Estimating the accumulation and re-accumulation of commercial tobacco, electronic cigarette, and cannabis waste based on a stratified random sample of census blocks.

We investigated the amount and distribution of waste generated by commercial tobacco, electronic cigarette, and cannabis (TEC) use to inform policy options aimed at mitigating the environmental harm caused by these products. Using disproportionate stratified random sampling, we selected 60 census blocks from the eight largest cities in San Diego County, California. We twice surveyed publicly accessible areas in these blocks to quantify TEC waste accumulation and its re-accumulation.

Genetic factors regulating Plasmodium falciparum gametocytogenesis identified by phenotypic screens.

Successful transmission of Plasmodium falciparum from one person to another relies on the complete intraerythrocytic development of non-pathogenic sexual gametocytes infectious for anopheline mosquitoes. Understanding the genetic factors that regulate gametocyte development is vital for identifying transmission-blocking targets in the malaria parasite life cycle. Toward this end, we conducted a forward genetic study to characterize the development of gametocytes from sexual commitment to mature stage V.

Neighborhood Racial and Ethnic Composition Typology and Breast Cancer Risk: The Multiethnic Cohort Study.

Living in racially and ethnically segregated neighborhoods may increase the risk of breast cancer. We examined associations between neighborhood racial and ethnic composition typology and incident primary invasive breast cancer risk in a population-based sample of 102,615 African American/Black, Japanese American, Native Hawaiian, Latino, and White females residing in California and Hawaii from the Multiethnic Cohort (MEC) study between 1993-2019. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression.

Aging alone (while Black): Living alone, loneliness, and health among older Black women.

Background And Objectives: Increasingly, Black women are aging alone. Yet information about health correlates and the residential context where older Black women are aging-in-place is lacking. The current study examines one aspect of Aging While Black that impacts Black women - living alone without close family or kin in the household among a sample of older Black women (N = 890).

Barriers to Total Joint Arthroplasty: A Comparison of High-Poverty and Low-Poverty Communities.

Objective: Our aim was to determine the most significant barriers to total joint arthroplasty (TJA) for people living in high-poverty communities relative to low-poverty communities.

Methods: We created a 21-question survey based on interviews with underrepresented minority patients with osteoarthritis targeting five barriers to TJA: trust in surgeon, recovery concerns, cost and/or insurance issues, fear of poor surgical outcomes, and timing considerations. Participants rated the importance of each barrier on a 5-point Likert scale, dichotomized into "very or extremely important" and "not as important.