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Background: This in vitro study investigated the time-dependent bactericidal effects of cold atmospheric argon plasma treatment of periodontal hand scalers as well as the scanning electron microscopic view of the scaler tip surfaces before and after plasma treatment. Materials and Methods: The study used 34 periodontal hand scalers which were divided into test and control groups. The scaler tips were inoculated with Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, following which the scalers in the control and test groups were subjected to conventional sterilization and argon plasma sterilization, respectively. Varying exposure times of plasma treatment were done on the test group samples to evaluate the minimum time required for complete sterilization. Subsequently, streaks were made on plate count agar using each of these instruments. The agar plates were then kept in an incubator for 24 h, following which bacterial colony count was assessed (colony-forming units/mL). Furthermore, the scanning electron microscopic (SEM) view of the scaler tip was studied before and after plasma treatment. Results: A complete elimination of bacterial load (Gram-positive as well as Gram-negative) from the instrument surface was achieved by the plasma exposure time of 15–20 s. SEM analysis did not show a significant difference before and after plasma treatment as not many organic residues were present on the scaler tip. Conclusion: Cold atmospheric pressure plasma is an efficient and time-saving method of sterilization, capable of destroying both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.

We investigate the gendered use of Instagram memes on COVID-19 using a mixed-analysis approach. We find that memes referencing women are mostly related to community support and healthcare, which often express gratitude for frontline workers, while the majority of memes on men refer to news and promotion as well as suffering due to the high death rates and other financial hardships. As for sexual and gender minorities, memes mostly mention community support similar to the case of the memes referencing women. We argue that internet memes offer insight into ongoing trends in the public's perceptions of pandemics, and they should be further examined because they often communicate vital information on gender groups and public health.

Gender norms, roles and relations differentially affect women, men, and non-binary individuals' vulnerability to disease. Outbreak response measures also have immediate and long-term gendered effects. However, gender-based analysis of outbreaks and responses is limited by lack of data and little integration of feminist analysis within global health scholarship. Recognising these barriers, this paper applies a gender matrix methodology, grounded in feminist political economy approaches, to evaluate the gendered effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and response in four case studies: China, Hong Kong, Canada, and the UK. Through a rapid scoping of documentation of the gendered effects of the outbreak, it applies the matrix framework to analyse findings, identifying common themes across the case studies: financial discrimination, crisis in care, and unequal risks and secondary effects. Results point to transnational structural conditions which put women on the front lines of the pandemic at work and at home while denying them health, economic and personal security - effects that are exacerbated where racism and other forms of discrimination intersect with gender inequities. Given that women and people living at the intersections of multiple inequities are made additionally vulnerable by pandemic responses, intersectional feminist responses should be prioritised at the beginning of any crises.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic poses particular challenges for migrant workers around the world. This study explores the unique experiences of foreign domestic workers (FDWs) in Hong Kong, and how COVID-19 impacted their health and economic wellbeing. Interviews with FDWs ( n  = 15) and key informants ( n  = 3) were conducted between May and August 2020. FDWs reported a dual-country experience of the pandemic, where they expressed concerns about local transmission risks as well as worries about their family members in their home country. Changes to their current work situation included how their employers treated them, as well as their employment status. FDWs also cited blind spots in the Hong Kong policy response that also affected their experience of the pandemic, including a lack of support from the Hong Kong government. Additional support is needed to mitigate the particularly negative effects of the pandemic on FDWs., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© 2021 The Author(s).)

