[Regional Vascular Center in a COVID-19 pandemic: what changed in 2020 compared to 2019 in patients with ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction?]

AIM: To assess the effect of pandemic COVID-19 on the course of STEMI patients of the Regional Vascular Center in 2020, compared with the previous year. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with acute coronary syndrome and, in particular, STEMI hospitalized at Regional Vascular Center in 2019 and 2020. RESULTS: In 2019, 981 patients with STEMI were admitted; in 2020 - 728 patients. The baseline clinical and demographic patients characteristics did not differ significantly. In 2020, the number of pneumonia has doubled, the number of mechanical ventilator support has increased by 20%; sepsis was diagnosed 5 times more often. However, patients in 2020 were less likely to develop delirium, minor and major bleeding. There were more patients admitted in the 1st day of the disease, and they were more frequently performed both primary angioplasty and angioplasty in general. Patients with STEMI in 2020 had more frequently registered pulmonary edema, cardiogenic shock and re-infarction. Lethality in the group of patients without angioplasty tended to be higher in 2020 compared with the previous year. None of 30 patients with COVID-19 died in our department, they were timely transferred either to COVID-hospital or to outpatient follow-up care. When analyzing various parameters during the spring and autumn periods, which were the peak periods for pneumonias in 2020, only mortality had a clear upward trend. CONCLUSION: The patient portrait of myocardial infarction in 2020 was dominated by pneumonia, sepsis, and re-infarction compared with the previous year. An upward trend in mortality was detected in those without angioplasty and those hospitalized in the spring and autumn wave of COVID-19. We believe that there are hidden mechanisms of pandemic effect on mortality in STEMI.

Stellate Ganglion Block for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Treatment After SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine: A Case Report.

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a poorly understood neuropathic pain syndrome that may have different etiologies. Reports of this syndrome after vaccination are rare. We report a female patient with a medical history of acute stroke of the right carotid artery in the previous four months who developed hyperalgesia, allodynia, edema, and color changes in the upper left member compatible with CRPS one day after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. A multimodal therapeutic approach was adopted, including a stellate ganglion block, with favorable results, including pain score reduction and increased mobility of the affected member.

Assessing food safety risks based on a geospatial analysis: toward a cross-regional food safety management.

BACKGROUND: Food safety risks (FSRs) are increasingly characterized by geographical complexity along with rapid urbanization, changing dietary pattern, and the modernization of the food industry. These factors pose challenges for food risk control in developing economies, more so during the global COVID-19 pandemic. The accurate assessment of risk source and transfer path is a crucial step toward enhancing cross-regional food safety management. This study aims to examine the spatial distribution, transfer path and driving factors of FSRs in China, provided with a national food safety database collected from 8.63 million batches of food sampling inspections for 33 different types of foods across 30 provinces. RESULTS: The findings reveal significant regional disparities in FSRs, which is the highest in the west with small-scale sampling inspection and the lowest in the east with intensive sampling inspection. Catering and processed foods with higher daily consumption suffer more profound FSR than agricultural products. As evidenced by the shrinking low-low agglomeration areas, the local FSRs have been effectively controlled. The high-high agglomeration areas playing positive impacts on risk control are expanding while distributed discretely. CONCLUSION: The spatial transfer of FSRs is significantly driven by multiple drivers: regulatory capacity and intensity, information disclosure, food industry, regional economy, and food consumption. Assessing FSRs based on a geospatial analysis contributes to identifying risk sources, optimizing risk management, and constructing a sustainable food safety system. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Diagnostic Errors in Japanese Community Hospitals and Related Factors: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Diagnostic error has recently become a crucial clinical problem and an area of intense research. However, the reality of diagnostic errors in regional hospitals remains unknown. This study aimed to clarify the reality of diagnostic errors in regional hospitals in Japan. A 10-month retrospective cohort study was conducted from January to October 2021 at the emergency room of Oda Municipal Hospital in central Shimane Prefecture, Japan. Participants were divided into groups with or without diagnostic errors, and independent variables of patient, physician, and environmental factors were analyzed using Fisher's exact test, univariate (Student's t-test and Welch's t-test), and logistic regression analyses. Diagnostic errors accounted for 13.1% of all eligible cases. Remarkably, the proportion of patients treated without oxygen support and the proportion of male patients were significantly higher in the group with diagnostic errors. Sex bias was present. Additionally, cognitive bias, a major factor in diagnostic errors, may have occurred in patients who did not require oxygen support. Numerous factors contribute to diagnostic errors; however, it is important to understand the trends in the setting of each healthcare facility and plan and implement individualized countermeasures.

