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Background: Methamphetamine (MA) (Mkpurummiri) is seen as the most common, accessible and new drug of use/abuse in south east Nigeria. Despite the overwhelming evidence of the dire consequences of this drug to the users, there is lack of empirical research to determine its prevalence in this area where use is assumed to be common. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of MA use, characteristics of the users and the control measures. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey research design was conducted from May through November 2023 among adolescents/adults at the age bracket of 15-64 years in the five states of south east, Nigeria. Three hundred and seventy-one (371) respondents were recruited using purposive/convenience sampling methods. A semi structured questionnaire was the instrument used. Data were analyzed using percentage, bivariate and multivariate logistics regression statistics. The Prevalence of MA was determined using percentages whereas the factors that are associated with MA use were expressed using multivariate logistics regression statistics AORs and 95%CIs. The level of significance was set at P < 0.05. Results: The prevalence of Methamphetamine (Mkpurummiri) was (21.8%). The most common reason for MA use was depression (86.5%), the most common route of administration was inhalation (64.9%). The most common characteristic of MA (Mkpurummiri) user was aggressive/violent behaviour (94.1%).The control measures were self-control (92.2%), parental monitoring (85.7%), drug education (83.1%) and legal control (80.8%). The multivariate logistics regression statistics AOR shows that off-campus were 3 times (AOR = 0.298; CI = 0.12–0.73 P = 0.008), family house 4 times (AOR = 0.241; CI = 0.09–0.65; P = 0.005 ≤ 0.05 ) less likely than on-campus to predict MA use. Recently married were 3.25 times (aOR = 3.25; CI = 1.47–7.18), divorced 3.45 times (aOR = 3.45; CI = 1.23–9.58), polygamy 2.3 times (aOR = 2.3; CI = 1.08–4.90; P = 0.031 ≤ 0.05 ), tradition 4.44 times (aOR = 4.44; CI = 1.77–11.15; P = 0.001 ≤ 0.05) , more likely than others to use MA. Conclusions: MA use prevalence was relatively high, and marital status, living arrangements, family type and religion were the predictors. These findings underscore the need for concerted effort among the relevant government agencies, community stakeholders, families, religious bodies and school authorities to designing MA use policy/laws with special focus on adopting the punitive measure used in checking cocaine users. This may help to arrest and prosecute the manufacturers, distributors and users of MA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Understanding how the COVID-19 pandemic evolved under control measures is crucial to tackle the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread. Laos, a country bordering China but with late occurrence and low burden of COVID-19 compared to its neighbouring countries, was used for a case study. Methods: A transmission model with disease reporting was proposed to investigate the impact of control measures on the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread in Laos from April 2021 to May 2022. It was assumed that the transmission rate changed with people's behaviours, control measures and emerging variants; susceptibility decreased with vaccination and infection. Bayesian inference was used for model calibration to data of confirmed cases, deaths, and recoveries, and the deviance information criterion was used to select the best model variant. Results: Our model including Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), behaviour change, vaccination, and changing variants well explained the three waves in Laos. The Alpha variant was estimated to have a basic reproduction number of 1.55 (95% CrI: 1.47–1.64) and was replaced by the Delta variant from September 2021 which was 1.88 (95% CrI: 1.77–2.01) times more transmissible; the Delta variant was replaced by Omicron variant from March 2022 which was 3.33 (95% CrI: 2.84–3.74) times more transmissible. The Delta variant was the most severe with a case fatality rate of 1.05% (95% CrI: 0.96–1.15%) while the Alpha variant and Omicron variant were much milder. The ascertainment rate was low and variable: first decreasing from 13.2 to 1.8% by 23 May 2021, and then increasing to 23.4% by 15 March 2022. Counterfactual simulations indicated that vaccination played strong roles in reducing infections even under the emergence of immune escape variants while behaviour change delayed but might not flatten the peak of outbreaks. Conclusions: The three waves of Laos' epidemics were due to the invasion of more transmissible and immune escape variants that affected the herd immunity built via vaccination and infection. Even with immunity waning and the escape of new variants, vaccination was still the major contributor to control COVID-19 and combining behaviour changes and vaccination would best suppress future outbreaks of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the public acceptance of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) control measures during the Omicron-dominant period and its associated factors. Methods: A cross-sectional design was conducted and 1391 study participants were openly recruited to participate in the questionnaire survey. Logistic regression model was performed to assess the association between the public acceptance and potential factors more specifically. Results: By August 26, 2022, 58.9% of the study participants were less acceptive of the control measures while 41.1% expressed higher acceptance. Factors associated with lower acceptance included young age, such as < 18 (OR = 8.251, 95% CI: 2.009 to 33.889) and 18–29 (OR = 2.349, 95% CI: 1.564 to 3.529), and household per capita monthly income lower than 5000 yuan (OR = 1.512, 95% CI: 1.085 to 