Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan.
Department of Epidemiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan.
PLoS One. 2023 Feb 24;18(2):e0279426. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0279426. eCollection 2023.
Despite an increasing number of students studying abroad worldwide, evidence about health risks while they are abroad is limited. Diarrhea is considered the most common travelers' illness, which would also apply to students studying abroad. We examined diarrhea and related personal characteristics among Japanese students studying abroad. Japanese university students who participated in short-term study abroad programs between summer 2016 and spring 2018 were targeted (n = 825, 6-38 travel days). Based on a 2-week-risk of diarrhea (passing three or more loose or liquid stools per day) among travelers by country, the destination was separated into intermediate- and low-risk countries. After this stratification, the associations between personal characteristics and diarrhea during the first two weeks of their stay were evaluated using logistic regression models. Among participants in intermediate-risk countries, teenagers, males and those with overseas travel experience were associated with an elevated risk of diarrhea; the odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) were 2.42 (1.08-5.43) for teenagers (vs. twenties), 1.93 (1.08-3.45) for males (vs. females) and 2.37 (1.29-4.33) for those with overseas experience (vs. none). Even restricting an outcome to diarrhea during the first week did not change the results substantially. The same tendency was not observed for those in the low-risk countries. Teenage students, males and those with overseas travel experience should be cautious about diarrhea while studying abroad, specifically in intermediate-risk countries.
尽管全球有越来越多的学生出国留学，但有关他们在国外期间健康风险的证据有限。腹泻被认为是最常见的旅行者疾病，这也适用于在国外学习的学生。我们研究了在国外学习的日本留学生的腹泻和相关个人特征。研究对象为 2016 年夏季至 2018 年春季期间参加短期出国留学项目的日本大学生（n = 825，旅行天数为 6-38 天）。根据旅行者在不同国家腹泻的 2 周风险（每天排便 3 次或以上稀便或水样便），将目的地分为中风险和低风险国家。在分层后，使用逻辑回归模型评估个人特征与他们在逗留的前两周内腹泻之间的关系。在中风险国家的参与者中，青少年、男性和有海外旅行经验者与腹泻风险升高相关；青少年（20 岁以上）的比值比（95%置信区间）为 2.42（1.08-5.43），男性（女性）为 1.93（1.08-3.45），有海外经验者（无）为 2.37（1.29-4.33）。即使将结果限制在第一周的腹泻，结果也没有实质性变化。在低风险国家的参与者中，没有观察到同样的趋势。青少年学生、男性和有海外旅行经验者在出国留学时应警惕腹泻，特别是在中风险国家。
