The study was designed to determine asymptomatic lead poisoning prevalence and cadmium exposure of preschool children living in a coal-mining area in Yatağan, Mugla, Turkey. The research was conducted between May and June 2002. The study included 236 children (53.4% female and 46.6% male) who were identified among the healthy children between the ages of 6 months and 6 years, using a systematic sampling method, from the records of the local medical centre of Yatağan. Assessments of the levels of blood lead and cadmium were performed by an atomic absorption spectrophotometer, in the Department of Biophysics, Cerrahpaşa Medical Faculty. The mean age of females and males were 49±18 and 43±19 months, respectively. The mean blood lead level was 33.8±15.6 μg/dL in females and 38.8±16.0 μg/dL in males. The mean blood lead level of the males was significantly higher than the females (P<0.05). Correlation analysis showed a statistically significant negative correlation between blood lead level and age in both sex groups (r=-0.367, P< 0.001). The blood lead level was found to be > 10 μg/dL in 95.7% and > 20 μg/dL in 87.6% of all children. The mean blood cadmium level of all children was 1.31±0.72 mg/dL. The blood cadmium level was found to be >0.5 μg/dL, which is considered to be toxic, in 85% of all children. The difference in blood cadmium levels between sexes was not significant. A statistically significant negative correlation was found between blood cadmium level and age of all children (r=-0.382, P<0.001). Although it is not possible to understand from this study what proportion of the biological lead and cadmium burden results from mining waste and what proportion comes from other sources, such as paint and gasoline residue deposited in soil and air, these results do indicate that asymptomatic lead poisoning and cadmium exposure are significant problems in children living in the Yatağan area. In conclusion, environmental lead measurements (house dust, soil, drinking water and air) must be performed, the results must be compared with the normal limits, and precautions must be taken if necessary in the Yatağan area. Future public health research efforts should focus on reducing the excessive levels of lead and cadmium in the environment.

Background. Environmental destruction is one of the most important problems in this century. Objective. The aim of the study was to determine the environmental attitudes and perceived risks associated with environmental factors of the students. Methods. This cross-sectional study was conducted in 7 faculties of Mersin University. The research data were collected using a questionnaire. The questionnaire included sociodemographic characteristics, the “Environmental Attitudes Scale,” and the “Environmental Risk Perception Scale.” 774 students who filled out questionnaires were evaluated. Results. The sample included 55.8% females. Environmental Attitudes Scale mean scores of students were identified as 81.1±11.3. The highest perceived risk was release of radioactive materials associated with nuclear power generation. The environmental attitudes and risk perception scores were higher in Health Sciences than in the other faculties. Females were more positive towards the environment and had higher risk perceptions than the men. There is a negative correlation between age and resource depletion risk and global environmental risk score. Conclusion. Students had a positive attitude to the environment and had moderate-level risk perception about the environment. Environmental awareness of students, especially those studying in the Social Sciences, should be increased. The environmental education curriculum should be revised throughout all the courses.

Phenomenon: Physician immigration from other countries is increasing as developed countries continue to be desirable destinations for physicians; however, the determinants of Turkish physicians' migration decisions are still unclear. Despite its wide coverage in the media and among physicians in Türkiye, and being the subject of much debate, there is insufficient data to justify this attention. With this study, we aimed to investigate the tendency of senior medical students in Türkiye to pursue their professional careers abroad and its related factors. Approach: This cross-sectional study involved 9881 senior medical students from 39 different medical schools in Türkiye in 2022. Besides participants' migration decision, we evaluated the push and pull factors related to working, social environment and lifestyle in Türkiye and abroad, medical school education inadequacy, and personal insufficiencies, as well as the socioeconomic variables that may affect the decision to migrate abroad. The analyses were carried out with a participation rate of at least 50%. Findings: Of the medical students, 70.7% had emigration intentions. Approximately 60% of those want to stay abroad permanently, and 61.5% of them took initiatives such as learning a foreign language abroad (54.5%) and taking relevant exams (18.9%). Those who wanted to work in the field of Research & Development were 1.37 (95% CI: 1.22-1.54) times more likely to emigrate. The push factor that was related to emigration intention was the "working conditions in the country" (OR: 1.89, 95% CI: 1.56-2.28) whereas the "social environment/lifestyle abroad" was the mere pull factor for the tendency of emigration (OR: 1.73, 95% CI: 1.45-2.06). In addition, the quality problem in medical schools also had a significant impact on students' decisions (OR: 2.20, 95% CI: 1.83-2.65). Insights: Although the percentage of those who want to emigrate "definitely" was at the same level as in the other developing countries, the tendency to migrate "permanently" was higher in Türkiye. Improving working conditions in the country and increasing the quality of medical faculties seem vital in preventing the migration of physicians.

The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence and affecting factors of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HbsAg), hepatitis C virus antibody (anti-HCV), anti human immunodeficiency virus (anti-HIV), and VDRL in blood donors in Mersin. Materials and methods: This was a retrospective, descriptive study. All blood centers in Mersin were included in the study. The medical records of 30,716 blood donors were evaluated. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis, linear-by-linear association test, and the Pearson chi-square significance test. Results: Of the donors, 691 (2.2%) had positive HbsAg, 125 (0.4%) had positive anti-HCV, and 46 (0.1%) had positive VDRL test. The confirmation test was positive in 1 participant out of 54 (0.2%), whose anti-HIV test was positive. Of the participants, 862 (2.8%) showed at least 1 positive test result. In one participant, both HbsAg and anti-HCV tests were positive. Conclusion: There was at least 1 blood-borne disease seropositivity in 2.8% of the donors. Seroprevalence increased with age in males.

This study determined the prevalence of home accidents among elderly people living in Mersin and the factors affecting their occurrence. The data of 609 elderly people were analyzed. The people referred to a family health center for any reason were included in the study. The frequency of having a home accident in the previous month was 9.9%. The prevalence of home accidents was 3 times higher in females, 2.7 times higher in people living with their children, 2.3 times higher in elderly who have visual impairment, and 2.7 times higher in elderly who have poor health status. Also, increase in age was a risk factor for home accidents. Home accidents constitute a significant problem for elderly people in Mersin. Environmental factors that may cause accidents within the home should be determined and the household should be arranged according to the elderly. Health problems that may pose a risk for accidents should be identified and treated.