2.105). Furthermore, individuals who perceived that the case fatality rate (CFR) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) was very low (OR = 6.010, 95% CI: 2.475 to 14.595) and that the restrictions could be eased once the CFR dropped to 2–3 times of the influenza (OR = 2.792, 95% CI: 1.939 to 4.023) showed greater oppositional attitudes. Likewise, respondents who were dissatisfied with control measures (OR = 9.639, 95% CI: 4.425 to 20.998) or preferred fully relaxation as soon as possible (OR = 13.571, 95% CI: 7.751 to 23.758) had even lower acceptability. By contrast, rural residents (OR = 0.683, 95% CI: 0.473 to 0.987), students (OR = 0.510, 95% CI: 0.276 to 0.941), public (OR = 0.417, 95% CI: 0.240 to 0.727) and private (OR = 0.562, 95% CI: 0.320 to 0.986) employees, and vaccinated participants (OR = 0.393, 95% CI: 0.204 to 0.756) were more compliant with control measures. Conclusion: More than half of the Chinese public were less supportive of COVID-19 control measures during Omicron-dominant period, which varied based on their different demographic characteristics, cognition and overall attitude towards SARS-CoV-2 infection. Control measures that struck a balance between public safety and individual freedom would be more acceptable during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the operations and functionality of the public transport sector in the UK. This paper reflects on the experience of this sector through the pandemic period, and considers recommendations for any future mitigations required for either new COVID-19 waves or a different public health emergency. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were carried out with public transport experts, organisational leaders, workers and passengers in two phases: Phase 1 from January to May 2021, and Phase 2 from December 2021 to February 2022. Interviews were analysed thematically. Results: Using the 'What? So What? Now What?' reflective model, ideas are drawn out to describe (a) what changes occurred, (b) what effects these changes had on service provision as well as perceptions of risk and mitigation and (c) what lessons have been learned and how these findings can feed into pandemic preparedness for the future. Respondent reflections focussed on the importance of communication, leadership, and maintaining compliance. Conclusions: The wealth of experience gained through the COVID-19 pandemic in the public transport sector is extremely valuable. Through reflection on this experience, specific recommendations are made relating to these factors, covering: maintaining links across industry, access to information and data, understanding of mitigation effectiveness, improving messaging, challenges of behavioural mitigations, and clear lines of accountability. The recommendations made on the basis of this reflective process will help to improve public health strategy within the public transport sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a high impact viral disease of livestock for which vaccines are extensively used for limiting the spread of infection. Armenia shares a border with both Turkey and Iran where FMD is endemic, making vaccination an important component of Armenia's control strategy. Additionally, Armenian veterinary services utilize both passive and active monitoring for prevention control. Methods: We sought to determine the immune status of animals vaccinated against FMD and to evaluate the effectiveness of our vaccination policy in Armenia. This was conducted in three regions including Shirak, Armavir, and Ararat Region which are located in the buffer zones that border Turkey and Iran. Through active monitoring in 2020, we studied blood serum samples from cattle and sheep using an enzyme immunoassay to determine the level of immune animals in these regions following the use of a polyvalent inactivated vaccine containing FMDV serotypes A, O, and Asia-1 that are relevant for this region. ELISA titers were assessed at 28, 90, and 180 days after vaccination in cattle of three age groups at the time of initial vaccination: 4–6 months, 6–18 months and ≥ 24 months of age with sheep of all ages. Results: The 3 age groups of cattle had similarly high levels of immunity with over 90% of the cattle showing a ≥ 50% protective titer 28 days after the first vaccination. By day 90, titers in cattle from the initial 4–18-month age groups dropped below 58% across the 3 serotypes and at or below 80% for the oldest cattle ≥ 24 months. Re-vaccination of cattle at 120 days did improve protective titers but never reached the level of immunity of the first vaccination. Sheep showed a similar rapid drop to less than 50% having a ≥ 50% protective titer at 90 days emphasizing the need for continual revaccination. Conclusions: The results of this study have important implications for the current FMD vaccine policy in Armenia and improves our understanding of the rapid loss of protective titers over short periods. Since small ruminants are only vaccinated once per year and vaccination titers drop rapidly by 90 days suggests that they are vulnerable to FMD and that vaccination protocols need to be updated. Cattle should continue to be vaccinated every 3–6 months depending on their age to maintain a protective level of antibodies to protect them from FMD. More studies are needed to understand the possible role of small ruminants in the epidemiology of FMD and to evaluate revaccination at shorter intervals. These results show the concerns of rapid loss of protection to both cattle and small ruminants following 1 or more doses of commercial vaccines and that additional vaccines need to be evaluated in both groups to know how often they must be vaccinated to provide full protection. The addition of challenge studies should also be considered to better understand the level of protection as measured by serology and how it relates to protection from challenge. These results