Maanshan City Research Articles

The prevalence and factors of willingness to accept circumcision among MSM in Maanshan City, China

ABSTRACT To investigate the prevalence of male circumcision and the willingness to undergo male circumcision and influencing factors among MSM in Maanshan City, we conducted a cross-sectional study from June 2016 to December 2019. Respondent-driven sampling (RDS) was used to recruit participants. Influential factors of willingness to accept circumcision were identified by a multivariable logistic regression model. The multivariable logistic regression model revealed that five variables were independent influential factors for willingness to participate. The factors include that used condoms during last anal intercourse (OR = 1.87, 95% CI:1.03–3.41, P = 0.04), sex with female sex partners (OR = 0.499, 95% CI:0.298–0.860, P = 0.012, level of education (junior college: OR = 0.413, 95% CI:0.200–0.854, P = 0.017; bachelor's degree or higher: OR = 0.442, 95% CI:0.208–0.938, P = 0.033), condom use during oral sex in the last six months (OR = 4.20, 95% CI:1.47–12.0, P = 0.007) and level of knowledge of PrEP (OR = 5.09, 95% CI:1.39–18.7, P = 0.014). Given the willingness of MSM to accept circumcision was low in China, establishing a proper understanding of circumcision is essential if it is to be used as a strategy to prevent HIV infection among MSM. Therefore, publicity and education on the operation should be strengthened to increase the willingness to undergo male circumcision.

Investigation and Suggestions regarding Residents’ Understanding of Waste Classification in Chinese Prefecture-Level Cities—A Case Study of Maanshan City, Anhui Province, China

The implementation of waste-sorting policy is conducive to improving residents’ working and living environments, and has positive implications for promoting green development and building in China. As one of the main factors in the implementation of waste-sorting policy, residents’ awareness of and behavior regarding waste sorting and disposal affects its promotion, while policies, incentives and infrastructure will affect residents’ enthusiasm for implementing waste sorting. Taking Maanshan City in Anhui Province as a case study, this paper discusses the current state of progress towards ecological civilization in China; the influence of policy promotion on residents’ perception of it; the correlation between residents’ age and their understanding of waste classification; and the correlation between residents’ enthusiasm, policies and green infrastructure; and puts forward some suggestions for how to enhance green infrastructure and improve residents’ perceptions of waste classification in the future.

HIV associated factors among men who have sex with men in Maanshan, China: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundThis study conducted a survey of men who have sex with men (MSM) in Maanshan City of Anhui Province to assess the risk behaviors related to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted from June 2016 to June 2019. The MSM were recruited by a peer-driven sampling method. A face-to-face interview with anonymous questionnaire was used for data collection. The information collected by the survey was summarized and epidemiology described the basic characteristics of MSM, and then the related factors were statistically analyzed.ResultsA total of 934 MSM were recruited with a average age was 30.5 (SD = 8.90) years old, including 816 (87.4%) HIV negative participants and 118 (12.6%) HIV positive ones. This study showed that freelancer (OR = 4.02, 95% CI: 1.96–8.23), scope of sexual partners distribution (OR = 1.78, 95% CI: 1.36–2.33), number of male sexual partners (OR = 2.11, 95% CI: 1.47–3.02), role of anal sex with men was receptive (OR = 2.54, 95% CI: 1.25–5.13) and versatile (OR = 2.34, 95% CI: 1.31–4.19) and non-steady sex partners (OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.56–2.93) were risk factors for HIV infection, while monthly income (OR = 0.68, 95% CI: 0.57–0.82), education level (OR = 0.79, 95% CI: 0.66–0.95), frequency of condom use (OR = 0.53, 95% CI: 0.35–0.81) and number of oral sex partners (OR = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.24–0.51) in the past 6 months were protective factors for HIV infection.ConclusionRisk behaviors were common in MSM, and urgent need for targeted and comprehensive interventions to reduce risky sexual behaviour and to prevent HIV infection in MSM.

