A call for compassionate opioid overdose response.

High dose and long-acting opioid overdose reversal drugs can precipitate withdrawal in people who are opioid dependent. Products recently brought to market for community use in the United States (US) have drawn international concern because of their increased risk of withdrawal. At the March 18-19, 2024, Compassionate Overdose Response Summit & Naloxone Dosing Meeting, a panel of harm reduction experts issued the following call to action: 1) people who use drugs should be directly involved in decisions regarding the research, development, selection, and distribution of opioid overdose reversal products; 2) regulatory agencies and pharmaceutical manufacturers should carefully consider and communicate the risk and duration of withdrawal associated with higher dose and longer-acting opioid antagonists; 3) take-home naloxone kits should include at least two doses of an intramuscular (IM) product containing 0.

Treatment experiences for skin and soft tissue infections among participants of syringe service programs in North Carolina.

Introduction: Bacterial and fungal infections, such as skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) and infective endocarditis (IE), are increasing among people who use drugs in the United States. Traditional healthcare settings can be inaccessible and unwelcoming to people who use drugs, leading to delays in getting necessary care. The objective of this study was to examine SSTI treatment experiences among people utilizing services from syringe services programs.

Communication of HIV serostatus between potential sex partners in personal ads.

We studied reference to HIV in personal ads from 1986 to 1993 to assess knowledge of HIV serostatus as a criterion for selecting sex partners. Personals increased exponentially during 1986 to 1993. Men seeking men (MSM) were more likely (8%) to mention HIV than persons seeking other situations (0% to 1.

The molecular epidemiology of tuberculosis in New York City: the importance of nosocomial transmission and laboratory error.

Setting: During the 1980s, New York City experienced a rapid increase of tuberculosis cases, more than 40% of which were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated.

Objective: To better define the molecular epidemiology of tuberculosis in New York City.

Design: We collected an isolate from every patient in New York City with a positive culture for Mycobacterium tuberculosis, including both incident and prevalent cases, in April 1991.

The US experience with fluoridation.

This paper reviews the progress of the campaign for community water fluoridation in the United States, the current extent and impact of fluoridation, and lessons learned from the endeavour. Deliberate addition of fluoride to community water supplies to prevent dental caries began in 1945. At present, 62 per cent of the US population who could receive fluoridated water are doing so.

Trends in the acquisition of sexually transmitted diseases among HIV-positive patients at STD clinics, Miami 1988-1992.

Background And Objectives: To assess trends in the acquisition of new sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among patients who test positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) at STD clinics.

Study Design: Cohorts of HIV-positive and HIV-negative persons were compared using computerized records from Miami STD clinics for 1988-1992. Persons were assigned to cohorts according to their first positive or first negative HIV test results.

Opportunities for targeting publicly funded human immunodeficiency virus counseling and testing.

We wished to identify opportunities for improving the yield of positive HIV test results from federally funded HIV counseling and testing programs. We reviewed client records from 1992 and 1993 for targeting opportunities at the site level based on site type (i.e.

Developing effective strategies for malaria prevention programs for pregnant African women.

The control of malaria in pregnant African women, one of several child survival strategies applied through antenatal care, has been particularly challenging. Prevention and control recommendations for typical areas of high Plasmodium falciparum transmission have promoted the use of antimalarial chemoprophylaxis to prevent placental infection. Persistently low program coverage coupled with diminishing intervention effectiveness have forced a re-evaluation of the relative importance of malaria in pregnancy.

Congenital syphilis in Maryland, 1989-1991: the effect of changing the case definition and opportunities for prevention.

Background: The reported incidence of congenital syphilis in the United States rose dramatically during the 1980s. Although lack of prenatal care has been associated with congenital syphilis, little has been published regarding missed opportunities for prenatal intervention.

Goal Of This Study: To determine whether congenital syphilis increases in Maryland between 1989 and 1991 resulted from a true increase in congenital syphilis incidence or a change in the surveillance case definition, and to describe missed opportunities for prenatal intervention.

Chlamydia trachomatis infection among Hispanic women in the California-Mexico border area, 1993: establishing screening criteria in a primary care setting.

Background: Chlamydia prevalence and transmission patterns in California-Mexico border communities are unknown, and selective screening strategies for Hispanic populations have not been evaluated.

Goal Of This Study: To determine chlamydia prevalence among Hispanic women in the California-Mexico border area and established screening criteria.

Study Design: This was a cross-sectional prevalence survey of family planning/prenatal Hispanic clients (n = 2378) in San Diego and Imperial Counties, California, and Tijuana, Mexico.

The methodologic quality of randomization as assessed from reports of trials in specialist and general medical journals.

Objective: To assess the quality of randomization from reports of trials in a sample of specialist journals, and to compare those results with a similar assessment from a sample of general medical journals.

Design: Evaluation of all 206 reports of parallel-group randomized trials published in the 1990 and 1991 volumes of four journals of obstetrics and gynecology and of 81 reports of trials published during 1987 in four general medical journals.

