Digital Commons Network^™

Novel Relapsing Fever Spirochete In Bat Tick, James S. Gill, Amy J. Ullmann, Amanda D. Loftis, Tom G. Schwan, Sandra J. Raffel, Merry E. Schrumpf, Joseph Piesman

United States Public Health Resources

Tick-borne relapsing fever in western North America is a zoonosis caused by spirochetes in the genus Borrelia that are transmitted by argasid ticks of the genus Ornithodoros (1). Human disease occurs in many focal areas and is associated with infections of Borrelia hermsii, B. turicatae, and possibly B. parkeri (2,3). Although the ecologic parameters that maintain B. hermsii and B. turicatae differ, human infections usually occur in rustic cabins (B. hermsii) and caves (B. turicatae) inhabited by ticks and their terrestrial vertebrate hosts (1). Recently, Gill et al. (4) provided evidence that the argasid bat …

Water System Preparedness For Pandemic Influenza, Phil Van Atta

Master of Public Health Program Student Publications

This project involved an investigation of water utility preparedness and best practices for pandemic influenza. A pandemic could cause serious disruptions to the operations of critical infrastructure, including drinking water systems. These disruptions could be caused by staffing shortages, power disruptions, and shortages of chemicals and other supplies. Ensuring continuity of operations for drinking water systems is crucial to protect public health and safety, and to the economy of all communities. Literature searches, interviews, and a survey of Ohio water systems indicated that water systems in Ohio and across the United States are preparing for pandemic influenza. Pandemic influenza preparation …

General Health Assessment, Lvea Em District, Kandal Province, Cambodia, Rasy Mar

UCHC Graduate School Masters Theses 2003 - 2010

No abstract provided.

Hiv/Aids Prevention: Factors Affecting Risky Sexual Behaviors Among Msm In Shenzhen, China, Karen Behringer

UCHC Graduate School Masters Theses 2003 - 2010

No abstract provided.

Fusion, 2008, George Washington University, William H. Beaumont Medical Research Honor Society

Fusion

No abstract provided.

An Hsus Report: Human Health Implications Of Non-Therapeutic Antibiotic Use In Animal Agriculture, The Humane Society Of The United States

Impact of Animal Agriculture

For decades, the U.S. meat industry has fed medically important antibiotics to chickens, pigs, and cattle to accelerate their weight gain and prevent disease in the stressful and unhygienic conditions that typify industrialized animal agriculture production facilities. A strong scientific consensus exists, asserting that this practice fosters antibiotic resistance in bacteria to the detriment of human health. In response to this public health threat, the European Union has banned the non-therapeutic feeding of a number of antibiotics of human importance to farm animals. Given these serious concerns as well as recent data that suggest an overall lack of financial benefit, …

An Hsus Report: Human Health Implications Of Intensive Poultry Production And Avian Influenza, The Humane Society Of The United States

Impact of Animal Agriculture

The high stocking density, stress, unhygienic conditions, lack of sunlight, and breeding practices typical of industrial poultry and egg production systems may facilitate the emergence and spread of diseases, including highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses with public health implications such as H5N1.

An Hsi Report: Human Health Implications Of Intensive Poultry Production And Avian Influenza, Humane Society International

HSI REPORTS

The high stocking density, stress, unhygienic conditions, lack of sunlight, and breeding practices typical of industrial poultry and egg production systems may facilitate the emergence and spread of diseases, including highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses with public health implications such as H5N1.

