TY  -  JOUR
AU  -  Bertolina, Carlotta
AU  -  Pelazza, Carolina
AU  -  Di Matteo, Roberta
AU  -  Ugo, Francesca
AU  -  Amore, Valentina
AU  -  Petronio, Marco
AU  -  Massarino, Costanza
AU  -  Penpa, Serena
AU  -  Como, Mariasilvia
AU  -  Bertolotti, Marinella
T1  -  Awareness of environmental diseases: 
a survey in a high-exposure area
PY  -  2026
Y1  -  2026-04-01
DO  -  10.1701/4674.46891
JO  -  Recenti Progressi in Medicina
JA  -  Recenti Prog Med
VL  -  117
IS  -  4
SP  -  184
EP  -  192
PB  -  Il Pensiero Scientifico Editore
SN  -  2038-1840
Y2  -  2026/04/18
UR  -  http://dx.doi.org/10.1701/4674.46891
N2  -  Summary. Introduction. Environmental diseases include a wide spectrum of pathologies whose development is influenced by physical, chemical and biological factors external to the individual. Recent WHO estimates show that 24% of global deaths are due to environmental factors as air pollution, climate change, toxic chemicals and poor hygiene. The Province of Alessandria, Piedmont, Italy, has been subjected to contamination due to industrial plants where hazardous materials have been used. To investigate the level of awareness of the population about environmental pathologies, the Research and Innovation Department of the Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria of Alessandria and ASL AL distributed a survey to secondary school students and citizens of Alessandria and Casale Monferrato, in two phases between 2022 and 2023. Materials and methods. The sample comprises 230 participants equally divided by gender and with different levels of education. The survey explores knowledge of environmental causes of diseases and their impact on mortality and possible preventive measures. Results. The majority of the sample associate environmental diseases with human pathologies (89.1%), with a higher awareness among students (91% compared to 86.6% of citizens). The main causes identified are air pollution (70.4%) and toxic substances in the air and water (64.8%). 84.8% identify cancer and 69.6% COPD as associated diseases. 56.4% estimate an impact of environmental factors between 10 and 15% on global mortality. The main preventive measures include the use of cleaner fuels (83.9%), improved hygiene measures (70%) and the promotion of sustainable mobility (70%). Conclusions. This survey reveals a fair degree of awareness of environmental diseases, but also an underestimation of associated mortality. Therefore, it is necessary to improve education and communication on environmental risks through targeted campaigns and educational interventions. Future studies should broaden the sample and analyze percentage differences between subgroups to optimize educational and preventive actions.
ER  -