District Of Beijing Research Articles

Modeling urban resident travel satisfaction during the morning and the evening peak hours: A case study in Beijing

Understanding how various factors influence travel satisfaction can assist in traffic policy-making. In the study, we aim to develop innovative urban resident travel satisfaction evaluation models by building a comprehensive travel satisfaction evaluation index system and considering the asymmetric traffic flow and difference in travel time urgency during the morning and evening peak hours. We consider both the internal factors reflecting resident-related characteristics including socio-economic attributes and travel characteristics, and the external factors reflecting road-related characteristics including traffic facilities, road traffic conditions, traffic environments, and service levels. Then, for the morning and the evening peak hours, we respectively build a structural equation model (SEM) to capture the intrinsic interactions between latent factors, and an ordered logit model to describe the direct influencing factors of travel satisfaction considering its ordered nature. Finally, we examine our proposed models with the travel survey data collected in the Yizhuang district of Beijing, China. The numerical results show that both the internal and the external factors have significant impacts on travel satisfaction. The SEM models capture the interactions between the latent variables such as the positive relationship between traffic facilities and traffic environments. The ordered logit modeling results show that most external factors except the satisfaction of the road obstacles have positive influences on travel satisfaction. Our research findings provide a better understanding of the intrinsic interactions between latent variables and direct influencing factors of travel satisfaction and offer the government valuable guidance on how to improve travel satisfaction.

Methods for Constructing a Refined Early-Warning Model for Rainstorm-Induced Waterlogging in Historic and Cultural Districts

Against the backdrop of increasingly severe global climate change, the risk of rainstorm-induced waterlogging has become the primary threat to the safety of historic and cultural districts worldwide. This paper focuses on the historic and cultural districts of Beijing, China, and explores techniques and methods for identifying extreme rainstorm warnings in cultural heritage areas. Refined warning and forecasting have become important non-engineering measures to enhance these districts’ waterlogging prevention control and emergency management capabilities. This paper constructs a rainstorm-induced waterlogging risk warning model tailored for Beijing’s historical and cultural districts. This model system encompasses three sets of models: a building waterlogging early-warning model, a road waterlogging early-warning model, and a public evacuation early-warning model. During the construction of the model, the core concepts and determination methods of “1 h rainfall intensity water logging index” and “the waterlogging risk index in historical and cultural districts” were proposed. The construction and application of the three models take into full account the correlation between rainfall intensity and rainwater accumulation, while incorporating the characteristics of flood resilience in buildings, roads, and the society in districts. This allows for a precise grading of warning levels, leading to the formulation of corresponding warning response measures. Empirical tests have shown that the construction method proposed in this paper is reliable. The innovative results not only provide a new perspective and method for the early-warning of rainstorm-induced waterlogging, but also offer scientific support for emergency planning and response in historical and cultural districts.

The Role of Graffiti Art as a Medium in Shaping Urban Image: A Case Study of Beijing 798 Art District

Graffiti art in Beijing has undergone prolonged development and evolution, narrating the diverse stories of the city and presenting a more varied image of Beijing. This study selects the graffiti art hub, the 798 Art District in Beijing, and employs spatial production theory and interactive ritual chain theory to deeply analyze the crucial role of graffiti art in disseminating the urban image of Beijing and the specific images it sculpts. Through the application of spatial production theory, we specifically explore the layout, positioning, and display modes of graffiti in the urban environment, as well as the potential impact of these factors on the perception and shaping of the urban image. Building upon this foundation, interactive ritual chain theory is utilized to investigate the interactive processes between the audience and graffiti, revealing how such interactions guide, influence, and co-construct the cognitive representation of the urban image.

Research on the connectivity of urban river network-wetland and water quality simulation.

