Infected People Research Articles

Factors associated with the symptoms onset and check up with testing for sexually transmitted infections among high school students in Serbia

BackgroundApproximately 25% of the sexually active population is infected with sexually transmitted infections (STIs), among which adolescents are most often affected with a share of 50% among newly infected people. MethodsCross-sectional study was conducted in three high schools in the city of Krusevac, Republic of Serbia, during 2021.The questionnaire collects data on the sociodemographic characteristics of students, their sexual activity and risky behavior, as well as data on knowledge about STIs and their occurrence. ResultsOf the 778 students enrolled in the study, 140 (18.0%) reported having one or more symptoms of an STI, while 167 (21.5%) reported seeing a doctor for an examination or testing for a suspected STI.The most frequent visits to the doctor for check up and testing for STIs were due to suspicion of candida, condylomas and gonorrhea, and less frequently for HIV, herpes or syphilis.The results of the multinomial regression showed that attending medical school, worse grades in school, sexual intercourse after parties under the influence of alcohol and drugs, a greater number of sexual partners since the beginning of sexual activity, more frequent sexual intercourse on a monthly basis, not using contraceptive methods during sexual intercourse or use only combined oral pills were factors associated with the occurrence of STI symptoms in high school students in our study. ConclusionIt is evident that risky behaviors and non-use of prevention measures were factors associated with more frequent STI symptoms and medical check up.

Verifying the feasibility of wastewater-based epidemiological monitoring for the small catchment and sewage networks with significant pretreatment.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has emerged as a valuable tool for COVID-19 monitoring, especially as the frequency of clinical testing diminishes. Beyond COronaVIrus Disease 19 (COVID-19), the tool's versatility extends to addressing various public health concerns, including antibiotic resistance and drug consumption. However, the complexity of sewage systems introduces noise when measuring chemical tracer concentrations, potentially compromising their applicability for modeling. In our study, we detail the approach adopted to determine the concentration of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) ribonucleiec acid (RNA) in wastewater from the Ponte a Niccheri wastewater treatment plant in Tuscany (Italy), with a sample size of N = 13,935 inhabitants. The unique characteristics of this wastewater system, including mandatory pretreatment in septic tanks with extended retention times, the presence of a hospital for COVID-19 patients, and mixed sewage networks, posed additional challenges. Nevertheless, our results highlight a robust and significant correlation between our measurements and the number of infections within the wastewater treatment plant's catchment area at the time of sampling. A simple linear model also shows promising results in estimating the number of infected people within the area.

IMPACT OF GENDER DIFFERENCES AND BODY MASS INDEX ON SKIN BIOPHYSICAL PARAMETERS OF CORONAVIRUS PATIENTS

Once the pandemic started, there were no clues regarding overall COVID-19 infections. There are no studies that demonstrate the effects of COVID-19 on skin surface pH, moisture, sebum, and temperature in terms of gender differences and body mass index (BMI) among infected people. The goal of this study was to investigate some of the skin biophysical scores of patients infected with COVID-19 and evaluate the impact of gender differences and the body mass index on them. Skin surface sebum, pH, temperature, and hydration (moisture), were measured in 30 COVID-19 patients using employing non-invasive portable devices. Insignificant effects of gender differences and BMI on skin biophysical properties were observed. In addition, females showed higher skin biophysical characteristics than males. Moreover, obese patients had higher skin biophysical parameter values than normal-weight patients. However, all the study results were statistically insignificant (p > 0.05). Further investigations are required to recognize other skin biophysical parameters such as transepidermal water loss and elasticity that may aid in the early identification of skin damage in COVID-19 patients.

