American journal of public health
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We examined the extent of nonprescribed hormone use and self-performed surgeries among transgender or transsexual (trans) people in Ontario, Canada. ⋯ Past negative experiences with providers, along with limited financial resources and a lack of access to transition-related services, may contribute to nonprescribed hormone use and self-performed surgeries. Promoting training initiatives for health care providers and jurisdictional support for more accessible services may help to address trans people's specific needs.
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Historical Article
Only your calamity: the beginnings of activism by and for people with AIDS.
The invention of AIDS activism came soon after the AIDS epidemic emerged in gay communities in the United States in the early 1980s. AIDS activism by and for people with AIDS, distinct from gay activism responding to the threat of AIDS on the behalf of the whole community, started as a way of resisting the phenomenon of social death. ⋯ The ideas and language of these first people with AIDS influenced later AIDS activism movements. They also help to illustrate the importance of considering an epidemic from the point of view of people with the disease.
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We characterized smokers who are likely to use electronic or "e-"cigarettes to quit smoking. ⋯ Smokers who try e-cigarettes to quit smoking appear to be serious about wanting to quit. Despite lack of evidence regarding efficacy, smokers treat e-cigarettes as valid alternatives to FDA-approved cessation aids. Research is needed to test the safety and efficacy of e-cigarettes as cessation aids.
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Addiction represents one of the greatest public health problems facing the United States. Advances in addiction research have focused on the neurobiology of this disease. ⋯ These advances have fostered interdisciplinary collaborations focusing on the intersection of environment and behavior in addiction research. Although issues of privacy protection for study participants remain, these advances could potentially improve our understanding of initiation of drug use and relapse and help develop innovative technology-based interventions to improve treatment and continuing care services.