Traditional Chinese medicine: empowering tuberculosis prevention and control

Dear Editor,Tuberculosis(TB)is an airborne chronic infectious disease,posing long-lasting challenges and causing extensive health crises and deaths to humanity throughout history,despite existing prevention and treatment methods.The latest TB statistics report released by the World Health Organization in 2023 pointed out that,in 2022,the world recorded approximately 10.6 million new confirmed cases of TB.Among them,China accounted for about 748,000,around 7.1%of the total[1].

Practice of Infection Prevention and Control Strategies in Risk Departments during the COVID-19 Epidemic

Objective: To explore the practice and application of infection prevention and control strategies in risk departments during the COVID-19 epidemic, and to formulate the infection prevention and control measures to provide advice and guidance in risk departments. Methods: According to the latest plan of diagnosis and treatment, prevention and control issued by the National Health Commission, expert advice and consensus, combined with the actual situation in our hospital, a series of infection prevention and control measures of COVID-19 in risk department was formulated. Results: During the epidemic period, the prevention and control measures of nine risk departments including emergency operation, anesthesiology, endoscopy center, blood purification center, otolaryngology, stomatology, medical imaging department, medical cosmetology department and pulmonary function room were established from six aspects, including pre-examination and screening, medical technology control, personnel management, personal protection, environmental disinfection, medical waste disposal, etc. Conclusion: During the epidemic period, the infection prevention and control strategy of risk departments is one of the key links to control the spread of the epidemic, and risk departments must pay attention to and strictly implement various infection prevention and control measures.

Prevention and Control Strategies of Nosocomial Infection and Effectiveness Evaluation in a Tertiary Teaching Hospital during the Epidemic of COVID-19

Objective: To evaluate the role of prevention and control strategies for nosocomial infection in a tertiary teaching hospital during the sudden outbreak of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods: The hospital initiated an emergency plan involving multi-departmental defense and control. It adopted a series of nosocomial infection prevention and control measures, including strengthening pre-examination and triage, optimizing the consultation process, improving the hospital’s architectural composition, implementing graded risk management, enhancing personal protection, and implementing staff training and supervision. Descriptive research was used to evaluate the short-term effects of these in-hospital prevention and control strategies. The analysis compared changes in related evaluation indicators between January 24, 2020 and February 12, 2020 (Chinese Lunar New Year’s Eve 2020 to lunar January 19) and the corresponding lunar period of the previous year. Results: Compared to the same period last year, the outpatient fever rate increased by 1.85-fold (P P Conclusion: The nosocomial infection prevention and control strategies implemented during this specific period improved the detection and control abilities for the COVID-19 source of infection and enhanced the compliance with measures. This likely contributed significantly to avoiding the occurrence of nosocomial infection.

Technical Points of Green Prevention and Control Technology of Major Diseases and Pests in Lixian Rhubarb(Rheum palmatum L.)

Based on different types of diseases,pests and weeds in the whole growth period of rhubarb(sowing period-harvesting period),the corresponding green prevention and control technology is proposed,aiming to further reduce the application amount of pesticides and fertilizers in the production of medicinal sources of Lixian rhubarb during the"14 th Five-Year Plan"period.The results will provide a theoretical basis for increasing the promotion and application of agricultural prevention and control(including disease-resistant varieties,ecological regulation),physical prevention and control,biological prevention and control measures,thus ensuring effective protection of the ecological environment,green,healthy and sustainable development of traditional Chinese medicine agriculture in Longnan,and source quality of authentic medicinal materials.

Comprehensive Prevention and Control Technology of Vegetable Diseases and Pests in Shandong Province

An in-depth research and practice has been conducted on vegetable diseases and pests in Shandong Province,and the principles of comprehensive and ecological control of diseases and pests are put forward,including agricultural control measures such as crop rotation,field cleaning,fertilizer and water management,physical control measures such as catching and killing,trapping,blocking,photoelectric energy treatment,biological control measures such as the use of natural enemies,pathogenic microorganisms,other beneficial organisms and metabolites,and scientific and rational chemical control measures.Comprehensive prevention and control not only controls vegetable diseases and pests effectively,but also protects the ecological environment.