[Age-specific regional characteristics of COVID-19 mortality in 2021]. / A COVID­19-halandóság életkor-specifikus regionális jellemzoi 2021-ben.

INTRODUCTION: In most countries, COVID-19 mortality increases exponentially with age, but the growth rate varies considerably between countries. The different progression of mortality may reflect differences in population health, the quality of health care or coding practices. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we investigated differences in age-specific county characteristics of COVID-19 mortality in the second year of the pandemic. METHOD: Age-specific patterns of COVID-19 adult mortality were estimated according to county level and sex using a Gompertz function with multilevel models. RESULTS: The Gompertz function is suitable for describing age patterns of COVID-19 adult mortality at county level. We did not find significant differences in the age progression of mortality between counties, but there were significant spatial differences in the level of mortality. The mortality level showed a relationship with socioeconomic and health care indicators with the expected sign, but with different strengths. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 resulted in a decline in life expectancy in Hungary not seen since World War II. The study highlights the importance of healthcare in addition to social vulnerability. It also points out that understanding age patterns will help to mitigate the consequences of the epidemic. Orv Hetil. 2023; 164(17): 643-650.

Effect of marine economic development pilot policies on regional economic resilience: Based on quasi-natural experiments from coastal areas in China

China began to implement marine economic development pilot policies from 2011 in order to promote land and marine development in a coordinated way, transform and optimize marine industrial layout, formulate and improve the policy and institutional construction of ocean development, promote marine economic power strategy, and improve the level of regional economic resilience in coastal area. Tourism industry is an important part of regional economy of coastal areas. Taking the marine economic development pilot policies as a quasi-natural experiment and based on the panel data of cities in coastal areas of China from 2007 to 2020, a multi-period difference-in-differences (DID) model was used to assess the impact of these pilot policies on regional economic resilience and tourism economic resilience. The results show that the implementation of marine economic development pilot policies can significantly promote regional economic resilience and tourism economic resilience. COVID-19, as a moderating variable, has significantly weakened the effect of marine economic development pilot policies on regional economic resilience. In terms of regional heterogeneity, the establishment of marine economic development pilots has a more significant policy effect on regional economic resilience in the central and southern coastal areas, while the policy effect on tourism economic resilience is more significant in the eastern coastal areas. In view of these findings, it is of great significance for cities to prevent systemic risks and improve regional economic resilience, by means of reasonably expanding marine economic development pilots and planning coastal regional economic systems according to local conditions. © 2023, Editorial office of PROGRESS IN GEOGRAPHY. All rights reserved.

Global Governance in the New Era: Concepts and Approaches

This book mainly introduces the concepts and approaches of global governance from the viewpoints of Chinese and Russian scholars and is divided into four parts. The first one deals with the concept of a new type of global governance, namely "Globalization 2.0". The second one is dedicated to institutions and multilateralism, including the importance and effectiveness of international institutions. The third part focuses on the important countries and regions in the new era, as well as such issues as the current global status quo, processes in Eurasia, the prospects of the U.S.-China-Russia trilateral relationship. The last part analyzes the future development of global governance and possible solutions of how it might be improved. Climate change, digital era, cyber security, financial and economic regimes, COVID-19 are all involved in this part. In short, this book is a profound and cutting-edge research on global governance. © China Social Sciences Press 2023.

