Age patterns of persons with campylobacteriosis, England and Wales, 1990-2007.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Gillespie IA
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3044522 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Enhanced national surveillance for invasive meningococcal disease in England and Wales identified an increase in laboratory-confirmed capsular group Y (MenY) disease from 34 cases in 2007 to 44 in 2008 and 65 in 2009. For cases diagnosed in 2009, patient median age at disease onset was 60 years; 39% of patients had underlying medical conditions, and 19% died. MenY isolates causing invasive disease during 2007-2009 belonged mainly to 1 of 4 clonal complexes (cc), cc23 (56% of isolates), cc174 (21%), cc167 (11%), and cc22 (8%). The 2009 increase resulted primarily from sequence type 1655 (cc23) (22 cases in 2009, compared with 4 cases each in 2007 and 2008). cc23 was associated with lpxL1 mutations and meningitis in younger age groups (<25 years); cc174 was associated with nonmeningitis, particularly pneumonia, in older age groups (>65 years). The increase in MenY disease requires careful epidemiologic and molecular monitoring.
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Project description:Ureaplasma spp. are associated with numerous clinical sequelae with treatment options being limited due to patient and pathogen factors. This report examines the prevalence and mechanisms of antibiotic resistance among clinical strains isolated from 95 neonates, 32 women attending a sexual health clinic, and 3 patients under investigation for immunological disorders, between 2007 and 2013 in England and Wales. MICs were determined by using broth microdilution assays, and a subset of isolates were compared using the broth microdilution method and the Mycoplasma IST2 assay. The underlying molecular mechanisms for resistance were determined for all resistant isolates. Three isolates carried the tet(M) tetracycline resistance gene (2.3%; confidence interval [CI], 0.49 to 6.86%); two isolates were ciprofloxacin resistant (1.5%; CI, 0.07 to 5.79%) but sensitive to levofloxacin and moxifloxacin, while no resistance was seen to any macrolides tested. The MIC values for chloramphenicol were universally low (2 ?g/ml), while inherently high-level MIC values for gentamicin were seen (44 to 66 ?g/ml). The Mycoplasma IST2 assay identified a number of false positives for ciprofloxacin resistance, as the method does not conform to international testing guidelines. While antibiotic resistance among Ureaplasma isolates remains low, continued surveillance is essential to monitor trends and threats from importation of resistant clones.
| S-EPMC4704235 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Many countries in Europe are beginning to acknowledge the essential contribution of informal caregivers, as policy changes leave more people with greater needs being cared for in the community. Carers who are themselves retired are a vulnerable group. Compared to caregivers in younger age groups, a higher proportion have pre-existing disease; they may be more vulnerable to the adverse effects of caregiving on health, and many survive on low incomes. This study investigated whether ill health amongst older carers and hours of caregiving were greater in disadvantaged areas of England and Wales. We also estimated the cost of replacing this care with formal services. Data were analysed from the 2001 UK census, relating to 9.2 million males and females of pensionable age living outside of communal establishments in England and Wales. Thirteen percent of people over retirement age (1.2 million) provided care for others, more than half of whom (742,182) reported poor health. Pensioners provided care in all areas; the proportion giving care was higher in low deprivation (advantaged) areas, but both the numbers and proportion of pensioners in poor health providing many hours of care were greater in disadvantaged areas. The annual cost of replacing all informal with formal social care was estimated to lie between 14.8 and 43.9 billion Euros. Older carers are an essential support to welfare systems. If demographic shifts require any substitution of formal for informal care, this will place a significant burden on all areas, with the greatest needs likely to be in the disadvantaged areas.