Modification of the CSIRO method in the long-term monitoring of slope-induced stress

The in situ stress measurement technique can be used in long-term monitoring of induced stress to obtain three-dimensional stress states in slope engineering. In the monitoring, the ambient temperature fluctuation, “zero” drift of the logging data, and stable power supply should be considered. A dual temperature compensation circuit and experimental calibration techniques are proposed to increase accuracy based on the principle of the CSIRO method and considering the effect of a long-term disturbance of temperature in slope engineering. In view of the characteristics of the stress field distribution of the slope rock, the strain gauge layout scheme for induced stress monitoring of slope rock is modified to achieve the acquisition of three parallel measurements at one measurement and a stress–strain relationship equation for multilayer elastic layers is derived. An in situ stress logging system with the function of transient logging and data-connection in power cut condition is introduced to achieve a continuous correlation of measurement data under power cut conditions. An online cloud platform is established for the slope engineering of Au Mountain Iron Mine in Maanshan City. The results show that the data deviation of logging system is ±14 με with 24 days’ power off, and errors with amount of 15% were corrected by the dual temperature compensation method. The remotely transmitted data reflect the effect of temperature changes and the evolution of strain (induced stress) in real time to satisfy the demand of long-term monitoring of slope engineering.

Development and Evaluation of Orthographic Knowledge Awareness Scale for Children Aged 6-12 Years.

ObjectiveThis study primarily aimed to develop an orthographic knowledge awareness scale in Mandarin for children aged 6–12 years. Related factors affecting orthographic knowledge awareness in children were analyzed, and a basis for individualized intervention was provided to improve reading and writing.MethodsA conceptual framework for orthographic knowledge awareness in children aged 6–12 years was determined through a detailed reading of the literature on Chinese character orthography, combined with qualitative interviews of the target population and consultation with experts. The orthographic knowledge awareness scale initially consisted of three versions: for grades 1–2 (210 items), grades 3–4 (207 items), and grades 5–6 (220 items), accumulating a total of 637 items. The initial scale was then used for the study involving children aged 6–12 years in Maanshan City, Jiangsu Province. Various approaches to screening items were comprehensively used to determine the formal version of the orthographic knowledge awareness scale. The official scale was ultimately used to conduct the third round of surveys among 1,354 children aged 6–12 years in ordinary primary schools located in 5 cities in Jiangsu Province, namely, Changzhou, Lianyungang, Nantong, Xuzhou, and Yangzhou. The reliability, validity, and discriminating power of the formal scale were evaluated.ResultsA total of 360 items were included in the formal version of the orthographic knowledge awareness scale. The formal scale was divided into three versions for grades 1–2, 3–4, and 5–6. Each grade version consisted of 120 items. The scale was composed of the stroke awareness test, radical awareness test, and left–right reversal test. The cumulative variance contribution rates of grades 1–2, 3–4, and 5–6 were 82.47, 61.71, and 64.19%, respectively. The Cronbach's α coefficients of the three-grade version of the scale were 0.989, 0.946, and 0.938; the split-half reliability coefficients were 0.925, 0.766, and 0.847; and the test–retest reliability coefficients were 0.847, 0.895, and 0.8928, respectively.ConclusionThe proposed orthographic knowledge awareness scale for children aged 6–12 years exhibits good reliability and validity. The formal scale consisted of two dimensions: identification of left–right reversal at the stroke and radical levels and the left–right reversal at the whole character level. The two dimensions can more comprehensively reflect the ability of children to discriminate orthographic structures.

Development of psychological resilience and associations with emotional and behavioral health among preschool left-behind children.

This study aimed to explore the development of psychological resilience and its associations with emotional and behavioral health among preschool left-behind children (LBC). LBC in 26 preschools of Fuyang City, Hefei City, and Maanshan City of Anhui Province were included at baseline survey; and baseline children in the junior and middle classes of preschools as targeted samples were recruited for the 1-year follow-up. Multivariable linear regression models were performed to examine associations of psychological resilience with emotional and behavioral health. In total, 1463 LBC were included at baseline and 568 of the 905 targeted LBC completed the 1-year follow-up. Change patterns of psychological resilience were identified as the stable-high pattern (19.0%), increasing pattern (18.3%), declining pattern (15.9%), and stable-low pattern (46.8%). The results showed that psychological resilience at baseline was positively associated with later dietary behavior habits and prosocial behaviors, and negatively associated with later problematic behaviors and sleep problems. In addition, children with the declining pattern had more problematic behaviors and sleep problems, and fewer prosocial behaviors at follow-up. Children with the increasing pattern and stable-high pattern had more prosocial behaviors, better dietary behavior habits, and fewer problematic behaviors and sleep problems at follow-up. The majority of preschool LBC had lower psychological resilience and its level among some LBC changed during the follow-up. Higher psychological resilience was a protective factor for emotional and behavioral health. Timely assessing psychological resilience and then strengthening it are needed to promote the emotional and behavioral health of preschool LBC.