Preoperative COVID-19 RT-PCR Testing of Asymptomatic Patients for Ophthalmic Surgery: Experience from Two Tertiary Referral Centers

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate how prevalent asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 virus infection (COVID-19) is among patients undergoing ophthalmic surgery at two tertiary referral hospitals. Material(s) and Method(s): This retrospective study included patients without COVID-19 symptoms who underwent preoperative screening using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) before ophthalmic surgery at the Kocaeli University and Gaziantep University departments of ophthalmology [between September 1, 2020, and December 15, 2020 (group 1);between March 1, 2021, and May 30, 2021 (group 2)]. Patients scheduled for surgery and followed up in the retina, glaucoma, pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus, cataract and refractive surgery, and cornea departments were examined. Result(s): RT-PCR was positive for SARS-CoV-2 in 12 (1.4%) of 840 patients in group 1 and 7 (1.1%) out of 600 patients in group 2. None of the patients were symptomatic of COVID-19. The majority of the patients were scheduled for retina or cataract and refractive surgery in both groups (group 1;retina: 29.2%, cataract and refractive: 57.0%, group-2;retina: 31.3%, cataract and refractive: 54.5%). SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR testing was positive for seven patients in group 1 (7/245, 2.9%) and five patients in group 2 (5/188, 2.6%) who were scheduled for retinal surgery. Conclusion(s): The necessity, availability, and practicality of COVID-19 RT-PCR testing prior to ophthalmic surgeries varies depending on the protocols of each institution. COVID-19 RT-PCR testing is suggested especially before vitreoretinal surgeries and general anesthesia procedures, because of the difficulty in managing postoperative complications.Copyright © 2023 Gazi Eye Foundation. All rights reserved.

Localizing the sustainable development goals: A multivariate analysis of Spanish regions

Based on the content analysis of the websites of 102 Spanish municipalities related to actions aligned with the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the X-STATIS technique was applied to analyze the status and dynamic evolution of commitment to the SDGs in regional and local governments over the period of 2016-2021. The results show a low but increasing level of SDG commitment, which also varies significantly across municipalities and regions, as well as by SDGs, which can be attributed to the influence of several sociodemographic factors, such as the number of inhabitants, dependent population and population density. SDG8 and SDG11 stand out as the main priorities of the municipalities, while initiatives related to SDG5, SDG6 and SDG 17 are the least prioritized. The COVID-19 pandemic has marked a turning point in this regard, with greater importance being given to the SDGs more related to people and prosperity. Our findings help citizens and public authorities to understand sustainable regions and municipalities, assess their performance in relation to different dimensions of sustainability and identify key challenges for future improvements. Specifically, the results suggest that public policies should promote actions related to gender equality, drinking water and sanitation and partnerships, as well as favor investment in the regions and municipalities that are lagging behind, in order to improve their level of commitment to the 2030 Agenda and reduce inequalities. From an academic point of view, our results open a door for the analysis of possible trajectories in the implementation of the SDGs at regional and local levels and the study of their determinants. © 2023 the Author(s), licensee AIMS Press.

Guidelines for the Region's Socio-economic Policies During the Pandemic

The study focuses on identifying the benefits of implementing the region's socio-economic policies according to the principles of lean production to overcome the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The author investigates the problems of socio-economic development of the regions of Russia during the COVID-19 pandemic, identifies the most significant threats to the regions (rising unemployment, falling average per capita incomes of the population, reduction of regional budgets and growth of regional public debt). The author proved that the principles of lean production can be successfully implemented as fundamental in the implementation of the socio-economic policy of the region. The focus of regional socio-economic policies during the pandemic should be the optimization of the cost of maintaining the region's public administration and increasing the quality of regional governance;improving regional policies to support people in the aftermath of a pandemic;developing the infrastructure and businesses implementing lean technologies. The author developed an algorithm for the formation and realization of regional socio-economic policy according to the principles of lean production during the pandemic, as well as describes the features of its implementation in the Belgorod Region. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

