scholarly journals Chagas Cardiomyopathy Presenting as Symptomatic Bradycardia: An Underappreciated Emerging Public Health Problem in the United States

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Jesse Durrance ◽  
Tofura Ullah ◽  
Zulekha Atif ◽  
William Frumkin ◽  
Kaushik Doshi
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Endemic Area ◽  
Sinus Bradycardia ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The United States ◽  
Adequate Treatment ◽  
Chagas Cardiomyopathy ◽  
Latin American Immigrants

Chagas cardiomyopathy (CCM) is traditionally considered a disease restricted to areas of endemicity. However, an estimated 300,000 people living in the United States today have CCM, of which its majority is undiagnosed. We present a case of CCM acquired in an endemic area and detected in its early stage. A 42-year-old El Salvadoran woman presented with recurrent chest pain and syncopal episodes. Significant family history includes a sister in El Salvador who also began suffering similar episodes. Physical exam and ancillary studies were only remarkable for sinus bradycardia. The patient was diagnosed with symptomatic sinus bradycardia and a pacemaker was placed. During her hospital course, Chagas serology was ordered given the epidemiological context from which she came. With no other identifiable cause, CCM was the suspected etiology. This case highlights the underrecognized presence of Chagas in the United States and the economic and public health importance of its consideration in the etiological differential diagnosis of electrocardiographic changes among Latin American immigrants. While the United States is not considered an endemic area for Chagas disease, the influx of Latin American immigrants has created a new challenge to identify at-risk populations, diagnose suspected cases, and provide adequate treatment for this disease.

Driving and Public Health

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Health Problem ◽  
Cell Phone ◽  
Motor Vehicle ◽  
Electronic Device ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The United States ◽  
Distracted Driving ◽  
The Past

Distracted driving is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as “the practice of driving a motor vehicle while engaged in another activity, typically one that involves the use of a mobile phone or other electronic device.” However, other distractions not involving the use of a cell phone or texting are important as well, contributing to this burgeoning public health problem in the United States. Examples include talking to other passengers, adjusting the radio or other controls in the car, and daydreaming. Distracted driving has been linked to increased risk of motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) in the United States, representing one of the most preventable leading causes of death for youth ages 16 to 24 years. Undoubtedly, the proliferation of cell phone, global positioning system (GPS), and other in-vehicle and personal electronic device use while driving has led to this rise in distracted driving prevalence. This behavior has impacted society—including individual and commercial drivers, passengers, pedestrians—in countless numbers of ways, ranging from increased MVCs and deaths to the enactment of new driving laws. In 2016, for example, 20 percent of all US pediatric deaths (nearly 4,000 children and adolescents) were due to fatal MVCs. It has been estimated that at any given time, more than 650,000 drivers are using cell phones or manipulating electronic devices while driving. In the United States, efforts are underway to reduce this driving behavior. In the past two decades, state and federal laws have specifically targeted cell phone use and texting while driving as priority areas for legal intervention. Distracted driving laws have become “strategies of choice” for tackling this public health problem, though their enforcement has emerged as a major challenge and varies by jurisdiction and location. Multimodal interventions using models such as the “three Es” framework—Enactment of a law, Education of the public about the law and safety practices, and Enforcement of the law—have become accepted practice or viewed as necessary steps to successfully change this behavior caused by distractions while driving. This Oxford Bibliographies review introduces these and other aspects (including psychological influences and road conditions) of distracted driving through a presentation of annotated resources from peer- and non-peer-reviewed literature. This selective review aims to provide policymakers, program implementers, and researchers with a reliable source of information on the past and current state of American laws, policies, and priorities for distracted driving.

scholarly journals Stress and Coping: Latino Youth Coming of Age in a New Latino Destination

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 407-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Brietzke ◽  
Krista Perreira
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Coming Of Age ◽  
Latino Youth ◽  
The United States ◽  
Stress And Coping ◽  
Latino Adolescents ◽  
Latin American Immigrants ◽  
Community Environments ◽  
And Coping