The Public Health Implications Of Trafficking, Tami Ashbridge

Master of Public Health Program Student Publications

Trafficking in human beings is a serious and complex human rights issue. Trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation has grave public health implications. The vulnerability of women and children increases their risk of becoming victims of trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation. Review of the literature on this subject demonstrates a direct link between the trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation and the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, STIs and Reproductive/Gynecological Issues, Mental Health, Violence, Abuse and Social Issues. This review supports the concept of human trafficking as a serious public health issue and the need for improved …

Review Of Animal Noroviruses, A. Scipioni, A. Mauroy, J. Vinje, E. Thiry

United States Public Health Resources

Among enteric caliciviruses, noroviruses belong to the genus Norovirus, one of the four accepted genera in the family Caliciviridae. These single-stranded, positive-sense RNA viruses are highly variable both genetically and antigenically. Several animal enteric caliciviruses that are morphologically indistinguishable and genetically closely related to human noroviruses have been identified. The first bovine enteric noroviruses were described in Great Britain and are known as Newbury Agent 2. At least three genetic clusters of porcine noroviruses join together within genogroup II noroviruses. Human noroviruses are the most important cause of acute gastroenteritis illness in people of all ages. In the …

Tick [Genome Mapping], Amy J. Ullmann, Jeffrey J. Stuart, Catherine A. Hill

United States Public Health Resources

Ticks (subphylum Chelicerata: class Arachnida: subclass Acari: superorder Parasitiformes: order Ixodidae) are obligate blood-feeding ectoparasites of global medical and veterinary importance. Ticks live on all continents of the world (Steen et al. 2006). There are approximately 899 species of ticks; the majority are ectoparasites of wildlife and approximately 10% of these are recognized as disease vectors or for their ability to cause direct damage through blood feeding (Jongejan and Uilenberg 2004). Ticks transmit a greater variety of viruses, bacteria, and protozoa than any other blood-feeding arthropod (Dennis and Piesman 2005) and are second only to mosquitoes in terms of their …

Host And Vector Movement Affects Genetic Diversity And Spatial Structure Of Buggy Creek Virus (Togaviridae), Charles R. Brown, Mary Bomberger Brown, Abinash Padhi, Jerome E. Foster, Amy T. Moore, Martin Pfeffer, Nicholas Komar

United States Public Health Resources

Determining the degree of genetic variability and spatial structure of arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) may help in identifying where strains that potentially cause epidemics or epizootics occur. Genetic diversity in arboviruses is assumed to reflect relative mobility of their vertebrate hosts (and invertebrate vectors), with highly mobile hosts such as birds leading to genetic similarity of viruses over large areas. There are no empirical studies that have directly related host or vector movement to virus genetic diversity and spatial structure. Using the entire E2 glycoprotein-coding region of 377 Buggy Creek virus isolates taken from cimicid swallow bugs (Oeciacus vicarius), …

Toward Vocabulary Control For Chief Complaint, Stephanie W. Haas, Debbie Travers, Judith E. Tintinalli, Daniel Pollock, Anna Waller, Edward Barthell, Catharine Burt, Wendy Chapman, Kevin Coonan, Donald Kamens, James Mcclay

United States Public Health Resources

The chief complaint (CC) is the data element that documents the patient’s reason for visiting the emergency department (ED). The need for a CC vocabulary has been acknowledged at national meetings and in multiple publications, but to our knowledge no groups have specifically focused on the requirements and development plans for a CC vocabulary. The national consensus meeting ‘‘Towards Vocabulary Control for Chief Complaint’’ was convened to identify the potential uses for ED CC and to develop the framework for CC vocabulary control. The 10-point consensus recommendations for action were 1) begin to develop a controlled vocabulary for CC, 2) …

Improving Hospital-Based Quality Of Care In Vietnam By Reducing Hiv-Related Stigma And Discrimination, Khuat Thi Hai Oanh, Kim Ashburn, Julie Pulerwitz, Jessica Ogden, Laura Nyblade

HIV and AIDS

To address HIV-related stigma and discrimination, and improve the quality of care in the healthcare setting in Vietnam, the Institute for Social and Development Studies, the International Center for Research on Women, and the Horizons Program conducted intervention research in four hospitals. The study team conceptualized two fundamental causes of HIV-related stigma: 1) fear of casual transmission; and 2) negative values/social judgments and associations between HIV and certain behaviors and groups, such as sex workers and injecting drug users. Both intervention strategies successfully reduced stigma and discrimination toward HIV-positive patients in these healthcare settings. The findings show that addressing stigma …

