Background: The prevalence of respiratory allergic diseases is increasing worldwide. In Europe, migration is a significant phenomenon, but little is known about their epidemiology in immigrants, normally coming from low-income countries and showing lower prevalence than natives. Over time, seasonal respiratory allergies increase with different patterns among first- and second-generation immigrants. Airborne pollen can be an indicator of exposure to airborne allergens, but traditional monitoring using Hirst-type samplers requires considerable resources, time consuming and delay of data. As a complementary and low-cost alternative, researchers are increasingly analysing internet search behaviour to monitor allergy-related phenomena. This study evaluated Google Trends (GTs) as an indicator for the epidemiological surveillance of seasonal pollen-related allergies among different immigrant populations living in Italy, considering that immigrants represent 8.8% of the Italian population. Methods: By GTs we analysed flow, searched for terms related to allergy and performed in different languages from 2009 to 2019. The search terms such as “allergy”, “rhinitis”, “asthma”, “antihistamine” and “pollen” were analysed. Descriptive statistics and correlations were performed. Results: Cross-language GTs analyses showed distinct seasonal peaks mostly in April and May but also in June, August and October with correlations between some languages. Discussion: Language-specific search suggests varying awareness, health-seeking behaviour and exposure patterns among immigrant communities.

Seasonal respiratory allergies are a public health concern increasing worldwide. Airborne pollen and fungal spores are the main allergenic agents triggering reactions in sensitized individuals. Up to 80

Pollen grains play an important role in the etiopathogenesis of seasonal respiratory allergies, which are increasing in prevalence and severity worldwide. Climate change is one of the possible explanations for the increase of pollen allergies enabling plants to produce more allergenic pollen, in larger quantities and longer periods. Pollen count data can be considered the proxy for aeroallergen exposure and long pollen data sets allow to investigate the trends in seasonal characteristics over time. This study examines temporal variations in seasonality and load of airborne pollen and meteorological data recorded over 27 years in Parma (Italy). The study was performed collecting pollen by a Hirst spore trap considering the following taxa: Betula, Corylus, Cupressaceae-Taxaceae, Platanus, Ambrosia, Poaceae, Total pollen and Alternaria fungal spores. Start and end date, duration, date of peak, peak value, and Seasonal Pollen Integral (SPIn) were examined. Temporal variations in pollen seasons were displayed as the number of days from January 1 (DOY, day of the year). Daily averages temperature, relative humidity and total rainfall were considered. Linear regression analysis was carried out to investigate trends in data over time. The start date turned precocious for Corylus and Poaceae, but late for Betula. The end date was postponed for Poaceae and Total pollen, as well the duration of pollen seasons was longer for Poaceae and Total pollen, the duration became shorter for Betula. The peak date was anticipated for Poaceae, and the peak values were reduced for Poaceae and Total pollen. A weak positive trend was observed for SPIn of Corylus. Regarding Ambrosia, the duration was shorter, and the peak date was postponed. No significant differences were observed for Platanus and Alternaria spores. A significant decrease in the relative humidity and a significant increase of annual average temperature were observed. The results of our study represent a contribution to better understanding the impact on human health of environmentally changing conditions. Moreover, it should be considered that not only the seasonal respiratory allergies may be related to the variation of climate and its impact on pollen load and pollen season, but also it could be related to chronic respiratory disease and cardiovascular diseases. This highlights gaps in current knowledge and the need to quantify the impact of climate change in a One Health perspective to provide useful information to determine exposure of the allergic population to pollen and to plan public health preventive measures.

In dental clinics the risk of airborne infection is relevant. Microbiological air monitoring is a useful tool for evaluating the effectiveness of preventive measures and identifying at-risk situations. Active and passive sampling can be used to assess microbial air contamina-tion; however, optimal sampling methods and reference threshold values have not been established. Passive sampling has been standardized by the Index of Microbial Air con-tamination (IMA). This study aimed to review the use of the IMA standard for air quality assessment in dental clinics proposing IMA threshold values based on a meta-analysis. Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science were analyzed for articles published until April 30, 2024, citing “Pasquarella C., et al., The index of microbial air contamination. J Hosp Infect 2000”. After applying the inclusion criteria, nine studies were considered. The mean IMA values before, during, and after dental procedures ranged from 2.4 to 38.3, 19 to 53.3, and 13 to 20, respectively. Seven studies were included in the meta-analysis, which had mean IMA values of 15.4, 33, and 16.7, respectively. Due to the ease of use, low cost, and com-parability of results, the IMA standard is recommended for the routine monitoring of mi-crobial air contamination.

