简介:AbstractIrritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional gastrointestinal disease worldwide. Current guidelines of IBS are mostly based on the western populations and expected to vary in different communities. China has a large population and a vast literature is available on IBS. Due to linguistic variations in the literature, the studies are not widely known and their conclusions thus remain largely obscured to the western medical literature. In this article, we reviewed the published literatures on the investigations of IBS epidemiology, diagnosis, and management in the Chinese population and emphasized the different findings gleaned from the western publications. The detailed literature review will benefit understanding of and promote future study on IBS.
简介:AbstractThere are only a few case reports of Q fever caused by Coxiella burnetii in China, despite the nature as a ubiquitous zoonotic disease worldwide. In the northeast part of China, a 52-year-old male presented with fever, cough, shortness of breath, and sputum production, accompanied by headache, dizziness, chill, myalgia, and arthralgia. Chest computed tomography images showed pneumonia accompanied by bilateral scattered infiltrates and localized upper-lobe emphysema. The abnormal liver function was indicated by the increased levels of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase. Through high-throughput sequencing and molecular detection, Coxiella burnetii was positive in the patient's blood specimens. After treatment with moxifloxacin hydrochloride and vidarabine monophosphate for 12 days, the patient completely recovered. To our knowledge, this was the first reported case of Q fever with pneumonia and hepatitis in this country.
简介:AbstractIn China, brucellosis has spread from the northern provinces to the southern coastal area, and Brucella melitensis has become the overwhelmingly dominant species nationwide. Although human Brucellosis cases have been reported in many parts of Hainan Province, investigations into the source of infection have been rare. In this case, we have used the techniques of bacteriology, genome sequencing, and WGS-SNP to investigate the source of infection on a patient with a traveling history between Hainan and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions. We collected a 5mL blood sample under sterile conditions from this suspected case of Brucellosis infection and incubated it in a culture bottle. A week later, Brucella colonies were purified and identified under the standard bacteriology procedures to show that the strain appeared as B. melitensis bv. 3. Subsequently, a draft genome sequencing of this strain was obtained. A WGS-SNP comparison analysis of Chinese B. melitensis selected (n = 36) from GenBank revealed that the strain in this study was more similar to the strains isolated from China's northern parts, especially those from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. These data indicated that the source of infection of the patient was in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, but the actual location where this patient became infected was unclear. We suggest that travelers from the southern part of China be cautious when visiting the traditional endemic areas of Brucellosis.
简介:AbstractChronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a serious health issue because of its severe sequelae. Prevention of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HBV is critical to eliminate chronic HBV infection. Here, we reviewed the progress toward the elimination of HBV infection in children in China in the recent decade. A universal hepatitis B vaccination program started from 2002 has been intensified, with the coverage of timely birth dose >95% of all newborn infants from 2012. Since 2011, China has taken a nationwide program to administer hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG) with free of charge in all neonates of HBV-infected mothers, leading to a significant increment of timely use of HBIG. The prevalence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) was declined from around 10% among children in 1980s to <0.5% among children born after 2011. Administration of oral antiviral agents in HBV-infected pregnant women with HBV DNA >2 × 105 U/mL during the third trimester is increasing, which will further reduce MTCT of HBV. However, there are some challenges in the elimination of HBV infection in children, which need to overcome by the concerted efforts. Nevertheless, it is anticipated that China will achieve the goal set by the World Health Organization that the prevalence of HBsAg in children aged <5 years is ≤0.1% by 2030.
简介:AbstractBackground:Tuberculosis (TB) is a major global health threat and the leading infectious disease cause of death worldwide. Access to and retention in TB care remains a challenge for patients, particularly those living in rural and remote settings. This qualitative study explored barriers and facilitators to accessing and maintaining contact with TB care services in communities in Xigaze (Shigatse) prefecture, Xizang Autonomous Region (Tibet Autonomous Region), China from the perspective of persons impacted by TB.Methods:We conduced in-depth interviews with 23 participants impacted by TB in four rural districts in Xigaze prefecture, Xizang Autonomous Region, China between April 2019 and November 2020. Interviews were conducted in Tibetan and Mandarin, transcribed in Mandarin and translated into English. Transcripts were checked against recordings by native Tibetan and Mandarin speakers. QSR NVivo12 software was used for framework analysis guided by an access to care conceptual framework by Levesque et al.Results:Overall patients reported low awareness of and an indifferent attitude towards TB, although all reported understanding the need to adhere to treatment. Participants reported complex pathways to care, often requiring visits to multiple healthcare facilities. Some participants reported visiting traditional Tibetan medicine (TTM) providers. Participants reported various barriers to accessing care including challenges physically reaching care, out-of-pocket payments for tests, diagnostics and transport. Barriers to maintaining care included medication side effects and worry about treatment effectiveness. Enablers to accessing care identified included knowledge or past experience with TB, integrated models of TTM and western care, supportive village doctors who conducted home visits, free TB treatment and other subsidies, as well as having family support with care and social support as barriers and facilitators to maintaining treatment.Conclusions:We identified barriers and facilitators to accessing services in rural communities in Xigaze from the perspective of persons impacted by TB. Challenges include complex pathways to care, travel distances, wait times and low awareness. Tuberculosis care in the region could be strengthened by ongoing culturally tailored educational campaigns to increase awareness, partnerships with TTM providers, providing comprehensive treatment subsidies and strengthening the role of family members in comprehensive TB care.