The Construction of Regional Ecological Security Pattern Based on a Multi-Factor Comprehensive Model and Circuit Theory

Various ecological problems have become increasingly prominent due to the accelerated growth of urbanization. Ecological security and ecological conservation have become an important topics in the current scenario. This study took southern Anhui as an example, constructing comprehensive assessment models to conduct source identification from three perspectives, i.e. ecosystem services, ecological sensitivity and residents’ ecological needs. Landscape resistance surface was built based on the reciprocal of habitat quality and night-time light data. According to the circuit theory, the ecological process in the heterogeneous landscape was simulated to identify ecological corridors, extract pinch points and divide barriers that need improvement, thereby to construct the southern Anhui ecological security pattern (ESP). The pattern comprised 20 ecological sources, 37 ecological corridors, 9 pinch points and 2 levels of improvement areas. Specifically, ecological sources were mainly distributed within the area of Huangshan city and Xuancheng city, mostly covered with trees; ecological corridors were mostly located in the northern part of the research area; pinch points were mainly farmland or beside construction land; the primary improvement area was mainly in Chaohu city and Maanshan city, while the secondary improvement area was distributed around the primary area. The study discussed the diversified improvement strategies of different barriers and introduced the optimization scheme “one centre, two wings, one belt”, providing planning advice for decision-makers. The study expanded the construction of regional ESP, and partly guided the steady development of ESP of southern Anhui.

Performance evaluation of urban environmental governance in Anhui Province based on spatial and temporal differentiation analyses.

When the process of urbanization has brought economic benefits in the Yangtze River Delta of China, environmental pollution becomes increasingly prominent. In order to achieve integrated sustainable green development and reduce the gap in environmental governance performance between regions, this study analyzed the environmental issues of provincial cities in Anhui Province from 2013 to 2017 in the urban agglomeration of Yangtze River Delta. Governance performance is analyzed and the evaluation index system framework is determined using the "pressure-state-response" model with the panel and spatial data. Based on the global principal component analysis method and spatial autocorrelation analysis, the environmental governance performance of Anhui Province has generally increased steadily from 2013 to 2017. The situation in northern Anhui is still developing in a good state. Southern Anhui is in a trend of rising first and then stabilizing, whereas central Anhui has a downward trend after a rapid rise; in terms of the spatial pattern, the overall situation is central Anhui > northern Anhui > southern Anhui. The urban spatial distribution pattern of the region shows a positive spatial correlation. Particularly, the performance levels of Maanshan City and Huainan City have been at a poor level for a long time, whereas Hefei and Huangshan have strong comprehensive environmental governance capabilities with average efficiency values of 0.55 and 0.47, respectively. Corresponding countermeasures have been proposed to rectify polluting enterprises and optimize structure of industries, increase scientific and technological investment and infrastructure construction, strengthen the radiation driving effects, and establish a pollution monitoring system. Based on all the analyses and resulted findings, we concluded the study with corresponding policy implications/suggestions and recommended countermeasures.

Lysobacter gilvus sp. nov., isolated from activated sludge.

