Journal of Preventive Medicine and Hygiene最新文献

Introduction: After COVID-19 outbreak, governments adopted several containment measures. Risk perception and knowledge may play a crucial role since they can affect compliance with preventive measures. This study aimed to explore the extent and the associated factors of risk perception, knowledge regarding SARS-CoV2, and perception towards preventive measures among the Italian population.

Methods: A nationwide cross-sectional study involving adults was conducted in April-May 2021: an online survey was distributed through social media. The outcomes were: Knowledge Score (KS) (0 to 100%: higher scores correspond to higher COVID-19 related knowledge); Risk Perception Score (RPS) (1 to 4: higher values indicate higher concern); Preventive measures Perception Score (PPS) (1 to 4: higher values indicate higher confidence). Multivariable regression models were performed.

Results: A total of 1120 participants were included. Median KS was 79.5% (IQR = 72.7%-86.4%). Lower education and poor economic conditions were negatively associated with the KS. Median RPS was 2.8 (IQR = 2.4-3.2). Female gender, sharing house with a fragile person, suffering from a chronic disease, having a family member/close friend who contracted SARS-CoV-2 infection were positively associated with the RPS. Median PPS was 3.1 (IQR = 2.8-3.4). Lower educational level was negatively associated with the PPS. Vaccine hesitancy was negatively associated with all three outcomes. The three scores were positively associated with each other.

Conclusions: Fair levels of knowledge, risk perception and perception towards preventive measures were reported. Reciprocal relationships between the outcomes and a relevant relationship with vaccine hesitancy were highlighted. Further investigations should be focused on studying underlying determinants and consequences.

Introduction: Our study aims to assess interactions between the moral sensitivity of physicians and the satisfaction of patients.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. Data were collected by a standard questionnaire of the physicians' moral sensitivity about decision-making and a researcher-made patient satisfaction questionnaire. The physicians were selected through the census method, and patients were selected using quota sampling to equal the selection of each physician from each work shift. All information was analyzed by SPSS statistical software version 23.

Results: The mean score for physicians' moral sensitivity was 91.6 ± 0.63 which shows a high level of moral sensitivity. The average patient satisfaction was 61.97 ± 3.55 out of the total score (23-115) which shows a moderate level of satisfaction with the highest scores in the domain of "professionalism" and the lowest scores were related to the domain of "Technical Quality of Care".

Conclusion: For improving patient satisfaction, adopting appropriate strategies like performing the periodic evaluation of this phenomenon and providing some codified training in this regard are required to increase the level of moral sensitivity of physicians and provide high-quality care.

Background: Institutional delivery is Giving birth in medical institution under the care and Supervision of trained health care providers which promotes newborn survival and reduces maternal mortality. The objective of the study was to assess Knowledge, Attitude and Practice towards institutional delivery among mothers of child bearing age who have one or more child and visit MCH clinic Adaba health center, West Arsi zone, South East Ethiopia.

Methods: Institutional based cross sectional study design was conducted. The study was conducted starting from May 1-30, 2021 at Adaba health center, West Arsi zone, South East Ethiopia. Our study sample size is 250 mothers who have at least one birth and visiting MCH at Adaba health center. Systematic random sampling was used to select mothers, Data was collected by using structured questionnaire. Finally, data was analyzed by SPSS version 21.

Results: Out of 250 women during our data collection time 246 (98.4%) were our respondents and 4 (1.6%) were non respondents. Among 246 women 213 (86.6%) had good knowledge and 33 (13.4%) had poor knowledge. While 212 (86.2%) had good attitude and 34(13.8%) had poor attitude and 179 (72.8%) had good practice but 67 (27.2%) had poor practice.

Conclusion: Increasing knowledge, attitude and practice of mothers towards institutional delivery plays a key role in reducing maternal mortality and morbidity. However, the prevailing level of KAP towards institutional delivery is not satisfactory. Increasing utilization of institutional delivery by increasing awareness of each community through health information dissemination on importance of institutional delivery is needed.

Background: Considering the effect of exercise and health literacy in preventing osteoporosis, the effect of health literacy in adopting preventive behaviors, and the role of health volunteers in transferring health messages to the community, this study aimed to determine the relationship between health literacy skills and adopting walking behavior to prevent osteoporosis in women health volunteers.

Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 290 health volunteers referring to Qazvin health centers in 2020 were selected through Multi-stage random sampling. Data were collected using a health literacy questionnaire (HELIA) and a questionnaire for the adoption of walking behaviors for the prevention of osteoporosis, and they were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression in SPSS software version 23.

Results: The adoption of walking behaviors to prevent osteoporosis was at an average level. Age (P = 0.034, OR = 1.098), decision-making and application of health information (P < 0.001, OR = 1.135), understanding (P = 0.031, OR = 1.054), and evaluation skills (P = 0.018, OR = 1.049) were factors affecting the adoption of this behavior so that by increasing one score to these variables, the chance of adopting the behavior increased 1.098, 1.135, 1.054 and 1.049 respectively. Also, the level of education was another effective variable in adopting this behavior, so having a favorable level of adoption of this behavior in health volunteers with a diploma degree (P = 0.017, OR = 0.736) and below diploma (P = 0.011, OR = 0.960), were 0.736 and 0.960 times of those with university degrees respectively.

Conclusion: The adoption of walking behaviors to prevent osteoporosis among health volunteers - who have lower age, education, and decision-making skills and the use of health information, understanding, and evaluation - was less. Therefore, it is necessary to pay more attention to them when designing educational health programs.

Introduction: Critical pathways (CPs) are effective change management tools used to improve quality in healthcare nationally implemented in Italy in 2015. This study aims to map the country's state-of-the-art regarding the adoption of CPs and to verify the existence of factors that determine the success of their implementation and the relative entity of their impact, by analysing the management of Lung Cancer (LC) as a case-study.

Methods: Our methodology followed the SQUIRE guidelines for quality improvement reporting (2015). Starting from the 2017 ranking table published by the National Outcome Program, we selected and included in our sample all Italian hospitals who, according to Ministerial Decree n. 70/2015, met national quality threshold for LC treatment. To investigate regional-level and hospital-level factors believed to be responsible for the successful implementation of a CP, a Google Modules questionnaire was constructed and sent to the selected facilities; subsequently, a web-based research was carried out for missing data. Associations between variables were tested in STATA by means of correlation tests and a linear regression model.

Results: 41 hospitals matched our inclusion criteria. Of these, 68% defined an internal Lung Cancer Critical Pathway (LCCP). Our results confirmed the presence of critical success factors that favour the correct implementation of a LCCP.

Conclusions: Notwithstanding the availability of CPs, their adoption in routine clinical practice still lacks consistency, suggesting the necessity to resort to digital solutions, to increment the level of regional commitment and workforce commitment and to reinforce quality standards monitoring.

[This corrects the article on p. E1-E443 in vol. 63.].

Introduction: The Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) is a state-level police force in India. Good Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) among them is quintessential for the welfare of the society. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of dental caries and periodontal disease on the OHRQoL among the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) stationed in Belagavi, India.

Methods: A cross-sectional design was used with a total sample size of 720. The personnel were recruited by simple random sampling. The Oral Health Impact Profile 14 (OHIP 14) was used to assess OHRQoL in 7 domains. The intra-examiner reliability for World Health Organisation (WHO) oral assessment form 2013 was assessed using Kappa statistics and was found to be 0.86. Dentition and periodontal status were recorded using the same. Statistical analysis was performed using descriptive statistics, Analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson's coefficient of correlation and multiple linear regression analysis.

Results: Physical pain and psychological discomfort had the highest mean scores among the seven domains of OHIP-14. Constables had higher mean OHIP-14 scores among the study population. A significant positive correlation was found between oral health parameters with the domains of OHIP-14. The highest dependence on the socio-demographic and oral health predictors were found in the domains of physical pain (44.2%), psychological discomfort (38.3%), and physical disability (30.5%).

Conclusions: The study revealed that dental caries and periodontal disease had a significant impact on OHRQoL among reserve police personnel and the OHRQoL was poor particularly among the lower ranked personnel.

Introduction: The Coronavirus disease 2019 caused by a new Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) throughout the pandemic period has been characterised by a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations, courses, and outcomes. In particular, most patients with severe or critical symptoms re-quired hospitalization. The demographic and clinical characteristics of patients upon admission to the hospital, as well as pre-existing medical conditions, seem to have affected the clinical out-come. Predictive factors of inauspicious outcome in non-Intensive Care Unit hospitalized patients were investigated.