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简介:AbstractIn 2009, China strengthened its public health service system. Since then, the country has made remarkable achievements in community-based chronic disease prevention and control; however, certain groups still have unmet needs. During 2019 to 2029, China will consolidate the top-level design of its medical health system. During this period, the coordination of department policies, improvement of service delivery mechanisms, building an integrated health service system, and other issues will be highlighted. This study will provide a basis for designing China's chronic disease prevention and control system during the next stage of development. We will consider the unmet needs of patients with chronic diseases as an indicator for remodeling the prediction system in combination with the elements and structural theories of complex health systems. In this article, we first introduce the definition and measurement methods of unmet needs. Second, we identify the existing unmet needs found among patients with chronic diseases with reference to the chronic disease prevention and control policies of China as well as current service items. Finally, we propose the design of community chronic disease service package for the next development stage based on unmet needs of patients with chronic diseases. We also provide suggestions for how to improve China's chronic care delivery system.
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简介:AbstractBackground:Eradication of infectious disease is the sanctified public health and sustainable development goal around the world.Main body:Three antimalarial barriers were developed to control imported malarial cases, and an effective surveillance strategy known as the "1-3-7 approach" was developed to eliminate malaria from the Chinese population. From 2011 to 2019, 5254 confirmed malaria cases were reported and treated in Yunnan Province, China. Among them, 4566 cases were imported from other countries, and 688 cases were indigenous from 2011 to 2016. Since 2017, no new local malarial case has been reported in China. Thus, malaria has been completely eliminated in Yunnan Province. However, malaria is detected in overseas travellers on a regular basis, such as visitors from neighbouring Myanmar.Conclusion:Hence, the strategies should be further strengthened to maintain a robust public health infrastructure for disease surveillance and vector control programs in border areas. Such programs should be supported technically and financially by the government to avert the possibility of a malarial resurgence in Yunnan Province.
简介:AbstractIn the past 37 years, human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) has undergone various major transmission routes in China, with the world most complex co-circulating HIV-1 subtypes, even the prevalence is still low. In response to the first epidemic outbreak of HIV in injecting drug users and the second one by illegal commercial blood collection, China issued the Anti-Drug Law and launched the Blood Donation Act and nationwide nucleic acid testing, which has avoided 98,232 to 211,200 estimated infections and almost ended the blood product-related infection. China has been providing free antiretroviral therapy (ART) since 2003, which covered >80% of the identified patients and achieved a viral suppression rate of 91%. To bend the curve of increasing the disease burden of HIV and finally end the epidemic, China should consider constraining HIV spread through sexual transmission, narrowing the gaps in identifying HIV cases, and the long-term effectiveness and safety of ART in the future.
简介:AbstractBackground:School closure is a common mitigation strategy during severe influenza epidemics and pandemics. However, the effectiveness of this strategy remains controversial. In this study, we aimed to explore the effectiveness of school closure on seasonal influenza epidemics in provincial-level administrative divisions (PLADs) with varying urbanization rates in China.Methods:This study analyzed influenza surveillance data between 2010 and 2019 provided by the Chinese National Influenza Center. Taking into consideration the climate, this study included a region with 3 adjacent PLADs in Northern China and another region with 4 adjacent PLADs in Southern China. The effect of school closure on influenza transmission was evaluated by the reduction of the effective reproductive number of seasonal influenza during school winter breaks compared with that before school winter breaks. An age-structured Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Susceptible (SIRS) model was built to model influenza transmission in different levels of urbanization. Parameters were determined using the surveillance data via robust Bayesian method.Results:Between 2010 and 2019, in the less urbanized provinces: Hebei, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Anhui, during school winter breaks, the effective reproductive number of seasonal influenza epidemics reduced 14.6% [95% confidential interval (CI): 6.2-22.9%], 9.6% (95% CI: 2.5-16.6%), 7.3% (95% CI: 0.1-14.4%) and 8.2% (95% CI: 1.1-15.3%) respectively. However, in the highly urbanized cities: Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai, it reduced only 5.2% (95% CI: -0.7-11.2%), 4.1% (95% CI: -0.9-9.1%) and 3.9% (95% CI: -1.6-9.4%) respectively. In China, urbanization is associated with decreased proportion of children and increased social contact. According to the SIRS model, both factors could reduce the impact of school closure on seasonal influenza epidemics, and the proportion of children in the population is thought to be the dominant influencing factor.Conclusions:Effectiveness of school closure on the epidemics varies with the age structure in the population and social contact patterns. School closure should be recommended in the low urbanized regions in China in the influenza seasons.
