A comparison of vaginal versus buccal misoprostol for cervical ripening in women for labor induction at term (the IMPROVE trial): a triple-masked randomized controlled trial.

Background: Cervical ripening is commonly needed for labor induction. Finding an optimal route of misoprostol dosing for efficacy, safety, and patient satisfaction is important and not well studied for the buccal route.

Objective: To compare the efficacy and safety of vaginal and buccal misoprostol for women undergoing labor induction at term.

Local pollutants go global: The impacts of intercontinental air pollution from China on air quality and morbidity in California.

China is among the greatest emitters of air pollution in the world and one concern is the effects of intercontinental air pollution traveling across the Pacific Ocean from China to the U.S. We exploit a natural experiment by observing the effects of changes in intercontinental air pollution associated with Chinese New Year, a 7-day national holiday, and sandstorms from China on air quality and morbidity in California.

Emission Standards, Public Transit, and Infant Health.

Transit buses are an integral part of urban life. They reduce externalities generated from private vehicles and increase geographic mobility. However, unlike most private vehicles in the United States, they use diesel fuel and emit higher amounts of toxic pollutants.

Climate change and fetal health: The impacts of exposure to extreme temperatures in New York City.

Background: Climate change is projected to increase the frequency, intensity, and duration of heat waves while reducing cold extremes, yet few studies have examined the relationship between temperature and fetal health.

Objectives: We estimate the impacts of extreme temperatures on birth weight and gestational age in Manhattan, a borough in New York City, and explore differences by socioeconomic status (SES).

Methods: We combine average daily temperature from 1985 to 2010 with birth certificate data in Manhattan for the same time period.

Analyzing the Relationship Between Bus Pollution Policies and Morbidity Using a Quasi-Experiment.

Transit buses are used by millions of commuters every day, but they emit toxic diesel fumes. In 1988, the U.S.

Occupational exposure to roadway emissions and inside informal settlements in sub-Saharan Africa: A pilot study in Nairobi, Kenya.

Few studies examine urban air pollution in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), yet urbanization rates there are among the highest in the world. In this study, we measured 8-hr average occupational exposure levels of fine particulate matter (PM), black carbon (BC), ultra violet active-particulate matter (UV-PM), and trace elements for individuals who worked along roadways in Nairobi, specifically bus drivers, garage workers, street vendors, and women who worked inside informal settlements. We found BC and re-suspended dust were important contributors to PM levels for all study populations, particularly among bus drivers, while PM exposure levels for garage workers, street vendors, and informal settlement residents were not statistically different from each other.

Traffic Impacts on PM(2.5) Air Quality in Nairobi, Kenya.

Motor vehicle traffic is an important source of particulate pollution in cities of the developing world, where rapid growth, coupled with a lack of effective transport and land use planning, may result in harmful levels of fine particles (PM(2.5)) in the air. However, a lack of air monitoring data hinders health impact assessments and the development of transportation and land use policies that could reduce health burdens due to outdoor air pollution.

Combination of HIV-1-specific CD4 Th1 cell responses and IgG2 antibodies is the best predictor for persistence of long-term nonprogression.

Background: Strong T cell and antibody responses to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), low virus production, and some genetic traits have been individually associated with nonprogression of HIV infection, but the best correlate with protection against disease progression remains unknown.

Methods: We prospectively followed 66 untreated long-term nonprogressors and analyzed relationships between HIV-1-specific CD4 T helper (Th) 1 and CD8 T cell responses and HIV-1-specific antibodies, HIV-1 RNA and proviral DNA loads, host genes, and CD4 Th1 cell counts at entry into the study and 4 years later.

Results: HIV-1 p24-specific CD4 Th1 cell proliferation, interferon (IFN)- gamma production, and IFN- gamma -producing cell frequencies at entry significantly and negatively correlated with HIV-1 RNA and proviral DNA loads and were independent of CD4 Th1 cell counts and host genes.