VectAbundance: a spatio-temporal database of Aedes mosquitoes observations.

Modelling approaches play a crucial role in supporting local public health agencies by estimating and forecasting vector abundance and seasonality. However, the reliability of these models is contingent on the availability of standardized, high-quality data. Addressing this need, our study focuses on collecting and harmonizing egg count observations of the mosquito Aedes albopictus, obtained through ovitraps in monitoring and surveillance efforts across Albania, France, Italy, and Switzerland from 2010 to 2022. We processed the raw observations to obtain a continuous time series of ovitraps observations allowing for an extensive geographical and temporal coverage of Ae. albopictus population dynamics. The resulting post-processed observations are stored in the open-access database VectAbundance.This initiative addresses the critical need for accessible, high-quality data, enhancing the reliability of modelling efforts and bolstering public health preparedness.

Health policy developments in the Western Balkan Countries 2000-19: towards European Health and Health Care Policies.

BACKGROUND: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia have committed to becoming European Union (EU) member states. This, among others, implies that candidate/potential candidate states adopt legally authorized EU policies, including health. The study aims to identify the main country-specific health policy areas critical to the EU accession health policy dimension and present the change in associated selected health indicators from 2000 to 2019. METHODS: The study draws on published reports and analyses of official statistics over time and cross-country. Health care policy adherence to the European Commission's recommended country-specific health actions was classified into five health policy areas: financing, payment, organization, regulation and persuasion. Key health policy areas for Western Balkan countries (WBCs) were identified. Health progress or lack thereof in catching up to the EU15 population health, health expenditure and the number of health professionals are measured. RESULTS: The European Commission prioritized financing and regulation for all WBCs in the five policy areas. Nine of the 18 analyzed selected health indicators showed divergence, and the other nine converged towards the EU15 averages. WBCs continue to face diverse public health challenges in improving life expectancy at birth, death rates caused by circulatory system diseases, malignant neoplasms, traffic accidents, psychoactive substance use, tuberculosis incidence, tobacco smoking prevalence and public-sector health expenditure. CONCLUSIONS: By 2019, there is limited evidence of WBCs catching up to the average EU15 health levels and health care policies. Closer attention towards EU health and health care policies would be favourable.

Health status in selected post-communist European countries: a comparative study between Poland and Albania.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this analysis was to compare selected health status indicators of the Albanian and Polish populations, pertinent to two former communist countries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). METHODS: This analysis was based on the estimates related to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 study, reported by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). For Poland, IHME uses data mainly from the Central Statistical Office of Poland, whereas for Albania the information is based on the reports from the National Institute of Statistics. RESULTS: In 2019, life expectancy at birth was slightly higher in Albania compared to Poland (78.5 years vs. 78.1 years, respectively). Mortality rate from noncommunicable diseases was similar in both countries (about 520 deaths per 100,000 population). In 2019, the main risk factor for the overall mortality in both countries was the high systolic blood pressure. In Albania, high systolic blood pressure accounted for almost 32% of deaths from all causes, whereas in Poland it accounted for only 21% of all deaths. The second main risk factor in Albania concerned the dietary factors which were responsible for almost one in four deaths. In Poland, the second main risk factor for all-cause mortality concerned tobacco which was responsible for one in five deaths. The third leading risk factor in Albania was tobacco (responsible for one in five deaths), whereas in Poland it concerned the dietary risks (responsible for about 19% of the all-cause mortality). CONCLUSIONS: This analysis provides useful information about the current health status of two populations pertinent to the former Communist Bloc in CEE. While health indicators can provide important information about the differences in health status between populations, it is important to interpret these indicators in the context of the specific challenges and limitations facing each country.

Impact of cigarette price and tobacco control policies on youth smoking experimentation in Albania.

