Public Health Commons^™

Environmental Health Effects Of Multiple Exposures: Systemic Risks And The Detroit River International Crossing Study, Tor H. Oiamo

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis examines cumulative exposures to traffic noise and outdoor air pollution on environmental and health related quality of life in Windsor, Ontario, and provides a critical analysis of the environmental assessment process for the Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) Study. The research utilizes a systemic risk framework to understand environmental health and stress effects of cumulative exposures. The significance of this research is based on a relative absence of literature on the systemic health risks of cumulative exposures and the need to elucidate environmental annoyance as a health outcome for risk assessment. The objectives of the research were to …

Can The Usa National Weather Service Heat Index Substitute For Wet Bulb Globe Temperature For Heat Stress Exposure Assessment?, Ivory Iheanacho

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Heat stress occurs when the body cannot adequately cool itself due to the combined contributions of metabolic heat, environmental factors and clothing. Heat stress found in the workplace puts employees at risk of developing heat-related illnesses, disorders and could be fatal. The wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) index is the current method used to assess environmental contributions to heat stress in an occupational setting. The purpose of this thesis was to explore whether the National Weather Service's Heat Index (HI) could substitute for the WBGT Index during occupational heat stress exposure assessment. The possibility of using the HI for heat …

Characterization Of Waste Anesthetic Gas Exposures To Veterinary Workers In The Tampa Bay Area, Kyle Vogel

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Veterinarians routinely conduct surgical operations on animals while veterinary technicians administer anesthetic gas to sedate the animal prior to an operation. One commonly used anesthetic agent in veterinary clinics is isoflurane. Veterinary workers have the potential to be exposed to this gas during surgical operations. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) does not have a specific Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for isoflurane, however The National Institutes for Health (NIH) does advise that workers should not be exposed to isoflurane in concentrations exceeding 2 parts per million (ppm) for an 8 hour Time Weighted Average (TWA).

Animal clinics vary in …

Inactivation Of Ascaris In Double-Vault Urine-Diverting Composting Latrines In Panama: Methods And Environmental Health Engineering Field Applications, Daragh A. Gibson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The United Nations Millennium Development Goals have prioritized improving access to sanitation, but unfortunately about a third of the global population is still without an improved sanitation source and one billion still practice open defecation. Lack of access to adequate and safe sanitation means the proliferation of dangerous pathogens in the environment, especially soil-transmitted helminths (STHs). In the Bocas del Toro Province of Panama (and similar locations in the world), composting latrines have been built in many of the indigenous communities in the area. They are a form of dry or ecological sanitation and are designed to produce an end …

Water And Health In The Nandamojo Watershed Of Costa Rica: Community Perceptions Towards Water, Sanitation, And The Environment, James Mcknight

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Understanding the relationships between human health, water, sanitation, and environmental health is a requirement to understanding the challenges that face researchers when it comes to addressing global health relating to water and sanitation. Access to improved water and sanitation is not only a precondition to health, but to all aspects of daily living. Target 7.C of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) addresses worldwide disparities in access to improved water and sanitation by calling for the reduction in "half of the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation by 2015". Over 90% of the population of …

Trend Analysis And Modeling Of Health And Environmental Data: Joinpoint And Functional Approach, Ram C. Kafle

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The present study is divided into two parts: the first is on developing the statistical analysis and modeling of mortality (or incidence) trends using Bayesian joinpoint regression and the second is on fitting differential equations from time series data to derive the rate of change of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Joinpoint regression model identifies significant changes in the trends of the incidence, mortality, and survival of a specific disease in a given population. Bayesian approach of joinpoint regression is widely used in modeling statistical data to identify the points in the trend where the significant changes occur. The purpose …

Water In The 21st Century, Grayson Michael Shor

Social Sciences

The aim of this research project is to provide a comprehensive and global analysis of water use in order to provide the reader with a comprehensive grasp of current and impending issues. The included five (5) chapters discuss water distribution, conservation, purification, law, international development, economic debates, ethical consideration, as well as educated estimations of the effects water related issues may cause in the next one-hundred years.

Power To The People? An Evaluation Of State-Level Environmental Justice Policies, Angela Michelle Hines

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Communities of color in America lacking economical, educational, and political power have been largely invisible in the process of making major policy decisions. This is lack of access to decision-making venues has been viewed by many as the reason behind marginalized populations bearing the brunt of many societal burdens. The Environmental Justice Movement legitimized the claims of inadequate access to the decision-making process concerning environmental conditions in which African-Americans lived and worked. Through the use of disruptive actions reminiscent of those used throughout the Civil Rights Movement, the plight of communities plagued by the daily presence of hazardous waste gained …

Development Of A Molecular Method For Detecting The Causative Agent Of Swimmer's Itch (Trichobilharzia) In Freshwater Ecosystems, Heidi Mcmaster

