Feature Channels: Public Health

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Neglected infections of poverty are the latest threat plaguing the poorest people living in the Gulf Coast states and in Washington, D.C., according to Dr. Peter Hotez, Distinguished Research Professor and Chair of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Tropical Medicine at The George Washington University and President of the Sabin Vaccine Institute, in an editorial published in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases on March 29th.

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A pilot study shows clothes treated with long-lasting insect repellant appear to offer outdoor workers significant protection against tick bites. The study, conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health, found 93 percent fewer tick attachments among a group of state water quality employees who wore Insect Shield Repellent Apparel, compared to workers in similar environments who used spray repellants or other tick bite prevention methods.

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When influenza pandemics arrive is severing social and business interactions with our neighbors really better than chancing getting sick?

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Scientists are reporting for the first time that nicotine is the main culprit in diabetes complications among smokers. The tobacco chemical appears to cause elevated levels of a blood protein that increases the risk of diabetes complications, including heart attack, stroke, and blindness, the scientists say. Scientists will describe the finding at the 241st National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Anaheim.

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In the second of two articles on the current Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), a leading public health authority provides a comprehensive review and predicts the outcome of the case from a public health perspective in the current issue of Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a Wolters Kluwer Health business.

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A study of Yup’ik Eskimos in Alaska, who on average consume 20 times more omega-3 fats from fish than people in the lower 48 states, suggests that a high intake of these fats helps prevent obesity-related chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.

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March 24, 2011, marks World TB Day. On this day around the world, the public health and scientific community will raise public awareness about tuberculosis and the challenges that remain in controlling it globally, such as preventing the spread of drug resistant TB and as the urgent need to develop new TB diagnostic, treatment and prevention tools.

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Electromagnetic radiation from cellular phones may adversely affect bone strength, suggests a study in the March Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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On World TB Day, March 24th, a team of physician and researchers led by Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine’s Tuberculosis Research Unit will nationally launch “I am TB,” an international advocacy campaign aimed at reducing stigma among patients with TB and those at risk for the disease.

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Individuals who smoke mentholated cigarettes are no more likely to develop lung cancer or to die from the disease than smokers of non-mentholated cigarettes, according to a new study led by William Blot, Ph.D., professor of Medicine, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), Nashville, Tenn., and colleagues at VICC, Meharry Medical College (MMC), Nashville, and the International Epidemiology Institute (IEI), Rockville, Md.

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Latinos benefit from antidepressants like everybody else — only they do not use them nearly as often. The trick is getting past some cultural barriers.

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A new study finds that African-American and Asian/Pacific Islander women have double the risk that others do of becoming depressed before giving birth.

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A new study done by researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center provides evidence that a CVD polypill may be a viable option for developing countries, where CVD is strongly emerging and the demand for cost-effective, low maintenance treatment is high.

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A new study published by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College and the University of California, Davis, foresees improvements in patient outcomes after a major earthquake through more effective use of information technology. A control tower-style telemedicine hub to manage electronic traffic between first responders and remote medical experts could boost the likelihood that critically injured victims will get timely care and survive, according to the team's computer simulation model.

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When it comes to the safety of make-your-own cleaning products, you’re on your own. National Poison Prevention Week (March 20-26, 2011) serves as an important reminder that keeping the home safe for children and pets is a year-round responsibility, according to the American Cleaning Institute® (ACI).

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Since the passage of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act in 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has met the ambitious implementation deadlines set forth in the law, the agency said Wednesday at a congressional briefing hosted by the American Association for Cancer Research.

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Maryland Poison Center, a leader in the field, says awareness is key to preventing injuries and deaths from poisonings.

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A new study by The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, that will be published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, suggests men who take the drug finasteride, commonly marketed under the trademark names Propecia and Proscar, may report an on-going reduction in sex drive, and in some cases, prolonged periods of erectile dysfunction even after they stop using the medications.

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As the crisis in Japan continues to unfold, Andrew Rucks, Ph.D., associate professor of public health at UAB and investigator in the South Central Center for Public Health Preparedness at UAB and Tulane, says response management and coordination will be major issues for the Japanese government.

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(1) Parents confusion over enrollment, eligibility leads to underutilization of public health insurance for eligible children (2) Current laws ineffective at preventing adolescents’ use of indoor tanning (3) Antidrug advertising found to be most effective on eighth-grade girls

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If you’re seeking an expert to discuss the increased public demand for potassium iodide in the wake of response to nuclear reactor problems in Japan, Glenn Braunstein, M.D., is available for interviews. Dr. Braunstein is Chair of the Department of Medicine and director of the Thyroid Cancer Center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and is an experienced on-air and print interview.

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Airborne radiation from a meltdown at Japanese nuclear plants poses no immediate risk to the continental United States, say University of Maryland public health and atmospheric scientists. Drawing on research from Chernobyl, they add that for most Japanese, the long term risk may lie in ingestion of milk, as well as direct exposure to contaminated soil.

