THE SOCIAL DISTANCE AND DAILY LIFE OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: Social distance and people with disabilities

Covid-19 has manifested itself as a highly infectious disease. In this sense, People with Disabilities were advised to redouble their precautions to prevent Covid-19, such as social withdrawal, because they are considered to be in the risk group. The purpose of this study was to understand the interference of social distancing in the daily lives of people with physical disabilities during the Covid-19 pandemic period. This study is of an applied nature and descriptive observational character. The data analysis and discussion was carried out under the qualitative paradigm. As for the technical procedures, it is characterized as a field research. The group of collaborators was composed of ten People with Disabilities. The results indicated that the greatest impacts of the distancing were the difficulties of access to health and rehabilitation activities, as well as the changes in hygiene habits due to the danger of contamination. On a personal level, some perceived the distance as a factor of introspection and reflection on the relationships with oneself and with others, putting into perspective the world in a post-pandemic future.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdown and school closure on weight and body mass index in low-income children and adolescents with previous overweight in Southern Brazil

Lockdown and school closure related to COVID-19 pandemic increased sedentary time and greater consumption of ultra-processed foods, an environment that may exacerbate the childhood obesity epidemic. In Brazil, public schools remained closed for more than 40 weeks. In Brazil, prior to the current pandemic, 15.9% of children under 5 yr.-old, 29.3% of those between 5 and 9 yr.-old and 30.8% of adolescents were overweight. Aim(s): To verify the impact of school closure on the weight, body mass index (BMI), changing lifestyle habits and increasing the prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents at the pediatric obesity clinic of a public tertiary hospital in Southern Brazil. Method(s): Cross-sectional observational study of overweight/ obese patients aged 6 to 15 years who attended a medical appointment from November 2019 to May 2021. Patients with an organic or endocrine cause of obesity, monogenic obesity and genetic syndromes were excluded. The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee. Data of the last pre-pandemic visit were extracted from the clinical records and anthropometric measurements were assessed in the first visit during the pandemic. A survey was aimed to assess whether nutritional and consumer habits have been affected under quarantine conditions. Result(s): 50 patients (31 girls) aged 11.6+/-2.4 yr.-old were included. All of them were from low-income families and had not been returned to school. The interval between visits was 382.7+/-76.6 days. Over 58% reported snacking more, greater consumption of ultra-processed foods and increased sedentary time. Forty-five patients (88%) experienced weight gain [9 kg (-3.6 to 25.5)] and there was a gain of 19.6% compared to pre-pandemic weight. The median BMI and its z-score variation between visits were +1.9 kg/ m2 (-2.9 to +7.7) and +0.07 (-0.93 to +1.47), respectively. The change in adjusted BMI to the median for sex and age was +1.65 kg/m2 (-3.60 to +6.90). There was an increase in the prevalence of obesity of 12% in this group. Conclusion(s): Defining the longitudinal change in BMI in the pediatric age group is a challenge. This study showed an unhealthy weight gain in a group of previously overweight pediatric patients, increased sedentary time and some difficulties faced by children during quarantine in Brazil. The study highlights that lockdown imposed by SARS-CoV-2 affected eating behaviors, dietary and sedentary habits, and advocates for organized nutritional support during future epidemic-related quarantines, particularly for the most vulnerable groups, including children with overweight or obesity.

Retrospective study of the clinical characteristics of symptomatic COVID-19 infections of individuals with paraplegia

