Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Dental Caries Among 12-Year-Old Children After Discontinuation Of Water Fluoridation In Pahang, Malaysia, Faizah Abdul Karim, Zamros Yuzadi Mohd Yusof, Nor Azlida Mohd Nor

Makara Journal of Health Research

Background: Water fluoridation (WF) has been a national caries prevention program in Malaysia since 1972. However, between July 2012 and December 2013, WF was discontinued in Pahang. This study aimed to compare caries prevalence and mean caries experience among Malaysian children in WF and WF-ceased areas and determine its associated risk factors.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 12-year-old schoolchildren in two Malaysian states: Pahang (WF-ceased) and Perak (WF-continued). Dental caries was examined using ICDAS criteria, and a questionnaire was used to collect relevant data. Associations between independent variables and dental caries were analyzed by simple logistic …

Association Between Duration Of Residence And Prevalence Of Type 2 Diabetes Among Male South Asian Expatriate Workers In The United Arab Emirates: A Cross-Sectional Study, Syed Mahboob Shah, Lindsay M. Jaacks, Fatima Al-Maskari, Juma Al-Kaabi, Faisal Aziz, Elpidoforos Soteriades, Tom Loney, Hamed Farooqi, Anjum Memon, Raghib Ali

Department of Family Medicine

Expatriates account for about 80% of the total population in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This study aimed to evaluate the hypothesis that prevalence of type 2 diabetes in male South Asian expatriates increases with increased length of residence in the UAE.
Design, settings and participants: This cross-sectional study recruited a representative sample (n=1375) of male South Asian expatriates aged ≥18 years in Al Ain, UAE. Sociodemographic, anthropometric and lifestyle data were obtained using a pilot-tested adapted version of the WHO STEPS instrument.
Main outcome measures: Duration of residence was used as a marker for acculturation. Type 2 diabetes was …

Covid-19 Viral Testing Disparities In Los Angeles City, Laura Cyphers

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Hispanic and Black communities have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19-related morbidity and mortality (California Department of Public Health, 2020). Inequitable access to viral testing resources may have exacerbated these COVID-19-related racial and ethnic health disparities. For example, reports from the Los Angeles Department of Public Health revealed glaring viral testing disparities in April 2020 (early pandemic), with predominantly White communities in Los Angeles County receiving 65% more tests than Hispanic and Black communities. In response, California statewide testing was expanded for communities of color (Vann et al., 2020). To investigate access to viral testing in Los Angeles City, the current …

Availability And Affordability Of Medicines And Cardiovascular Outcomes In 21 High-Income, Middle-Income And Low-Income Countries, Clara Kayei Chow, Tu Ngoc Nguyen, Simone Marschner, Rafael Diaz, Omar Rahman, Alvaro Avezum, Scott A. Lear, Koon Teo, Karen E. Yeates, Khawar Kazmi

Section of Cardiology

Objectives: We aimed to examine the relationship between access to medicine for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) among people at high risk of CVD in high-income countries (HICs), upper and lower middle-income countries (UMICs, LMICs) and low-income countries (LICs) participating in the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study.
Methods: We defined high CVD risk as the presence of any of the following: hypertension, coronary artery disease, stroke, smoker, diabetes or age >55 years. Availability and affordability of blood pressure lowering drugs, antiplatelets and statins were obtained from pharmacies. Participants were categorised: group 1-all three drug types …

Healthcare Utilisation And Expenditure Patterns For Cardio-Metabolic Diseases In South Asian Cities: The Carrs Study, Priti Gupta, Kalpana Singh, Roopa Shivashankar, Kavita Singh, Ajay Vamadevan, V Mohan, Muhammad Masood Kadir, Nikhil Tandon, K M. Narayan, Dorairaj Prabhakaran, Mohammed K. Ali

Community Health Sciences

Objective: To estimate average annual expenditures per person, total economic burden and distress health financing associated with the treatment of five cardio-metabolic diseases (CMDs-hypertension, diabetes, heart disease (angina, myocardial infarction and heart failure), stroke and chronic kidney disease) in three metropolitan cities in South Asia.
Design: Cross-sectional surveys.
Setting: We analysed community-based baseline data from the Centre for cArdio-metabolic Risk Reduction in South Asia (CARRS) Study collected in 2010-2011 representing Chennai and New Delhi (India), and Karachi (Pakistan).
Participants: We used data from non-pregnant adults (≥20 years) from the aforementioned cities that responded to a cost-of-illness questionnaire. We estimated health …

Coh-2000 - Community Health Interventions, Jose Nanin

Open Educational Resources

This syllabus includes OER materials and college policies for a fully online course that exposes students to a range of health promotion and disease prevention and management strategies used by health specialists to address community health challenges. Through readings and videos, as well as online course assignments and discussions, students learn about planning and designing interventions to improve the health of specific priority populations and communities-at-large.

From R0 To The Herd: A Review Of The Rules Of Contagion, By Adam Kucharski, Nathan D. Grawe

Numeracy

Adam Kucharski. 2020. The Rules of Contagion: Why Things Spread--and Why They Stop; (London: Profile Books, Ltd.). Hardback ISBN 978-17-88-16019-3. E-book ISBN 978-17-82-83430-4.

