bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Feta safe than sorry - gastroenteritis outbreak associated with contaminated cheese
Authors: McGuire F , Ward M , Smyth E , Murphy E 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

A gastroenteritis outbreak among attendees at a catered HSE event was notified. No faecal samples were obtained - all cases had recovered. An outbreak control team was convened. A retrospective cohort study hypothesised that “people who attended the HSE event and subsequently became unwell did so as a result of consuming food at the event”. Epidemiological, environmental, and microbiological investigations commenced. An outbreak-specific food questionnaire was distributed. The food business was inspected, obtaining food samples. Survey responses were analysed.The attack rate was 25%. Associations were identified between illness and specific foods. Multivariable regression highlighted: feta salad (OR = 36.22 [95% CI 2.24-585.52] p = 0.01), and turkey (OR = 12.57 [95% CI 1.12-140.58] p = 0.04). Most (93%) turkey consumers had consumed feta salad. Microbiology of unopened feta cheese, sourced by the caterer from a supermarket, was positive for E coli at 1.7 x 105. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland corroborated separate illness complaints from a family consuming the product. The supermarket voluntarily withdrew the product internationally.This outbreak prompted a cross-sectoral food safety investigation. Despite no pathogen detection in a faecal samples, epidemiological evidence led to the withdrawal of contaminated feta by the supermarket, removing over 1000 units from the market, emphasising the importance of epidemiology in protecting public health.

Key messages
• Epidemiological investigation resulted in mass contaminated cheese withdrawal internationally.
• Cross-sectoral work is important to safeguard public health.
Equity assessment in innovative cancer genomic interventions: the Can.Heal project
Authors: Molina-Barceló A , Romeo-Cervera P , Pinto-Carbó M , Vanaclocha-Espí M , de Pablo-Pardo T , Alessandrello R , Van Valckenborgh E , van den Bulcke M 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
The Can.Heal project (https://canheal.eu/) aims to build a cancer and public health genomic platform. The aim of this study is to assess the extent of integration of the equity perspective in the Can.Heal project.

Methods
An Equity Guide was developed in the context of the Can.Heal project including guidance and support to implement equity-focused actions in cancer genomics. The Guide consists of a comprehensive set of 18 equity actions organized into three domains: 1) capacity-building, 2) cancer genomic research, 3) cancer genomic services. An equity self-assessment tool was developed to assess the degree of incorporation of the equity perspective in the innovative interventions included in the project, for both the definition and the execution phase. A descriptive analysis was performed.

Results
Taking into account the 3 domains, the most progress in incorporating equity perspective, in both the definition and execution phase, is observed in the “capacity building” domain (75% and 30%), followed by the “cancer genomic services” domain (43% and 11%), and the “cancer genomic research’ domain (33% and 10%). Equity actions mostly followed in both phases are: “multidisciplinary approach” (80% and 40%), “networking” (70% and 20%), and “ethics, law, and citizen engagement” (80% and 40%). The least performed actions are: “equity evidence assessment” (0% and 0%), “equity in return of genomic results” (29% and 0%), “patients’ experience’ (13% and 0%) and “diverse samples in research studies and clinical trials” (25% and 25%).

Conclusions
Equity perspective is more considered in the definition phase. More efforts should be done in the execution of equity actions in the Can.Heal project.

Key messages
• Including a multidisciplinary approach, networking and considering ethics, law, and citizen engagement are the most followed equity actions in Can.Heal project.
• There is a need to integrate equity perspective in Can.Heal project, especially in cancer genomic research.
Impact of infectious diseases associated with passenger ships on ports: a systematic review
Authors: Neumann J , Zimmermann J , Frese M , Kleine-Kampmann S , Dirksen-Fischer M , Harth V , Heidrich J 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
In an enclosed ship environment, close contact between passengers and crew members is inevitable. As a result, passenger ships can be a suitable environment for the transmission of infections between people. In this context, it is essential to establish effective prevention and control measures to protect the health of passengers and crew members while ensuring that shipping minimizes its contribution to the global spread of disease. The aim of this review is to provide knowledge on the impact of infectious diseases on board large passenger ships on the port, the port community and other land-based operations to better understand the effectiveness of the prevention, mitigation and management (PMM) measures implemented, in particular ship-to-shore communication.