BACKGROUND: Albania has one of the highest smoking prevalence in Europe especially among the youth. There is a lack of evidence in Albania, as well as in most of Eastern Europe and middle-income countries, regarding the effect of price on smoking experimentation. OBJECTIVE: The study aims to assess the effect of price and tobacco control policies on youth smoking experimentation in Albania. METHODS: We used microdata from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey in Albania for 2004, 2009, 2015 and 2020. We constructed a pseudo-longitudinal dataset and estimated a split-population model to assess the hazard of smoking experimentation. RESULTS: Price is a significant predictor of smoking experimentation among teenagers in Albania for both males and females (p<0.001). Being male increases the odds for smoking experimentation by more than 50% as compared with females (p<0.001), whereas females appear to be more price sensitive. Peer and parent smoking are also important determinants for smoking experimentation. Introducing penalties for smokers and legal entities violating smoke-free policies implemented in 2014 is also associated with a lower hazard of smoking experimentation. CONCLUSION: Price is a significant predictor of smoking experimentation among teenagers in Albania for both males and females. A combination of increasing taxes and strengthening the rule of law to control tobacco use in public spaces, in addition to public awareness campaigns targeting both youth and smoking parents, could help to significantly reduce the probability of smoking experimentation.

Difficulties and challenges experienced by nurses in eldercare institutions in Albania: A qualitative content analysis.

INTRODUCTION: The global and Albanian populations of elderly people are steadily increasing. It is estimated that the number of elderly adults requiring care in Albania will rise from 90.9 thousand to 130.4 thousand by 2030. Despite the envisaged increase in the number and life expectancy of the elderly population in Albania, which will result in an increased demand for nursing care, little is known about the difficulties and challenges that nurses face while providing care for elderly Albanian individuals. AIM: To explore the difficulties and challenges nurses experience while caring for elderly people in Albanian eldercare institutions. METHODS: The study employed a qualitative design using purposive sampling of 20 nurses in 8 eldercare institutions who participated in face-to-face semi-structured interviews. The audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and subsequently subjected to analysis using Graneheim and Lundman's qualitative conventional content analysis. Data analysis was supported by the qualitative data analysis software MAXQDA 2020. The reporting of this study followed the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) checklist. RESULTS: Five key categories emerged from data analysis: (1) professional difficulties, (2) educational difficulties, (3) relationship challenges, (4) increased mental stress, and (5) participation in advocacy. This study showed that nursing staff experienced many barriers, challenges, and unmet needs when implementing care for elderly people in long-term care facilities. CONCLUSION: The findings indicate that nurses working in eldercare institutions faced significant challenges in caring for elderly people. Nurses need more legal, financial, educational, and emotional support. The study indicates that more organizational and national support is necessary for nursing staff to care for elderly people in eldercare Albanian institutions properly. Eldercare institution leaders need to recognize the importance of their role in overcoming the barriers and providing adequate support for their staff in caring for elderly people.

Prevalence of malocclusion and oral health-related factors among pre-school children in Northern Albania.

The aim of the present study was to investigate prevalence and association between malocclusion and caries among pre-school children aged 4-6 years frequenting public kindergartens in Shkodër, the largest city in North Albania. The sample for this descriptive and cross-sectional study included 389 pre-school children aged 4-6 years frequenting 20 public kindergartens in Shkodër, the largest city in North Albania. The participants were divided into two groups according to their caries experience evaluated, as determined by decayed-missing-filled index dmf (World Health Organization criteria) score. Those with dmf score of zero were considered to be free of caries. The prevalence of children with at least one malocclusion trait was 89%. The prevalence of caries was 66% (mean dmf score: 3.63). Increased overbite (43%), followed by increased overjet, were the most prevalent malocclusion traits observed in children with a dmf of zero. Among children with caries, the most prevalent trait was increased overjet (42%) and increased overbite. Almost half of the entire study population had a straight terminal plane and class I canine relationship. There was a similar prevalence of bilateral crossbite. Significant changes (p = 0.008) were observed between the groups with regards to the absence of spacing in the maxillary anterior region. Regression analysis further revealed that children with an absence of maxillary spacing were 2.564-fold more likely to have caries; those with a deepbite were 0.814-fold more likely to have caries. More than half of the children had caries. Increased overjet, overbite, crossbite and maxillary crowding were malocclusion traits observed in the population included in this study. A positive association was identified between maxillary crowding, deepbite and caries. The association between malocclusion and caries, highlights the necessity for an increased awareness of these two conditions that are commonly found among children of pre-school age.