Strain HX-5-24T was isolated from the sludge collected from the outlet of the biochemical treatment facility of an agricultural chemical plant in Maanshan city, Anhui province, PR China (118° 28' N, 31° 47' E). Cells were observed to be Gram-reaction-negative, rod-shaped, non-motile and aerobic. Strain HX-5-24T shared 99.1% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with Lysobacter dokdonensis DS-58T and less than 97% similarities with other type strains. The phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA indicated that strain HX-5-24T belonged to the genus Lysobacter and formed a subclade with L. dokdonensis DS-58T. The average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) values between strain HX-5-24T and L. dokdonensis DS-58T were 87.5% and 35.3%, respectively. The genomic DNA G + C content of the strain was 66.4%. The major fatty acids (> 5%) were iso-C15:0, anteiso-C15:0, iso-C16:0, C16:0 and summed feature 9 (iso-C17:1 ω9c and/or C16:0 10-methyl). The predominant quinone was ubiquinone Q-8. The polar lipid profile consisted of diphosphatidylglycerol (DPG), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylglycerol (PG) and phospholipids (PL). On the basis of phenotypic and phylogenetic evidences, strain HX-5-24T is considered as a novel species in the genus Lysobacter, for which the name Lysobacter gilvus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is HX-5-24T (= KCTC 72470T = CCTCC AB 2019228T).

Caenimonas sedimenti sp. nov., Isolated from Sediment of the Wastewater Outlet of an Agricultural Chemical Plant.

A novel bacterial strain, designated HX-9-20T, was isolated from the sediment collected from the wastewater outlet of an agricultural chemical plant in Maanshan city, Anhui province, PR China. Cells of strain HX-9-20T were Gram-staining-negative, rod-shaped, translucent, non-motile, and strictly aerobic. Growth was observed between 15 and 35°C (optimum 30°C), at pH 6.0-8.0 (optimum pH 7.0), and in the presence of 0-0.4% (w/v) NaCl (optimum 0.2%). The predominant cellular fatty acids were summed feature 3 (C16:1 ω7c and/or C16:1 ω6c), C16:0 and summed feature 8 (C18:1 ω6c and/or C18:1 ω7c). The major quinone was ubiquinone Q-8. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, and an aminophospholipid. Strain HX-9-20T contains 2-hydroxyputrescine and putrescine as the major polyamine. A phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain HX-9-20T was affiliated with the genus Caenimonas, exhibiting the highest sequence similarities with Caenimonas koreensis EMB320T (97.3% similarity) and Ramlibacter humi 18×22-1T (97.0%), and less than 97.0% similarity with other type strains. The average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA-DNA hybridization values (dDDH) between HX-9-20T and C. koreensis EMB320T were 76.9% and 23.5% respectively. The ANI and dDDH between HX-9-20T and R. humi 18×22-1T were 80.3% and 23.6%, respectively. The G + C content of the genomic DNA was 67.5mol%. On the basis of the polyphasic taxonomic data, strain HX-9-20T represents a novel species of the genus Caenimonas, for which the name Caenimonas sedimenti sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is HX-9-20T (=KCTC 72473T=CCTCC AB 2019266T).

Characterization of Microplastic Pollution of Sediments from Urban Lakes

In recent years, microplastics (MPs) in the environment has become a topic of increasing concern. In this study, typical urban lakes, such as Yushan Lake and Nanhu Lake in Maanshan City, were selected to study the physical morphology and spatial distribution characteristics of MPs in sediments in spring and summer and to explore the sources of MPs in the lakes. On average, MPs in sediments occurred with a content of (0.0284±0.0597) g·kg-1 and abundance of (278.9±529.1) n·kg-1 in spring, and (0.0317±0.0778) g·kg-1 and (277.1±395.6) n·kg-1 in summer, respectively. Using a paired sample T-test, it was found that there was no significant correlation difference between the content (N=22, t=-0.269, P=0.791) and the abundance (N=22, t=0.035, P=0.973) of MPs in the spring and summer sediments. Regarding shape, the MPs in the sediments in the study area were divided into three types:fiber, film, and particle, accounting for 52.9%, 28.9%, and 18.2%, respectively. Size-fraction analysis indicated MPs<1 mm made up the majority, accounting for 83.9% of the total number. It was found that the MPs were mainly polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) polymers with seriously weathered surfaces. The sediments, which were adjacent either to land with a large stream of people and vehicles or to areas with frequent watersports, had notably high abundance of MPs, revealing the close correlation between the spatial distribution of MPs in lake sediments and human activities. It is thought that atmospheric precipitation (fiber), stormwater, washing of clothes (fiber), degradation of large plastics in the lake, and fishing activities (fishing nets, foam) are the main sources of MPs in lake sediments.