should be considered by anyone using these vaccines in cattle and sheep at longer than 3 month intervals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing measures were imposed to protect the population from exposure, especially older adults and people with frailty, who have the highest risk for severe outcomes. These restrictions greatly reduced contacts in the general population, but little was known about behaviour changes among older adults and people with frailty themselves. Our aim was to quantify how COVID-19 measures affected the contact behaviour of older adults and how this differed between older adults with and without frailty. Methods: In 2021, a contact survey was carried out among people aged 70 years and older in the Netherlands. A random sample of persons per age group (70–74, 75–79, 80–84, 85–89, and 90 +) and gender was invited to participate, either during a period with stringent (April 2021) or moderate (October 2021) measures. Participants provided general information on themselves, including their frailty, and they reported characteristics of all persons with whom they had face-to-face contact on a given day over the course of a full week. Results: In total, 720 community-dwelling older adults were included (overall response rate of 15%), who reported 16,505 contacts. During the survey period with moderate measures, participants without frailty had significantly more contacts outside their household than participants with frailty. Especially for females, frailty was a more informative predictor of the number of contacts than age. During the survey period with stringent measures, participants with and without frailty had significantly lower numbers of contacts compared to the survey period with moderate measures. The reduction of the number of contacts was largest for the eldest participants without frailty. As they interact mostly with adults of a similar high age who are likely frail, this reduction of the number of contacts indirectly protects older adults with frailty from SARS-CoV-2 exposure. Conclusions: The results of this study reveal that social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic differentially affected the contact patterns of older adults with and without frailty. The reduction of contacts may have led to the direct protection of older adults in general but also to the indirect protection of older adults with frailty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective : To summarise the dynamic characteristics of COVID-19 transmissibility; To analyse and quantify the effect of control measures on controlling the transmissibility of COVID-19; To predict and compare the effectiveness of different control measures. Methods: We used the basic reproduction number ( R 0 ) to measure the transmissibility of COVID-19, the transmissibility of COVID-19 and control measures of 176 countries and regions from January 1, 2020 to May 14, 2022 were included in the study. The dynamic characteristics of COVID-19 transmissibility were summarised through descriptive research and a Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN) model was constructed to quantify the effect of control measures on controlling the transmissibility of COVID-19. Results: The results show that the spatial transmissibility of COVID-19 is high in Asia, Europe and Africa, the temporal transmissibility of COVID-19 increases with the epidemic of Beta and Omicron strains. Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN) model shows that the transmissibility of COVID-19 is negatively correlated with control measures. Restricting population mobility has the strongest effect, nucleic acid testing (NAT) has a strong effect, and vaccination has the weakest effect. Conclusion: Strict control measures are essential for controlling the COVID-19 outbreak; Restricting population mobility and nucleic acid testing (NAT) have significant impacts on controlling the COVID-19 transmissibility, while vaccination has no significant impact. In light of these findings, future control measures may include the widespread use of new NAT technology and the promotion of booster immunization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: African swine fever (ASF) has been present in Lithuania since 2014. The disease affects mainly the wild boar population. Thus, hunters play a key role in the performance of disease surveillance and control measures. We used participatory methods to gain insight into the knowledge of hunters and to include their perceptions in the design and the implementation of surveillance and control measures to increase their effectiveness. Results: The willingness and the interest of hunters to participate was high, but only eight focus group meetings with 33 hunters could be held due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The overall knowledge of Lithuanian hunters regarding ASF, investigated by semi-structured interviews, was sufficient to understand their part in ASF control and surveillance. However, their knowledge did not necessarily lead to an increased acceptance of some ASF control measures, like the targeted hunting of female wild boar. Participating hunters showed a good understanding of the processes of the surveillance system. Their trust in the performance within this system was highest towards the hunters themselves, thus emphasizing the importance of acknowledging their role in the system. Hunters refused measures including the reduction of hunting activities. They feared a complete elimination of the wild boar population, which in turn demonstrates the necessity to increase professional information exchange. Conclusions: The perceptions of Lithuanian hunters regarding ASF surveillance and control in wild boar resembled those obtained in neighboring countries. It is imperative to communicate the results with decision-makers, to consider the views of hunters, when designing or adapting