Background:Scientific evidence demonstrates that poor sleep quality can lead to various health problems. This study aimed to investigate sleep patterns among Italian university students and identify several factors that may contribute to its quality. Study design:Cross-sectional study. Methods:An electronic questionnaire regarding sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle, and sleep-related habits, including the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire, was distributed between January 2022 and July 2023 among students belonging to 12 universities located in Northern, Central, and Southern Italy. Results:On a total of 1,674 questionnaires collected, the participants (mean age 24.06±4.56 years, 71.3% F) reported an average number of hours of nocturnal sleep equal to 6.89±1.28 hours. A total of 927 (54.6%) of respondents showed a poor sleep quality (PSQI >5). Regression analysis showed that better sleep quality is associated with lower age, attending universities in Northern Italy, less time spent on electronic devices during the day, not being used to study at night and not playing videogames before sleep. Conclusion:From a public health perspective, our findings suggest that public health operators should raise the awareness of young adults about the importance of sleep quality for maintaining good health, as well as the impact that certain behaviors can have on sleep.

As the Internet has undergone a significant increase, the smartphone has become the primary electronic device used for accessing it. However, several adverse effects on health and also psychological disorders, such as the fear of not being able to use a mobile phone and/or its services, called nomophobia, may be related to their use. This multicenter study was aimed at evaluating the prevalence, the correlates and the predictors of nomophobia in a large sample of university students recruited throughout the Italian territory. Students attending 12 Italian universities were asked to complete a web-based questionnaire investigating their sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics and including the Nomophobia-Questionnaire, items from the Generalized Anxiety Disorder and the Patient Health Questionnaire. out of 1303 respondents (mean age 24.1 ± 4.4, 69.5

Background: Bioaerosols can represent a danger to health. During SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, portable devices were used in different environments and considered a valuable prevention tool. This study has evaluated the effectiveness of the air treatment device “AEROK 1.0®” in reducing microbial, particulate, and pollen airborne contamination indoors, during normal activity. Methods: In an administrative room, airborne microbial contamination was measured using active (DUOSAS 360 and MD8) and passive sampling; a particle counter was used to evaluate particle concentrations; a Hirst-type pollen trap was used to assess airborne pollen and Alternaria spores. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 26.0; p values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: The airborne bacterial contamination assessed by the two different samplers decreased by 56% and 69%, respectively. The airborne bacterial contamination assessed by passive sampling decreased by 44%. For fungi, the reduction was 39% by active sampling. Airborne particles (diameters ≥ 1.0, 2.0 μm) and the ratio of indoor/outdoor concentrations of total pollen and Alternaria spp. spores significantly decreased. Conclusions: The results highlight the effectiveness of AEROK 1.0® in reducing airborne contamination. The approach carried out represents a contribution to the definition of a standardized model for evaluating the effectiveness of devices to be used for air disinfection.

Background and aim Ultraviolet radiation (UV) is the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum of wavelengths between 200 and 400 nm divided into three bands called UVA, UVB and UVC. Due its well-described antimicrobial activity, UVC can represent a useful tool for disinfect surfaces, water, and air. The aim of this study was to illustrate the studies over time ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) to disinfect air and surfaces. Methods Articles on Scopus published until April 14, 2023, were considered. Many issues involving UV were deepened crosschecking with e.g., "air", "surfaces", "disinfection", "bacteria", "fungi", "operating theatres". According to the case, the following variables were considered: years and related number of articles, sources of publications, subject areas, type of document published, type of journal, nationalities of the authors. Results Since 30's, 287 448 articles on UV have been published. Among UVGI, 22 159 articles covered bacteria issue, followed by fungi and viruses with about 12000 both. UVGI was addressed by 1941 and 931 articles for surfaces and air respectively. Of these, 122 were performed in operating theatres. Since 1987 works have been published on spacecraft and since 2000, on the use of UVGI robots for disinfect air and surfaces. Conclusions Our study shows the studies on UVGI and related issues. It also shows most recently perspectives about the applications e.g. during prolonged human-crewed missions on spacecrafts, to inactivate microorganisms in environments where the exchange of air is impossible.

