Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology

16/06/2025

🔴 New Video Release – 5th World Sepsis Congress | Session 14: Climate & Sepsis

We are pleased to share that Session 14 of the 5th World Sepsis is now available to watch online.

🎥 In this session, Assistant Professor Fani Kalala (Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology, University of Thessaly) delivers an insightful talk on:

"Impact of Climate Change on Maternal and Newborn Sepsis Outcomes"

🕐 Jump to her presentation directly: 01:10:05

🔗 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQgunKpU1IU&t=4205s

🔎 Her presentation highlights the key findings of the HIGH Horizons research project, addressing how climate-related factors affect maternal and neonatal sepsis risks—an urgent public health concern in the face of climate change.

📌 Don’t miss this important contribution to the global dialogue on climate-sensitive health threats.

Session 14 from the 5th World Sepsis Congress. To go directly to a specific speaker/talk, please use these chapter markers:00:00:00 Introduction00:00:52 Filo...

05/05/2025

Today we honor midwives for their vital role in supporting motherhood and family. At the same time, we highlight the contribution of science to the care of women and children through the HIGH Horizons project.

🔬 The Laboratory of Hygiene & Epidemiology at the University of Thessaly is participating in the European research program HIGH Horizons, which focuses on studying the biological mechanisms through which high temperatures affect the health of pregnant women, postpartum mothers, mothers in general, newborns, and infants (up to their first year of life).

📊 Our researchers, with the participation of 9 midwives, are collecting data through questionnaires, taking biological samples such as blood, urine, etc., and recording the ambient temperature to which the mother and her child are exposed.

🧬 Our researchers are analyzing questions such as:

• What happens inside a human cell when exposed to high temperatures?

• What changes occur in the composition of blood?

• How is the structure and function of the body’s proteins affected?

🔗 Learn more about the project:

https://lnkd.in/dVEdXiEN

HIGH Horizons is funded by the European Union’s Horizon Research and Innovation programme under Grant Agreement no 101057843. Project partner LSHTM is funded by UKRI Innovate UK reference number 10038478.



Katerina Sousamli

03/02/2025

📣 Registration is Now Open for SHIPSAN Training Courses! 🌍

The SHIPSAN Association is excited to announce its upcoming training courses for 2025! 🚢 📚

Enhance your knowledge and skills in health, hygiene, and safety operations on passenger ships. These courses are tailored for supervisors, managers, and ship crew, covering essential areas for the passenger shipping industry.

Course Schedule:

1️⃣ Health and Hygiene, Medical and Public Health Operations in Passenger Ships

📌 Advanced training for supervisors and managers

️ 📅 Dates: Tuesday 3 – Friday 6 June 2025



🔗Learn more and register here: https://lnkd.in/dyxg79d7

2️⃣ Food Safety for the Passenger Shipping Industry

Training for supervisors and managers

️ 📅 Dates: Tuesday 21 – Friday 24 October 2025


🔗 Learn more and register here: https://lnkd.in/di9Ab8sM

3️⃣ Health and Hygiene in Housekeeping and Hotel Operations on Passenger Ships

📌 Training for supervisors, managers, and ship crew

️ 📅 Dates: Tuesday 11 – Friday 14 November 2025


🔗 Learn more and register here: https://lnkd.in/d77nYj6Y

4️⃣ Potable and Recreational Water Safety Onboard Passenger Ships

📌 Training for managers, supervisors, and ship crew

️ 📅 Dates: Tuesday 25 – Friday 28 November 2025


🔗 Learn more and register here: https://lnkd.in/d72YcWMQ

🎯 Don’t miss this opportunity to stay ahead in the industry! Spaces are limited—secure your spot today. ⏳

31/01/2025

🎉 ✨The Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology at the University of Thessaly welcomed 2025 with its traditional New Year’s cake-cutting celebration! 🍰 🎊

🙌 The warm atmosphere, heartfelt wishes, and inspiring discussions about the year ahead fill us with optimism for the future! 🌟

🙏 A big thank you to everyone who joined us and contributed to this joyful and festive event. Wishing everyone a happy and prosperous New Year, full of health, creativity, and success! 🎉

24/01/2025

📣 Webinar του Παρατηρητηρίου Δημόσιας Υγείας Μέσων Μεταφοράς και Πυλών Εισόδου ⚕️

Το Υπουργείο Υγείας και το Παρατηρητηρίου Δημόσιας Υγείας Μέσων Μεταφοράς και Πυλών Εισόδου διοργάνωσαν εξειδικευμένο 2-ωρο webinar την Πέμπτη, 23 Ιανουαρίου 2025.

💻 Το webinar απευθυνόταν σε υπαλλήλους που είναι αρμόδιοι για την έκδοση Υγειονομικών Πιστοποιητικών Πλοίων στην Ελλάδα. Με τη συμμετοχή >100 συμμετοχόντων, το πρόγραμμα περιελάμβανε αναλυτικές παρουσιάσεις και οδηγίες χρήσης της Ηλεκτρονικής Πλατφόρμας EU Common Ship Sanitation Database.

▪️Διοργάνωση: Υπουργείο Υγείας & Παρατηρητήριο Δημόσιας Υγείας Μέσων Μεταφοράς και Πυλών Εισόδου

▪️Χαιρετισμοί: Varvara A. Mouchtouri , Αντώνης Παπαδάκης, Φωτεινή Τσαλίκογλου, Dionisia Ntapanta, Christos Hadjichristodoulou

▪️Ομιλητές: Varvara A. Mouchtouri, Eleni P. Christoforidou, Nick Bitsolas, Leonidas Kourentis, Αντώνης Παπαδάκης

19/12/2024

🌍💡 Urgent Action on Climate Change and Its Impact on Our Health! 💡🌍

Prof. Christos Hadjichristodoulou delivered a lecture on the “Climate Change and Impacts on Health” during the opening ceremony of the 4th Panhellenic Conference on Pediatric Infections on Friday 6 December 2024.

