The impact of air pollution and climate change on eye health: a global review

Abstract Climate change has important implications on human health, affecting almost every system in the body. Multiple studies have raised the possibility of climate change impacting eye health. In this review, we aimed to summarize current literature on the impact of air pollution and climate change on eye health. We performed a search in four different databases, including Medline, Scopus, Cochrane, and Web of Sciences databases. The search strategy combined terms regarding eye health and environmental/climate changes. The outcome of interest included all eye conditions. The search yielded 2,051 unique articles. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 61 articles were included in this systematic review with data covering 2,620,030 participants. Most studies originated from China, India, South Korea, and USA. Climate change adversely affected different eye conditions, with ocular surface diseases (e.g., conjunctivitis and dry eye) being most affected. Moreover, higher particulate matter (PM) was the most widely assessed pollutant and was adversely associated with the majority of eye conditions, increasing the burden on patients and healthcare providers. We found a low frequency of publications related to the delivery of eye care and its impact on climate change in countries with high air pollution and climate change burden.</jats:p

Alterations in Patients&rsquo; Clinical Outcomes and Respiratory Viral Pathogen Activity following the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: Before the COVID-19 pandemic, respiratory pathogens such as influenza, parainfluenza, and respiratory syncytial virus were the most commonly detected viruses among hospitalized patients with respiratory tract infections. Methods: This was a retrospective observational study of inpatients and outpatients who attended Jordan University Hospital and underwent Nasopharyngeal Aspiration (NPA) in the periods from December 2017 to December 2018 and from December 2021 to December 2022. The results of multiplex respiratory pathogen real-time PCR tests for nasopharyngeal swab specimens were extracted from the electronic-based molecular diagnostic laboratory record of JUH. We compared the prevalence of the detected viruses as well as the patients&rsquo; characteristics and outcomes between the two periods. Results: The total number of included patients was 695. Our analysis showed that a higher percentage of patients with hypertension and diabetes presented before the pandemic compared to the same period after it (p-value &lt; 0.001). The need for O2 devices, white blood cell counts, diastolic blood pressure, and the length of hospital stay were significantly higher among patients who presented before the pandemic (p-value &lt; 0.050). Influenza H1N1 (8.70% vs. 4.03%), influenza B (1.67% vs. 0.25%), parainfluenza (1.00% vs. 0.00%), human metapneumovirus (5.35% vs. 0.76%), adenoviruses (6.35% vs. 3.02%), and coronaviruses (8.70% vs. 3.53%) were detected with higher frequency in the period before the pandemic (p-value = 0.011, 0.045, 0.045, 0.000, 0.035, 0.004). These results were similar in terms of changes in the detection rates of viruses after matching the number of tested patients between the periods before and after the pandemic. Conclusions: We have demonstrated a reduction in the detection of several viruses, which might be due to the increase in public awareness toward infection protection measures after the COVID-19 pandemic

Burnout Among University Students During Distance Learning Period due to the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross Sectional Study at the University of Jordan

Objective The COVID-19 pandemic led to a deviation from classical face-to-face learning to distance learning. Few studies examined burnout among university students during the distance learning period due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This study that aims to investigate the prevalence of burnout among university students during distance learning and the factors associated with it. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted among undergraduate students at the University of Jordan. The modified version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory for students (MBI-SS) was used to assess burnout. Results The total number of participants was 587 and the mean total of MBI-SS score was 63.34 ± 8.85. Based on the MBI-SS definition, 6.6% of the study participants were found to have symptoms of burnout. Practicing hobbies, level of satisfaction with distance learning, and thoughts about quitting courses were significant predictors of burnout. Conclusion This study showed a relatively low prevalence of burnout among students during the distance learning period with several factors associated with it. As a result, identifying these factors will help both students and educational institutions to implement strategies that are needed for the primary and secondary prevention of burnout. </jats:sec

The role of anatomical repair of the anterior inferior tibiofibular ligament in acute ankle fractures with syndesmotic injury: A systematic review