The connectivity of urban river networks plays an important role in cities in many aspects, such as urban water safety, water quality (WQ), and aquatic ecological balance. This study focuses on the river network and the Majiawan Wetland in the Chaoyang District of Beijing by establishing a two-dimensional hydrological WQ model employing various water allocation schemes between the river network and the wetland. Water circulation and WQ are the main indexes, and the effects of different scenarios on improving water circulation and WQ are simulated and compared. This study demonstrates that the addition of water replenishment at the intersection of river network and internal slow-water zones of the wetland (Scheme 2) has greater effectiveness in improving both hydrology and WQ compared to two other schemes. The water area of the Majiawan Wetland has expanded, and water velocity has increased. Using chemical oxygen demand, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus as the index values for determining the water class, the WQ of about 20% of the wetland area was reached Water Class II (domestic drinking water), with Water Class III (general industrial water) accounting for the other 80%. This study provides valuable evaluation and reference for similar areas of urban river network connectivity.

A construction waste landfill dataset of two districts in Beijing, China from high resolution satellite images

Construction waste is unavoidable in the process of urban development, causing serious environmental pollution. Accurate assessment of municipal construction waste generation requires building construction waste identification models using deep learning technology. However, this process requires high-quality public datasets for model training and validation. This study utilizes Google Earth and GF-2 images as the data source to construct a specific dataset of construction waste landfills in the Changping and Daxing districts of Beijing, China. This dataset contains 3,653 samples of the original image areas and provides mask-labeled images in the semantic segmentation domains. Each pixel within a construction waste landfill is classified into 4 categories of the image areas, including background area, vacant landfillable area, engineering facility area, and waste dumping area. The dataset contains 237,115,531 pixels of construction waste and 49,724,513 pixels of engineering facilities. The pixel-level semantic segmentation labels are provided to quantify the construction waste yield, which can serve as the basic data for construction waste extraction and yield estimation both for academic and industrial research.

A deep learning framework for 3D vegetation extraction in complex urban environments

Accurate extraction of three-dimensional (3D) vegetation is essential for monitoring urban ecological environments and carbon sinks. Two-dimensional vegetation data in cities has been widely researched. However, large-scale urban vegetation height inventories are lacking. This study proposes a novel framework for 3D extraction of urban vegetation, which can be widely applied based on remote sensing approaches. A multi-task convolutional neural network is established to extract the urban vegetation cover and estimate the vegetation height at the pixel level. The results indicate that this method can derive the complete urban vegetation cover and height from stereo satellite data. Compared with the traditional stereo-photogrammetry method, this method enables rapid inference of vegetation height in urban areas with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 3.16 m. This model is capable of accurately separating vegetation in complex urban environments and performs well despite shadow effects. Furthermore, in this study, the first vegetation height map with 1-m spatial resolution has been produced, covering six urban districts in Beijing (approximately 1,378 km2). It only takes 2–3 min to process the imagery of the whole study area. The high-resolution map can display more urban vegetation details over the existing 10 m/30 m resolution vegetation height maps. Furthermore, the established framework and benchmark for urban vegetation 3D information offer unique insights and provide a basis for further research.

Characteristics and treatment for severe postpartum haemorrhage in different midwifery hospitals in one district of Beijing in China: an institution-based, retrospective cohort study

ObjectiveTo identify the characteristics and treatment approaches for patients with severe postpartum haemorrhage (SPPH) in various midwifery institutions in one district in Beijing, especially those without identifiable antenatal PPH high-risk...

Morphological and phylogenetic analyses reveal two new Penicillium species isolated from the ancient Great Wall loess in Beijing, China.

Penicillium species exhibit a broad distribution in nature and play a crucial role in human and ecological environments. Two Penicillium species isolated from the ancient Great Wall loess in the Mentougou District of Beijing, China, were identified and described as new species, namely, Penicillium acidogenicum and P. floccosum, based on morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analyses of multiple genes including ITS, BenA, CaM, and RPB2 genes. Phylogenetic analyses showed that both novel species formed a distinctive lineage and that they were most closely related to P. chrzaszczii and P. osmophilum, respectively. Penicillium acidogenicum is characterized by biverticillate conidiophores that produce globose conidia and is distinguished from similar species by its capacity to grow on CYA at 30°C. Penicillium floccosum is typically recognized by its restricted growth and floccose colony texture. The description of these two new species provided additional knowledge and new insights into the ecology and distribution of Penicillium.

