Risk Of Spreading Infectious Diseases Research Articles

Issues with infectious disease vaccine introduction into routine vaccination in Japan, and considerations for accelerating the process

Routine vaccinations help prevent the outbreak and spread of infectious diseases; however, it can take up to ten years from vaccine approval to introduction into routine vaccination schedules in Japan. Here, we investigate the information required to introduce an approved vaccine into routine vaccination schedules and the reasons why it takes so long. Based on the published data of the Immunization and Vaccine Committee of the Health Science Council, we set out to explore ways to facilitate discussion on this topic. The following issues were identified as discussion points: disease burden, efficacy and safety, and cost-effectiveness. Until now, epidemiological information has been used to evaluate the efficacy of vaccines, and also to evaluate the safety in the presence of notable adverse reactions. However, in some cases, it took a long time to obtain epidemiological information regarding the frequency of rare but serious adverse reactions and the need for a booster dose. Given the risk of spreading infectious diseases due to delays in decision-making, vaccines may have to be introduced into routine vaccination schedules based on the results of clinical trials that can be obtained in a relatively short period. In contrast, epidemiological information is necessary to evaluate the disease burden, frequency of adverse reactions, and the necessity of booster doses. Therefore, developing an epidemiological information collection system is urgently required.

Predictive models for disease detection in group-housed preweaning dairy calves using data collected from automated milk feeders

In the United States, dairy calves are typically housed individually due to the perception of reduced risk of spreading infectious diseases between calves and the ability to monitor health on an individual calf basis. However, automated milk feeders (AMF) can provide individual monitoring of group-housed calves while allowing them to express more natural feeding behaviors and interact with each other. Research has shown that feeding behaviors recorded by AMF can be a helpful screening tool for detecting disease in dairy calves. Altogether, there is an opportunity to use the data from AMF to create a more robust and efficient model to predict disease, reducing the need for visual observation. Therefore, the objective of this observational study was to predict disease in preweaning dairy calves using AMF feeding behavior data and machine learning (ML) algorithms. This study was conducted on a dairy farm located in the Upper Midwest United States and visited weekly from July 2018 to May 2019. During farm visits, AMF data and calves' treatment records were collected, and calves were visually health-scored for attitude, ear position, ocular discharge, nasal discharge, hide dirtiness, and cough score. The final datasets used for the analyses consisted of 740 and 741 calves, with 1,007 (healthy = 594 and sick = 413) and 1,044 (healthy = 560 and sick = 484) observations (health events) for Data 1 and Data 2, respectively. Data 1 included only the weekly calf health scores observed by research personnel, whereas Data 2 included primarily daily calf treatment records by farm staff in addition to weekly health scores. Calf visit-level feeding behaviors from AMF data included milk intake (mL/d), drinking speed (mL/min), visit duration (min), rewarded (with milk being offered) and unrewarded (without milk) visits (number per d), and the interval between visits (min). Three approaches were used to predict health status: generalized linear model, random forest, and gradient boosting machine. A total of 16 models were built using different combinations of behavior parameters, including the number of rewarded visits, number of unrewarded visits, visit duration, the interval between visits, intake, intake divided by rewarded visits, drinking speed, and drinking speed divided by rewarded visits, and also calf age at the sick day as predictor variables. Of all algorithms, random forest and gradient boosting had the best performance predicting the health status of dairy calves. The results indicated that weekly health scores were not enough to predict calf health status. However, daily treatment records and AMF data were sufficient for creating predictive algorithms (e.g., F1-scores of 0.775 and 0.784 for random forest and gradient boosting, Data 2). This study suggests that ML was effective in determining the specific visit-level feeding behaviors that can be used to predict disease in group-housed preweaning dairy calves. Implementing these ML algorithms could reduce the need for visual calf observation on farms, minimizing labor time and improving calf health.

