Public health in the Canadian Arctic: Contributions from International Polar Year research

The contributions of several IPY health projects are highlighted in the context of population health indicators for Inuit Nunangat. Food and housing are two critical social determinants of health contributing to health issues on many levels. The nutritional deficit associated with food insecurity and the transition away from traditional and towards market foods represents a dual risk with profound consequences. Knowledge of the physiological benefits associated with traditional food consumption is increasing, including for mental health and chronic disease. Ensuring the safety of traditional foods in terms of zoonotic diseases is thus highly valuable and efforts to institute adequate monitoring and address knowledge gaps are underway. Acute respiratory disease among the young remains a significant public health issue with potential long term effects. The human papilloma virus is manifesting itself among women across northern Canada with high risk types that are more similar to profiles observed in Europe than in North America with possible implications for immunization programs. Despite a high prevalence of Hepatitis B virus infections among residents of Inuit Nunangat, the outcomes appear to be relatively beni

Viral hepatitis and the surgeon

Background. Viral hepatitis is an infection of the liver caused by one or more of six known (HAV-HGV) hepatotropic viruses. It is a common problem among health care workers and their patients. Surgeons are at particular risk of both acquiring and transmitting some of these viruses from and to their patients. Unfortunately, specific immunoprophylaxis for viral hepatitis is presently limited to protecting against the spread of hepatitis A and B viral infections, leaving a high degree of vigilance and careful surgical technique as the only means available to prevent the transmission of other viruses relative to the surgeon. The purpose of this paper is to review the various forms of viral hepatitis including the nature of the virus, serologic testing, clinical features, epidemiology (with specific reference to those issues that arise in surgical practice), treatment and prevention