Introduction: Since the beginning of 2020, the treatment of Covid- 19 patients has been a major challenge in medical everyday life. It is unclear whether the clinical course is more severe in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) compared to the general population. While certain studies indicate that individuals with SCI have a higher mortality rate and a higher level of infection with COVID-19 than the general population [1], other studies make it clear that the disease courses are by no means more severe [2]. The aim of this study is to describe the clinical course and length of stay of individuals with SCI and symptomatic Covid-19 infection who required hospital admission to the Swiss Paraplegic Center (SPC). Method(s): Retrospective data analysis of clinical data of individuals with SCI who were hospitalized with Covid-19 at the SPC from March 01, 2020 to December 31, 2021. Result(s): During the mentioned period, 13 individuals with symptomatic Covid-19 infection were hospitalized at the SPC. Of these, 61% were male (n = 8), and the mean age was 59 years (SD 15 years). 60% had a tetraplegia (46% incomplete) and 40% had a paraplegia (54% incomplete). The mean length of stay was 19 days (SD 9.03). Six individuals were treated in the intensive care unit, all of whom were persons with paraplegia. Persons with paraplegia tended to have a longer length of stay (26 SD 5.8) than persons with tetraplegia (13.75 SD 7.6). Two persons (both with a tetraplegia) died during the hospital stay (15%). Conclusion(s): These data provide initial insight into the course of symptomatic Covid-19 infection in individuals with SCI and provide a basis for further research projects.

Traffic, Air Quality, and Environmental Justice in the South Coast Air Basin During California’s COVID-19 Shutdown

Historically, Southern California suffers from the worst traffic congestion and air quality levels in the country. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, we observed a major reduction in economic and social activities within the region, leading to changes in roadway traffic and air pollution levels in a variety of ways. Within six weeks of the pandemic-induced lockdowns, freeway traffic volume dropped as low as 50%;however, it has since gradually increased back to pre-pandemic levels. The changes in freeway traffic volume have not been uniform across the Southern California region, and neighborhoods with different socio-economic profiles were affected differently. These disparities have brought up environmental justice concerns, particularly for disadvantaged communities that live adjacent to major roadways and warehouse centers. We monitored the changes in vehicle and human activities across communities in Southern California and explored correlations that are useful for developing various mitigation measures at both the local and regional levels. In this study, we go beyond regional analysis and examine the effects of the pandemic on traffic at a transportation corridor and local levels to examine possible equity issues. Results show that, in general, the level of traffic dropped less in disadvantaged neighborhoods during the pandemic. Further, traffic flow rebounded in these neighborhoods faster than in other communities. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children with special healthcare needs

Background: Though not primarily affected by severe disease due to Sars-CoV-2-infection, emerging evidence suggests that children and adolescents are particularly impacted by the indirect effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as school closures and reduced or delayed access to healthcare services. Surveys conducted in several countries at different times during the pandemic point towards a rising mental health burden in children and adolescents. Children with special health care needs are a particularly vulnerable group in this context. They rely on a wide range of services, which were mostly suspended during the first and subsequent waves of the pandemic. We aim (1) to describe the perceived pandemic burden and psychosocial outcomes in families with children with and without special health care needs;(2) to assess the impact of socioeconomic status (SES), disease complexity and psychosocial burden on parent-reported child mental health problems. Methods: We conducted a sequential cross-sectional online survey among caregivers of children aged 1 - 18 years, the first round from August 11th - October 5th 2020 (n = 1619) and the second round from April 2nd - July 31st 2021 (n = 521). Participants were recruited through the Kindernetzwerk e. V., a patient organization for families of children with chronic diseases and disabilities;through promoting the link on free access websites;and via social und public media. Both families with and without children with special healthcare needs were encouraged to participate. We performed descriptive statistics, simple and hierarchical logistic regression to explore the association between SES and psychological outcome measures, disease complexity and general burden related to COVID-19. Results: A majority of parents felt burdened by the pandemic. Almost half reported an increase in family conflict or insufficient social support. There was a high prevalence of parent-reported mental health problems in children (1st survey: 57.4%;2nd survey: 66.7%) and of a positive screening score for depression in parents (1st survey: 30.9%;2nd survey: 72.5%). Parent-reported mental health problems were more likely to affect children from a low SES, children with complex chronic disease and those whose parents screened positive for depression. Conclusion: The study highlights inequalities in parent-reported child mental health outcomes by SES and disease complexity at two time points in a large sample of German families with and without children with special health care needs. It shows a high burden of both child and parental mental health problems in the study population and identifies children from low SES with complex chronic disease as a particularly vulnerable group concerning the impact of the pandemic on their mental health outcomes. Long-term policies, which put children at the center, aim at reducing health inequalities, and mitigate the unequal impact of the pandemic, should be an integral part of the COVID- 19-response.

