INTRODUCTIONFor over a decade, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have been the most used tobacco product among US youth. Although past research has stressed the importance of tailoring health communication messaging and interventions, much more work remains to be done in this area. To learn about youth views on vaping from their firsthand experience, we employed Photovoice to examine how youth experience vaping in their everyday lives.METHODSThrough Photovoice methodology and the SHOWED approach to discussion in 2022, we engaged US youth in conversation about vaping exposure and outcomes, focusing on how they experience vaping in their everyday lives. Employing the constant comparative method, discussion transcripts and notes were analyzed, revealing two overarching themes.RESULTSPervasiveness and Promotion, the first theme, illustrated the ever-present nature of vaping in the experiences of study participants. Health and Environmental Impacts, the second theme, described participants’ apprehensions regarding vaping’s negative effects.CONCLUSIONSOverall, the examples, perspectives, and conclusions that the youth participants shared throughout these discussions illuminated frequent exposure to e-cigarette use and marketing as well as many concerns about the risks associated with use. Health communication messaging in these areas may be useful in refining existing and crafting new prevention and cessation campaigns.

Smoking predisposes to significant adverse effects on the oral, gingival, and pharyngeal mucosal surfaces, resulting in structural changes and atrophy 1,2 .In addition to the reduction in salivary flow and the decreased mucosal immunity, smoking is detrimental to the oral microflora.These changes may play a significant role in introducing more tonsillar infections [3][4][5][6] .Tobacco nitrosamines are a group of inhaled toxicants involved in the etiology and induction of tumors as well as in functional and morpho-structural changes resulting in tissue injury 7,8 .Due to the changes caused by tobacco smoke in the oral cavity and pharynx, secondary bacterial infections of the tonsils ensue through biofilm formation in the tonsils.Biofilm represents an assembly of bacteria enclosed in an extracellular polysaccharide matrix creating an environment for augmentation of nutrient gradients, genetic exchange, and quorum sensing enabling the bacteria to survive in adverse conditions and to develop resistance.This results in chronic recurrent tonsillitis not amenable to medical treatment 9,10 .Interestingly, chronic recurrent tonsillitis has both infectious and non-infectious etiologies.Viral causes which are the most common cause, encompass rhinovirus, coronavirus, adenovirus, parainfluenza virus, influenza virus, respiratory syncytial virus, Coxsackie virus,

Chagas disease is a complex clinical entity caused by a protozoan parasite, Trypanosoma cruzi, transmitted by the bite of infected triatomines. The objective of this study was to establish the distribution of vector species of T. cruzi according to all the geopolitical regions of Ecuador.

There is a need to strengthen the evidence base for context-specific heterogeneities in factors that may potentiate or reduce adverse outcomes of non-communicable disease (NCDs). The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of behavioral and biological risk factors for NCDs among adults in Algeria. METHODS We conducted a secondary analysis of nationally representative cross-sectional population-based data from the Algeria STEPS survey 2016-2017 with a sample size of 6989 adults aged 18-69 years. The STEPS instrument comprised three levels: the questionnaire, physical and biochemical measures, which were used to assess the NCDs' behavioral and biological risk factors, including current tobacco use, inadequate fruit and vegetable (FV) intake, low physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior, overweight/obese, hypertension, diabetes, and elevated total cholesterol. Adjusted binary logistic regressions assessed the associations between sociodemographic and health factors and specific NCD risk factors. Adjusted Poisson regressions were used to assess the predictors of multiple NCD risk factors. RESULTS The proportion of the population with inadequate fruit/vegetable (FV) consumption was 85.2%, followed by overweight/obese (55.6%), low physical activity (PA) (36.6%), hypertension (23.6%), current tobacco use (21.8%), elevated total cholesterol (18.2%), sedentary behavior

INTRODUCTIONThis study aimed to estimate the prevalence and associated factors of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) multimorbidity among adults in Morocco.METHODS National data were analyzed from 6989 adults (aged 18-69 years, median 37 years) who participated in the cross-sectional 2017 Morocco STEPS survey.Logistic regressions were calculated with multimorbidity, adjusted for age, sex, education level, residence and smoking status, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and body mass index.RESULTS The prevalence of diabetes was 10.7%, hypertension 19.5%, ischemic heart disease/stroke 3.3%, and multimorbidity 5.0%.In the adjusted logistic regression model, older age (aged 50 years) (AOR=5.11;95% CI: 3.64-7.18),urban residence (AOR=1.75;95% CI: 1.26-

The Collaborative Open Research Initiative Study (CORIS) is an inclusive and innovative international research project that welcomes contributors from across the globe. CORIS fosters a democratic and collaborative approach, shaping research actively and offering publication opportunities for newcomers in health professions education. In this protocol, we describe the aims and approach of CORIS, which is designed as an annual cross-sectional, web-based survey that seeks to explore critical topics in health professions education. The target population comprises faculty and staff in accredited, degree-granting medical, dental, nursing, pharmacy, and public health schools at undergraduate and postgraduate levels across 16 countries (n=14400). Collaborators within CORIS will actively engage in survey design, question formulation, and the entire research process. The first iteration, CORIS-1, scheduled for 2024, covers themes such as post-COVID-19 patient care, epidemic preparedness, burnout, artificial intelligence, remote learning, conflict's impact on mental health, substance use,

