scholarly journals Disentangling Increased Testing from Covid-19 Epidemic Spread

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Lengerich ◽  
Willie Neiswanger ◽  
Eugene J. Lengerich ◽  
Eric P. Xing
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
The United States ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Epidemic Spread ◽  
Public Health Risks ◽  
Testing Strategies ◽  
Limited Testing ◽  
Virus Testing

AbstractTo design effective disease control strategies, it is critical to understand the incidence of diseases. In the Covid-19 epidemic in the United States (caused by outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 virus), testing capacity was initially very limited and has been increasing at the same time as the virus has been spreading. When estimating the incidence, it can be difficult to distinguish whether increased numbers of positive tests stem from increases in the spread of the virus or increases in testing. This has made it very difficult to identify locations in which the epidemic poses the largest public health risks. Here, we use a probabilistic model to quantify beliefs about testing strategies and understand implications regarding incidence. We apply this model to estimate the incidence in each state of the United States, and find that: (1) the Covid-19 epidemic is likely to be more widespread than reported by limited testing, (2) the Covid-19 epidemic growth in the summer months is likely smaller than it was during the spring months, and (3) the regions which are at highest risk of Covid-19 epidemic outbreaks are not always those with the largest number of positive test results.

Vernacular epistemologies of risk: The crisis in Fukushima

2016 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celine-Marie Pascale
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Power Plant ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
The United States ◽  
Nuclear Radiation ◽  
Public Health Risks ◽  
The Media ◽  
Media Practices ◽  
Fukushima Disaster

On 11 March 2011, an earthquake of a 9.0 magnitude and the consequent tsunami destroyed Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant. Known as 3/11 in Japan, the effects of this triple disaster will continue for decades. How did the media covering the catastrophe articulate issues of risk to the general public? This article is a textual analysis of accounts about the Fukushima disaster published between 11 March 2011 and 11 March 2013 in four of the most prominent media outlets in the United States. In particular, the analysis explores the practices through which these US media constructed the presence and meaning of public health risks resulting from the nuclear meltdown. The article illustrates how systematic media practices minimized the presence of health risks, contributed to misinformation, and exacerbated uncertainties. In the process, the study demonstrates how the media created vernacular epistemologies for understanding and evaluating the health risks posed by nuclear radiation. The article concludes by weighing the implications of the vernacular epistemologies deployed by media.

Discharge-based QMRA for estimation of public health risks from exposure to stormwater-borne pathogens in recreational waters in the United States

2013 ◽  
Vol 47 (14) ◽  
pp. 5282-5297 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham B. McBride ◽  
Rebecca Stott ◽  
Woutrina Miller ◽  
Dustin Bambic ◽  
Stefan Wuertz
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
The United States ◽  
Recreational Waters ◽  
Public Health Risks

A Nationwide Survey of COVID-19 Testing in LGBTQ+ Populations in the United States

2021 ◽  
pp. 003335492110181
Author(s):  
Richard J. Martino ◽  
Kristen D. Krause ◽  
Marybec Griffin ◽  
Caleb LoSchiavo ◽  
Camilla Comer-Carruthers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Gay Men ◽  
Antibody Test ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sociodemographic Characteristics ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Antibody Testing ◽  
And Gender

Objectives Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer and questioning (LGBTQ+) people and populations face myriad health disparities that are likely to be evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. The objectives of our study were to describe patterns of COVID-19 testing among LGBTQ+ people and to differentiate rates of COVID-19 testing and test results by sociodemographic characteristics. Methods Participants residing in the United States and US territories (N = 1090) aged ≥18 completed an internet-based survey from May through July 2020 that assessed COVID-19 testing and test results and sociodemographic characteristics, including sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI). We analyzed data on receipt and results of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and antibody testing for SARS-CoV-2 and symptoms of COVID-19 in relation to sociodemographic characteristics. Results Of the 1090 participants, 182 (16.7%) received a PCR test; of these, 16 (8.8%) had a positive test result. Of the 124 (11.4%) who received an antibody test, 45 (36.3%) had antibodies. Rates of PCR testing were higher among participants who were non–US-born (25.4%) versus US-born (16.3%) and employed full-time or part-time (18.5%) versus unemployed (10.8%). Antibody testing rates were higher among gay cisgender men (17.2%) versus other SOGI groups, non–US-born (25.4%) versus US-born participants, employed (12.6%) versus unemployed participants, and participants residing in the Northeast (20.0%) versus other regions. Among SOGI groups with sufficient cell sizes (n > 10), positive PCR results were highest among cisgender gay men (16.1%). Conclusions The differential patterns of testing and positivity, particularly among gay men in our sample, confirm the need to create COVID-19 public health messaging and programming that attend to the LGBTQ+ population.

Limited English Proficiency and Disparities in Clinical Research

2009 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Bustillos
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
Genetic Predisposition ◽  
Limited English Proficiency ◽  
Environmental Pollutants ◽  
The United States ◽  
United States Today ◽  
United States Population ◽  
Physical Susceptibility

Imagine that you possess an indicator for a disease or illness that has nothing to do with your body. It is not a genetic predisposition to acquire cancer or a vice that raises the probability of contracting some dread disease, though estimates of its health risks have placed it on par with having diabetes. It has nothing to do with the environmental pollutants you are exposed to or whether you can afford health care. It is not a physical susceptibility that renders you more easily reachable by the clutches of pathology. No, this indicator of health hinges on certain learned abilities and skills, and it is a barrier to health that is totally within the health field's power and resources to lift.The condition hinted at above is the inability to speak English proficiently in the United States. Today, more than one-sixth of the United States population speaks a language other than English at home, and this number (approximately 50 million people) is increasing rapidly.

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