Current features of the epidemiology and prevention of hepatitis B in risk groups in Russian Federation

Hepatitis B is an infectious disease that leads to severe health problems, with the risk of chronicity and death. The World Health Organization (WHO) has shown that about 4.5 million premature deaths from the infection could be prevented by 2030 in low- and middle-income countries through vaccination, diagnostic tests, drugs, and education campaigns. The main goal of the WHO global hepatitis strategy is to reduce new infections by 90 % and deaths by 65 % between 2016 and 2030. The successes of hepatitis B vaccine prophylaxis are the basis for setting the ambitious goal of eliminating the disease in the future. However, to date, many questions about the organization and planning of regional vaccination programs remain unresolved and provoke discussions among specialists around the world, including in Russia. In order to systematize and summarize the scientific literature on prevention, as well as to evaluate its effectiveness, we performed a literature search using the electronic bibliographic resources https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ and https://elibrary.ru/ using the key words «hepatitis B» and «vaccine prophylaxis». Analysis of scientific papers allowed us to characterize some manifestations of hepatitis B epidemic process and reveal its modern features in the territory of Russia, including risk groups. Aspects of genetic heterogeneity of HBsAg pathogen circulating in Russian territory as well as in adjoining states are given in details. The organization of vaccine prophylaxis is considered; the used immunobiological preparations are characterized. The results of the work define the role of serological studies in the system of epidemic surveillance for hepatitis B, as well as their significance for formation of adequate tactics of vaccination of the population, including in risk groups.

Analysis of the prevalence of smoking among young people taking into account socio-economic and psycho-emotional factors

The article is devoted to the study of factors contributing to the formation of adherence to smoking in young people. The study involved 300 young people, of which 154 people are students of the Saratov College of Water Transport, Construction and Service, 146 people are students of a medical university. The study of smoking prevalence was carried out using adapted questionnaires that include questions about adherence to tobacco smoking, as well as modern alternative means of smoking (electronic cigarettes), awareness of the dangers of smoking tobacco products and electronic cigarettes. Were studied the socio-economic and psychological factors that contribute to the formation of addiction. The results of the study indicate a high prevalence of smoking among young people surveyed, while more than half of all respondents who smoke prefer alternative means of smoking. It should be noted that there is a higher prevalence of alternative means of smoking among girls compared to boys. It was found that smoking electronic cigarettes prevails among people with a higher level of material well-being. The results of studying the awareness of respondents about the dangers of tobacco smoking showed a high level of awareness of the respondents. At the same time, awareness of the dangers of alternative means of smoking is at a lower level. An analysis of the study of the reasons for starting smoking among study participants showed that persons living separately from their parents are more susceptible to smoking. According to the respondents themselves, an important role in the formation of adherence to an addiction is played by a negative example of the social environment (smoking of parents, friends, acquaintances). The correlation analysis revealed the relationship between smoking and the level of psychoemotional stress. Thus, the result of this study indicates that the high prevalence of smoking among young people is due to the impact of socioeconomic and psychological factors that must be taken into account in the fight against the formation of addiction among the younger generation. English version of the article is available at URL: https://panor.ru/articles/analysis-of-the-prevalence-of-smoking-among-young-people-taking-into-account-socio-economic-and-psycho-emotional-factors/75548.html

Mechanisms and ways of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection

The relevance of the problem. A new coronavirus infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus has created an emergency situation of international importance. The incidence of it is characterized by a rapid spread across all countries, high morbidity rates, severe complications and mortality. Despite the fact that there are currently vaccines, it is not yet possible to stop the infection. Of particular importance as a preventive measure is the impact on the second link of the epidemic process. In this connection, obtaining objective data on the mechanisms and ways of spreading the SARS-CoV-2 virus will allow for more rational preventive measures and significantly reduce the risk of transmission of infection. The aim is to analyze current data on the mechanisms and ways of spreading the COVID-19 pathogen from available literature sources and to consider possible measures to influence the second link of the epidemiological chain in order to reduce the risks of infection. Materials and methods. The selection of peer-reviewed literature published from 2019 to 2021 was carried out. in the PubMed database and e-Library.ru, as well as links in articles. To obtain statistical data, the Internet resources of the World Health Organization (WHO), open data of Rospotrebnadzor, the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Rosstat were used. Results. Analysis of scientific sources containing information on the mechanisms and ways of transmission of the new coronavirus infection COVID-19 indicates that the authors in their publications mention almost all the mechanisms and ways of transmission of this disease, but to varying degrees of their significance. The main mechanism of the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is aspiration with airborne and airborne dust transmission routes. At the same time, the effect of contact, fecal-oral mechanisms is not excluded, the probability of the implementation of the vertical mechanism of transmission of the pathogen from the mother to the child, as well as the genital tract, is being studied. An important measure for the prevention of a new infection is the impact on the second link of the epidemic process, especially ensuring the highly efficient operation of ventilation and air conditioning systems in medical institutions and public places with a massive crowd of people, as well as compliance with personal preventive measures and disinfection measures.