Preliminary study on automatic quantification and grading of leopard spots fundus based on deep learning technology

Objective: To achieve automatic segmentation, quantification, and grading of different regions of leopard spots fundus (FT) using deep learning technology. The analysis includes exploring the correlation between novel quantitative indicators, leopard spot fundus grades, and various systemic and ocular parameters. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. The data were sourced from the Beijing Eye Study, a population-based longitudinal study. In 2001, a group of individuals aged 40 and above were surveyed in five urban communities in Haidian District and three rural communities in Daxing District of Beijing. A follow-up was conducted in 2011. This study included individuals aged 50 and above who participated in the second 5-year follow-up in 2011, considering only the data from the right eye. Color fundus images centered on the macula of the right eye were input into the leopard spot segmentation model and macular detection network. Using the macular center as the origin, with inner circle diameters of 1 mm, 3 mm, and outer circle diameter of 6 mm, fine segmentation of the fundus was achieved. This allowed the calculation of the leopard spot density (FTD) and leopard spot grade for each region. Further analyses of the differences in ocular and systemic parameters among different regions' FTD and leopard spot grades were conducted. The participants were categorized into three refractive types based on equivalent spherical power (SE): myopia (SE<-0.25 D), emmetropia (-0.25 D≤SE≤0.25 D), and hyperopia (SE>0.25 D). Based on axial length, the participants were divided into groups with axial length<24 mm, 24-26 mm, and>26 mm for the analysis of different types of FTD. Statistical analyses were performed using one-way analysis of variance, Kruskal-Wallis test, Bonferroni test, and Spearman correlation analysis. Results: The study included 3 369 participants (3 369 eyes) with an average age of (63.9±10.6) years; among them, 1 886 were female (56.0%) and 1, 483 were male (64.0%). The overall FTD for all eyes was 0.060 (0.016, 0.163); inner circle FTD was 0.000 (0.000, 0.025); middle circle FTD was 0.030 (0.000, 0.130); outer circle FTD was 0.055 (0.009, 0.171). The results of the univariate analysis indicated that FTD in various regions was correlated with axial length (overall: r=0.38, P<0.001; inner circle: r=0.31, P<0.001; middle circle: r=0.36, P<0.001; outer circle: r=0.39, P<0.001), subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) (overall: r=-0.69, P<0.001; inner circle: r=-0.57, P<0.001; middle circle: r=-0.68, P<0.001; outer circle: r=-0.72, P<0.001), age (overall: r=0.34, P<0.001; inner circle: r=0.30, P<0.001; middle circle: r=0.31, P<0.001; outer circle: r=0.35, P<0.001), gender (overall: r=-0.11, P<0.001; inner circle: r=-0.04, P<0.001; middle circle: r=-0.07, P<0.001; outer circle: r=-0.11, P<0.001), SE (overall: r=-0.20; P<0.001; inner circle: r=-0.19, P<0.001; middle circle: r=-0.20, P<0.001; outer circle: r=-0.20, P<0.001), uncorrected visual acuity (overall: r=-0.18, P<0.001; inner circle: r=-0.26, P<0.001; middle circle: r=-0.24, P<0.001; outer circle: r=-0.22, P<0.001), and body mass index (BMI) (overall: r=-0.11, P<0.001; inner circle: r=-0.13, P<0.001; middle circle: r=-0.14, P<0.001; outer circle: r=-0.13, P<0.001). Further multivariate analysis results indicated that different region FTD was correlated with axial length (overall: β=0.020, P<0.001; inner circle: β=-0.022, P<0.001; middle circle: β=0.027, P<0.001; outer circle: β=0.022, P<0.001), SFCT (overall: β=-0.001, P<0.001; inner circle: β=-0.001, P<0.001; middle circle: β=-0.001, P<0.001; outer circle: β=-0.001, P<0.001), and age (overall: β=0.002, P<0.001; inner circle: β=0.001, P<0.001; middle circle: β=0.002, P<0.001; outer circle: β=0.002, P<0.001). The distribution of overall (H=56.76, P<0.001), inner circle (H=72.22, P<0.001), middle circle (H=75.83, P<0.001), and outer circle (H=70.34, P<0.001) FTD differed significantly among different refractive types. The distribution of overall (H=373.15, P<0.001), inner circle (H=367.67, P<0.001), middle circle (H=389.14, P<0.001), and outer circle (H=386.89, P<0.001) FTD differed significantly among different axial length groups. Furthermore, comparing various levels of FTD with systemic and ocular parameters, significant differences were found in axial length (F=142.85, P<0.001) and SFCT (F=530.46, P<0.001). Conclusions: The use of deep learning technology enables automatic segmentation and quantification of different regions of theFT, as well as preliminary grading. Different region FTD is significantly correlated with axial length, SFCT, and age. Individuals with older age, myopia, and longer axial length tend to have higher FTD and more advanced FT grades.

