Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Margaret MacAulay, Anna K. Macintyre, Aryati Yashadhana, Adele Cassola, Patrick Harris, Caroline Woodward, Katherine Smith, Evelyne de Leeuw, Michele Palkovits, Steven J. Hoffman, Patrick Fafard
Summary: The role of Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) has been highly contested during the COVID-19 pandemic, with arguments over whether they should act independently of the government or as civil servants supporting the government. This is due to the inherently contradictory nature of the role, which requires balancing commitments as physicians with mandates as civil servants. The pandemic has further highlighted the varying remits and expectations of CMOs across different jurisdictions, leading to calls for amendments in some areas.
JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Vageesh Jain, Maria Waghorn, Rachel Thorn-Heathcock, Peter Lamb, Anita Bell, Sarah Addiman
Summary: A minority of symptomatic cases attended the workplace after the onset of COVID-19 symptoms, with males being less likely to attend compared to females. Age and occupation were not predictive for workplace attendance after the onset of symptoms.
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Xinyuan Ye
Summary: The study found that Republican counties consistently had lower vaccination rates than Democratic counties, and the gap in vaccination rates between a typical Democratic and Republican county has steadily widened by month.
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(2023)
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Joanne Liu, Helen Clark, Michel Kazatchkine
Summary: Heads of state and government have the responsibility to prevent future pandemics.
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Thekkumkara Surendran Anish
Summary: Repeated outbreaks raise the risk of a more efficient transmission of the Nipah virus strain.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Stacey L. Rowe, Karin Leder, Lalitha Sundaresan, Dennis Wollersheim, Jock Lawrie, Nicola Stephens, Benjamin C. Cowie, Terry M. Nolan, Allen C. Cheng
Summary: By analyzing the mortality data of communicable diseases reported in Victoria, Australia, it was found that the case fatality rate of these diseases is often underestimated, and people notified with communicable diseases have a higher all-cause mortality rate up to one year following illness onset compared to the general population. This may be related to underlying comorbidities or behaviors in these individuals.
LANCET REGIONAL HEALTH-WESTERN PACIFIC
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Xinming Yu, Mengye Li, Laurie Lawson-Portuphy, Avirup Chowdhury, Padmanabhan Badrinath
Summary: This study systematically assessed the quality of Local Outbreak Control Plans (LOCPs) produced by local authorities in England and identified significant variations in reporting high-risk settings and groups. The suggested recommendations may improve future LOCP updates.
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Brian R. Wood, Jeremy D. Young, Rima C. Abdel-Massih, Lewis McCurdy, Todd J. Vento, Shireesha Dhanireddy, Kay J. Moyer, Javeed Siddiqui, John D. Scott
Summary: The SiRS-CoV-2 pandemic has led to rapid dissemination of digital healthcare modalities, but social determinants of health may impact readiness for telemedicine, potentially leading to individuals being lost to care. Furthermore, sensitive discussions required in ID and HIV practice may pose challenges in video conferencing settings.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Anne C. Grunseit, Eloise Howse, Erika Bohn-Goldbaum, Jo Mitchell, Adrian E. Bauman
Summary: This study examined changes in community perceptions of government intervention for lifestyle-related chronic disease prevention in Australia between 2016 and 2018. The results showed that there was a significant increase in the perceived role of government in maintaining people's health, with some demographic subgroups showing increased support for specific interventions. However, overall attitudes towards government intervention became more polarized in 2018 compared to 2016.
Article
Immunology
Martina Barchitta, Andrea Maugeri, Roberta Magnano San Lio, Maria Clara La Rosa, Claudia La Mastra, Giuliana Favara, Giuliana Giunta, Antonio Cianci, Antonella Agodi
Summary: This study evaluated the vaccination status among 220 mother-child pairs and found heterogeneity in women's vaccination status, with lack of information being the main reason for refusal. Increasing age was associated with higher odds of not being vaccinated against MMR, HPV, and DTaP. The study highlighted the need to improve women's knowledge about vaccination recommendations, especially during pregnancy.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Shaun Danielli, Raman Patria, Patrice Donnelly, Hutan Ashrafian, Ara Darzi
Summary: Many countries are starting to ease lockdown restrictions and restart economies in different ways, utilizing evolving, real-world data dynamically. The strategies on restarting the economy should be balanced against the uncertainty of a potential second wave of COVID-19. A nuanced approach to easing restrictions needs to consider not only immediate risks to life, but also longer-term risks of widening inequalities and falling life expectancy.
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(2021)
Article
Ethics
Colin Farrelly
Summary: Imagination and idealism are important virtues for medical sciences to improve the health of an aging population. Disease control has been successful in mitigating early-life mortality risks, but less so for chronic diseases in late life. A paradigm shift towards 'healthy aging', focusing on aging rate control instead of disease control, is needed to address the health constraints imposed by the aging process.