'Dare To Be Different': Enhancing Life Skills Education For Hiv Prevention In South African Schools, Tobey Nelson Sapiano, Nathi Sohaba, Eka Esu-Williams

HIV and AIDS

In South Africa, approximately 5.5 million people are living with HIV. One of the main strategies the South African Government has used to build HIV prevention awareness and promote behavior change among young people is school-based life skills education. Since 2000, the Horizons Program has conducted research exploring the impact of life skills education and other school-based HIV prevention activities on young South Africans. In contrast to the high HIV prevalence among youth ages 15–24, estimated to be over 10 percent, prevalence for youth ages 10–14 is estimated at just over 1 percent. People aged 10–14 are particularly receptive to …

Foreign-Body Reaction Mimicking Postneurosurgical Infection After Cranioplasty, David Brett-Major, Sean M. Baraniak, Jonathan E. Gilhooly, Rebecca L. Christensen, Gerald T. Grant, Rocco A. Armonda, Anuradha Ganesan

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

The case of a 57-year-old woman who suffered a fall is presented. After a polymethyl malacrylate revision cranioplasty, she presented with signs, symptoms, and intraoperative findings consistent with postneurosurgical infection. Dural foreign-body reaction was diagnosed, and parenteral antibiotic therapy was discontinued successfully.

Strategies For Implementing The New International Health Regulations In Federal Countries, David P. Fidler, Kumanan Wilson, Christopher Mcdougall, Harvey Lazar

Articles by Maurer Faculty

The International Health Regulations (IHR), the principal legal instrument guiding the international management of public health emergencies, have recently undergone an extensive revision process. The revised regulations, referred to as the IHR (2005), were unanimously approved in May 2005 by all Member States of the World Health Assembly (WHA) and came into effect on 15 June 2007. The IHR (2005) reflect a modernization of the international community’s approach to public health and an acknowledgement of the importance of establishing an effective international strategy to manage emergencies that threaten global health security.

The success of the IHR as a new approach …

Has The Hiv Epidemic Peaked?, John Bongaarts, Thomas Buettner, Gerhard Heilig, Francois Pelletier

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This working paper reviews the highly diverse regional and country patterns of HIV epidemics and discusses possible causes of the geographic variation in epidemic sizes. The main finding of this analysis is that the HIV epidemic reached a major turning point over the past decade. The peak years of HIV incidence rates are past for all regions, and the peaks of prevalence rates are mostly in the past except in Eastern Europe, where it is expected to peak in 2008. But owing in part to the life-prolonging effect of antiretroviral therapy and to sustained population growth, the absolute number of …

Gender Difference In Traumatic Brain Injury Outcomes: Survival, Functional Independence, And Employment Status, Andrea T. Underhill

All ETDs from UAB

Medical and rehabilitative care of women living with traumatic brain injury (TBI) is based on information drawn from research conducted primarily on men. Care for men may be adequate for women, but all of the body’s organs have the capability to respond differently based on gender, and research should examine the genders separately. This dissertation examines the survival to 24 months post-TBI and the functional independence and employment status at 12 and 24 months post-TBI of men and women. Participants were drawn from a longitudinal study of injured persons and include those diagnosed only with a TBI. Variables used in …

Diagnosing Antiretroviral Treatment Failure In Resource-Limited Settings, Ronald Alexander Cantrell

All ETDs from UAB

This dissertation had three central goals. The first was to review the existing literature for reports of virologic failure among adults initiating non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor-based antiretroviral therapy in resource-limited settings. The second was to describe the epidemiology of virologic failure over the first 6 months of therapy in Lusaka, Zambia. The third was to examine the performance of different approaches for diagnosing virologic failure. We performed a meta-analysis using data from previously published reports to create summary estimates for the prevalence of virologic failure and found that the lowest estimate of the 95% confidence interval was 10% or higher …

