Staying Well. Connected.

On Saturday, June 26, the UTHSC Libraries exhibited at San Antonio’s Diabetes Expo, organized by the American Diabetes Association. This event was free and open to the public, and over 100 attendees visited the library’s exhibit to learn about MedlinePlus and other health information resources. Pictured above is Ligia Gomez, the AHEC/Library Summer Intern for 2010.

The New York Times reported yesterday that California is experiencing an epidemic of Whooping Cough or pertussis.  Five infant deaths have been reported along with 910 confirmed cases.  Epidemics break out across the country from time to time and:

Jeff Dimond, a spokesman for the C.D.C., said that California was the only state reporting an epidemic of pertussis at this point, though reporting of the disease can be spotty or delayed.

The cause of the outbreak has not been determined yet, but all the deaths of infants were from Latino families and the New York Times talked with a Dr. Chavez:

Dr. Chavez said that lack of information and inoculations in agricultural regions in the state’s Central Valley — home to many Latino farm workers — might be a culprit in the high incidence in that community. And indeed, Fresno County — in the heart of the valley — has the highest number of cases in the state, with 72 reported in May alone.

Education and vaccinations in high risk populations are always good preemptive measures and as this story develops a little extra vigilance now may go a long way.

The CDC has released a new report that shows that while the total number of people living with HIV has risen over the years, the number of new cases per year has leveled out.   The report also states that people living with HIV are less likely to transmit the disease and says:

The decline in transmission is likely due to effective prevention efforts and the availability of improved testing and treatments for HIV.  The lower transmission rate is what has enabled HIV incidence to remain stable despite increasing prevalence.

While this is good news overall, of concern for South Texas is that while new cases have leveled out nationally, the Hispanic population continues to see a rise in HIV infections.  Here is the CDC’s summary:

• Hispanics/Latinos represent 13% of the population, but account for an estimated 17% of new infections [2].
• The rate of new HIV infection among Hispanic/Latino men is more than double that of white men [11].
• The rate of new HIV infection among Hispanic/Latina women is nearly four times that of white women [11].
• From 2005-2008, estimated HIV diagnoses increased approximately 5% among Hispanics/Latinos [6]. However, this increase is within the boundaries of normal fluctuations and may be due to uncertainties inherent in statistical estimates.
• The rate of HIV diagnoses among Hispanic/Latinos decreased, most likely reflecting the growing population of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States [6].

The 2010 Atlantic hurricane season officially began today, June 1st and ends November 30th.  To help the citizens of South Texas prepare for storms that might affect the Texas Gulf Coast, several state and county agencies launched ReadySouthTexas.gov.  The site includes a sample emergency supply kit, evacuation plans, road and highway closure information, links to local emergency management resources, and more.