Association of respiratory symptoms and lung function with occupation in the multinational Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD) study

Background Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has been associated with exposures in the workplace. We aimed to assess the association of respiratory symptoms and lung function with occupation in the Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease study. Methods We analysed cross-sectional data from 28 823 adults (≥40 years) in 34 countries. We considered 11 occupations and grouped them by likelihood of exposure to organic dusts, inorganic dusts and fumes. The association of chronic cough, chronic phlegm, wheeze, dyspnoea, forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1)/FVC with occupation was assessed, per study site, using multivariable regression. These estimates were then meta-analysed. Sensitivity analyses explored differences between sexes and gross national income. Results Overall, working in settings with potentially high exposure to dusts or fumes was associated with respiratory symptoms but not lung function differences. The most common occupation was farming. Compared to people not working in any of the 11 considered occupations, those who were farmers for ≥20 years were more likely to have chronic cough (OR 1.52, 95% CI 1.19–1.94), wheeze (OR 1.37, 95% CI 1.16–1.63) and dyspnoea (OR 1.83, 95% CI 1.53–2.20), but not lower FVC (β=0.02 L, 95% CI −0.02–0.06 L) or lower FEV1/FVC (β=0.04%, 95% CI −0.49–0.58%). Some findings differed by sex and gross national income. Conclusion At a population level, the occupational exposures considered in this study do not appear to be major determinants of differences in lung function, although they are associated with more respiratory symptoms. Because not all work settings were included in this study, respiratory surveillance should still be encouraged among high-risk dusty and fume job workers, especially in low- and middle-income countries.publishedVersio

Cohort Profile: Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD) study

The Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD) study was established to assess the prevalence of chronic airflow obstruction, a key characteristic of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and its risk factors in adults (≥40 years) from general populations across the world. The baseline study was conducted between 2003 and 2016, in 41 sites across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, the Caribbean and Oceania, and collected high-quality pre- and post-bronchodilator spirometry from 28 828 participants. The follow-up study was conducted between 2019 and 2021, in 18 sites across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Caribbean. At baseline, there were in these sites 12 502 participants with high-quality spirometry. A total of 6452 were followed up, with 5936 completing the study core questionnaire. Of these, 4044 also provided high-quality pre- and post-bronchodilator spirometry. On both occasions, the core questionnaire covered information on respiratory symptoms, doctor diagnoses, health care use, medication use and ealth status, as well as potential risk factors. Information on occupation, environmental exposures and diet was also collected

Size distribution and relationship of airborne SARS-CoV-2 RNA to indoor aerosol in hospital ward environments

Aerosol particles proved to play a key role in airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 viruses. Therefore, their size-fractionated collection and analysis is invaluable. However, aerosol sampling in COVID departments is not straightforward, especially in the sub-500-nm size range. In this study, particle number concentrations were measured with high temporal resolution using an optical particle counter, and several 8 h daytime sample sets were collected simultaneously on gelatin flters with cascade impactors in two diferent hospital wards during both alpha and delta variants of concern periods. Due to the large number (152) of size-fractionated samples, SARS-CoV-2 RNA copies could be statistically analyzed over a wide range of aerosol particle diameters (70–10 µm). Our results revealed that SARS-CoV-2 RNA is most likely to exist in particles with 0.5–4 µm aerodynamic diameter, but also in ultrafne particles. Correlation analysis of particulate matter (PM) and RNA copies highlighted the importance of indoor medical activity. It was found that the daily maximum increment of PM mass concentration correlated the most with the number concentration of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the corresponding size fractions. Our results suggest that particle resuspension from surrounding surfaces is an important source of SARS-CoV-2 RNA present in the air of hospital rooms

Geometric approach to the revitalization process of the medieval Serbian monasteries

Among the standard approaches concerning cultural heritage preservation, the architectural point of view deserves particular attention. The special place in medieval Serbian history of architecture belongs to the world famous numerous significant monuments (churches and monasteries) exist as witnesses of the national testimony, currently in the state of ruins, archaeological sites, or damaged ones. A lot of them have adequate needs for revitalisation, where the start point is engineering documentation. The focus of the research is on the role of specific geometric and engineering graphics tasks when these areas are concerning. Monastery church devoted to Introduction of Holy Theotokos in village Slavkovica (near town Ljig), with three old sarcophaguses, dated back to 15th century, is presented and analysed from several aspects: measuring, architectural style characteristics - geometric design, 3D modelling (classical-CAD and terrestrial photogrammetric) with visualization and presentation. The attention was paid on preservation of authentic architectural style and medieval building techniques, which allow imperfections in realization. The opinion of experienced scientists and specialists involved in all the phases of monument's revitalisation has been followed as a guideline to the final result a proposed geometric design of the revitalised church in Slavkovica