Public health reports
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Public health reports · May 2016
Impact of the Hepatitis Testing and Linkage to Care (HepTLC) Initiative on Linkage to Care for Minnesota Refugees with Hepatitis B, 2012-2014.
The Hepatitis Testing and Linkage to Care (HepTLC) initiative promoted viral hepatitis B and hepatitis C screening, posttest counseling, and linkage to care at 34 U.S. sites from 2012 to 2014. Through the HepTLC initiative, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and clinic partners began conducting linkage-to-care activities with hepatitis B-positive refugees in October 2012. This intervention provided culturally appropriate support to link refugees to follow-up care for hepatitis B. ⋯ In the context of a strong screening and surveillance infrastructure, a simple intervention improved the linkage-to-care rate for HBsAg-positive refugees.
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Public health reports · May 2016
Social Media's Initial Reaction to Information and Misinformation on Ebola, August 2014: Facts and Rumors.
We analyzed misinformation about Ebola circulating on Twitter and Sina Weibo, the leading Chinese microblog platform, at the outset of the global response to the 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic to help public health agencies develop their social media communication strategies. ⋯ Misinformation about Ebola was circulated at a very low level globally in social media in either batch. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of social media posts can provide relevant information to public health agencies during emergency responses.
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Public health reports · Mar 2016
The Association Between Neighborhood Poverty and HIV Diagnoses Among Males and Females in New York City, 2010-2011.
We assessed the association of neighborhood poverty with HIV diagnosis rates for males and females in New York City. ⋯ Living in very high- vs. low-poverty urban neighborhoods was associated with increased HIV diagnosis rates. After controlling for other factors, the association between poverty and diagnosis rates was stronger among females than among males. Alleviating poverty may help decrease HIV-related disparities.
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Public health reports · Mar 2016
Comparative StudyMycobacterium Tuberculosis Infection, Immigration Status, and Diagnostic Discordance: A Comparison of Tuberculin Skin Test and QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube Test Among Immigrants to the U.S.
We used a recent source of nationally representative population data on tuberculosis (TB) infection to characterize concordance between the tuberculin skin test (TST) and the QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT-GIT) blood test for immigrants in the United States. ⋯ Our findings suggest that whether and how either of these tests should be deployed is highly context sensitive. Significant discordance in test results when used among immigrants raises the possibility of missed opportunities for harm reduction in this already at-risk population. However, we found little distinction between the tests in terms of diagnostic outcome when used in a U.S. native population, suggesting little benefit to the adoption and use of the QFT-GIT test in place of TST on the basis of test performance alone for this population.