Enhancing Content Validity of the Designed Hierarchy of Controls Instrument in Preventing Infectious Diseases on Construction Sites: A Multidimensional Approach

The study aims to examine the content validity index (CVI) and Kappa statistics (K) with the Hierarchy of Controls instrument, which was made to reduce the risk of spreading infectious diseases on construction sites. The examination of validity that the investigation will assess will involve the item-level ICV (I-CVI), scale-level CVI (S-CVI), Probability of chance agreement (P_c), and Kappa value (K). The study employs a questionnaire evaluation form frequently used in quantitative research to gather data. Hence, the process of developing a research instrument that guarantees the accuracy of data necessitates the validation of a questionnaire. A panel of six experts in the field has been invited to offer suggestions to improve the questionnaire’s validity. The instrument comprises a total of 36 items, which are divided into two distinct categories. All products within the two domains had an I-CVI of 0.67 to 1. In planning, implementation, and evaluation, the average score for relevance and clarity on the S-CVI was 0.94, which exceeded 0.80, indicating a strong content validity of the items. Consequently, the designed questionnaire is deemed suitable for implementation in an actual research investigation. Nevertheless, it is recommended that additional face validity assessments and pilot studies be conducted to test the instrument’s validity, reliability, and usability. Hence, it is imperative to ensure that the development and validation validity processes are diligently conducted in order to effectively implement preventive measures against infectious diseases at the designated site.

SymListener: Detecting Respiratory Symptoms via Acoustic Sensing in Driving Environments

Sound-related respiratory symptoms are commonly observed in our daily lives. They are closely related to illnesses, infections, or allergies but ignored by the majority. Existing detection methods either depend on specific devices, which are inconvenient to wear, or are sensitive to noises and only work for indoor environment. Considering the lack of monitoring method for in-car environment, where there is high risk of spreading infectious diseases, we propose a smartphone-based system, named SymListener, to detect respiratory symptoms in driving environment. By continuously recording acoustic data through a built-in microphone, SymListener can detect the sounds of cough, sneeze, and sniffle. We design a modified ABSE-based method to remove the strong and changeable driving noises while saving energy of the smartphone. An LSTM network is adopted to classify the three types of symptoms according to the carefully designed acoustic features. We implement SymListener on different Android devices and evaluate its performance in real driving environment. The evaluation results show that SymListener can reliably detect target respiratory symptoms with an average accuracy of 92.19% and an average precision of 90.91%.

Analysis of State Transition of COVID-19 Positive Cases in Tokyo, Japan and its Application to Agent Simulation

This paper estimates the state transition of COVID-19 positive cases by analyzing the data about confirmed positive cases in Tokyo, Japan. The prediction of the number of newly infected persons is one of the active research topics for the COVID-19 pandemic. Although such a prediction is important for recognizing the future risk of spreading infectious diseases, understanding the state transition after they are confirmed to be positive is also important for estimating the number of required ICUs, hotel rooms for isolation, etc. This paper classifies the state after being positive into “in hotel/home for isolation,” “in hospital with a mild state,” “in hospital with a severe state,” “recovered,” and “dead” and estimates the transition probabilities among those states from the data about confirmed positive cases in Tokyo, Japan. This paper shows the parameters estimated from different periods and discusses the difference considering the pandemic situation. An agent simulation using the estimated transition probabilities as its parameters is also proposed. The result of the simulation from August to November 2020 shows the predicted number of agents is close to the actual data. As one of the possible applications to the proposed agent simulation, this paper shows the simulation result from December 2020 to January 2021 under a hypothetical situation.

Real-time Monitoring of the Environment Gases within the UV-NIR Regions

Indoor air quality and environmental monitoring, particularly during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic are vital and in need. The main purpose of monitoring the air quality is that the infected area may increase the risk of spreading infectious diseases of COVID-19. Therefore, real-time and non-contact measurements are more necessary for the current situation to monitor the indoor area air quality. In this study, we propose an optical method for monitoring indoor air quality in fast and accurate tracking of ultraviolet (UV), visible, and near-infrared (IR) indoor atmospheric gases using the natural sunlight and spectrometer. The proposed method is portable, non-contact, and real-time spectroscopy screening of the Oxygen (O2), Ozone (O3), and water vapour through the analysis of their absorption characteristics. The absorption peaks and light intensities of O2 at 630 nm, 685 nm, and 758; O3 at 380 nm, 390 nm, 427 nm, 481 nm, 522 nm; and H2O at 718 nm and 820 nm have been monitored at different weather conditions. Further to provide air pollution’s effect through tracking the absorption peaks and intensity for each gas, the proposed method might help identify the infected area potential of COVID-19 under practical scenarios such as pre-inspection in houses, shops, hospitals, and schools. The data are of great importance, particularly for population groups and individuals most vulnerable to COVID-19. Considering factors such as safety, stability, and price, this simple technology is the most suitable for real applications.

