Osteoporotic vertebral fractures

2001 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nelson B. Watts

Osteoporosis is a significant public health problem. Vertebral fractures are the most common fracture in patients with osteoporosis, occurring in approximately 750,000 cases each year. The fractures may cause acute or chronic pain, reduce the quality of life, and shorten life expectancy. Several medications are available that reduce the risk of fracture. Vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty (balloon-inflated expansion of collapsed vertebrae followed by injection of bone cement) may reduce or relieve pain in selected patients. Although surgery is rarely necessary for the management of osteoporotic vertebral fractures, it may be indicated for other reasons. No studies have been conducted to determine if the outcome of spinal fusion is different in patients with osteoporosis and, if it is, whether management of the patient's osteoporosis will improve the outcome.

Author(s):  
Susan Elliott ◽  
Francesca Cardwell

Food allergy is a growing public health epidemic in Canada, affecting 50 percent of Canadian households either directly or indirectly. Despite the physical, psychosocial and quality of life impacts to those affected, food allergy has recently been ignored in the Canadian policy context. While the complete etiology of food allergy remains unknown, we have enough information to make strong policy choices that can maximize choice and minimize risk for affected Canadians, and place Canada at the forefront of food allergy management and research. Policy recognizing food allergy as a chronic health issue that represents a significant public health problem in Canada is critical.


2021 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Konstantinos P. Imprialos ◽  
Konstantinos Koutsampasopoulos ◽  
Aleksandra Katsimardou ◽  
Sofia Bouloukou ◽  
Iakovos Theodoulidis ◽  
...  

Background: Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) has mainly been underdiagnosed and undertreated due to the lack of concrete definitions, validated assessment methods, and efficient treatments. However, during the last few decades, there has been significant progress in the clinical management and research of FSD. Objective: The purpose of this review is to describe the pathophysiology of FSD, report the prevalence of the disease in the setting of cardiovascular (CV) risk factors and disease, and review current and under investigation treatment options. Methods: A comprehensive literature review was performed to identify studies examining the association of FSD with CV risk factors and/or disease and studies reporting appropriate management options. Results: The prevalence of FSD is increased in the general population (approximately 40%) and is significantly higher in patients with hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and dyslipidemia. In patients with overt CV disease, FSD is even more prevalent (up to 90%). The cause of FSD is multifactorial and includes various vascular, hormonal, interpersonal, and psychological factors, which are all intertwined. Several treatment options exist that are efficient in improving female sexual function, while a cluster of other alternatives has been shown to offer benefits. Conclusion: FSD is a significant public health problem with a great impact on the patients’ quality of life. In the setting of increased CV burden, FSD is even more prevalent. Increased awareness is needed for the physician to establish a trustful environment with the patient, discuss such issues, and offer suitable management options.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shelui Collinson ◽  
Joseph Timothy ◽  
Samuel K Zayay ◽  
Karsor K Kollie ◽  
Eglantine Lebas ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundScabies is known to be a public health problem in many settings but the majority of recent data is from rural settings in the Pacific. There is a need for high quality data from sub-Saharan Africa and peri-Urban settings to inform scale up of scabies control efforts. There have been anecdotal reports of scabies being a public health problem in Liberia but robust data are lacking.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional cluster-randomised prevalence survey for scabies in a peri-urban community in Monrovia, Liberia in February-March 2020. Participants underwent a standardised examination conducted by trained local health care workers. Health related quality of life (HRQoL) was assessed using age-appropriate dermatology life quality indices (DLQIs). Prevalence estimates were calculated accounting for clustering at community and household levels and associations with key demographic variables assessed through multivariable random-effects logistic regression.Results1,318 participants from 477 households were surveyed. The prevalence of scabies prevalence was 9.3% (95% CI: 6.5-13.2%), across 75 (19.7%) households; impetigo or infected scabies prevalence was 0.8% (95% CI: 0.4-1.9%). The majority (52%) of scabies cases were classified as severe. Scabies prevalence was lower in females and higher in the youngest age group; no associations were found with other collected demographic or socio-economic variables. DLQI scores indicated a very or extremely large effect on HRQoL in 29% of adults and 18% of children diagnosed with scabies.ConclusionsOur study indicates a substantial burden of scabies in this peri-Urban population in Liberia. This was associated with significant impact on quality of life, highlighting the need for action to control scabies in this population. Further work is needed to assess the impact of interventions in this context on both the prevalence of scabies and quality of life.Plain English summaryScabies is an infestation with a microscopic mite which affects many people living in low-resource tropical countries. It causes intense itching, which can lead to complications through bacterial infection and poor quality of life. To help develop global scabies control programmes, we need a better understanding of how common it is across different tropical settings. We conducted a survey to assess the burden of scabies and bacterial skin infection in a random sample of people living in a community in Monrovia, Liberia. Information about participants and their household were collected and their skin was examined; those with skin conditions were asked about its impact on quality of life.We examined 1,318 participants and found that almost 10% of people had scanies. Scabies was more common in young children, and was more common in male children than female children. We found that there was a large impact on quality of life due mostly to the itching that scabies causes and to people feeling embarrassed or sad because of their skin condition. This scabies survey is one of the first conducted across all age groups in recent years in sub-Saharan Africa and indicates a substantial burden and impact on quality of life. More work is needed to understand how common scabies is in different settings and the impact that different treatment strategies may have.


