International Journal of Environmental Health Research最新文献

Changsha, a city of 10 million people in China, has complex patterns of influenza activities. There is limited evidence on how temperature influences influenza activity across different populations in a subtropical region. We collected influenza surveillance data from all medical facilities in Changsha City from 2017 to 2023. The effects of temperature on various influenza indicators, including daily frequency of influenza, influenza-like illness (ILI) rate, influenza A (FluA) rate, and influenza B (FluB) rate, were assessed using the distributed lag nonlinear model. This study revealed temperature exhibited the most significant impact on influenza activity. The low temperature (below 10°C) increased the effect on all influenza indicators, while the high temperature (above 25°C) primarily enhanced the effect on FluA and ILI rates. The impact on populations aged 6-17 years was significantly stronger than on other groups. The research results could provide reference for influenza prediction and early warning.

Control measures for disinfectant pollution and related anthropogenic behaviors are required. Benzalkonium chloride (BAC) with widespread use especially in hand sanitization is highlighted as a representative disinfectant emerging contaminant. This cross-sectional survey was conducted to assess the knowledge, attitudes, practice regarding BAC use for hand hygiene among medical students from the perspective of environmental sustainability. Of the 703 responding students, only 3.7% had never used hand sanitizer products containing BAC. But few students paid attention to the "environmental friendliness" property of products when consumption. Mean knowledge test score was 1.90 out of 5, suggesting poor knowledge regarding BAC use. Most students had positive attitudes toward source control of BAC pollution and strong intentions to learn more about environmental knowledge related to BAC and other disinfectants. Data indicated that medical students had positive attitudes but lacked knowledge and practices towards eco-friendly disinfectant use, thus further training and practice standards are required.

This study explores the effect of climate factors on dengue incidence in Bangladesh and Singapore from 2000 to 2020. Various forecasting models, including Seasonal ARIMA, Poisson regression, artificial neural networks (ANN), support vector machines (SVM), and other statistical techniques, were applied to forecast dengue trends and generate future datasets. The results showed that Bangladesh has higher mean temperatures. The Poisson regression indicated that rainfall positively correlated with dengue cases in Bangladesh, while humidity and sunshine showed negative associations. In Singapore, temperature was positively associated with dengue cases, while rainfall and humidity had inverse relationships. ARIMA models predicted Singapore would experience the highest dengue cases by 2023. Based on the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), the TBATS model was most accurate for predicting dengue cases in Bangladesh, while both ARIMA and TBATS models performed well in Singapore. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers in Singapore and Bangladesh to develop climate-based warning systems.

The objective of this study was to determine the presence of C. difficile in seafood, to identify the ribotype of isolates, to reveal the distribution of their toxinogenic genes and to evaluate the antibiotic susceptibility of C. difficile strains. For this purpose, a total of 755 seafood samples were analysed. Sixteen isolates were verified as C. difficile [14 (5.28%) bivalve molluscs and 2 (2.0%) shrimp] whereas none of the ribotypes detected were human pathogenic ribotypes. Among C. difficile isolates only one of the bivalve mollusc (RT003) was found to be toxigenic (A+B+CDT+) that had also toxin-producing ability. All isolates were sensitive to vancomycin and resistant to cefotaxime. Results of this study indicate that the rate of C. difficile in seafood is much lower than in meat or poultry products. However, consumption of raw or undercooked contaminated bivalve molluscs could be a potential source of C. difficile that may pose a risk to human health.

This study examined the potential of vanillic acid (VA) to protect against renal oxidative stress and inflammation caused by sodium arsenite (SA) in mice. Mice were assigned to five groups: control, VA (100 mg/kg), SA (50 ppm in drinking water for 8 weeks), and SA + VA (50 and 100 mg/kg orally in the 7th and 8th weeks). After the experiment was ended, the Mice were sacrificed and serum and renal tissue samples were collected for additional assessments. Treatment with VA suppressed SA-induced increase in blood urea nitrogen and creatinine in the serum. Furthermore, renal histological damage induced by SA administration was ameliorated with VA treatment. Also, the increase in the level of lipid peroxidation marker (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances) along with the reduction in total thiol levels and the diminished activities of antioxidant enzymes (catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase) in the renal tissue of SA-treated mice were effectively reversed following treatment with VA. The results exhibited that the VA-treated groups (50 and 100 mg/kg) mitigated the elevation of inflammatory markers in kidney tissue (tumor necrosis factor-α and nitric oxide) in SA-exposed mice. Our research findings indicate that VA could be a potential therapeutic agent for the management of SA-associated nephrotoxicity.

