ABSTRACT
Introduction: Vaccination against Bordetella pertussis is recommended by the Italian Ministry of Health starting from the 28th week of pregnancy. However, data about vaccine coverages are unknown and sharing good practices is necessary to increase adherence to vaccine programs implemented at local level. Here we present data on epidemiology and vaccine coverage of Pertussis in Tuscany from 2012 to 2021 and data on Pertussis vaccine coverage in pregnant women in the Health District of urban area of Pisa for the period 2017 to September 2022. Materials and methods: Data on pertussis cases and pertussis vaccine coverage were retrieved form the Regional Health Agency that made available data on Infectious Diseases Epidemiology in Tuscany on a public report. The diphteria, tetanus, pertussis (dTpa) vaccination in pregnant women were extracted from the vaccination registry from 2017 to 30 September 2022 and adjusted new births from 1st April to 30th March of the following year were considered as denominator. For the current year we assumed that the monthly trend of the absolute number of vaccinations is maintained (+45.3 vaccinations/month) and that the number of new-borns is the same as in 2021. Results: In Tuscany, a progressive increase in the number of cases has been observed since 2012, peaking in 2017 with 115 infections concentrated mainly in children under one year of age. After a significant reduction in the three-year period 2018-2020, with values between 25 and 39 infections per year, no cases of the disease were notified in 2021. Most likely due to the actions taken to counteract the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Notably, from 2017 to 30 September 2022, a significant increase in vaccination coverage for dTpa in pregnant women was observed, with an average annual increase from 2018 onwards of 39% (range 18%-63%). Discussion and conclusions: Even if the vaccine coverage calculation has some limitations, the availability of a free access services for pregnant women and their contacts has improved adherence to the vaccination against pertussis. However, to achieve an active recruitment strategic to overcome cultural, linguistic and hesitancy barriers it is crucial to improve active call of the pregnant women.
ABSTRACT
Severe restrictive measures were implemented globally to limit the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic leading to significant lifestyle changes and impacting on both the physical and the mental health of citizens. Caught by the fear of getting sick, some individuals have adopted behaviors which favored the development of Exercise Addiction (EA). Our aim was to evaluate the incidence of EA in the general Italian population during Phase 1 of the lockdown, and the role of Appearance Anxiety (AA), self-compassion and use of Performance and Image Enhancing Drugs (PIEDs) as predictors of its development. Between April to May 2020 an online survey was conducted across Italy. The rate of EA in the full sample (953 subjects) was 3.6%. 84.2% of the participants reported variations in their fitness routine. Perceived benefit of exercising resulted significantly higher in those with EA. Subjects with EA reported stronger motivation in engaging in physical activity as for physical wellness, psychological wellbeing and sexual attractiveness and confidence in relationship. A higher level of AA, a lower level of self-compassion, the use of PIEDs and a higher perceived benefit of exercising during lockdown were all significant predictors for the presence of EA. Our findings suggest that the fear of getting sick from Covid-19, combined with radical changes in the lifestyles induced by the lockdown and individual personological characteristics can favor the development of AE and related phenomena in the general population.