Sexual And Reproductive Health Needs Of Adolescents Perinatally Infected With Hiv In Uganda, Harriet Birungi, John Frank Mugisha, Juliana K. Nyombi, Francis Obare, Humphres Evelia, Hannington Nyinkavu

Reproductive Health

In Uganda, HIV/AIDS treatment, care and support programs are still organized around either adult or pediatric care and fail to adequately address the needs of adolescents, specifically perinatally-infected adolescents. This study, implemented jointly by the Population Council's Frontiers in Reproductive Health (FRONTIERS) program and the AIDS Support Organization (TASO), aimed to better understand the reproductive health and sexuality of this population group, and to identify anxieties or fears they have around entering social stages of adulthood. This study confirms that wide programmatic gaps exist in addressing the sexual and reproductive health needs of young people perinatally infected with HIV who …

Financial Capacity Building For Ngo Sustainability, John H. Bratt, Rick Homan, Barbara Janowitz, James R. Foreit

Reproductive Health

While demand for family planning and reproductive health services is increasing worldwide, a number of recent trends threaten the financial sustainability of donor-supported NGOs that provide these services. First, the U.S. Agency for International Development has seen its funding for population assistance decline since 1995. A second reason is the growth of government-funded programs that provide these services for low-income clients, which reduced the need for NGOs to focus programs entirely on the poor. Health-sector reform has created opportunities for NGOs via public–private partnerships in some countries, but sustained public-sector support is unlikely given limited economic growth in domestic economies …

The Influence Of Veterinary Schools On The Veterinary Labor Market, Kyle Bosh

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Problem Statement:

Does the presence of a veterinary school in a state influence the supply of veterinarians practicing in that state? Citizens and animals in states without a veterinary school are at a disadvantage if the presence of a veterinary school significantly improves public health and access to medical services in those states that have a veterinary school.

Research Strategy:

The unit of analysis in this study is 50 states and the District of Columbia. The study is designed as a cross-sectional analysis of 2006 pet, 2002 livestock, 2006 human, labor, and economic data. The study uses simultaneous equations to …

Parasite Pathoecology Of Salmon Pueblo And Other Chacoan Great Houses: The Healthiest And Wormiest Ancestral Puebloans, Karl Reinhard

Karl Reinhard Publications

Two fields of paleopathological investigation originated in the Southwest. Archaeoparasitology is the study of ancient parasite infection (Reinhard 1990, 1992b). It includes comparisons between time periods of single societies as well as comparisons of parasitism between different, contemporaneous cultures. For example, Fry (1980) compared Fremont and Anasazi parasitism, and also Archaic hunter-gatherer and ancestral Pueblo parasitism. All of these studies fall into the definition of archaeoparasitology.

By contrast, pathoecology is the reconstruction of relationships among behavior, environment, and disease organisms in the development of illness (Martinson et al. 2003; ReinhardandBuikstra2003; Reinhardet al. 2003; Santoro et al. 2003).1his field developed from …

Cranial Deformation As The Cause Of Death For A Child From The Chillon River Valley, Peru, Shelia M.F. Medoncade Souza, Karl J. Reinhard, Andrea Lessa

Karl Reinhard Publications

Two small mummy bundles, found in a tomb at the Chillon River Valley, Lima Plains, Peru exist in the collections of the Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. They were donated to the collections at the beginning of the 20th century. A multidisciplinary team is now curating and studying them. CT scans confirmed both skeletons were of individuals less than one year old at death. One of the bundles is intact and will be preserved and displayed. The other one was partly decomposed and the authors received permission to unwrap it to analyze the bones in details. Mites and pollen …