The Research on the Paths of Popular Science Education about Myopia Prevention and Control among College Students in the Context of Shifting the Focus Forward

Currently, the number of myopic people in China has reached as high as 600 million, and it shows a trend of “early onset, high incidence, and a high degree of severity”. The issue of myopia among children and adolescents has attracted widespread attention from all sectors of society. Comprehensive myopia prevention and control efforts have been launched nationwide. Popular science education, vision screening, and improving visual environments are effective measures for preventing myopia. However, among the target audience for comprehensive myopia prevention and control, the preschool children group has been neglected, and the work of myopia prevention and control for this group has been significantly weakened and marginalized. Due to insufficient awareness of prevention and control, the hyperopia reserve in the preschool children group is being continuously depleted, leading to the early onset of myopia. In light of this situation, the focus of myopia prevention and control needs to shift forward, and it is worth exploring and pondering how college students with a background in optometry can develop entertaining and engaging popular science education materials and methods.

Occupation-related airborne diseases: Management and prevention of tuberculosis among nurses working in Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital

Objective:More health workers die from infectious diseases such as tuberculosis(TB)than from any other infectious agent,so the current study is designed to assess TB treatment and preventive measures as they relate to nursing care practice.Materials and Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted among 82 nurses from December 2022 to January 2023.The data were collected through a self-developed questionnaire and analyzed by frequency table and analysis of variance(ANOVA)statistics.Results:The researchers found that nurses have sufficient knowledge on Infection Prevention and Control(IPC)policy,but not all nurses follow this management protocol,and the reason for their action is addressed in this study.The management and preventive measures used by the participants were identified as:proper cough etiquette/hygiene,working in a well-ventilated area,use of mask,appropriate disposal of used items and so on was reported.Moreover,this study also discovered that there is a positive correlation between nurses who had received training in IPC policy and their use of airborne preventive measures for TB patients(F=1.87,P=0.002)as well as a positive correlation between the availability of resources and their adherence to the proper use of airborne preventive measures when caring for TB patients(F=1.96,P˂0.001).Conclusion:We proposed infection and control training for nurses and adequate equipment supplies to the TB ward which are required in quick TB diagnosis,and must be carried out on a regular basis by health-care personnel,for efficient nursing practice.Ensuring proper safety equipment and isolation units should be available and assessable for nurses or other health workers showing sign or symptoms of TB.Similarly,it is necessary for government to put in place the control and regulations that will safeguard nurses and mandate them to adopt TB prevention protocols,which will aid in lowering the prevalence of TB among nurses.

Scenario of Infection Prevention and Control Measures for Tuberculosis in Tuberculosis Inpatient and Outpatient Department in Tertiary Care Hospital

Tuberculosis is one of the most important infectious diseases in our country. Also nosocomial infection by tuberculosis can occur, which can be prevented by implementing simple, effective and affordable tuberculosis infection control measures in health care facilities. To evaluate the effectiveness of infection control measures, such study was planned. Questionnaires were administered to all doctors, healthcare workers and servants working in outdoor and indoor department of tuberculosis at tertiary care hospital to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices on prevention and control of Tuberculosis infection. A scoring system was devised to grade them. One-time audit was also done in outpatient and inpatient department. The analysis showed scoring of poor for doctors, good for nurses and poor forward aids. There is a need to develop strategies for training of health care workers on regular basis in order to reduce the incidence of nosocomial infections. Audit result shows a good level of environmental control measures. Better knowledge, attitude and practices are helpful for the prevention and control of tuberculosis. Also environmental control measures are helpful to prevent infection.

