The incidence of upper respiratory infections in children is related to the concentration of vanadium in indoor dust aggregates.

Background: It has been reported that the disease-initiated and disease-mediated effects of aerosol pollutants can be related to concentration, site of deposition, duration of exposure, as well as the specific chemical composition of pollutants. Objectives: To investigate the microelemental composition of dust aggregates in primary schools of Vilnius and determine trace elements related to acute upper respiratory infections among 6-to 11-year-old children. Methods: Microelemental analysis of aerosol pollution was performed using dust samples collected in the classrooms of 11 primary schools in Vilnius from 2016 to 2020. Sites included areas of its natural accumulation behind the radiator heaters and from the surface of high cupboards. The concentrations of heavy metals (Pb, W, Sb, Sn, Zr, Zn, Cu, Ni, Mn, Cr, V, and As) in dust samples were analyzed using a SPECTRO XEPOS spectrometer. The annual incidence rates of respiratory diseases in children of each school were calculated based on data from medical records. Results: The mean annual incidence of physician-diagnosed acute upper respiratory infections (J00-J06 according to ICD-10A) among younger school-age children was between 25.1 and 71.3% per school. A significant correlation was found between vanadium concentration and the number of episodes of acute upper respiratory infections during each study year from 2016 to 2020. The lowest was r = 0.67 (p = 0.024), and the highest was r = 0.82 (p = 0.002). The concentration of vanadium in the samples of dust aggregates varied from 12.7 to 52.1 parts per million (ppm). No significant correlations between the other trace elements and the incidence of upper respiratory infections were found, which could be caused by a small number of study schools and relatively low concentrations of other heavy metals found in the samples of indoor dust aggregates. Conclusion: A significant and replicable correlation was found between the concentration of vanadium in the samples of natural dust aggregates collected in primary schools and the incidence of acute upper respiratory infections in children. Monitoring the concentration of heavy metals in the indoor environment can be an important instrument for the prevention and control of respiratory morbidity in children.

Vaccine-hesitant families are more susceptible to verbal communication messaging.

OBJECTIVES: Our survey aims to highlight parents' and healthcare workers' opinions and hesitations regarding children's vaccination, identify the main factors influencing these opinions, and assess the impact of hesitations on immunisation for children, included in the National Immunisation Programme in Lithuania. METHODS: We used the questionnaire developed by the European Academy of Paediatrics Research in Ambulatory Settings Network (EAPRASnet). This questionnaire is designed to assess attitudes toward vaccination. The study involved parents raising children aged 1-4 years and primary healthcare providers (paediatricians, family doctors and nurses). RESULTS: We analysed the completed questionnaires from a total of 329 parents (142 fathers, 187 mothers) and 386 medical personnel (150 physicians, 236 nurses). Most parents expressed positive opinions about vaccines (> 8 points out of 10 possible), with older parents exhibiting more favourable attitudes. Compared to mothers, fathers showed more criticism regarding the information provided by physicians (p = 0.04). Family doctors and paediatricians were more supportive of vaccination than nurses and homoeopaths (p < 0.001). Parents and healthcare providers with higher education showed statistically significantly stronger opinions about the benefits of vaccines than those with lower education levels (p = 0.01 for parents, p < 0.001 for physicians and nurses). The Internet was identified as the primary source of negative information for both parents (69.6%) and healthcare providers (86%). However, verbal information received from medical staff during patient consultations or informal conversations among colleagues had the greatest impact on parents' opinions (17.3%) and medical personnel (35.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Confidential conversations with physicians and nurses remain the most trustworthy sources of information and influential factors shaping opinions. The Internet serves as the primary source of inaccurate information about vaccinations for both parents and medical professionals, although verbal information from primary healthcare providers has a more significant impact on vaccination attitudes. Discrepancies in basic education and specific knowledge about vaccination within the same family can pose additional obstacles to child vaccination.