Synapion (Giustiapion) benedikti Giusto, Kol and Holecov, a new species from Albania and Greece (Coleoptera, Apionidae).

Synapion (Giustiapion) benedikti Giusto, Kol and Holecov n. sp. from Albania and Greece (; type locality: Central Greece: Kaliakouda Mts.: Anida env.) is described. It is compared with Synapion (Giustiapion) falzonii (Schatzmayr, 1922) and Synapion (Giustiapion) perraudieri (Desbrochers des Loges, 1884) and a key to the three species is presented.

A preliminary study on determination of radioactivity levels and estimation of the annual effective dose in dried fruits consumed in Albania.

This work aimed to support Albania's food safety monitoring regime. In this context, the natural and artificial radioactivity was measured in 20 samples of dried fruits collected randomly in different markets of Tirana. The activity concentration of 40K, 226Ra, 232Th and 137Cs was determined by using the high-purity germanium detector. The maximum values of activity concentration in dried fruits were calculated as 517 ± 22 Bq kg-1 for 40K, 11.10 ± 0.93 Bq kg-1 for 226Ra, 4.38 ± 0.26 Bq kg-1 for 232Th and 0.83 ± 0.14 Bq kg-1 for 137Cs. The average values of activity concentration of 40K and 226Ra were 269and 6.05 Bq kg-1 and the average effective dose to individuals from the intake of the dried fruits was 44 µSv y-1. All average values in this study were lower than recommended values by reports United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effect of Atomic Radiation, World Health Organization and International Commission on Radiological Protection for all age groups. Therefore, all dried fruit samples in this study are safe for consumption with acceptable radiological risk and none of them pose any significant radiological impact. The obtained data in this paper and information for levels of radioactivity and ingestion absorbed dose from dried fruits can be used to be the basic data for future comparative analysis of the other studies.

Reporting of Adverse Drug Reactions by Dentists and Dental Patients in Albania.

BACKGROUND: Procedures on reporting adverse drug reactions (ADRs) in Albania are not yet standardised with the European Union despite continuous legislative changes. The aim of this study was to assess for the first time in Albania the reporting of ADRs by dentists and dental patients and to evaluate the frequency and timing of ADRs. METHODS: We conducted a questionnaire-based survey for dentists and dental patients in Albania on their knowledge on ADR signalling. Dentists and their patients were randomly reached in private dental clinics. Ninety-five dentists and 640 dental patients from 5 different cities in Albania agreed to participate in the study. Only dentists who were actively working on their dental clinics and who volunteered to participate in the study were considered eligible. RESULTS: The response rates were 95.0% and 91.4% for dentists and dental patients, respectively. In addition, 7.36% of dentists reported to have been informed on the national ADR signalling through conferences, but when asked about the procedures only 28.6% of them reported to have knowledge on the concrete process. None of the dental patients knew how to report ADRs. CONCLUSIONS: The findings demonstrate the complete lack of information on ADR signalling in a randomly selected group of 640 dental patients and 95 dentists surveyed. The results of the study are concerning and show that knowledge on ADR signalling should massively increase through public and social media.

Inducement of positive nutritional practices through health promotion campaigns among parents/caregivers in Albania.

Opting for homemade meals is the healthiest choice. We assessed the change in nutritional practices among parents/caregivers exposed to health promotion campaigns. Pre- and post-intervention surveys inquiring about nutritional practices were conducted respectively in March and June 2022 in a community-based sample of 583 parents/caregivers in Albania (62% females; age: 39.7 ± 7.1 years; response: 83%). The multi-component intervention consisted of community-based 'onsite' events (awareness raising campaigns) and 'online' interventions (knowledge portal and digital applications). After the intervention, the prevalence of home cooking and/or provision of home-made foods to children for eating at school increased by 11% (both P < 0.01). Engagement in healthy nutritional practices 'only after the intervention' increased especially among Roma/Egyptian parents/caregivers.

