudes and perceptions toward the full features of the COVID-19. The current study suggests that mass-level effective health education programs are necessary for developing countries to improve and limit the gap between KAP toward COVID-19.

Myths and Misconceptions about Novel COVID-19 Outbreaks among Wardha City General Population

Background: COVID-19 is a unique pulmonary ailment due to coronavirus, producing extremely severe pulmonary illness. On March 11, 2020, WHO declared the SARS-CoV-2 incident a pandemic because of its deadly global spread. Objectives: To assess the myths and misconceptions about Novel COVID-19 outbreaks among the general population and associate the findings of the Novel COVID-19 outbreak with the selected demographic variable. Materials and Methods: This descriptive research paper was undertaken to assess the perceived myths and misconceptions about novel COVID-19 outbreaks among the general population at Paloti, district Wardha. The sampling technique was used Non – Probability Convenient. A total of 150 members of the general population who met the inclusion criteria were chosen for this study. To assess their perceived myths and misconceptions, a Likert Scale was constructed. Results: Findings of the study, 1.33% of general populations have disagreed, 10% were undecided, 50.67% of them were agreed, and 38% of them were strongly agreed about myths related to Novel COIVD-19. The Minimum perceived myths score was 19, and the maximum score was 48. The mean perceived myths score was 37.83±6.07, and the mean percentage of myths score was 75.66±12.14.0.67% of general populations were disagreed, 2% were undecided, 29.33% of them were agreed, and 68% of them were strongly agreed about misconceptions related to Novel COIVD-19. The minimum and highest misunderstanding scores were 18 and 49, respectively. The mean misunderstanding score was 83.179.09, while the mean misconception score was 41.584.54. There is no correlation between demographic factors and myths and misconceptions. Conclusion: According to this study, myths and misconceptions related to the novel COVID-19 are surprisingly low among the general population.

Accelerated biological aging in people with Down syndrome with full and segmental trisomy 21 begins in childhood as revealed by immunoglobulin G glycosylation

Cells from people with Down syndrome (DS) show faster accumulation of DNA damage and epigenetic aging marks. Causative mechanisms remain un-proven and hypotheses range from amplified chromosomal instability to actions of several supernumerary chromosome 21 genes. Plasma immunoglobulin G (IgG) glycosylation profiles are established as a reliable predictor of biological and chronological aging. We performed IgG glycan profiling of n=246 individuals with DS (208 adults and 38 children) from three European populations and compared these to age-, sex- and demography-matched general populations. We uncovered very significantly increased IgG glycosylation aging marks associated with DS. Average levels of IgG glycans without galactose (G0) and those with two galactoses (G2) as a function of age in persons with DS corresponded to levels detected in 19 years older euploid individuals. Some aging marks were significant already in children with DS. Remarkably, the IgG glycan profiles of a child with segmental duplication of only 31 genes on chromosome 21 had values similar to those of age-matched DS children, outside the normal children’s range. This is the first non-epigenetic evidence of accelerated systemic biological aging in DS, suggesting it begins very early in childhood. It points to a causative contribution of the overdose of genes in a short segment of chromosome 21, not previously linked to accelerated aging, opening a route to discovery of hitherto unrecognised mechanisms.

Situational factors influencing social anxiety in treatment-seeking adults who stutter: An exploratory factor analysis

Purpose: Adults who stutter (AWS) often show high levels of social anxiety. Stuttering is a speech disorder, making the latent factors influencing social anxiety potentially different from those in individuals with a social anxiety disorder (SAD) or general populations. This study aims to examine the situational factors influencing social anxiety in AWS.Methods: We analyzed data of 351 AWS using the fear/anxiety scale in the Japanese self-report version of the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS). We conducted exploratory factor analysis and investigated subscale scores.Results: We extracted five factors: (i) eating, drinking, and party, (ii) telephone, (iii) observation or non-speech, (iv) interaction with strangers, and (v) public speaking. The factor for telephone was newly extracted, and anxiety in telephone situations was poorly explained by the total score of fear/anxiety of the LSAS. On the other hand, the other four factors are similar to those previously extracted in individuals with SAD and general populations, and more than 60% of the variance of the subscale constructs was explained by the total score. Preliminary comparisons revealed that AWS had saliently higher anxiety in telephone situations and lower anxiety in observation or non-speech situations than individuals with anxiety disorders and Japanese university students.Conclusions: The factor for telephone was uniquely extracted in AWS, and the severity of anxiety in telephone situations was not explained well by the overall severity of social anxiety as a whole. Telephone situations have specific impacts on social anxiety in AWS.

Nutrition and Physical Activity-Induced Changes in Gut Microbiota: Possible Implications for Human Health and Athletic Performance

The gut microbiota is a complex heterogeneous microbial community modulated by endogenous and exogenous factors. Among the external causes, nutrition as well as physical activity appear to be potential drivers of microbial diversity, both at the taxonomic and functional level, likely also influencing endocrine system, and acting as endocrine organ itself. To date, clear-cut data regarding which microbial populations are modified, and by which mechanisms are lacking. Moreover, the relationship between the microbial shifts and the metabolic practical potential of the gut microbiota is still unclear. Further research by longitudinal and well-designed studies is needed to investigate whether microbiome manipulation may be an effective tool for improving human health and, also, performance in athletes, and whether these effects may be then extended to the overall health promotion of general populations. In this review, we evaluate and summarize the current knowledge regarding the interaction and cross-talks among hormonal modifications, physical performance, and microbiota content and function.

Awareness of the risk factors of stroke among non-teaching staff of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nnewi Campus, Anambra State, Nigeria

Background The prevalence of stroke is increasing in Nigeria due to a lack of awareness of their predisposing factors. There is therefore a need for good knowledge and awareness of stroke risk factors in the general populations. Thus, this study assessed the level of awareness of stroke risk factors among non-teaching staff in Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nnewi Campus, Nigeria. Results Most of the participants were female, 89 (69%), and had a post-graduate degree, 84 (65.1%). A total of 129 participants participated in this survey, and 91 (70.5%) were familiar with the term “stroke.” The commonest risk factors were high blood pressure (86%), stress (74.4%), and lack of exercise (63.6%). The study showed that the awareness of stroke risk factors among the participants was poor (40.3%). Conclusion Stroke awareness was poor among the participants with the highest risk of stroke despite their high literacy level. Female participants, with a postgraduate level qualification and working as senior non-teaching staff, had a better awareness of stroke risk factors than their male colleagues. This shows a need to increase stroke awareness campaigns in the community.