measures to control ASF in wild boar and to communicate with hunters on these measures and their justification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The exotic invasive tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, appeared in southern Switzerland in 2003. The spread of the mosquito has been surveyed constantly since then, and an integrated vector management (IVM) has been implemented to control its numbers. The control measures focus on the aquatic phase of the mosquito with removal of breeding sites and applications of larvicides in public areas whereas private areas are reached through extensive public information campaigns. Here, we evaluated the efficacy of the IVM. Methods: Since all the municipalities with Ae. albopictus in southern Switzerland are currently implementing the IVM, Italian municipalities just across the Swiss-Italian border, where Ae. albopictus is present but no coordinated intervention programme is in place, served as control. Ovitraps and adult female traps were used to measure mosquito abundance in 2019. Generalised mixed-effects models were used to model the numbers of Ae. albopictus eggs and adult females collected. These numbers of Ae. albopictus eggs were compared to the numbers of eggs collected in 2012 and 2013 in a previous assessment of the IVM, using a hurdle model. Results: Mean numbers of Ae. albopictus eggs and adult females in 2019 were consistently higher in the municipalities not following an IVM programme. In these municipalities, there were about four times (3.8) more eggs than in the municipalities implementing an IVM programme. Also, the numbers of eggs and adult females increased steadily from the beginning of the Ae. albopictus reproductive season, reaching a peak in August. In contrast, the increase in numbers of Ae. albopictus was much more contained in the municipalities implementing an IVM programme, without reaching an evident peak. Comparison with data from 2012 and 2013 indicates that the gap between intervention and non-intervention areas may have almost doubled in the past 6 years. Conclusions: The results of the survey strongly support the efficacy of the IVM programme implemented in southern Switzerland compared to municipalities without defined control measures. With the constant implementation of an IVM, it appears possible to contain the numbers of Ae. albopictus at a manageable level, reducing the nuisance for the human population and the risk of arbovirus epidemics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Visceral leishmaniasis is an important but neglected disease that is spreading and is highly lethal when left untreated. This study sought to measure the Leishmania infantum seroprevalence in dogs, the coverage of its control activities (identification of the canine reservoir by serological survey, dog culling and insecticide spraying) and to evaluate its relationship with the occurrence of the disease in humans in the municipalities of Araçatuba and Birigui, state of São Paulo, Brazil.Methods: Information from 2006 to 2015 was georeferenced for each municipality and modeling was performed for the two municipalities together. To do this, latent Gaussian Bayesian models with the incorporation of a spatio-temporal structure and Poisson distribution were used. The Besag-York-Mollie models were applied for random spatial effects, as also were autoregressive models of order 1 for random temporal effects. The modeling was performed using the INLA (Integrated Nested Laplace Approximations) deterministic approach, considering both the numbers of cases as well as the coverage paired year by year and lagged at one and two years.Results: Control activity coverage was observed to be generally low. The behavior of the temporal tendency in the human disease presented distinct patterns in the two municipalities, however, in both the tendency was to decline. The canine serological survey presented as a protective factor only in the two-year lag model.Conclusions: The canine serological coverage, even at low intensity, carried out jointly with the culling of the positive dogs, suggested a decreasing effect on the occurrence of the disease in humans, whose effects would be seen two years after it was carried out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lyme disease (LD) is the most commonly reported, broadly distributed vector-borne disease of the northern temperate zone. It is transmitted by ticks and, if untreated, can cause skin, cardiac, nervous system and musculoskeletal disease. The distribution and incidence of LD is increasing across much of North America and Western Europe. Interventions to decrease exposure to LD hazard by encouraging behavioural change have low acceptance in high risk groups, and a safe, effective human LD vaccine is not presently available. As a result, habitat level interventions to decrease LD hazard itself (i.e. levels of infected ticks) have been proposed. However, some interventions may potentially negatively affect ecosystem health, and consequentially be neither desirable, nor politically feasible. This systematic review will catalogue interventions that aim to reduce LD hazard at non-domestic sites, and examine the evidence supporting those which are unlikely to negatively affect ecosystem health. Methods: The review will be carried out in two steps. First, a screening and cataloguing stage will be conducted to identify and characterise interventions to decrease LD hazard at non-domestic sites. Secondly, the subset of interventions identified during cataloguing as unlikely to negatively affect ecosystem health will be investigated. In the screening and cataloguing step literature will be collected through database searching using pre-chosen search strings, hand-searching key journals and reviewing the websites of public health bodies. Further references will be identified by contacting stakeholders and researchers. Article