Methods
A systematic literature review was conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines, searching three databases and including additional articles from hand searches up to November 2023. Peer-reviewed studies of infectious disease outbreaks on large passenger ships that described ship-shore interaction, port preparedness, impact on the port community, and impact on other modes of transportation were included.

Results
A total of 555 publications were initially identified. Finally, 22 articles were included. Most studies reported on COVID-19 outbreaks on cruise ships; other communicable diseases reported were influenza, gastroenteritis and varicella. The articles highlighted the importance of comprehensive management plans and proactive risk assessment during infectious disease outbreaks.

Conclusions
Effective stakeholder collaboration, ship-to-shore communication, and coordination of medical transport, isolation, and quarantine measures are essential components of infectious disease PMM in maritime passenger shipping and ship-to-shore operations. The findings suggest that further research is needed to improve the evidence and knowledge about this important issue.

Key messages
• Proactive risk assessment, comprehensive management plans and effective collaboration are critical to preventing, mitigating and managing infectious diseases on passenger ships.
• Overall, very little evidence of effective practices and capacities related to the interaction of passenger ships with land-based operations, stakeholders and port communities.
Organizational health literacy responsiveness in community pharmacies in Serbia
Authors: Krajnović D , Stević I , Nikolić K , Čavrak J , Grahovac A , Milošević Georgiev A 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
The Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Belgrade conducted a pilot study at community pharmacies in Serbia in 2023 in the framework of the M-POHL organizational health literacy (OHL) project. Community pharmacies in Serbia are considered relevant settings where people’s health can be promoted within the organization.

Methods
The validated and culturally adopted Serbian version of the International Self-Assessment Tool for Organizational Health Literacy in Primary Health Care Services (OHL-PHC) was used. We recruited employees from 3 pharmacy chains with pharmacists from different units. A preparatory workshop was organized to explain the procedure and the concept of OHL. First, the self-assessment was performed in a small group of 5 persons individually, and then the results were discussed in a joint assessment. The self-assessment was based on the degree of fulfillment of 4 categories offered for each indicator: not fulfilled (0-25%), predominantly not fulfilled (26-50%), predominantly fulfilled (51-75%), and completely fulfilled (76-100%). The same scale was applied for the indicators, sub-standards and standards and the final score was the mean of the individual scores (min. 0, max. 4).

Results
The overall score of the OHL on the sample level was 1.93±0.86, with the highest score for providing of easy access to primary care service and facilitating navigation (2.3±0.5). The least fulfilled standards were related to promotion of digital health literacy and promoting health literacy with the same score values of 1.7±1.0. Out of 69 indicators 1 had been self-assessed as not fulfilled and 15 reached low consensus (SD ≤ 1), and needed to be discussed further.

Conclusions
Improvements in OHL in the piloted institutions are necessary for successful healthcare and health promotion and could be tailed in further usage of the OHL-PHC on a broader scope. More pilot studies are needed in other healthcare settings at primary level in Serbia.
Treatment of kidney disease: an analytical decision model at a Swiss university hospital
Authors: Endrich O , Triep K , Messerli M , Nakas C , Fiedler M 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
An observational hospital-based cohort study, where the kidney disease staging is identified as a digital marker, and the association between the standardised staging of Kidney Disease (KD) and the outcomes is assessed along the treatment process.

Methods
The clinical and administrative data for all patients are stored in the Clinical Data Warehouse. A specific digital marker for an exact KD staging is applied. Three retrospective patient cohorts for exact and imprecise staging and missing diagnosis are defined and compared regarding the in-hospital mortality, all-cause mortality and disease progression.