Ongoing and future climate change driven expansion of aeroallergen-producing plant species comprise a major human health problem across Europe and elsewhere. There is an urgent need to produce accurate, temporally dynamic maps at the continental level, especially in the context of climate uncertainty. This study aimed to restore missing daily ragweed pollen data sets for Europe, to produce phenological maps of ragweed pollen, resulting in the most complete and detailed high-resolution ragweed pollen concentration maps to date. To achieve this, we developed two statistical procedures, a Gaussian method (GM) and deep learning (DL) for restoring missing daily ragweed pollen data sets, based on the plant’s reproductive and growth (phenological, pollen production and frost-related) characteristics. DL model performances were consistently better for estimating annual total pollen concentrations than those of the GM approach. These are the first published modeled maps using altitude correction and phenology to recover missing pollen information. We created a web page (http://euragweedpollen.gmf.u-szeged.hu/), including daily ragweed pollen concentration data sets of the stations examined and their restored daily data, allowing one to upload newly measured or recovered daily data. Generation of these maps provides a means to track pollen impacts in the context of climatic shifts, identify geographical regions with high pollen exposure, determine areas of future vulnerability, apply spatially-explicit mitigation measures and prioritize management interventions.

Prolonged human-crewed missions on the Moon are foreseen as a gateway for Mars and asteroid colonisation in the next decades. Health risks related to long-time permanence in space have been partially investigated. Hazards due to airborne biological contaminants represent a relevant problem in space missions. A possible way to perform pathogens' inactivation is by employing the shortest wavelength range of Solar ultraviolet radiation, the so-called germicidal range. On Earth, it is totally absorbed by the atmosphere and does not reach the surface. In space, such Ultraviolet solar component is present and effective germicidal irradiation for airborne pathogens' inactivation can be achieved inside habitable outposts through a combination of highly reflective internal coating and optimised geometry of the air ducts. The Solar Ultraviolet Light Collector for Germicidal Irradiation on the Moon is a project whose aim is to collect Ultraviolet solar radiation and use it as a source to disinfect the re-circulating air of the human outposts. The most favourable positions where to place these collectors are over the peaks at the Moon's poles, which have the peculiarity of being exposed to solar radiation most of the time. On August 2022, NASA communicated to have identified 13 candidate landing regions near the lunar South Pole for Artemis missions. Another advantage of the Moon is its low inclination to the ecliptic, which maintains the Sun's apparent altitude inside a reduced angular range. For this reason, Ultraviolet solar radiation can be collected through a simplified Sun's tracking collector or even a static collector and used to disinfect the recycled air. Fluid-dynamic and optical simulations have been performed to support the proposed idea. The expected inactivation rates for some airborne pathogens, either common or found on the International Space Station, are reported and compared with the proposed device efficiency. The results show that it is possible to use Ultraviolet solar radiation directly for air disinfection inside the lunar outposts and deliver a healthy living environment to the astronauts.

Background and aim Surgical site infection (SSI) is a major complication following surgery associated with increased morbidity and mortality, as well as increased health and not health costs. A variety of factors affect airborne contamination in operating theatres (OT). Following the Medical Research Council study showing a correlation between microbial air contamination and SSI incidence in prosthetic joint surgery ultraclean OTs have been recommended for this type of surgery, while OTs supplied by turbulent airflow plants are recommended for other types of surgery. The aim of this study was to illustrate the studies on this topic. Methods Scopus was considered for articles published until January 2023 on OTs and air contamination in article title or abstract or keywords. Many issues were deepened: "microbial", "bacterial", "fungi", "viruses", "surgical site/wound infection", "monitoring/sampling", "air changes", "behaviour", "door openings", "particles", turbulent flow", "unidirectional flow". Results Total papers published were 907 and 249 papers faced monitoring/sampling. A total of 313 papers investigated airborne bacterial contamination and 63 papers investigated fungal air contamination. There were 218 papers that have evaluated particle contamination in OTs. Many other issues were deepened. Conclusions This study shows a picture of the studies on biological air contamination in OTs and related issues over time. We think that the results of our study will provide a useful tool to increase awareness towards a better sharing of aims, approaches, and results, above all in the interest of the patients, but also of the health services of the different countries. (www.actabiomedica.it).

The aim of this study was to calculate the equation of correlation between the microbial air contamination values obtained by active sampling (colony-forming units per cubic metre, CFU/m3) and by passive sampling (Index of microbial air contamination, IMA), by using the data from the ISChIA study, and to compare the values obtained with the recommended limits defined by the EU Guidelines to Good Manufacturing Practice (EU GGMP), 2008, for clean areas used to manufacture sterile medicinal products. Air sampling was performed during 335 elective prosthesis procedures. Correlation between CFU/m3 and IMA values was evaluated using the Spearman test; p<0.05 was considered to indicate significance. This equation was used to calculate the IMA values corresponding to the CFU/m3 recommended threshold values by EU GGMP for the different Grades of microbial contamination. The following correlation equation was obtained: y = 1.86 + 0.12x, where "x" = cfu/m3 value and "y" = IMA value. The relationships between CFU/m3 and IMA values obtained from active and passive sampling during the ISChIA study showed to be in line to those suggested by the EU GGMP for pharmaceutical manufacturing for Grade C and D. This study shows that the EU GGMP relationship could be considered valid also for operating theatres. Both methods, active and passive samplings, can be used to evaluate microbial air quality and highlight critical situations; however, in particular during the activity, passive sampling estimating the risk posed by airborne microorganisms to the surgical wound, can be considered more relevant, and for its simplicity, economy and standardization, can be suggested for routine microbial monitoring.

