Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita最新文献

{"title":"Human semen quality and environmental and occupational exposure to pollutants: A systematic review.","authors":"L Cofone,&nbsp;I Pindinello,&nbsp;G D'Ancona,&nbsp;F Grassi,&nbsp;A Antonucci,&nbsp;M Vitali,&nbsp;C Protano","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2581","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2581","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The aim of the present systematic review was to evaluate the correlation between the exposure to environmental and/or occupational pollutants and possible alteration of semen quality, focalizing the attention on the studies performed using a biomonitoring approach.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The review was conducted from inception to May 11 2023, according to the PRISMA Statement 2020 and using the following databases: Scopus, Pubmed and Web of Science. The protocol was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42023405607). Studies were considered eligible if they reported data about the association between exposure to environmental pollutants and alteration of semen quality using human biomonitoring. The quality assessment was carried out by the use of the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In total, 21 articles were included, conducted in several countries. The main matrices used for biomonitoring were urine and blood and the most sought-after contaminants were bisphenols, phthalates, pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, heavy metals and other inorganic trace elements. The results of the studies demonstrated a significant positive correlation between the increase of the pollutants' levels in the biological matrices examined and some alterations of the semen quality indicators, such as a decrease in motility, concentration and morphology of the spermatozoa.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Male fertility can be negatively affected by the exposure to environmental and/or occupational pollutants. Human biomonitoring programs may be considered a useful tool for specific surveillance programs devoted to early highlight subjects who are more exposed to environmental pollutants in order to reduce risk exposure.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 6","pages":"660-669"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41097723","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":"The role of air temperature in Legionella water contamination and legionellosis incidence rates in southern Italy (2018-2023).","authors":"M T Montagna, S Brigida, F Fasano, C M Leone, M D'Ambrosio, V Spagnuolo, M Lopuzzo, F Apollonio, F Triggiano, M E Caringella, O De Giglio","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2578","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2578","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Background: &lt;/strong&gt;Legionnaires' disease is caused by inhalation or aspiration of small water droplets contaminated with Legionella, commonly found in natural and man-made water systems and in moist soil. Over the past 5 years, notification rates of this disease have almost doubled in the European Union (EU) / European Environmental Agency (EEA), from 1.4 in 2015 to 2.2 cases per 100,000 population in 2019. Some studies show that the greater presence of the microorganism in the water network and the increase in cases of legionellosis could be related to the variations in some environmental factors, such as air temperature, which may influence the water temperature.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Study design: &lt;/strong&gt;Climate change is currently a prominent topic worldwide because of its significant impact on the natural environment. It is responsible for the increase in numerous waterborne pathologies. The purpose of this study was to correlate the air temperature recorded in Apulia region from January 2018 to April 2023 with the presence of Legionella in the water networks of public and private facilities and the incidence rates of legionellosis during the same period.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Methods: &lt;/strong&gt;During the period from January 2018 to April 2023, water samples were collected from facilities involved in legionellosis cases and analyzed for Legionella. During the same period, all the cases notified to the regional epidemiological observatory (OER-Apulia) were included in this study. Statistical analyses were conducted using the Shapiro-Wilk test to determine whether the Legionella load was distributed normally, the Wilcoxon rank sum test to compare the air temperatures (average and range) of the negative and positive samples for Legionella detection, and the multivariate analysis (Poisson regression) to compare the Legionella load with the water sample temperature, average air temperature, and temperature range on the day of sampling. The Wilcoxon test for paired samples was used to compare legionellosis cases between the warmer and colder months.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results: &lt;/strong&gt;Overall, 13,044 water samples were analyzed for Legionella and 460 cases of legionellosis were notified. Legionella was isolated in 20.1% of the samples examined. The difference in the air temperature between negative samples and positive samples was statistically significant (p-value &lt; 0.0001): on days when water samples tested positive for Legionella a higher temperature range was observed than on days when water samples tested negative (p-value = 0.004). Poisson regression showed a direct correlation between Legionella load, water temperature, and average air temperature. The incidence of legionellosis cases in warmer months was higher than in colder months (p-value = 0.03).