A raster-based spatial clustering method with robustness to spatial outliers

Spatial clustering is an essential method for the comprehensive understanding of a region. Spatial clustering divides all spatial units into different clusters. The attributes of each cluster of the spatial units are similar, and simultaneously, they are as continuous as spatially possible. In spatial clustering, the handling of spatial outliers is important. It is necessary to improve spatial integration so that each cluster is connected as much as possible, while protecting spatial outliers can help avoid the excessive masking of attribute differences This paper proposes a new spatial clustering method for raster data robust to spatial outliers. The method employs a sliding window to scan the entire region to determine spatial outliers. Additionally, a mechanism based on the range and standard deviation of the spatial units in each window is designed to judge whether the spatial integration should be further improved or the spatial outliers should be protected. To demonstrate the usefulness of the proposed method, we applied it in two case study areas, namely, Changping District and Pinggu District in Beijing. The results show that the proposed method can retain the spatial outliers while ensuring that the clusters are roughly contiguous. This method can be used as a simple but powerful and easy-to-interpret alternative to existing geographical spatial clustering methods.

Characterization and toxicological potential of Alternaria alternata associated with post-harvest fruit rot of Prunus avium in China.

Post-harvest fruit rot caused by Alternaria species is one of the most important threats to the fruit industry. Post-harvest rot on sweet cherry (Prunus avium) fruit was observed in the fruit markets of the Haidian district of Beijing, China. The fungal isolates obtained from the infected sweet cherry fruits matched the descriptions of Alternaria alternata based on the morphology and multi-gene (ITS, endo-PG, and Alta1) sequence analysis. Pathogenicity tests indicated that ACT-3 was the most virulent isolate, exhibiting typical post-harvest fruit rot symptoms. Physiological studies revealed that the optimal conditions for the growth of ACT-3 were temperature of 28°C, water activity of 0.999, and pH of 8 with 87, 85, and 86 mm radial growth of ACT-3 on a potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium, respectively, at 12 days post-inoculation (dpi). Moreover, the fungus showed the highest growth on a Martin agar medium (MAM) modified (85 mm) and a PDA medium (84 mm) at 12 dpi. The proliferation of the fungus was visualized inside the fruit tissues by confocal and scanning electron microscope (SEM), revealing the invasion and destruction of fruit tissues. Alternaria mycotoxins, tenuazonic acid (TeA), and alternariol (AOH) were detected in five representative isolates by HPLC analysis. The highest concentrations of TeA (313 μg/mL) and AOH (8.9 μg/mL) were observed in ACT-6 and ACT-3 isolates, respectively. This study is the first to present a detailed report on the characteristics and proliferation of A. alternata associated with sweet cherry fruit rot and the detection of toxic metabolites.

The Role of the Giri Mulya Learning Community in Empowering Women Through Entrepreneurship Learning

Munggugebang Village, Beijing District, Gresik Regency, East Java, Indonesia, is a village where most people work as farmers. Much potential still needs to be maximized for village development. Seeing this potential, the Giri Mulya learning community aims to provide education related to entrepreneurship to help develop village potential targeting women. These women are expected to be able to support the achievement of a program. In carrying out a program, there are inhibiting and supporting factors. This research aims to determine the processes and factors that support and hinder women's empowerment in entrepreneurial learning in villages, which are learning communities. This research uses a qualitative approach with a case study method. The informants were learning community organizers, facilitators, village communities, and community leaders. Data was collected using observation techniques, in-depth interviews, and documentation studies. Data analysis was done using Miles et al. (2018) interactive model. The research results show that entrepreneurship learning for women in Munggugebang Village can have a positive impact on their ability to cultivate village potential and participate actively in facilitating village Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) by making burlap sacks, processing duck eggs into salted eggs, and several other activities.