Results
In total, 83146 hospitalisations of 40421 patients with KD, treated in 2014-2023 (2016-2023 will be updated) were identified; the number of the first hospitalisations with exact staging was 847 (2%), unprecise 29934 (72%) and missing diagnosis (26%). The demographic and baseline factors distribution between groups was tested with no association (chi-squared test statistic). The median survival time with a 95% CI was 7.94 (7.66, 8.81) years for the exact and 7.47 (7.42, 7.53) for the imprecise staging group. A log-rank and loglikelihood tests indicated a significant difference in survival between the groups, p &lt; 0.0001. The Cox regression model shows a statistically significant difference in Hazard Ratio; KD staging, age, Elixhauser van Walraven index, treatment, nephrotoxic medication, contrast agent application, and AKI were identified as the significant covariates, C-statistic 0.730, Likelihood ratio test, Wald test, log-rank score on 42 df, p &lt; 2e-16. ANOVA analysis confirmed a significant difference in cost distribution between the groups. An economic decision model proposal integrates the findings, combining a profile-level Markov cohort with a Discreet Time-To-Event Simulation DICE.

Conclusions
The study demonstrates a better outcome regarding all-cause mortality, in-hospital mortality, and costs if a standardised KD staging was applied.

Key messages
• Intuition (clinical judgement) and standardised kidney disease staging perform differently regarding clinical outcomes and costs.
• The study demonstrates a better outcome regarding all-cause mortality, in-hospital mortality, and costs if a standardised KD staging was applied.
The New Healthcare: AI-Driven Population Stratification, Proactive Medicine, and Predictive Analysis
Authors: Mormile M E , Rollo G , Grieco A , Mormile P , De Rosa M , Russo D R , Gigante V , Cisotta F , Rollo R 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted structural and functional weakness of local health services. Italy carried out its reorganization with DM 77/2022, financed by Mission 6 PNRR of the CE. The model adopted aims to move from a reactive to proactive medicine, to be implemented close to the places where citizens live. The priority objective is to know data on the progress of chronic pathologies and non self-sufficiency using advanced digitalization tools.

Methods
14 types of administrative data from 2022 to 2023, concerning 180000 (ISTAT data) people in the Lecce Social Health District (DSS Lecce), were analyzed with AI (Chat GPT).

Results
Thanks to algorithms, 6 categories of clinical complexity were identified. The analysis showed that the population assisted is 198696, for temporary presences, with the most represented age group being 50-55 years. Births decreased by 36% in 10 years (from 1681 to 1076), with 2197 deaths in 2023. 42,38% of the population (average age 38,58 years) did not use healthcare resources, while 57,62% (average age 54,19 years) required them. 48646 patients have cardiovascular disease, but only 10% with heart failure were actively monitored. 25047 have metabolic disease, 11195 are diabetics, 5929 have chronic respiratory diseases, 8167 chronic neurological diseases and 907 are cancer patients. Increasing age leads to polymorbidity and show signs of social, economic and health fragility.

Conclusions
the strategic objective of the Lecce DSS was management of chronicity according to specific care pathways, PDTA. Create healthcare teams capable of being case managers depending on the level of complexity (family doctors, nurses, etc). With the 2024 data there will be 3 consecutive years of analysis which will allow the development of predictive systems to identify population clusters at risk of increasing complexity and in need of proactive medical interventions, use of telemedicine with the support of a Territorial Operations Center.

Key messages
• AI-driven stratification supports personalized health plans to improve healthcare delivery, patient outcomes, and optimize resource allocation.
• A new model of Population Health Management supported by Artificial Intelligence.
Sex-specific immune responses to COVID-19 vaccination in end-stage renal disease patients
Authors: Gingras S N , Kirby S E , Seo G E , Lopez C , Ahmed J , Ball T B , Card C M , Bueti J , Kiazyk S A , McLaren P J 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
End-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients have muted memory B cell formation and reduced humoral responses to COVID-19 vaccination; however, early innate immune responses have yet to be characterized. Sex-stratification is also limited in COVID-19 vaccination research.

