Prevalence and associated risk factors of dry eye disease in Hotan, Xinjiang: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence of dry eye disease (DED) in the Uyghur population in Hotan, Xinjiang, and to identify risk factors associated with this disorder. METHODS: Between January and September of 2020, 5,121 Uyghur subjects aged 18 - 98 years from 105 villages were selected and studied cross-sectionally using a whole-group random sampling method in the Hotan area, Xinjiang, China. The Ocular Surface Disease Index questionnaire was used to collect subjective symptoms of DED and examine tear-film break-up times. The break up time and Schirmer's test were used to collect objective signs, to determine the prevalence of DED and its risk factors. RESULTS: A total of 5,121 subjects aged 18 - 98 years were recruited from the Uyghur population in the Hotan region of Xinjiang, China, for eye examinations and questionnaire surveys. A total of 40.6% (2,078/5,121) were diagnosed with DED, of which 38.3% were male and 41.9% were female. The prevalence of DED was the highest in subjects ≥ 65 years of age, with 47.8% in males and 53.3% in females. The lowest occurrence was in subjects 18 - 44 years of age, with 32.5% in males and 33.7% in females. Older age, tea drinking, and staying awake late were risk factors affecting the severity of DED prevalence (p < 0.05), but there was no significant difference in sex, presence of diabetes, or presence of hypertension (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of DED in the study population was 40.6%, and its prevalence was higher in females, when compared with males. The prevalence of dry eye also increased with age, and at an advanced age, female sex, smoking, staying awake late, and not exercising were risk factors for DED.

Cumulative ecosystem response to Hydraulic Engineering Infrastructure Projects in an arid basin.

Hydraulic Engineering Infrastructure Projects (HEIPs) typically show profound effects on hydrological systems and ecosystems. However, data restrictions have limited the exploration of the influences of compound HEIPs on ecosystems to a few studies. This study proposes a watershed-wide ecosystem assessment framework to investigate the impact of HEIPs in the Tarim River Headwaters-Hotan River Basin on the ecosystem of the arid zone. The framework includes a deep learning-meta cellular automata algorithm (DLMCAA) based on the spatiotemporal characteristics of HEIPs and hydro-meteorological and human activities. Moreover, the spatiotemporal relationships between compound HEIPs and ecosystem variances were quantified. The framework including DLMCAA showed a good performance in simulating landcover in 2020, with a Kappa coefficient of 0.89. Therefore, the DLMCAA could be used to simulate and predict ecosystem changes under the HEIPs, which suggested that the framework is effective and practical. An analysis of the spatiotemporal distribution of each ecosystem from 1980 to 2020 showed that the low shrub ecosystems changed most significantly (26.38 %) between 1980 and 2020. Also, the use of spatially driven hydrological project data from different ABC scenarios showed that ecosystems driven by HEIPs were more stable compared to those without HEIPs under future climate change. In particular, the DLMCAA indicated that compound HEIPs had a more positive impact on ecosystem oases in arid lands compared with that of single HEIPs. The results of this study can serve as a scientific reference for assessing the impact of HEIPs, as well as for understanding ecosystem changes and facilitating sustainable water resource management in the arid regions.

Cancer incidence and spectrum among Uygurs in Hotan District in China.

Cancer is the leading cause of death in China and a significant public health problem with increasing incidence and fatality rates. The Han nationality is the main ethnic group in China, and many reports on the epidemiology of cancers in Han nationality are published. However no studies report the cancer spectrum of Uygurs which are one of the minority nationalities in China. Hence, we present incidence and mortality numbers of different cancers for the Uygur patients for the period 2018-2020 in Hotan District where Uygur population accounts for 99 %. During the 3-year study period, 2509 new Uygur cancer cases were registered, comprising 774 men and 1735 women. Cervical cancer was the most common, followed by esophageal, breast, gastric and colorectal cancers. The most common cancers in women and men were cervical cancer and esophageal cancer, respectively. In conclusion, the cancer spectrum in Hotan is different from other regions of China and our research revealed the cancer incidence in Hotan, which could help us to take appropriate measures to reduce the incidence rate.

Investigation and analysis of dry eye condition of residents in Hotan, Xinjiang / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

AIM: To evaluate the prevalence and potential risk factors of dry eye among residents in Hotan, Xinjiang, China.METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 6 027 residents aged 18-98 from 105 villages in Hotan, Xinjiang, China from January 2019 to September 2019. The subjective symptoms of dry eye were collected by ocular surface disease index(OSDI)questionnaire, and the objective signs were collected by testing fluorescein breakup time(FBUT)and Schirmer Ⅰ test, so as to analyze the prevalence and risk factors of dry eye.RESULTS: A total of 6 339 subjects aged 18-98 years were recruited from residents in Hotan, Xinjiang, China. Relevant eye examinations and questionnaires were conducted on the subjects, of which 6 027 were valid questionnaires, with an effective recovery rate of 95.08%. The dry eye detection rate of 6 027 residents was 40.37%(2 433/6 027), and the dry eye detection rates of male and female were 36.47%(846/2 320)and 42.81%(1 587/3 707)respectively. The dry eye detection rates of 18-24 years old, 25-34 years old, 35-44 years old, 45-54 years old, 55-64 years old, and ≥65 years old were 13.77%, 15.67%, 33.31%, 46.35%, 47.65%, 53.50%, respectively. According to the severity of dry eye, they were divided into mild dry eye, moderate dry eye and severe dry eye, and their constituent ratios were 80.11%, 19.03% and 0.86%, respectively.CONCLUSION: The prevalence of dry eye in the study population was 40.37%. The prevalence of dry eye in female was higher than that in male, and the prevalence of dry eye increased with the increase of age. Older age and female are the risk factors for dry eye.

Distribution and sources of PM2.5-bound free silica in the atmosphere of hyper-arid regions in Hotan, North-West China.

The composition of atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is complex and exhibits strong regional differences. Free silica (α-SiO2) in atmospheric particulate matter is carcinogenic and is an important component of respirable particulate matter in urban areas. Measurements determined that the concentration of silicon dioxide (α-SiO2) in PM2.5 in the urban area of Hotan City, China, was 8.02 µg·m-3 during the dust period and exceeded 1.77 µg·m-3 during the non-dust period. The proportion of α-SiO2 in PM2.5 was 8.07% during the dust period and 2.25% during the non-dust period. Atmospheric visibility during the dust period was mainly influenced by the content of atmospheric floating dust. Analysis of α-SiO2 pollution sources during the dust period showed that the air masses containing sand and dust originated from the desert hinterland. Following passage through oasis areas, the air mass was effectively reduced in the concentration of α-SiO2 in PM2.5. During the dusty period, α-SiO2 and PM2.5 originated from the same source in Hotan City. Moreover, wind speed was the main influencing factor for the α-SiO2 concentration. During the non-dust period, α-SiO2 and PM2.5 were not from the same source of pollution.