Ongoing and future climate change driven expansion of aeroallergen-producing plant species comprise a major human health problem across Europe and elsewhere. There is an urgent need to produce accurate, temporally dynamic maps at the continental level, especially in the context of climate uncertainty. This study aimed to restore missing daily ragweed pollen data sets for Europe, to produce phenological maps of ragweed pollen, resulting in the most complete and detailed high-resolution ragweed pollen concentration maps to date. To achieve this, we have developed two statistical procedures, a Gaussian method (GM) and deep learning (DL) for restoring missing daily ragweed pollen data sets, based on the plant's reproductive and growth (phenological, pollen production and frost-related) characteristics. DL model performances were consistently better for estimating seasonal pollen integrals than those of the GM approach. These are the first published modelled maps using altitude correction and flowering phenology to recover missing pollen information. We created a web page (http://euragweedpollen.gmf.u-szeged.hu/), including daily ragweed pollen concentration data sets of the stations examined and their restored daily data, allowing one to upload newly measured or recovered daily data. Generation of these maps provides a means to track pollen impacts in the context of climatic shifts, identify geographical regions with high pollen exposure, determine areas of future vulnerability, apply spatially-explicit mitigation measures and prioritize management interventions.

BACKGROUND AND AIM:Airborne ragweed pollen is one of the agents of respiratory allergies in our changing environment. The monitoring of pollen is essential to manage pollen allergy and to improve its forecasting methods. Moreover, the control and fight against ragweed plants is important. Aim of this study is to understand the scenario of the studies on ragweed over time.METHODS:We searched PubMed and Scopus for articles published until July 2022 reporting the words "ragweed". Articles written in all languages were included.RESULTS:Scopus was the database with the highest number of published papers. Among the papers on ragweed, the papers citing the word "allergy" were 59.4% in PubMed and 37,6% in Scopus. The subject areas more addressed were medicine, immunology, genetics/molecular biology, but agricultural/biological sciences too and, interestingly, other subjects like social sciences, art, humanistic, etc.). Among the top 40 institutions supporting research, 8 were European, 4 Asian, 1 Russian and 21 were American, the other 6 were pharmaceutical companies.CONCLUSIONS:This study shows a picture of the ragweed studies and some related subjects over time. A gap between the number of biomedical and not biomedical issues was evident. There is a need for greater involvement of institutions into support of knowledge and fight ragweed. The results will provide a useful tool to identify future goals in a global approach of ragweed related issues.

The COVID-19 pandemic, affecting 213 countries, with more than 10 million cases and over 500,000 deaths is still causing serious health, social and economic emergency worldwide. Italian Northern regions are among the most badly affected areas. Surfaces represent matrices to which particular attention should be paid for prevention and control of SARS-CoV-2 transmission. A few studies have highlighted virus presence on surfaces. We report the evidence of its presence on hospital surfaces, in a single room hosting a patient whose nose-pharyngeal swab resulted positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA at the admission. The surfaces sampling was carried out using pre-wetted swabs followed by extraction and amplification of viral RNA by reverse Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (rRT-PCR). A total of 4/15 (26.66%) surfaces were positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA: the right bed rail, the call button, the bed trapeze bar, the stethoscope; moreover, the patient's inner surgical mask was positive, showing the emission of the virus from the patient. This study is a further confirmation that the surfaces represent a potential vehicle of transmission. This supports the need for strict adherence to hand and environmental hygiene.

BACKGROUND:Bioaerosol plays an important role in human life with potentially infectious, allergic and toxic effects. Active and passive methods can be used to assess microbial air contamination, but so far there is not a unanimous consensus regarding the indications about methods to be used and how to interpret the results. The passive method has been standardized by the Index of Microbial Air contamination (IMA). Classes of contamination and maximum acceptable levels of IMA have been proposed, related to different infection or contamination risks. The aim of this study was to provide information about the use of the passive sampling method, with reference to the IMA standard.METHODS:We searched PubMed and Scopus for articles published until January 2020 reporting the citation of the article by Pasquarella et al. "The index of microbial air contamination. J Hosp Infect 2000". Only studies in English language where the IMA standard was applied were considered. Studies regarding healthcare settings were excluded.RESULTS:27 studies were analyzed; 12 were performed in Europe, 8 in Asia, 5 in Africa, 2 in America. Cultural heritage sites, educational buildings and food industries were the most common indoor monitored environments; in 8 studies outdoor air was monitored.CONCLUSIONS:This review has provided a picture of the application of standard IMA in different geographic areas and different environments at risk of airborne infection/contamination. The analysis of the results obtained, together with a wider collection of data, will provide a useful contribution towards the definition of reference limits for the various types of environments to implement targeted preventive measures.

