Electronic Cigarette Users' Perspective on the COVID-19 Pandemic: Observational Study Using Twitter Data.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) users might be more vulnerable to COVID-19 infection and could develop more severe symptoms if they contract the disease owing to their impaired immune responses to viral infections. Social media platforms such as Twitter have been widely used by individuals worldwide to express their responses to the current COVID-19 pandemic. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we aimed to examine the longitudinal changes in the attitudes of Twitter users who used e-cigarettes toward the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as compare differences in attitudes between e-cigarette users and nonusers based on Twitter data. METHODS: The study dataset containing COVID-19-related Twitter posts (tweets) posted between March 5 and April 3, 2020, was collected using a Twitter streaming application programming interface with COVID-19-related keywords. Twitter users were classified into two groups: Ecig group, including users who did not have commercial accounts but posted e-cigarette-related tweets between May 2019 and August 2019, and non-Ecig group, including users who did not post any e-cigarette-related tweets. Sentiment analysis was performed to compare sentiment scores towards the COVID-19 pandemic between both groups and determine whether the sentiment expressed was positive, negative, or neutral. Topic modeling was performed to compare the main topics discussed between the groups. RESULTS: The US COVID-19 dataset consisted of 4,500,248 COVID-19-related tweets collected from 187,399 unique Twitter users in the Ecig group and 11,479,773 COVID-19-related tweets collected from 2,511,659 unique Twitter users in the non-Ecig group. Sentiment analysis showed that Ecig group users had more negative sentiment scores than non-Ecig group users. Results from topic modeling indicated that Ecig group users had more concerns about deaths due to COVID-19, whereas non-Ecig group users cared more about the government's responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show that Twitter users who tweeted about e-cigarettes had more concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings can inform public health practitioners to use social media platforms such as Twitter for timely monitoring of public responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and educating and encouraging current e-cigarette users to quit vaping to minimize the risks associated with COVID-19.

Effects of pulmonary rehabilitation training based on WeChat App on pulmonary function, adverse mood and quality of life of COVID-19 patients: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a fatal epidemic has swept across the world, especially in India where the epidemic situation is the most serious. For COVID-19 patients, pulmonary rehabilitation training plays a significant role. However, it is still a controversial issue regarding the efficacy of WeChat APP-based pulmonary rehabilitation training in improving lung function, quality of life and bad mood of COVID-19 patients. To clarify this issue, a meta-analysis was conducted in this present study, so as to provide a basis for rehabilitation guidance of COVID-19 patients. METHODS: We systematically searched PubMed, medRxiv, Web of Science, Scopus, Chinese Science Citation Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, Chinese Scientific Journal Database, and Wan-fang databases in May 2021 to identify randomized controlled trials and evaluate the effects of WeChat APP-based pulmonary rehabilitation training for COVID-19. Two researchers independently carried out data extraction. On the other hand, literature quality evaluation on the quality and meta-analysis of the included literature was performed with Revman5.3 software. RESULTS: The results of this meta-analysis will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication. CONCLUSION: This study will provide reliable evidence-based evidence on the effects of WeChat APP-based pulmonary rehabilitation training on lung function, bad mood, and quality of life in patients with COVID-19. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval was not required for this study. The systematic review will be published in a peer-reviewed journal, presented at conferences, and shared on social media platforms. OSF REGISTRATION NUMBER: DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/MKXCH.

Social distancing in times of Covid-19: an analysis of its effects on domestic violence / O distanciamento social em tempos de Covid-19: uma análise de seus rebatimentos em torno da violência doméstica / El distanciamiento social en tiempos de Covid-19: un análisis de sus implicaciones alrededor de la violencia doméstica

O objetivo do presente artigo foi analisar os rebatimentos do distanciamento social em tempos de Covid-19 em torno da violência doméstica. Trata-se de um estudo documental com abordagem qualitativa feito por meio do conteúdo de notícias disponíveis em quatro jornais on-line de circulação nacional. Foram incluídas notícias publicadas entre 20 de março e 25 de abril de 2020 com as temáticas distanciamento social e violência doméstica, analisadas pelo software Interface de R pourles Analyses Multidimensionnelles de Textes et de Questionnaires (Iramuteq) associado à análise de conteúdo de Bardin. A análise lexicográfica e de conteúdo do corpus textual de 102 notícias produziu quatro categorias temáticas com foco na rede de proteção, ambiente doméstico, elevação dos casos de violência doméstica e contexto de pandemia como potencializador do fenômeno. O distanciamento social decorrente da pandemia de Covid-19 potencializou as situações de violência doméstica, demonstrando necessidade de medidas de intervenção e fortalecimento da rede de proteção. (AU)

