Elrashdy M Redwan, Fatma Elrashdy, Alaa A A Aljabali, Wagner Baetas-da-Cruz, Debmalya Barh, Adam M Brufsky, Sk Sarif Hassan, Kenneth Lundstrom, Ángel Serrano-Aroca, Kazuo Takayama, Murtaza M Tambuwala, Bruce D Uhal, Vladimir N Uversky
{"title":"Would New SARS-CoV-2 Variants Change the War against COVID-19?","authors":"Elrashdy M Redwan, Fatma Elrashdy, Alaa A A Aljabali, Wagner Baetas-da-Cruz, Debmalya Barh, Adam M Brufsky, Sk Sarif Hassan, Kenneth Lundstrom, Ángel Serrano-Aroca, Kazuo Takayama, Murtaza M Tambuwala, Bruce D Uhal, Vladimir N Uversky","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/epidemiologia3020018","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The scientific, private, and industrial sectors use a wide variety of technological platforms available to achieve protection against SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2), including vaccines. However, the virus evolves continually into new highly virulent variants, which might overcome the protection provided by vaccines and may re-expose the population to infections. Mass vaccinations should be continued in combination with more or less mandatory non-pharmaceutical interventions. Therefore, the key questions to be answered are: (i) How to identify the primary and secondary infections of SARS-CoV-2? (ii) Why are neutralizing antibodies not long-lasting in both cases of natural infections and post-vaccinations? (iii) Which are the factors responsible for this decay in neutralizing antibodies? (iv) What strategy could be adapted to develop long-term herd immunity? (v) Is the Spike protein the only vaccine target or is a vaccine cocktail better?</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 2","pages":"229-237"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620871/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10673466","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"To Boost or Not to Boost: Acceptability of a COVID-19 Booster Dose among Osteopathic Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study from a Medical School in New York.","authors":"Taysir Al Janabi, Maria Pino","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020017","DOIUrl":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020017","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, with new variants emerging and vaccine-induced immunity waning. Protecting and retaining the healthcare force remains crucial in fighting this pandemic, as healthcare workers (HCWs) are a critical driver in increasing vaccine uptake among the public. This study explored the uptake of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) booster shots among medical students at the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYITCOM). Predictors for actual booster uptake were also examined. An electronic survey was distributed to Osteopathic Medical Students (OMS I-IV) in January 2022. The survey was distributed to 1762 students total, with 319 responses received (18%). Of those who responded, 70.2% (224/319) reported that they had already received a booster, while 29.5% (94/319) reported they had not yet received it. We identified that pharmaceutical mistrust, building long-lasting immunity via vaccines, and vaccines' adverse effects were the most significant predictors for how willing participants were to accept a booster dose. Vaccine hesitancy around the COVID-19 booster was prevalent during the surge of the highly transmissible variant Omicron. This finding necessitates some evidence-based approaches to enhance booster uptake among a population subgroup whose impact is critical.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 2","pages":"218-228"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620892/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10673468","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gainha Kim, Justine M Natuplag, Sui Jin Lin, Jinyi Feng, Nicolas Ray
{"title":"Balancing Public & Economic Health in Japan during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Descriptive Analysis.","authors":"Gainha Kim, Justine M Natuplag, Sui Jin Lin, Jinyi Feng, Nicolas Ray","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/epidemiologia3020016","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Despite loose restrictions and a low mortality rate due to COVID-19, Japan faced the challenge of stabilizing its economy during the pandemic. Here, we analyzed how the Japanese government attempted to maintain a balance between the health of the population and the health of the economy. We used a mix of quantitative data, information from policy documents, and news agency publications. Features of the Japanese government's handling of the pandemic include the lack of constitutional authority to enforce a lockdown, the laxer restrictions compared with other countries in which citizens were advised only to exercise self-restraint and avoid close social contact, and the existence of expert panels that had only an advisory role. Our findings address the slow initial response of the government, which feared that the 2020 Tokyo Olympics would be canceled, and the increased testing when the Olympics were postponed, as well as the expansion of vaccination efforts after the Olympics. In addition, there was a targeted campaign to promote national travel to increase economic revenue in the tourism sector, but this led to an increase in COVID-19 cases.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 2","pages":"199-217"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620936/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10673464","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Prevention and Control Strategies for Non-Communicable Disease: Goldberger, Pellagra and Rose Revisited.","authors":"John W Frank","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020015","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/epidemiologia3020015","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This paper argues that the public health conceptual framework of epidemiologist Geoffrey Rose, first published as \"Sick Individuals and Sick Populations\" in 1985, provides a useful way to critically analyze prevention and control options for modern non-communicable diseases (NCD) and their forerunner, obesity, a pandemic now engulfing Lower-and-Middle-Income-Countries. That framework is based on the notions of primordial, primary, secondary and tertiary prevention-the full spectrum of \"more upstream and more downstream\" approaches, each with its pros and cons. These are illustrated using the pellagra epidemic in the southeastern USA from 1900 to the 1940s, which still has much to teach us about these same basic policy options for controlling the modern NCD pandemic. In particular, Rose's dictum, \"Seek the causes of (population) incidence, not of (individual) cases\", points up the compelling advantages of upstream prevention for controlling both epidemics.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 2","pages":"191-198"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620930/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10690451","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alberto Arnedo-Pena, Maria Angeles Romeu-Garcia, Juan Carlos Gascó-Laborda, Noemi Meseguer-Ferrer, Lourdes Safont-Adsuara, Laura Prades-Vila, Matilde Flores-Medina, Viorica Rusen, Maria Dolores Tirado-Balaguer, Susana Sabater-Vidal, Maria Gil-Fortuño, Oscar Pérez-Olaso, Noelia Hernández-Pérez, Rosario Moreno-Muñoz, Juan Bellido-Blasco
