Pneumonia is a common lower respiratory tract infection, which causes a large disease and economic burden worldwide, and is an important public health problem to be solved urgently. Based on review of publications pertaining to the epidemiology of pneumonia from 2013 to 2023, this article summaries the epidemiological characteristics and main influencing factors of pneumonia. It is found that the epidemiological characteristics of pneumonia vary in different areas; men, the elderly and children are the high-risk groups of pneumonia incidence and mortality; and age, smoking, alcohol consumption, air pollution, comorbidity and vaccination are the main factors affecting the incidence and mortality of pneumonia. Strengthening health education, reducing exposure to risk factors and promoting vaccination are recommended to lower the morbidity and mortality of pneumonia in susceptible populations.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is characterized by long course, poor prognosis, multiple complications and high cost of treatment, thus it has become a major public health problem. Based on review of publications pertaining to the epidemiological study of CKD from February 2002 to March 2023, this article summarizes the epidemiological characteristics, risk factors, prevention and control strategies of CKD. It is found that China has the largest number of adult patients with CKD in Asia, and the prevalence of CKD is higher among females and elderly people. The influencing factors for CKD include cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, hypertension and coronavirus disease 2019. Henceforth, it is of vital importance to emphasize three levels of prevention and optimize the CKD management, so as to support for prevention and control of CKD.

Paralytic shellfish poisoning contamination is a threat to human health. Based on review of research articles pertaining to paralytic shellfish poisoning contamination in shellfishes and assessment of dietary exposure to paralytic shellfish poisoning in coastal cities of China from 2007 to 2022, the article describes the status of paralytic shellfish poisoning contamination, influencing factors and dietary exposure assessment in different sea areas of China (Bohai Sea, Huanghai Sea, East China Sea and South China Sea), and the relatively high-level contamination of paralytic shellfish poisoning in shellfishes is found to strongly correlate with red tides caused by season and water temperature in the Bohai Sea and South China Sea areas. Acute exposure assessment based on point estimate model is commonly used for assessment of dietary exposure to paralytic shellfish poisoning, and the risk of human dietary exposure to paralytic shellfish poisoning is within the acceptable range in most areas. Intensified monitoring of paralytic shellfish poisoning contamination in shellfishes and full consideration of parameters like processing factor during dietary exposure assessment are required in the future to allow more precise results.

Objective To establish a rapid bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing assay in positive blood cultures, so as to provide insights into timely diagnosis and treatment of bloodstream infections. Methods A total of 1 154 blood culture samples were collected from inpatients in Zhejiang Hospital from February to May, 2022. The bacterial isolates were enriched and purified using improved separation gel method, and bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility tests were performed using VITEK2 mass spectrometry system and VITEK2 Compact automated microbiology system. The accuracy of the new assay for bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility tests was evaluated with the conventional VITEK 2 compact system as the standard. Results Of 1 154 blood culture specimens, the conventional VITEK 2 compact system detected 174 positives and 980 negatives. The new assay and the conventional VITEK 2 compact system identified consistent bacterial isolates in 165 out of 174 positive blood culture samples, and the accuracy of bacterial identification was 94.83% for the new assay, with a 99.21% accuracy for identifying Gram-negative bacteria and 82.22% for Gram-positive bacteria. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were performed in 158 bacterial isolates, and the new assay presented a 90.17% accuracy, with a 90.27% accuracy for Gram-negative bacteria and 89.74% for Gram-positive bacteria. The conventional VITEK 2 compact system required 30 hours and longer to complete bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility tests, and the new assay required 9 to 18 hours. Conclusions The new rapid bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing assay shortens the time of bacterial culture, achieves rapid bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing in blood culture specimens and has a high accuracy that meets clinical needs, which facilitates rapid diagnosis and treatment of bloodstream infections.

