Assessment of knowledge, attitude, perceptions and risk assessment among workers in e-waste recycling shops, Thailand

Knowledge, attitudes and practices among rosacea patients in Chongqing, China: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to investigate the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of rosacea patients towards rosacea.

OBJECTIVE

The objective was to assess the KAP levels among rosacea patients to inform potential educational interventions.

DESIGN

A web-based cross-sectional study was conducted.

PARTICIPANTS/SETTING

The study was conducted from November 2022 to October 2023 among rosacea patients attending the Dermatology Department of Southwest Hospital, Chongqing, using a self-administered questionnaire.

INTERVENTION

No specific intervention was applied; the focus was on understanding existing KAP.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

The primary outcome measures included KAP scores regarding rosacea.

STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED

Multivariate logistic regression analysis and structural equation modelling were employed to analyse the associations between KAP scores and demographic factors.

RESULTS

A total of 514 valid questionnaires were collected, with 458 (89.11%) respondents being women. The mean KAP scores were 7.14±2.98 (possible range: 0-12) for knowledge, 52.57±7.07 (possible range: 13-65) for attitude and 62.77±13.24 (possible range: 18-90) for practice. Multivariate analysis indicated that knowledge, attitude, being male, aged 25-30 years and having health insurance were independently associated with proactive practice. Additionally, structural equation modelling revealed that knowledge directly influenced both attitude and practice, while attitude also directly impacted practice (all p<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The study found that rosacea patients had inadequate knowledge, a positive attitude and suboptimal practices regarding their condition. It is recommended that comprehensive patient education and support programmes be developed to enhance knowledge, foster positive attitudes and improve practice behaviours among rosacea patients.

Heavy metal pollution from standardized e-waste dismantling activities: Pollution index, risk assessment and intervening measures

Due to the e-waste complexity and recycling technology limitations, more and more attention has been paid to the inevitable pollution in the standardized recycling process. This study systematically explores the heavy metals (HMs) (from surface dust) pollution characteristics and exposure risk of a typical e-waste dismantling plant (EDP) in South China. Further, this study explores the real level of health risks through valence analysis of a typical HM (Cr), and seeks effective measures to reduce exposure risk through behavioral science methods. The current results showed that the concentration of seven HMs in surface dust of the EDP is between ND-1.91 × 104 mg/kg. All the HM assessment models showed that the EDP has a certain degree of HM pollution. The highest non-carcinogenic risk (2.10) and carcinogenic risk (1.60 ×10-4) caused by the EDP were higher than the reference dose, indicating the high potential exposure risk of surface dust. However, the valence analysis showed that the health risk may be overestimated due to the fact that the existing carcinogenic risk of Cr is calculated in the form of Cr (VI). The behavioral science method showed that improving workers' standardized behavior habits and intentions is an effective way to avoid workers' exposure to HMs.

Health Risks Associated with Informal Electronic Waste Recycling in Africa: A Systematic Review

Informal electronic waste (e-waste) recycling in Africa has become a major public health concern. This review examined studies that report on the association between e-waste exposure and adverse human health outcomes in Africa. The review was conducted following the updated version of the Preferred Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA 2020) statement checklist. We included papers that were original peer-reviewed epidemiological studies and conference papers, written in English, and reported on e-waste exposure among human populations and any health-related outcome in the context of Africa. Our results from the evaluation of 17 studies found an association between informal e-waste recycling methods and musculoskeletal disease (MSD) symptoms and physical injuries such as back pains, lacerations, eye problems, skin burns, and noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). In addition, the generation and release of particulate matter (PM) of various sizes, and toxic and essential metals such as cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), etc., during the recycling process are associated with adverse systemic intermediate health outcomes including cardiopulmonary function and DNA damage. This systematic review concludes that the methods used by e-waste recyclers in Africa expose them to increased risk of adverse health outcomes. However, there is a need for more rigorous research that moves past single pollutant analysis.

E-waste scenario in South-Asia: an emerging risk to environment and public health

Over the past decade, e-waste generation has been accelerated in the world as never before, particularly South-Asia is confronted with an enormous risk of e-waste intensification owing to both locally generated and internationally imported. There has been a gradual increase of e-waste generated in South-Asia and in 2019, 4,057 Kilo tons (kt) of e-waste was generated, which is about 16% of the Asian region. Though there is an urgent requirement to rectify the catastrophic accumulation of e-waste and for its effective eco-friendly management, inadequate legal implementation and poor enforcement, lack of awareness, weak formal e-waste collection and recycling process allow for escalating problems associated with e-waste, particularly towards the environmental and public health concern. Under these circumstances, this paper has been written by reviewing the available research findings, since 2000 to find out the current scenario of South-Asia. Unfortunately, the problem is also not seen as a hot topic to address by the researchers, there are only 106 research studies conducted in South-Asia. Out of that, a considerable number of studies were conducted only in India (54%), Bangladesh (23%), and Pakistan (16%). Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bhutan shared the rest. As a matter of fact, many more studies are needed on environmental and human health effects, legal implementations, awareness and novel managerial strategies etc. to assist policymakers and other relevant authorities in making their decisions. Similarly, rather than facing threats alone, fighting against as a region would be ideal, which also helps to restrict intra movement of e-waste among the South-Asian countries.