Results: Of the reports published in the specialist and in the general medical journals, only 32% and 48%, respectively, reported having used an adequate method to generate random numbers; only 23% and 26%, respectively, contained information showing that steps had been taken to conceal assignment until the point of treatment allocation; and merely 9% and 15%, respectively, described adequate methods of both sequence generation and allocation concealment.

Syphilis and gonorrhea in Miami: similar clustering, different trends.

During the second half of the 1980s, Miami had a syphilis epidemic while gonorrhea rates decreased. To determine whether the direction of these trends truly differed within all population subgroups or whether they resulted from aggregating groups within which trends were similar, records from four sexually transmitted disease clinics from 1986 to 1990 and census data from 1990 were used to compare race-, sex-, age-, and zip code-specific groups. Syphilis and gonorrhea clustering was similar; 50% of cases occurred in the same zip codes, representing 10% of the population.

Percutaneous injuries in dentistry: an observational study.

The authors conducted an observational study of the frequency and circumstances of percutaneous injuries among dental residents. Their findings suggest that most percutaneous injuries sustained by these dental residents occurred extraorally and were associated with denture impression procedures. Some injuries may be preventable with changes in techniques or instrument design.

The impact of a comprehensive chlamydia prevention program in Wisconsin.

An analysis using case reports, laboratory records of tests for C. trachomatis, and Hospital Discharge Summary data shows that, following implementation of a chlamydia prevention program in Wisconsin in 1985, statewide declines were observed in prevalence, incidence and complications of infection. In 1990, prevalence rates among teenage women peaked at 2,794 infections per 100,000 15-19-year-old females.

Communication about safer sex and serostatus disclosure in HIV-positive adolescents with haemophilia.

Objectives: To assess the attitudes, beliefs and feelings of adolscents and young men with severe haemophilia with respect to discussing safer sex and disclosing their human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) seropositivity to potential sex partners.

Methods: Fifty-nine males with haemophilia from throughout the US answered open-ended questions.

Results: Talking about avoidance of transmitting AIDS and disclosing one's seropositivity was beneficial, moral and wise.

Clients without health insurance at publicly funded HIV counseling and testing sites: implications for early intervention.

The characteristics of clients reporting no health insurance were compared with those reporting any health insurance at publicly funded human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) counseling and testing sites in the United States during 1992. Thirty of 65 funded health departments collect data on self-reported health insurance status. Data were dichotomized into two groups, clients reporting any health insurance versus those reporting none, and multivariate logistic models were developed to explore independent associations.

Overview of policies affecting vaccine use in child day care.

Vaccination policies for preschool-age children, including those in child day care, have undergone frequent changes within the past several years in response to the development of new vaccines (DTaP, Hib conjugate vaccines), the changing epidemiology of vaccine-preventable diseases (measles), and the establishment of new objectives for the control and elimination of vaccine-preventable diseases (Hib, hepatitis B). The acquisition and spread of vaccine-preventable diseases can be minimized in child day-care settings by vaccinating all children, establishing a continuing system by which all children remain fully vaccinated on schedule, providing educational materials to parents about the recommended schedule of routine childhood vaccines, and implementing new recommendations for vaccine use.

Evaluation of the Consensus Health Status Indicator for assessing adolescent pregnancies and births.

The authors used vital statistics and population data for DeKalb County, GA, in an evaluation of the accuracy of the Consensus Health Status Indicator for assessing adolescent pregnancies and births. The indicator used was the number of births to females 10-17 years of age, expressed as a percentage of all births in the population. The investigators found no significant changes in the proportions of births to adolescents for the period 1982-90.

The neglected global tuberculosis problem: a report of the 1992 World Congress on Tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis is the single leading cause of death from any single infectious agent. A world congress on tuberculosis was held to highlight the problem and to discuss recent scientific advances and global strategies for prevention and control. About one-third of the world population is latently infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

The benefits and risks of dental amalgam: current findings reviewed.

In response to recent concern and research findings about dental amalgam, the U.S. Public Health Service conducted a comprehensive scientific review of its benefits and risks.

Effect of changes in human ecology and behavior on patterns of sexually transmitted diseases, including human immunodeficiency virus infection.

The last 20 years have witnessed six striking changes in patterns of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs): emergence of new STD organisms and etiologies, reemergence of old STDs, shifts in the populations in which STDs are concentrated, shifts in the etiological spectra of STD syndromes, alterations in the incidence of STD complications, and increases in antimicrobial resistance. For example, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) emerged to devastate the United States with a fatal pandemic involving at least 1 million people. The incidence of syphilis rose progressively after 1956 to reach a 40-year peak by 1990.

Nationwide survey of drug-resistant tuberculosis in the United States.

Objective: To determine antituberculosis drug resistance patterns, geographic distribution, demographic characteristics, and risk factors of reported tuberculosis (TB) patients in the United States.

Design: Survey of reported TB cases in the United States. For culture-positive cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we asked health departments to provide drug susceptibility test results from initial Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates.

Risk factors for recurrent Chlamydia trachomatis infections in women.

Objective: We evaluated risk factors for recurrent Chlamydia trachomatis infections in women.

Study Design: We used a retrospective cohort design to examine predictors of recurrent infection in the 38,866 female residents of Wisconsin whose first reported C. trachomatis infection occurred between 1985 and 1989.