Let's Start Reducing the Carbon Footprint of Academic Conferences

The COVID-19 pandemic forced researchers to move academic conferences to a virtual format;but also brought attention back to the carbon footprint of their physical format. In general, while conferences can follow different formats with a different carbon footprint, the related factors of influence remain unclear, hence hindering informed decisions on how to organize and attend them.This work provides a preliminary study of the carbon footprint of academic conferences and the trade-offs between alternative conference types. First, we conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) to identify factors that contribute to the carbon footprint of on-site, virtual, and hybrid conferences. Second, we conducted an interview survey among steering committee members of a pilot of prominent international conferences to complement the SLR.There is agreement in the literature and the research community that on-site conferences suffer from travel-related emissions among many other factors. While the on-site type benefits from strong networking possibilities, the virtual and hybrid types can reduce carbon emissions significantly. Notwithstanding, we miss a generic framework that accounts for all revealed carbon footprint factors in each conference type. Also, compared to carbon offsetting, carbon handprinting as a footprint reduction option is considered in neither the literature nor the research community. Among the results, we provide a first sustainability model to compare current and future conference types according to their sustainability trade-offs. The model can be used as a decision-making tool by, e.g., conference organizers. © 2022 IEEE.

Risk factors for severe COVID-19 infection in Brazilian children

The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological characteristics and clinical outcome of children hospitalized with COVID-19 and identify the risk factors for severe disease. All hospital admissions of pediatric patients between March and December 2020 in the southern region of Brazil were reviewed and the patients positive for RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 were identified. This region encompasses a population of over 2.8 million children and adolescents. Data were extracted from a national database that includes all cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome requiring hospitalization in Brazil. A total of 288 hospitalizations (51.3% female) with a median age of 3 years (interquartile range 0-12 years) were identified. Of these, 38.9% had chronic medical conditions, 55.6% required some form of supplementary oxygen, and 30.2% were admitted to an intensive care unit. There were 17 deaths (5.9%) related to COVID-19. Age less than 30 days was significantly associated with increased odds of critical illness (OR 9.52, 95% CI 3.01-30.08), as well as the presence of one chronic condition (OR 5.08 95%CI 2.78-9.33) or two or more chronic conditions (OR 6.60, 95% CI 3.17-13.74). Conclusion: Age under 30 days old and presence of chronic conditions were strongly associated with unfavorable outcomes in Brazilian children with SARS-CoV-2 infection. These findings could help local public health authorities to develop specific policies to protect this more vulnerable group of children. (c) 2021 Sociedade Brasileira de Infectologia. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

The efficacy of ultraviolet light-emitting technology against coronaviruses: a systematic review.

The ongoing pandemic of COVID-19 has underlined the importance of adopting effective infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in hospital and community settings. Ultraviolet (UV)-based technologies represent promising IPC tools: their effective application for sanitation has been extensively evaluated in the past but scant, heterogeneous and inconclusive evidence is available on their effect on SARS-CoV-2 transmission. With the aim of pooling the available evidence on the efficacy of UV technologies against coronaviruses, we conducted a systematic review following PRISMA guidelines, searching Medline, Embase and the Cochrane Library, and the main clinical trials' registries (WHO ICTRP, ClinicalTrials.gov, Cochrane and EU Clinical Trial Register). Quantitative data on studies' interventions were summarized in tables, pooled by different coronavirus species and strain, UV source, characteristics of UV light exposure and outcomes. Eighteen papers met our inclusion criteria, published between 1972 and 2020. Six focused on SARS-CoV-2, four on SARS-CoV-1, one on MERS-CoV, three on seasonal coronaviruses, and four on animal coronaviruses. All were experimental studies. Overall, despite wide heterogenicity within included studies, complete inactivation of coronaviruses on surfaces or aerosolized, including SARS-CoV-2, was reported to take a maximum exposure time of 15 min and to need a maximum distance from the UV emitter of up to 1 m. Advances in UV-based technologies in the field of sanitation and their proved high virucidal potential against SARS-CoV-2 support their use for IPC in hospital and community settings and their contribution towards ending the COVID-19 pandemic. National and international guidelines are to be updated and parameters and conditions of use need to be identified to ensure both efficacy and safety of UV technology application for effective infection prevention and control in both healthcare and non-healthcare settings.

SARS-CoV-2 viability on different surfaces after gaseous ozone treatment: a preliminary evaluation.

COVID-19 is a global health threat with a huge number of confirmed cases and deaths all over the world. Human-to-human transmission via respiratory droplets and contact with aerosol-infected surfaces are the major routes of virus spread. Because SARS-CoV-2 can remain in the air and on surfaces from several hours to several days, disinfection of frequently touched surfaces and critical rooms, in addition to observing individual hygiene tips, is required to reduce the virus spreading. Here we report on an investigation into the use of gaseous ozone as a potentially effective sanitizing method against the new coronavirus.

[COVID-19 emergency management activities promoted by an university hospital in Northern Italy]

Background. In December 2019, a Coronavirus 2019 epidemic (COVID-19) was reported, caused by a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which occurred in the city of Wuhan, Hubei province, China. Perceived risk of contracting diseases has led many Governments and Healthcare Organizations to implement a variety of control and protection measures for the population, in particular for health professionals who have made contact with positive Covid-19 patients. In this publication, we have carried out a review of the information available, in order to share the prevention and protection measures for health and safety at work, which a University Hospital of Pavia, in Northern Italy, has remodulated, according to the changed scenario in which professionals finds themselves carrying out their profession in the post lockdown, in account to the specificity of processes and methods of work organizing, which overall, they serve to characterize risks, in order to be able to prevent them in the best possible way for patients, visitors and healthcare professionals.