A Child And His Fate: Tuberculosis, Perimortem Trauma And Mummification, Sheila M. M.De Souza, Karl J. Reinhard, Bernardo Tessarollo, Jose Fernando Cardona Zannier, Adauto Araujo

Karl Reinhard Publications

A male child, sitting, 7 years, circumferential deformation, skin marked by coiled fibers, nostril plugs, consistent with Aymara practices was CT scanned. Puppae in the skin suggest exposition of the body previous to the funeral. Dark brown color at the skin suggest blood perfusion. A broken area at the right frontal with the skin partially inside is suggestive of perimorten trauma. There were no bone debris inside the skull and the CT images show two confluent fractures defined by radiating lines extending beyond the missing bone surface. The right eyeball is projected out, the tongue is outside the mouth, the …

Pathoecology And The Future Of Coprolite Studies In Bioarchaeology, Karl J. Reinhard, Vaughn M. Bryant Jr.

Karl Reinhard Publications

Human coprolites currently provide an expanding array of information about the diet, health, and ecology of prehistoric people in the Southwest, but for many years coprolites were not recognized or preserved, or they were not considered important and thus were not saved (Bryant and Dean 2006). With the expansion of archaeological field work during the last half of the twentieth century archaeologists have increasingly explored the "complete" potentials of sites, including the collection and analysis of geomorphologic, botanical, and faunal data. In some ideal habitats (e.g., very dry or frozen) this includes exploring the scientific potential of human coprolite studies. …

Pathoecology Of Two Ancestral Pueblo Villages, Karl Reinhard

Karl Reinhard Publications

Pathoecology is the study of the biotic, abiotic, and cultural environments of disease (Martinson et al. 2003). A parasitic infection is the result of the pathoecological interaction of host behavior, parasite life cycle, the environment in which both life forms live, the nutritional status of the host, and host physiological responses to all of these factors. Parasites contribute to anemia in many ways. Some, such as hookworm, actually consume blood and cause iron loss through their activities. For other parasites, symptoms such as profuse diarrhea reduce intestinal absorption of nutrients. Others, such as certain fish tapeworms, actually compete for absorption …

Paleoparasitology: Perspectives With New Techniques, Adauto Araújo, Karl Reinhard, Otilio M. Bastos, Ligia C. Costa, Claude Pirmez, Alena Iñighez, Ana Carolina Vicente, Carlos M. Morel, Luiz Fernando Ferreira

Karl Reinhard Publications

Paleoparasitology is the study of parasites found in archaeological material. The development of this field of research began with histological identification of helminth eggs in mummy tissues, analysis of coprolites, and recently through molecular biology. An approach to the history of paleoparasitology is reviewed in this paper, with special reference to the studies of ancient DNA identified in archaeological material.

Paleoparasitologia: perspectivas com novas técnicas
Paleoparasitologia é o estudo de parasitos encontrados em material arqueológico. O desenvolvimento deste campo da pesquisa teve início com a identificação de ovos de helmintos em tecidos mumificados, análise de coprólitos e, recentemente, através da …

Enterobius Vermicularis Ancient Dna In Pre-Columbian Human Populations, Alena Mayo Iniguez, Karl J. Reinhard, Luiz Fernando Ferreira, Adauto Araujo, Ana Carolina, Paulo Vincente

Karl Reinhard Publications

In prehistoric populations the paleoparasitological findings show an Enterobius vennicularis homogeneous distribution among North American hunter-gatherers intensified with the advent of agriculture. The same occurred in the transition from nomad hunter-gatherers to sedentary farmers in South America, although E. vermicularis infection encompasses only the ancient Andean peoples. Since molecular techniques are sensitive in detecting ancient DNA (aDNA), in this work we have performed a molecular paleoparasitological study of E. vermicularis. aDNA was recovered from North and South American coprolites (4110 BC-AD 900). Human (cox 2 and HVR) and pinworm (5S rRNA spacer) sequences were determined. The sequence analysis confirmed E. …