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions: &lt;/strong&gt;Our study highlights a significant increase in the load of Legionella in the Apulian water network, and an association between warmer temperatures and legionello","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 6","pages":"631-640"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41100203","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":"Attitudes and perceptions of Italian Students in Healthcare Settings on COVID-19 vaccines and vaccinations strategies, one year after the immunization campaign.","authors":"A Bechini,&nbsp;A Vannacci,&nbsp;C Salvati,&nbsp;G Crescioli,&nbsp;N Lombardi,&nbsp;F Chiesi,&nbsp;J Shtylla,&nbsp;M Del Riccio,&nbsp;P Bonanni,&nbsp;S Boccalini","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2584","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7416/ai.2023.2584","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The topic of vaccine confidence is increasingly relevant, particularly due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the global distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. This issue is even more critical for students in healthcare settings, given their future role not only as vaccine recipients but also as advocates for vaccination. In light of this, achieving a good level of vaccine acceptance is crucial. Hence, the aim of our study was to evaluate the attitudes and perceptions of healthcare students regarding vaccines and COVID- 19 vaccination.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Medical and pharmaceutical area students attended an Elective Teaching Activity on COVID-19 vaccines and vaccination campaign, organized at the University of Florence (Italy) and participated in filling two anonymous questionnaires. The first questionnaire was submitted before the Elective Teaching Activity was focused on students' attitudes and perceptions toward vaccines. The second questionnaire was designed to evaluate the students' satisfaction with the course topics. Both descriptive and inferential analyses were performed on the results. In addition, the Vaccine Confidence Index was calculated to evaluate the propensity of students toward vaccinations.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 423 students attended the Elective Teaching Activity in the early beginnings of 2022. Overall, students have shown greater confidence in vaccines, compared to COVID-19 vaccines, especially as regards the safety profile. Students' Vaccine Confidence Index was very close to 0.25 value, which indicates being in favor of vaccinations. Nevertheless, in the satisfaction questionnaire filled in at the end of the course, the percentage of students in favor of COVID-19 vaccination increased for both medical (from 94% to 99%) and pharmaceutical area students (from 81% to 97%).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our study suggests that educational activities such as this Elective Teaching Activity, could be considered an effective teaching strategy to improve vaccine acceptance rates among students in healthcare settings.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71419951","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":"The \"Nutritional Prevention\" within Italy's National Prevention Plan 2020-25.","authors":"E Alonzo, G Bonaccorsi, G Cairella, V Carreri, E Guberti, D Nucci, M F Panunzio, E Valerio","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2569","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2569","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>Italy's National Prevention Plan 2020-25 is the first to address nutritional prevention, highlighting its importance in combating chronic diseases. This letter discusses the relationship between food safety, nutritional security, and the need for nutritional prevention in the plan. Chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes, are significant public health concerns in Italy, with poor nutrition being a critical risk factor. Incorporating nutritional prevention can promote healthy eating habits, food security and sustainability, reduce healthcare costs, and promote social cohesion and equality. Successful implementation will require cooperation among the government, the private sector, and the civil society to ensure healthier food choices and prevent chronic diseases in Italy.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 5","pages":"611-613"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9680844","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":"Ensuring safety requirement to home food and home restaurant: focus on a regional experience based on sector legislation, and future perspectives.","authors":"P Marzocca, D Daleno, G B Orsi, C Napoli, V Marcotrigiano","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2563","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2563","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>The sharing economy provides many new business opportunities, particularly in local areas where culinary traditions guarantee major appreciable sensorial features. In this context, home food and home restaurant find their place. The first one refers to businesses that, in a home kitchen or in premises used mainly as a private home, produce food for retail, while the second one is defined as food businesses producing and administering food and beverages in a private dwelling house. This manuscript analyses the sector legi-slation applicable to these new business forms, the adherence to the requirements prescribed by the recent guidelines, the executive compliance applicable to the inspection phases, as well as the perspectives and future challenges that healthcare workers designated for food safety official controls will face.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 5","pages":"501-510"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9680847","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":"Knowledge, attitudes and adherence towards influenza and other vaccinations among healthcare workers at the University Hospital of Palermo, Italy, during the first COVID-19 pandemic season (2020/2021).","authors":"C Costantino, N Bonaccorso, F Balsamo, M Belluzzo, A Carubia, L D'Azzo, F Grimaldi, M Sciortino, T Vitello, L Zagra, G Graziano, C M Maida, C M Maida, A Pieri, W Mazzucco, F Tramuto, F Vitale, V Restivo","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2568","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2568","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Increasing adherence to influenza vaccination among healthcare workers is a public health priority, stated that actually remains far below than international recommendations. During the 2020/2021 pandemic season, COVID-19 vaccines were not yet available until the end of December 2020, and influenza vaccines were the only one available to protect against seasonal respiratory diseases. The main objective of the present study was to assess knowledge, attitudes and adherence to influenza and other vaccinations recommended by the National Immunization Plan 2017-2021 for healthcare workers.