Department of Occupational Health Practice and Management, Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health Japan, Kitakyushu, 807-8555, Japan.
Department of Environmental Epidemiology, Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health Japan, Kitakyushu, 807-8555, Japan.
J Public Health (Oxf). 2023 Mar 14;45(1):229-236. doi: 10.1093/pubmed/fdab385.
During a pandemic, non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) play an important role in protecting oneself and others from infection. There are large regional differences in COVID-19 infection rates in Japan. We hypothesized that the local infection incidence may affect adherence to individual NPIs.
This cross-sectional study was conducted online among full-time workers in Japan in December 2020. The questionnaire asked the respondents to identify their habits regarding seven common NPIs (wearing masks, washing hands after the bathroom, disinfecting hands when entering indoors, gargling when returning home, ventilating the room, disinfecting or washing hands after touching frequently touched surfaces, carrying alcohol sanitizers when outdoors).
A total of 27 036 participants were analyzed. Compared with the region with the lowest infection rate, five of the seven NPIs showed statistically significant trends across regional infection levels, the two exceptions being wearing masks and washing hands after the bathroom. Multivariate adjustment did not change these trends.
This study found that NPIs were more prevalent in regions with higher incidence rates of COVID-19 in Japanese workers. The findings suggest that the implementation of NPIs was influenced not only by personal attributes but also by contextual effects of the local infection level.
在大流行期间,非药物干预(NPIs)在保护自己和他人免受感染方面发挥着重要作用。日本各地的 COVID-19 感染率存在较大差异。我们假设当地的感染发生率可能会影响个人 NPI 的遵守情况。
本横断面研究于 2020 年 12 月在日本的全职工作人员中在线进行。调查问卷要求受访者确定他们在七种常见 NPI(戴口罩、便后洗手、进入室内后消毒双手、回家后漱口、通风房间、触摸经常触摸的表面后消毒或洗手、在户外携带酒精消毒剂)方面的习惯。
共分析了 27036 名参与者。与感染率最低的地区相比,七个 NPI 中有五个在区域感染水平上呈现出统计学显著的趋势,两个例外是戴口罩和便后洗手。多元调整并没有改变这些趋势。
本研究发现,在日本工人中,COVID-19 感染率较高的地区 NPI 更为普遍。研究结果表明,NPI 的实施不仅受到个人属性的影响,还受到当地感染水平的环境影响。