MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report
-
MMWR Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. · May 2005
Tobacco use and cessation counseling--global health professionals survey pilot study, 10 countries, 2005.
Tobacco use is projected to cause nearly 450 million deaths worldwide during the next 50 years. Health professionals can have a critical role in reducing tobacco use; even brief and simple advice from health professionals can substantially increase smoking cessation rates. Therefore, one of the strategies to reduce the number of smoking-related deaths is to encourage the involvement of health professionals in tobacco-use prevention and cessation counseling. ⋯ The findings indicated that current cigarette smoking among these students was higher than 20% in seven of the 10 countries surveyed. Nevertheless, 87%-99% of the students surveyed believed they should have a role in counseling patients to quit smoking; only 5%-37% of these third-year students had actually received formal training in how to conduct such counseling. Schools for health professionals, public health organizations, and education officials should work together to design and implement training in smoking-cessation counseling for all health-profession students.
-
MMWR Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. · May 2005
Disparities in deaths from stroke among persons aged <75 years--United States, 2002.
Despite declines in deaths from stroke, stroke remained the third leading cause of death in the United States in 2002, and age-adjusted death rates for stroke remained higher among blacks than whites. In 1997, excess deaths from stroke occurred among persons aged <65 years in most racial/ethnic minority groups, compared with whites. A younger age distribution among Hispanics and other racial/ethnic groups compared with whites might partly explain the disproportionate burden in deaths at younger ages. ⋯ Approximately 3,400 excess stroke deaths would not have occurred among blacks in 2002 if blacks had had the same death rates for stroke as whites aged <65 years. Moreover, age-adjusted estimates of years of potential life lost (YPLL) before age 75 years from stroke were more than twice as high for blacks than for all other racial groups. Reducing premature death from stroke in these groups will require early prevention, detection, treatment, and control of risk factors for stroke in young and middle-aged adults.