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Dimka JL, Schneider BM, Mamelund SE. Protocol for a systematic review to understand the long-term mental-health effects of influenza pandemics in the pre-COVID-19 era. Scand J Public Health 2024; 52:391-396. [PMID: 38153124 PMCID: PMC11067412 DOI: 10.1177/14034948231217362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/12/2023] [Indexed: 12/29/2023]
Abstract
AIMS This protocol describes a forthcoming systematic review of the question: 'What are the long-term effects of historical influenza pandemics on mental health, resulting either from illness itself or the social or economic effects of pandemics and public health responses?' METHODS We will review studies that investigate associations between influenza pandemics and long-term mental-health impacts. Following the PICO framework, populations (P) may include those with and without pre-existing mental-health symptoms or conditions. Intervention (I) is exposure to an influenza pandemic during the study period encompassing five pandemics (1889-2009). Comparators or controls (C) are not applicable. The review will address outcomes (O) of mental-health morbidity from direct infection and/or related circumstances, including, for example, receiving a disability pension, institutionalisation and/or death. RESULTS Due to societal disruptions, illness and bereavement during pandemics, many people are likely to be affected in myriad ways. Therefore, investigation into mental-health consequences should not be restricted by risk group or diagnosis. To our knowledge, this protocol and forthcoming systematic review are the first to include studies for broad populations and multiple measures of mental-health morbidity. The historical perspective and comparison of pandemics with varying severity but assumed similar causative pathogens also enable insights into the consistency of long-term consequences across pandemics. CONCLUSIONS Pandemics likely produce long-term mental-health impacts with relevance for social, health and economic planning. The systematic review based on this protocol will complement other evidence on pandemic impacts and help policymakers incorporate relevant interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica L. Dimka
- Jessica L. Dimka, Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice, Seton Hall University, 400 South Orange Avenue, South Orange, NJ, USA. E-mail:
| | - Benjamin M. Schneider
- Centre for Research on Pandemics & Society (PANSOC), Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway
| | - Svenn-Erik Mamelund
- Centre for Research on Pandemics & Society (PANSOC), Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway
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Alfani G, Bonetti M, Fochesato M. Pandemics and socio-economic status. Evidence from the plague of 1630 in northern Italy. POPULATION STUDIES 2024; 78:21-42. [PMID: 37161858 DOI: 10.1080/00324728.2023.2197412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
This paper investigates the biological, socio-economic, and institutional factors shaping the individual risk of death during a major pre-industrial epidemic. We use a micro-demographic database for an Italian city (Carmagnola) during the 1630 plague to explore in detail the survival dynamics of the population admitted to the isolation hospital (lazzaretto). We develop a theoretical model of admissions to the lazzaretto, for better interpretation of the observational data. We explore how age and sex shaped the individual risk of death, and we provide a one-of-a-kind study of the impact of socio-economic status. We report an inversion of the normal mortality gradient by status for those interned at the lazzaretto. The rich enjoyed a greater ability to make decisions about their hospitalization, but this backfired. Instead, the poor sent to the lazzaretto faced a relatively low risk of death because they enjoyed better conditions than they would have experienced outside the hospital.