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Project description:Culicoides are one of the smallest hematophagous flies measuring 1-5 mm in size with only females seeking blood for egg development. The present study investigated spatio-temporal distribution of Culicoides species trapped between 1990 and 2018 at 13 sites in the New England region of NSW, Australia using automated light traps. Trapping locations were divided into three subregions (tablelands, slopes and plains). Nineteen Culicoides species were identified. Culicoides marksi and C. austropalpalis were the most abundant and widespread species. Culicoides brevitarsis, the principal vector of livestock diseases in New South Wales comprised 2.9% of the total catch and was detected in 12 of the 13 locations in the study. Abundance as determined by Log10 Culicoides count per trapping event for the eight most abundant species did not vary significantly with season but trended towards higher counts in summer for C. marksi (P = 0.09) and C. austropalpalis (P = 0.05). Significant geographic variation in abundance was observed for C. marksi, C. austropalpalis and C. dycei with counts decreasing with increasing altitude from the plains to the slopes and tablelands. Culicoides victoriae exhibited the reverse trend in abundance (P = 0.08). Greater abundance during the warmer seasons and at lower altitudes for C. marksi and C. austropalpalis was indicative of temperature and rainfall dependence in this region with moderate summer dominance in rainfall. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index of species was higher on the tablelands (H = 1.59) than the slopes (H = 1.33) and plains (H = 1.08) with evenness indices of 0.62, 0.46 and 0.39 respectively. Culicoides species on the tablelands were more diverse than on the slopes and plains where C. marksi and C. austropalpalis dominated. The temporal and spatial variation in abundance, diversity and evenness of species reported in this diverse region of Australia provides additional insight into Culicoides as pests and disease vectors and may contribute to future modelling studies.
| S-EPMC8021189 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We characterized the prevalence of, and estimated associations between, (1) HIV-related healthcare stigma/discrimination and (2) unmet social, mental, and chronic condition healthcare needs among persons living with HIV (PLHIV) in England and Wales. We used data from Positive Voices 2017, a national, cross-sectional probability survey of PLHIV in England and Wales, in which N = 3,475 PLHIV provided complete data on demographic characteristics (control variables; age, ethnicity, gender, sexual identity), HIV-related healthcare stigma/discrimination (exposures; treated differently from other patients, care was refused/delayed, worried about being treated differently, avoided seeking needed care, all due to HIV status), and unmet needs (outcomes; unmet peer support, psychological care, management of chronic health conditions, and isolation help needs). Modified Poisson regression models with log links and robust variance estimators were used to produce prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals for unadjusted and adjusted associations between demographic characteristics, HIV-related healthcare stigma/discrimination (individual items and total scale score), and unmet needs variables. Two in five participants (40%) endorsed at least one HIV-related healthcare stigma/discrimination item; and 474 (14%), 428 (12%), 459 (13%), and 501 (14%) reported an unmet peer support, psychological care, chronic health condition management, and isolation help need, respectively. Each HIV-related healthcare stigma/discrimination item and the summed scale score were significantly, positively associated with all four unmet needs variables in unadjusted and adjusted models. Trainings for all healthcare workers in HIV-competent, non-stigmatizing care, as well as the development of engagement and delivery approaches for psychosocial care for PLHIV, are needed.
| S-EPMC8683854 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Spatial variations in disease patterns of the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic remain poorly studied. We explored the association between influenza death rates, transmissibility and several geographical and demographic indicators for the autumn and winter waves of the 1918-1919 pandemic in cities, towns and rural areas of England and Wales. Average measures of transmissibility, estimated by the reproduction number, ranged between 1.3 and 1.9, depending on model assumptions and pandemic wave and showed little spatial variation. Death rates varied markedly with urbanization, with 30-40% higher rates in cities and towns compared with rural areas. In addition, death rates varied with population size across rural settings, where low population areas fared worse. By contrast, we found no association between transmissibility, death rates and indicators of population density and residential crowding. Further studies of the geographical mortality patterns associated with the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic may be useful for pandemic planning.
| S-EPMC2596813 | biostudies-other
Project description:BACKGROUND: Despite the endemic nature of Echinococcus granulosus and Echinococcus multilocularis infection in regions of the United States (US), there is a lack of data on echinococcosis-related mortality. To measure echinococcosis-associated mortality in the US and assess possible racial/ethnic disparities, we reviewed national-death certificate data for an 18-year period. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Echinococcosis-associated deaths from 1990 through 2007 were identified from multiple-cause-coded death records and were combined with US census data to calculate mortality rates. A total of 41 echinococcosis-associated deaths occurred over the 18-year study period. Mortality rates were highest in males, Native Americans, Asians/Pacific Islanders, Hispanics and persons 75 years of age and older. Almost a quarter of fatal echinococcosis-related cases occurred in residents of California. Foreign-born persons accounted for the majority of echinococcosis-related deaths; however, both of the fatalities in Native Americans and almost half of the deaths in whites were among US-born individuals. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Although uncommon, echinococcosis-related deaths occur in the US. Clinicians should be aware of the diagnosis, particularly in foreign-born patients from Echinococcus endemic areas, and should consider tropical infectious disease consultation early.
