Search results for " EPIDEMIOLOGY"
showing 10 items of 704 documents
Valoración de la ingesta dietética a nivel poblacional mediante cuestionarios individuales: sombras y luces metodológicas
2007
El desarrollo de la moderna metodología necesaria para caracterizar con rigor la ingesta de individuos y poblaciones data de hace sólo dos décadas, cuando germinó la epidemiología nutricional. La razón del carácter reciente de esta disciplina radica en el hecho de que la valoración de la ingesta dietética a nivel poblacional presenta retos complejos, que sólo van siendo superados a medida que investigamos y mejoramos los instrumentos metodológicos disponibles. En el presente artículo se revisan los métodos alternativos para estimar la ingesta de alimentos y nutrientes en los individuos. Tras una sucinta descripción de los métodos indirectos y directos de valoración del consumo alimentario, …
Why are viral genomes so fragile? The bottleneck hypothesis
2021
If they undergo new mutations at each replication cycle, why are RNA viral genomes so fragile, with most mutations being either strongly deleterious or lethal? Here we provide theoretical and numerical evidence for the hypothesis that genetic fragility is partly an evolutionary response to the multiple population bottlenecks experienced by viral populations at various stages of their life cycles. Modelling within-host viral populations as multi-type branching processes, we show that mutational fragility lowers the rate at which Muller’s ratchet clicks and increases the survival probability through multiple bottlenecks. In the context of a susceptible-exposed-infectious-recovered epidemiolog…
Cardiovascular disease burden from ambient air pollution in Europe reassessed using novel hazard ratio functions
2019
Abstract Aims Ambient air pollution is a major health risk, leading to respiratory and cardiovascular mortality. A recent Global Exposure Mortality Model, based on an unmatched number of cohort studies in many countries, provides new hazard ratio functions, calling for re-evaluation of the disease burden. Accordingly, we estimated excess cardiovascular mortality attributed to air pollution in Europe. Methods and results The new hazard ratio functions have been combined with ambient air pollution exposure data to estimate the impacts in Europe and the 28 countries of the European Union (EU-28). The annual excess mortality rate from ambient air pollution in Europe is 790 000 [95% confidence i…
Caries and dental fluorosis in a western Saharan population of refugee children
2008
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between dental fluorosis and dental caries among western Saharan refugee children. The western Saharan child population is characterized by adverse living conditions, an unbalanced diet, poor oral hygiene habits, and a concentration of fluoride in the drinking water of around 2 p.p.m. (2 mg l(-1)). A sample consisting of 360 children, 6-7 yr of age, and 212 children, 11-13 yr of age, was obtained from four refugee camps (Smara, Awsard, El-Aaiun, and 27-February) situated in the vicinity of Tindouf (southern Algeria). The children were examined using the World Health Organization criteria for caries diagnosis and Dean's index for fluo…
Spirometric phenotypes from early childhood to young adulthood: a Chronic Airway Disease Early Stratification study
2021
Background The prevalences of obstructive and restrictive spirometric phenotypes, and their relation to early-life risk factors from childhood to young adulthood remain poorly understood. The aim was to explore these phenotypes and associations with well-known respiratory risk factors across ages and populations in European cohorts. Methods We studied 49 334 participants from 14 population-based cohorts in different age groups (≤10, >10–15, >15–20, >20–25 years, and overall, 5–25 years). The obstructive phenotype was defined as forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) z-score less than the lower limit of normal (LLN), whereas the restrictive phenotype was defined a…
Worldwide trends in body-mass index, underweight, overweight, and obesity from 1975 to 2016 : a pooled analysis of 2416 population-based measurement …
2017
BACKGROUND: Underweight, overweight, and obesity in childhood and adolescence are associated with adverse health consequences throughout the life-course. Our aim was to estimate worldwide trends in mean body-mass index (BMI) and a comprehensive set of BMI categories that cover underweight to obesity in children and adolescents, and to compare trends with those of adults. METHODS: We pooled 2416 population-based studies with measurements of height and weight on 128·9 million participants aged 5 years and older, including 31·5 million aged 5-19 years. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1975 to 2016 in 200 countries for mean BMI and for prevalence of BMI in the follo…
Outside-host growth of pathogens attenuates epidemiological outbreaks.
2012
Opportunist saprotrophic pathogens differ from obligatory pathogens due to their capability in host-independent growth in environmental reservoirs. Thus, the outside-host environment potentially influences host-pathogen dynamics. Despite the socio-economical importance of these pathogens, theory on their dynamics is practically missing. We analyzed a novel epidemiological model that couples outside-host density-dependent growth to host-pathogen dynamics. Parameterization was based on columnaris disease, a major hazard in fresh water fish farms caused by saprotrophic Flavobacterium columnare. Stability analysis and numerical simulations revealed that the outside-host growth maintains high pr…
Funnel plots and choropleth maps in cancer risk communication: a comparison of tools for disseminating population-based incidence data to stakeholders
2017
Background Population-based cancer registries provide epidemiological cancer information, but the indicators are often too complex to be interpreted by local authorities and communities, due to numeracy and literacy limitations. The aim of this paper is to compare the commonly used visual formats to funnel plots to enable local public health authorities and communities to access valid and understandable cancer incidence data obtained at the municipal level. Methods A funnel plot representation of standardised incidence ratio (SIR) was generated for the 82 municipalities of the Palermo Province with the 2003–2011 data from the Palermo Province Cancer Registry (Sicily, Italy). The properties …
Migrant Women-experiences from the Mediterranean Region
2019
Introduction: The phenomenon of migration is characterized and influenced by a number of different variables; and the different stages of journey are related to different levels and types of psychological distress. Women, in particular, are exposed to further specific risks during migration. Aim: To determine the factors that affect the psychological health of migrant women during the different stages of the migration journey. Methods: We provide a narrative review of the literature around the experiences of women during migration process, with a geographical focus on women migrating to the Mediterranean area. Results: Little data is currently available on the burden of mental health disor…
Role of medical history and medication use in the aetiology of upper aerodigestive tract cancers in Europe: the ARCAGE study
2012
ABSTRACT Background The study aimed to investigate the role of medical history (skin warts, Candida albicans, herpetic lesions, heartburn, regurgitation) and medication use (for heartburn; for regurgitation; aspirin) in the aetiology of upper aerodigestive tract (UADT) cancer. Methods A multicentre (10 European countries) case–control study [Alcohol-Related CAncers and GEnetic susceptibility (ARCAGE) project]. Results There were 1779 cases of UADT cancer and 1993 controls. History of warts or C. albicans infection was associated with a reduced risk [odds ratio (OR) 0.80, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.68–0.94 and OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.60–0.89, respectively] but there was no association with her…