Methods
We collected blood before (BD1) and 1-4 days post-dose 1 (PD1) of BNT162b2 vaccination for RNA-sequencing in ESRD patients (n = 35 BD1; 18 PD1) and healthy controls (HC) (n = 31 BD1; 30 PD1). Additionally, 20 plasma cytokines were quantified in ESRD patients (n = 39 BD1, 35 PD1) and HC (34 BD1, 15 PD1).

Results
Transcriptional profiling of vaccine responses identified 125 significantly differentially expressed genes (DEG) (padj&lt;0.04) in ESRD patients and 107 DEGs (padj&lt;0.05) in HC. 71 DEGs were shared, 54 unique to ESRD, and 36 unique to HC. DEG, pathway analyses, and cytokine responses in the combined dataset showed ESRD patients were more inflamed than HC at baseline, with an elevated inflammatory cytokine profile compared to HC. These results were driven by female ESRD patients where IL-2, IL-10, and IP-10 were more significant in females (p &lt; 0.001) compared to males (p &lt; 0.01). While IL-6, IFN-γ, IL-13, eotaxin, were exclusively associated in females (p &lt; 0.05). Healthy females also had a stronger immunological response to vaccination compared to healthy males.

Conclusions
Despite baseline inflammation, ESRD patients were able to mount similar early immune responses to vaccination as HC, with females in both populations more reactogenic than males. Sex-stratification is recommended for ongoing immunological research to better understand unique responses to COVID-19 vaccination.

Key messages
• End-stage renal disease patients have similar early innate immune responses to COVID-19 vaccination as healthy controls.
• Sex-stratification is important to identify unique immunological responses that may be leveraged for sex-specific vaccination strategies.
Use of intraoral mobile photography for screening of oral health in children
Authors: Mania L , Nanobashvili K , Manjavidze T , Benashvili M , Astamadze I 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
The aim of the study is to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of intraoral mobile photography to assess caries intensity (DMFT/deft), simplified oral hygiene index (S-OHI) and modified gingival index (MGI).

Methods
Children aged 7-12 were included in the study. The clinical doctor evaluated the oral health indicators by visual examination: DMFT, deft, S-OHI, MGI were calculated. Dental students independently captured photos with a mobile phone (iPhone-11) in 8 predetermined projections. Dental images were kept in coded folders for research anonymity. Another professional calculated index based on the photos. Variables were used with binary values (DMFT/deft = 0/≥1; MGI=0/≥1; S-OHI≤1.2/&gt;1.2). Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) of dental photography were evaluated and Cohen’s Kappa was calculated to measure the level of agreement between two independent observers.

Results
2864 photographs were evaluated for 358 participants. The sensitivity and specificity of intraoral mobile photography for DMFT index is 95.8 (95% CI: 93.4-98.3) and 89.2 (95% CI: 83-95.5); For deft index: 100.0 (95% CI: 100-100) and 88.6 (95% CI: 79.3-98); For MGI: 89.7 (95% CI: 85.8-93.5) and 91.4 (95% CI: 86.3-96.5); For S-OHI: 77.6 (95% CI: 67.6-87.6) and 93.8 (95% CI: 91-96.6); The PPV value for DMFT, deft, MGI and S-OHI is 96.2; 97.7; 95.6 and 74.3 and the NPV value is 88.3; 100.0; 80.9 and 94.8 respectively. It was achieved substantial and perfect agreement between two independent raters: For DMFT, deft, MGI, S-OHI indices Cohen’s Kappa =0.85; 0.93; 0.78; 0.70 correspondingly.