Chorological abductive inferring: case studies of tracing spatial dissemination of COVID-19

Abstract COVID-19 did not disappear in the third year (2022) of the global pandemic. On the contrary, the number of infected people several times exceeded the highs of previous years, but the greater morbidity was not accompanied by a relatively comparable number of deaths. Some studies showed that the SARS-CoV-2 virus impact, e.g. in CEE EU countries, characterizes the seasonal intensity as temperatures fall or rise in relative humidity. All researchers agree that the number of COVID-19-infected people is only an estimate based on the volume of tests performed and that the true numbers are usually much higher. The implementation of spatial interaction modeling could potentially aid in the control of the COVID-19 pandemic due to the inherently spatial nature of its diffusion. The gravity models used in this investigation to simulate the regional spread of the COVID-19 epidemic are based methodologically on previous empirical studies. The proposed methodology uses techniques for modeling spatial interactions due to the epidemics described above, which are a direct result of the number of contacts between individuals. The COVID-19 pandemic can be studied regionally using spatial diffusion methods as well as population potential models (spatial interaction models) and visualized using geographic information system software. Empirical verification and geovisualizations are based on available recent population and pandemic statistics that are possible to acquire from national health services. Methodologically, this type of modeling and simulation aimed at reconstructing a factual situation can be defined as abductive chorological inferring.

Immunoprophylaxis failure and vaccine response in infants born to mothers with chronic hepatitis B infection in Djibouti.

In endemic areas, vertical transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV) remains a major source of the global reservoir of infected people. Eliminating mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HBV is at the heart of World Health Organization's goal of reducing the incidence of HBV in children to less than 0.1% by 2030. Universal screening for hepatitis B during pregnancy and neonatal vaccination are the main preventive measures. To evaluate the efficacy of HBV vaccination combined with one dose of immunoglobulin in children born to hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive mothers in Djibouti city. We conducted a study in a prospective cohort of HBsAg-positive pregnant women and their infants. The study ran from January 2021 to May 2022, and infants were followed up to 7 mo of age. HBV serological markers and viral load in pregnant women were measured using aVidas microparticle enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Biomérieux, Paris, France) and the automated Amplix platform (Biosynex, Strasbourg, France). All infants received hepatitis B immunoglobulin and were vaccinated against HBV at birth. These infants were closely monitored to assess their seroprotective response and for failure of immunoprophylaxis. Simple logistic regression was also used to identify risk factors associated with immunoprophylaxis failure and poor vaccine response. All statistical analyses were performed with version 4.0.1 of the R software. Of the 50 pregnant women recruited, the median age was 31 years, ranging from 18 years to 41 years. The MTCT rate in this cohort was 4% (2/50) in HBsAg-positive women and 67% (2/3) in hepatitis B e antigen-positive women with a viral load > 200000 IU/mL. Of the 48 infants who did not fail immunoprophylaxis, 8 (16%) became poor responders (anti-HB < 100 mIU/mL) after HBV vaccination and hepatitis B immunoglobulin, while 40 (84%) infants achieved a good level of seroprotection (anti-HB > 100 mIU/mL). Factors associated with this failure of immunoprophylaxis were maternal HBV DNA levels (> 200000 IU/mL) and hepatitis B e antigen-positive status (odds ratio = 158, 95% confidence interval: 5.05-4958, P < 0.01). Birth weight < 2500 g was associated with a poor immune response to vaccination (odds ratio = 34, 95% confidence interval: 3.01-383.86, P < 0.01). Despite a failure rate of immunoprophylaxis higher than the World Health Organization target, this study showed that the combination of immunoglobulin and HBV vaccine was effective in preventing MTCT of HBV. Therefore, further studies are needed to better understand the challenges associated with immunoprophylaxis failure in infants in Djibouti city.

Effect of Supportive Care on Quality of Life for People Living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Systematic Review