The management of syndesmotic injury in ankle fractures is still controversial. Anterior inferior tibiofibular ligament (AITFL) primary repair is considered essential to reduce the risk of syndesmotic malreduction. This review examined the available literature on primary AITFL repair in ankle fractures. This systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, and Google Scholar were searched up to July 15, 2021, for articles reporting on the repair of AITFL in acute ankle fractures with syndesmotic injury. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. Studies that investigated isolated syndesmotic injury without ankle fracture, reviews, cadaveric studies, case reports, and studies not published in English were excluded from the study. The search yielded 588 articles, of which three studies were included, with a total of 229 AITFL primary repairs. The articles were excluded due to different design, foreign language, irrelevancy, or no syndesmosis injury, including patients with isolated syndesmosis injury or used methods of repair other than anatomical repair. Early functional outcomes were found better after AITFL repair compared to syndesmotic screw fixation alone. Moreover, time to return to play/work was significantly lower in the anatomical repair compared to temporary screw fixation. Anatomical repair of the ankle syndesmosis is an effective and safe method with good functional outcomes and return to activity. However, the future prospective studies are required to assess the efficacy of the anatomical repair of the syndesmosis and its superiority over other treatments.</jats:p

Safety and Efficacy of SSRIs in Improving Poststroke Recovery: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis

Background Several studies investigated the role of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in improving poststroke recovery; thus, we have decided to conduct this systematic review and meta‐analysis to investigate the efficacy and safety of SSRIs in poststroke recovery. Methods and Results In this meta‐analysis we searched the following databases: PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus, and Google Scholar. The studies were included if they were placebo‐controlled trials in design and reported SSRIs’ effects on poststroke depression, anxiety, disability, dependence, motor abilities, and cognitive functions. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the revised Cochrane risk‐of‐bias tool for randomized trials. The search yielded 44 articles that included 16 164 patients, and about half of the participants were treated with SSRIs. Our results showed that SSRIs had a significant effect on preventing depression (weighted mean difference [WMD], −7.05 [95% CI, −11.78 to −2.31]), treating depression according to the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression score (WMD, −1.45 [95% CI, −2.77 to −0.14]), anxiety (relative risk, 0.23 [95% CI, 0.09–0.61]), dependence (WMD, 8.86 [95% CI, 1.23–16.48]), motor abilities according to National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score (WMD, −0.79 [95% CI, −1.42 to −0.15]), and cognitive functions (WMD, 1.00 [95% CI, 0.12–1.89]). On the other hand, no significant effect of SSRIs on disability was observed. Additionally, we found that treating with SSRIs increased the risk of seizures (relative risk, 1.44 [95% CI, 1.13–1.83]), whereas there was no difference in the incidence of gastrointestinal symptoms or bleeding between SSRIs and a placebo. Conclusions Our study showed that SSRIs are effective in preventing and treating depression, and improving anxiety, motor function, cognitive function, and dependence in patients after stroke. These benefits were only reproducible with the citalopram subanalysis but not fluoxetine. Further well‐conducted placebo‐controlled trials are needed to investigate the safety and efficacy of citalopram among patients after stroke. Registration URL: www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/ ; Unique identifier: CRD42021285766. </jats:sec

The delaying of elective surgeries after COVID-19 infection decreases postoperative complications

Summary: Background: Huge controversy surrounds delaying elective surgeries after COVID-19 infection. Although two studies evaluated the issue, several gaps still exist. Methods: A propensity score matched retrospective single center cohort design was used to evaluate the optimum time of delaying elective surgeries after COVID-19 infection and the validity of the current ASA guidelines in this regard. The exposure of interest was a previous COVID-19 infection. The primary composite included the incidence of death, unplanned Intensive Care Unit admission or postoperative mechanical ventilation. The secondary composite included the occurrence of pneumonia, acute respiratory distress, or venous thromboembolic. Results: The total number of patients was 774, half of them had a history of COVID-19 infection. The analysis revealed that delaying surgeries for 4 weeks was associated with significant reduction in primary composite (AOR = 0.02; 95%CI: 0.00–0.33) and the length of hospital stay (B = 3.05; 95%CI: 0.41–5.70). Furthermore, before implementing the ASA guidelines in our hospital, a significant higher risk for the primary composite (AOR = 15.15; 95%CI: 1.84–124.44; P-value = 0.011) was observed compared to after applying it. Conclusion: Our study showed that the optimum period of delaying elective surgery after COVID-19 infection is four weeks, with no further benefits from waiting for longer times. This finding provide further support to the current ASA guidelines about delaying elective surgeries. Further large-scale prospective studies are needed to give more evidence-based support to the appropriateness of the 4-week waiting time for elective surgeries after COVID-19 infection and to investigate the effect of type of surgery on the required delay