Particle Size Dependent Heavy Metals in Road Dusts from Maanshan City, China

In this study the road dusts (RDs) <1,000 μm from Maanshan City, China were characterized from the prospects of size fractionated pollution by heavy metals (HMs). Particulates with size <75 μm, 75–125 μm, 125–250 μm, 250–500 μm and 500–1,000 μm averagely accounted for 35.7±11.7%, 14.6±11.0%, 25.3±12.5%, 11.6±8.8% and 12.8±12.9% of the total weight, respectively. This result implies the gravimetric percentage was overall declined with increasing granular size, following gamma distribution function (p < 0.001). It was observed that the highest contents of Zn, Ni, Pb and Cd occurred with the fine RDs < 75 μm while Cu with these < 125 μm, suggesting HMs preferred to be associated with the fine particulates. Cu, Zn, Ni, Pb, Cr and Cd were present in RDs with bulk contents of 68±30 mg/kg, 285±122 mg/kg, 23±16 mg/kg, 53±21 mg/kg, 432+297 mg/kg and 0.56±0.39 mg/kg, which resulted in geo-accumulation index (lgeo) values as -1.04, 2.35, -2.38, 0.38, 1.54 and 0.18, respectively. Hence, it can be concluded that the RDs had only been significantly polluted by Zn. Person correlation analysis suggests those HMs ubiquitously present in RDs had size-dependent sources.

Microplastics in Sediments of River Yongfeng from Maanshan City, Anhui Province, China.

This study was performed to evaluate the microplastics (MPs) pollution of sediments from River Yongfeng. It was observed that the MPs in sediments were present with contents of 0.5-16.75mg/kg andabundances of 5-72items/kg, coupled by variation coefficients of 109% and 91%, respectively, indicating that the distribution of MPs had high spatial variation. The land-based source of business zone is thought to be the significant contributor to accumulation of MPs in those sites with high quantity of MPs. Film was the predominant shape of MPs in river sediments followed by the line and fragment ones. Meanwhile, the MPs detected were mainly composed by four types including Polypropylene (24%), Polyethylene (61%), Polyethylene Terephthalate (8%) and Polystyrene (7%) based on number fraction, respectively, which indicates that Polypropylene and Polyethylene were the major types of MPs in the sediments. Size fraction performance suggests that those MPs < 1000μm were of ubiquitous presence. The weathering of fringes was universally observed regardless of varying surface among MPs. Despite digestion with oxidative acid solution and subsequent washing by distilled water unexpected elements can still be detected, which should be considered as determining the materials associated.

Characteristics of particle size distribution and related contaminants of highway-deposited sediment, Maanshan City, China.

Road-deposited sediment (RDS) has been identified as both the source and sink of various pollutants. In this study, the highway-deposited sediment (HDS) in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter was characterized. On average, the mass proportions of particles with the size of 830-4750μm, 500-830μm, 250-500μm, 150-250μm, 63-150μm and < 63μm were 23.6 ± 8.6%, 16.9 ± 3.4%, 28.4 ± 3.5%, 10.0 ± 4.3%, 15.7 ± 5.8% and 5.3 ± 2.0%, respectively, wherein the HDS of 63-830μm accounted for 71% of the total mass load. It was observed that the particle size distribution of HDS could be described using the gamma distribution function based on gravimetric and cumulative basis (R2 (determination coefficient) = 0.9960-0.9995). The bulk pollutant contents of HDS showed seasonal variation with the mean of COD (chemical oxygen demand), nitrogen, phosphorus, Zn (zinc), Pb (lead) and Cd (cadmium) as 57g/kg, 839mg/kg, 97mg/kg, 627mg/kg, 110mg/kg and 1.00mg/kg and the highest COD of 83g/kg in Autumn, nitrogen 1164mg/kg Autumn, phosphorus 133mg/kg Winter, Zn 801mg/kg Summer, Pb 133mg/kg Spring and the highest Cd of 1.36mg/kg in Summer, respectively. The contents of Zn, Pb and Cd in HDS were significantly above their local soil background values. Moreover, the size fractional pollutant contents overall increased as particles' size increased. Averagely, 40-52% pollutant loads were associated with the particles < 250μm, which can be moved easily by runoff. This study suggests that the behaviors of HDS differentfrom city RDS should be considered as nonpoint source pollution control is performed.