Mathematical modeling of the epidemic of influenza and acute respiratory viral infections processes (ARVI) in the Yaroslavl region

In the structure of infectious diseases in the Yaroslavl region, more than 90 % are influenza and acute respiratory viral infections (ARVI). Influenza occupies a special place among human infectious diseases. This is due to its ability to epidemic and pandemic spread in a relatively short time. In this regard, scientific research on the analysis and forecasting of probable scenarios for the development of epidemic processes is of particular importance. The work used the data of the forms of the federal state statistical observation No. 2 “Information on infectious and parasitic diseases”. Fourier analysis was used to process time series. The significance of the mathematical model was checked using the Fisher test. The table of critical values of the Fisher criterion was used to assess the statistical significance, the significance level was taken equal to 0.05. Data processing was carried out using MS Excel 2013 software. During the study of the dynamics of the epidemic process, the trend of reducing the incidence of influenza and ARVI in the Yaroslavl region over the past 36 years has been determined. The dynamics of the incidence of influenza and ARVI in the Yaroslavl region over the past 36 years has a tendency to decrease. As a result of calculations, we obtained cyclical components with periods equal to 3 and 5 years. This is due to the accumulation of people who are not immune to these infections. Mathematical calculations have confirmed the values of seasonal fluctuations in 6 and 12 months. The maximum number of sick people is recorded in the winter-spring period (February — March). In accordance with the calculations, a decrease in the incidence of influenza and ARVI in the Yaroslavl region is expected in the period from 2020 to 2022: in 2020 the number of sick people (per 100 thousand population) is predicted to be 20 962.64, in 2021 — 18 138.58.

Epidemiological features of the incidence of COVID-19 in the Jalal-Abad region of the Kyrgyz Republic

In order to identify the epidemiological features of the incidence of COVID-19 in the Jalal-Abad region of the Kyrgyz Republic, a retrospective epidemiological analysis was carried out, according to the results of which the following was established. Jalal-Abad region was the leader in the number of cases of new coronavirus infection in the Kyrgyz Republic in 2020. The incidence had a pronounced rise with a maximum in October. The most disadvantaged in this period in terms of the incidence of a new coronavirus infection were Mailuu-SUU (1663.2 per 100 thousand), Chatkal (1000.8 per 100 thousand), Jalal-Abad (677.6 per 100 thousand) and Kara-Kol (532.0 per 100 thousand). In all territorial entities of the region, cases of COVID-19 were registered mainly among the adult population. The diseases of the new coronavirus infection in children were isolated. The greatest proportion of cases occurred in people aged 30–64 years, which is due to the larger number of this group, as well as the most severe course of the disease. Most often, the diseases occurred in the form of moderate severity (47.2 %) and mild (22.7 %). At the same time, according to the results of laboratory studies, it was possible to identify 14.9 % of cases of the disease with an asymptomatic course. The condition was regarded as severe in 12.2 % of cases, extremely severe — in 3 %. High focality was revealed. The share of foci with two cases was 63.2 %, with three — 19.3 %, four — 6.2 %, five — 5.5 %, six or more — 5.8 %. Most foci with four or more cases were registered in Ala-Buka, Suzak, Toktogul, Nooken districts and the city of Tash-Komur. The study made it possible to identify the features of the course of the epidemic process of a new coronavirus infection, which made it possible to adjust the implementation of preventive and anti-epidemic measures in the future, to reduce the rate of focality, to minimize mortality. At the same time, the main role in the prevention of COVID-19 from the moment of registration of vaccines against this infection is assigned to specific prevention.

Hygienic aspects of the impact of working conditions on the health of motor transport drivers

The profession of a motor vehicle driver is potentially dangerous due to the risk of road accidents, the acquisition of professional and professionally caused diseases, sudden death at the workplace. Taking this into account, comprehensive clinical and hygienic studies were conducted, the purpose of which was to assess the occupational risk of damage to the health of drivers on the basis of data on working conditions, occupational and professionally caused diseases, road accidents and cases of sudden death at the workplace. The working conditions, the state of health of drivers were studied, the professional and professionally-conditioned morbidity and cases of sudden death at the workplace from a common disease were analyzed. It is established that the working conditions of drivers are characterized as harmful 3 classes of 1–3 degrees (class 3.1–3.3), which cause the development of occupational diseases, mainly of the musculoskeletal system; the growth of chronic professionally caused pathology (hypertension, arthropathy, dorsopathy) and the death of the driver at the workplace from a general disease. The results of the study formed the basis for the development of preventive measures.

The influence of wind speed on incidence of the planet population in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic

The pandemic COVID-19 continues to take dozens of human lives and destabilize the economy on the planet. In this regard study of the patterns of external conditions influence on incidence dynamics will stay relevant for a long time. In the article there are results of the study of nature and severity of impact of wind speed on COVID-19 incidence level on different continents. The analysis has made it possible to set that the wind speed has a big impact on COVID-19 incidence among population. This impact is closely related to the contamination level on the territory. With good air quality the increasing of wind speed is generally followed by increasing of the level of incidence due to SARS-CoV-2 long range transport. With satisfying or bad air quality the increasing of wind speed translates into reducing the incidence level due to the contaminants deconcentration. The main SARS-CoV-2 infection vectors are solids. Moreover, the influence of PM 2.5 is particularly harmful for human general health and immune system. Research results lead to a better understanding of physical meaning of wind speed influence on COVID-19 incidence and give an opportunity to predict the periods of the most dangerous infection conditions.

