Contributions and achievements on schistosomiasis control and elimination in China by NIPD-CTDR.

Being a zoonotic parasitic disease, schistosomiasis was widely spread in 12 provinces of Southern China in the 1950s, severly harming human health and hindering economic development. The National Institute of Parasitic Diseases at the Chinese Center for Diseases Control and Prevention, and Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research (NIPD-CTDR), as the only professional institution focussing on parasitic diseases at the national level, has played an important role in schistosomiasis control in the country. In this article, we look back at the changes of schistosomiasis endemicity and the contribution of NIPD-CTDR to the national schistosomiasis control programme. We review NIPD-CTDR's activities, including field investigations, design of control strategies and measures, development of diagnostics and drugs, surveillance-response of endemic situation, and monitoring & evaluation of the programme. The NIPD-CTDR has mastered the transmission status of schistosomiasis, mapped the snail distribution, and explored strategies and measures suitable for different types of endemic areas in China. With a good understanding of the life cycle of Schistosoma japonicum and transmission patterns of the disease, advanced research carried out in the NIPD-CTDR based on genomics and modern technology has made it possible to explore highly efficient and soft therapeutic drugs and molluscicides, making it possible to develop new diagnostic tools and produce vaccine candidates. In the field, epidemiological studies, updated strategies and targeted intervention measures developed by scientists from the NIPD-CTDR have contributed significantly to the national schistosomiasis control programme. This all adds up to a strong foundation for eliminating schistosomiasis in China in the near future, and recommendations have been put forward how to reach this goal.

[Assessment of psychological status and quality of life in patients with functional constipation].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the states of psychological condition and the quality of life in patients with functional constipation (FC) by comparing with those of healthy controls. METHODS: Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90) and Patient Assessment Constipation-Quality of Life (PAC-QOL) were tested by self-report questionnaire in sixty patients with FC and thirty healthy controls with corresponding age and gender. RESULTS: (1) There was no difference in age, body mass index and sex ratio between the FC patients and healthy controls, but the scores of stool form and frequency of defecation were significantly different between the two groups. (2) The following items of SCL-90 i. e. total scores, total symptomatic index, the number of positive items and positive symptom distress level were obviously higher in the FC patients than in controls (P <0.05). The scores of the nine factors of SCL-90 except terror were also higher in the FC patients than in controls. (3) The average total score and scores of four sections (physical discomfort, psychological discomfort, anxiety, satisfaction) of PAC-QOL in FC patients were higher than those in basal level. (4) The average score of PAC-QOL was significantly correlated with the scores of SCL-90, especially in anxiety and depression. (5) The severity of symptoms in the FC patients was significantly correlated with the average score of PAC-QOL and the total score of SCL-90. CONCLUSIONS: FC patients have obviously psychological abnormality, which affects the quality of life significantly. The scores of quality of life is a better parameter to reflect the healthy status of the FC patients than the laboratory tests and the clinical symptoms.

[Evaluation on the indirect economic burden of stroke using combination of disability-adjusted life years and human capital method].

OBJECTIVE: Using the indirect economic burden of stroke in a rural population to develop rational allocation of future health resources, in Hanzhong area. METHODS: Cluster sampling which involved 53 natural villages with a total number of 75,000 people selected from the 'stroke monitoring base' of rural population was adopted in this study in the Hanzhong area. All of the 164 stroke cases were studied through a self-designed questionnaire. In calculating disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), fixed value was used in accordance with the value of GBD. The disability assessment was simplified in DALYs calculation and modified Barthel's ADL was used in disability assessment of stroke patients. In indirect economic burden analysis, the human capital method combined with DALYs was adopted with the formula as: indirect economic burden = GNP per capita x DALYs x productivity weight. RESULTS: The total DALYs were 598.88, with an average DALY of stroke as 3.65 per case. The total indirect economic burden of stroke patients in rural areas was 1,993,977.8 RMB and the average of indirect economic burden of stroke was 12,158.4 RMB per case with the largest seen in the 45-59 age group, accounted for 74.4%. CONCLUSION: In our study, the use of method in combining the human capital with DALYs was the first time being adopted in calculation of the indirect economic burden of stroke in rural population in China. The burden seemed to be much lower than literature cited from other countries. It was reasonable to evaluate indirect economic burden of stroke using method in integrating DALYs with human capital, but it was difficult to calculate the DALYs.