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Background Acute cerebral infarction is a critical condition in patients with acute vestibular syndrome (AVS). AVS presents suddenly with severe symptoms. The sensitivity of CT in diagnosing acute cerebral infarction is low, and MRI, which is more accurate, is not always immediately available. This makes the diagnosis of acute cerebral infarction presenting as AVS challenging. Therefore, it is necessary to explore suitable examination and evaluation methods for patients with AVS. Objective To analyze the risk factors associated with acute cerebral infarction in patients with AVS, in order to provide a reference for the diagnosis of acute cerebral infarction in AVS and to maximize the critical treatment window for these patients. Methods A total of 102 patients with AVS admitted to the Department of Neurology, the Fourth Hospital of Harbin Medical University from April 2021 to July 2022 were included in the study. Clinical signs were recorded, and MRI results were used as the gold standard for the diagnosis of cerebral infarction. Patients were divided into the cerebral infarction group (n=16) and non-cerebral infarction group (n=86). The clinical characteristics of the two groups were compared. Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses were used to explore factors influencing the occurrence of cerebral infarction in AVS. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted to evaluate the predictive value of these factors. Results The proportions of patients with a history of smoking, alcohol consumption, positive Head-Impulse-Nystagmus-Test-of-Skew (HINTS) tests, and higher ABCD2 scores were significantly higher in the cerebral infarction group (P

Global food security is a major driver of population health, and food system collapse may have complex and long-lasting effects on health outcomes. We examined the effect of prenatal exposure to the Great Chinese Famine (1958-1962)-the largest famine in human history-on pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) across consecutive generations in a major center of ongoing transmission in China. We analyzed >1 million PTB cases diagnosed between 2005 and 2018 in Sichuan Province using age-period-cohort analysis and mixed-effects metaregression to estimate the effect of the famine on PTB risk in the directly affected birth cohort (F1) and their likely offspring (F2). The analysis was repeated on certain sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI) to explore potential mechanisms of the intergenerational effects. A substantial burden of active PTB in the exposed F1 cohort and their offspring was attributable to the Great Chinese Famine, with more than 12,000 famine-attributable active PTB cases (>1.23% of all cases reported between 2005 and 2018). An interquartile range increase in famine intensity resulted in a 6.53% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.19-12.14%) increase in the ratio of observed to expected incidence rate (incidence rate ratio, IRR) in the absence of famine in F1, and an 8.32% (95% CI: 0.59-16.6%) increase in F2 IRR. Increased risk of STBBI was also observed in F2. Prenatal and early-life exposure to malnutrition may increase the risk of active PTB in the exposed generation and their offspring, with the intergenerational effect potentially due to both within-household transmission and increases in host susceptibility.

The transmissibility is a crucial feature for norovirus, yet its quantitative estimation has been limited. Our objective was to estimate the basic reproduction number (R0) of norovirus and investigate its variation characteristics. Norovirus outbreaks reported from September 2016 to August 2021 in Beijing were analyzed. The susceptible‐infected‐removed compartment model was established to estimate R0. Linear regression models and logistic regression models were used to explore the factors affecting the transmissibility of norovirus. The overall median R0 of norovirus was estimated as 2.1 (interquartile range [IQR] 1.8–2.5), with 650 norovirus outbreaks. The transmissibility of norovirus varied by year, outbreak setting and genotype. The R0 of norovirus during September 2019 to August 2020 (median 2.1, IQR 1.8–2.4) and September 2020 to August 2021 (median 2.0, IQR 1.7–2.3) was lower than that of September 2016 to August 2017 (median 2.3, IQR 1.8–2.7) (β = 0.94, p = 0.05; β = 0.93, p = 0.008). The R0 of norovirus for all other settings was lower than that for kindergarten (median 2.4, IQR 