| S-EPMC3274497 | biostudies-other
Project description:There is concern in Australia that droughts substantially increase the incidence of suicide in rural populations, particularly among male farmers and their families. We investigated this possibility for the state of New South Wales (NSW), Australia between 1970 and 2007, analyzing data on suicides with a previously established climatic drought index. Using a generalized additive model that controlled for season, region, and long-term suicide trends, we found an increased relative risk of suicide of 15% (95% confidence interval, 8%-22%) for rural males aged 30-49 y when the drought index rose from the first quartile to the third quartile. In contrast, the risk of suicide for rural females aged >30 y declined with increased values of the drought index. We also observed an increased risk of suicide in spring and early summer. In addition there was a smaller association during unusually warm months at any time of year. The spring suicide increase is well documented in nontropical locations, although its cause is unknown. The possible increased risk of suicide during drought in rural Australia warrants public health focus and concern, as does the annual, predictable increase seen each spring and early summer. Suicide is a complex phenomenon with many interacting social, environmental, and biological causal factors. The relationship between drought and suicide is best understood using a holistic framework. Climate change projections suggest increased frequency and severity of droughts in NSW, accompanied and exacerbated by rising temperatures. Elucidating the relationships between drought and mental health will help facilitate adaptation to climate change.
| S-EPMC3435226 | biostudies-literature
Project description:This study was conducted to determine the frequency and pattern of antimicrobial susceptibility of Shigella sonnei, the predominant species causing shigellosis in Belgium. Between 1990 and 2007, a total of 7,307 strains, mainly (98.2%) isolated from stools, were diagnosed by peripheral laboratories before being confirmed as Shigella strains by serotyping by the National Reference Center of Salmonella and Shigella. A significant increase in resistances to tetracycline, streptomycin, trimethoprim, sulfonamides, and cotrimoxazole (i.e., trimethoprim in combination with sulfonamides) was observed during this period. Since 1998, resistance to nalidixic acid also increased to reach a peak (12.8%) of resistant isolates in 2004. Concomitantly, multidrug resistance (MDR) in this species emerged in 2007, with 82% of total isolates being MDR. However, during this 18-year period, all isolates remained fully susceptible to ciprofloxacin and gentamicin. The work includes the molecular characterization of mechanisms of resistance to ampicillin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, and cotrimoxazole and class 1 and class 2 integrons. S. sonnei acquired antimicrobial resistance to traditional antibiotics (ampicillin and tetracycline) by horizontal gene transfer, while the genetic stability of transposons was responsible for a high (89%) proportion of resistance to a commonly prescribed antibiotic (cotrimoxazole). Therefore, cotrimoxazole should no longer be considered appropriate as empirical therapy for treatment of shigellosis in Belgium when antibiotics are indicated. Rates of resistance to nalidixic acid should also be attentively monitored to detect any shift in fluoroquinolone resistance, because it represents the first line among antibiotics used in the treatment of shigellosis.
| S-EPMC2681836 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:To explore time trends in deaths attributable to work in England and Wales, and identify priorities for prevention, we conducted a proportional analysis of mortality by occupation over a 22-year period. METHODS:Analysis was based on deaths in men aged 20-74 years during 1979-1980 and 1982-2000 with a recorded occupation. Proportional mortality ratios, standardised for age and social class, were calculated for pre-specified combinations of occupation and cause of death, for which excess mortality could reasonably be attributed to work. Differences between observed and expected numbers of deaths by cause and occupation were expressed as annual excess death rates. RESULTS:Mortality attributable to work declined substantially over the period of study, with total excess death rates of 733.2 per year during 1979-1990 and 471.7 per year during 1991-2000. The largest contributing hazards were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and pneumoconiosis in coal miners, pleural cancer from asbestos, and motor vehicle accidents in lorry drivers. In contrast to most other hazards, there was no clear decline in excess mortality attributable to asbestos, or in deaths from sino-nasal cancer associated with exposure to wood dust. CONCLUSIONS:The overall decline in mortality attributable to work is likely to reflect reduced employment in more hazardous occupations, as well as improvements in working conditions. It is imperative to ensure that occupational exposures to asbestos and wood dust are now adequately controlled. Further research is needed on accidents involving lorries with the aim of developing more effective strategies for the prevention of injury.
| S-EPMC3248917 | biostudies-literature