Household air pollution exposure in adult women is associated with increased carotid intima-media thickness: A cross-sectional study of the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network trial.

Background: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of global morbidity and mortality, disproportionately affecting people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Biomass fuels used for cooking in LMICs contribute significantly to household air pollution (HAP), which has been associated with inflammation, oxidative stress, and other pathways linked to atherosclerosis. We evaluate the association between HAP exposure and atherosclerosis by use of carotid artery ultrasound.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas or Biomass for Cooking and Effects on Blood Pressure: Results from the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) Trial.

Background: Exposure to household air pollution from burning coal and biomass for cooking is associated with higher blood pressure and other adverse indicators of cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death worldwide. Evidence demonstrating that switching from biomass to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) will reduce blood pressure is limited.

Methods: As part of a larger trial of 3200 households, we conducted a randomized trial of 342 women aged 40 to 79 years who lived in households using biomass for cooking in rural areas of Guatemala, India, Peru, and Rwanda to assess the effects of a free LPG stove and fuel intervention.

Household air pollution and blood pressure among adult women participants of the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network Trial: An exposure-response analysis.

Background: Exposure to air pollutants, like fine particulate matter (PM), has been linked to higher blood pressure (BP). Few studies have examined this association in biomass-dependent settings. We seek to determine whether high exposure during a 16 month period was associated with an increase in BP among older adult women over the study period and to determine whether short-term increases in exposure were associated with higher coincident blood pressure.

Gestational and postnatal exposures to fine particulate matter (PM) and their association with acute ear infections, diarrhea, respiratory symptoms, and mortality: A longitudinal study of infants in the multicountry Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial.

Exposure to household air pollution from cooking with biomass is a risk factor for infant morbidity and mortality. The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) evaluated the effects of a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stove and fuel intervention on air pollutant exposure and health outcomes among 3195 pregnant women (nine to 19 weeks' gestation) and their infants in Guatemala, India, Peru, and Rwanda. We measured PM exposure among women before childbirth and infants in the postnatal period.

Provision of a liquefied petroleum gas cookstove and fuel during pregnancy and infancy and linear growth trajectories between birth and 12 months: evidence from the multi-center Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial.

Objective: Exposure to particulate pollution from cooking with solid biomass fuels is associated with impaired child linear growth. We examined the effect of a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cookstove randomized control trial during pregnancy and infancy on linear growth trajectories among infants born to women enrolled during pregnancy.

Methods: The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) randomized control trial enrolled 3195 pregnant women (9 to <20 weeks gestation) from rural areas in Guatemala, Peru, India, and Rwanda that relied primarily on biomass fuels for cooking.

Association of prenatal and early-life polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons exposure with dental caries in childhood.

Background: Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), generated through incomplete combustion of organic materials such as coal and wood, and through activities, like charbroiling meat and smoking tobacco, negatively impact children's health. This study evaluates early-life PAH exposure in children from Southern India and its association with early childhood caries (ECC).

Methods: We utilized maternal and child urine samples from the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) cohort to measure PAH metabolites: 2-naphthol (2-NAP) and 1-hydroxypyrene (1-PYR).

Climate Change and Respiratory Health: Opportunities to Contribute to Environmental Justice: An Official American Thoracic Society Workshop Report.

Adverse environmental exposures worsened by our changing climate threaten respiratory health and exacerbate existing social inequities that further undermine environmental justice (EJ). EJ is the capacity of all people, regardless of sociodemographic characteristics, to minimize harmful exposures and live a healthy life. EJ is achieved through the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.

Pathways for India to Reduce Ambient Air Pollution Health Burden and Achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-3.4).

Sustainable Development Goal 3.4 (SDG-3.4) aims to reduce non-communicable disease (NCD) mortality by one-third by 2030, compared to 2015 levels.

Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome on the Operating Room Table After a Robotic Radical Nephrectomy: A Case Report.

