Atrial fibrillation as an important clinical condition of cognitive decline; diagnosis, comorbidities and severity of symptoms in patients with dementia.

: To determine the time of dementia diagnosis, symptom intensity and to assess the comorbidities.: 110 patients with dementia or mild cognitive impairment were enrolled in this retrospective study. The study group was divided into subgroups: patients with a maximum of three (S ≤ 3  = 62) and four or more symptoms (S ≥ 4  = 48).

Application of a quantitative entry assessment model to compare the relative risk of incursion of zoonotic bat-borne viruses into European Union Member States.

This paper presents a quantitative assessment model for the risk of entry of zoonotic bat-borne viruses into the European Union (EU). The model considers four routes of introduction: human travel, legal trade of products, live animal imports and illegal import of bushmeat and was applied to five virus outbreak scenarios. Two scenarios were considered for (wEBOV, cEBOV) and other scenarios for Hendra virus, Marburg virus (MARV) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV).

Epidemiological Risk Factors for Animal Influenza A Viruses Overcoming Species Barriers.

Drivers and risk factors for Influenza A virus transmission across species barriers are poorly understood, despite the ever present threat to human and animal health potentially on a pandemic scale. Here we review the published evidence for epidemiological risk factors associated with influenza viruses transmitting between animal species and from animals to humans. A total of 39 papers were found with evidence of epidemiological risk factors for influenza virus transmission from animals to humans; 18 of which had some statistical measure associated with the transmission of a virus.

Identification, assessment and management of new and re-emerging animal-related risks: UK perspective.

Veterinary surveillance programmes aim to reduce the burden to the public, livestock and wider society posed by animal-related ‘risks’ (referred to as ‘threats’ later in the paper in line with a definition used by the European Food Safety Authority) including the reemergence of diseases believed absent or eradicated. To achieve this, it is important to have a systematic approach to identifying and dealing with such threats rapidly and effectively. This paper describes the transparent, systematic and auditable process used for identifying, assessing, escalating and prioritising new and re-emerging animal-related threats in the UK.