The application of next generation matrix in the calculation of basic reproduction number for COVID-19.

Background: Infectious diseases are disorders caused by microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites. Many organisms live in and on our bodies. They are normally harmless or even helpful. However under certain conditions, some organisms may cause disease. Infectious diseases are also called contagious diseases due to the fact that they can be passed from person to person. Some are transmitted by insects or other animals. COVID-19 is an infectious disease that has "pervaded" the whole world during the last three years. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared COVID-19 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. Methods: In this paper, we will study the outbreak of this pandemic in Albania based on some mathematical models, such as SIR, SIRD, and SEIRD. We will present a detailed analysis of these models and also demonstrate how they can be used to predict the spread of infectious diseases. More precisely, we will see the spread of COVID-19 in our country, Albania. Software such as MATLAB and RStudio will be used to do this. The data that we will use when working with these programs is taken from the Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania. Results: We've developed an application utilizing actual data to estimate SEIRD model parameters. It's able to compute the basic reproduction number and, more significantly, provides forecasts on the disease's progression. Conclusions: Our aim is to calculate the Basic Reproduction Number, using the Next Generation Matrix, and use it to see the future of the disease. This is the average number of new infections generated by an infected individual. A large value indicates that the infection is transmitted very quickly. We will try to calculate what the values of Basic Number Reproduction have been over different time periods.

Using Twitter to collect a multi-dialectal corpus of Albanian using advanced geotagging and dialect modeling.

In this study, we present the acquisition and categorization of a geographically-informed, multi-dialectal Albanian National Corpus, derived from Twitter data. The primary dialects from three distinct regions-Albania, Kosovo, and North Macedonia-are considered. The assembled publicly available dataset encompasses anonymized user information, user-generated tweets, auxiliary tweet-related data, and annotations corresponding to dialect categories. Utilizing a highly automated scraping approach, we initially identified over 1,000 Twitter users with discernible locations who actively employ at least one of the targeted Albanian dialects. Subsequent data extraction phases yielded an augmentation of the preliminary dataset with an additional 1,500 Twitterers. The study also explores the application of advanced geotagging techniques to expedite corpus generation. Alongside experimentation with diverse classification methodologies, comprehensive feature engineering and feature selection investigations were conducted. A subjective assessment is conducted using human annotators, which demonstrates that humans achieve significantly lower accuracy rates in comparison to machine learning (ML) models. Our findings indicate that machine learning algorithms are proficient in accurately differentiating various Albanian dialects, even when analyzing individual tweets. A meticulous evaluation of the most salient attributes of top-performing algorithms provides insights into the decision-making mechanisms utilized by these models. Remarkably, our investigation revealed numerous dialectal patterns that, despite being familiar to human annotators, have not been widely acknowledged within the broader scientific community.

Incidence of Aflatoxins and Ochratoxin A in Wheat and Corn from Albania.

In this study, aflatoxins (AFs) and ochratoxin A (OTA) were analyzed in grains, specifically wheat and corn, from Albania. To summarize, 71 wheat and 45 corn samples from different growing areas were collected. The multi-toxin analytical procedure involved sample extraction and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The incidence of AF was 18% in the analyzed wheat and 71% in the corn samples. The concentration of AFs was much higher in the corn samples than in the wheat samples. The maximum permitted levels for aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and total AFs were not exceeded in the wheat samples, while they were exceeded in 36% of the corn samples. In the wheat samples, the AFB1 concentration varied between 0.2 and 0.4 µg kg-1. However, the highest concentrations in the corn samples were 2057, 2944, and 3550 µg kg-1. OTA was present in only three corn samples and one wheat sample. However, all contaminated samples exceeded the maximum permitted levels. This report reveals the presence of AFs and OTA in grain commodities, specifically wheat and corn, grown in Albania.

Global, Regional, and National Incidence and Mortality Trends in Pediatric Central Nervous System Tumors over the Past 2 Decades.