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Frey A, Tilstra AM, Verhagen MD. Inequalities in healthcare use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nat Commun 2024; 15:1894. [PMID: 38424038 PMCID: PMC10904793 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45720-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 02/02/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic led to reductions in non-COVID related healthcare use, but little is known whether this burden is shared equally. This study investigates whether reductions in administered care disproportionately affected certain sociodemographic strata, in particular marginalised groups. Using detailed medical claims data from the Dutch universal health care system and rich full population registry data, we predict expected healthcare use based on pre-pandemic trends (2017 - Feb 2020) and compare these expectations with observed healthcare use in 2020 and 2021. Our findings reveal a 10% decline in the number of weekly treated patients in 2020 and a 3% decline in 2021 relative to prior years. These declines are unequally distributed and are more pronounced for individuals below the poverty line, females, older people, and individuals with a migrant background, particularly during the initial wave of COVID-19 hospitalisations and for middle and low urgency procedures. While reductions in non-COVID related healthcare decreased following the initial shock of the pandemic, inequalities persist throughout 2020 and 2021. Our results demonstrate that the pandemic has not only had an unequal toll in terms of the direct health burden of the pandemic, but has also had a differential impact on the use of non-COVID healthcare.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arun Frey
- Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX1 1JD, UK
- Nuffield College, University of Oxford, 1 New Rd, Oxford, OX1 1NF, UK
- Amsterdam Health and Technology Institute, Paasheuvelweg 25, Amsterdam, 1105 BP, The Netherlands
- Stanford University, 450 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Department of Sociology, University of Oxford, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX3 7LF, UK
| | - Andrea M Tilstra
- Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX1 1JD, UK
- Nuffield College, University of Oxford, 1 New Rd, Oxford, OX1 1NF, UK
- Department of Sociology, University of Oxford, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX3 7LF, UK
- Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX1 1JD, UK
| | - Mark D Verhagen
- Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX1 1JD, UK.
- Nuffield College, University of Oxford, 1 New Rd, Oxford, OX1 1NF, UK.
- Amsterdam Health and Technology Institute, Paasheuvelweg 25, Amsterdam, 1105 BP, The Netherlands.
- Department of Sociology, University of Oxford, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX3 7LF, UK.
- Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, 42 Park End St, Oxford, OX1 1JD, UK.
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Improvements and Persisting Challenges in COVID-19 Response Compared with 1918–19 Influenza Pandemic Response, New Zealand (Aotearoa). Emerg Infect Dis 2023; 29. [PMCID: PMC10461674 DOI: 10.3201/eid2909.221265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Exploring the results of the COVID-19 response in New Zealand (Aotearoa) is warranted so that insights can inform future pandemic planning. We compared the COVID-19 response in New Zealand to that for the more severe 1918–19 influenza pandemic. Both pandemics were caused by respiratory viruses, but the 1918–19 pandemic was short, intense, and yielded a higher mortality rate. The government and societal responses to COVID-19 were vastly superior; responses had a clear strategic direction and included a highly effective elimination strategy, border restrictions, minimal community spread for 20 months, successful vaccination rollout, and strong central government support. Both pandemics involved a whole-of-government response, community mobilization, and use of public health and social measures. Nevertheless, lessons from 1918–19 on the necessity of action to prevent inequities among different social groups were not fully learned, as demonstrated by the COVID-19 response and its ongoing unequal health outcomes in New Zealand.
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Zelner J, Naraharisetti R, Zelner S. Invited Commentary: To Make Long-Term Gains Against Infection Inequity, Infectious Disease Epidemiology Needs to Develop a More Sociological Imagination. Am J Epidemiol 2023; 192:1047-1051. [PMID: 36843044 PMCID: PMC10505408 DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwad044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 12/16/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/28/2023] Open
Abstract
In a recent article in the Journal, Noppert et al. (Am J Epidemiol. 2023;192(3):475-482) articulated in detail the mechanisms connecting high-level "fundamental social causes" of health inequity to inequitable infectious disease outcomes, including infection, severe disease, and death. In this commentary, we argue that while intensive focus on intervening mechanisms is welcome and necessary, it cannot occur in isolation from examination of the way that fundamental social causes-including racism, socioeconomic inequity, and social stigma-sustain infection inequities even when intervening mechanisms are addressed. We build on the taxonomy of intervening mechanisms laid out by Noppert et al. to create a road map for strengthening the connection between fundamental cause theory and infectious disease epidemiology and discuss its implications for future research and intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon Zelner
- Correspondence to Dr. Jon Zelner, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, 1415 Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (e-mail: )
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Gaddy H, Ingholt MM. Did the 1918 influenza pandemic cause a 1920 baby boom? Demographic evidence from neutral Europe. POPULATION STUDIES 2023:1-19. [PMID: 37011659 DOI: 10.1080/00324728.2023.2192041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/05/2023]
Abstract
In 1919-20, the European countries that were neutral in the First World War saw a small baby bust followed by a small baby boom. The sparse literature on this topic attributes the 1919 bust to individuals postponing conceptions during the peak of the 1918-20 influenza pandemic and the 1920 boom to recuperation of those conceptions. Using data from six large neutral countries of Europe, we present novel evidence contradicting that narrative. In fact, the subnational populations and maternal birth cohorts whose fertility was initially hit hardest by the pandemic were still experiencing below-average fertility in 1920. Demographic evidence, economic evidence, and a review of post-pandemic fertility trends outside Europe suggest that the 1920 baby boom in neutral Europe was caused by the end of the First World War, not by the end of the pandemic.