The survival of people living with HIV (PLWH) affects physical, psychological, sexual, social, and financial circumstances during the care and treatment phase. Supportive care is an effective intervention associated with a better quality of life. The aim of this systematic study was to identify effect supportive care intervention on quality-of-life infected people. This study was a systematic review to examine the effect of supportive care in PLWH. Four databases including Science Direct, ProQuest, PubMed, and Wiley library were included to identify the relevant articles. A total of eight articles out of the 247 publications potentially met the inclusion criteria. Supportive care was grouped into four categories, including Community Based Intervention, M-Health Intervention, Social Media-Based Interventions as well as Psychosocial Interventions. The combination of all interventions showed that supportive care needs to be prescribed in line with the conditions and needs of PLWH. Conclusion, several supportive care approaches including Group Support Psychotherapy (GSP), Peer Support (PS), Run4Love WeChat, ALWH treatment strategy, effective communication, and psychosocial assessment, Mental health care pathway PASEO and combination logotherapy, ACT, as well as family psychoeducation (FPE) affected the quality of life for PLWH. This helped in characterizing the intervention and its effect on the conditions of HIV patients.Keywords: Databases; Supportive care; Psychosocial interventions; Quality of life

Effects of recirculation and air change per hour on COVID-19 transmission in indoor settings: A CFD study with varying HVAC parameters

COVID-19 has already claimed over 7 million lives and has infected over 775 million people globally [1]. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, spreads primarily through droplets from infected people's airways, rendering Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems critical in controlling infection risk levels in the indoor environment. To understand the dynamics of exhaled droplets and aerosols and the percentage of particles that are inhaled, escaped, recirculated, or trapped on different surfaces for a variety of environmental settings, we have presented our findings from the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling to investigate the impact of changing HVAC parameters in this paper. When combined with the spatial and temporal distribution of droplets, this method can be used to assess the potential risk and strengthen resilience. This finding demonstrates the viability and usefulness of CFD for modeling the distribution and dynamics of droplets and aerosols in confined environments. Our study demonstrates that raising the Air Change per Hour (ACH) from 2 to 8 reduces the risk of particle inhalation by nearly 70 %. Additionally, limiting the amount of air recirculation or increasing the amount of fresh air helps to reduce the number of airborne particles in an indoor space. To reduce the potential for respiratory droplet-related transmission and to provide relevant recommendations to the appropriate authority, the same computational approach could be applied to a wide range of ventilated indoor environments such as public buses, restaurants, exhibitions, and theaters.

The Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from COVID-19-Diagnosed People to Their Pet Dogs and Cats in a Multi-Year Surveillance Project.

Recent emerging zoonotic disease outbreaks, such as that of SARS-CoV-2, have demonstrated the need for wider companion animal disease surveillance. We tested 1000 dogs and cats belonging to employees of a US veterinary hospital network that were exposed to human COVID-19 cases in the household between 1 January 2020 and 10 March 2022 for SARS-CoV-2 and surveyed their owners about clinical signs and risk factors. The seropositivity was 33% for 747 dogs and 27% for 253 cats. Pet seropositivity correlated with the US human case rates over time, exhibiting peaks corresponding with the major COVID-19 surges. Antibodies persisted longer than previously documented (828 days in dogs; 650 days in cats). Increasing age and duration of proximity to infected people were associated with increased seropositivity in dogs but not cats. Cats were more likely to have clinical signs, but an association between seropositivity and the presence of clinical signs was not found in either species.

Inconspicuous Discovery of Coronavirus Infected People Based SATL of Star Graphs

Inconspicuous Discovery of Coronavirus Infected People Based SATL of Star Graphs

Construction of a monoclonal molecular imprinted sensor with high affinity for specific recognition of influenza a virus subtype

Although molecular imprinting technology has been widely used in the construction of virus sensors, it is still a great challenge to identify subtypes viruses specifically because of their high similarity in morphology, size and structure. Here, a monoclonal molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs) sensor for recognition of H5N1 is constructed to permit the accurate distinguishing of H5N1 from other influenza A virus (IAV) subtypes. Firstly, H5N1 are immobilized on magnetic microspheres to produce H5N1-MagNPs, then the high affinity nanogel H5N1-MIPs is prepared by solid phase imprinting technique. When H5N1-MIPs is combined with MagNP-H5N1, different concentrations of H5N1 are added for competitive substitution. The quantitative detection of H5N1 is realized by the change of fluorescence intensity of supernatant. As expected, the constructed sensor shows satisfactory selectivity, and can identify the target virus from highly similar IAV subtypes, such as H1N1, H7N9 and H9N2. The sensor was highly sensitive, with a detection limit of 0.58 fM, and a selectivity factor that is comparable to that of other small MIPs sensors is achieved. In addition, the proposed sensor is cheap, with a cost of only RMB 0.08 yuan. The proposed monoclonal sensor provides a new method for the specific recognition of designated virus subtype, which is expected to be used for large-scale screening and accurate treatment of infected people.