{"title":"Incidence, Mortality, and Risk Factors of COVID-19 in Nursing Homes.","authors":"Alberto Arnedo-Pena, Maria Angeles Romeu-Garcia, Juan Carlos Gascó-Laborda, Noemi Meseguer-Ferrer, Lourdes Safont-Adsuara, Laura Prades-Vila, Matilde Flores-Medina, Viorica Rusen, Maria Dolores Tirado-Balaguer, Susana Sabater-Vidal, Maria Gil-Fortuño, Oscar Pérez-Olaso, Noelia Hernández-Pérez, Rosario Moreno-Muñoz, Juan Bellido-Blasco","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020014","DOIUrl":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020014","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>During the period from March 2020 to January 2021, we performed an analysis of incidence, mortality, and risk factors of COVID-19 in nursing homes (NHs) in two health departments (HDs) of Castellon (Spain) 2021 through epidemiological surveillance and an ecological design. Laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases, cumulative incidence rate (CIR), and mortality rate (MR) of 27 NHs were collected. Information of residents, staff, and facilities was obtained by questionnaire. Multilevel Poisson regression models were applied. All NHs in the HDs participated with 2229 residents (median: 83 years old, 67.3% women) and 1666 staff. Among residents, 815 cases (CIR: 34.8 per 100) and 202 deaths (MR: 8.7 per 100, case fatality 21.0%) were reported and, among staff, 296 cases (CIR: 19.2 per 100) without deaths. Residents' CIR and MR increased with staff CIR, age of the building, residents/staff ratios, occupancy rate, and crowding index; CIR increased with private NH ownership, large NH size, large urban area, and the percentage of women residents; and MR was associated with residents' severe disabilities. In conclusion, several risk factors of COVID-19 incidence and mortality can be prevented by improving infection and quality controls, ameliorating residents/staff ratios, improving structural facilities, and increasing NH public ownership to avoid new outbreaks.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 2","pages":"179-190"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620907/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10690452","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Impact of COVID-19 on Food Security in Ethiopia.","authors":"Wenqin Zhang, Léo Persoz, Sandrine Hakiza, Loza Biru, Lemlem Girmatsion","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020013","DOIUrl":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020013","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Since the outbreak of COVID-19, its effects on different aspects of life have been subject to much research, including food security, a domain that has been of special concern in many low-income countries. Ethiopia has been facing many challenges related to food security for decades via drought, famine, and conflict. Within this context, this case study assessed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food security in Ethiopia. Results show that the ongoing pandemic has negatively impacted different regions and at-risk groups in a heterogeneous manner. This has been mainly through disruptions in the Ethiopian food value chain and the relative failure of social security programmes to address the losses generated by COVID-19. The population in the capital city, Addis Ababa, was able to maintain the same level of food security despite income losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, at-risk groups such as refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and conflict affected regions were seen to suffer significantly from food insecurity exacerbated by COVID-19. Furthermore, this paper particularly emphasizes the importance of considering contextual factors other than COVID-19, such as conflicts or climate change, when discussing the state of food security in Ethiopia.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 2","pages":"161-178"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620917/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10690450","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Maraika Geisterfer-Black, Taylor Niemi, Leonie Neier, Victor G Rodwin
{"title":"Trust in the U.S. Government and Its Health Agencies in the Time of COVID-19.","authors":"Maraika Geisterfer-Black, Taylor Niemi, Leonie Neier, Victor G Rodwin","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3020012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/epidemiologia3020012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This article examines the factors affecting Americans' trust in their federal government and its health agencies during the COVID-19 public health crisis. More specifically, we examine the evolution of Americans' trust in their government and health system and how, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic response, it has been affected by multiple factors. Several academic journals, government policy recommendations and public health polls were evaluated to understand the public's trust in the federal government and its health institutions. Public trust in institutions during a global pandemic is essential in influencing adherence to a pandemic response (both non-pharmaceutical and medical interventions). Americans' trust in institutions is built and maintained by a variety of factors. We focus on: political polarization and involvement, media influence and health communications, history of systemic racism and socioeconomic inequalities, and pandemic fatigue. Based on the interplay of these factors, we conclude with recommendations for future pandemic response strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 2","pages":"148-160"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620942/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10690447","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alicia Blair, Mattia de Pasquale, Valentin Gabeff, Mélanie Rufi, Antoine Flahault