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Enrollment lasted from October and December 2020 at the vaccination unit of the University Hospital of Palermo. Data were collected through an anonymous and self-administered questionnaire, divided into 5 sections and 31 items.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among 734 healthcare professionals that completed the survey, a significantly higher adherence to influenza vaccination was observed among healthcare workers that were more prone to receive COVID-19 vaccination (OR=4.02; 95% CI: 1.63-9.91). Moreover, higher influenza vaccination rates were observed among healthcare professionals that received influenza vaccination during previous 2019/2020 season (OR=15.3; 95% CI: 5.17-45.1) and that were favorable to the possible impact on increasing adherence of influenza mandatory vaccination (OR=4.88; 95% CI: 2.43-9.80).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Propensity of healthcare workers to undergo vaccinations recommended in the National Immunization Plan increased during the first pandemic season. At the end of the vaccination season, flu vaccination coverage reached highest rates ever at the University Hospital of Palermo (around 60%), remaining anyway below the recommended minimum value of 75%. During next seasonal flu vaccination campaigns, it becomes essential to promote communication and information strategies to increase flu vaccination among healthcare workers, also focusing on co-administration with the anti-COVID-19 booster/seasonal doses.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 5","pages":"560-571"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9673933","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":"Evaluating the effect of COVID-19 incidence on Emergency Departments admissions. Results from a retrospective study in Central Italy during the first year of pandemic.","authors":"C Quercioli, R Bosco, G Bova, M Mandò, M F De Marco, S Dei, R Gusinu, G Messina","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2570","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2570","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on the Healthcare System, changing the patterns of Emergency Department access. In fact, accesses for trauma and less severe cases decreased significantly. This decline has generally been attributed to both the effects of the lockdown, imposed by the government, and the fear of being infected by SARS-CoV-2 in the hospital. However, the correlation between these elements is not yet clear, since the accesses to the Emergency Department did not increase either at the end of the lockdown or in the summer when the epidemiological situation was more favorable. Aim: To evaluate the association between trends of Emergency Department accesses and COVID-19 incidence in 2020.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Data on Emergency Department accesses, by month and severity triage code, from 14 hospitals in southeastern Tuscany (Italy) were obtained from hospitals' data warehouse. Official data on new cases of COVID-19 infection were used to calculate incidence. Hospitals were classified into 4 categories. Differences in Emergency Department access by month, triage code, and hospital type were investigated using Kruskal-Wallis analysis. Association between Emergency Department accesses and COVID-19 incidence was evaluated using a random-effect panel data analysis, adjusting for hospital type and triage code.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The trend of 268,072 Emergency Department accesses decreases substantially at the first pandemic peak; thereafter, it increased and decreased again until the minimum peak in November 2020. COVID-19 incidence appeared to be overlapping with an inverse direction. Monthly differences were significant (p<0.01) except for most severe codes. There was a significant inverse association between Emergency Department accesses and COVID-19 incidence (Coef. =-0.074, p<0.001) except for most severe cases (triage code 1: Coef. =-0.028, p=0.154).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Emergency Department admissions trend followed the COVID-19 incidence, except for the most severe cases. Fear of infection seems to discourage patients from accessing Emergency Department for illnesses perceived as not serious.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 5","pages":"572-585"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9680845","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":"Psychometric properties of the Telugu version of Rosenberg Self-esteem scale (RSES-T).","authors":"A L Billa, J R Sukhabogi, D Doshi, S Jummala","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2564","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2564","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale (RSES) is the most commonly used tool for measuring global self-esteem. Till date, RSES has been translated into different languages and the reports are good for their validity and reliability. Telugu being the fourth most spoken language in India, it is timely to translate and validate the Telugu version of RSES. The aim of this study thus is to assess the psychometric properties of the Telugu version of Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale (RSES-T).</p><p><strong>Study design: </strong>Cross-sectional study.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study was carried out to assess the psychometric properties of RSES-T among undergraduate students of a dental college. For this purpose, the English version of RSES was translated into Telugu and was administered to the participants along with the revised English version of Self-Liking/Self-Competence Scale (SL/SC-R) to evaluate the construct validity. The internal consistency of RSES-T was assessed using Cronbach´s α and the temporal stability was tested by test-retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to examine the underlying dimensional structure of the questionnaire by assessing the cor-relation of RSES-T with SL/SC-R.