ABSTRACT
The world has faced many factors that cause pandemics for a century. There have been three major epidemics caused by coronaviruses in the last 17 years. The most recent outbreak, COVID-19, WHO announced outbreak from epidemic to global pandemic on March 11. More effort is needed to understand why they occur in different enviromental and the frequency of these outbreaks. When looking at the evidence based on wastewater, it is seen that the interest in the presence of coronavirus in wastewater has increased. Even if a broad study of information on the fate and possible contamination of the coronavirus in wastewater is not yet available, there is a few review with coronavirus in wastewater. This article is the purpose of reviewing the literature regarding the emergence of coronaviruses in wastewater treatment processes. We discussed the literature on the presence, survival, and possible elimination of coronaviruses in common wastewater treatment processes. We also struggle to keep questions on the agenda about potential infection risks for people exposed to untreated sewage/wastewater. Therefore, we focused on the potential risk of coronavirus infection for workers in wastewater treatment plants and the public due to sewage networks.
ABSTRACT
Objective: We aimed to investigate the content of Covid-19 news in the media before and after the declaration of the first Covid-19 case in Turkey, as well as the compatibility of their medical massages with World Health Organisation (WHO) data. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, Covid-19 news in Turkey's most visited webpages of five newspapers and five internet news sites was examined retrospectively for two months categorized as the periods of one month before and one month after the first Covid-19 case declaration in Turkey. The news was evaluated according to their content, sources, content and headline compatibility, evidence and accuracy levels in terms of WHO reports, its potential to evoke social negative emotions such as anxiety, fear, panic, and to produce negative bias against China. Statistical analysis was performed by using the SPSS 21 program and the results were expressed as numbers and percentages. Results: It was determined that in total of 7915 news, the most content was about the protection and prevention methods. In the news before and after the first case declaration in Turkey, the content-headline incompatibility rates were 50,8% and 1,1%;incompatibility rates of the medical information in the news with WHO reports were 7,1% and 2,9%;the rates of referencing were 74,3% and 66,9%, the rates of the news having the potential to produce anxiety and fear in the reader were 56,9% and 19,6% and to produce prejudice and negative attitudes towards China were 19,7% and 4,6%, respectively. Conclusions: It seems that the declaration of the first Covid-19 case changed the news making pattern of the media to a more responsible behaviour for the public. We suggest that it is a rational approach to use the power of the media correctly in enhancing public awareness towards Covid-19 pandemic.
ABSTRACT
Aim: Daily internet use, particularly the use of social media, is preferred as a method for coping with stress and anxiety caused by the current outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) or for reducing depressive mood. This study aimed to investigate the relationship of changes in social media use among children aged 12 to 18 years who were at risk for excessive use of social media during the pandemic period with anxiety and a sense of loneliness. Material and Methods: The study population consisted of children aged 12 to 18 years and living in Turkey. Participants completed the COVID-19 information form, the Social Media Disorder Scale, the Loneliness Scale, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Results: This study evaluated the data of 1,142 patients. The mean age of the participants was 15.6 years, and 63.2% were females. Among the participants, 63.8% stated that they knew someone diagnosed with COVID-19 in their family or close environment, and 7.1% stated that they were diagnosed with CO-VID-19. Furthermore, 46.4% stated that what they learned from the media increased their anxiety, and 60.4% stated that their academic success decreased during the pandemic period. In the model, STAI (B: 0.166 p: 0.001), age (B: 0.397, p: 0.001), and UCLA loneliness (B: 0.150, p: 0.001) were observed to predict social media addiction. Discussion: The present study has revealed factors predicting an increase in social media addiction in this period, during which the use of social media by adolescents in the high-risk group for social media addiction has increased. Taking the necessary measures to reduce the risks and increase the protective factors is the most important way to protect adolescents’ mental health in times of difficult life conditions.