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More than three quarters of domestic violence victims who report the incidents to police seek health care in emergency rooms, but most of them are never identified as being victims of abuse during their hospital visit. These findings, from a new University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine study, point to a missed opportunity to intervene and offer help to women who suffer violence at the hands of an intimate partner. The findings are published online this week in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

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With the number of traumas currently affecting Japan, it's people will reach a breaking point without some psychological first aid.

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As youth across the nation prepare for the annual “Kick Butts Day” to speak out against “Big Tobacco,” experts from New Jersey’s only NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center are available for comment on cessation efforts, the development of lung cancer and other related effects of smoking.

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In a study of more than 16,000 older adults, fatigue, cardiac conditions, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, arthritis and psychiatric problems were more prevalent among those living in public housing.

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Oral vaccines could prevent 52 to 60 percent of cholera cases in the first two years after vaccination, according to a new review of vaccine studies.

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From 1965 to 2007, the population prevalence of persons who smoked 20 or more cigarettes per day declined significantly, and there was also a decrease in the prevalence of smoking 10 or more cigarettes a day, with these declines greater in California than in the rest of the U.S., according to a study in the March 16 issue of JAMA.

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Older people who receive Guided Care, a new form of primary care, use fewer expensive health services compared to older people who receive regular primary care.

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Monitoring blood for tiny particles released by cells lining the lungs may help clinicians diagnose emphysema in its earliest stages, according to researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College. The particles, called endothelial microparticles (EMPs), are shed during the disease process as tiny blood vessels in the lungs, called pulmonary capillaries, are injured and die.

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During a regular annual physical exam, blood is usually drawn to check the health of a person's heart, kidneys and liver. Now, researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center say a blood test that detects the early development of emphysema -- well before symptoms occur -- may someday also be offered.

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Adults aged 50 and older comprise 51.5 percent of all emergency department visits each year related to adverse reactions to medications, according to a study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The report says 61.5 percent were made by people aged 65 or older and 60.9 percent involved women.

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Residing in a psychosocially hazardous neighborhood is associated with worse cognitive function in older age for persons with the apolipoprotein E ε4 allele (an alternative form of the gene), according to a report in the March issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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A new study revealed that using treated mosquito nets could drastically reduce the transmission of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) to humans. The study, conducted by the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC), Dibrugarh, North East Region (NE), Indian Council of Medical Research and released in the March issue of the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, showed that the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITMNs) on humans and pigs reduced transmission of JE 72 percent in humans.

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Closely contested major sporting events are followed by a significant increase in traffic fatalities for fans of the winning team, according to new research from North Carolina State University. It turns out there may be more on the line than many sports fans bargained for.

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In the March issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, researchers report that residential treatment for tobacco dependence among heavy smokers greatly improves the odds of abstinence at six months compared with standard outpatient treatment. The study reports that 52 percent of the patients were still not smoking six months after residential treatment, compared with 26 percent in the outpatient treatment setting.

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Healthcare leaders consider HIT’s potential in promoting greater health equity and patient-entered care vs. its potential to unintentionally increase existing disparities in health and health care.

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The current issue of the Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, provides a definitive analysis of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), which is now under fire as unconstitutional exercise of federal power. According to the authors of “Swimming Upstream? Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Cultural Ascendancy of Public Health,” the act provides the first true opportunity to elevate the nation’s commitment to the most critical elements of public health – disease prevention, wellness promotion, and population-based interventions.

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More than 59 million Americans age 18 and older were diagnosed with high blood pressure in 2008.

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Research at UCLA shows that thegreater a teen's addiction to nicotine, the less active the prefrontal cortex is, suggesting that smoking can affect brain function.

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GW Health Policy Researchers, led by Wilhelmine Miller, Ph.D., associate research professor in the School of Public Health and Health Services, Department of Health Policy, played a major role in the supplement of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM), funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).

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An "implementation science" approach will play a critical role in the next phase of The U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), according to an editorial in JAIDS: Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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A preventive dental program targeting preschoolers under age 4 administered by physicians instead of dentists effectively reduces the need for tooth decay-related treatment among young children, a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study shows.

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UT Southwestern investigators found that patrons of black-owned barbershops who had their blood pressure regularly measured there and who were encouraged to follow up with their physicians were nearly nine times more likely to see a physician than patrons who were simply given hypertension literature.

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Recently, a research team from the Department of Emergency Medicine at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University discovered an alarming amount of lead contamination in ceramic cooking and eating utensils sold in Philadelphia’s Chinatown.

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New research that reveals how maternal antibodies block an immune response to the measles virus is a first step toward improving current childhood vaccination practices, scientists say.

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Dermatologist at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center who has done tanning research is available to comment about the American Academy of Pediatrics support of legislation to ban tanning by minors.

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Ryerson University study on the presence and impact of elemental mercury in downtown Toronto, Ontario.

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Nearly two-thirds of Americans age 70 and older have hearing loss, but those who are of black race seem to have a protective effect against this loss, according to a new study led by Johns Hopkins and National Institute on Aging researchers.

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Insurers and consumers spent $52.2 billion on prescription drugs in 2008 for outpatient treatment of metabolic conditions such as diabetes and elevated cholesterol.