Analysis of factors related to the development of ocular biometric parameters in Chinese children aged 6–10 years: a cross-sectional study

ObjectivesEmmetropia depends on the precise coordination of ocular biometry, including axial length (AL), corneal curvature, lens thickness and anterior chamber depth (ACD). Disruption of this coordination leads to refractive errors...

Research on Leased Space of Urban Villages in Large Cities Based on Fuzzy Kano Model Evaluation and Building Performance Simulation: A Case Study of Laojuntang Village, Chaoyang District, Beijing

China is in the transition period of urbanization, and the imbalance of land use generated during the original rapid development of megacities still exists, resulting in the preservation of a large number of urban villages in the peripheral areas of cities. Unlike formal housing, these villages are heavily influenced by the confrontation and interweaving between top-down policies of local governments and bottom-up spontaneous construction by local villagers, resulting in a diverse and complex status quo. At the same time, self-built housing in urban villages has become a gathering place for a large number of low-income migrants due to its relatively low rental prices. In terms of the research of urban villages on the current situation of housing, the real needs of users and housing performance are mostly subjective judgments and conclusions. Therefore, the entry point of this paper is the leased space and the leasers, taking Laojuntang Village in Chaoyang District of Beijing as the research object and analyzing its current problems and the real needs of users. This paper adopts an integrated approach of fuzzy Kano model evaluation and building performance simulation. After analyzing the data and discussing the influencing factors, this paper identifies the specific problems and user needs that exist in leased spaces in Laojuntang Village: (1) The architectural performance of leased space is a Must-be Quality, which is the bottom-line requirement and must be improved. (2) The quality of the basic facilities and equipment of the leased space is mostly a One-dimensional Quality, Attractive Quality, and the degree of importance is lower than that of the building performance. (3) The external activity facilities of the leased space are mostly undifferentiated needs, for which the local users are not particularly prominent. (4) The scale and plot ratio of local housing is relatively high, and users are dissatisfied and complaining, which falls under the category of Reverse Quality.

Analysis and Monitoring of Indoor Radon Concentrations of 37 Kindergartens - Beijing Municipality, China, 2023.

Radon (222Rn or 222radon) is a radioactive gas emitted from building materials, foundations, and soil. Children are especially susceptible to radon exposure, underscoring the need to assess indoor radon levels in kindergartens. This study monitored radon concentrations in 37 Beijing kindergartens from June to October 2023. A random sample of 37 kindergartens was selected from 18 administrative districts in Beijing. The indoor radon concentration was measured using the solid track accumulation method, with radon detectors continuously monitored over a 3-month period. The mean indoor radon level in 37 kindergartens, observed at 252 monitoring points, was 84.3 Bq/m3, with values varying from 12.9 to 263.5 Bq/m3. About 20.2% of points showed radon levels between 100.0 and 200.0 Bq/m3, while 2.4% exceeded 200.0 Bq/m3. Notably, radon levels were significantly elevated on the ground floor compared to the upper floors. Indoor radon levels in 37 kindergartens remained below the national standard limit of 300.0 Bq/m3 for buildings (GB/T 16146-2015). Nonetheless, 18.9% of the kindergartens exceeded the 100.0 Bq/m3 limit set for new constructions. It is advised to improve radon monitoring in kindergartens and consider developing a national standard for maximum permissible radon levels in such facilities.