Рroven experience in implementing proposals for improving the medical waste management system in military medical institutions of the ministry of defense of the Russian Federation

Aim: the authors share their proven experience of participating in the development and scientific support of proposals for improving the medical waste management system.Materials and methods. The study was carried out in the format of research work to substantiate proposals for improving the system of medical waste management in extreme conditions.Results. It was found that the system of medical waste management, which functions stably under the conditions of daily activities in peacetime, in extreme situations fails and creates a risk of spreading infectious diseases among the personnel of medical institutions, the population, as well as environmental pollution. This problem is obvious also for military medical institutions of various power structures. The essence of the proposals is to maximize reduction of the stages of the waste life cycle, which in the applied aspect is implemented by equipping military medical institutions with standard installations for the disposal of any medical waste.Conclusion. The value of the conducted research lies not only in the innovative nature of the proposals made, but also in the fact that they were made long before the events associated with the epidemic of coronavirus infection. The results of this work were neither appreciated at their true worth in a timely manner, nor received wide publicity and, as a result, they have not fully used to carry out preventive measures.

Home Hygiene and Prevention of Infections

Health is wealth - a famous proverb that almost everyone has heard of but may not have fully understood its essence. Health comes from maintaining cleanliness and hygiene which starts from home and expands to workplaces and public areas. By practicing hygiene in the home and everyday life settings, it will have impact significantly in reducing the global burden of infectious diseases that kills over 17 million people a year. Mainly caused by microorganisms, infections can easily spread by direct and indirect contact. Common infectious diseases include chickenpox, common cold, malaria and pertussis. These diseases tend to have specific symptoms such as fever, diarrhoea, fatigue and muscle aches. In institutional settings, such as schools and child-cares settings, information relating hand hygiene is routine. However, the home environment is one of the potential sources of transmission of infectious diseases. This situation, of course, needs to be re-evaluated and the promotion of home hygiene should be encouraged. Positive correlation has been found between home hygiene practices and risk of disease transmission in homes where the first line of defence against infectious diseases is cleaning and disinfecting plus maintaining good hand hygiene. But, the implementation for an effective policy to monitor home hygiene is rather complex due to varying determinants of health. In a nutshell, proper home hygiene and cleaning practices lead to reduced risk of spreading infectious diseases. They should form the key issues in the practice of health promotion in the community and institutions.

Sensory Elements and Devices Operational Diagnostic Blood Glucose Using Near Infrared Radiation

The article describes a method for measuring the concentration of glucose in human blood by the non-invasive methods using near-infrared optical technology. In medical practice, glucose concentration in the blood in most cases is measured by invasive methods involving the collection of blood from the finger or vein, while non-invasive devices for determining the level of glucose preserve the operational measurement of blood-borne levels. Invasive methods are expensive and painful. Frequent piercing of fingers causes corns on the skin, and also increases the risk of spreading infectious diseases. Thus, the development of a system of non-invasive measurement of glucose in the blood will be useful for patients with diabetes mellitus. The proposed system consists of emitters of signals with a wavelength of 940 nm. These optical signals are sent through the earlobe, and the rays passing through it are fixed by a phototransistor located on another part of the device. The concentration of glucose in the blood is determined by analyzing the intensity variation obtained after passing the signal. The accuracy of the measurements of the proposed system can be improved by integrating its sensitive and emitting elements based on the SOI of the CMOS structures.

Vitamins C, D and Zinc: Synergistic Roles in Immune Function and Infections

The immune system is a complex and sophisticated network of specialized tissues, organs, cells, proteins, and chemicals which has evolved in order to protect the host from a range of dangerous agents such as bacteria, virus, fungi, and parasites. There is a close relationship between nutritional status and immune function. Hence, immunocompetence can be regarded as a measure of adequate nutrition. Inter-individual variations in many immune functions exist within the normal healthy population and are due to age, genetics, gender, ethnic background, socio-economic situation, diet, stress, habitual levels of exercise, alcohol consumption, smoking habits, etc. In addition, seasonal and temperature changes as well as being in crowded spaces (e.g., while commuting in public means of transportation, or working in open space offices) pose an additional burden on the immune system. Among the essential micronutrients required to support a normal immune function, vitamin C, vitamin D and the mineral zinc play a central role. Through their complementary and synergistic effects, they support components of both innate and adaptive immunity which comprise epithelial barriers, cellular defense and antibodies constituting the three main lines of immune defense. Furthermore, vitamin C, D and zinc are actively used by cells of the immune system engaged in fighting infections like upper respiratory tract infections and a state of micronutrient deficiency can arise during severe infections. Here we review the literature on the immune supportive properties of vitamins C, D and zinc and the impact of their supplementation in reducing the incidence or ameliorating symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections, which are among the most common infections in humans. Finally, we discuss their relevance in situations known to challenge the immune system such as exposure to temperature changes, to pollutants, or being in crowded spaces which serve as mixers where pathogens can stay suspended and transfer from host to host thereby increasing the risk of spreading infectious diseases because of close contact and long exposure.