Traditional Chinese medicine for acute mountain sickness prevention: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) for preventing acute mountain sickness(AMS).Methods: We included randomized controlled trials(RCTs) which evalueded the effect of TCM for preventing AMS, compared with a placebo, no treatment or acetazolamide. The literature was searched in 6major databases. RevMan 5.4 software was used for the meta-analysis. The relative risk for discrete variables and the mean difference for continuous variables with 95% confidence intervals(CIs) were applied to express the effect size. The risk of bias in the included studies was evaluated using the Cochrane risk assessment tool 2.0(RoB 2.0), and the evidence certainty was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment and the Development and Evaluation(GRADE) approach.Results: Twenty RCTs involving 3015 participants and 16 TCM patent drugs were included. The overall risk of bias in the majority of studies(15/20) was of some concerns. In terms of the AMS incidence,Rhodiola rosea(R. rosea, Hong Jing Tian) and Ginkgo biloba(G. biloba, Yin Xing Ye) were equivalent to the placebo/no treatment [RR(95% CI): 0.66(0.43-1.01), 0.82(0.63-1.06), respectively]. The AMS incidence in the G. biloba group was higher than that in the acetazolamide group [RR(95% CI): 2.92(1.69-5.06)]. In terms of improving the AMS symptom score on days 1 and 3 in the plateau, R. rosea and G. biloba were superior to the placebo or no treatment [MD(95% CI):-0.98(-1.71,-0.25),-2.05(-3.14,-0.95), respectively]. The other 14 Chinese patent medicines were evaluated in a single trial, and the majority of the results were negative. The subgroup analysis showed that the effect of R. rosea was related to the intervention time, way of ascending, and altitude.Conclusion: R. rosea and G. biloba were effective in improving AMS symptoms but had no effect in reducing the AMS incidence. There was insufficient evidence to support the use of other TCM patent drugs to prevent AMS. More randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trials are warranted to evaluate and screen effective Chinese patent medicines for AMS prevention.

Occurrence Characteristics and Prevention and Control Measures of Spodoptera frugiperda in Maize

Based on practical work experience,this paper analyzed the occurrence characteristics and control measures of Spodoptera frugiperda in maize.The measures including forecasting and early warning,regional prevention and control,agricultural prevention and control,physical prevention and control,chemical prevention and control,and biological prevention and control can effectively control the damage of S.frugiperda and guarantee the safety of food production.The results will provide some reference for the prevention and control of S.frugiperda.

Overview of Occurrence,Prevention and Control of Panonychus citri in China

In order to further promote the prevention and control research of Panonychus citri and improve its control effect,this paper summarizes the main influencing factors of the outbreak,main control technology and drug resistance of P.citri,and puts forward the research focus and control strategy.

Occurrence Factors and Efficient Green Prevention and Control Technology of Peanut Stem Rot Caused by Sclerotium rolfsii in Southern Mountainous Area of Shandong Province

Peanut stem rot caused by Sclerotium rolfsii is a soil-borne disease,and it has become the main disease of peanut in Yimeng mountainous area.S.rolfsii survives the winter as mycelia and sclerotia in soil and debris,becoming the primary source of infection in the following year.The disease resistance of peanut varieties,high temperature and humidity,and cultivation measures are the pathogenic factors affecting the occurrence of peanut stem rot.The disease can be effectively controlled by screening disease-resistant varieties and seed chemical treatment,improving soil by deep tillage and crop rotation,carrying out flowing water management of affected field,cutting off transmission routes,and strengthening seed dressing and triple spraying control.

Looking up Prescriptions to Treat Infectious Disease:Anti-epidemic Books of Medical Formularies and Epidemic Prevention and Control in the Qing Dynasty

Copying,compiling,publishing,disseminating,and referencing anti-epidemic books of medical formularies were common activities during the outbreak of epidemics in the Qing dynasty.Its emergence,motivated by epidemic disease again and again,was important component parts of epidemic prevention and control.They played a unique role as media on affairs such as treating patients suffering from infectious diseases,mobilizing peoples to make contributions to anti-epidemic activities,integrating and popularizing knowledge of epidemic prevention.Anti-epidemic books of medical formularies were important to link peoples,things,and substances related with epidemic prevention and control,and were a kind of motivation to actively deal with the infectious disease,control the epidemic,and maintain health.Compared to other common measures,anti-epidemic books of medical formularies participated in many prevention and control practices deeply,which actually built a low cost,spontaneous,dispersed and non-institutional system to respond to epidemic,and the system had characteristics of stronger conductibility,bigger coverage area,and better external benefits.

Feeding Management and Disease Prevention and Control of Pet Guinea Pigs

Guinea pig is widely used in clinical drug experiments as a laboratory animal.Because of its small and lovely size,guinea pig is often kept as a pet by many families.However,there are few reports on the feeding management and disease prevention and control of pet guinea pigs.This article introduced the experience and technology of feeding management and disease prevention of pet guinea pigs,in order to provide a reference for the feeding management and disease prevention of pet guinea pigs.

