A 2024 nationwide cross-sectional survey to assess the prevalence of cigarette smoking, e-cigarette use and heated tobacco use in Poland.

Objectives: Monitoring tobacco use is one of the most important tobacco control interventions recommended by the World Health Organization. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of cigarette smoking, e-cigarette use, and heated tobacco use in a nationwide sample of adults in Poland, as well as to identify factors associated with smoking, e-cigarette use, and heated tobacco use.

Material And Methods: This nationwide crosssectional survey was carried out in February 2-4, 2024 using the computer-assisted web interviewing method.

The multidimensional nature of attitudes towards preventive vaccinations - a cross-sectional survey among Poles aged 15-39 years.

Objectives: Vaccination skepticism and vaccination refusal both constitute global public health concerns. Systematic monitoring of public attitudes towards vaccination is crucial for maintaining a high vaccination coverage rate. The study aimed to identify and characterize homogenous social groups distinguished by attitudes toward preventive vaccinations.

Smoke-free homes in Poland during the COVID-19 pandemic - a nationwide cross-sectional survey.

Objectives: Secondhand smoke exposure causes serious health problems. Banning smoking in public venues decreases exposure to secondhand smoke. However, the implementation of smoke-free rules in a private setting (including homes) is largely voluntary.

The prevalence of cigarette smoking, e-cigarette use and heated tobacco use among police employees in Poland: a 2020 cross-sectional survey.

Objectives: Uniformed services such as police employees are exposed to acute and chronic stressful events at work that may lead to tobacco use. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of cigarette smoking, e-cigarette use and heated tobacco use among police employees in Poland, and to investigate personal characteristics associated with tobacco or e-cigarette use.

Material And Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in June-July 2020 on a randomly selected sample of 8789 police employees from the Mazowieckie Province, Poland.

The influence of socio-demographic characteristics on attitudes towards prophylactic vaccination in Poland.

Objectives: A legally regulated program of mandatory vaccinations is in place in Poland. The number of vaccination refusals increased from 3437 to 48 609 in 2010-2019. The aim of the study was to determine the association of various socio-demographic factors with the attitudes of the residents of Poland to prophylactic vaccination.

Occupational risks for SARS-CoV-2 infection: the Polish experience.

Objectives: The disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), termed COVID-19, is asymptomatic or mild in most cases. These patients do not need treatment in hospital and can be isolated at home. To date, most studies have been conducted among inpatients with severe COVID-19.

Public and private health care services in the opinion of physicians in Poland.

Objectives: Health care services in Poland are delivered by public and private providers. The aims of this study were to assess the attitudes towards private and public health care services in Poland and to identify differences between them, in the opinion of physicians.

Material And Methods: A questionnaire-based survey was carried out among physicians attending mandatory courses delivered at the School of Public Health, the Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education in Warsaw, Poland.

Respiratory health problems in adolescents living near main roads in the Upper Silesian industrial zone, Poland.

Objectives: This study explores the association between self-reported exposure to traffic-related air pollution and respiratory health symptoms, as well as lung functions and skin prick tests in adolescents living in the vicinity of main roads.

Material And Methods: The data in the study were acquired using a cross-sectional study conducted between 2004-2005 in Chorzów (Silesia, Poland) among adolescents (N = 936) aged 13-15 years, attending junior high schools. Adverse respiratory health symptoms and exposure to traffic-related air pollution were determined on the basis of a questionnaire.

Spatial and temporal variability of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis cases in Silesian Voivodeship in years 2006-2010.

Objectives: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) (J84.1 by the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision - ICD-10) is a rare disease of unknown cause. Among many risk factors, occupational exposure to metal dust is enumerated.

Stress at the place of work and cognitive functions among women performing intellectual work during peri- and post-menopausal period.

Objectives: The analysis of the relationship between stress at work and results of cognitive functions amongst women, at peri- and post-menopausal age, performing intellectual work.

Material And Methods: The study group included women, aged 45-66 years old, employed as intellectual workers. Research instruments were: the Montreal Cognitive Assessment; computer tests of the CNS Vital Signs; the Subjective Work Characteristics Questionnaire, and a questionnaire designed by the author.

Social costs of loss in productivity-related absenteeism in Poland.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to estimate indirect costs associated with losses in productivity due to sickness absence among registered workers in Poland.

Material And Methods: Data on sick leave durations in 2013 was obtained from the Social Insurance Institution (SII) (Zakład Ubezpieczeń Społecznych - ZUS). Based on the number of assumptions, this data was used for calculating absence durations.

Impact of road traffic noise on sleep disturbances and attention disorders amongst school children living in Upper Silesian Industrial Zone, Poland.

Objectives: Published reports suggest that some adverse health impact may be related to noise exposure, and motor vehicle traffic is considered to be the main source of environmental hazard of noise. The aim of this study has been to assess an association between occurrence of sleep and attention disorders with exposure to the noise generated by motor vehicle traffic in the case of a large group of children living in an urban environment.

Material And Methods: The data was obtained using a cross sectional study design in Bytom (Silesia, Poland) from 2003-2007 for a selected group of 7-14 year olds (N = 5136).

Spatial and temporal variability of bronchiectasis cases in Silesian voivodeship in 2006-2010.

Objectives: Reports on an increasing number of hospitalizations in other European countries and the lack of epidemiological data on the prevalence of bronchiectasis in Poland constituted motivation for the authors to investigate temporal changes of the registered incidence and hospitalization due to bronchiectasis in Silesian voivodeship, and to evaluate spatial variability of the disease in the study region.

Material And Methods: The study is a descriptive epidemiological project. Temporal and spatial variability of coefficients describing numbers of newly diagnosed cases and first time hospitalizations due to bronchiectasis (code J47 according to International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision (ICD-10)) were evaluated based on the registered data available from the National Health Found (2006-2010) and the data from MZ/Szp-11 reports (2000-2011).

Consideration on the health risk reduction related to attainment of the new particulate matter standards in Poland: A top-down policy risk assessment approach.

Policies can influence health of a population in various ways. Numerous epidemiological studies supported by toxicological investigations demonstrate a positive association between ambient concentrations of airborne particulate matter and increased adverse cardio-respiratory events, including morbidity and mortality. The aim of this paper was to present the concept of the top-down health policy risk assessment approach model developed to estimate the expected health risk reduction associated with policy aiming at attaining the new particulate matter ≤ 10 μm in diameter (PM10) standards in Poland.