Prevalence and epidemiological characteristics of major chronic diseases in people living with HIV in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, 1998-2022

Objective: To understand the prevalence of major chronic diseases of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and malignant tumor in people living with HIV in Taizhou. Methods: The data were collected from China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention and Taizhou Chronic Disease Information Management System. A total of 5 126 people living HIV under follow-up in Taizhou from 1998 to 2022 were included in the analysis. Software SAS 9.4 was used for χ2 test, trend analysis and logistic regression analysis. Results: In the 5 126 people living with HIV, the reported prevalence rates of diabetes,cardiovascular disease and malignant tumor were 10.28% (527/5 126),3.98% (204/5 126) and 6.01% (308/5 126), respectively. 37.00% (195/527) and 48.58% (256/527), 40.20% (82/204) and 48.53% (99/204), 37.66% (116/308) and 48.38% (149/308) were diagnosed as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and malignant tumor before and after confirmation of HIV infection. From 2013 to 2022, the proportion of HIV infected people diagnosed with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and malignant tumor after confirmation increased (trend χ2=79.98,P<0.001; trend χ2=17.44,P<0.001; trend χ2=32.06,P<0.001). Based on the analysis on the factors for complicated chronic diseases in people living with HIV, it was found that women under 60 years old (aOR=0.66, 95%CI: 0.50-0.86) and those with access to antiviral treatment for >5 years before 2016 (aOR=0.54,95%CI:0.37-0.78) were less likely to develop complicated chronic diseases, and those under 60 years old with initial CD4+T lymphocytes counts <200 cells/µl (aOR=1.32, 95%CI: 1.02-1.70), those aged 40-49 and 50-59 years (aOR=2.88, 95%CI:2.20-3.79; aOR=5.43, 95%CI: 4.10-7.21) as well as those without a record of treatment medication use after 2016 (aOR=1.95,95%CI:1.20-3.16) were more likely to develop complicated chronic diseases. The probability of developing complicated chronic diseases might increase with age in people living with HIV. Conclusions: From 1998 to 2022, there was a certain proportion of complicated chronic diseases among HIV infected individuals in Taizhou, and the proportion of diagnosed cases increased after HIV infection was confirmed. It is necessary to conduct early chronic disease screening, behavior intervention and standardized management in people living with HIV.

Mathematical Models for the Large Spread of a Contact-Based Infection: A Statistical Mechanics Approach

In this work, we derive a system of Boltzmann-type equations to describe the spread of contact-based infections, such as SARS-CoV-2 virus, at the microscopic scale, that is, by modeling the human-to-human mechanisms of transmission. To this end, we consider two populations, characterized by specific distribution functions, made up of individuals without symptoms (population 1) and infected people with symptoms (population 2). The Boltzmann operators model the interactions between individuals within the same population and among different populations with a probability of transition from one to the other due to contagion or, vice versa, to recovery. In addition, the influence of innate and adaptive immune systems is taken into account. Then, starting from the Boltzmann microscopic description we derive a set of evolution equations for the size and mean state of each population considered. Mathematical properties of such macroscopic equations, as equilibria and their stability, are investigated, and some numerical simulations are performed in order to analyze the ability of our model to reproduce the characteristic features of Covid-19 type pandemics.