Objective To investigate the trends in incidence of HIV/AIDS in China from 1990 to 2019 and to examine the effect of age, period and cohort on the incidence of HIV/AIDS, so as to provide insights into the improvements of the HIV/AIDS control measures. Methods Data pertaining to incidence of HIV/AIDS in China from 1990 to 2019 were extracted from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD 2019) datasets, and the trends in incidence of HIV/AIDS in China from 1990 to 2019 was analyzed with annual percentage change (APC) and average annual percentage change (AAPC) using a jointpoint regression model. The effects of age, period and cohort on the incidence of HIV/AIDS in China were examined with an age-period-cohort model. Results The age-standardized incidence of HIV/AIDS appeared an overall tendency towards a rise in China from 1990 (0.80/10⁵) to 2019 (2.21/10⁵) (AAPC=3.209%, P<0.05), and the incidence of HIV/AIDS showed a tendency towards a rise from 1990 to 1997 (AAPC=9.044%, P<0.05) and from 1997 to 2003 (AAPC=17.598%, P<0.05), a decline from 2006 to 2014 (AAPC=-8.412%, P<0.05) and remained relatively stable from 2003 to 2006 and from 2014 to 2019 (both P>0.05). The incidence of HIV/AIDS appeared a tendency towards a rise with age, and peaked among patients at ages of 25 to 29 years (4.93/10⁵) and 75 to 79 years (7.38/10⁵). The risk of HIV/AIDS appeared a tendency towards a rise followed by a decline with time, and a reduced risk of HIV/AIDS was found from 1990 to 1994 (RR=0.297), from 1995 to 1999 (RR=0.523), from 2005 to 2009 (RR=0.737), from 2010 to 2014 (RR=0.412) and from 2015 to 2019 (RR=0.351) in relative to the period from 2000 to 2004. The risk of HIV/AIDS appeared a tendency towards a rise with the cohort, and a higher risk of HIV/AIDS was found in the 1930-1934 cohort (RR=1.880) and 2000-2004 cohort (RR=2.978) in relative to the 1955-1959 cohort. Conclusions The incidence of HIV/AIDS appeared a tendency towards a rise followed by a decline in China from 1990 to 2019, and remained at a low level since 2014. The adolescents and elderly were high-risk groups of HIV/AIDS. A variety of health education interventions and intensified active HIV/AIDS screening are recommended.

Objective To investigate the trends in incidence of stroke in Jindong District, Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province from 2016 to 2022, so as to provide to the evidence for improving the stroke control strategy. Methods The incidence of stroke in Jindong District from 2016 to 2022 was collected through the Zhejiang Chronic Disease Monitoring Information System, and standardized by the data of the Chinese National Population Census in 2010. The gender-, age- and subtype-specific incidence of stroke was calculated, and the trends in stroke incidence were investigated with average annual percent change (AAPC). Results A total of 9 159 stroke cases were reported in Jindong District from 2016 to 2022, with crude incidence of 386.52/10⁵ and standardized incidence of 276.75/10⁵. The crude incidence of stroke appeared a tendency towards a rise (AAPC=3.704%, 95%CI: 0.792%-6.700%, P<0.05), while the standardized incidence showed no significant changing patterns (P>0.05). The crude incidence of stroke was significantly higher among men than among women (438.69/10⁵ vs. 334.66/10⁵; χ²=14.028, P<0.05), and the standardized incidence of stroke was significantly higher among men than among women (316.58/10⁵ vs. 237.31/10⁵; χ²=6.985, P<0.05). The crude incidence of stroke appeared a tendency towards a rise with age（χ²=5 290.180, P<0.05), and the crude incidence of stroke appeared a tendency towards a decline with age among residents at ages of 45 to 64 years (AAPC=-9.135%, 95%CI: -15.003% to -2.861%, P<0.05), while no significant changing patterns were found in the crude incidence of stroke among residents at other age groups (P>0.05). The crude incidence of ischemic stroke was significantly higher than that of hemorrhagic stroke (306.08/10⁵ vs. 76.89/10⁵; χ²=137.184, P<0.05). Conclusions The incidence of stroke appeared a tendency towards a rise in Jindong District from 2016 to 2022, with ischemic stroke as the predominant subtype. Male and middle-aged and elderly populations should be given a high priority for stroke control.