This study analyzed the effects of social distancing in times of Covid-19 on domestic violence. We conducted a documentary study of news content in four online national newspapers. The study included news published between 20 March and 25 April 2020 addressing social distancing and domestic violence. A content analysis was conducted using the software IRAMUTEQ adopting the approach proposed by Bardin. The lexicographic and content analysis of the corpus of 102 news items produced four thematic categories: protection networks, the home environment, the increase in cases of domestic violence, and the pandemic as a driver of the phenomenon. Social distancing imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated domestic violence, demonstrating the need for interventions and the strengthening of the protection network. (AU)

Analizar las implicaciones del distanciamiento social en tiempos de Covid-19 alrededor de la violencia doméstica. Estudio documental con abordaje cualitativo, por medio del contenido de noticias disponibles en cuatro periódicos online de circulación nacional. Se incluyeron noticias publicadas entre el 20 de marzo y el 25 de abril de 2020 con estas temáticas: distanciamiento social y violencia doméstica, analizadas por el software IRAMUTEQ, asociado al análisis de contenido de Bardin. El análisis lexicográfico y de contenido del corpus textual de 102 noticas produjo cuatro categorías temáticas enfocadas en la red de protección, ambiente doméstico, elevación de los casos de violencia doméstica y el contexto de pandemia como potenciador del fenómeno. El distanciamiento social proveniente de la pandemia de Covid-19 potenció las situaciones de violencia doméstica, demostrando la necesidad de medidas de intervenciones y fortalecimiento de la red de protección. (AU)

Antivaccine Messages on Facebook: Preliminary Audit.

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization lists vaccine hesitancy as one of 10 threats to global health. The antivaccine movement uses Facebook to promote messages on the alleged dangers and consequences of vaccinating, leading to a reluctance to immunize against preventable communicable diseases. OBJECTIVE: We would like to know more about the messages these websites are sharing via social media that can influence readers and consumers. What messages is the public receiving on Facebook about immunization? What content (news articles, testimonials, videos, scientific studies) is being promoted? METHODS: We proposed using a social media audit tool and 3 categorical lists to capture information on websites and posts, respectively. The keywords "vaccine," "vaccine truth," and "anti-vax" were entered in the Facebook search bar. A Facebook page was examined if it had between 2500 and 150,000 likes. Data about beliefs, calls to action, and testimonials were recorded from posts and listed under the categories Myths, Truths, and Consequences. Website data were entered in a social media audit template. RESULTS: Users' posts reflected fear and vaccine hesitancy resulting from the alleged dangers of immunization featured on the website links. Vaccines were blamed for afflictions such as autism, cancer, and infertility. Mothers shared testimonies on alleged consequences their children suffered due to immunization, which have influenced other parents to not vaccinate their children. Users denied the current measles outbreaks in the United States to be true, retaliating against the government in protests for fabricating news. CONCLUSIONS: Some Facebook messages encourage prevailing myths about the safety and consequences of vaccines and likely contribute to parents' vaccine hesitancy. Deeply concerning is the mistrust social media has the potential to cast upon the relationship between health care providers and the public. A grasp of common misconceptions can help support health care provider practice.

An Observational Study in Manipur State, India on Preventive Behavior Influenced by Social Media During the COVID-19 Pandemic Mediated by Cyberchondria and Information Overload.

OBJECTIVES: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a public health emergency posing unprecedented challenges for health authorities. Social media may serve as an effective platform to disseminate health-related information. This study aimed to assess the extent of social media use, its impact on preventive behavior, and negative health effects such as cyberchondria and information overload. METHODS: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted between June 10, 2020 and August 9, 2020 among people visiting the outpatient department of the authors' institution, and participants were also recruited during field visits for an awareness drive. Questions were developed on preventive behavior, and the Short Cyberchondria Scale and instruments dealing with information overload and perceived vulnerability were used. RESULTS: The study recruited 767 participants with a mean age of about 45 years. Most of the participants (>90%) engaged in preventive behaviors, which were influenced by the extent of information received through social media platforms (ß=3.297; p<0.001) and awareness of infection when a family member tested positive (ß=29.082; p<0.001) or a neighbor tested positive (ß=27.964; p<0.001). The majority (63.0%) of individuals often searched for COVID-19 related news on social media platforms. The mean±standard deviation scores for cyberchondria and information overload were 9.09±4.05 and 8.69±2.56, respectively. Significant and moderately strong correlations were found between cyberchondria, information overload, and perceived vulnerability to COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that the use of social media as an information- seeking platform altered preventive behavior. However, excessive and misleading information resulted in cyberchondria and information overload.

Limited Early Warnings and Public Attention to Coronavirus Disease 2019 in China, January-February, 2020: A Longitudinal Cohort of Randomly Sampled Weibo Users.