Methods: A retrospective, single-centre, observational study of 239 patients with confirmed COVID-19 disease admitted during the first waves of the pandemic to the Infectious Disease Operative Unit of a hospital in Southern Italy was conducted. Demographic characteristics, under-lying diseases, and clinical, laboratory, and radiological findings were collected from the patient's medical records. Information about in-hospital medications, days of admission, and out-come were also considered. Inferential statistical analysis was performed to evaluate the association between patients' characteristics upon hospital admission and during in-hospital length of stay and death.

Results: Mean age was 67.8 ± 15.8 years; 137/239 (57.3%) patients were males, and 176 (73.6%) had at least one comorbidity. More than half of patients (55.3%) suffered from hypertension. The length of stay in hospital was 16.5 ± 9.9 days and mortality rate of 12.55%. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, predictors of mortality of COVID-19 patients included age (OR, 1.09; CI, 1.04-1.15), Chronic Kidney Disease (OR, 4.04; CI, 1.38-11.85), and need of High Flow Oxygen therapy (OR, 18.23; CI, 5.06-65.64).

Conclusions: Patients who died in the hospital had shorted length of stay than that of the surviving patients. Older age, pre-existent chronic renal disease and need of supplemental oxygen represented independent predictors of mortality in patients hospitalized in non-Intensive Care Unit with COVID-19. The determination of these factors allows retrospectively a greater understanding of the disease also in comparison with the successive epidemic waves.

Introduction: War, hunger, and disease continue to decimate the populations of many countries in the world. Owing to conflicts, environmental instability and natural disasters, many people, especially the poorest, fall victim to epidemic diseases. One such disease, cholera, began to spread again in 2022, striking Lebanon and Syria, countries that have experienced serious social troubles for years. The return of cholera immediately alarmed the scientific community, which is now making every effort, most notably by implementing a major vaccination campaign, to prevent this disease from becoming endemic in these two countries, thus making them a reservoir for its potential spread in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

Discussion: Cholera is a disease that draws its strength from poor hygiene, primitive sanitation and the consumption of contaminated water and food. From the 19^th Century onwards, its spread was facilitated by overcrowded housing and lack of hygiene, which became commonplace features of urban life.

Method: In outlining the spread of cholera in Lebanon and Syria, the authors raise the question of the possible resurgence of epidemic cholera, especially in the light of the consequences of the devastating earthquake that hit the border area between Turkey and Syria last February.

Conclusion: These events have had a devastating effect on the population, destroying, among other things, the few existing health facilities and aggravating the already difficult living conditions of millions of people who, owing to the ongoing war, have been living for years in makeshift settlements, bereft of water, sanitation and any form of health care.

Introduction: Tobacco smoking and Alcohol use disorder (AUD) are common among people living with the human immunodeficiency virus (PLHIV), and therefore are linked to increased mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of tobacco smoking and AUD, as well as to examine the factors associated with tobacco smoking and AUD among heterosexual PLHIV in West Papua.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among PLHIV on antiretroviral therapy (ART) at the voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) clinics in Manokwari, Sorong City, and Fakfak district. Data were gathered through interviews with 237 PLHIV who were chosen using a consecutive sampling technique. A binary logistic regression analysis was used to determine the prevalence and estimate the factors associated with current tobacco smoking and AUD.

Results: The prevalence of tobacco smoking and AUD among PLHIV was 30.8% and 34.6%, respectively. There were statistically significant associated between tobacco smoking and gender (OR = 2.881, CI = 2.201-3.772), occupation (OR = 1.375, CI = 1.116-1.622), CD4+ count (OR = 1.865, CI = 1.865, CI = 1.068-3.259) and opportunistic infections (OR = 1.348, CI = 1.054-1.7240. There were also statistically significant associated between AUD and gender (OR = 2.951, CI = 2.16-3.930), occupation (OR = 1.392, CI = 1.178-1.645), CD4+ count (OR = 1.769, CI = 1.031-3.073), and opportunistic infections (OR = 1.445, CI = 1.134-1.842).

Conclusions: Gender, occupation, CD4+ count levels, and opportunistic infection were associated to tobacco smoking and AUD among heterosexual PLHIV in West Papua. These findings emphasize the critical need for an effective cigarette and alcohol use control program for people living with HIV in developing countries such as Indonesia, particularly West Papua.