Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Late-Holocene Climatic Variability Indicated By Three Natural Archives In Arid Southern Australia, Luke A. Gliganic, Timothy J. Cohen, Jan-Hendrik May, John D. Jansen, Gerald C. Nanson, Anthony Dosseto, Joshua R. Larsen, Maxime Aubert

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Three terrestrial climate proxies are used to investigate the evolution of Holocene palaeoenvironments in southern central Australia, all of which present a coherent record of palaeohydrology. Single-grain optically stimulated luminescence from sediments supplemented by 14C from charcoal and lacustrine shells was obtained to date shoreline deposits (Lake Callabonna) and the adjacent Mt Chambers Creek alluvial fan. Our findings are complemented by a U/Th-based record of speleothem growth in the Mt Chambers Creek catchment, which we interpret to reflect increased precipitation. Together, these archives shed light on the timing of, and possible sources of water for, Holocene pluvial intervals. We identified …

Cross Sectional Survey Of Human-Bat Interaction In Australia: Public Health Implications, Beverley J. Paterson, Michelle T. Butler, Keith Eastwood, Patrick M. Cashman, Alison Jones, David N. Durrheim

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Background Flying foxes (megachiroptera) and insectivorous microbats (microchiroptera) are the known reservoirs for a range of recently emerged, highly pathogenic viruses. In Australia there is public health concern relating to bats' role as reservoirs of Australian Bat Lyssavirus (ABLV), which has clinical features identical to classical rabies. Three deaths from ABLV have occurred in Australia. A survey was conducted to determine the frequency of bat exposures amongst adults in Australia's most populous state, New South Wales; explore reasons for handling bats; examine reported practices upon encountering injured or trapped bats or experiencing bat bites or scratches; and investigate knowledge of …

Socioeconomic Status And Heart Failure In Sydney, Glenn R. Close, Phillip J. Newton, Simon C. Fung, Alan R. Denniss, Elizabeth J. Halcomb, Pramesh Kovoor, Simon Stewart, Patricia M. Davidson

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Background Socioeconomic disadvantage is associated with an increased risk of developing heart failure and with inferior health outcomes following diagnosis. Methods Data for hospitalisations and deaths due to heart failure in the Sydney metropolitan region were extracted from New South Wales hospital records and Australian Bureau of Statistics databases for 1999-2003. Standardised rates were analysed according to patients' residential local government area and correlated with an index of socioeconomic disadvantage. Results Eight of the 13 local government areas with standardised separation rate ratios significantly higher than all NSW, and those with the six highest standardised separation rate ratios, were in …

Depositional History And Archaeology Of The Central Lake Mungo Lunette, Willandra Lakes, Southeast Australia, Kathryn E. Fitzsimmons, Nicola Stern, Colin V. Murray-Wallace

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Lake Mungo, presently a dry lake in the semi-arid zone of southeastern Australia, preserves a unique record of human settlement and past environmental change within the transverse lunette that built up on its downwind margin. The lunette is >30 km long and the variable morphology along its length suggests spatial variability in deposition over time. Consequently this presents differential potential for the preservation of past activity traces of different ages along the lunette. Earlier work at Lake Mungo focused primarily on the southern section of the lunette, where two ritual burials of considerable antiquity were found. Here we describe the …

First Recorded Evidence Of Subaqueously-Deposited Late Pleistocene Interstadial (Mis 5c) Coastal Strata Above Present Sea Level In Australia, Amy Blakemore, Colin Murray-Wallace, Terry Lachlan

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Significant differences in the elevation of late Pleistocene interstadial coastal strata have been noted at the global scale resulting from the combined effects of tectonism, proximity of field sites to Pleistocene ice sheets, and the variable effects of glacio-hydro-isostatic adjustment processes. Here we report the first recorded example of subaqueously deposited late Pleistocene interstadial coastal sediments above present sea level in Australia, in a far-field location to Pleistocene ice sheets and characterised by minimal to modest rates of vertical crustal movements. Located at Port MacDonnell, in Southern Australia, the sedimentary succession is represented by a flint conglomerate beach facies with …

Salt Intake Assessed By 24 H Urinary Sodium Excretion In A Random And Opportunistic Sample In Australia, Mary-Anne Land, Jacqui Webster, Anthea Christoforou, D Praveen, Paul Jeffery, John Chalmers, Wayne Smith, Mark Woodward, Federica Barzi, Caryl A. Nowson, Victoria Flood, Bruce Neal

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Objective: The gold standard method for measuring population sodium intake is based on a 24 h urine collection carried out in a random population sample. However, because participant burden is high, response rates are typically low with less than one in four agreeing to provide specimens. At this low level of response it is possible that simply asking for volunteers would produce the same results.

Setting: Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia.

Participants: We randomly selected 2152 adults and obtained usable 24 h urine samples from 306 (response rate 16%). Specimens were also collected from a further 113 volunteers. Estimated salt …