Kucharski's well-timed Rules of Contagion provides an introduction to the mathematical and epidemiological principles behind contagious phenomenon. While the author's primary expertise stems from work on biological epidemics, the book points to examples from a wide range of fields including finance, psychology, computer science, and criminology. As such, selections of the book could be used by faculty in a wide range of classes to show how our recent experience with a viral epidemic might add to …

Insufficient Sun Exposure Has Become A Real Public Health Problem, Lars Alfredsson, Bruce K Armstrong, D. Allan Butterfield, Rajiv Chowdhury, Frank R. De Gruijl, Martin Feelisch, Cedric F. Garland, Prue H. Hart, David G. Hoel, Ramune Jacobsen, Pelle G. Lindqvist, David J. Llewellyn, Henning Tiemeier, Richard B. Weller, Antony R. Young

Chemistry Faculty Publications

This article aims to alert the medical community and public health authorities to accumulating evidence on health benefits from sun exposure, which suggests that insufficient sun exposure is a significant public health problem. Studies in the past decade indicate that insufficient sun exposure may be responsible for 340,000 deaths in the United States and 480,000 deaths in Europe per year, and an increased incidence of breast cancer, colorectal cancer, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, autism, asthma, type 1 diabetes and myopia. Vitamin D has long been considered the principal mediator of beneficial effects of sun exposure. …

Trends In Legionnaires' Disease-Associated Hospitalizations, United States, 2006-2010, Gayathri Mudali, Paul E. Kilgore, Abdulbaset Salim, Shawn P. Mcelmurry, Marcus Zervos

Department of Pharmacy Practice

Background: Legionella pneumophila is a waterborne cause of both healthcare-associated and community-acquired pneumonia. Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 is responsible for 80% of infections. There is currently limited published disease burden data on Legionnaires' disease-associated hospitalization in the United States.

Methods: In this study, we estimated the annual incidence of Legionnaires' disease-associated hospitalizations in United States and identified demographic, temporal, and regional characteristics of individuals hospitalized for Legionnaires' disease. A retrospective study was conducted using the National Hospital Discharge Survey (NHDS) data from 2006 to 2010. The NHDS is a nationally representative US survey, which includes estimates of inpatient stays in …

The Covid-19 Pandemic And The Power Of Numbers, Jessica Ancker

Numeracy

The COVID-19 pandemic has produced a deluge of news coverage of quantitative concepts. In this viewpoint, we provide examples of effective and poor quantitative communication by the professional news media as well as social media communicators. Effective examples include a number of online animations and engaging interactive simulations. Examples of poor quantitative communication include the widespread reporting of raw numbers rather than rates, failing to address uncertainty, not providing sufficient context for numbers, and not discussing the implications of false negative and false positive diagnostic test results. Educators can draw from this body of news to develop compelling quantitative literacy …

The Current State Of Migrant Health In Morocco: Pre-And Peri-Covid-19 Pandemic, Layla Babahaji

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In the early 21st century, Morocco transitioned from being a predominantly transit migration country into both a transit and destination country for migrants. In 2013, the Moroccan government took significant steps to adapt the healthcare system in better integrating migrants in its policies. The government implemented the National Strategy on Immigration and Asylum that improved access to public health care for migrants. Recently, in March of 2020, Morocco declared a state of medical emergency due to the current COVID-19 pandemic that continues today. This paper addresses the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the current state of migrant health in …

Is Vaping Related To Other Health Risk Behaviors Among Adolescents?, Alvina Emran

Senior Theses

Vaping (smoking a vaporized liquid with an active ingredient) has had an upward trend in high school populations (ages 13-18) within the last decade, mainly due to misinformation and targeting from companies that sell e-cigarettes (142, 7). The most common substances that are vaped in teens are nicotine and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the active ingredient in marijuana) (147). Nicotine and THC bind to NAchR and CB1 receptors that affect certain parts of the dopamine reward pathway, such as the prefrontal cortex, the ventral tegmental area, and the ventral striatum in the brain (44,106). Dysfunction within these pathways have been associated with …

Socioeconomic And Sociocultural Factors Associated With Parenting Choice And Fertility Experience Among Lesbian And Nonlesbian Women, Annette Silvia

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Minorities including lesbians may face disparities that contribute to minority stress, which leads to adverse health outcomes. The purpose of this social epidemiology study was to examine the association between insured status, perceived stress, and parental status among lesbians and nonlesbians. The theoretical foundation was minority stress, and the design was quantitative with a convenience sample of women aged 18 years and older. Data on demographics, perceived stress, fertility quality of life, and lesbian identity disclosure were collected via online survey. Among the 314 respondents, 102 self-selected as lesbian (49% parents), and 212 self-selected as nonlesbian (73.1% parents). More than …

The Problem With Relying On Profit-Driven Models To Produce Pandemic Drugs, Ana Santos Rutschman

All Faculty Scholarship

The longstanding problems of relying on a market response to a pandemic are becoming readily apparent in the United States, which has quickly become the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak. The problems are particularly pronounced in pharmaceutical markets, where we are pinning our hopes for both cures and vaccines. In previous work we have shown how characteristics of healthcare markets in the United States create a divergence between the private incentives of for-profit companies and public health needs, leading to sub-optimal health outcomes in what is a uniquely market-driven healthcare system. In this Essay, written as the COVID-19 pandemic unfolds, …

Reviving Focused Scrutiny In The Constitutional Review Of Public Health Measures, Robert Gatter

All Faculty Scholarship

This article re-examines the "focused scrutiny" standard proposed by Prof. Scott Burris in 1989 and argues for its application particularly during an infectious disease emergency such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Focused scrutiny seeks to tie judicial review of the constitutionality of public health measures closely to the facts of the particular disease and to evidence of the efficacy of each governmental action to prevent the spread of that disease, even when courts adopt rational basis testing.