Acute health symptoms related to perception and practice of pesticides use among farmers from all regions of Thailand

Introduction

Occupational exposure to pesticides may cause acute health effects for farmers and agricultural workers. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the prevalence of poisoning symptoms related pesticide exposure among farmers from all regions of Thailand, as well as factors linked to poisoning symptoms of neurological and neuromuscular systems, the respiratory system, and eye and skin disorders.

Methods

A cross sectional study was conducted in 4,035 farmers who lived in four regions of Thailand. The samples were chosen using stratified random sampling, with 746 for the Central region, 2,065 for the North-East, 586 for the North, and 638 for the South.

Results

The results found that the highest prevalence of poisoning symptoms was found in association with neurological and neuromuscular systems (75%), followed by the respiratory system (60.4%), the eyes (41.2%), and skin (14.8%). The most prevalent symptoms were muscle pain (49%) for neurological and neuromuscular symptoms, burning nose (37.6%) for respiratory symptoms, itchy eyes (26.3%) for eye symptoms, and rashes (14.4%) for skin symptoms. The remarkable findings were that types of pesticide use, task on the farm, types of pesticide sprayers, and perception are the crucial factors affecting all poisoning symptoms.

Discussion

The findings are also beneficial to the Thai government and other relevant organizations for launching measures, campaigns, or interventions to lower modifiable risk factors, resulting in reducing health risks associated with pesticide exposure.

Epidemiology and associated factors for hospitalization related respiratory syncytial virus infection among children less than 5 years of age in Northern Thailand

BACKGROUND

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is often the main problem in young children that require hospitalization. The objective of this study was to identify factors associated with RSV-related hospitalizations in young children less than five years old.

METHODOLOGY

A retrospective study was conducted for acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI) at a tertiary care hospital from January 2017 to December 2021 by using binary logistic regression analysis to detect the associated factors with RSV-related hospitalizations in children.

RESULTS

RSV-related hospitalization was detected in 293 of 410 (71.46 %) cases of RSV infection, most of which appeared in the rainy months of August to November. The most common symptoms and signs were 81.5 % rhinorrhea, 70.7 % cough, 68.5 % sore throat, 68.3 % sputum production, and 66.8 % fever. Factors associated with RSV-related hospitalization were age less than or equal to 2 years (aOR = 4.62, 95 % CI = 1.86-11.44), preterm birth (aOR = 2.61, 95 % CI = 1.05-6.10), patients with underlying disease (aOR = 3.06, 95 % CI = 1.21-10.34), and the presenting symptoms with sputum production (aOR = 16.49, 95 % CI = 3.80-71.55). Laboratory blood tests, low levels of hematocrit (aOR = 9.61, 95 % CI = 1.09-84.49) was the associated factor for hospitalization with RSV infection (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Factors associated with RSV-related hospitalizations in children were age less than or equal to two years, preterm birth, underlying disease, symptoms of sputum production. The low level of hematocrit was also associated with RSV-related hospitalizations in these children.

Predominance of ON1 and BA9 genotypes of human respiratory syncytial virus in children with acute respiratory infection in Chiang Mai, Thailand, 2020-2021

BACKGROUND

Human respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) is an important cause of acute respiratory infection, especially in children. Few studies have investigated molecular epidemiology of hRSV infection in Thailand. The aims of this study were to investigate the prevalence and genotype diversity of hRSV in children with acute respiratory infection (ARI) in Thailand.

METHODS

A total of 383 nasopharyngeal swabs collected from children with ARI from October 2020 to September 2021 were screened for hRSV and nucleotide sequences of the hypervariable region 2 (HVR2) of G gene of the detected hRSV were analysed.

RESULTS

Of 383 nasopharyngeal swabs, 104 (27.2 %) were positive for hRSV, of which 51 (49.0 %), 43 (41.3 %), and 10 (9.6 %) were hRSV-A, hRSV-B, and untypeable strains, respectively. All hRSV-A and hRSV-B were ON1 genotype and BA9 genotype, respectively. Most of the hRSV strains were detected in the cool months, November 2020 to February 2021. Phylogenetic analysis of the HVR2 sequence of G gene revealed three clusters of hRSV-A (ON1 genotype) and two clusters of hRSV-B (BA9 genotype). The hRSV-A strains in cluster 1 and 3 were closely related to the hRSV-A reference strains reported previously from other regions of Thailand whereas those in cluster 2 were closely related to the hRSV-A reference strains reported previously from Europe and Africa. For the hRSV-B strains, both clusters 1 and 2 were closely related to the hRSV-B reference strains reported previously from Europe, Australia, and Taiwan. The predicted N- and O-linked glycosylation sites were found along the length of HVR2 of G protein, mostly in the hRSV-B strains.

