Health behaviors and risk factors among American Indians and Alaska Natives, 2000-2010.

Objectives: We provided contextual risk factor information for a special supplement on causes of death among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs). We analyzed 11 years of Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data for AI/AN respondents in the United States.

Methods: We combined BRFSS data from 2000 to 2010 to determine the prevalence of selected risk factors for AI/AN and White respondents residing in Indian Health Service Contract Health Service Delivery Area counties.

Leading causes of death and all-cause mortality in American Indians and Alaska Natives.

Objectives: We present regional patterns and trends in all-cause mortality and leading causes of death in American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs).

Methods: US National Death Index records were linked with Indian Health Service (IHS) registration records to identify AI/AN deaths misclassified as non-AI/AN. We analyzed temporal trends for 1990 to 2009 and comparisons between non-Hispanic AI/AN and non-Hispanic White persons by geographic region for 1999 to 2009.

Breast and cervical cancer screening patterns among American Indian women at IHS clinics in Montana and Wyoming.

Objectives: We investigated factors associated with primary and secondary breast and cervical cancer screening among American Indian (AI) women receiving care from the Indian Health Service (IHS) in Montana and Wyoming.

Methods: Rates of primary screening (i.e.

A survey of Indian Health Service and tribal health providers' colorectal cancer screening knowledge, perceptions, and practices.

Background: Provider recommendation is critical for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening participation, yet few data exist on practices of providers serving American Indians and Alaska Natives. We examined Indian Health Service (IHS) and tribal provider practices, beliefs about screening efficacy, and perceptions of barriers.

Methods: We developed a Web-based questionnaire and recruited respondents via electronic distribution lists.

Lung cancer incidence among American Indians and Alaska Natives in the United States, 1999-2004.

Background: Lung cancer incidence rates among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) in the United States have not been described well, primarily because of race misclassification and, until the 1990s, incomplete coverage of their population by cancer registries. Smoking, the predominant cause of lung cancer, is particularly prevalent among this population.

Methods: Data from the National Program of Cancer Registries and the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program were combined to estimate age-adjusted incidence rates of lung cancer during 1999 through 2004.

Introduction to the supplement on cancer in the American Indian and Alaska Native populations in the United States.

The collection of papers in this Supplement combines cancer incidence data from the National Program of Cancer Registries and the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program, enhanced by record linkages and geographic factors, to provide a comprehensive description of the cancer burden in the American Indian/Alaska Native population in the United States. Cancer incidence rates among this population varied widely, sometimes more than 5-fold, by geographic region.

Annual report to the nation on the status of cancer, 1975-2004, featuring cancer in American Indians and Alaska Natives.

Background: The American Cancer Society, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Cancer Institute, and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries collaborate annually to provide updated information on cancer occurrence and trends in the U.S. The 2007 report features a comprehensive compilation of cancer information for American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN).

Disparities in breast cancer treatment among American Indian, Hispanic and non-Hispanic White Women Enrolled in Medicare.

Because racial/ethnic disparities in breast cancer survival have persisted, we investigated differences in breast cancer treatment among American Indian, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic White (NHW) women. Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results data linked to Medicare claims in New Mexico and Arizona (1987-1997) among enrollees aged 65 and older were used to identify treatment, treatment interval, and mortality risk associated with delays in care. We identified 2,031 women (67 American Indian, 333 Hispanic and 1,631 NHW women with time to treatment information.

Asthma hospitalizations among American Indian and Alaska Native people and for the general US population.

Study Objectives: Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases in the United States. High rates of asthma hospitalization have been reported for some ethnic minorities; however, asthma hospitalization rates for American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations of all ages have not been studied. In this study, we examined and compared hospitalization rates for AI/AN populations and the general population in the United States.

Invasive cervical cancer among American Indian women in the Northern Plains, 1994-1998: incidence, mortality, and missed opportunities.

Objectives: Cervical cancer mortality rates among the American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) population in North and South Dakota were five times the national average (15.6 per 100,000 vs. 3.

Regional patterns and trends in cancer mortality among American Indians and Alaska Natives, 1990-2001.

Background: National estimates of cancer mortality indicate relatively low rates for American Indians (AIs) and Alaska Natives (ANs). However, these rates are derived from state vital records in which racial misclassification is known to exist.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study of cancer mortality among AIs and ANs living in counties on or near reservations, the authors used death records and census population estimates to calculate annualized, age-adjusted mortality rates for key cancer types for the period 1996-2001 for 5 geographic regions: East (E), Northern Plains (NP), Southwest (SW), Pacific Coast (PC), and Alaska (AK).

Surveillance for health behaviors of American Indians and Alaska Natives. Findings from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 1997-2000.

Problem/condition: In the United States, disparities in risks for chronic disease (e.g., diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) are evident among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) and other groups.

Venous thromboembolism hospitalizations among American Indians and Alaska Natives.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been reported to be on the increase in the American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) population. The Indian Health Service (IHS) hospital discharge database was used to describe venous thromboembolism (VTE)-associated hospitalizations among patients receiving IHS-reported medical care in the United States from 1980 through 1996. The average overall VTE-associated hospitalization rate in the AI/AN population during 1980-1996 was 33.