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Cercarial dermatitis, commonly known as swimmer's itch, is caused by penetration of larvae of the schistosome,Trichobilharzia, into the dermis and epidermis layers of the skin. Symptoms are characterized by painful swelling and itching at the site of penetration. The normal hosts for the life cycle of the schistosome are aquatic birds and aquatic snails. The most frequently used method of detection forTrichobilharziais microscopy. With increases in the occurrence of cercarial dermatitis outbreaks in freshwater in the Southwestern United States, it is becoming increasingly important to develop and standardize a molecular method for rapid detection that can assist health professionals and …

Evaluating The Impact Of A Home-~Based Childhood Asthma Intervention Program In Clark County, Nevada, Mackenzie Suzanne Burns

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Asthma is a chronic, incurable, costly, and potentially life–threatening disease that affects an estimated 7 million children in the United States; further, more than 56,000 Nevada children are currently living with asthma. The literature suggests that a number of factors that contribute to either the development of asthma or the exacerbation of asthma symptoms in sensitive individuals can be traced to the home environment. Given that the majority of Americans spend over 90% of their time indoors, of which two–thirds are spent at home, a home–based childhood asthma intervention program represents a unique primary prevention opportunity. This pre–experimental study evaluated …

Health Hazards In Rental Housing: An Overview Of Clark County, Nevada, Amanda Nicole Sokolowsky

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A wide range of health conditions are associated with housing conditions, including asthma, respiratory infections, injuries, mental health issues, and lead poisoning. People in modern societies spend more than 90% of their time indoors, the vast majority of which is spent at home. Therefore, any new information on housing related health hazards in a population provides an opportunity for a new prevention program. Reports have shown that rental properties have more health related hazards than owner occupied housing, and rental properties are frequently occupied by low-income and minority individuals. This descriptive study intended to provide an overview of housing related …

Drinking Water In The Developing World: Sources Of Fecal Contamination In Pitcher Pump Systems And Measurement Alternatives, Meghan Wahlstrom

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

It has been reported that globally we have achieved Millennium Development Goal (MDG) Target 7C, to halve the proportion of the population without access to safe drinking water; however, there is a major flaw with this statement. While Target 7C calls for access to `safe' drinking water, what is actually being measured and reported is access to an `improved' water source. The World Health Organization (WHO) maintains that they must use this proxy measure because the methods for water quality testing are too expensive and logistically complicated, but by doing so, they may be over reporting safe water coverage.

This …

Assessing The Impacts Of Unrestricted Pesticide Use In Small-Scale Agriculture On Water Quality And Associated Human Health And Ecological Implications In An Indigenous Village In Rural Panam[Aacute], Sarah Louise Watson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In 2014, the global pesticide industry's projected worth is $52 billion and by 2020, the developing world will make up one-third of the world's chemical production and consumption. Pesticides can have unintended negative consequences for human health and the environment, especially in the developing world where regulations are loose or nonexistent. One country with unrestricted use of pesticides is Panam[aacute], especially in Santa Rosa de Cucunatí. In this indigenous village, small-scale farmers and ranchers spray paraquat, glyphosate, picloram, and 2,4-D at higher elevations than the spring water source of a gravity-fed water system, the river, and the village. The objective …

Zinc Sulfide: Manganese Doped Quantum Rods For Detection Of Metal Ions And A Business Model For Future Sales, Andrew Teblum

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hexavalent chromium is an extremely carcinogenic chemical that has been widely produced in the United States. This has led to major waste contamination and pollution throughout the country. According to the Environmental Working Group Hexavalent chromium has been found in 89% of city tap water. Most people believe they are safe using regular home filter systems however that is not true. A more expensive ion exchange water treatment unit is required. Therefore to protect yourselves from this carcinogenic metal a reliable test is required. In this study we have developed a Zinc Sulfide Manganese doped Quantum Rod technology to detect …

Food Safety Knowledge And Self-Reported Practices Of Food Handlers In Jamaica, Marcia Annmarie Thelwell-Reid

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Food-borne illnesses are responsible for disease globally. One of the most important strategies for combating food-borne diseases is the training of food handlers. Using social cognition theory as a framework, the purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of the mandatory training program for food handlers in a rural parish in Jamaica. A cross-sectional survey, using self-administered questionnaires, was used to assess and compare food safety knowledge and self-reported practices of food handlers trained in 2 government training programs, while using untrained food handlers as controls. Descriptive and inferential statistics such as t test, chi-square test, and ANOVA …

The Effects That Liquid And Solid Cattle Manure Have On The Water Quality Of Drainage Ditches In Putnam County, Ohio, Janelle Horstman

Honors Projects

Lake Erie has experienced harmful algal blooms with increased frequency since the mid-1990s due to excess nutrients from Rivers, such as the Maumee River, and largely agricultural watersheds. Nonpoint source pollution from agriculture contributes to eutrophication, algal blooms, and the degradation of water quality. This creates stress on aquatic fauna, reduced aesthetic quality, odor, and limits of the water for usage of drinking, recreation, and industry. This research paper asks what the contributions of having access to manure application records, soil records, and information about antibiotics have on what is known about manure management and antibiotic resistance, which has been …