Jing Feng, Yuchuan Ding, Lipeng Cai, Enoch Kim, Pan Gu, Zhaohui Song, Huimin Fan, Xiaokun Geng
{"title":"Activities-specific balance confidence scale in elderly in community nursing home","authors":"Jing Feng, Yuchuan Ding, Lipeng Cai, Enoch Kim, Pan Gu, Zhaohui Song, Huimin Fan, Xiaokun Geng","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_11_23","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_11_23","url":null,"abstract":"Background: To investigate the incidence of falls in elderly in nursing homes and to determine the differences in confidence indexes of daily living in the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC) in elderly fallers or nonfallers. Methods: We conducted a perspective study with elderly (ages >75 years old) from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2020, living in community nursing homes in Tongzhou district, Beijing. All the participants were able to walk independently, had not experienced any fall episodes, were capable of following commands, and they sufficiently cooperated with the process of the examination. A face-to-face visit or telephone interview was conducted with participants on a regular basis for 12 months. The falling incidence and the differences of ABC scale confidence indexes between fallers and nonfallers were investigated. Results: This study included 87 older adults (67 nonfall participants and 20 fall participants). Falls occurred at a rate of 23 per 100 people per year. The ABC scale index of the faller group was 37%, which indicated very low balance confidence and a high risk of falling. The ABC scale index of the nonfaller group was 80%, which indicated normal balance confidence and no risk of falling. There were significant differences in ABC scale indexes between the faller and nonfaller groups (37% vs. 80%, P = 0.005). There were significant differences in activities such as walking around the house, climbing up and down stairs, picking up slippers from floor, reaching on tiptoes, standing on a chair to reach, walking outside to a nearby car, getting in/out of a car, walking across a parking lot, walking up and down a ramp, walking in a crowded mall between two groups of people, walking in a crowd (risk of bumping into other people), going up an escalator without rail assistance, and walking on an icy sidewalk between the two groups (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Nursing homes have a high rate of falls among older adults. The ABC scale can assess balance confidence and the risk of falling in older adults. To reduce or prevent falls, health-care professionals should screen those who are at high risk of falling and enroll them in a fall prevention program.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75326902","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evaluation of formaldehyde emissions by school supplies using a low-cost passive sampler and spectrophotometric determination","authors":"C. Furlan, Lúcia Helena Gomes Coelho","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_31_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_31_22","url":null,"abstract":"This article presents the development and application of a low-cost passive monitor for indoor formaldehyde (CH2O) monitoring. The system is based on the diffusion sampling of formaldehyde and the pararosaniline reaction on a collection filter, followed by the elution and analysis of the product by spectrophotometry. The system was validated against a standard atmosphere of formaldehyde with 99% of collection efficiency. The device was applied in the assessment of formaldehyde emissions for school supplies (glitter glue, modeling clay, crayons, glue stick, felt pen, and plastic ink), in which the highest concentrations of formaldehyde were obtained for the felt-tip pen (approximately, 170 μg/g) and the lesser to glue stick (14 μg/g). The application of the passive sampler in a primary classroom environment demonstrated that relative high levels of formaldehyde can be measured in schools are usually considered to be linked to the high density of furniture in the classrooms, but it was also verified that school supplies can significantly contribute in the concentrations of formaldehyde indoor when associated to poor ventilation.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79867981","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Human immunodeficiency virus self-testing in India: Time to move from evidence to implementation","authors":"S. Shrivastava, P. Shrivastava","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_6_23","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_6_23","url":null,"abstract":"The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has been regarded as a global public health concern. In the global mission to minimize the existing gap on the diagnostic front, a number of strategies to promote HIV testing have been encouraged in heterogeneous settings. Detection of HIV infection using self-testing kits has emerged as an important approach to ascertain the identification of new cases and for connecting the affected people with the health-care delivery system. It is quite an alarming fact that despite HIV is a major public health problem in India, we to date have no policy on the promotion of self-testing. The findings of a recently released report in India revealed that self-testing was found to be acceptable to vulnerable population groups and their partners. To conclude, acknowledging the merits that have been linked with self-testing and considering the encouraging results obtained in Indian settings, it is the need of the hour that policymakers draft the much-awaited policy on the promotion of HIV self-testing in the nation and promote it.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84762291","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Elevated neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio: A marker for potential short-term neurological deterioration in acute large vessel occlusion patients postmechanical thrombectomy","authors":"Yanling Wang, Xiaokun Geng, Zhe Cheng, Fengwu Li, Yuchuan Ding","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_12_23","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_12_23","url":null,"abstract":"Objective: This study aimed to determine the risk factors associated with short-term neurological decline in acute ischemic stroke patients with large vessel occlusion (LVO) who have undergone successful endovascular recanalization through mechanical thrombectomy. Subjects and Methods: We included 168 LVO patients who had successful recanalization in this study. We collected the patients' demographic data and related disease test results. We noted the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores at the onset and on the 7th day postonset. After comparing the NIHSS scores at these two time points, we analyzed the correlation between the collected data and the NIHSS scores. We selected the logistic regression model variables based on the correlation significance. We included gender, age, diastolic blood pressure, glycosylated hemoglobin, urea nitrogen, hemoglobin, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), low-density lipoprotein, and total protein in a logistic regression model. We used the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to evaluate the predictive power of NLR for deterioration. Results: Mechanical thrombectomy significantly lowered the median NIHSS score of LVO patients on the 7th day of onset, while a subset of patients experienced an increased NIHSS score. Correlation analysis revealed significant correlations between the NIHSS score at onset and diastolic pressure, white blood cell count, neutrophil count, creatinine, and urea nitrogen. On the 7th day postonset, NIHSS scores showed significant correlations with glycosylated hemoglobin, white blood cell count, neutrophil count, NLR, red blood cell count, hemoglobin, and urea nitrogen. Logistic regression analysis further revealed that patients with higher NLR are at significantly increased risk of short-term neurological decline. ROC analysis indicated that a higher NLR can serve as a diagnostic marker for potential adverse outcomes of mechanical thrombectomy. Conclusion: While mechanical thrombectomy substantially improves neurological deficits in LVO patients, some patients still experience deterioration. Higher NLR at stroke onset is associated with short-term neurological function decline in acute LVO patients postsuccessful recanalization.