Integration Multi-Model to Evaluate the Impact of Surface Water Quality on City Sustainability: A Case from Maanshan City in China

Water pollution is a worldwide problem that needs to be solved urgently and has a significant impact on the efficiency of sustainable cities. The evaluation of water pollution is a Multiple Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) problem and using a MCDM model can help control water pollution and protect human health. However, different evaluation methods may obtain different results. How to effectively coordinate them to obtain a consensus result is the main aim of this work. The purpose of this article is to develop an ensemble learning evaluation method based on the concept of water quality to help policy-makers better evaluate surface water quality. A valid application is conducted to illustrate the use of the model for the surface water quality evaluation problem, thus demonstrating the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed model.

Performance evaluation of medical services in nine urban public hospitals based on patient reported experience: a cross-sectional survey

BackgroundThe public hospital reform in China was launched in April 2009. Whether patients are satisfied with medical services or not is an important index to measure the effectiveness of the public hospital reform. We aimed to explore whether patients experience improved medical service under the public hospital reform. MethodsPatient-reported experience measures (PREMs) were used to evaluate medical service performance. We designed a questionnaire to collect patient-reported experiences, using a scoring method based on a scale of one to ten, with one being very poor and ten being excellent. A total of nine urban public hospitals from four provinces (Fujian, Jiangsu, Anhui, and Shanxi) were selected for a field survey in August 2016. We chose two cities as sample sites in each province; one city that had undergone reform and one that had not. In addition, we chose Maanshan city from Anhui province (which underwent public hospital reform well from 2009) as our ‘typical’ sample city. In each city, the biggest general hospital was selected to participate in the study. We ran face-to-face interviews with 2633 patients (we planned to collect data from 200 outpatients and 100 inpatients in each hospital for a sample size 15 times the number of independent variables (20) from nine hospitals. Data were collected from outpatient and emergency patients who had just completed their treatment, inpatients who were being prepared for discharge, or patients who remained in hospital for more than one week. The age of participants was from 0 to 93 (surveys for children under the age of 15 were completed by their parents or guardians), 1199 (45·5%) were male, 1434 (54·5%) were female. We explored factors that might influence performance rating using single-factor analysis of variance and correlation analysis (for example, type of medical insurance, disease diagnosis, disease type, disease severity, and the public hospital reforming policy). FindingsA total of 2633 participants (a minimum of 268 participants from each hospital) were interviewed, including 1703 outpatients (64·68%) and 930 inpatients (35·32%). Overall, the evaluation of medical services was positive. Question relating to the relationship between doctors and patients had the highest score (7·986), whereas the lowest score was given for question relating to medical service quality and effectiveness (4·917). Question relating to medical costs had a lower score (6·882). The total performance scores differed significantly by patient type, age, sex, marital status, educational level, occupation, type of medical insurance, disease diagnosis, disease type, and disease severity. InterpretationThe patient–doctor relationship seems to have improved greatly since the initiation of the public hospital reform, but patients' experience of service quality and efficiency, and medical costs remain unsatisfactory. PREMs could reflect improvements to medical services as a result of the urban public hospital reform, and the public hospital reforming policy might improve the service efficiency and medical costs. FundingThe project is funded by the National Science Foundation of China (number 71473129).

Two-Phase Anaerobic Digester Combined with Solar Thermal and Phase Change Thermal Storage System in Winter

Using solar energy as the heat source for biogas improvement of the anaerobic digester is an effective method. However, intermittent solar radiation and low ambient temperature in the winter make it difficult to maintain a steady fermentation temperature. In this study, a pilot-scale two-phase anaerobic digester combined with solar thermal and phase change thermal storage (PCTS) system has been constructed. A set of comparative field studies were carried out during the winter in Maanshan City, Anhui Province, China; these periods of study included no heating mode (P1), heated with solar thermal and PCTS system (P2), and conventional solar heating mode (P3). The comparison shows that methane yields and the energy conversion rate of the substrates of P2 were 12.33 m3 and 48.6%, respectively, both of which increased by 5.65 and 1.01 times, compared with that of P1 and P3, respectively. The statistical coefficients of variation for the fermentation temperature were 2.5% in P2 and 6.6% in P3, which means that ...

