Background:The world is facing a major health crisis. COVID-19 is a serious disease that has and continues to spread, ravaging lives in every country and causing mental health consequences and sequelae.Methods: A systematic review was conducted by the recommendations of the "Preferred Reporting Elements for Systematic Reviews and Metaanalyses" (PRISMA). The abstract, Scopus, PubMed, and Google scholar databases were specifically reviewed from January 2020 to May 2020.Results: Twenty-one observational studies with a total of 111407 participants were included in this systematic review. The results suggest a prevalence of symptoms of anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.Conclusions: COVID-19 is a significant mental health burden. However, it is not possible to generalize the results and there is a need for research in other countries, particularly in developing countries and among vulnerable people.
Several epidemiological and toxicological studies have shown that exposure to surface ozone increases deaths and illnesses. Deteriorating air quality could lead to health concerns in emerging countries such as Morocco. The aim of the present study was to investigate the long-term impact of ozone on the health of Agadir residents by using the AirQ+ model. The exposure reference values in 2016 were the daily and yearly average concentrations. Two monitoring stations provided the average ozone concentration per hour. The yearly total of maximum 8-hour ozone levels over 35 ppb was used to forecast probable long-term health impacts. As a health indicator, specific mortality for respiratory disorders was considered. According to the health impact assessment, the yearly cumulative incidence was estimated to 419.5 per 100,000 population. A reduction in ozone concentrations to less than 100 μg/m3 might prevent 13 deaths per year (95% CI: 5–22), with an estimated attributable proportion of 0.73% (95% CI: 0.26–1.24). AirQ+ can be used as a public health tool to assess the health risks of air pollution, providing policymakers with a basis for implementing air quality management strategies to decrease air pollution's health effect.
Background:
The long-term use of pesticides can cause harmful consequences to both human health and the environment. In the present research, we aimed to compare biochemical, hematological, and plasmatic measurements of butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) between farmers and non-farmers.
Materials and Methods:
The study is cross-sectional and included 270 participants, with 135 farmers using pesticides and a control population of 135 non-farmers. The recruitment of the participants was conducted from August 2017 to the end of December 2019. Blood samples from participants were collected for the evaluation of biochemical markers of the function of the liver and determination of BChE activity. A whole blood sample with ethylenediamine tetraacetic anticoagulant (EDTA) was also taken for a complete blood count.
Results:
The results showed a statistically significant (
P
= 0.03) decrease in mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) in the cases (28.45 ± 2.94 pg) as compared with controls (29.17 ± 2.54 pg). The statistical analysis of the renal parameters between the two groups determined that the uremia value was significantly higher in cases (34 ± 12 mg/dL) when compared to the control group (29 ± 8 mg/dL)
P
< 0.001. The cases recorded a significant increase in aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (26.22 ± 11.59 U/L) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (25.63 ± 13.47 U/L) enzyme activities among cases versus controls. The results obtained showed a significantly decreased BChE activity in the group of cases exposed to pesticides (7554.52 ± 2107 U/l) compared to the unexposed control group (10135.58 ± 1909 U/l) (
t
-test,
P
< 0.001).
Conclusion:
The education of the farmers on correct practices concerning phytosanitary use has the potential of reducing their exposure to these products.
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