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86753986","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Prediction of the recurrence risk of Graves' disease after antithyroid drug therapy","authors":"Ying Fu, Qiang Zhang","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_23_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_23_22","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75826700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
N. Nannayakkara, Santhushya Hewapathirange, Ayesha Madagedara, R. Chandrajith
{"title":"A critical evaluation of anthropological, biochemical, and geo-climatic factors related to chronic kidney disease with unknown etiology in Sri Lanka","authors":"N. Nannayakkara, Santhushya Hewapathirange, Ayesha Madagedara, R. Chandrajith","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_27_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_27_22","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89676417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Sustaining and augmenting the pace of ongoing prevention and control activities to attain the goal of leprosy-free world","authors":"S. Shrivastava, P. Shrivastava","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_29_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_29_22","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72705460","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sahjid Mukhida, Sameena Khan, NikunjaKumar Das, Sabha Khan
{"title":"Marburg virus outbreak in Equatorial Guinea: Asian countries to act or not?","authors":"Sahjid Mukhida, Sameena Khan, NikunjaKumar Das, Sabha Khan","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_9_23","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_9_23","url":null,"abstract":"The Marburg virus is a filovirus that causes a severe, often fatal viral hemorrhagic fever known as Marburg virus disease (MVD).[1] It was first identified in 1967 in Germany among people who had come in contact with imported Ugandan green monkeys, and it is thought to have originated in bats. The disease initially spread to humans through contact with infected fruit bats and then continued to spread through interpersonal contact between humans.[2] The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that living conditions in mines or caves where bat colonies are located can be a risk of infection. This zoonotic disease is manifested by high fever, malaise, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, rash, and bleeding. Not contagious through the air, this disease is instead transmitted through personal contact with an infected person’s blood or other bodily fluids or with contaminated objects such as towels or clothing.[3] Recently, an epidemic broke out on February 13, 2023, in the northern Equatorial Guinean province and 12 deaths out of a total of 25 probable cases have been linked to the virus.[4] This is the third outbreak of MVD in the Guinean region in the last 3 years although outbreaks have been recorded every year and declared as being over in a few months.[5] In most cases, epidemics may be contained and brought to a rapid stop after the necessary actions have been taken.[6] In this regard, the WHO convened an urgent meeting to discuss the feasibility of testing Marburg vaccines that are in various stages of development throughout the world to see if any experimental vaccines offered any protection. However, scientists warn that the trial’s chances of success are low because the epidemic can be contained through measures like quarantine even before a single dose of vaccine is provided.[7] Considerations for conducting clinical trials of vaccinations against the Marburg virus in Equatorial Guinea can be troublesome or equally beneficial. This may provide valuable data on the safety of vaccines and the immune responses they generate in populations at risk of future outbreaks and can be evidence pointing toward the efficacy of vaccines. Despite the fact that MVD has a poor spread characteristic and their point of origin is far from Asia, we still need to be vigilant. To prevent MVD from spreading to Asian countries, we should take certain steps to ensure that travelers and visitors who came from the epicenter be thoroughly vetted. In addition, as outbreaks of MVD have been traced to humans who recently visited or worked in caves minimum of 21 days, community engagement with the preparation of proper control measures that include quarantine of suspected cases and rapid detection can help. Vaccines may not provide 100% protection from the disease but will surely give some assurance to the population after a successful trial. Furthermore, all international airports of outbreak region can use rapid diagnostic tests for MVD at the time of departure during the ongoing o","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136005097","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Empowering individual learners: Call for promoting inclusivity among medical students with different learning styles","authors":"SaurabhRamBihariLal Shrivastava, Novina Aryanti, Arief Wibawa","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_15_23","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_15_23","url":null,"abstract":"In the field of delivery of medical education, it is crucial that teachers acknowledge that every medical student possesses a unique learning style to acquire knowledge. There is an immense need to recognize and identify individual learning styles of medical students, and this is because of multiple reasons. Once we are aware of the importance and scope of learning styles in learning and career progression, it is the need of the hour that we must ensure inclusivity (accommodate and address the learning needs of students with varied learning styles). In conclusion, there is an immense need to be aware of the learning styles of medical students to facilitate the effective delivery of medical education. However, considering the variability in learning styles and their importance in facilitating the acquisition of knowledge and skills, it is crucial to promote an inclusive learning environment in each medical college.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136005087","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Necessity to employ a multifaceted approach to minimize the incidence of burns and associated sequels in low- and middle-income nations","authors":"S. Shrivastava, P. Shrivastava","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_30_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_30_22","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75843392","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}