简介:AbstractBackground:The End Tuberculosis (TB) Strategy of the World Health Organization highlights the need for patient-centered care and social protection measures that alleviate the financial hardships faced by many TB patients. In China, TB treatments are paid for by earmarked government funds, social health insurance, medical assistance for the poor, and out-of-pocket payments from patients. As part of Phase III of the China-Gates TB project, this paper introduces multi-source financing of TB treatment in the three provinces of China and analyzes the challenges of moving towards universal coverage and its implications of multi-sectoral engagement for TB care.Main text:The new financing policies for TB treatment in the three provinces include increased reimbursement for TB outpatient care, linkage of TB treatment with local poverty alleviation programs, and use of local government funds to cover some costs to reduce out-of-pocket expenses. However, there are several challenges in reducing the financial burdens faced by TB patients. First, medical costs must be contained by reducing the profit-maximizing behaviors of hospitals. Second, treatment for TB and multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) is only available at county hospitals and city or provincial hospitals, respectively, and these hospitals have low reimbursement rates and high co-payments. Third, many patients with TB and MDR-TB are at the edge of poverty, and therefore ineligible for medical assistance, which targets extremely poor individuals. In addition, the local governments of less developed provinces often face fiscal difficulties, making it challenging to use of local government funds to provide financial support for TB patients. We suggest that stakeholders at multiple sectors should engage in transparent and responsive communications, coordinate policy developments, and integrate resources to improve the integration of social protection schemes.Conclusions:The Chinese government is examining the establishment of multi-source financing for TB treatment by mobilization of funds from the government and social protection schemes. These efforts require strengthening the cooperation of multiple sectors and improving the accountability of different government agencies. All key stakeholders must take concrete actions in the near future to assure significant progress toward the goal of alleviating the financial burden faced by TB and MDR-TB patients.
简介:AbstractBackground:The prevalence of human brucellosis in Qinghai Province of China has been increasing rapidly, with confirmed cases distributed across 31 counties. However, the epidemiology of brucellosis transmission has not been fully elucidated. To characterize the infecting strains isolated from humans, multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeats analysis (MLVA) and whole-genome single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-based approaches were employed.Methods:Strains were isolated from two males blood cultures that were confirmed Brucella melitensis positive following biotyping and MLVA. Genomic DNA was extracted from these two strains, and whole-genome sequencing was performed. Next, SNP-based phylogenetic analysis was performed to compare the two strains to 94 B. melitensis strains (complete genome and draft genome) retrieved from online databases.Results:The two Brucella isolates were identified as B. melitensis biovar 3 (QH2019001 and QH2019005) following conventional biotyping and were found to have differences in their variable number tandem repeats (VNTRs) using MLVA-16. Phylogenetic examination assigned the 96 strains to five genotype groups, with QH2019001 and QH2019005 assigned to the same group, but different subgroups. Moreover, the QH2019005 strain was assigned to a new subgenotype, IIj, within genotype II. These findings were then combined to determine the geographic origin of the two Brucella strains.Conclusions:Utilizing a whole-genome SNP-based approach enabled differences between the two B. melitensis strains to be more clearly resolved, and facilitated the elucidation of their different evolutionary histories. This approach also revealed that QH2019005 is a member of a new subgenotype (IIj) with an ancient origin in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
简介:AbstractPurpose:The increasing number of deaths due to road traffic accidents (RTAs) has attracted global attention. However, the influence of road types is rarely considered in the study of RTAs. This study evaluates the influence of different road types in RTAs in northern Guizhou to provide a basis for the formulation of evidence-based policies and measures.Methods:We obtained the data from the Zunyi Traffic Management Data Platform for the years 2009-2018. The mortality rates of RTAs were calculated. Descriptive methods and Chi-square tests were used to analyze the characteristics of road traffic collisions on different road types. We also examined the associations between the mortality rate per 10,000 vehicles and the growth of per capital gross domestic product (GDP) with Spearman's rank correlation analysis. According to the passing volume and the infrastructure, we defined different types of roads, like administrative road, functional road, general urban road and urban expressway.Results:In 2012, the traffic mortality rate of administrative roads was 8.9 per 100,000 people, and the mortality rate of functional roads was 7.4 per 100,000 people, which decreased in 2018 to 6.1 deaths per 100,000 people and 5.2 deaths per 100,000 people, respectively. The mortality rate per 10,000 vehicles reached the highest level in 2011 (28.8 per 10,000 vehicles and 22.5 per 10,000 vehicles on administrative and functional roads, respectively). The death rate of county roads was the highest among administrative roads (χ2= 17.389, p < 0.05) and that of fourth-class roads was the highest among functional roads (χ2= 21.785, p < 0.05). The mortality rate per 10,000 vehicles was negatively correlated with per capital GDP.Conclusion:Although our research shows that RTAs in northern Guizhou have steadily declined in recent years, the range of decline is relatively small. Many measures and sustainable efforts are needed to control road traffic death and accelerate the progress in road traffic safety in northern Guizhou.