Effect and Significance of Comprehensive Training in Infection Prevention and Control on the Psychological Health of Oral Health Staff

Background:Oral health staff have close contact with patients in the process of diagnosis and treatment,and it is inevitable for them to come into contact with patients’secretions.Therefore,oral health staff are at greater risk of infectious diseases in their daily work,and their psychological health is also greatly challenged.Objective:To study the effect and significance of comprehensive training in infection prevention and control on the psychological health of oral health staff.Methods:We selected 400 oral health staff from a tertiary stomatological hospital in Guangzhou,China in this study.The respondents were randomly divided into an intervention group and a control group.After the first round of investigation,the intervention group received comprehensive training in prevention and control of infection for three months,while the control group received no intervention.Results:The comprehensive training in infection prevention and control improved the respondents’psychological health and job satisfaction.Further strengthening infection prevention and control training for oral health staff will increase their self-confidence,improve their mental health,and increase their job satisfaction.Conclusion:For oral health staff,it is particularly important to formulate an effective and operable preventive and control training program and then implement it in a standardized manner.

Method for prevention and control of spontaneous combustion of coal seam and its application in mining field

Spontaneous combustion of coal seam has been and continues to be a big problem in coal mines. It could pose great threat to the safety of the whole mine and all miners, especially when it occurs in or nearby coal mines. Besides, environment of area surrounded mines during combustion can be threatened where large amount of toxic gases including CO_2, CO, SO_2 and H_2S can be leased by fire in mine. Hence, it is important and significant for scholars to study the controlling and preventing of the coal seam fire. In this paper, the complicated reasons for the occurrence and development of spontaneous combustion in coal seam are analysed and different models under various air leakage situations are built as well. Based on the model and approximately calculation, the difficulty of fire extinguishment in coal seam is pointed out as the difficulty and poor effect to remove the large amount of heat released. Detailed measurements about backfilling and case analyses are also provided on the basis of the recent ten years' practice of controlling spontaneous combustion in coal seams in China. A technical fire prevention and control method has been concluded as five steps including detection, prevention, sealing, injection and pressure adjustment. However, various backfill materials require different application and environmental factors, so in this paper, analyses and discussion about the effect and engineering application of prevention of spontaneous combustion are provided according to different backfilling technologies and methods. Once the aforementioned fire prevention can be widely applied and regulated in mines, green mining will be achievable concerning mine fire prevention and control.

Community capacity for sustainable community—based dengue prevention and control:domain,assessment tool and capacity building model

In order to understand the community capacity for sustainable community-based dengue prevention and control,this paper proposes the approach of a previous study about meaning and domains of dengue prevention and control,an assessment tool and a community capacity building model for sustainable community-based dengue prevention and control in the Southern Thailand. A study of dengue community capacity domains was conducted by utilizing a qualitative method, whereby ten initial community domains were identified by means of a literature review,in-depth interviews of sixty community leaders,and eight focus group discussions with sixty non-leaders in four sub-districts of southern Thailand.In the final study,there were 14 identifiable domains in leaders group and 11 domains in non-leaders.The resulting dengue community capacity-assessment tool(DCCAT) consisted of two parts:one for leaders(DCCAT-L) and the other for non-leaders (DCCAT-NL).DCCAT-L was composed of 115 items within 14 domains and 83 items within 11 domains for the DCCAT-NL.The key domains of leaders and non-leaders had a partial overlap of domains such as critical situation management,personal leadership,health care provider capacity,needs assessment,senses of community,leader group networking,communication of dengue information,community leadership,religious capacity,leader group and community networking,resource mobilization,dengue working group,community participation,and continuing activities.The application of the new tool consisted of five steps:1) community preparation,2) assessment,3) a community hearing meeting,4) interventions,and 5) conclusion and improvement step.All stakeholders in the community should use the new tool based on a clear understanding of the measurement objectives,the desired outcomes,resources available and characteristics of their community.If communities need to develop and build dengue community capacity,then the designed pre-post intervention assessments or serial assessments are essential.