Assessment of Updated Fuel‐Based Emissions Inventories Over the Contiguous United States Using TROPOMI NO2 Retrievals

Nitrogen oxides (NOx) are air pollutants critical to ozone and fine particle production in the troposphere. Here, we present fuel‐based emission inventories updated to 2018, including for mobile source engines using the Fuel‐based Inventory of Vehicle Emissions (FIVEs) and oil and gas production using the Fuel‐based Oil and Gas (FOG) inventory. The updated FIVE emissions are now consistent with the NEI17 estimates differing within 2% across the contiguous US (CONUS). Tropospheric NO2 columns modeled by the Weather Research and Forecasting with Chemistry model (WRF‐Chem) are compared with those observed by TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) and Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) during the summer of 2018. Modeled NO2 columns show strong temporal and spatial correlations with TROPOMI (OMI), identified with biases of −3% (−21%) over CONUS, and +8% (−6%) over point sources plus urban regions. Taking account of the negative bias (∼20%) in early version of TROPOMI over polluted regions, WRF‐Chem shows good performance with updated FIVE and FOG emissions. Our model tends to under‐predict the tropospheric NO2 columns over background and rural regions (bias of −21% to −3%). Through model sensitivity analyses, we demonstrate the important roles of emissions from soils (11.7% average over CONUS), oil and gas production (4.1%), wildfires (10.6%), and lightning (2.3%) with greater contributions at regional scales. This work provides a roadmap for satellite‐based evaluations for emission updates from various sources.Alternate :Plain Language SummarySatellite observations of tropospheric NO2 columns provide important constraints on air pollutants from space, which have been widely used to validate the performance of atmospheric models. To gain better knowledge of the accuracy of the recently updated fuel‐based emissions inventory, we conducted NO2 assessments between a regional chemical transport model (Weather Research and Forecasting with Chemistry model, WRF‐Chem), with the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) and Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) over the contiguous United States. We find that model simulation results show strong spatial and temporal correlations with satellite observations across point sources, urban, oil and gas production, and rural regions. With updated emissions, our regional atmospheric model can reconcile with satellite retrievals differing from −3% (TROPOMI) to −21% (OMI) overall. Soils, oil and gas production, wildfires and lightning emissions can play key roles in regional air quality. This work provides an important baseline of a pre‐COVID year by which sharp changes in anthropogenic NOx emissions due to the pandemic can be assessed.

Clinical pharmacy goes Hollywood - Depiction of medication in movies

Contact to real patients during COVID-19 times is difficult. But who says real patients are required when there are abundant examples of drug (mis)use presentedin the media in form of movies or TV episodes. The question is though: is the depiction of medication or drugs in the media correct? Pharmacy students at LMU have put their digital time during lockdown to good use by browsing movies and TV serials for examples in order to put their budding pharmaceutical knowledge and skills to the test. © 2020 Deutscher Apotheker Verlag Stuttgart.

COVID-19 stay-at-home order in Tyrol, Austria: sports and exercise behaviour in change?

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to investigate differences in the frequency and types of engagement in sports before, during and after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) stay-at-home order in Tyrol, Austria. STUDY DESIGN: A representative population survey was conducted. METHODS: A sample of Tyroleans (N = 511) was questioned by a market research institute via an online questionnaire or telephone survey. RESULTS: During the stay-at-home order, participants engaged less in sports than before and after the restrictions. However, within-group analyses revealed increasing sport participation in less active groups when comparing the pre- and post-COVID-19 period. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the restrictions during the stay-at-home order, respondents did engage in sports and promoted their health. Nevertheless, it is still necessary to investigate the long-term effects of the COVID-19 crisis on sports and exercise behaviour as well as the extent to which sports policy measures may be able increase sports participation.