Virtual Learning Decreases the Carbon Footprint of Medical Education.

INTRODUCTION: The environmental impact of holding in-person academic conferences and continuing medical education (CME) programs can be significant. In-person conferences provide a unique social and professional platform to engage in networking and foster professional development; however, there is an opportunity for hybrid and virtual platforms to provide CME for broader audiences looking to improve their clinical skills and strengthen their knowledge base. This study seeks to describe the reduction in carbon emissions associated with a webinar hosted by an online dermatology-focused medical education platform. METHODS: This cross-sectional study used the location of deidentified virtual attendees of a webinar to predict the carbon emissions produced if attendees had instead traveled to the location of the most recent Integrative Dermatology Symposium (Sacramento, CA). Following collection of each virtual attendee's location, the mode of transportation was predicted on the basis of each participant's distance to the conference. RESULTS: The estimated carbon emissions were calculated for 576 participants. The total estimated, unadjusted carbon emissions for both attendees predicted to fly or drive was 370,100 kg CO2. The emissions produced per participant from those expected to fly to an in-person CME after adjusting for all additional passengers on every flight were 4.5 kg CO2. The emissions produced per participant from those expected to drive were 42.7 kg CO2. CONCLUSION: The use of a virtual CME webinar led to a significant reduction in travel-related carbon dioxide emissions when compared to running the same program in-person event. When accounting for all passengers traveling via plane on any flight, driving to an event produced more emissions per participant than flying.

Impact of climate change on atopic dermatitis: A review by the International Eczema Council.

Atopic dermatitis (AD), the most burdensome skin condition worldwide, is influenced by climatic factors and air pollution; however, the impact of increasing climatic hazards on AD remains poorly characterized. Leveraging an existing framework for 10 climatic hazards related to greenhouse gas emissions, we identified 18 studies with evidence for an impact on AD through a systematic search. Most climatic hazards had evidence for aggravation of AD the impact ranged from direct effects like particulate matter-induced AD exacerbations from wildfires to the potential for indirect effects like drought-induced food insecurity and migration. We then created maps comparing the past, present, and future projected burden of climatic hazards to global AD prevalence data. Data are lacking, especially from those regions most likely to experience more climatic hazards. We highlight gaps important for future research: understanding the synergistic impacts of climatic hazards on AD, long-term disease activity, the differential impact on vulnerable populations, and how basic mechanisms explain population-level trends.

Cutaneous granulomas associated with rubella virus: A clinical review.

Since the initial identification of vaccine-derived rubella virus (RuV) in the cutaneous granulomas of pediatric patients with inborn errors of immunity in 2014, more than 80 cases of RuV granulomas have been reported implicating both vaccine-derived and wild type RuV. Previously thought to arise exclusively in patients with significant immunocompromise, the identification of RuV granulomas in clinically immunocompetent patients adds nuance to our understanding of the interplay between host environment, immune dysregulation, and RuV granuloma formation. This review summarizes the literature on RuV granulomas including clinical and histopathologic features, proposed pathomechanisms supporting granuloma development, and potential therapeutic options. There is no standardized algorithm to guide the workup and diagnosis of suspected RuV granulomas. We highlight the importance of contributing RuV granuloma cases to ongoing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention surveillance efforts to monitor wild type and vaccine-derived RuV transmission. Studies advancing our understanding of RuV granulomas may provide insights into the role of viral infectious agents in granulomatous disease pathogenesis and guide the development of improved therapeutic options.