The main directions of non-specific prevention of infectious diseases

Infectious pathology continues to occupy one of the leading places in the structure of causes of death worldwide and in developing countries prevails over somatic. The most cost-effective way to prevent infectious diseases is vaccination. However, the use of vaccines cannot be implemented to combat all known infectious diseases, given their massive nature and often occurring polyetiology. In this regard, non-specific prevention is of particular relevance. In order to systematize and generalize the data of the scientific literature on methods and means of non-specific prevention, as well as to assess their effectiveness, a search for literary sources using electronic bibliographic resources was carried out https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ and https://elibrary.ru/ according to the keywords «non-specific prevention», «prevention of infections». The analysis of scientific works made it possible to evaluate non-specific prevention from the standpoint of classical epidemiology and the population approach to the organization of epidemiological studies and planning of preventive measures. The measures aimed at the source of infection, the mechanism of transmission and the susceptible organism in relation to different groups of infection are considered. Priority preventive and anti-epidemic measures were identified in relation to infections with aerosol, fecal-oral, contact and transmissible transmission mechanisms, and their effectiveness was evaluated. Special attention is paid to measures for the prevention of zoonotic and natural focal infections, as well as measures for the sanitary protection of the territory of the state from the import and spread of infectious diseases. The applicability of non-specific prevention of infectious morbidity in the conditions of the emergence of new biological threats is considered on the example of a new coronavirus infection COVID-19. It is established that the scientifically based tactics and methodology of non-specific prevention of infectious diseases are the property of domestic and world epidemiology, and its effectiveness has been tested by time and does not lose relevance today. The risk of new threats indicates that the improvement of this approach is a promising direction for the prevention of infectious diseases.

History of hygiene, microbiology and epidemiology in the art of small forms: the past and the present

For the first time, more than 700 award, anniversary and commemorative badges reflecting the history of hygiene, microbiology and epidemiology were systematized and analyzed. The following directions are identified for studying the history of these medical specialties and educational and scientific disciplines with the help of epigraphy: 1) outstanding figures of hygiene, microbiology and epidemiology; 2) hygienic and epidemiological congresses, congresses and other forums; 3) specialized research institutions; 4) educational institutions and faculties of universities that train specialists in the field of hygiene, microbiology and epidemiology; 5) pathogens and vectors of infectious diseases; 6) methods of detecting microorganisms and treating infections; 7) the COVID-19 pandemic. The study showed that during the XX and XXI centuries a large number of badges (awards and commemorative) were issued, reflecting selected pages of the history of hygiene, microbiology and epidemiology. These faleristic objects related to the art of small forms are full-fledged primary sources for studying the history of these areas of medicine and objects for the collections of state, municipal and departmental museums of medical subjects. Signs with portraits of outstanding hygienists, microbiologists and epidemiologists can be used to study and illustrate their life and activities, contribution to science and perpetuate their memory. Epigraphy on the presented signs can help both in establishing the time of a particular fact or event in the past (for example, the dates of the life and activity of an outstanding scientist; the time, place and subject of the scientific forum, the opening date of the research institute, educational institution, faculty or department, etc.), and the specifics of conducting scientific research in the field of hygiene, microbiology and epidemiology (pathogens and vectors of diseases; concepts, devices and research methods, methods of diagnosis and prevention of infectious diseases, etc.).

Assessment of the impact of the quality of drinking water on the primary morbidity of children in the Altai Territory

The number of environmental factors that adversely affect the health of children is growing every year, their combination is different in each territory. It is the child’s body that is most sensitive to changes in environmental conditions, reacting to this with a deterioration in health. Currently, there is a tendency to study the regional characteristics of the interaction of a set of environmental factors with the child’s body. The aim of the work was to identify trends in the primary non-infectious morbidity among children in the Altai Territory, as well as to assess the possible impact of the state of drinking water on the morbidity of children in the region. In the region, an unfavorable tendency was revealed in such groups of nosologies as neoplasms, diseases of the endocrine system, diseases of the circulatory system, diseases of the digestive system, diseases of the genitourinary system, congenital anomalies, and diseases of the respiratory system. The regularity of distribution over the territory of the region of administrative-territorial formations with a high incidence rate was revealed. The analysis of associations of morbidity in children with average annual concentrations of substances polluting the atmospheric air and drinking water showed the presence of reliable correlations in areas of critical and stressful environmental quality. The results obtained indicate the need for a detailed assessment of the influence of environmental factors on the incidence rate of children in the regional aspect, the formation of a database and the development of automated programs capable of predicting the incidence rate in each specific territory. This will improve the efficiency, including the economic, of preventive measures.