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简介:AbstractBackground:Cervical cancer remains a major public health issue for the Uyghur women and other women living mainly in rural areas of Xinjiang. This study aims to investigate the distribution of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and cervical cancer in rural areas of Xinjiang, China.Methods:Cervical cancer screening was performed on rural women aged 35 to 64 years from Xinjiang, China in 2017 through gynecological examination, vaginal discharge smear microscopy, cytology, and HPV testing. If necessary, colposcopy and biopsy were performed on women with suspicious or abnormal screening results.Results:Of the 216,754 women screened, 15,518 received HPV testing. The HPV-positive rate was 6.75% (1047/15,518). Compared with the age 35-44 years group, the odds ratios (ORs) of HPV positivity in the age 45-54 years and 55-64 years groups were 1.18 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02-1.37) and 1.84 (95% CI: 1.53-2.21), respectively. Compared with women with primary or lower education level, the ORs for HPV infection rates of women with high school and college education or above were 1.37 (95% CI: 1.09-1.72) and 1.62 (95% CI: 1.23-2.12), respectively. Uyghur women were less likely to have HPV infection than Han women, with an OR (95% CI) of 0.78 (0.61-0.99). The most prevalent HPV types among Xinjiang women were HPV 16 (24.00%), HPV 33 (12.70%), and HPV 52 (11.80%). The detection rate of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN)2+ was 0.14% and the early diagnosis rate of cervical cancer was 85.91%. The detection rates of vaginitis and cervicitis were 19.28% and 21.32%, respectively.Conclusions:The HPV infection rate in Xinjiang is low, but the detection rate of cervical cancer and precancerous lesions is higher than the national average level. Cervical cancer is a prominent public health problem in Xinjiang, especially in southern Xinjiang.
简介:AbstractThe global spread of SARS-CoV-2 is currently continuing, and the World Health Organization has announced the risk assessment of the viruses as high. In this study, we analyzed virology features of SARS-CoV-2 causing a family cluster outbreak. Among the six family members, five have been laboratory-confirmed infection of SARS-CoV-2 viruses. A total of five SARS-CoV-2 viruses have been isolated from the nasopharyngeal swabs. The complete genome of the viruses exhibited 100% nucleotide identity with each other. Only two nucleotide differences have been observed between genomes of the isolated viruses and the HCoV/Wuhan/IVDC-HB-01/2019 strain. Therefore, SARS-CoV-2 has been confirmed as the causation of the family cluster infections.
简介:AbstractSevere fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) was first detected in China in 2009. The incidence of SFTS increases year by year, and there is no effective treatment. Considering that the reported prevalence of SFTSV infection varies from region to region, we aimed to quantitatively evaluate the epidemic characteristics of SFTSV infection in China from 2010 to 2020, including the distribution differences in infectious season, sex, age, occupation, and region. A meta-analysis framework was used to search for the related published data with keywords in electronic databases (CNKI, WanFang, CBM, and PubMed). According to the PRISMA statement, the studies that included SFTS diagnosed in China were analyzed. Furthermore, we used Revman and Stata to merge statistical effects, and used I2 and P-values for heterogeneity test and quality assessment. Eleven studies containing 4,932 cases confirmed by SFTSV infection were included in this meta-analysis. The ratio of male-to-female is 1.04 to 1. Cases were concentrated between 40 and 80 years of age (MD = 92%, 95%CI: 91%-93%). Farmers are at the highest risk of SFTSV infection (MD = 84%, 95%CI: 77%-90%). The risk of infection for consecutive period of April-August was significantly higher than the sum of the remaining months (MD = 82%, 95%CI: 78%-85%). In addition, the patient has an extensive history of exposure, including living in the mountains, exposure to ticks, livestock, mouse and the patient. We came to the conclusion that SFTSV is transmitted primarily through tick bites in China, so middle-aged and older adults living in mountains regions are at the highest risk for SFTSV infection in April through August each year.