East-west or up the urban hierarchy? Internal migration patterns in Slovakia since post-socialist transformation to COVID-19 pandemic

Changing spatial patterns of migration are closely related to the transformation of economy and society. Most current studies focus either on international migration or on the migration of particular urban regions. Our study evaluates migration trends in the entire national regional system, and thus it contributes to its comprehensive understanding. The study aims to evaluate the relationship of internal migration from economically lagging eastern to more developed western regions of Slovakia on the one hand, and migration between categories of regions according to the hierarchical position of their urban core on the other hand. The study follows the differential urbanization concept and analyses detailed data on individual migrations in Slovakia in 1996–2020. It thus covers the period from the post-socialist transformation to the COVID-19 pandemic. The results show the increasing intensity of east-west and up the urban hierarchy migration. Due to the significant polarization of migration between the eastern and western regional subsystems, we examined separately in both subsystems the migration excluding flows between the subsystems. The results revealed a concentration of population into metropolitan regions in both subsystems, although the intensity of the processes was lower and the onset of trends delayed in the eastern subsystem. A significant feature of development in the post-socialist period was intensive exurbanation in both subsystems. The study thus points to the importance of subnational and regional approaches to migration research, and reveals trends that can contribute to the explanation of migration development even in countries where such detailed migration statistics are not available. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Eurasian Geography & Economics is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Evaluation of regional features of electronic commerce in Europe

The subject of the study in the article is the e-commerce market in Europe. The aim of the article is to analyze the regional features of e-commerce in Europe using the main development indicators of e-commerce. The paper uses the method of desktop research, i.e. the analysis of available data, which is to obtain and study information that is already in the form of reports, statistics and research. In addition, the impact of COVID-19 on the development of e-commerce in Europe was presented. © 2022 - IOS Press. All rights reserved.

Critical points in randomized research on DCD donor in-situ perfusion (NRP): the interim DONARE Study clinical evaluation

Background/aims: Controlled DCD organ donation (cDCD) is a strategic target for the Italian transplantation network. Italian peculiarities in cDCD donation make published results questionable and raise concern over organ ischemic damage. Consequently, normothermic regional perfusion (NRP) has been strongly recommended in potential cDCD donors. In 2019 the randomized multicenter DONARE study was designed to describe ischemic-reperfusion and inflammatory biomarkers during NRP and to test the potential benefit of apheresis by an adsorbent filter (CytoSorb) included in the NRP circuit. The aim of this report is to describe the modulation of the clinical characteristics and of the NRP in the DONARE study enrolled cases. Method(s): The study protocol was defined by the DCD national working group and proposed to all the Italian DCD donation centers. The coordinating center (CNT) has monitored the evolving cDCD activity to preserve the study capacity of representing the Italian scenario. Samples have been blindly centralized to an independent laboratory for cytokines profiling. The outcomes of transplanted organs have been recorded in the national quality database. Result(s): From September 2020 to June 2022, 27 out of the 40 planned cases have been enrolled in six centers: 4 in 2020, 12 in 2021 and 11 within June 2022. Approval is still pending in other centers. Main causes of exclusion among potential cDCD donors were: age above 65 (in 2020), e-CPR prior- to-death, shortage in personnel and COVID-19 restrictions. The age limit for enrolment (<65yrs) was abolished by amendment due to the national trend: mean age of enrolled cases increased from 57+/-6 in 2020 to 67+/-6 years in 2022. Mean NRP duration decreased from 223,3+/-39,2 in 2020 to 168,9+/-42,6 minutes in 2022;serial samples (4/2 with/without Cytosorb, from T0 to T4) from different points of the NRP circuit have been completed throughout the procedure in all the cases. All the enrolled cases became utilized donors. No study-related adverse event has been reported. Conclusion(s): Coordination of multicenter studies in the rapidly evolving scenario of controlled DCD donation should take advantage of continuous monitoring of real-life procedures and auditing of adherence to operational recommendations. The interim evaluation confirms the feasibility and safety of the study.

