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Senate Committee report addresses U.S. government response to Haiti

A Senate Foreign Relations Committee report, written by two Senate staffers, who just returned from Haiti where they assessed relief efforts, draws attention to "immediate shelter and sanitation concerns" and voices "concern about the coordination of Washington's U.S. government response to Haiti," Politico's Laura Rozen writes on her blog. A link to the text of the report appears on Politico's Web site.

24 Feb 2010

USPSTF-recommended guidelines lead to decline in mammograms and early detection programs for women under 50

In some states women ages 40 to 49 have less access to mammograms since the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released its recommendations to change breast cancer screening guidelines last November, according to a recent survey conducted by the Avon Foundation for Women. The USPSTF recommended changing the current mammography screening guidelines for average risk women to begin biennial screening at age 50 instead of annual mammograms starting at age 40.

24 Feb 2010

Depression and stress hormone levels may lead to obesity in girls

Depression raises stress hormone levels in adolescent boys and girls but may lead to obesity only in girls, according to researchers. Early treatment of depression could help reduce stress and control obesity -- a major health issue.

24 Feb 2010

GW report: Asthma is on the rise in America and more than 1M children with asthma not insured

Researchers from The George Washington University, School of Public Health and Health Services said today that asthma, a largely manageable and chronic disease, is on the rise in America and released new data on the magnitude of the asthma crisis, the surging cost of treatment, and the more than 1 million children with asthma who are uninsured.

24 Feb 2010

Rising Medicare costs linked to the growth in common costly chronic conditions: Study

Today, two of the nation's leading health and fiscal policy experts discussed how to reign in rising health care costs in Medicare in light of a new Health Affairs study that shows rising Medicare costs in the nation's health care system are linked to the growth in several common costly chronic conditions, such as diabetes, arthritis, hypertension, and kidney disease.

24 Feb 2010

New Barts Cancer Research UK Centre launched

A new cancer centre, launched today, puts London at the forefront of cancer research.

23 Feb 2010

Health Canada approves GARDASIL for prevention of genital warts in males

Today, Merck announced that Health Canada has approved GARDASIL(R) (Human Papillomavirus Quadrivalent (Types 6, 11, 16, and 18) Recombinant Vaccine) for boys and men nine through 26 years of age for the prevention of infection caused by HPV types 6, 11, 16, and 18 and genital warts caused by HPV types 6 and 11.

23 Feb 2010

Prevention of preterm birth and stillbirth: Global collaborative efforts needed

A new report identifies the enormous global impact of preterm birth and stillbirth—and what can be done to decrease it. Globally, an estimated 13 million babies are born preterm each year. Newborn deaths now account for more than 42 percent of mortality in children under the age of five, a rise from 37 percent in the year 2000. Additionally, an estimated 3.2 million are stillborn each year, and many of these losses are linked to maternal deaths.

23 Feb 2010

Humans can harbor bacteria in gallstones, infect others with active typhoid fever

A new study suggests that the bacteria that cause typhoid fever collect in tiny but persistent communities on gallstones, making the infection particularly hard to fight in so-called "carriers" - people who have the disease but show no symptoms.

23 Feb 2010

Committee calls for strategies to curb hypertension

Public health officials and health care providers need to step up their efforts to reduce Americans' increasing rates of high blood pressure and better treat those with the condition, which triggers more than one-third of heart attacks and almost half of heart failures in the United States each year, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine.

23 Feb 2010

Melamine-contaminated dairy products leave 12% children with kidney abnormalities

While the majority of children who were affected by consuming toxic melamine-contaminated products in China recovered, kidney abnormalities remained in 12% of the affected children.

23 Feb 2010

Research reveals human Chlamydia pneumoniae has originated from animal source

Animals have been found to have infected humans sometime in the past with the common respiratory disease Chlamydia pneumoniae, according to Queensland University of Technology infectious disease expert Professor Peter Timms.

23 Feb 2010

Haitian President says up to 300,000 people could have died in quake

The major earthquake in January in Haiti could have killed as many as 300,000 people, an estimate that includes bodies buried in the rubble, Haitian President Rene Preval said on Sunday at a meeting of Latin American and Caribbean leaders in Mexico, Reuters reports.