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS
(2023)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Anne Carolyn Grunseit, Eloise Howse, Julie Williams, Adrian Ernest Bauman
Summary: In Australia, policymakers are hesitant to implement policy-based approaches to diet, alcohol, physical inactivity, and obesity due to concerns about public perception of such interventions as nanny-state. However, people's general positions on government intervention do relate to their positions on different preventive policy options.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Chih-Fu Wei, Fan-Yun Lan, Yu-Tien Hsu, Nina Lowery, Lauren Dibona, Ream Akkeh, Stefanos N. Kales, Justin Yang
Summary: The objective of this study was to identify the risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection related to occupation type and workplace conditions. The results showed that working in the healthcare sector or having customer-facing positions significantly increased the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Jenny Jung, Eshreena K. Karwal, Steve McDonald, Tari Turner, Doris Chou, Joshua P. Vogel
Summary: This study provides a comprehensive assessment of currently available guidelines for the management of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) during pregnancy, intrapartum, and postnatal periods. The study identifies the focus and scope of recommendations in these guidelines, highlighting the importance of antenatal care interventions, postnatal assessments, and health system recommendations. The findings suggest the need for holistic guidelines that integrate NCD care throughout the maternal health services, with a specific focus on resource-limited contexts.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Ashley Quigley, Phi Yen Nguyen, Haley Stone, David J. Heslop, Abrar Ahmad Chughtai, C. Raina MacIntyre
Summary: Most cities' Black Lives Matter protests did not increase the incidence of COVID-19 in 2020, with high levels of mask use observed among protesters. Only Miami, which had high protest intensity and the use of tear gas, showed an increase in COVID-19 cases after one incubation period post-protest. The absence of a major epidemic surge within two incubation periods of a protest indicates that the protests did not have a significant influence on epidemic activity, except in Miami.
JOURNAL OF RACIAL AND ETHNIC HEALTH DISPARITIES
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Lingyu Shen, Hanqiu Yan, Weihong Li, Yi Tian, Changying Lin, Baiwei Liu, Yu Wang, Lei Jia, Daitao Zhang, Peng Yang, Quanyi Wang, Zhiyong Gao
Summary: This study investigated respiratory virus infections in diarrhea cases in Beijing, China, from 2019 to 2020. It found that 8.42% of the cases were positive for respiratory viruses, including human rhinovirus, Bocavirus, parainfluenza virus, and coronavirus. The study also showed that respiratory viruses could be transmitted through feces and the interventions against SARS-COV-2 were effective for other respiratory viruses.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Da Huo, Ying Shen, Tao Zhou, Tong Yu, Ruoran Lyu, Ying Tong, Ting Gao, Quanyi Wang
Summary: This study evaluated the public health countermeasures against COVID-19 for organizing mass gathering events (MGEs) and identified effective practices based on data from the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. Measures such as the bubble strategy, three-layer testing, mandatory mask-wearing, and vaccination were found to be promising in preventing the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 during MGEs.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Zubair Akhtar, Mallory Trent, Aye Moa, Timothy C. Tan, Ole Froebert, C. Raina MacIntyre
Summary: COVID-19 is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, but its vaccination can prevent it. However, COVID-19 vaccination may also cause myocarditis or pericarditis. Non-specific symptoms of COVID-19 infection may originate from the heart. This review focuses on the cardiovascular complications of COVID-19 and the impact of COVID-19 vaccination.
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL SUPPLEMENTS
(2023)
Review
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Chandini Raina MacIntyre, Xin Chen, Mohana Kunasekaran, Ashley Quigley, Samsung Lim, Haley Stone, Hye-young Paik, Lina Yao, David Heslop, Wenzhao Wei, Ines Sarmiento, Deepti Gurdasani
Summary: The use of AI in epidemic surveillance through automated early warnings generated from vast open-source data with minimal human intervention has the potential to bring about revolutionary and sustainable changes. AI can overcome challenges faced by weak health systems by detecting epidemic signals earlier than traditional surveillance methods, triggering early investigation and response at the regional level. However, the uptake of AI-based epidemic intelligence systems by public health authorities is low compared to clinical counterparts, highlighting the need for widespread adoption of digital open-source surveillance and AI technology for effective prevention of serious epidemics.
JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Virology
Baiwei Liu, Yu Wang, Xiaoli Wang, Lei Jia, Yi Tian, Hanqiu Yan, Weihong Li, Lingyu Shen, Quanyi Wang, Zhiyong Gao
Summary: Between September 2011 and August 2018, a total of 133,131 acute diarrhoea cases were studied in Beijing. Out of 13,139 specimens collected and tested, 16.84% were positive for NoV. Three different NoV strains, GII.4 Sydney, GII.17, and GII.2, were predominant during different time periods. Excess cases of NoV-associated acute diarrhoea were observed during the predominance periods, ranging from 114.7% to 180.5% increase compared to baseline levels. This study highlights the impact of new NoV variants on gastroenteritis outbreaks.
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY
(2023)
Article
Virology
Zhaomin Feng, Da Huo, Shujuan Cui, Bing Lyu, Zhichao Liang, Fu Li, Peng Yang, Quanyi Wang, Daitao Zhang, Yang Pan, Wei Duan
Summary: Nineteen outbreaks of COVID-19 occurred in Beijing from January to September 2022, with two cases resulting from cold-chain transmission and three cases resulting from item contamination by humans. The remaining outbreaks were caused by imported cases. This study provided valuable information for controlling the spread of the outbreak.