screening and assessment of the likely effects of interventions on ecosystem health will be carried out independently by two reviewers. A third reviewer will be consulted if disagreements arise. The cataloguing step results will be presented in tables. Study quality will then be assessed independently by two reviewers, using adapted versions of established tools developed in healthcare research. These results will be presented in a narrative synthesis alongside tables. Though a full meta-analysis is not expected to be possible, if sub-groups of studies are sufficiently similar to compare, a partial meta-analysis will be carried out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In Ticino, a canton located south of the Alps in Switzerland, a surveillance programme on Aedes albopictus (Stegomyia albopicta) started in 2000 seeing that the region was considered at high risk of introduction based on the rapid spread of this mosquito in neighbouring Italy. Methods: The surveillance programme, which is still ongoing, was adapted continuously to handle preventive measures of arrival, dispersal and establishment of this invasive species. The monitoring was based on ovitraps supported by reports from the population. The integrated control measures included removal of breeding sites, larvicide applications with Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis or diflubenzuron and, in some circumstances, adulticide applications with permethrin. These measures involved citizens, municipalities and Civil Protection Units. Results: Ae. albopictus was first observed in 2003 in Ticino. We describe the strategies adopted and their adaptations to the evolving problem since year 2000. The approach used allowed keeping the mosquito densities at tolerable levels and below the threshold of autochthonous Ae. albopictus borne disease transmission. During the surveillance period, new typologies of breeding sites for Ae. albopictus have been discovered. Conclusions: It was worth tackling the arrival of Ae. albopictus and adopting immediate control measures, followed by regular control measures after its establishment. Early intervention and prevention of the possible spread of the tiger mosquito over the territory avoided facing a crisis situation. This also reduced the difficulty of managing the situation and probably also reduced the overall cost if this had not been put in place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Context: Snow gliding is a downhill motion of snow on the ground; observations have shown gliding to be possible not only on open slopes but also in forest stands. Larch stands, with their low canopy density and open forest structure with clearings and gaps, are particularly prone to high glide rates. Snow gliding may have negative effects on juvenescent trees which can be damaged by extraction from the ground. • Aim: The goal of this study was to determine whether snow gliding depends on forest cover (canopy) and size of clearings. • Methods: Snow gliding was measured during eight winter periods at six measuring positions (ranging from ‘dense forest’ to ‘open slope’) in and beside a larch stand in the Stubai Valley, Tyrol, Austria. • Results: The results showed that gliding is strongly influenced by forest cover. Snow gliding increases with decreasing canopy density. The difference between the six measuring positions was highly significant ( p < 0.005). • Conclusion: The identified glide cracks on at least two measuring positions, indicating extreme glide rates and, therefore, strong negative effects on juvenescent trees. To prevent glide rates of a magnitude such as this requires a mature forest with at least 300 stems/ha. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bovine leukemia virus (BLV) is worldwide distributed and highly endemic in Argentina. Among the strategies to prevent BLV dissemination, a control plan based on the selective segregation of animals according to their proviral load (PVL) is promising for our dairy productive system. The objective of this work was to study the relationship between the blood PVL and the antibody level, in order to identify whether the individual humoral response, i.e. the anti-p24 or anti-whole-BLV particle, could be used as a marker of the blood level of infection and thus help to recruit animals that may pose a lower risk of dissemination under natural conditions. Results: The prevalence of p24 antibodies on the 15 farms studied was over 66%. The prevalence of p24 and whole-BLV antibodies and PVL quantification were analyzed in all the samples (n = 196) taken from herds T1 and 51. ROC analysis showed a higher AUC for p24 antibodies than whole-BLV antibodies (Zreactivity: 3.55, P < 0.001; Ztiter: 2.88, P < 0.01), and as consequence a better performance to predict the proviral load status in herd 51. No significant differences were found between the performance of p24 and whole-BLV antibodies in herd T1. A significant positive correlation was observed between PVL values and p24 antibody reactivity in both farms (r T1=0.7, P < 0.001, r 51 = 0.71, P < 0.0001). The analysis was extended to the whole number of weak p24 antibody reactors (n = 311) of the other 13 farms. The mean of high PVL reactors within weak p24 reactors was 17.38% (SD = 8.92). In 5/15 farms, the number of weak p24 reactors with high PVL was lower than 10%. Conclusions: We found that the humoral response reflected the level of in vivo infection, and may therefore have useful epidemiological applications. Whereas the quantitative evaluation of blood proviral load using real-time PCR is expensive and technically demanding, the measurement of antibodies in blood by ELISA is relatively straightforward and could therefore constitute a cost-effective tool in a BLV control intervention strategy, especially in highly infected herds such as Argentinean dairy ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]