BACKGROUND:It is recognized that airborne fungi can cause illnesses in humans but data on environmental exposure are still poor. The aim of this study was to evaluate the fungal airborne contamination in a university building.METHODS:The study was performed in February and May 2018; air samples were collected, before activity (on Monday) and during activity, (on Friday), both through active (CFU/m3) and passive (Index of microbial air contamination, IMA) method. Fungi were identified by using the scotch test.RESULTS:In February the median fungal contamination value decreased from 14 CFU/m3 before activity to 7 CFU/m3 during activity, while IMA median remains 0. Instead in May both increased during activity (from 87 to 140 CFU/m3; from 5.5 to 7.5 IMA). Overall values increased in May compared to February. Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp.,  Cladosporium spp. Absidia spp. were the genera most frequently isolated in both months, while in May Chaetomium spp. e Ulocladium spp. were recovered too.CONCLUSIONS:Seasonal trend in the levels of fungal contamination of the air was observed, with a statistically significant increase in May. This study represents the first step of a wider study aimed at enhancing knowledge about air fungal contamination.

Surgical staff behavior in operating theatres is one of the factors associated with indoor air quality and surgical site infection risk. The aim of this study was to apply an approach including microbiological, particle, and microclimate parameters during two simulated surgical hip arthroplasties to evaluate the influence of staff behavior on indoor air quality. During the first hip arthroplasty, the surgical team behaved correctly, but in the second operation, behavioral recommendations were not respected. Microbiological contamination was evaluated by active and passive methods. The air velocity, humidity, temperature, and CO2 concentration were also monitored. The highest levels of microbial and particle contamination, as well as the highest variation in the microclimate parameter, were recorded during the surgical operation where the surgical team behaved “incorrectly”. Turbulent air flow ventilation systems appeared more efficient than in the past and very low air microbial contamination was reached when behavior was correct. Therefore, adherence to behavioral recommendations in operating theatres is essential to not undermine the effectiveness of the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems and employed resources.

One of the main causes of pollen allergy and pollen-induced asthma during the late summer in North America and Central Europe is ragweed (Ambrosia L.) a widespread monoecious genus in the Asteraceae. In Europe, short or common ragweed (A. artemisiifolia L.) is the prevalent species of the genus. Ragweed pollen can be transported by wind over long distances (several hundreds or thousands of kilometers) and may cause allergy symptoms also in areas where the plant is not widespread. Ragweed has an enormous invasive potential through the production of large quantities of seeds with very high germination capacity. The weed damage in agriculture and potential effects on biodiversity add up to a huge negative impact. Actually, ragweed has a higher spread potential than most indigenous annual dicotyledonous and grass weeds species in Central Europe. This situation requires a tight monitoring of the plant and the implementation of an accurate control strategy involving not only farmers but also the staff managing natural areas, roadsides, building, municipalities and health authorities. Unfortunately, in many countries, the legal situation is far from sufficient to monitor and manage the spread of ragweed. It is therefore important that a wide public is aware of the plant and the problems caused by it. The main topic of the IRS is to gather work from all over the world about phenology, pollen monitoring and management of Ambrosia in different areas IRS organizes a dedicated international congress in Europe every 4 or 5 years where the researchers can present the state of the art on Ambrosia-related knowledge to propose targeted preventive measures. 1. Karrer G, Starfinger U, Kazinczi G, Kudsk P, Simoncic A, Milakovic I, Sölter U, Verschwele A, Mathiassen S, Basky Z, Kömives T, Leskovsek R. Recommendations to fight ragweed derived from the EU-project HALT AMBROSIA In: Fried, G. et al. (eds.), 4th International Symposium on Environmental Weeds and lnvasive Plants in Montpellier. Abstracts. 2014. p. 167. 2. Sölter U, Starfinger U, Verschwele A (Eds.) HALT Ambrosia – final report and general publication of project findings. Julius-Kühn-Archiv 2016. 455, 232 pp. DOI:10.5073/jka.2016.455.000