An elderly patient with renal cell carcinoma underwent a robotic nephrectomy. After an uneventful intraoperative period, soon after extubation she developed generalized seizures and was diagnosed with posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) on neuroimaging. Management included antiepileptic and antihypertensive therapies, necessitating intensive care and neurorehabilitation.

Exposure Contrasts of Women Aged 40-79 Years during the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network Randomized Controlled Trial.

Exposure to household air pollution has been linked to adverse health outcomes among women aged 40-79. Little is known about how shifting from biomass cooking to a cleaner fuel like liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) could impact exposures for this population. We report 24-h exposures to particulate matter (PM), black carbon (BC), and carbon monoxide (CO) among women aged 40 to <80 years participating in the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network trial.

Effects of a liquefied petroleum gas stove and fuel intervention on head circumference and length at birth: A multi-country household air pollution intervention network (HAPIN) trial.

Background: Air pollution may impair child growth and cognitive development, with potential markers including birth length and head circumference.

Methods: The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial was an open label multi-country-randomized controlled trial, with 3200 pregnant women aged 18-34 years (9-19 weeks of gestation) randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stove intervention compared to women continuing to cook with solid fuels for 18 months. Particulate matter ≤ 2.

Assessment of Lead Exposure and Associated Risk Through Human Biomonitoring Among Urban Communities in Chennai, Southern India.

Background: Lead exposure is a widely acknowledged risk to public health for children and adults. However, despite efforts to phase out major sources over the last several decades, estimates of the prevalence of blood lead exposures and associated risks remain poorly characterized in many low- and middle-income countries.

Objectives:  This study aimed to determine blood lead levels (BLLs) and assess potential sources of lead exposure among urban communities in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

A Multicentric Field Test to Study the Validity and Feasibility of the SHS-tool to Screen for Serious Health-related Suffering in Adult Patients with Cancer.

Objectives: The 2017 Lancet Commission reports 'Serious Health-related Suffering' (SHS) as an abyss in healthcare services. It lists 20 common health conditions and 15 symptoms as commonly associated with SHS. In 2015, 80% of SHS prevalence, an estimated 61 million, was noted as from low-middle-income countries.

Revolutionizing Leishmaniasis Treatment with Cutting Edge Drug Delivery Systems and Nanovaccines: An Updated Review.

Leishmaniasis, one of the most overlooked tropical diseases, is a life-threatening illness caused by the parasite that is prevalent in underdeveloped nations. Over 350 million individuals in more than 90 different nations worldwide are at risk of contracting the disease, which has a current fatality rate of 50 000 mortalities each year. The administration of liposomal Amp B, pentavalent antimonials, and miltefosine are still considered integral components of the chemotherapy regimen.

Protocol for CARES-HAPIN: an ambidirectional cohort study on exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and risk of early childhood caries.

Introduction: Prenatal and postnatal exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) has been linked with early childhood caries (ECC), but the specific molecular mechanisms and pathways remain largely unknown. The Caries Risk from exposure to Environmental tobacco Smoke (CARES) within the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) study aims to establish the association between ETS and ECC by employing epidemiological and novel biomarker-based approaches. Here, we outline the overall design and rationale of the project.

Biofilm Inhibition on Medical Devices and Implants Using Carbon Dots: An Updated Review.

Biofilms are an intricate community of microbes that colonize solid surfaces, communicating via a quorum-sensing mechanism. These microbial aggregates secrete exopolysaccharides facilitating adhesion and conferring resistance to drugs and antimicrobial agents. The escalating global concern over biofilm-related infections on medical devices underscores the severe threat to human health.

Cooking with liquefied petroleum gas or biomass and fetal growth outcomes: a multi-country randomised controlled trial.

Background: Household air pollution might lead to fetal growth restriction during pregnancy. We aimed to investigate whether a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) intervention to reduce personal exposures to household air pollution during pregnancy would alter fetal growth.

Methods: The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial was an open-label randomised controlled trial conducted in ten resource-limited settings across Guatemala, India, Peru, and Rwanda.