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Yang Pan, Liang Wang, Zhaomin Feng, Hui Xu, Fu Li, Ying Shen, Daitao Zhang, William J. Liu, George F. Gao, Quanyi Wang
Summary: Due to the national zero-COVID strategy in China, there were no local transmissions of SARS-CoV-2 in Beijing before December 2022. However, imported cases have been frequently detected. With the recent increase in COVID-19 cases in China, there are concerns about the emergence of novel variants. This study analyzes viral genome sequences in Beijing to provide important information for the global response to the pandemic.
Editorial Material
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rebecca Grant, Jilian A. Sacks, Priya Abraham, Supamit Chunsuttiwat, Cheryl Cohen, J. Peter Figueroa, Thomas Fleming, Paul Fine, David Goldblatt, Hideki Hasegawa, C. Raina MacIntrye, Ziad A. Memish, Elizabeth Miller, Sergio Nishioka, Amadou A. Sall, Samba Sow, Oyewale Tomori, Youchun Wang, Maria D. Van Kerkhove, Marie-Ange Wambo, Homa Attar Cohen, Samuel Mesfin, James R. Otieno, Lorenzo Subissi, Sylvie Briand, David E. Wentworth, Kanta Subbarao
Summary: Vaccines for different SARS-CoV-2 variants have been authorized, but continuous monitoring is necessary to decide when vaccine antigen composition should be revised, along with clinical studies to assess vaccine effectiveness.
Article
Immunology
Elizabeth Benedict Kpozehouen, Bravien Arrudsivah, Timothy C. Tan, C. Raina Macintyre
Summary: Background: Influenza vaccination has been shown to be effective in preventing myocardial infarction, but vaccination rates are low in both adults and healthcare workers. This study aimed to understand the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of healthcare workers in a cardiology ward regarding influenza vaccination. Results revealed a lack of awareness among healthcare workers regarding the associations between influenza, vaccination, and cardiovascular health. They did not routinely discuss the benefits of influenza vaccination or recommend it to patients, possibly due to a lack of awareness, not considering it part of their job, and workload issues. Improving healthcare workers' health literacy and awareness of the benefits of vaccination may lead to better healthcare outcomes for cardiac patients.
Article
Immunology
Elizabeth B. Kpozehouen, Robert Menzies, Holly Seale, Julia Brotherton, C. Raina Macintyre
Summary: In 2016, Australia launched the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR), a national immunisation system covering all age groups. Recommendations from a national workshop have been integrated into the current version of AIR, improving the accuracy and validity of data. However, access to AIR data for research purposes remains limited.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
D. Hutchinson, M. Kunasekaran, A. Quigley, A. Moa, C. R. MacIntyre
Summary: The objective of this study was to use the EPIWATCH AI system to scan open-source data and detect early warnings of infectious disease outbreaks. By analyzing a multicountry outbreak of Mpox in non-endemic countries confirmed by the World Health Organization in May 2022, the study aimed to identify signals of fever and rash-like illness and determine if they represented potential Mpox outbreaks. The EPIWATCH AI system was used to detect global signals for syndromes of rash and fever from 1 month prior to the initial case confirmation in the United Kingdom to 2 months following.
Review
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Aye Moa, Mohana Kunasekaran, Zubair Akhtar, Valentina Costantino, C. Raina Macintyre
Summary: We estimated the effectiveness of influenza vaccines in preventing laboratory-confirmed influenza among older adults in aged care. Fourteen studies were included for final review and showed considerable variation in reported vaccine effectiveness. Observational studies demonstrated VE ranging from 7.2% to 89.8%, while randomized clinical trials showed a 17% reduction in infection rates with the adjuvanted trivalent vaccine. Limitations included the small number of included studies, variations in seasons and diagnostic testing methods, and limited research on enhanced influenza vaccines in aged care settings.
HUMAN VACCINES & IMMUNOTHERAPEUTICS
(2023)
Article
Nursing
Danielle Hutchinson, Mohana Kunasekaran, Haley Stone, Xin Chen, Ashley Quigley, Aye Moa, C. Raina Macintyre
Summary: The use of personal protective equipment (PPE), such as respirators, plays a significant role in reducing the risk of healthcare workers (HCWs) acquiring SARS-CoV-2 infections. However, differences in PPE guidelines across different clinical settings may leave HCWs vulnerable to infection. During periods of high community transmission, it is crucial to provide respirators to protect hospital staff.
NURSING RESEARCH AND PRACTICE
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Mark Raphael, Angela Kelly-Hanku, David Heslop, Danielle Hutchinson, Mohana Kunasekaran, Ashley Quigley, Raina Macintyred
Summary: Compliance with face mask mandates in Papua New Guinea was found to be very low, especially in outdoor settings. Individuals without face coverings and not following physical distancing guidelines are at a higher risk for COVID-19 transmission, particularly in medium- and large-sized gatherings. A new strategy is needed to enforce public health mandates and should be clearly promoted to the public.
WESTERN PACIFIC SURVEILLANCE AND RESPONSE
(2023)
