Influence of Air Pollution on Hospital Admissions in Adult Asthma in Northeast China

Background：Asthma is a common chronic respiratory disease and is related to air pollution exposure.However,only a few studies have concentrated on the association between air pollution and adult asthma.Moreover,the results of these studies are controversial.Therefore,the present study aimed to analyze the influence of various pollutants on hospitalization due to asthma in adults.Methods：A total of 1019 unrelated hospitalized adult asthma patients from Northeast China were recruited from 2014 to 2016.Daily average concentrations of air pollutants （particulate matter ＜2.5 μm [PM2.5],particulate matter ＜ 10 μm [PM 10],sulfur dioxide [SO2],nitrogen dioxide [NO2],and carbon monoxide [CO]） were obtained from the China National Environmental Monitoring Centre website from 2014 to 2016.Cox logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the relationship between air pollutants and hospital admissions in adult asthma.Results：The maximum odds ratio （OR） value for most air pollutants occurred on lag day 1.Lag day 1 was chosen as the exposure period,and 8 days before onset was chosen as the control period.Three pollutants （PM2.5,CO,and SO2） were entered into the regression equation,and the corresponding OR （95％ confidence interval） was 0.995 （0.991-0.999）,3.107 （1.607-6.010）,and 0.979 （0.968-0.990）,respectively.Conclusions：A positive association between hospital admissions and the daily average concentration of CO was observed.CO is likely to be a risk factor for hospital admissions in adults with asthma.

Clinical features and risk factors associated with severe COVID-19 patients in China

Background::Coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19),which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2),has rapidly spread throughout the world.In this study,we aimed to identify the risk factors for severe COVID-19 to improve treatment guidelines.Methods::A multicenter,cross-sectional study was conducted on 313 patients hospitalized with COVID-19.Patients were classified into two groups based on disease severity(nonsevere and severe)according to initial clinical presentation.Laboratory test results and epidemiological and clinical characteristics were analyzed using descriptive statistics.Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used to detect potential risk factors associated with severe COVID-19.Results::A total of 289 patients(197 nonsevere and 92 severe cases)with a median age of 45.0(33.0,61.0)years were included in this study,and 53.3%(154/289)were male.Fever(192/286,67.1%)and cough(170/289,58.8%)were commonly observed,followed by sore throat(49/289,17.0%).Multivariate logistic regression analysis suggested that patients who were aged≥65 years(OR:2.725,95%confidence interval[CI]:1.317-5.636;P=0.007),were male(OR:1.878,95%CI:1.002-3.520,P=0.049),had comorbid diabetes(OR:3.314,95%CI:1.126-9.758,P=0.030),cough(OR:3.427,95%CI:1.752-6.706,P<0.001),and/or diarrhea(OR:2.629,95%CI:1.109-6.231,P=0.028)on admission had a higher risk of severe disease.Moreover,stratification analysis indicated that male patients with diabetes were more likely to have severe COVID-19(71.4%vs.28.6%,χ2=8.183,P=0.004).Conclusions::The clinical characteristics of those with severe and nonsevere COVID-19 were significantly different.The elderly,male patients with COVID-19,diabetes,and presenting with cough and/or diarrhea on admission may require close monitoring to prevent deterioration.

Structure and properties of indium-doped ZnO films prepared by RF magnetron sputtering under different pressures

High conductive and transparent In-doped ZnO thin films were deposited on glass substrates by radio-frequency(RF)magnetron sputtering at 250℃.Argon gas was used as the sputtering gas,and its pressure varies from 0.1 to 4.0 Pa.The influences of deposition pressure on the structural,electrical and optical properties of the films were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscope(SEM)and Hall and transmittance measurements.The optical constant of the films was estimated from transmittance data using a nonlinear programming method.It is found that the deposition pressure affects the properties of the films significantly.The film deposited at 2.0 Pa shows the optimal crystal quality with a high transmittance of 85%in the visible range and a low resistivity of 2.4×10^(−3)Ω·cm and can thus be used as a transparent electrode.