Background: The online discussion around the COVID-19 pandemic is multifaceted, and it is important to examine the different ways by which online users express themselves. Since emojis are used as effective vehicles to convey ideas and sentiments, they can offer important insight into the public's gendered discourses about the pandemic., Objective: This study aims at exploring how people of different genders (eg, men, women, and sex and gender minorities) are discussed in relation to COVID-19 through the study of Twitter emojis., Methods: We collected over 50 million tweets referencing the hashtags #Covid-19 and #Covid19 for a period of more than 2 months in early 2020. Using a mixed method, we extracted three data sets containing tweets that reference men, women, and sexual and gender minorities, and we then analyzed emoji use along each gender category. We identified five major themes in our analysis including morbidity fears, health concerns, employment and financial issues, praise for frontline workers, and unique gendered emoji use. The top 600 emojis were manually classified based on their sentiment, indicating how positive, negative, or neutral each emoji is and studying their use frequencies., Results: The findings indicate that the majority of emojis are overwhelmingly positive in nature along the different genders, but sexual and gender minorities, and to a lesser extent women, are discussed more negatively than men. There were also many differences alongside discourses of men, women, and gender minorities when certain topics were discussed, such as death, financial and employment matters, gratitude, and health care, and several unique gendered emojis were used to express specific issues like community support., Conclusions: Emoji research can shed light on the gendered impacts of COVID-19, offering researchers an important source of information on health crises as they happen in real time., (©Ahmed Al-Rawi, Maliha Siddiqi, Rosemary Morgan, Nimisha Vandan, Julia Smith, Clare Wenham. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 05.11.2020.)

Ethnic minorities across the globe encounter disparities in healthcare. While a great deal of research has been conducted on the experiences of these patients, studies focusing on the perspectives of healthcare professionals are limited, particularly in the context of Asia. This study explores the perceptions of and challenges faced by Hong Kong healthcare professionals in the provision of culturally appropriate care to South Asian ethnic minority patients. Taking a qualitative approach, interviews were conducted with 22 healthcare professionals. Two main themes were identified: 'lack of support' at the healthcare system level and 'dysfunctional relationship with South Asian ethnic minority patients' at the interpersonal level. Challenges at the healthcare system level include information outreach, cultural competency, utilisation of available resources and time and workload, whereas challenges at the interpersonal level include patient-provider interaction, patient-provider perceptions of illness and care and patient-provider sociocultural discordance. Intercultural care was found to be influenced by both the healthcare system and interpersonal characteristics. The study highlights the need for healthcare professional education and training in cultural competency, in order to improve the provision of intercultural care. Identifying the challenges faced by healthcare professionals and the implications of these challenges for the provision of healthcare to South Asian ethnic minority patients will help practitioners, policy makers and care provider agencies to improve quality of care and health outcomes for culturally diverse patients., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The aim of the present qualitative study was to understand the experiences of South Asian ethnic minority women in accessing health-care services in Hong Kong, a Chinese-oriented society. Levesque's framework (2013) was adopted to conduct and analyze focus group discussions among 30 South Asian women aged between 21 and 72 years, who came from India, Nepal, and Pakistan. The overarching theme was identified as disengagement between South Asian women and the health-care system, with the following five themes: attitude and awareness, sociocultural factors, time constraints, financial burdens, and inadequate interaction. These were linked to barriers affecting South Asian women's ability to access health care, the common challenges encountered being those related to language, culture, and communication. Lengthy waiting periods discourage these women from seeking health care in Hong Kong. Enhancing accessibility to appropriate health-care-related information and culturally-informed patient-provider interaction can improve knowledge, trust, and satisfaction among these women, thereby enhancing their engagement with the health-care system., (© 2018 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.)

We conducted a cross-sectional, descriptive survey among 141 medical physicians treating tuberculosis (TB) patients, registered with local chest physicians association in Lucknow District, India. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to evaluate the physicians' knowledge of anti-tuberculosis prescribed medication regimens. Sixty percent of eligible physicians had Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program training, mostly in the public sector. Only two-thirds of physicians could correctly state the recommended TB drugs. Physicians, especially in the private sector, had inadequate knowledge of the approved anti-tuberculosis prescribed medication regimen. This study demonstrates the need for adequate training in both public and private sectors regarding the correct anti-tuberculosis treatment regimens.