Covid-19 Pandemic &amp; Post Pandemic-Technology and Education

The COVID-19 pandemic, was occurred in 2019. It is a worldwide pandemic which effect the whole world. The disease is mainly pass through the respiratory track; Infected people transmit the COVID-19 virus when they are Come in contact with other non-infected persons. However, infection can also be occurred in longer distances, particularly indoors. This pandemic has drastically changed the use of digital technologies in the field of education due to the social distancing norms and nationwide lockdowns. People and organizations all over the world have had to adjust to new ways of work and life. Education is field in which there is a dramatic shift to the online mode of transacting. Since the beginning of the lockdown, schools, colleges and universities around the world have shifted their classes to video conferencing platforms like Zoom, goggle classroom, Microsoft and goggle meet Suit. This increases the on-screen community. Some universities are now shifting entirely to the online mode, with the exception where require a physical presence is necessary. Due to Covid-19 pandemic we imagine a largest shift of digital usage on all fields of work and life. These changes are largely depended on our responses to and shaping of the emerging trends (e.g., Some School App). The Covid-19 pandemic has led to online revolution in education fields to shift to work-from-home (WFH). The Covid-19 post pandemic introduce a new mode of education i.e. hybrid or blended mode of learning.

Synthesis, biological evaluation and mechanism of action of benzothiazole derivatives with aromatic hydrazone moiety, a new class of antileishmanial compounds.

Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by protozoa Leishmania spp., considered as a significant and urgent public health problem mainly in developing countries. In the absence of an effective vaccine, the treatment of infected people is one of the most commonly prophylactic measures used to control this disease. However, the therapeutic arsenal is reduced to a few drugs, with serious side effects and variability in efficacy. Attempting to this problem, in this work, a series of benzothiazole derivatives was synthetized and assayed against promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes of L. amazonensis, as well as the toxicity on macrophages. In addition, studies about the mechanism of action were also performed. Among the synthesized molecules, the substitution at position 4 of the aromatic ring appears to be critical for activity. The best compound exhibited IC50 values of 28.86 and 7.70 μM, against promastigotes and amastigotes of L. amazonensis, respectively, being more active than miltefosine, used as reference drug. The in silico analysis of physicochemical and pharmacokinetic (ADMET) properties of this compound suggested a good profile of oral bioavailability and safety. In conclusion, the strategy of using benzothiazole nucleous in the search for new antileishmanial agents was advantageous and preliminar data provide information about the mechanism of action as well as in silico parameters suggest a good profile for preclinical studies.

Evaluation of Some Hematological and Biochemical Parameters of Early Atherosclerosis in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease in Wasit Governorate

The aim of the study was to evaluate some Hematological and Biochemical Parameters in patients with early atherosclerosis in Wasit Governorate. atherosclerosis is one of the leading causes of death among the aged. The localized deposition of fat in the arteries, along with the development of smooth muscle cells and a fibrous matrix, is the primary issue with atherosclerosis. The study took place in a hemodialysis unit Al-Zahraa Teaching Hospital in Wasit Governorate during the period from November 2023 to April 2024. This study aimed to studying the effect of biochemical and blood indicators of atherosclerosis in patients with chronic kidney disease for the purpose of predicting early cases of atherosclerosis in patients with chronic kidney disease and finding solutions to reduce them. Study includes (90) samples: (60) patients suffering from early atherosclerosis and chronic kidney disease (dialysis stage) and 30 samples of healthy people (control group), their ages ranged from (40 to 70 years). The samples were divided into two age groups, where the first group had an average age of 40-55 years and the second group was 56-70 years old, the categories were divided equally into males and females Samples were collected based on the incidence of kidney disease first, and then the main risk factors of early atherosclerosis were relied upon, which are (smoking, age, sex, dyslipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, left ventricle valve, physical inactivity). The results of our study regarding diagnostic markers of atherosclerosis showed a significant increase cholesterol, HDL and LDL at p ≤ 0.5, while a significant decrease in triglycerides at p ≥ 0.5, and Biochemical indicators (albumin and globulin) showed a decrease in significance at p ≥ 0.5, while significance was high for C-reactive protein. The result of the sedimentation rate test (ESR) and the platelet result showed a significant increase at p ≤ 0.5. While differential white blood cell results did not appear significant in the study at p ≥ 0.5. Conclusions: In patients with early atherosclerosis the level of cholesterol, HDL and LDL and ESR, Platelet showed a significant increase at p ≤ 0.5 for infected people, while a significant decrease in triglycerides at p ≥ 0.5. also, the (albumin and globulin) showed a decrease in significance at p ≥ 0.5, while significance was high for C-reactive protein. This is an important indication of the importance of these parameters to detecting the disease.