Association Between Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and the Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in the Middle-Age and Elderly Population of Northern China: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a major global health burden, which increases the risk of extra-hepatic complications such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), dyslipidemia, metabolic syndrome (MetS), and cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, NAFLD remains underappreciated and underdiagnosed. Our study aimed to explore the prevalence of NAFLD and the association between NAFLD and CVD events among adults aged 40 and older in Northern China. This study was conducted in the Shijingshan district of Beijing, China from November 2011 to August 2012. A total of 18891 subjects were recruited in the study. The information including demographical information, lifestyle, previous history of diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, CVD, and liver disease were gathered. Data on physical examination, blood lipid profile, fasting blood glucose, and 2-hour blood glucose were recorded. Determination of MetS was according to T2DM guideline of Chinese Diabetes Society (2020 edition). The association between CVD and NAFLD was evaluated by multivariate logistic regression. The prevalence of NAFLD was 15.2%. After adjustment for age, smoking status, alcohol intake, WC, hypertension, dyslipidemia and hyperglycemia, the odds ratios (ORs) of CVD in men were 1.622 (95%CI: 1.345-1.957) and 1.990 (95%CI: 1.709-2.316) in women with NAFLD, compared with the subjects without NAFLD. NAFLD is independently associated with increased risk of CVD development.

Diagnosis and Countermeasure Research on Restrictive Factors of Household Photovoltaic Development in Shunyi District

In order to mitigate climate change and global warming, and to balance the relationship between energy consumption and carbon emissions, China has put forward the “double carbon” goal, which will promote the construction of household photovoltaic as an important part of development. Distributed photovoltaic has the characteristics of high construction cost and long cost recovery cycle, which are unfavorable factors restricting large-scale promotion. and has been relying on national financial subsidies for a long time in the early stage of development. Under the incentive of high subsidies, the scale of China􀆳s distributed photovoltaic industry has expanded rapidly and maintained a high-speed development trend for many years. However, the large-scale development is accompanied by a surge in government subsidy funds. The high subsidy funds are difficult to be sustained, and the distributed photovoltaic industry is facing the overall trend of subsidy decline. This paper takes Shunyi District of Beijing, the first batch of pilot areas for rooftop distributed photovoltaic development in the whole county (city, district) in China, as an example. Through questionnaire survey, field interview and model analysis, this paper reveals the difficulties faced by household photovoltaic development in this area, identifies the main constraints and problems of photovoltaic development in this area, and quantitatively analyzes the influence degree of various factors. On this basis, based on the theoretical perspective of ‘cooperative governance’, this paper attempts to construct a G-P-M-S incentive system for household distributed photovoltaic development, which covers the government, public, market and society, and condenses the policy orientation of coordinating ‘cross-level’, ‘ cross-department’, ‘cross-subject’ and ‘policy tool integration’, and puts forward specific policy suggestions in light of the actual situation of Shunyi District, so as to provide support for Shunyi District to promote the development of photovoltaic industry and realize green and low-carbon transformation.

Tuberculosis screening characteristics amongst freshmen in Changping District, Beijing, China

BackgroundScreening for Tuberculosis (TB) is a critical tactic for minimizing the prevalence of illness within schools. Tuberculosis Preventive Therapy (TPT), in turn, effectively staves off the development of TB from latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). Unfortunately, there is limited research on LTBI and TPT among students. This study aimed to assess LTBI among freshmen in Changping District and advocate for the implementation of TPT.MethodsThe prospective study collected data from 12 educational institutions within the Changping District of Beijing. The Kolmogorov − Smirnov test and other statistical methods were used for statistical analysis, x2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${x}^{2}$$\\end{document} was obtained using the formula x2=\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${x}^{2}=$$\\end{document} nΣA2/nRnC-1, df = (C-1) (R-1). We analyzed potential factors impacting the LTBI rate, and scrutinized the possible causes behind the low application of TPT and its efficacy for LTBI treatment, China.ResultsAmong 19,872 freshmen included in this study, 18 active TB cases (91 per 10,0000) and 2236 LTBI cases (11.6% of 19,223) were identified, respectively. Furthermore, of those with LTBI, 1045 (5.4% of 19,223) showed a strong positive for purified protein derivative (PPD), but only 312 opted for TB preventive treatment. There appeared to be no significant difference in the prevalence of LTBI and TPT rate between male and female students. Concurrently, 11 (71 per 100,000) and 7 (158 per 100,000) cases of active tuberculosis were identified in 6 universities and 6 higher vocational colleges, respectively. Interestingly, almost all freshmen who underwent TPT came from universities, suggesting a statistically significant disparity in TPT rate (χ2 = 139.829, P < 0.001) between these two types of educational institutions. Meanwhile, as for the age-wise distribution of latent infection among 17–20 years old freshmen, the LTBI rate exhibited 10.5%, 11.6%, 12.1% and 13.5%, respectively. Correlation between LTBI rate, the strong positive rate was statistically significant among different ages (χ2 = 34.559, P < 0.001). Over a follow-up period of 2 years, three students were diagnosed with active tuberculosis, one of which was resistant to rifampicin. All three students manifested a strong positive for PPD and declined preventive treatment during TB screening.ConclusionsThe data indicates a high rate of LTBI amongst students in areas with a heavy TB burden, potentially leading to cross-regional TB transmission due to the migration of students. Education level might contribute to the limited uptake of TPT. Therefore, improving the implementation of TB preventive treatments is crucial in controlling and preventing TB across schools.