CONCLUSIONS

The ON1 and BA9 were the only two hRSV genotypes that were co-predominant and solely detected in this study. The findings indicated that the ON1 and BA9 are the only two hRSV genotypes currently circulating in children with ARI in northern Thailand.

Characteristics of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection in Hospitalized Children Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Thailand

OBJECTIVES

This study compared the epidemiological and clinical manifestations of patients hospitalized with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic at a tertiary care hospital in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand.

METHODS

This retrospective observational study utilized data from all cases of laboratory-confirmed RSV infection at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital from January 2016 to December 2021. Differences in the clinical presentation of RSV infection before (2016 to 2019) and during (2020 to 2021) the COVID-19 pandemic were analyzed and compared.

RESULTS

In total, 358 patients hospitalized with RSV infections were reported from January 2016 to December 2021. During the COVID-19 pandemic, only 74 cases of hospitalized RSV infection were reported. Compared to pre-pandemic levels, the clinical presentations of RSV infection showed statistically significant decreases in fever on admission (p=0.004), productive cough (p=0.004), sputum (p=0.003), nausea (p=0.03), cyanosis (p=0.004), pallor (p&lt;0.001), diarrhea (p&lt;0.001), and chest pain (p<0.001). Furthermore, vigilant measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including lockdowns, also interrupted the RSV season in Thailand from 2020 to 2021.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of RSV infection was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand, which also changed the clinical presentation and seasonal pattern of RSV infection in children.

The interactive effect of cognitive and physical dual task interventions on obstacle negotiation while walking in healthy young, and older, adults

Context

Dual task performance affects obstacle crossing ability in older adults. Previous studies suggest that cognitive dual tasking can lead to changes in obstacle crossing performance in older adults, but there is a lack of evidence to support changes in obstacle crossing performance due to the influence of motor dual tasking.

Aims

To investigate the interaction of cognitive and motor tasks, on obstacle crossing performance, in healthy young and older adults.

Settings and Design

This is a cross sectional comparative study, conducted at Mae Fah Luang University, Thailand.

Methods and Material

Sixty-four participants performed an obstacle crossing task under three conditions during a 4-meter walk test. These included walking at their normal speed with an obstacle in the middle of the walkway, followed by 2 further order-randomized walking conditions comprising a cognitive and a motor dual tasking walking condition. The spatio-temporal gait variables and obstacle crossing kinematic variables were measured using a Kinect three-camera system.

Statistical Analysis Used

The means for each variable, and for each condition, were analyzed using a mixed model analysis of variance (ANOVA) with walking conditions as covariant factors.

Results

A significant main interaction effect was found in gait speed (P < 0.001), step length (P = 0.046) and cadence (P = 0.011), but there was only a significant between-group difference in step length during obstacle crossing, while performing a cognitive dual task (P = 0.008) and a motor dual task (P < 0.001).

Conclusions

Older adults adopted a conservative strategy, and walked with a shorter step length, when stepping over an obstacle while performing a dual task.

Prevalence of cognitive impairment among hill-tribe older people in the Northern part of Thailand

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the prevalence and factors related to cognitive impairment among hill-tribe older people in Chiang Rai province, Thailand.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross-sectional study was carried out amongst 459 hill-tribe older people aged 60 years and above. A Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) Thai 2002 version was used for cognitive screening. A questionnaire and medical records were used for demographic and clinical data collection while descriptive statistics were used to analyze characteristic data. Potential factors related to cognitive impairment were analyzed by using univariate logistic regression analysis.

Findings

The prevalence of cognitive impairment amongst the participants was 49.89 percent (95% CI 45.32%, 53.47 percent). Factors related to cognitive decline included no occupation (OR=1.49, 95% CI 1.10–2.03, p<0.04) and a history of amphetamine use (OR=1.57, 95% CI 1.09–2.33, p<0.04).

Originality/value

Cognitive decline should be a cause for concern amongst Thai hill-tribe older people, especially amongst those in the group with a history of amphetamine use. However, Thai health care professionals need to be aware of the potential cultural bias in the MMSE Thai 2002 version as a cognition test targeted at the hill-tribe population as the questionnaire may not provide a true reflection of their cultural experience and background.