Clinical characteristics, viral dynamics, and antibody response of monkeypox virus infections among men with and without HIV infection in Guangzhou, China.

Monkeypox virus (MPXV) is spreading globally and nearly half of the infected people were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of the effects of HIV infection on the outcomes of MPXV infection is urgently needed. This study aimed to explore the clinical features, viral dynamics, and antibody response to MPXV infections in men who had sex with men (MSM) with and without HIV co-infection. MPXV-infected patients diagnosed by PCR were recruited in this study and were divided into MPXV and MPXV + HIV groups based on whether they were co-infected with HIV. Clinical data and samples were collected during of the hospital stay and follow up interviews. The symptoms and signs, laboratory examinations, viral shedding in various body fluids or swabs, antibody dynamics were tracked and compared between the two groups. A total of 41 MPXV patients were recruited through June 2023 to September 2023 in Guangzhou. The MPXV group and MPXV + HIV group comprised 20 and 21 MSM, respectively. Patients in the two groups exhibited similar clinical characteristics except for pruritus and eschar, both were significantly fewer in MPXV + HIV group than in MPXV only group. Among the 355 clinical samples collected, MPXV DNA was detected in 100% of scabs, 97.4% of skin swabs, and 92.3% of exudate swabs from lesions, while the positive rate was 87.5% from oropharyngeal swabs, 59% from saliva, 51.3% from anal swabs, 50% from feces, 30.6% from urine samples, 37.5% of semen, and 28.2% from sera. Dynamics analysis revealed that viral DNA was undetectable in most patients 20 days after symptom onset. IgM and IgG antibodies to MPXV were detected in all patients with 3-5 days earlier in the MPXV group than in the MPXV + HIV group. This cohort analysis based on a large outbreak among MSM in Guangzhou indicated no obvious differences in clinical symptoms, viral DNA data, but antibody responses were 3-5 days later in mpox patients with HIV infection.

Quantifying quanta: Determining emission rates from clinical data

It is important to quantify uncertainty in the viable genomic material encapsulated in the respiratory particles emitted by infected people so that it can be converted into an emission rate as a function of respiratory and metabolic activities and used to estimate the probability of infection for an indoor scenario. Clinical measurements of viral loads for SARS-CoV-2 made using infection surveys, Gesundheit-II samplers, and human challenge studies are evaluated and a mathematical model is derived to estimate the quantum emission rate as a function of the genomic and viable viral loads. Modelled emission rates for SARS-CoV-2 agree with clinical data above detection limits. The viral load is found to vary over at least 6 orders of magnitude because it is person and time dependent, and contingent on many other factors that are difficult to quantify. It is similarly large for other respiratory pathogens. Therefore, the genomic and viable-virion emission rates display similar heterogeneity. When emission rates are used to estimate absolute infection risk using the Wells-Riley model, the predictions are so uncertain that they cannot be used in any meaningful way to provide useful quantitative guidance for designing indoor spaces.

Knowledge, attitudes and practices towards yaws in endemic areas of Ghana, Cameroon and Côte d'Ivoire.