Previous research has linked stress to adverse mental health outcomes among Latino adolescents living in the United States. The mechanism through which this process operates continues to be explored, especially in regions of the country where Latin American immigrants and their children have only recently begun to migrate. Our study aimed to contextualize the processes of stress and coping among Latino adolescents growing up in an emerging Latino destination in the United States—North Carolina. All adolescents in our study were either the first- or second-generation children of immigrants from Latin American countries, including Colombia, El Salvador, Honduras, and Mexico. We used a longitudinal qualitative design, conducting in-depth interviews with 12 parent-adolescent dyads during each adolescent’s first year of high school (2006-2007) and approximately 4 years later (2009-2010). We identified four stress-coping trajectories that varied on the following dimensions: primary sources of stress, buffers countering these stressors, coping approaches, and the effects of these processes on adolescents’ striving for socioeconomic mobility. Our findings underscore the interplay between family, school, and community environments within an emerging Latino destination.

Technologies to Detect Concealed Weapons: Fourth Amendment Limits on a New Public Health and Law Enforcement Tool

2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 567-579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon S. Vernick ◽  
Matthew W. Pierce ◽  
Daniel W. Webster ◽  
Sara B. Johnson ◽  
Shannon Frattaroli
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The United States ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Public Places ◽  
New Public Health ◽  
Gun Carrying ◽  
New Public ◽  
The Social

Firearm violence is a major public health problem in the United States. In 2000, firearms were used in 10,801 homicides – two-thirds of all homicides in the U.S. – and 533,470 non-fatal criminal victimizations including rapes, robberies, and assaults. The social costs of gun violence in the United States are also staggering, and have been estimated to be on the order of $100 billion per year.Illegal gun carrying, usually concealed, in public places is an important risk factor for firearm-related crime. In the 1980s and 1990s, police departments across the country began to develop and implement strategies to address illegal weapons carrying. Often these strategies have involved aggressive efforts to identify and physically search individuals suspected of illegally carrying a firearm.

Acceptance of organ xenotransplantation among Latin American immigrants resident in the United States

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 269-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Ríos ◽  
Ana Isabel López-Navas ◽  
Laura Martínez-Alarcón ◽  
Guillermo Ramis ◽  
Antonio Miguel Hernández ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Latin American ◽  
The United States ◽  
Latin American Immigrants

scholarly journals Clinical Presentations of Chagas Cardiomyopathy

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Malik Shehadeh ◽  
Ana Barac ◽  
Rachel Marcus
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Heart Failure ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Ventricular Arrhythmias ◽  
The United States ◽  
Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy ◽  
Common Cause ◽  
Chagas Cardiomyopathy ◽  
Clinical Presentations ◽  
Latin American Countries

Chronic Chagas cardiomyopathy (CCC) is the most common cause of nonischemic cardiomyopathy in endemic Latin American countries. Immigrants to the United States suffer from this disease, but it is underrecognized. We describe the three hallmark clinical presentations: stroke, ventricular arrhythmias, and heart failure, which should prompt suspicion for CCC.

Electrolyte Disorders

2016 ◽  
pp. 571-578
Author(s):  
Qi Qian
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Chronic Kidney Disease ◽  
End Stage Renal Disease ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The United States ◽  
Electrolyte Disorders ◽  
Stage Renal Disease ◽  
End Stage

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a worldwide public health problem. In the United States, the prevalence of end-stage renal disease is increasing, especially among patients older than 65 years. More than 20 million people in the United States are thought to have CKD, and this population consumes a disproportionate amount of health care resources. CKD is also associated with increased mortality, particularly from cardiovascular causes.

Defining Commercial Speech in the Context of Food Marketing

2015 ◽  
Vol 43 (S1) ◽  
pp. 40-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer L. Pomeranz ◽  
Sabrina Adler
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
First Amendment ◽  
Health Problem ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The United States ◽  
Food Marketing ◽  
Policy Strategy ◽  
Commercial Speech ◽  
Poor Nutrition

Obesity is a public health problem in the United States. Experts have identified the regulation of food marketing as a policy strategy to address obesity and poor nutrition. However, the First Amendment can be a barrier to reducing exposure to problematic food marketing. In recent years, courts have become increasingly protective of speech, and particularly of “commercial speech,” or advertising, which can make it more difficult to regulate certain marketing practices.

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