Naturally occurring radionuclides in soil, water, and plants, including spices, pose potential health risks. Given the widespread use of spices in culinary practices, it is crucial to assess the potential health risks associated with their natural radionuclides content. This study determines the activity concentrations of natural radionuclides in locally processed and imported spices from markets in Delta and Ogun States, Nigeria, using gamma spectrometry. Monte Carlo simulations estimated the probabilistic distribution of cancer risk over a lifetime of exposure. The results revealed significant variability in the activity concentrations of ⁴⁰K, ²²⁶Ra, and ²³²Th among the spice samples. The mean committed effective doses due to ingestion were 10.56 µSv/y, 9.82 µSv/y, and 6.87 µSv/y for locally produced and imported spices, respectively. Both deterministic and probabilistic analyses show that the cancer risk values fall within the acceptable range of 10^-6 to 10^-4, indicating minimal risk from ingestion of natural radionuclides in spices.

This study investigates the association between climate and childhood asthma in Australia. Data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) was used to analyse this association in children who were 6-15 years between 2004 and 2018. Asthma prevalence decreased from 16% at 6-7 years to 13% at 14-15 years. Associations between climate zones and childhood asthma were observed in Zone 4 (hot dry Summer, cold Winter; Odds Ratio [OR]: 1.31; 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.07-1.62), Zone 5 (mild/warm Summer, cold Winter; OR: 1.23; 95% CI: 1.04-1.45), and Zone 6 (hot dry Summer, mild Winter; OR: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.02-1.58), although these associations were attenuated in the adjusted model. Key predictors of asthma included parental asthma history (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR]: 3.00; 95% CI: 2.48-3.64), breastfeeding for under six months (AOR: 1.35; 95% CI: 1.10-1.64), maternal depression during pregnancy (AOR: 1.31; 95% CI: 1.04-1.66) and male sex (AOR: 1.31; 95% CI: 1.08-1.58). The findings highlight the influence of climate, along with other risk factors including parental asthma history and maternal depression during pregnancy, on the onset and exacerbation of childhood asthma.

The seasonal variation of peptic ulcers, a rhythmic phenomenon with diverse patterns and controversies, has remained an unresolved mystery for more than 90 years. A recent study identified that environmental factors cause peptic ulcers by inducing psychological stress. Based on this etiology, a synthetic review found that seasonal changes profoundly affect multiple occupational and environmental factors, each of which plays a causal role in peptic ulcers if they are studied individually. An integration of the monthly incidences caused by three occupational and environmental factors simulated the fluctuation curves in three representative seasonal patterns. The similarity between the simulated and original curves suggests that multiple occupational and environmental factors cause the seasonal variation by Superposition Mechanism, and regional differences in occupational and environmental factors account for the diverse patterns and controversies. Significantly, a full understanding of the seasonal variation of peptic ulcers validated a new concept, Superposition Mechanism, which may represent an indispensable methodological complement to modern life science and medicine.

During tunnel construction, the protracted mucking phase poses significant occupational health risks, particularly from dust exposure. This study delves into comprehensive numerical simulations to examine the spatiotemporal dynamics of dust particles during the mucking process. A distinct 'bimodal pattern' was characterized by higher concentrations in the mucking area (0-30 m) and the inverted arch area (60-110 m), where concentrations exceed 30 mg/m3 under all conditions. To address this issue, a novel dust removal system has been developed. Integrating six dust collectors and one air curtain device, a dust removal trolley is strategically positioned at z = 70 m to locally purify the air. The extracted wind speed of the dust collectors ($V_{\mathrm{inlet}1}$) and the air curtain's wind speed ($V_{\mathrm{inlet}2}$) are optimized based on ventilation conditions and dust dispersion characteristics. This system effectively reduces dust mass concentrations to below 4.8 mg/m³ at six worker locations.

Their monitoring in urban regions is essential for policymakers and the population. In this study, the electromagnetic intensity (EMI) was measured around 30 stations of base transcriptive stations (BTS) at both distances lower than 20m and higher than 200m using real-time equipment SMP2-dual in summer and winter. Results have shown that EMI in summer (range: 2-6500 mW/m2) was more than in winter (1.5-5000), and the intensity of about 93% of samples exceeded WHO standards. EMI has consistently decreased with the increasing distance from BTS. There was a negative correlation between the temperature and EMI in summer and humidity and EMI for both distances. The mapping of EMI depicted the highest value of EMI across the central region from south to eastern north at a distance lower than 20 m in winter. The clustering of the EMI in this region was influenced by the geographical location of BTS.