Environmental Public Health Commons^™

The Effect Of An Educational Handout On Knowledge, Awareness And Attitudes Of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (Prep) Among Participants At A Needle And Syringe Exchange Site, Mckenzie Buckel

DNP Projects

Background: In 2018, the total number of HIV cases in the United States was 1.2 million. Almost 186,500 of these cases were attributed to intravenous drug use. With the adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) there is approximately a 49% decrease in the rates of HIV among people who inject drugs and the most significant barrier to PrEP among this population is a lack of awareness and knowledge.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine participants’ of a needle and syringe exchange site knowledge, awareness and attitudes of PrEP after reviewing an educational handout about PrEP.

Methods: A quasi …

An Ecological Study Of Glyphosate Use And Non-Hodgkin’S Lymphoma, Dexter Corlett, Steven R. Browning

Theses and Dissertations--Public Health (M.P.H. & Dr.P.H.)

Glyphosate is currently the most widely used herbicide in the world. Initially thought to be non-carcinogenic in humans, in 2015 glyphosate was classified as a “probable carcinogen” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer due to several small epidemiological studies indicating a link between the pesticide and hematologic cancers, especially non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL). The current work is an ecological study using counties in Kentucky, Arkansas, and Iowa to compare glyphosate usage to NHL incidence using a multivariate Poisson regression. We found no significant correlation between glyphosate use and NHL incidence, though caution should be taken to draw significance from …

An Assessment Of Kentucky Birth Records, Focusing On Early-Onset Hypertensive Disorders Of Pregnancy, Environmental Metal Exposures, And Geocoding Precision, 2008-2017, Courtney J. Walker

Theses and Dissertations--Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Using live and stillbirth records from Kentucky (2008-2017), this dissertation assessed the county-level prevalence and geospatial patterns of early-onset hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (eHDP); examined the geocoding precision of addresses recorded on birth records, and evaluated the association between individual risk factors and environmental metal exposures on eHDP prevalence. After adjusting for maternal demographic factors and pre-existing health conditions, we observed that eHDP prevalence was 38% higher (aPR=1.38, 95%CI:1.16, 1.64) in counties with the highest prevalence of married women (> 53.8%) compared to lower prevalence areas (31.6%) had a 20% higher prevalence of eHDP(aPR=1.20, 95%CI:1.00, 1.44) compared to counties with …

Environmental Respiratory Exposures And Pulmonary Function Among Residents Of Rural Appalachia, Kentucky, John C. Flunker

Theses and Dissertations--Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Introduction

Resource extraction exposures are hypothesized to promote adverse respiratory health outcomes among residents of rural Appalachia, yet no studies to date have simultaneously quantified small-scale geographic variation in residential exposure, individual level health factors, and respiratory health outcomes.

Methods

The Mountain Air Project (MAP) is a community engaged cross-sectional study based in Harlan and Letcher counties of Southeastern Kentucky. MAP utilized a novel small-scale method to define residential exposure boundaries: hydrologic unit code (HUC), which represents distinct drainages (AKA “hollows”) where residents cluster. We assigned the HUC level density of active and abandoned surface and underground mining, oil/gas wells, …

Evaluating The Incidence Of Melanoma And Lung Cancer Of Current And Former Active-Duty U.S. Military Who Were Deployed In Support Of Operation Enduring Freedom And Operation Iraqi Freedom, Brian Kovacic

Theses and Dissertations--Epidemiology and Biostatistics

The incidence of melanoma and lung cancer has been gradually increasing in the United States over the past three decades with the reputed causes due to etiological and environmental exposures, and tobacco usage. There has been concern that melanoma and lung cancer incidence among military personnel may be associated with deployment to environments with intense sun exposure and increased smoking rates due to post-traumatic stress disorder. The aim of this study was to examine associations between deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) or Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), from 2001 through 2015, with subsequent melanoma and lung cancer incidence. …

Maternal Proximity To Mountaintop Removal Mining And Birth Defects In Appalachian Kentucky, 1997-2003, Daniel B. Cooper

Theses and Dissertations--Public Health (M.P.H. & Dr.P.H.)

Background: Extraction of coal through mountaintop removal mining (MTR) alters many dimensions of the landscape, and explosive blasts, exposed rock, and coal washing have the potential to pollute air and water with substances known to increase risk of developmental and birth anomalies. Previous research suggests that infants born to mothers living in MTR coal mining counties have higher prevalence of most types of birth defects.

Objectives: This study seeks to examine further the relationship between MTR activity and birth defects by employing individual level exposure estimation through precise satellite data of MTR activity in the Appalachian region and maternal residence …

Environmental Exposure To Atrazine And Birth Defects: An Ecological Study In Kentucky, 2005-2014, Maria Dimitrios Politis

Theses and Dissertations--Public Health (M.P.H. & Dr.P.H.)

Atrazine is one of the most widely used pesticides in the United States. Studies have shown that pesticides, in particular herbicides such as atrazine, may be associated with birth defects. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the association between potential environmental exposures to atrazine in water systems and prevalence rates of birth defects for the state of Kentucky. An ecological study using the Kentucky Birth Defects Registry Surveillance and the Kentucky Geological Survey databases from 2005 to 2014 was conducted. Poisson regression was used to estimate crude and adjusted rate ratios of the association between agricultural exposure metrics …