Yaws, caused by Treponema pallidum ssp. pertenue, remains a significant public health concern in tropical regions of West Africa and the South Pacific, primarily affecting children in remote areas with limited access to hygiene and sanitation. In this study, conducted in three endemic countries of West Africa where yaws remains a significant public health concern (Ghana, Cameroon, and Côte d'Ivoire), we aimed to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to yaws among community members, community health workers (CHWs), and traditional healers. The study revealed variations in the perception of causes of yaws among community members: the majority or participants in Ghana attributed yaws to germs (60.2%); in Cameroon the most reported form of transmission was contact with or drinking infected water sources (44.6%); and in Côte d'Ivoire both of these answers were also the most prevalent (60.3% germs and 93.% water sources). A substantial proportion of participants in Côte d'Ivoire also associated yaws with witchcraft and divine punishment (44.8%). Only a small proportion of individuals in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire correctly identified contact with an infected person as a form of transmission (11.9% and 20.7%, respectively) and less than half in Cameroon (42.6%), although more than 98% of all participants reported avoidance behaviours towards yaws infected people due to fear of getting infected. Most participants expressed a preference for seeking care at hospitals (49.2%, 60.6%, 86.2%) or health care professionals including doctors and nurses (58.5%, 41,5% and 17.2%) if they were diagnosed with yaws, although a quarter of participants in Côte d'Ivoire also sought support from traditional healers. The CHWs interviewed were generally well-trained on yaws causes and treatment options, although they often reported low availability of treatment and diagnostic tests for yaws. Our findings underscore the need for community education, awareness campaigns, ongoing CHW training, and improved access to yaws treatment and diagnostic resources. The data also suggest that collaboration with traditional healers, who usually hold a highly esteemed position in the society, such as giving training on yaws causes and transmission or exchanging knowledge on treatment options, could be beneficial in certain regions, particularly in Côte d'Ivoire.

Modeling COVID-19 Transmission in Closed Indoor Settings: An Agent-Based Approach with Comprehensive Sensitivity Analysis

Computational simulation models have been widely used to study the dynamics of COVID-19. Among those, bottom-up approaches such as agent-based models (ABMs) can account for population heterogeneity. While many studies have addressed COVID-19 spread at various scales, insufficient studies have investigated the spread of COVID-19 within closed indoor settings. This study aims to develop an ABM to simulate the spread of COVID-19 in a closed indoor setting using three transmission sub-models. Moreover, a comprehensive sensitivity analysis encompassing 4374 scenarios is performed. The model is calibrated using data from Calabria, Italy. The results indicated a decent consistency between the observed and predicted number of infected people (MAPE = 27.94%, RMSE = 0.87 and χ2(1,N=34)=(44.11,p=0.11)). Notably, the transmission distance was identified as the most influential parameter in this model. In nearly all scenarios, this parameter had a significant impact on the outbreak dynamics (total cases and epidemic peak). Also, the calibration process showed that the movement of agents and the number of initial asymptomatic agents are vital model parameters to simulate COVID-19 spread accurately. The developed model may provide useful insights to investigate different scenarios and dynamics of other similar infectious diseases in closed indoor settings.

A hybrid Lagrangian–Eulerian model for vector-borne diseases

In this paper, a multi-patch and multi-group vector-borne disease model is proposed to study the effects of host commuting (Lagrangian approach) and/or vector migration (Eulerian approach) on disease spread. We first define the basic reproduction number of the model, R0\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathcal {R}_0$$\\end{document}, which completely determines the global dynamics of the model system. Namely, if R0≤1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathcal {R}_0 \\le 1 $$\\end{document}, then the disease–free equilibrium is globally asymptotically stable, and if R0>1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathcal {R}_0 > 1 $$\\end{document}, then there exists a unique endemic equilibrium which is globally asymptotically stable. Then, we show that the basic reproduction number has lower and upper bounds which are independent of the host residence times matrix and the vector migration matrix. In particular, nonhomogeneous mixing of hosts and vectors in a homogeneous environment generally increases disease persistence and the basic reproduction number of the model attains its minimum when the distributions of hosts and vectors are proportional. Moreover, R0\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathcal {R}_0$$\\end{document} can also be estimated by the basic reproduction numbers of disconnected patches if the environment is homogeneous. The optimal vector control strategy is obtained for a special scenario. In the two-patch and two-group case, we numerically analyze the dependence of the basic reproduction number and the total number of infected people on the host residence times matrix and illustrate the optimal vector control strategy in homogeneous and heterogeneous environments.