BACKGROUND: Pediatric tumors of the brain and central nervous system (CNS) are a worldwide issue with variances in epidemiology. How exactly incidence and mortality rates have changed over time has not been summarized. Correspondingly, the aim of this study was to quantitively define the global, regional, and national epidemiological trends of these tumors. METHODS: A retrospective review of data from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 Database was performed incorporating data from 1999 to 2019. Global, regional, and national outcomes for pediatric CNS tumors were collected for incidence and mortality at a worldwide level, as well as across 7 continental regions, and then 204 countries and territories. RESULTS: Globally, the latest incidence of pediatric CNS tumors was 47,600 (uncertainty interval, 36,500-55,200) at a rate of 1.8 (1.4-2.2) per 100,000, with 23,500 (18,000-27,500) deaths due to these tumors at a rate of 0.9 (0.7-1.1) per 100,000 population. Both rates per 100,000 have decreased over the past 2 decades. With respect to regions, East Asia and Pacific had the highest incidence and mortality cases overall, but in terms of rate per 100,000, North America and Latin America and Caribbean had the highest values, respectively. There were 3/7 (43%) and 6/7 (86%) regions with decreasing incidence and mortality rates per 100,000 over the past 2 decades. China, India, and Pakistan were the 3 countries with both the highest incidence and mortality cases overall; however, San Marino, Denmark, and Norway had the highest incidence rates per 100,000, and Albania, Armenia, and Haiti had the highest mortality rates per 100,000. In the past 2 decades, 79/204 (39%) and 120/204 (59%) countries observed decreasing incidence and mortality rates per 100,000, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric CNS tumors remains a worldwide issue, with there being multiple regions and countries worldwide that continue to experience uptrending incidence and mortality rates per 100,000. For both incidence and mortality, there is a clear discordance between regions and countries that report the highest number of cases versus the highest rate of cases per 100,000. Future research efforts are needed to identify positive intervention measures that respect the epidemiology of these tumors at global, regional, and national levels.

Analyzing the relationship between pricing strategy and customer retention in hotels: A study in Albania.

Background: In the consumer-centric global economy of the 21st century, customer retention is a vital concept in the hospitality industry for building and sustaining long-term relationships. Recognizing the challenges of acquiring new customers, the industry acknowledges the significance of retaining existing ones. To achieve their goals, hospitality businesses need a comprehensive strategy that extends beyond price targets, emphasizing the development of effective pricing strategies from the outset. Methods: Data collection took place between June 2022 and January 2023, involving a random sample of seven international hotels located in Tirana, Durres, and Vlora. Quantitative data was collected through surveys utilizing Likert-scale questions. Statistical analysis, including crosstab tests, was employed to explore the relationship between economy pricing strategies and customer retention. Results: The study encompassed 572 participants representing diverse demographic characteristics. Analysis revealed a statistically significant positive relationship between economy pricing strategies and customer retention in international hotels in Albania. These findings underscore the importance of implementing effective pricing strategies to enhance customer loyalty and guide the development of improved strategies within the hotel industry. Conclusions: This study provides empirical evidence of a significant positive relationship between economy pricing strategies and customer retention in international hotels in Albania. Effective pricing strategies play a crucial role in fostering customer loyalty. However, the study's limitations, primarily its focus on specific hotels in Albania, call for further research to validate the generalizability of these findings. The insights gained from this study inform policymakers and industry stakeholders in formulating strategies to enhance customer retention within the hospitality sector.

