A Legacy of Disease

In Appalachia, like much of America, there are important health issues that have not always been appropriately predicted or dealt with when they occur. Lifestyle issues in Appalachia lead to obesity and heart disease, not surprisingly due to extensive use of sugary drinks. The current opioid crisis could have been better predicted given the trauma of mining and the past abuse of less-potent narcotics. A continuing major problem in the whole country is inadequate support for preventive health activities

Salud, seguridad y empleo

En el artículo de Spikyer y Gumà, los autores analizan el efecto de la crisis económica reciente sobre la salud de las y los españoles, con la atención puesta en el nivel educativo y el estado laboral. Este artículo, cuidadosamente armado, se basa en supuestos razonables y detalla hallazgos históricos relacionados con tiempos de estrés económico y el desempleo asociado, en términos de su impacto en la salud.Discusión sobre: Spijker J, Gumà J. El efecto de la crisis económica sobre la salud en España según el nivel educativo y la relación con la actividad: ¿importa también la duración de la crisis? Salud Colectiva. 2018;14(4):655- 670. doi: 10.18294/sc.2018.129

The pain experiences of powered wheelchair users

Copyright © 2012 Informa UK, Ltd. This is the author's accepted manuscript. The final published article is available from the link below.Purpose: To explore the experience of pain and discomfort in users of electric-powered indoor/outdoor wheelchairs (EPIOCs) provided by a National Health Service. Methods: EPIOC users receiving their chair between February and November 2002 (N=74) were invited to participate in a telephone questionnaire/interview and 64 (aged 1081 years) agreed. Both specific and open-ended questions examined the presence of pain/discomfort, its severity, minimizing and aggravating factors, particularly in relation to the EPIOC and its use. Results: Most EPIOC users described experiences of pain with 17% reporting severe pain. Over half felt their pain was influenced by the wheelchair and few (25%) considered their chair eased their symptoms. The most common strategy for pain relief was taking medication. Other self-help strategies included changing position, exercise and complementary therapies. Respondents emphasized the provision of backrests, armrests, footrests and cushions which might alleviate or exacerbate pain, highlighting the importance of appropriate assessment for this high dependency group. Conclusions: Users related pain to their underlying medical condition, their wheelchair or a combination of the two. User feedback is essential to ensure that the EPIOC meets health needs with minimal pain. This becomes more important as the health condition of users changes over time

The Global Spread of Asbestos

Background: Asbestos continues to be used in large quantities around the world and to be an important commodity in global trade. Objective: To assess and quantify current global patterns of asbestos production, export and use; to examine global patterns of asbestos-related disease; and to examine barriers to an asbestos ban. Method: Review of the biomedical literature describing patterns of asbestos exposure and disease; review of documents from national governments, UN agencies, and NGOs on asbestos production and use. Findings: Despite widespread knowledge of the hazards of asbestos and bans on any use of asbestos in more than 50 countries, an estimated 2 million tons of asbestos continue to be used around the world each year. Although this amount is significantly less than peak annual consumption of nearly 5 million tons two decades ago, significant amounts of asbestos are still used in India, China, Russia, and some developing countries. This use of asbestos is responsible for disease today and will cause still more asbestos-related disease in the years ahead. Real and artificially manufactured controversies regarding asbestos such as arguments about the relative hazards of different asbestos fiber types and fiber sizes have impeded bans on asbestos. Conclusions: All forms of asbestos pose grave dangers to human health. All are proven human carcinogens. There is no continued justification for the use of asbestos. Its production and use should be banned worldwide

Mongolia: Failure of Total Banning of Asbestos

The primary uses of asbestos in Mongolia are in thermal power plants, construction and at railway companies. There is, however, limited data on both asbestos consumption and asbestos related disease (ARD) in Mongolia. The purpose of this paper is to report on the failure to completely ban asbestos in Mongolia. To write this paper, available asbestos related literature, published nationally and internationally, and legal regulations, national standards and guidelines on asbestos control were reviewed. Mongolia consumed a total of 44,421.9 metric tons of asbestos containing materials (AMCs) between 1996 and 2014. As a key indicator of ARD, 54 cases of mesothelioma were diagnosed at the National Cancer Center by pathological testing of tissue samples between 1994 and 2013. In 2010, The government made the decision to stop all types of asbestos use under the Law on Toxic and Hazardous Substances. However, there was no nationwide action plan to gradually reduce asbestos use, promote substitutes and raise awareness of health hazards and economic burdens in the future from asbestos use. There was also no planning for safe removal of asbestos currently in place. After the banning of asbestos, thermal power plants told the government that they could not produce electricity without insulation of AMCs and substitution materials were economically not feasible. Due to pressure from the energy sector and inadequate awareness of asbestos hazards, the government changed the legal status on asbestos in 2011 as a restricted chemical. Asbestos is still allowed to be used, and workers and the general community are still unnecessarily exposed to this carcinogen

Freezing for control of stored-product psocids

A series of studies was conducted by exposing young and old eggs, nymphs, and adults of the psocids Liposcelis bostrychophila (Badonnel), L. paeta (Pearman), L. decolor (Pearman), and L. entomophila (Enderlein) to -18°C for various time intervals. Survival was assessed as initial and final, at different times depending on the life stage. Young eggs of L. bostrychophila were the most tolerant life stage of any of the species, with scattered survival out to 120 h of exposure to -18°C. Eggs were the most tolerant life stage for each species, requiring 24, 12, and 2 h of exposure for complete kill of L. paeta, L. decolor, and L. entomophila, respectively. Nymphs and adults of all species were far more susceptible than eggs, with no final survival after two hours of exposure. Results show the extreme variation between different psocid life stages and species to cold temperatures, and provide guidelines for using cold as a control strategy for psocids. Our results show that 24 h at -18°C is sufficient to kill all life stages of the psocid species tested, except for young L. bostrychophila eggs which will require at least 128 h of exposure at -18°C for complete mortality

Financing rural homes in Missouri

Missouri Agricultural Experiment Station and the Farm Production Economics Division, Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, cooperating.Digitized 2007 AES.Includes bibliographical references (page 43)