Introduction Aigai virus (AIGV) is the prototype strain of the novel Orthonairovirus parahaemorrhagiae species ( Nairoviridae family), which contains the strains of the previous CCHFV genogroup VI (or Greece/Europe-2 or AP- 92-like). The reclassification was done due to the genetic distance of AIGV from all genotypes of CCHFV. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the performance of six molecular assays to detect AIGV. Methods Undiluted and serial dilutions (1:10 to 1:10000) of culture supernatant of AIGV strain Pentalofos were used for the comparative study. The strain was isolated from Rhipicephalus bursa ticks removed in 2015 from a goat in Pentalofos village, Greece. Following RNA extraction, six different molecular assays were applied: two nested RT-PCRs, one RT-PCR, and three real-Time RT-PCRs (one commercial). Results All assays detected AIGV up to the 1:1000 dilution, while even higher sensitivity (detection of the 1:10000 dilution) was seen in the nested PCRs designed/modified based on the AP92 sequence, and in two of the real-time RT-PCRs. Lowest Ct values were taken using the commercial assay. Conclusions All assays performed well for the detection of AIGV, suggesting that the risk for underdiagnosis of AIGV infections is low using these assays. However, mismatches in the primers/probes affected the sensitivity of the assays. Genetic surveillance is needed to monitor the mutations in the virus which might affect the efficacy of the diagnostic tools, while a sensitive real time RT-PCR capable to differentiate AIGV and CCHFV will be extremely helpful to estimate the exact burden of AIGV infections.

Although population medicine is a cornerstone in preventing and controlling diseases, worldwide shortages of specialists in this field continue to rise. The aim of this study is to explore physicians' (primary and secondary healthcare) perceptions on pursuing population medicine as a main career. METHODS Responses were obtained via an online selfadministered questionnaire from Arabian Gulf University medical graduates, during the period February-April 2022, who had valid email addresses on the Alumni Association database. Information included demographic data, physicians' employment health sector and medical career choices. In addition, perceptions towards pursuing a career in population medicine were documented. RESULTS Completed questionnaires were received from 190 physicians, of whom 24.7% and 63.2% were in primary and secondary healthcare, respectively. While most of

scope. These include both systematic reviews and narrative reviews. • Short Reports -brief reports of data from original research. • Policy Case Studies -brief articles on policy development at a regional or national level. • Study Protocols -articles describing a research protocol of a study. • Methodology Papers -papers that present different methodological approaches that can be used to investigate problems in a relevant scientific field and to encourage innovation. • Methodology Papers -papers that present different methodological approaches that can be used to investigate problems in a relevant scientific field and to encourage innovation. • Letters to the Editor -a response to authors of an original publication, or a very small article that may be relevant to readers. • Editorials -articles written by the Editorial Board or by invited experts on a specific topic. Articles reporting research may be full length or brief reports. These should report original research findings within the journal's scope. Papers should generally be a maximum of 4000 words in length, excluding tables, references, and abstract and key points of the article, whilst it is recommended that the number of references should not exceed 36. Comprehensive, authoritative, reviews within the journal's scope. There are two types of review papers: -systematic review papers: respond to a specific research question, accrue from criterion-based selection of sources, include a quantitative synthesis and a statistical method (meta-analysis), and should adhere to PRISMA guidelines. Guidelines used for abstracting data and assessing data quality and validity should be noted in methods section. -narrative review papers: the research question may be broad, and the scope of this review is to discuss a specific topic. This type of review does not necessarily include a methodological approach and its synthesis is usually qualitative. Narrative reviews should include details regarding data sources used, keywords applied, time restrictions and study types selected. All review papers should be generally less than 6000 words, excluding abstract, tables, figures and references. References should not exceed 50, unless the topic has an extensive evidence base. Conclusion of the reviews should be specific and stem from the findings. Brief reports of data from original research. Short reports are shorter versions of original articles, may include one table or figure, should not exceed 1500 words, and it is recommended that the number of references should not exceed 15. Short reports are suitable for the presentation of research that extends previously published research, including the reporting of additional evidence and confirmatory results in other settings, as well as negative results. Authors must clearly acknowledge any work upon which they are building, both published and unpublished. Articles describing a research protocol of a study. This article type can be for proposed or for ongoing research and should contain the background, research hypothesis, rationale a detailed methodology of the study. The SPIRIT 2013 Checklist guidelines ideally should be applied. Study protocols submitted for publication must have received ethics approval. Protocols of randomized trials should follow the CONSORT guidelines and must have a trial registration number, while observational studies should follow STROBE guidelines. Methodology Papers will present different methodological approaches that can be used to investigate problems in a relevant scientific field and to encourage innovation. It is suggested that case studies or practical examples, which can be existing ones, are included to demonstrate the consistency and applicability of the methodology. Methodology papers should be generally less than 6000 words, excluding abstract, tables, figures and references. References should not exceed 50.

Population Medicine considers the following types of articles:• Research Papers -reports of data from original research or secondary dataset analyses.• Review Papers -comprehensive, authoritative, reviews within the journal's scope.These include both systematic reviews and narrative reviews.• Short Reports -brief reports of data from original research.• Policy Case Studies -brief articles on policy development at a regional or national level.• Study Protocols -articles describing a research protocol of a study.• Methodology Papers -papers that present different methodological approaches that can be used to investigate problems in a relevant scientific field and to encourage innovation.• Methodology Papers -papers that present different methodological approaches that can be used to investigate problems in a relevant scientific field and to encourage innovation.