Arsenic is a toxic metalloid, which may enter the human body through a variety of routes, including drinking water, food, and air. Previous studies have shown that arsenic exposure during pregnancy may cause pregnancy complications and adverse pregnancy outcomes, and maternal arsenic levels correlate with neonatal neurodevelopment and adult health. However, the negative impact of arsenic exposure during pregnancy on maternal and child health has not been widely accepted because of inconsistent study conclusions and unclear mechanisms. Based on international and national studies pertaining to the effect of arsenic exposure during pregnancy on maternal and child health during the period between 2007 and 2022, this review describes the influencing factors and biomarkers of arsenic exposure during pregnancy, associations of arsenic exposure during pregnancy with pregnancy complications and adverse pregnancy outcomes and impact of arsenic exposure during pregnancy on neonatal neurodevelopment, and discusses the mechanisms underlying negative health effects caused by arsenic exposure during pregnancy, so as to provide the evidence for assessing the hazards of arsenic exposure during pregnancy and formulating the control strategy.

Objective To examine the associations of fibroblast growth factor 19 (FGF19), its co-receptor KLB gene and its receptor FGFR4 with susceptibility to sarcopenia, so as to provide insights into elucidation of sarcopenia pathogenesis and formulation of precision interventions for sarcopenia. Methods A case-control study was conducted. Patients with sarcopenia at ages of 60 years and older included in the Zhejiang Provincial Elderly Health Surveillance Cohorts were selected as the sarcopenia group, and normal residents at ages of 60 years and older were served as controls. Subjects' demographics were collected using questionnaire surveys, and the height, body weight, appendicular skeletal muscle mass and grip strength were measured. Genomic DNA was extracted from blood samples for multiplex PCR targeted capture. The associations between the KLB gene single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and susceptibility to sarcopenia were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression models. Results There were 200 cases in the sarcopenia group, including 91 men and 109 women, and 180 cases in the control group, including 70 men and 110 women. All SNPs satisfied the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, and the minor allele frequencies were all > 0.05. There were no significant differences in the distribution of SNPs between the sarcopenia and control groups (all P>0.05). Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the SNP rs2687968 locus in the KLB gene was significantly associated with the susceptibility to sarcopenia among the elderly men (superdominant model), and individuals carrying the AC allele had a 2.332-fold higher risk of sarcopenia than those carrying the AA/CC allele (95%CI: 1.882-3.313). Conclusion KLB gene may correlate with the susceptibility to sarcopenia among the elderly men.

Objective To investigate the trends in prevalence of depression symptoms among middle-aged and elderly residents at ages of 45 years and older in China from 2011 to 2018, so as to provide insights into depression prevention and control among middle-aged and elderly residents. Methods Demographic features and evaluation data of depressive symptoms were collected from middle-aged and elderly residents at ages of 45 years and older recorded during four follow-ups in the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), and the depressive symptoms were screened using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). Following sampling weights, non-response weights, and post-stratification weighting, the detection of depressive symptoms was analyzed among the middle-aged and elderly residents with different demographics, and the trends in prevalence of depressive symptoms were identified using annual percent change (APC). Results A total of 48 223 middle-aged and elderly residents were enrolled, including 12 624, 10 427, 12 144, and 13 028 residents in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2018, with mean ages of (58.8±9.4), (58.9±9.2), (59.0±9.2), and (61.1±9.2) years, respectively. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 34.5% (95%CI: 33.3%-35.8%), 29.6% (95%CI: 28.5%- 30.8%), 30.6% (95%CI: 29.4%-31.8%), and 35.0% (95%CI: 33.6%-36.4%) among middle-aged and elderly residents in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2018, respectively, with no remarkable changing trends seen (APC=0.4%, t=0.188, P=0.868). Higher detection was seen among residents at advanced ages, among women than among men, among rural residents than among urban residents, among residents with lower educational levels, among widowed and unmarried residents than among married residents, among unemployed residents than among employees, and among residents that had lower per capita personal consumption expenditures than mean expenditures than among residents that had higher per capita personal consumption expenditures than mean expenditures (all P<0.05). Conclusions There were no obvious trends in prevalence of depressive symptoms among middle-aged and elderly residents in China from 2011 to 2018, and individuals with advanced ages, women, urban residents and those with low educational and economic levels should be given a high priority for depression control.