The Impact of School District Segmentation Changes on Housing Prices in Selected Districts of Beijing

In China, school enrollment district segmentation changes often raise fluctuations of housing market. Once a house is segmented into a popular school district, its price will immediately skyrocket. To curb the hidden educational inequality caused by this phenomenon, many Chinese cities, including Beijing, are attempting to cool down school district housing by adjusting existing school district segmentation. This paper aims to verify the impact of school district segmentation changes on housing prices in selected districts of Beijing. Through time-varying difference-in-difference method, this study found no significant correlation between the changes in school district segmentation and the fluctuation of housing prices in different administrative districts in Beijing. This study is significant for understanding the housing market situation in Beijing and the real-world effect of school district segmentation changes. Policy makers should take housing market prices into consideration when making school district policy decisions and make further researches to investigate the effects of new school district segmentation on neighborhood-level housing prices.

Impact of herpes zoster and post-herpetic neuralgia on health-related quality of life in Miyun District of Beijing, China: An EQ-5D survey

BackgroundHerpes zoster (HZ) and post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) cause considerable morbidity, especially in elderly adults, but the burden is under-recognized in mainland China. MethodsWe conducted a case registry and follow-up study of HZ in Miyun District, Beijing from January 1, 2017 through December 31, 2018. Registered HZ cases were followed-up for pain to 365 days. The first 50 patients with HZ in each age group (≤14, 15–29, 30–39, 40–49, 50–59, 60– 69, 70–79, ≥80 years) and all those with PHN completed the EuroQoL five dimensions questionnaire (EQ-5D) to evaluate health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with HZ and PHN. Ratings using the EQ-5D dimensions, visual analogue scale (VAS), health utility score (HUS) and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) lost were compared among age groups. ResultsIn total, 2008 patients with HZ were followed for a median 22 days (interquartile range[IQR] = 20–90), with an estimated incidence of 4.39 per 1000 person-years. We identified 122 (6.08 %) PHN cases. The median age of patients with PHN (65 years, IQR = 55–71) was older than that of patients with HZ (54 years, IQR = 43–64) (P < 0.001). The median duration of pain was 170 days (IQR = 144–355.5) for PHN and 15 days (IQR = 9–25) for HZ. All 95 patients with PHN and 319 sampled patients with HZ completed the EQ-5D survey. The median QALY loss of HZ increased from 0.004 (IQR = 0.001–0.02) in patients 50–59 years old to 0.02 (IQR = 0.01–0.06) in those ≥ 80 years old (P < 0.01). After weighting for age, the mean QALY loss per HZ case was estimated at 0.02 (standard deviation [SD] 0.04). The mean QALY loss per PHN case was 0.13 years (SD 0.12). ConclusionsHZ and PHN caused a substantial burden, especially among adults aged ≥ 50 years in Miyun District, Beijing, China. Vaccination should be considered to alleviate the burden of this painful disease.