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Morantes G, Rincon G, Chanaba A, Jones B. Addressing air quality challenges: Comparative analysis of Barcelona, Venezuela, and Guayaquil, Ecuador. Heliyon 2024; 10:e29211. [PMID: 38681546 PMCID: PMC11053290 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e29211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024] Open
Abstract
This study presents a willingness-to-pay (WtP) questionnaire that was designed, validated, and applied to assess perceptions of air quality and self-reported health in two middle-income South American cities: Barcelona and its neighboring cities (Venezuela) and Guayaquil (Ecuador). These cities lack air quality monitoring and control measures. The questionnaire is a reliable tool to assess air quality based on citizens' perceptions, and the results reveal that both populations perceive low air quality and accurately identify emission sources and air pollutants (industrial emissions and particulate matter in Barcelona and vehicular emissions and carbon monoxide in Guayaquil). The study also evaluated the efforts made by both cities to improve air quality using the United Nations Environment Programme to strengthen air quality in South America. Based on this evaluation, strengths were identified for enhancing air quality in both cities. The study finds that in Barcelona and its surroundings, investment is needed to improve urban transport, waste management, and update the environmental legislation regarding air quality at the national level. In contrast, Guayaquil has already taken some measures to improve air quality, but more investment in public transport and measures to lower vehicle emissions are needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giobertti Morantes
- Department of Architecture and Built Environment, University of Nottingham, NG7 2RD, United Kingdom
| | - Gladys Rincon
- Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral, ESPOL, Facultad de Ingeniería Marítima y Ciencias del Mar (FIMCM), Guayaquil, Ecuador
- Pacific International Center for Disaster Risk Reduction, ESPOL, Guayaquil, Ecuador
| | - Alejandro Chanaba
- Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral, ESPOL, Facultad de Ingeniería Marítima y Ciencias del Mar (FIMCM), Guayaquil, Ecuador
| | - Benjamin Jones
- Department of Architecture and Built Environment, University of Nottingham, NG7 2RD, United Kingdom
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Cortes-Ramirez J, Gatton M, Wilches-Vega JD, Mayfield HJ, Wang N, Paris-Pineda OM, Sly PD. Mapping the risk of respiratory infections using suburban district areas in a large city in Colombia. BMC Public Health 2023; 23:1400. [PMID: 37474891 PMCID: PMC10360249 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-16179-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Acute respiratory infections (ARI) in Cúcuta -Colombia, have a comparatively high burden of disease associated with high public health costs. However, little is known about the epidemiology of these diseases in the city and its distribution within suburban areas. This study addresses this gap by estimating and mapping the risk of ARI in Cúcuta and identifying the most relevant risk factors. METHODS A spatial epidemiological analysis was designed to investigate the association of sociodemographic and environmental risk factors with the rate of ambulatory consultations of ARI in urban sections of Cúcuta, 2018. The ARI rate was calculated using a method for spatial estimation of disease rates. A Bayesian spatial model was implemented using the Integrated Nested Laplace Approximation approach and the Besag-York-Mollié specification. The risk of ARI per urban section and the hotspots of higher risk were also estimated and mapped. RESULTS A higher risk of IRA was found in central, south, north and west areas of Cúcuta after adjusting for sociodemographic and environmental factors, and taking into consideration the spatial distribution of the city's urban sections. An increase of one unit in the percentage of population younger than 15 years; the Index of Multidimensional Poverty and the rate of ARI in the migrant population was associated with a 1.08 (1.06-1.1); 1.04 (1.01-1.08) and 1.25 (1.22-1.27) increase of the ARI rate, respectively. Twenty-four urban sections were identified as hotspots of risk in central, south, north and west areas in Cucuta. CONCLUSION Sociodemographic factors and their spatial patterns are determinants of acute respiratory infections in Cúcuta. Bayesian spatial hierarchical models can be used to estimate and map the risk of these infections in suburban areas of large cities in Colombia. The methods of this study can be used globally to identify suburban areas and or specific communities at risk to support the implementation of prevention strategies and decision-making in the public and private health sectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Javier Cortes-Ramirez
- Centre for Data Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane City, Australia.
- Children's Health and Environment Program, Child Health Research Centre, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia.
- Faculty of Health, University of Santander, Santander, Colombia.