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Dahal S, Mamelund SE, Luo R, Sattenspiel L, Self-Brown S, Chowell G. Investigating COVID-19 transmission and mortality differences between indigenous and non-indigenous populations in Mexico. Int J Infect Dis 2022; 122:910-920. [PMID: 35905949 PMCID: PMC9357430 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2022.07.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Indigenous populations have been disproportionately affected during pandemics. We investigated COVID-19 mortality estimates among indigenous and non-indigenous populations at national and sub-national levels in Mexico. METHODS We obtained data from the Ministry of Health, Mexico, on 2,173,036 laboratory-confirmed RT-PCR positive COVID-19 cases and 238,803 deaths. We estimated mortality per 1000 person-weeks, mortality rate ratio (RR) among indigenous vs. non-indigenous groups, and hazard ratio (HR) for COVID-19 deaths across four waves of the pandemic, from February 2020 to March 2022. We also assessed differences in the reproduction number (Rt). RESULTS The mortality rate among indigenous populations of Mexico was 68% higher than that of non-indigenous groups. Out of 32 federal entities, 23 exhibited higher mortality rates among indigenous groups (P < 0.05 in 13 entities). The fourth wave showed the highest RR (2.40). The crude HR was 1.67 (95% CI: 1.62, 1.72), which decreased to 1.08 (95% CI: 1.04, 1.11) after controlling for other covariates. During the intense fourth wave, the Rt among the two groups was comparable. CONCLUSION Indigenous status is a significant risk factor for COVID-19 mortality in Mexico. Our findings may reflect disparities in non-pharmaceutical (e.g., handwashing and using facemasks), and COVID-19 vaccination interventions among indigenous and non-indigenous populations in Mexico.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sushma Dahal
- School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta, USA,Correspondence to: Sushma Dahal, School of Public Health, Georgia State University, P.O. Box 3995, Atlanta, Georgia, 30302-3995
| | - Svenn-Erik Mamelund
- Centre for Research on Pandemics & Society, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ruiyan Luo
- School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta, USA
| | - Lisa Sattenspiel
- College of Arts and Science, University of Missouri, Columbia, USA
| | | | - Gerardo Chowell
- School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta, USA
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Shifa M, Gordon D, Leibbrandt M, Zhang M. Socioeconomic-Related Inequalities in COVID-19 Vulnerability in South Africa. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:10480. [PMID: 36078194 PMCID: PMC9518327 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191710480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Revised: 08/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Individuals' vulnerability to the risk of COVID-19 infection varies due to their health, socioeconomic, and living circumstances, which also affect the effectiveness of implementing non-pharmacological interventions (NPIs). In this study, we analysed socioeconomic-related inequalities in COVID-19 vulnerability using data from the nationally representative South African General Household Survey 2019. We developed a COVID-19 vulnerability index, which includes health and social risk factors for COVID-19 exposure and susceptibility. The concentration curve and concentration index were used to measure socioeconomic-related inequalities in COVID-19 vulnerability. Recentred influence function regression was then utilised to decompose factors that explain the socioeconomic-related inequalities in COVID-19 vulnerability. The concentration index estimates were all negative and highly significant (p < 0.01), indicating that vulnerability to COVID-19 was more concentrated among the poor. According to the decomposition analysis, higher income and education significantly (p < 0.01) positively impacted lowering socioeconomic-related COVID-19 vulnerability. Living in an urban region, being Black, and old all had significant (p < 0.01) positive impacts on increasing socioeconomic-related COVID-19 vulnerability. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of socially defined COVID-19-vulnerable populations in South Africa and the implications for future pandemic preparedness plans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muna Shifa
- Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
| | - David Gordon
- School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TH, UK
| | - Murray Leibbrandt
- Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
| | - Mary Zhang
- Oxford School of Global and Area Studies, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6LH, UK
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Dimka J, van Doren TP, Battles HT. Pandemics, past and present: The role of biological anthropology in interdisciplinary pandemic studies. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2022. [PMCID: PMC9082061 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Biological anthropologists are ideally suited for the study of pandemics given their strengths in human biology, health, culture, and behavior, yet pandemics have historically not been a major focus of research. The COVID‐19 pandemic has reinforced the need to understand pandemic causes and unequal consequences at multiple levels. Insights from past pandemics can strengthen the knowledge base and inform the study of current and future pandemics through an anthropological lens. In this paper, we discuss the distinctive social and epidemiological features of pandemics, as well as the ways in which biological anthropologists have previously studied infectious diseases, epidemics, and pandemics. We then review interdisciplinary research on three pandemics–1918 influenza, 2009 influenza, and COVID‐19–focusing on persistent social inequalities in morbidity and mortality related to sex and gender; race, ethnicity, and Indigeneity; and pre‐existing health and disability. Following this review of the current state of pandemic research on these topics, we conclude with a discussion of ways biological anthropologists can contribute to this field moving forward. Biological anthropologists can add rich historical and cross‐cultural depth to the study of pandemics, provide insights into the biosocial complexities of pandemics using the theory of syndemics, investigate the social and health impacts of stress and stigma, and address important methodological and ethical issues. As COVID‐19 is unlikely to be the last global pandemic, stronger involvement of biological anthropology in pandemic studies and public health policy and research is vital.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Dimka
- Centre for Research on Pandemics and Society Oslo Metropolitan University Oslo Norway
| | | | - Heather T. Battles
- Anthropology, School of Social Sciences The University of Auckland Auckland New Zealand
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10
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Alves DE, Mamelund SE, Dimka J, Simonsen L, Mølbak M, Ørskov S, Sattenspiel L, Tripp L, Noymer A, Chowell-Puente G, Dahal S, Van Doren TP, Wissler A, Heffernan C, Renfree Short K, Battles H, Baker MG. Indigenous peoples and pandemics. Scand J Public Health 2022; 50:662-667. [PMID: 35546099 PMCID: PMC9361406 DOI: 10.1177/14034948221087095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Daniele E Alves
- Centre for Research on Pandemics & Society, Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway
| | - Svenn-Erik Mamelund
- Centre for Research on Pandemics & Society, Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway
| | - Jessica Dimka
- Centre for Research on Pandemics & Society, Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway
| | | | | | | | | | - Lianne Tripp
- Department of Anthropology, University of Northern British Columbia, Canada
| | - Andrew Noymer
- Program in Public Health, University of California, Irvine, USA
| | | | - Sushma Dahal
- Department of Population Health Sciences, Georgia State University, USA
| | | | - Amanda Wissler
- School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, USA
| | - Courtney Heffernan
- Tuberculosis Program Evaluation and Research Unit, University of Alberta, Canada
| | - Kirsty Renfree Short
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, University of Queensland, Australia
| | - Heather Battles
- Department of Anthropology, University of Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Michael G Baker
- Health Environment Infection Research Unit, University of Otago, New Zealand
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