NIR Based Non-Invasive Blood Glucose Measurement

Objectives: This paper describes the method of measurement of glucose concentration in the human blood non-invasively using the near infrared optical technique. Methods/Analysis: In recent medical practice, the concentration of glucose in blood is measured using an invasive techniques which generally involves puncturing finger. In generic few ml of blood whereas in recent practice less than a drop of blood is taken out and passed through the standard chemical tests to measure glucose concentration. These methods are expensive as well as painful. The frequent finger puncturing causes calluses on the skin and also increases the risk of spreading infectious diseases. Findings: So, the development of a non-invasive blood glucose measurement system will be boon to the diabetic patients. This paper describes the method of blood sugar measurement in the human blood non-invasively using the painless near infrared based optical technique. The designed system consists of LED emitting signals of 940 nm wavelength. These optical signals are sent through the fingertip and reflected signals are detected by phototransistor placed beside the LED. The glucose concentration in the blood is determined by analyzing the variation in the intensity of received signal obtained after reflection. The results obtained from the designed system shows the feasibility of using NIR based non-invasive method for the measurement of blood glucose. Applications/Improvements: The described system is majorly useful for diabetic patients. The measurement accuracy of the proposed system can be improved by incorporating it with noise filtering techniques.

Infecciones víricas emergentes y por virus hepatotropos

Environmental degradation, population movements and urban agglomerations have broken down the borders for infectious diseases. The expansion of microorganisms has entered an increasing area of transmission vectors. The lack of immunity of the population leads to an increased risk of spreading infectious diseases. Furthermore, the decline in vaccination rates in developed countries and socio-economic difficulties in large regions has meant that diseases in the process of eradication have re-emerged. That is why health care workers must be trained to avoid delaying in diagnosis and to accelerate the implementation of public health measures. A great deal of education and health prevention should fall under the responsibilities of travellers who move around different regions.

An ecohealth assessment of poultry production clusters (PPCs) for the livelihood and biosecurity improvement of small poultry producers in Asia.

BackgroundPoultry production cluster (PPC) programs are key strategies in many Asian countries to engage small commercial poultry producers in high-value production chains and to control infectious poultry diseases. This study assessed the multiple impacts of PPCs through a transdisciplinary ecohealth approach in four Asian countries, and drew the implications for small producers to improve their livelihoods and reduce the risk of spreading infectious diseases in the poultry sector.MethodsThe data collection combined both quantitative and qualitative methods. It comprised: formal structured household survey questionnaires, measuring the biosecurity level of poultry farms with a biosecurity score card; and key informant interviews. Descriptive statistics were used to process the quantitative data and a content analysis was used to process the qualitative data.ResultsThis research found that poultry farms in clusters do not necessarily have better economic performance than those outside PPCs. Many farmers in PPCs only consider them to be an advantage for expanding the scale of their poultry operations and improving household incomes, and they are less concerned about—and have limited capacities to—enhancing biosecurity and environmental management. We measured the biosecurity level of farms in PPCs through a 14-item checklist and found that biosecurity is generally very low across all sample sites. The increased flies, mosquitoes, rats, and smells in and around PPCs not only pollute the environment, but also cause social conflicts with the surrounding communities.ConclusionThis research concluded that a poultry cluster, mainly driven by economic objectives, is not necessarily a superior model for the control of infectious diseases. The level of biosecurity in PPCs was found to be low. Given the intensity of poultry operations in PPCs (farms are densely packed into clusters), and the close proximity to residential areas of some PPCs, the risk of spreading infectious diseases, in fact, increases. Good management and collective action for implementing biosecurity measures are key for small producers in PPCs to address common challenges and pursue health-based animal production practices.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/2049-9957-4-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Chikungunya Occurrence among a Religious Missions Trip to Haiti in the Summer of 2014 and Implications for Community Health