OBJECTIVE: Awareness and attentiveness have implications for the acceptance and adoption of disease prevention and control measures. Social media posts provide a record of the public's attention to an outbreak. To measure the attention of Chinese netizens to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a pre-established nationally representative cohort of Weibo users was searched for COVID-19-related key words in their posts. METHODS: COVID-19-related posts (N = 1101) were retrieved from a longitudinal cohort of 52 268 randomly sampled Weibo accounts (December 31, 2019-February 12, 2020). RESULTS: Attention to COVID-19 was limited prior to China openly acknowledging human-to-human transmission on January 20. Following this date, attention quickly increased and has remained high over time. Particularly high levels of social media traffic appeared around when Wuhan was first placed in quarantine (January 23-24, 8-9% of the overall posts), when a scandal associated with the Red Cross Society of China occurred (February 1, 8%), and, following the death of Dr Li Wenliang (February 6-7, 11%), one of the whistleblowers who was reprimanded by the Chinese police in early January for discussing this outbreak online. CONCLUSION: Limited early warnings represent missed opportunities to engage citizens earlier in the outbreak. Governments should more proactively communicate early warnings to the public in a transparent manner.

How Health Care Workers Wield Influence Through Twitter Hashtags: Retrospective Cross-sectional Study of the Gun Violence and COVID-19 Public Health Crises.

BACKGROUND: Twitter has emerged as a novel way for physicians to share ideas and advocate for policy change. #ThisIsOurLane (firearm injury) and #GetUsPPE (COVID-19) are examples of nationwide health care-led Twitter campaigns that went viral. Health care-initiated Twitter hashtags regarding major public health topics have gained national attention, but their content has not been systematically examined. OBJECTIVE: We hypothesized that Twitter discourse on two epidemics (firearm injury and COVID-19) would differ between tweets with health care-initiated hashtags (#ThisIsOurLane and #GetUsPPE) versus those with non-health care-initiated hashtags (#GunViolence and #COVID19). METHODS: Using natural language processing, we compared content, affect, and authorship of a random 1% of tweets using #ThisIsOurLane (Nov 2018-Oct 2019) and #GetUsPPE (March-May 2020), compared to #GunViolence and #COVID19 tweets, respectively. We extracted the relative frequency of single words and phrases and created two sets of features: (1) an open-vocabulary feature set to create 50 data-driven-determined word clusters to evaluate the content of tweets; and (2) a closed-vocabulary feature for psycholinguistic categorization among case and comparator tweets. In accordance with conventional linguistic analysis, we used a P<.001, after adjusting for multiple comparisons using the Bonferroni correction, to identify potentially meaningful correlations between language features and outcomes. RESULTS: In total, 67% (n=4828) of #ThisIsOurLane tweets and 36.6% (n=7907) of #GetUsPPE tweets were authored by health care professionals, compared to 16% (n=1152) of #GunViolence and 9.8% (n=2117) of #COVID19 tweets. Tweets using #ThisIsOurLane and #GetUsPPE were more likely to contain health care-specific language; more language denoting positive emotions, affiliation, and group identity; and more action-oriented content compared to tweets with #GunViolence or #COVID19, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Tweets with health care-led hashtags expressed more positivity and more action-oriented language than the comparison hashtags. As social media is increasingly used for news discourse, public education, and grassroots organizing, the public health community can take advantage of social media's broad reach to amplify truthful, actionable messages around public health issues.

Influence of Social Media Platforms on Public Health Protection Against the COVID-19 Pandemic via the Mediating Effects of Public Health Awareness and Behavioral Changes: Integrated Model.

BACKGROUND: Despite the growing body of literature examining social media in health contexts, including public health communication, promotion, and surveillance, limited insight has been provided into how the utility of social media may vary depending on the particular public health objectives governing an intervention. For example, the extent to which social media platforms contribute to enhancing public health awareness and prevention during epidemic disease transmission is currently unknown. Doubtlessly, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) represents a great challenge at the global level, aggressively affecting large cities and public gatherings and thereby having substantial impacts on many health care systems worldwide as a result of its rapid spread. Each country has its capacity and reacts according to its perception of threat, economy, health care policy, and the health care system structure. Furthermore, we noted a lack of research focusing on the role of social media campaigns in public health awareness and public protection against the COVID-19 pandemic in Jordan as a developing country. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of social media platforms on public health protection against the COVID-19 pandemic via public health awareness and public health behavioral changes as mediating factors in Jordan. METHODS: A quantitative approach and several social media platforms were used to collect data via web questionnaires in Jordan, and a total of 2555 social media users were sampled. This study used structural equation modeling to analyze and verify the study variables. RESULTS: The main findings revealed that the use of social media platforms had a significant positive influence on public health protection against COVID-19 as a pandemic. Public health awareness and public health behavioral changes significantly acted as partial mediators in this relationship. Therefore, a better understanding of the effects of the use of social media interventions on public health protection against COVID-19 while taking public health awareness and behavioral changes into account as mediators should be helpful when developing any health promotion strategy plan. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that the use of social media platforms can positively influence awareness of public health behavioral changes and public protection against COVID-19. Public health authorities may use social media platforms as an effective tool to increase public health awareness through dissemination of brief messages to targeted populations. However, more research is needed to validate how social media channels can be used to improve health knowledge and adoption of healthy behaviors in a cross-cultural context.