23 Feb 2010

Medicaid cuts hurt Calif. dental coverage, drive away doctors in Okla; Public hospitals in NYC fear possible reductions

NPR: "In California, it's been seven months since some 3 million poor and disabled adults lost their dental coverage to budget cuts. ... While the recession may be easing, California and other states across the country continue to face eye-popping budget deficits. As a result, states are cutting deep into public health programs, and dental benefits for Medicaid recipients top the list. ... Before the state budget cuts, Medicaid patients here could get annual exams, cleanings and, if needed, root canals to save their teeth.

23 Feb 2010

UCI researchers create new breed of flightless mosquitoes for dengue control

UCI researchers and colleagues from Oxitec Ltd. and the University of Oxford created the new breed. Flightless females are expected to die quickly in the wild, curtailing the number of mosquitoes and reducing - or even eliminating - dengue transmission. Males of the strain can fly but do not bite or convey disease.

23 Feb 2010

Study shows hospitals costs vary widely and are not associated with quality of care

The costs that hospitals incur in treating patients vary widely and do not appear to be strongly associated either with the quality of care patients receive or their risk of dying within 30 days, according to a report in the February 22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

23 Feb 2010

AAAS meeting examines test-and-treat model's potential for fighting HIV spread, TB co-infection

Researchers speaking at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) meeting on Saturday, discussed how a strategy to promote universal voluntary HIV tests and early antiretroviral treatment for patients living in high-risk areas might "derail the spread of [HIV/]AIDS, a battle where a successful vaccine remains elusive," the Associated Press/Washington Post reports

23 Feb 2010

UIC researchers receive federal grant to study effects of TV media on children’s health outcomes

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago Institute for Health Research and Policy have received a $2.2 million federal grant to determine whether or not TV food advertising affects children's diet, physical activity and weight.

22 Feb 2010

Effective e-waste management needed

Issued at a meeting of Basel Convention and other world chemical authorities prior to UNEP's Governing Council meeting in Bali, Indonesia, the report, "Recycling - from E-Waste to Resources," used data from 11 representative developing countries to estimate current and future e-waste generation - which includes old and dilapidated desk and laptop computers, printers, mobile phones, pagers, digital photo and music devices, refrigerators, toys and televisions.

22 Feb 2010

HHS Secretary reviews H1N1 response at NACCHO conference

Thank you, Tom. I also want to thank NACCHO for hosting this important conference and for inviting me to speak here today. Public health is a top priority for this administration. So is strengthening our partnerships across government. So I’m glad I could come talk with you about how we can work together to keep Americans healthy and safe.

22 Feb 2010

Public Health News and Research

Senate Committee report addresses U.S. government response to Haiti

USPSTF-recommended guidelines lead to decline in mammograms and early detection programs for women under 50

Depression and stress hormone levels may lead to obesity in girls

GW report: Asthma is on the rise in America and more than 1M children with asthma not insured

Rising Medicare costs linked to the growth in common costly chronic conditions: Study

New Barts Cancer Research UK Centre launched

Health Canada approves GARDASIL for prevention of genital warts in males

Prevention of preterm birth and stillbirth: Global collaborative efforts needed

Humans can harbor bacteria in gallstones, infect others with active typhoid fever

Committee calls for strategies to curb hypertension

Melamine-contaminated dairy products leave 12% children with kidney abnormalities

Research reveals human Chlamydia pneumoniae has originated from animal source

Haitian President says up to 300,000 people could have died in quake

Medicaid cuts hurt Calif. dental coverage, drive away doctors in Okla; Public hospitals in NYC fear possible reductions

UCI researchers create new breed of flightless mosquitoes for dengue control

Study shows hospitals costs vary widely and are not associated with quality of care

AAAS meeting examines test-and-treat model's potential for fighting HIV spread, TB co-infection

UIC researchers receive federal grant to study effects of TV media on children’s health outcomes

Effective e-waste management needed

HHS Secretary reviews H1N1 response at NACCHO conference

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