2.0–2.9) (primary school: median 2.0, IQR 1.7–2.4, β = 0.94, p = 0.001; secondary school: median 1.7, IQR 1.5–2.0, β = 0.87, p < 0.001; college: median 1.7, IQR 1.5–1.8, β = 0.89, p = 0.03; other closed settings: median 1.8, IQR 1.5–2.0, β = 0.90, p = 0.004). GⅡ.2[P16] outbreaks had a median R0 of 2.2 (IQR 1.8–2.7), which was higher than that for GⅡ.6[P7] outbreaks (median 1.8, IQR: 1.8–2.0, odds ratio = 0.19, p = 0.03; GⅡ.2[P16] as reference) and mixed‐genotype outbreaks (median 1.7, IQR: 1.5–1.8, β = 0.92, p = 0.02; mixed‐genotype as reference). In kindergartens and primary schools, norovirus shows increased transmissibility, emphasizing the vulnerable population and high‐risk settings. Furthermore, the transmissibility of norovirus may change over time and with virus evolution, necessitating additional research to uncover the underlying mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Human cystic and alveolar echinococcosis are neglected tropical diseases that WHO has prioritized for control in recent years. Both diseases impose substantial burdens on public health and the socio-economy in China. In this study, which is based on the national echinococcosis survey from 2012 to 2016, we aim to describe the spatial prevalence and demographic characteristics of cystic and alveolar echinococcosis infections in humans and assess the impact of environmental, biological and social factors on both types of the disease. Methods: We computed the sex-, age group-, occupation- and education level-specific prevalences of cystic and alveolar echinococcosis at national and sub-national levels. We mapped the geographical distribution of echinococcosis prevalence at the province, city and county levels. Finally, by analyzing the county-level echinococcosis cases combined with a range of associated environmental, biological and social factors, we identified and quantified the potential risk factors for echinococcosis using a generalized linear model. Results: A total of 1,150,723 residents were selected and included in the national echinococcosis survey between 2012 and 2016, of whom 4161 and 1055 tested positive for cystic and alveolar echinococcosis, respectively. Female gender, older age, occupation at herdsman, occupation as religious worker and illiteracy were identified as risk factors for both types of echinococcosis. The prevalence of echinococcosis was found to vary geographically, with areas of high endemicity observed in the Tibetan Plateau region. Cystic echinococcosis prevalence was positively correlated with cattle density, cattle prevalence, dog density, dog prevalence, number of livestock slaughtered, elevation and grass area, and negatively associated with temperature and gross domestic product (GDP). Alveolar echinococcosis prevalence was positively correlated with precipitation, level of awareness, elevation, rodent density and rodent prevalence, and negatively correlated with forest area, temperature and GDP. Our results also implied that drinking water sources are significantly associated with both diseases. Conclusions: The results of this study provide a comprehensive understanding of geographical patterns, demographic characteristics and risk factors of cystic and alveolar echinococcosis in China. This important information will contribute towards developing targeted prevention measures and controlling diseases from the public health perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carboxymethyl‐β‐cyclodextrins (CM‐β‐CDs) with five kinds of degrees of substitution were synthesized and characterized. Analytical enantioseparation of six basic drugs containing N‐alkyl groups, including pheniramine, chlorpheniramine, labetalol, propranolol, venlafaxine, and trans‐paroxol, was achieved by reversed‐phase high‐performance liquid chromatography (RP‐HPLC) using the synthesized CM‐β‐CD as chiral mobile phase additives. Key influence factors were optimized, including organic modifier, pH value, CM‐β‐CD with different degrees of substitution, and concentration of CM‐β‐CD. The mobile phase was composed of methanol and 10 mmol L−1 of phosphate buffer pH 4.0 containing 10 mmol L−1 of CM‐β‐CD. Peak resolution for six racemic drugs was gradually increased with an increasing degree of substitution of the synthesized CM‐β‐CD. The stoichiometric ratio and binding constants for the inclusion complex formed by CM‐β‐CD and enantiomer were determined, which showed that the stoichiometric ratio for each inclusion complex was 1:1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]