China's Perceptions of Russia during the Ukraine Conflict

The ongoing Russian military operation in Ukraine since February 2022 has presented significant challenges to China's foreign and security policies, as well as its economic and technological ties with the West. Initially, China refrained from criticizing Russia's military actions and adopted a "neutral" or "independent" stance in response to Western criticism. However, China was taken aback by the protracted nature of the conflict and Russia's inability to successfully conclude its military operation. This raised concerns within China, considering its own situation of potentially reunifying with Taiwan through military means if necessary. While there are distinctions between the situations in Ukraine and Taiwan, the initial speculation of China conducting military operations against Taiwan has gradually diminished, although military pressure on Taiwan remains. The conflict in Ukraine has also caused internal divisions within China and has had an impact on its relations with the West, which are crucial for China's rise on the global stage. This article aims to examine China's interests and positions regarding the ongoing Ukrainian conflict, the implications for its relations with Russia, and the opportunities and challenges that China faces in the current situation. The article employs an inductive approach, analyzing China's predicaments at four levels: perceptions within the decision-making bodies of the Communist Party, the foreign ministry, think-tanks, and the media community. It argues that in conjunction with China's economic contraction resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russian military operation has prompted China to seriously contemplate how to safeguard its national interests, particularly with regard to Taiwan and its strategic objectives of attaining a prominent global position. These considerations carry medium to long-term implications for the evolving regional and global orders. In conclusion, the article briefly discusses the implications of these developments on India, shedding light on the broader regional dynamics influenced by China's response to the Ukrainian conflict. © 2023, MGIMO Universty Press. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 and Decline of Multilateralism

Multilateralism and multilateral diplomacy have been the most desired vision for a peaceful and stable global system with capacity to deal with challenges and streamline the deviations as and when it comes on the way. As the system of multilateralism is devised and sustained by the by the nation's desire to ensure and secure their national interests, its capacity to measure up to its aims is directly proportional to the level the great power relations and cooperation. The changes in the structure of international system must be reflected by the commensurate reforms in the multilateral institutions like United Nations Organizations. There is a growing concern about unilateral actions and withdrawal by powers in the recent years and the changing power landscape of the globe is not appropriately reflected in the existing multilateral institutions and mechanism. Such withdrawal syndrome led to the ultimate breakdown of the post-WWI system. Our current scenario is far from such alarming stage as multilateralism is still in consonance with most of the nations of the globe. The COVID-19 with its global spread has impacted heavily on the multilateral institutions as never before. But is its very transnational implications impacting on the global supply chain and economic process have been pushing the nations for multilateral and global cooperation to deal with such impending pandemic. The mini-lateralism and regional multilateralism has shown greater pandemic outreach diplomacy and cooperation but their effective functioning needs an inclusive global multilateral structure. India with its global aspiration must work as an emerging world leader to shape a robust multilateral world with its pandemic measures, outreach and diplomacy. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022, corrected publication 2022.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Economic Security of Russian Regions: Assessment of Resistance to the Spillover Effects of Epidemic Risks

The research aims to identify the spillover effects of epidemic risks for the economic security of Russian regions and propose a system of measures for their leveling at the stage of post-pandemic recovery. The research substantiates the hypothesis that epidemic risks of economic security have spillover effects on the economy of Russian regions, increasing the impact of a combination of traditional risks and provoking the emergence of new risks. The authors proposed a system of indicators and a methodology for assessing the stability of regional economic systems to the spillover effects of epidemic risks based on the use of a statistical method for calculating integral indicators. The results of the calculations made it possible to rank the regions of Russia by the level of resistance to the spillover effects of epidemic risks to economic security. It is proved that the Southern Federal District has the greatest resistance to spillover effects. Ranking of regions by the indicator of resistance to spillover effects allowed the authors to propose a model of economic security management for two types of regional economic systems. For regions resistant to spillover effects, it is recommended to implement a set of measures aimed at strengthening internal potential. For regions unstable to the spillover effect, a sequence of actions is proposed based on leveling the negative impact of the spillover effects and the subsequent implementation of measures to strengthen internal potential. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Demand on Digital Skills in Russia: Regional Differences