Practices on rockburst prevention and control in headrace tunnels of Jinping II hydropower station

Rockburst problems induced by high in-situ stresses were prominent during construction of the headrace tunnels of Jinping II hydropower station. The rockbursts occurred in various forms, and it is necessary to take pertinent measures for integrated prevention and control of rockbursts. In view of the rockburst characteristics during tunnel construction of Jinping II hydropower station, the engineering geological conditions were presented, and the features, mechanisms and forms of rockbursts observed during construction were analyzed in detail. A large number of scientific researches, experiments and applications were conducted. Multiple measures were adopted to prevent and control rockbursts, including the prediction and early warning measures, stress relief by blasting in advance, optimized blasting design and optimized tunnel support in the tunnel sections prone to strong rockbursts. The effectiveness of these prevention and control measures was evaluated. Experiences have been accumulated through a great number of helpful explorations and practices for rockburst prevention and control. A comprehensive rockburst prevention and control system has been gradually established.

Community capacity for sustainable community—based dengue prevention and control:study of a sub—district in Southern Thailand

Objective:To assess the level of community capacity for dengue prevention and control and to study household environments and larval indices in southern Thailand.Methods:A crosssectional survey was designed for the study,enrolling two communities with higher dengue incidence rate than the standard over the past five years.Data gathering was conducted by the dengue leader group(DLG),including 15 leaders and 15 non-leaders trained by the research team.The dengue community capacity assessment tool(DCCAT) for leaders(115 items.14 domains) and non-leaders(83 items,11 domains).Participants were selected by the DLG based on their communities’ dengue risk.In the low-dengue incidence(LDI) community,32 leaders and 177 non-leaders were selected;while in the high-dengue incidence(HDI) community,31 leaders and 199 non-leaders were chosen.Results:The leaders from the LDI and the HDI communities demonstrated high levels of dengue community-capacity(360.47±58.82,416.22±57.72). Non-leaders in the LDI community demonstrated a moderate level of dengue community capacity competence(205.90±60.76),while the non-leaders in the HDI community had a high level (254.78±50.34).Conclusions:These initial levels of dengue community capacity serves as a baseline for diagnosing each community.For a community that needed to improve its capacity, the DCCAT is essential tool to conduct a pre-post intervention assessment or a serial assessment. A participatory approach is taken to enable local communities to carry out anti-dengue efforts on their own,rather than have intervention by an outsider.

Assessment on the Effects of Hepatitis B Prevention and Control Measures in Western China:A Comparison of Three Population-based Serosurveys

Objective Despite the remarkable progress in efforts to control disease spread,the nationwide elimination of hepatitis B in China is still hindered by the persistently high rate of hepatitis B virus(HBV)infection in Western China.This study aimed to evaluate the strategy of hepatitis B prevention and control in Western China and identify potential areas and strategies for improvement.Methods Susceptible population vaccination,health education,professional training of doctors,and other prevention and control measures have been implemented in Wuwei city since 2010.Data were obtained from three representative cross-sectional serosurveys conducted in 2010,2013,and 2015.The serum samples were subjected to enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays to detect the following seromarkers:HBV surface antigen(HBsAg),antibody against hepatitis B surface antigen(anti-HBs),and antibody against hepatitis B core antigen(anti-HBc).Estimates of variance were determined using Taylor series linearization methods.Results The three serosurveys revealed decreases in the prevalence of HBsAg(7.19% in 2010 vs.6.51% in 2013 vs.5.87% in 2015)and anti-HBc positivity(43.89%vs.32.87%vs.28.46%)and an increase in the prevalence of anti-HBs positivity(49.07%vs.53.66%vs.53.72%)over time.From 2010 to 2015,the legally reported incidence of hepatitis B in Wuwei city decreased from 686.53/100,000 to 53.72/100,000.Notably,persistently high HBsAg-positive rates(above 5.40%)were observed among subjects aged 20–69 years old in the three serosurveys;the prevalence of HBsAg was above 1% among children younger than 10 years old.Furthermore,rural subjects had higher rates of HBsAg and anti-HBc positivity than their urban counterparts(6.04%vs.4.83% and 30.26%vs.20.35%,respectively)in 2015 but had a lower rate of anti-HBs positivity(49.68 vs.55.18%).Multivariate regression analysis showed that age,urban and rural areas,and education level were the main factors affecting HBV infection.Conclusion Although vaccine-based prevention and control measures reduced the rate of HBV infection in Wuwei City over time,the hepatitis B infection rate in children younger than 10 years was still higher than the national average level.Therefore,the prevention and control of mother-to-child transmission and the management of the infected should be the focus of future prevention and control work.