A Lifetime of Low-Risk Behaviors Among HIV-Positive Latinas in Los Angeles

The objective is to assess the differences in lifetime and current transmission risk behaviors of HIV-positive and HIV-negative Latinas. In 2005–2006, 214 HIV-positive Latinas were recruited from systems of care and 111 HIV-negative Latina-matched controls were interviewed in Los Angeles, CA regarding lifetime and recent sexual and drug-taking risk behaviors. Multivariate OLS regression and logistic regression models were used to assess differences in lifetime and current transmission risk. There was no significant difference between the two groups with respect to lifetime exposure through injection drug use. HIV-positive Latinas reported significantly more lifetime sexual partners than HIV-negative Latinas. Rates of current sexual activity were not significantly different across the two groups. HIV-positive Latinas were less likely to report recent unprotected sex relative to HIV-negative Latinas. In Los Angeles, HIV-positive and HIV-negative Latinas were very similar with respect to transmission risk. The challenges these findings pose to prevention efforts that target Latinas and suggestions for new interventions are discussed.     

Monitoring health in Los Angeles County

The University of California at Los Angeles School of Public Health, in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, compiled data and developed a standardized format that displayed a comparison of mortality and morbidity data between Los Angeles County, the State of California, and the United States in 1960, 1970, and 1980 for 16 health topic areas. Findings noted both favorable and unfavorable health trends, as well as substantial data collection problems. In 1980, compared with the United States, the Los Angeles County rates for tuberculosis, gonorrhea, syphilis, and hepatitis B were as much as 45 to 128 percent higher, the homicide rate was more than double, and, for the population aged 65 years and over, the cirrhosis of the liver rate was more than 56 percent higher. The myocardial infarction rate was 58 percent lower in the population aged 18 to 64. Problems of inadequate data for many health indicators, lack of comparability in data, and conflicting information from different data sources were noted. These limitations with the data underscore the need to standardize data collection procedures and to extend the parameters on which information is collected. The approach represents a tool that could be used by many health departments to monitor their activities and set future goals.     

Lung cancer and air pollution in southcentral Los Angeles County.

An increased rate of lung cancer has been consistently observed from 1968-1972 among males in southcentral Los Angeles. This excess risk occurs across several social classes and occupational categories. No differential excess of oral cavity, pancreatic, laryngeal and bladder cancer was observed in the same area, lessening the possibility that regional variations in smoking habits accounted for the excess lung cancer. Air sampling has indicated an excess of certain polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in southcentral Los Angeles. There was a correlation between the geographic distribution of lung cancer cases and the general location of industries which have emitted these PAH. A case-controlled study of smoking, occupational and residential history in the southcentral area is underway.     

Trends in Air Pollution Outside Los Angeles County

Polyvinyl chloride polymers and formulations were pyrolyzed in a stream of air by gradually raising the temperature from ambient to approximately 600 C. The pyrolysis air stream was diluted with twice its volume of room air, and rats were exposed to it. Exposure to an air stream containing the pyrolyzed products of 1 to 2 gm of polyvinyl chloride polymer resulted in the death of 50% of the animals. Most deaths were due to carbon monoxide (CO), and carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) levels correlated well with the amount of plastic pyrolyzed. Little histological evidence of lung damage was evident. When oxygen (O₂) was added to the air stream to prevent deaths from CO, pulmonary edema and interstitial hemorrhage developed. The lungs of some animals exposed to high levels of pyrolysis products of vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer also showed focal edema and intra-alveolar hemorrhage. Polyvinyl chloride formulations, containing additives and inert materials, were in general less toxic per gram of sample pyrolyzed.     

Epidemiologic impact of water reuse in Los Angeles County

The importance of recycled wastewater in the pathogenesis of disease has been considered in an ecologic analysis of four geographic areas of Los Angeles County. Two of the areas received recycled wastewater via the groundwater since 1962, while two similar areas served as controls. Of 19 health outcomes included in the analyses, five exhibited statistically significant differences among four areas. In none of these five analyses, however, were the differences in accord with the biologic hypothesis that recycled water causes disease. For only one outcome, deaths due to cancer of the rectum, were differences noted in which the high recycled water area had more excess deaths than the low recycled water area, and both had more excess deaths than the control areas. This positive association was of a low order, however, and might well have been due to chance (P = 0.08). The results of this first stage of our investigation suggest that as of 1969–1971, there were no grossly apparent adverse health effects associated with the use of recycled water. Nonetheless, a cautious interpretation of the study findings is necessary due to the inherent limitations of this type of analysis.     