Conclusions
Intraoral mobile photography, if applied within appropriate guidelines is reliable for assessing caries intensity, simplified hygiene index and modified gingival index as well as visual screening and may become a priority for dental public health. The involvement of dental students in studies of similar design is appropriate.

Key messages
• Intraoral mobile photography can be used for oral health screening in children.
• The involvement of dental program students in screening studies conducted with intraoral mobile photography is appropriate.
Longitudinal associations of daily activities and presenteeism among teleworkers in Japan
Authors: Otsuka Y , Itani O , Kaneita Y 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Objectives
Many workers had to switch their standard work from the office to home-based telework during the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous studies reported that telework was associated with increased sickness presenteeism. Several studies have examined the association between lifestyle behaviors and presenteeism among workers. However, there are few studies investigating the relationship among teleworkers. Thus, this study examined the association between daily activities and presenteeism in a longitudinal cohort of teleworkers in Japan.

Methods
A prospective cohort study with a two-year observation was conducted. The participants were 831 workers belonged to five companies in Japan. For both surveys, self-administered questionnaire surveys on daily activities and presenteeism were conducted. Presenteeism was assessed using the short-form Japanese version of the World Health Organization Health and Work Performance Questionnaire. The data were analyzed using a generalized estimating equation approach, controlling for potential confounders such as age, gender, working hours, position, and health status.

Results
742 participants who teleworked in both surveys with no missing answers were analyzed. Among male workers (n = 427), chatting (β = 5.30, 95% CI: 1.52-9.07) and setting daily goals (β = 4.16, 95% CI: 1.52-9.07) were associated with decreased presenteeism. Among female workers, exercise (β = 4.33, 95% CI: 0.95-7.71) was associated with decreased presenteeism.

Conclusions
Although gender differences were observed, there is preliminary evidence from longitudinal studies that frequent activities such as chatting, setting daily goals, and exercising may protect against presenteeism among teleworkers. Our findings could be used to educate daily telework activities to prevent sickness presenteeism.

Key messages
• Daily activities during telework may worsen or improve presenteeism.
• Social isolation may be an important indicator of presenteeism during telework.
Subtle Biases Towards a New Colleague Depend on Sexual Orientation and Relationship Status
Authors: Komlenac N , Aigner A , Haller M , Birke J , Walther A 
Published: October 2024

Abstract

Background
Allonormative beliefs entail the idea that all people desire sexual activity with other people. Single and/or asexual individuals may face social disapproval or discrimination for not being in line with allonormative beliefs. The present study investigated whether individuals offered help or were likely to befriend a new co-worker differently depending on the co-worker’s sexual orientation (i.e., heterosexual vs. asexual) and relationship status (i.e., in a relationship vs. single).

Methods
The online study included 1,028 participants (50.0% women and 50.0% men; Mage = 29.2, SD = 8.8) from German-speaking countries. Each participant read one of twelve short descriptions of a working situation in which they got to know a new co-worker. The description of the new colleague’s gender, sexual orientation, and relationship status varied. Participants had to indicate how likely they would share information with, befriend, gossip about, or have other-interests in the new colleague. A multivariate analysis of co-variance was calculated.

Results
Female participants had lower intentions to share knowledge with persons who were singles by circumstance than with persons in a relationship and male participants were more likely to befriend a single gay man by choice than a gay man in a relationship.

Conclusions
Bias against single persons or prejudice resulting from heteronormative beliefs might lead to subtle differences in behavior towards a co-worker. Such subtle “micro-practices” can be harmful because micro-practices accumulate over time and situations. Interventions at organizations need to help employees realize their own biases that might be based on prejudices against people with different sexual orientations and relationship statuses.

Key messages
• Overall women are more pressured by allonormative ideas and might therefore have lower intentions to share knowledge with persons who were singles by circumstance than with persons in a relationship.
• The differing treatment of single gay men by choice and gay men in relationships may not be solely due to adherence to allonormativity, but rather could stem from heterosexist beliefs.