2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 345-352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shea Palmer ◽  
Sue Barnett ◽  
Mary Cramp ◽  
Alice Berry ◽  
Amanda Thomas ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 3898-3908 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongxu Wang ◽  
Man Zhang ◽  
Taotao Wang ◽  
Min Cai ◽  
Frank Qian ◽  
...  

Inflammatory liver diseases present a significant public health problem.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tai The Diep ◽  
Owen Jensen ◽  
Nguyen Van Thuong ◽  
Nguyen Thi Ngoc Nhi ◽  
Nguyen Ngoc Anh Thu ◽  
...  

Abstract Cholera remains a significant public health problem worldwide. In settings of declining incidence, serosurveillance may be used to augment clinical surveillance. We utilized dried blood spot sampling and cholera-specific antibody testing to examine the serologic profiles of vaccinated and unvaccinated children in southern Vietnam, where cholera was recently eliminated.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rozhin Naghshizadian ◽  
Amir A. Rahnemai-Azar ◽  
Kruthi Kella ◽  
Michael M. Weber ◽  
Marius L. Calin ◽  
...  

Objective. Despite much effort, obesity remains a significant public health problem. One of the main contributing factors is patients’ perception of their target ideal body weight. This study aimed to assess this perception.Methods. The study took place in an urban area, with the majority of participants in the study being Hispanic (65.7%) or African-American (28.0%). Patients presented to an outpatient clinic were surveyed regarding their ideal body weight and their ideal BMI calculated. Subsequently they were classified into different categories based on their actual measured BMI. Their responses for ideal BMI were compared.Results. In 254 surveys, mean measured BMI was 31.71 ± 8.01. Responses to ideal BMI had a range of 18.89–38.15 with a mean of 25.96 ± 3.25. Mean (±SD) ideal BMI for patients with a measured BMI of <18.5, 18.5–24.9, 25–29.9, and ≥30 was 20.14 ± 1.46, 23.11 ± 1.68, 25.69 ± 2.19, and 27.22 ± 3.31, respectively. These differences were highly significant (P<0.001, ANOVA).Conclusions. Most patients had an inflated sense of their target ideal body weight. Patients with higher measured BMI had higher target numbers for their ideal BMI. Better education of patients is critical for obesity prevention programs.


2014 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 727-729 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Aldasoro ◽  
M. J. Pinazo ◽  
I. Oliveira ◽  
J. Munoz ◽  
E. Posada ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTChagas disease is a parasitic infection that leads to a significant public health problem in countries where the disease is endemic and where it is nonendemic. Benznidazole is the most commonly used drug for the etiological treatment of Chagas disease. Patients treated with benznidazole suffer frequent adverse drug reactions. Although arthralgia is common, arthritis has been reported as a very rare side effect. The objective of this study was to describe arthritis in a cohort ofTrypanosoma cruzi-infected patients treated with benznidazole.


1994 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan E. Rauch ◽  
Richard Weininger ◽  
Donald Pasquale ◽  
Peter T. Burkart ◽  
Harry G. Dunn ◽  
...  

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