Department of Environmental Health, Doornfontein Campus, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Published: March 2024
AI Article Synopsis
Article Abstract
Cement workers are exposed to various kinds of occupational hazards, dust being the most hazardous. Despite certain exposure limits on the emission of air pollutants in place, several people die each year due to complications from respiratory disease. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of chronic respiratory symptoms among workers exposed to cement dust. A quantitative, descriptive cross-sectional design was employed among 81 workers from two cement production companies in Gauteng, South Africa in 2018. A self-administered questionnaire, anthropometric measurements, and a spirometry test were used as data collection tools. Data were analyzed using Wilcoxon rank sum, binary logistic regression, Pearson's chi-squared, and Fischer's exact tests. Respiratory symptoms such as wheezing, recurring blocked nose, sneezing/stuffy nose, fatigue/tiredness, rapid breathing, soreness/watery eyes, and breathlessness were significantly prevalent among participants from both facilities. Engineering and housekeeping control measures such as the use of High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) vacuums to clean up dust and proper use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) where workers are exposed to dust particles should be implemented.
Irrespective of the underlying disease, patients treated with cluster of differentiation 20 (CD20) antibodies have a higher risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) long or severe infection, and there are pitfalls in this diagnosis. We herein report two patients with COVID-19 pneumonia diagnosed by bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) during lymphoma remission. Nasopharyngeal swabs (NSs) were polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-negative for SARS-CoV-2, and the virus was only detectable in the lungs.
Background: Severe Acute Respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Influenza A viruses (IAVs) are among the most important causes of viral respiratory tract infections, causing similar symptoms. IAV and SARS-CoV-2 infections can provoke mild symptoms like fever, cough, sore throat, loss of taste or smell, or they may cause more severe consequences leading to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome or even death. While treatments for IAV and SARS-CoV-2 infection are available, IAV antivirals often target viral proteins facilitating the emergence of drug-resistant viral variants.
Introduction: This study was conducted to assess the response to treatment and compare the effects of nebulized normal saline 0.9% and hypertonic saline 3% in the management of acute bronchiolitis, a condition associated with multiple complications in pediatric patients.
Materials And Methods: In this clinical trial, a total of 60 children diagnosed with viral bronchiolitis in the autumn and winter of 2018 at Ali Asghar Children's Hospital's emergency department were enrolled.
Introduction: Post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS) is a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection-associated chronic condition characterized by long-term violations of physical and mental health. People with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at high risk for severe COVID-19 and PCS.
Aim: The current study aimed to define the predictors of PCS development in people with T2D for further planning of preventive measures and improving patient outcomes.
Background: The multifaceted non-pharmaceutical interventions after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic not only limited the spread of SARS-CoV2 but also had an impact on the prevalence of other pathogens.
Methods: In this work, we retrospectively analyzed the epidemiological characteristics of (MP) in children before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Shandong, China. From 2019-2023, there were 29,558 visits of pediatric patients (1 month to 15 years old) with respiratory tract infection (RTI) symptoms at a tertiary hospital in Shandong Province, 10,039 of which were positive for MP according to a passive agglutination assay of the serum IgM antibodies.