{"title":"The End of the Elimination Strategy: Decisive Factors towards Sustainable Management of COVID-19 in New Zealand.","authors":"Alicia Blair, Mattia de Pasquale, Valentin Gabeff, Mélanie Rufi, Antoine Flahault","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3010011","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/epidemiologia3010011","url":null,"abstract":"New Zealand has long been praised for the effectiveness of its COVID-19 elimination strategy. It resulted in fewer COVID-19-related deaths, better economic recovery, and less stringent policy measures within its borders compared with other OECD countries, which opted for mitigation or suppression. However, since September 2021, the rising number of infections has not been contained anymore by the contact tracing and self-isolation system in place and the government has shifted towards a policy strategy similar to suppression to manage the crisis. In this case study, we analyse the factors that led the government to switch policy and discuss why elimination became unsustainable to manage the COVID-19 epidemic in New Zealand. Results showed that the socioeconomic and political factors, along with the appearance of new variants and a delayed vaccination program, were accountable for the switch in strategy. This switch allows the country to better adapt to the evolving nature of the disease and to address the social and economic repercussions of the first year of measures. Our conclusion does not disregard elimination as an appropriate initial strategy to contain this pandemic in the absence of a vaccine or treatment, but rather suggests that borders cannot remain closed for long periods of time without creating social, economical, and political issues.","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 1","pages":"135-147"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620908/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10324203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Suman Bhowmick, Khushal Khan Kasi, Jörn Gethmann, Susanne Fischer, Franz J Conraths, Igor M Sokolov, Hartmut H K Lentz
{"title":"Ticks on the Run: A Mathematical Model of Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF)-Key Factors for Transmission.","authors":"Suman Bhowmick, Khushal Khan Kasi, Jörn Gethmann, Susanne Fischer, Franz J Conraths, Igor M Sokolov, Hartmut H K Lentz","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3010010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/epidemiologia3010010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a zoonotic disease caused by the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV). Ticks of the genus <i>Hyalomma</i> are the main vectors and represent a reservoir for the virus. CCHF is maintained in nature in an endemic vertebrate-tick-vertebrate cycle. The disease is prevalent in wide geographical areas including Asia, Africa, South-Eastern Europe and the Middle East. It is of great importance for the public health given its occasionally high case/fatality ratio of CCHFV in humans. Climate change and the detection of possible CCHFV vectors in Central Europe suggest that the establishment of the transmission in Central Europe may be possible in future. We have developed a compartment-based nonlinear Ordinary Differential Equation (ODE) system to model the disease transmission cycle including blood sucking ticks, livestock and human. Sensitivity analysis of the basic reproduction number R0 shows that decreasing the tick survival time is an efficient method to control the disease. The model supports us in understanding the influence of different model parameters on the spread of CCHFV. Tick-to-tick transmission through co-feeding and the CCHFV circulation through transstadial and transovarial transmission are important factors to sustain the disease cycle. The proposed model dynamics are calibrated through an empirical multi-country analysis and multidimensional plot reveals that the disease-parameter sets of different countries burdened with CCHF are different. This information may help decision makers to select efficient control strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 1","pages":"116-134"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620928/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10384482","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Infectious Diseases in Brazil: A Case Study on Dengue Infections.","authors":"Federico Borre, Juliette Ildiko Borri, Yuval Zoy Cohen, Mariana Gasparoto, Tsewang Bhumchok Gurung","doi":"10.3390/epidemiologia3010009","DOIUrl":"10.3390/epidemiologia3010009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Brazil is known for being a breeding ground for emerging infectious diseases (EIDs), such as Zika, dengue, and chikungunya. Given that it has been one of the countries most affected by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, this article aims to analyze the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the burden of infectious diseases in Brazil, especially that of dengue. Brazil is a unique territory with a heterogeneous population living in a tropical, wet climate favorable to infectious diseases. In addition, despite being one of the largest emerging economies in the world, the country has been exposed to political instability and a public health system that suffers from large funding shortfalls and a lack of coherent regulation. The findings from this study are multilayered. Firstly, as cases of COVID-19 rose at the start of the pandemic, cases of dengue declined drastically. This may be due, in part, to factors such as seasonal climate and distancing measures. Furthermore, the findings indicate that the diversion of resources away from dengue and other infectious diseases, and mobilization for COVID-19 testing and treatment, likely resulted in a serious underreporting of dengue. While Brazil has incorporated some of the lessons learned from past EID experience in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, the analysis highlights how the country's structural problems present pitfalls in the epidemiological fight. It was concluded that in a country such as Brazil, where infectious disease outbreaks are only a matter of time, pandemic preparedness should be prioritized over pandemic response.</p>","PeriodicalId":72944,"journal":{"name":"Epidemiolgia (Basel, Switzerland)","volume":"3 1","pages":"97-115"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9620889/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10324207","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}