Incidence and risk factors of bacterial vaginosis among pregnant women: a prospective study in Maanshan city, Anhui Province, China.

The aim of this study was to identify the incidence and risk factors of bacterial vaginosis among pregnant women. Prospective data from a cohort of 668 pregnant women were used to identify potential risk factors for bacterial vaginosis during pregnancy by Cox proportional hazards regression. A total of 204 incident cases of bacterial vaginosis were diagnosed in 274.8 woman-years of follow-up. The bacterial vaginosis incidence rate was 0.74 per 1 woman-year and median prevalence during follow-up was 15.6%. In the adjusted model, changing underwear nearly everyday, miscarriage history, urinary tract infection during follow-up, husbands' education level, and concurrent trichomoniasis and candidiasis remained significantly associated with bacterial vaginosis (adjusted hazard ratio and 95% confidence interval were 1.87 [1.26-2.77]; 2.96 [1.96-4.47]; 2.41 [1.05-5.49]; 0.50 [0.32-0.77]; 1.82 [1.02-3.25]; 1.88 [1.30-2.70], respectively). Bacterial vaginosis during pregnancy can be affected by many factors, and some are indirectly acting factors. Further prospective studies that include a larger sample size and more information on the development of bacterial vaginosis are needed.

Serum cystatin C level is associated with carotid intima-media thickening and plaque

Background and aim. Chronic kidney disease has recently been shown to be a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and carotid intima-media thickness has been widely used as a biomarker for early detection of cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to confirm whether carotid thickening and carotid plaque are associated with preclinical chronic kidney disease in individuals without clinical cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease. Material and methods. We conducted a cross-sectional study on participants from Maanshan City, China. All participants underwent carotid ultrasonography. Kidney function was measured using cystatin C, serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen and blood uric acid. Demographics and risk factors for cardiovascular diseases were obtained from each participant. Results. A total of 927 subjects were surveyed; 453 (48.87%) were men and 474 (51.13%) were women. A total of 525 (56.63%) of the participants were found to have carotid thickening of which 281 (53.52%) were men and 244 (46.48%) were women. Kidney function was strongly associated with carotid thickening and plaque in the unadjusted analysis. However, cystatin C was the only measure of kidney function that was significantly associated with carotid thickening and plaque in the adjusted analysis (in order to select risk factors from sex, age, BMI, hypertension, diabetes, smoking, total cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, apolipoprotein A, apolipoprotein B, cystatin C, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, blood uric, estimated GFR). Conclusion. Cystatin C, an alternative measure of kidney function, was more strongly associated with carotid thickening and plaque than other measures of kidney function.

Syphilis seroconversion among drug addicts during methadone maintenance treatment in Maanshan city,Anhui province: incidence and risk factors

Objective To evaluate the incidence of and risk factors for syphilis seroconversion amomg drug addicts during methadone maintenance treatment (MMT).Methods A retrospective study was performed on drug addicts receiving MMT at MMT clinics in Maanshan,who were seronegative for syphilis before the treatment and followed up by serological tests for syphilis for more than two years.The incidence of and risk factors for syphilis seroconversion during the two years of follow up were analyzed in all the subjects.Results A total of 161 drug addicts were included in this study,of whom,15 experienced seroconversion for syphilis with the average seroconversion rate being 4.66 per 100 person-years.The seroconversion tended to occurr in the early stage of MMT.Both Chi-square analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that syphilis seroconversion was independently associated with nonuse of condoms during the last sexual behavior before receiving MMT.Conclusions Interventions should be undertaken as early as possible to promote safe sexual behaviors among drug addicts at methadone clinics,and to promote condom use is especially important for blocking sexual transmission of diseases. Key words: Syphilis; Methadone; Therapy; Risk factors