During his speech the retrospective study and birth control studies conducted by UTH under the HIGH Horizons project were presented.



🔎 Find out more about the work of HIGH horizon here: https://www.high-horizons.eu/

📄 Information in Greek for the project here: https://high-horizons.uth.gr/

05/12/2024

⬇️ Διαβάστε παρακάτω τη συνέντευξη του προέδρου του ΕΟΔΥ κ. Χρήστου Χατζηχριστοδούλου για το θέμα της κλιματικής κρίσης και τις επιπτώσεις στη δημόσια υγεία οπού αναφέρει τη δράση του Εργαστήριου Υγιεινής και Επιδημιολογίας, του Πανεπιστημίου Θεσσαλίας στο πλαίσιο του ευρωπαϊκού προγράμματος HIGH Horizons που μέσω μελέτης σειράς γεννήσεων θα μελετήσει και θα συσχετίσει την έκθεση σε ακραίες θερμοκρασίες με την έκβαση της κύησης.



https://lnkd.in/dTe-yPC4

22/11/2024

📢New Research Alert!🚨

The Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology at the University of Thessaly is proud to announce the publication of our latest study:
"The Global Burden of Absenteeism Related to COVID-19 Vaccine Side Effects Among Healthcare Workers: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis"

✒️ Authored by Marios Politis, Georgios Rachiotis, Varvara (Barbara) A. Mouchtouri , and Christos Hadjichristodoulou, this study synthesizes evidence from 19 studies involving 96,786 participants to explore the prevalence and factors influencing absenteeism among workers (HCWs) due to vaccine side effects.

🔎 Key Findings:

▪️ 17% of HCWs reported absenteeism after , with side effects identified as the cause.

▪️ 83% of vaccinations resulted in no absenteeism.

▪️ Study design, s*x, vaccination dose, region, and vaccine type were identified as significant sources of heterogeneity.

▪️ Various demographic factors should be considered in future vaccination schedules for HCWs to potentially decrease the burden of absenteeism related to vaccine side effects.

📖 Read the full study here: DOI: 10.3390/vaccines12101196
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39460361/

‼️ Let’s continue advancing public health by understanding and addressing the challenges faced by our frontline workers.

Background: A rise in absenteeism among healthcare workers (HCWs) was recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic, mostly attributed to SARS-CoV-2 infections. However, evidence suggests that COVID-19 vaccine-related side effects may have also contributed to absenteeism during this period. Thi...

18/09/2024

The Director of the Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology and her team would like to express their gratitude to the rector of the University of Thessaly, Professor Charalambos Billinis , for his participation in the promotional video of the new distance learning English language program "MSc in Public Health".

🎓 The MSc distance learning program in Public Health offers two streams:

◼ 1st Stream: Public Health and Epidemiology

◼ 2nd Stream: Public Health and Maritime Transport

25/07/2024

The Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology is pleased to have participated in the EUVABECO meeting conducted in Brussels on May 13-14, 2024. 📣

🤝 During the meeting, 40+ representatives from EUVABECO’s 14 partnering institutions across Europe, as well as external Advisory Board members gathered to discuss project progress for identifying practices in and planning for future implementation.

📌Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology plans to conduct pilot projects in the context by implementing:

💉 A Clinical Decision Support (CDS) system for vaccination among crew and , aiming to empower with personalized vaccine information and advice

💳 A portable Vaccination Card (EVC) for crew, fostering informed decision-making on , and improving continuity of care across the EU

👉 To learn more about EUVABECO and get updates on future implementation plans, visit: https://euvabeco.eu/

17/07/2024

🆕 We are delighted to announce that the Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiologyparticipates as a consortium partner in the EUVABECO project “European Vaccination Beyond COVID-19”.

🌍 Funded by the European Commission’s program, EUVABECO aims to equip European Union Member States with validated implementation plans for practices, accommodating diverse contexts to enable cross-border deployment. Launched in January 2024, the 30-month project unites a of 14 partners in 9 countries.

EUVABECO will launch 5 tools to enhance efforts. Implementation strategies for each tool will be tested and evaluated through pilot projects in European Union Member States.

LLaboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiologyis set to conduct pilot projects:

▪️Implementing a Clinical Decision Support (CDS) system for vaccination among crew and . The CDS system will provide tailored advice & recommendations based on the health profiles of crew and . This empowers with personalized vaccine information and supports passenger ship companies to make informed vaccine administration decisions

▪️Evaluating the use of a portable Vaccination Card (EVC) among crew. The EVC is designed to individuals by giving them control over their vaccination data, facilitating the management, review and sharing of their vaccination records as needed.

👉 For more information and updates about the EUVABECO project, visit: https://euvabeco.eu/

28/06/2024

📣We are pleased to have participated in the Panhellenic Public Health Conference 2024, held in Athens, Greece, from June 13-15, 2024.

The conference centered on the theme "The Health of the Population in Light of the Climate Crisis," addressing critical public health issues in the context of climate change. 🤔

🤓 During the conference, we had the opportunity to present selected findings from the High Horizons Task 2.1 (Population-level Impacts). Our presentation, titled "Newer Epidemiological Evidence on the Effects of Heat Exposure During Pregnancy," shed light on the emerging evidence and significant impacts of heat exposure on maternal and fetal health.

This conference provided an invaluable platform for sharing insights and advancing our collective understanding of the intersections between climate change and public health. We look forward to continuing our research and contributing to this vital field.

HIHIGH Horizons




Read more about the congress here: https://lnkd.in/d8gWuGNF