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a positive one-factor structure with Model 3 showing the best fit to data. Internal consistency for RSES-T was found to be good with Cronbach's α of 0.82 at follow-up and the test-retest reliability was found to be satisfactory (0.42) after a two weeks' interval. Furthermore, the item-wise mean score differences showed higher scores for male students than females. Likewise, the item-total correlation of RSES-T showed positive correlation with scores varying from 0.17 to 0.69 at the follow-up.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The Telugu version of RSES exhibited a unidimensional structure and showed good psychometric properties in terms of internal consistency, construct validity and reliability. Hence, these findings provide empirical support to evaluate global self-esteem among Telugu speaking population in future.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 5","pages":"511-520"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9682886","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":"Correlation of self-esteem with oral hygiene behaviour and oral health status among adult dental patients.","authors":"A L Billa, J R Sukhabogi, D Doshi, S Jummala, S S Turaga","doi":"10.7416/ai.2023.2565","DOIUrl":"10.7416/ai.2023.2565","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Self-esteem is a psychological construct that has been consistently linked to general and oral health. However, most studies interpolating self-esteem and oral health behaviour have been focused on children and adolescents, and there is a dearth of scientific literature on adults. Hence, this study, that is aimed to correlate self-esteem with oral hygiene behaviour and oral health status in Telugu-speaking adult dental patients.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional study involving adult dental patients who were 35-44 years of age and visited the Government Dental Hospital in Hyderabad city, India, was conducted. Self-esteem was assessed using the Telugu-translated version of the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, oral health behaviour was determined using the Oral Hygiene Behaviour Index and oral health assessment was performed using the World Health Organization Dentition status, the modified Community Periodontal Index and the Loss of Attachment.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 456 patients were included in this study. Most of the participants reported low self-esteem, with a mean score of 11.8 ± 2.7. Patients with primary school education reported higher self-esteem scores than those with high school and university education (p = 0.0001). Furthermore, low Oral Hygiene Behaviour Index scores (64.9%) in the study population and high Decayed, Missing, Filled Teeth scores in females (5.7 ± 4.4; p = 0.09) were noted. None of the variables (Decayed, Missing, Filled Teeth scores, Oral Hygiene Behaviour, gingival bleeding and Loss of Attachment) were significantly correlated with self-esteem. Multivariable regression analysis revealed that younger age, lower educational level and presence of dental caries resulted in higher odds for high self-esteem (p < 0.01).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The findings indicated a significant association between self-esteem and oral health. Indivi-duals with dental caries had significantly higher odds for high self-esteem. Thus, this study emphasises the relevance of psychosocial factors, such as self-esteem, as the mediator of oral health.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"35 5","pages":"534-545"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9682887","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":"Z-Drugs and their use in Drug-Facilitated Crimes: a review of the literature.","authors":"G Volonnino,&nbsp;R La Russa,&nbsp;N Di Fazio,&nbsp;M Ottaviani,&nbsp;M V Zamponi,&nbsp;F Spadazzi,&nbsp;F Umani-Ronchi","doi":"10.7417/CT.2023.2465","DOIUrl":"10.7417/CT.2023.2465","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Z-Drugs are a category of non-benzodiazepine sedative-hypnotic drugs that include Zolpidem, Zopiclone and Zaleplon. They are all rapidly adsorbed and have a very short half- life, features that make them first-line treatment of insomnia and, in the meantime, first-choice drugs in cases of poisoning for criminal purposes. Z-drugs are frequently use in Drug Facilitated Crime cases (DFC) and Drug Facilitated Sexual Assault (DFSA), namely crimes, robberies, extortion and sexual violence committed after administration of incapacitating substances able to induce sedative-hypnotic effects. In these circumstances, the psychoactive substance is considered as a weapon and constitutes an aggravating circumstance in the criminal act: accordingly, judicial authority legitimates the analytical determination of these substances. Currently, few tests able to detect such drugs are available in daily clinical practice.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>The aim of this work is to evaluate the effective utilization of Z-Drugs.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We have analyzed the literature, focusing on cases in which the criminal use of such incapacitating substances has been demonstrated. Relevant scientific articles were identified from PubMed, Cochrane Central, Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct, EMBASE up to December 2022 using the following keywords: \"z-drugs\", \"drug facilitated crime\", \"forensic toxicology\". The resulting references were screened to exclude duplicates. In addition, non-English papers were excluded. This evaluation left 10 articles (8 case reports and 2 original studies) divided as follows: 1 case report of a DFC (robbery), 6 cases of confirmed DFSA, 3 cases of suspected DFSA, 2 original studies about DFC.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The totality of the selected cases showed positive toxicological tests for a single intake of z-drugs.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This work has shown the limitations of screening tests currently in use in the emergency rooms. Forensic toxicology tests should be introduced in daily clinical practice.</p>","PeriodicalId":7999,"journal":{"name":"Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita","volume":"174 5","pages":"451-468"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41100202","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}