As global travel becomes more common, the risk of spreading infectious diseases is increasing. Vectors too are spreading and becoming invasive species in environmental niches where they had previously been absent. The potential continues to grow for people to bring back diseases and infect local naive insect populations, which over time will increase the likelihood of the disease transmission occurring locally. This article evaluates the impact of a mission’s trip to Haiti and the return to a region of the United States that just recently became invaded by Aedes aegypti. The attack rate among the missionaries was approximately 20% (n=2), but this brings into question precautions that missionaries and other travelers will want to take upon return from tropical regions with endemic vector borne disease. Providers as well as travel clinics should educate patients regarding their viremic period and the potential to bring back diseases with them. While it would take hundreds of people to be viremic and to be bitten by the naive vector to establish local transmission, the preventative action is minor and would require travelers from endemic areas to continue to apply insect repellant for 7 days after return from an endemic region.

Non-pharmaceutical interventions for the prevention of respiratory tract infections during Hajj pilgrimage.

SummaryOvercrowding during the yearly Hajj mass gatherings is associated with increased risk of spreading infectious diseases, particularly respiratory diseases. Non-pharmaceutical interventions (e.g., hand hygiene, wearing face masks, social distancing) are known to reduce the spread of respiratory viruses from person to person and are therefore recommended to pilgrims by public health agencies. The implementation of effective public health policies and recommendations involves evaluating the adherence to and effectiveness of these measures in the specific context of the Hajj. This review summarizes the evidence related to the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions in preventing the spread of respiratory infectious diseases during the Hajj. Overall, although hand hygiene compliance is high among pilgrims, face mask use and social distancing remain difficult challenges. Data about the effectiveness of these measures at the Hajj are limited, and results are contradictory, highlighting the need for future large-scale studies.

Predictors of symptoms of posttraumatic stress in Chinese university students during the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic

SummaryBackgroundThe university environment poses a high risk of spreading infectious diseases, particularly the 2009 pandemic influenza H1N1, as it is a mass gathering place for youth. This study aimed to evaluate the predictors of stress symptoms among Chinese university students during the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic.Material/MethodsWe used a self-reported questionnaire, the PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder) Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) to evaluate the stress symptoms among Chinese university students from Heilongjiang (n=455), Beijing (n=106), Shanghai (n=419) and Sichuan (n=102). We then analyzed the predictors of stress symptoms.ResultsThe proportion of university students enrolled in this study who met symptomatic criteria for PTSD was 2% (22 students). The mean PCL-C total score in the sample was 22.09±8.01. The correlational analyses revealed a significant positive relationship between the PCL-C total score and area, and university grade (P<0.01). Moreover, a negative relationship was found between the PCL-C total score and gender, having H1N1 influenza, having family members, friends or acquaintances having H1N1 influenza, and being afraid of H1N1 influenza (P<0.01). The regression analyses showed that in North China, female gender, having H1N1 influenza, having family members or acquaintances with H1N1 influenza, and being afraid of H1N1 influenza were significant predictors of the stress symptoms.ConclusionsIn North China, female gender, having H1N1 influenza, having family members, friends, or acquaintances with H1N1 influenza, and being afraid of H1N1 influenza were significant predictors of the stress symptoms.

Serum- and animal tissue-free medium for transport and growth ofHelicobacter pylori

The important human gastric pathogen Helicobacter pylori is the subject of many studies, and as a consequence it is frequently being transported between national and international laboratories. Unfortunately, common bacterial growth and transport media contain serum- and animal tissue-derived materials, which carry the risk of spreading infectious diseases. We have therefore developed a growth and transport medium for H. pylori, designated 'Serum- and Animal Tissue-Free Medium' (SATFM), which does not contain serum- or animal tissue-derived components. SATFM supported growth of H. pylori isolates to similar levels as obtained with serum-supplemented Brucella medium, and SATFM with 0.5% agar supported transport and storage of H. pylori strains, as 4/4 reference strains and 11/11 clinical isolates survived for at least 3 days at room temperature in SATFM, with some strains (2/15) even surviving for up to 7 days. In conclusion, SATFM can be used both as transport and growth medium for H. pylori. The formulation of SATFM may allow its use in international transport of H. pylori, and may also allow certified use in immunization studies requiring growth of H. pylori and other bacterial pathogens.