Lifestyle and other risk factors for thyroid cancer in Los Angeles County females

PURPOSE AND METHODS: We conducted a population-based case-control study of thyroid cancer. Cases were 292 women, aged 15-54 when diagnosed between the years 1980 and 1983 (145 diagnosed in 1980-81 and 147 diagnosed in 1982-83). Female neighborhood controls (n = 292) were matched to each case on birth-year and race. RESULTS: Among women < 35 years, thyroid disease in first-degree relatives increased thyroid cancer risk [odds ratio (OR) = 2.0, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.1-3.7]. Risk was not associated with fish consumption, although high childhood consumption of shellfish decreased thyroid cancer risk (OR = 0.2, 95% CI = 0.05-0.7 for consumption at least a few times weekly). Among papillary thyroid cancers (82% of cases), frequent adult consumption of saltwater fish decreased risk. Cancer risk was reduced with consumption of certain vegetables, wine, and tea. Other dietary variables, including milk, beer and hard liquor, and coffee were not related to thyroid cancer risk. Among the papillary sample, risk increased with longer use of multivitamins (OR = 2.9, 95% CI = 1.2-7.4 for > 10 years of use). Smoking and body mass were not associated with thyroid cancer risk. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest a role of family history of thyroid disease and certain dietary variables in the etiology of thyroid cancer in adult females.     

Differences in individual-level terrorism preparedness in Los Angeles County

BACKGROUND: Increasing individual preparedness for disasters, including large-scale terrorist attacks, is a significant concern of public health planners. As with natural disasters, individuals can help protect their health and safety by preparing for the emergency situation that may follow a terrorist event. Our study describes variations in preparedness among the population of Los Angeles County after the September 11, 2001 and subsequent anthrax attacks. METHODS: In 2004, the data were analyzed from the Los Angeles County Health Survey, a random-digit-dialed telephone survey of the non-institutionalized population in Los Angeles County fielded October 2002 through February 2003. RESULTS: Overall, 28.0% of respondents had emergency supplies, and 17.1% developed an emergency plan in the past year in response to the possibility of terrorism. Factors associated with having emergency supplies included African American (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 1.8, 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.1-3.1) and Latino (AOR=1.5, 95% CI=1.0-2.4) race/ethnicity; having a household dependent aged相似文献   

Tailoring outdoor tobacco advertising to minorities in Los Angeles County

This study provides the first longitudinal comparison of the frequency and content characteristics of tobacco ads that appeared along thoroughfares running through four types of Los Angeles ethnic neighborhoods. Tobacco ad density (tobacco billboards per mile), concentration (proportion of billboards with tobacco content), and content were compared from 1990 to 1994 across four neighborhoods at multiple time points. Compared with White neighborhood thoroughfares, African American and Hispanic neighborhoods contained greater tobacco ad density, and all minority neighborhoods contained greater tobacco ad concentration along the roadsides. Initial differences in tobacco ad frequency decreased significantly over time. However, the age, race, and gender of billboard characters remained different among the different ethnic neighborhood thoroughfares, with greater ethnicity-specific content in African American neighborhood thoroughfares than in other neighborhood thoroughfares. These data are consistent with the assertion that tobacco companies target ethnic minorities with higher rates of advertising and ethnically tailored campaigns. This may be used in order to expand the total market of minority consumers.     

Physical inactivity and overweight among Los Angeles County adults

OBJECTIVES: The present study examines sociodemographic, health status, health behavioral, and health-related self-perception correlates of physical inactivity in a large, multiethnic urban population. METHODS: A random-digit-dialed telephone survey of a representative sample of 8353 Los Angeles County adults aged >/= 18 years was conducted between September 17, 1999 and December 31, 2000. Data were analyzed to assess the prevalence and identify independent correlates of physical inactivity, defined as <10 minutes of continuous physical activity weekly ("sedentary"). RESULTS: Overall, the prevalence of sedentary adults was 41%. Lower educational attainment, female gender, advancing age, non-U.S. birthplace, poorer self-perceived health status, self-perceived depression, smoking, leisure-time television watching/computer use, and receiving a diabetes diagnosis were significantly related to sedentariness in both bivariate and multivariate analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Mental and physical health status were prominent correlates of sedentariness. Lower socioeconomic class was also associated with sedentary behavior. Further research is needed to understand the relationship between self-perceived overweight and sedentary behavior.