Evaluating Country Performance After Transitioning From Gavi Assistance: An Applied Synthetic Control Analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Over the past decade, international development assistance for health has slowed. As donors seek to increase domestic cofinancing and ultimately transition countries from donor aid dependence, COVID-19 has severely constrained public budgets. The evaluation of sustainability and longer-term impacts of donor withdrawal is increasingly important. We assess vaccination coverage and post-neonatal mortality to estimate country performance of these outcomes among countries that no longer received assistance from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi) between 2000 and 2018. METHODS: Using data from all countries receiving Gavi support between 2000 and 2020, we employed a synthetic control method to generate a pre-transition counterfactual with the same characteristics as the observation of interest to predict a future that empirically never existed. The synthetic unit is constructed from the weighted average of other units with good fit to the unit of interest before transition but did not transition. RESULTS: We found substantial heterogeneity after transitioning from Gavi assistance. China, Guyana, and Turkmenistan overperformed their expected coverage rates; Albania, Bhutan, China, Guyana, and Turkmenistan maintained coverage over 90%; and Bosnia and Herzegovina and Ukraine reported precipitous drop-offs that fell well below their synthetic controls. We also observed a vaccination coverage decline in 2020 for several countries after transitioning and most synthetic controls, which we attribute to COVID-19-related service disruptions. CONCLUSIONS: We recommend that Gavi adjust its transition model to systematically assess contextual externalities and risk. In addition, countries that no longer receive Gavi assistance can leverage technical assistance and communities of practice to mutually assist each other and other countries advancing toward transition. This could also foster intracountry accountability after transition. We also recommend that Gavi systematize post-transition assessments and evaluations that leverage the expertise and experience of graduated countries to encourage cross-learning.

Knowledge, attitude and practice towards pharmacovigilance and reporting of adverse drug reactions among health care professionals in Albania: A cross-sectional study.

In both developed and developing nations, the rising prevalence of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and underreporting of ADRs in pharmacovigilance centers have become major problems. The goal of this study was to access the overall knowledge, attitude and practices toward pharmacovigilance and ADRs reporting among Albanian healthcare professionals. A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted from December 2021 to February 2022 including physicians, community pharmacists and nurses in Tirana, Albania. There were distributed a total of 511 questionnaires to healthcare professionals, where 410 of them were returned, resulting in an 80.23 percent response rate. Physicians and pharmacists compare to nurses had better knowledge about pharmacovigilance and its main purpose. Pharmacists had better knowledge regarding the establishment of the pharmacovigilance law (67.62%) and how to report ADRs (51.43%), Of all, 85.42% of physicians, 74.29% of pharmacists and 40.38% of nurses resulted had a positive attitude towards ADR reporting as a professional obligation, as well as 57.29% of physicians, 58.57% of pharmacists and 22.12% (p < 0.05) of nurses, declared that they have reported ADRs. Only physicians have reported ADRs to the national pharmacovigilance center. The findings of this study show that most of the healthcare professionals in Tirana do not have a thorough understanding of pharmacovigilance techniques.

What do we know about the epidemiology and the management of human echinococcosis in Albania?

Echinococcosis is a life-threatening neglected zoonotic disease. Cystic echinococcosis (CE) due to Echinococcus (E.) granulosus usually involves livestock and dogs; alveolar echinococcosis (AE) due to E. multilocularis involves rodents and canines such as foxes and dogs. Human hosts are infected accidentally via hand to mouth and/or foodborne/waterborne pathways. Albania is deemed to be endemic for cystic echinococcosis (CE), but there is a scarcity of data to confirm this. A systematic literature search was performed in PubMed, Google Scholar, and in other medical sources. Because of the scarcity of existing information, data confirming CE cases were reviewed from the medical hospital records of Albania's largest Hospital, the Mother Teresa University Hospital (UHCMT) Tirana, and from a large private laboratory in Tirana (Pegasus laboratory). A total of eight eligible publications on 540 CE patients were found. Three hundred forty seven additional cases hospitalized in UHCMT from 2011 to 2020 were confirmed, as well as 36 laboratory cases and 10 Albanian cases notified in Germany. Taking all cases into account and considering 162 overlapping cases, 771 cases were documented from 2011 to 2020. The only case reported as AE was most likely a multi-organic CE. Surgery was the most frequent therapy approach used (84.7%). Autochthonous human CE seems to be widespread, and transmission is ongoing in Albania. CE patients in Albania undergo surgery more frequently compared with CE cases in other European countries. In order to establish a realistic estimate of prevalence and incidence of CE in Albania, mandatory notification should be reinforced. Stage-specific therapy can be used in CE to reduce therapy cost and diminish mortality by avoiding surgical overtreatment.