- Queensland University of Technology, O Block D Wing Room D722. Ring Road, Kelvin Grove Campus, Victoria Park Road. Kelvin Grove, Kelvin Grove, QLD, 4059, Australia.
| | - Michelle Gatton
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane City, Australia
| | | | - Helen J Mayfield
- School of Public Health, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
| | - Ning Wang
- National Centre for Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Control and Prevention. Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, China
| | | | - Peter D Sly
- Children's Health and Environment Program, Child Health Research Centre, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
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Torres A, Montiel-Nava C. Clinical and demographic differences by sex in autistic Venezuelan children: A cross-sectional study. Res Dev Disabil 2022; 128:104276. [PMID: 35728436 DOI: 10.1016/j.ridd.2022.104276] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Revised: 05/31/2022] [Accepted: 06/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Sex differences in symptom severity and adaptive function in children with ASD have been historically inconsistent and studies are predominantly from American- and European-residing populations. Alike, there is limited information on the complex interplay between sex, intelligence, adaptive function, and autism symptom severity; this is crucial to identify given their predictive value for health outcomes in autism AIM: This study aimed to identify sex differences in autism symptom severity and adaptive function in a sample of Venezuelan children. METHOD One-hundred-and-three Venezuelan children ages 3-7 completed a comprehensive assessment for symptom severity, adaptive functioning, and intelligence. RESULTS Sex differences were not present in any autism diagnostic domain or adaptive function.Symptom severity was not a significant predictor for adaptive function, which contrasts with studies sampling American children. CONCLUSION This study corroborates other findings based on non-American children, where symptom severity was not a function of adaptive function. Awareness of the interplay of culture, sex-related standards, and autism symptomatology will result in better identification and diagnosis of autism regardless of sex or cultural background. What this paper adds? This paper aids the current literature on sex difference on both autism symptom severity and adaptive function. It also provides a snapshot of the relationship between symptom severity, adaptive function, and other psychological variables that influence the outcome of children with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andy Torres
- The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Department of Psychological Science, 1201W University Dr, Edinburg, TX 78539, USA.
| | - Cecilia Montiel-Nava
- The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Department of Psychological Science, 1201W University Dr, Edinburg, TX 78539, USA.
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Salas-Wright CP, Vaughn MG, Goings TC, Cobb CL, Cohen M, Montero-Zamora P, Eschmann R, John R, Andrade P, Oliveros K, Rodríguez J, Maldonado-Molina MM, Schwartz SJ. Toward a Typology of Transnational Communication among Venezuelan Immigrant Youth: Implications for Behavioral Health. J Immigr Minor Health 2021; 23:1045-1052. [PMID: 33033998 PMCID: PMC8026776 DOI: 10.1007/s10903-020-01099-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
We identify subtypes of Venezuelan youth based on patterns of technology-based communication with friends in their receiving (US) and sending (Venezuela) countries and, in turn, examine the behavioral health characteristics among different "subtypes" of youth. Using data from 402 recently-arrived Venezuelan immigrant youth (ages 10-17), latent profile analysis and multinomial regression are employed to examine the relationships between technology-based communication and key outcomes. We identified a four-class solution: [#1] "Daily Contact in US, In Touch with Venezuela" (32%), [#2] "Daily Communication in Both Countries" (19%), [#3] "Weekly Contact: More Voice/Text Than Social Media" (35%), and [#4] "Infrequent Communication with US and Venezuela" (14%). Compared to Class #1, youth in Classes #2 and #3 report elevated depressive symptomatology and more permissive substance use views. Findings suggest that how youth navigate and maintain transnational connections varies substantially, and that technology-based communication is related to key post-migration outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher P Salas-Wright
- School of Social Work, Boston University, 264 Bay State Road, Boston, MA, 02215, USA.
- School of Social Work, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, USA.
| | - Michael G Vaughn
- School of Social Work, College for Public Health and Social Justice, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Graduate School of Social Welfare, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Trenette Clark Goings
- School of Social Work, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Cory L Cobb
- College of Education, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Mariana Cohen
- School of Social Work, Boston University, 264 Bay State Road, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Pablo Montero-Zamora
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Division of Prevention Science & Community Health, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Rob Eschmann
- School of Social Work, Boston University, 264 Bay State Road, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Rachel John
- School of Social Work, Boston University, 264 Bay State Road, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Seth J Schwartz
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Division of Prevention Science & Community Health, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
- College of Education, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
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