This paper examines regional differences in the demand for digital skills based on an analysis of 9 million vacancies posted on the Unified Digital Platform ‘Work in Russia' in 2018–2022. We examine approaches used in the literature to classify digital skills and using it develop our own classification. The paper studies the advantages and limitations of various indicators of the demand for digital skills. We suggest that the ratio between the share of vacancies requiring digital skills of a certain group in the region and the labor force population should be used as the most appropriate one. The results of the study show that in Russia there is still a significant regional differentiation in the employer's demand for all selected groups. Differentiation increased with the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and decreased slightly in 2021–2022. We reveal that regions with a higher level of economic development have higher requirements for digital skills. Digital skills are more often required in regions specialized on primary production and less often in agricultural regions. Of the federal districts, a slightly higher level of demand for digital skills is observed in the Ural and Far Eastern federal districts, while a significantly lower level is observed in the North Caucasus federal district. © 2023 Spatial Economics. All rights reserved.

GIS-Based Analysis of the Spatial Distribution and Influencing Factors of Traditional Villages in Hebei Province, China

Traditional villages are a valuable cultural asset that occupy an important position in Chinese traditional culture. This study focuses on 206 traditional villages in Hebei Province and aims to explore their spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors using ArcGIS spatial analysis. The analysis shows that traditional villages in Hebei Province were distributed in clusters during different historical periods, and eventually formed three core clusters in Shijiazhuang, Zhangjiakou and Xingtai-Handan after different historical periods. Moreover, the overall distribution of traditional villages in Hebei Province is very uneven, with clear regional differences, and most of them are concentrated in the eastern foothills of the Taihang Mountains. To identify the factors influencing traditional villages, natural environmental factors, socio-economic factors, and historical and cultural factors are considered. The study finds that socio-economic and natural environmental factors alternate in the spatial distribution of traditional villages in Hebei Province. The influence of the interaction of these factors increases significantly, and socio-economic factors have a stronger influence on the spatial distribution. Specifically, the spatial distribution of traditional villages in Hebei Province is influenced by natural environmental factors, while socio-economic factors act as drivers of spatial distribution. Historical and cultural factors act as catalysts of spatial distribution, and policy directions are external forces of spatial distribution. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors of traditional villages in Hebei Province, which can be used to develop effective strategies for rural revitalisation in China.

Economic policy uncertainty, governance institutions and economic performance in Africa: are there regional differences?

In recent years, the global economy has witnessed several uncertainty-inducing events. However, empirical evidence in Africa on the effects of economic policy uncertainty (EPU) on economic activities remains scanty. Besides, the moderating effect of governance institutions on the uncertainty-economic performance relationship in Africa and the likelihood of regional differences in the response of economic activities to EPU on the continent are yet to be investigated. To address these gaps, we applied system GMM and quantile regressions on a panel of forty-seven African countries from 2010 to 2019. We find that while global EPU and EPUs from China, USA and Canada exert considerable influence on economic performance in Africa, the effects of domestic EPU and EPUs from Europe, UK, Japan, and Russia were negligible, suggesting that African economies are resilient to these sources of uncertainty shocks. We also find that governance institutions in Africa are not significantly moderating the uncertainty-economic performance relationship. However, our results highlighted regional differences in the response of economic activities to uncertainty, such that when compared to East and West Africa, economic performance in Central, North and Southern Africa is generally more resilient to global EPU and EPUs from China, USA, Europe and UK. We highlighted the policy implications of these findings.