Biomedical subjects

Connie Austin

Publications and source records attributed to Connie Austin.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Two outbreaks of occupationally acquired histoplasmosis: more than workers at risk.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to determine the etiology and risk factors for acute histoplasmosis in two outbreaks in Illinois among laborers at a landfill in 2001 and at a bridge reconstruction site in 2003. DESIGN: We performed environmental investigations during both outbreaks and also performed an analytic cohort study among bridge workers. PARTICIPANTS: Workers at the landfill during May 2001 and those at the bridge site during August 2003 participated in the study. At the landfill, workers moved topsoil from an area that previously housed a barn; at the bridge, workers observed bat guano on bridge beams. EVALUATIONS/MEASUREMENTS: We defined a case by positive immunodiffusion serology, a > or = 4-fold titer rise in complement fixation between acute and convalescent sera, or positive urinary Histoplasma capsulatum (HC) antigen. Relative risks (RR) for disease among bridge workers were calculated using bivariate analysis. RESULTS: Eight of 11 landfill workers (73%) and 6 of 12 bridge workers (50%) were laboratory-confirmed histoplasmosis cases. Three bridge workers had positive urinary HC antigen. At the bridge, seeing or having contact with bats [RR = 7.0; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.1-43.0], jack-hammering (RR = 4.0; 95% CI, 1.2-13.3), and waste disposal (RR = 4.0; 95% CI, 1.2-13.3) were the most significant job-related risk factors for acquiring histoplasmosis. CONCLUSIONS: Workers performing activities that aerosolized topsoil and dust were at increased risk for acquiring histoplasmosis. Relevance to professional and clinical practice: Employees should wear personal protective equipment and use dust-suppression techniques when working in areas potentially contaminated with bird or bat droppings. Urinary HC antigen testing was important in rapidly identifying disease in the 2003 outbreak.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

The emergence of west nile virus during a large outbreak in Illinois in 2002.

In 2002, the world's largest outbreak of neuroinvasive West Nile virus (WNV) disease occurred. Illinois reported 21% of the total cases in the United States, the most among all states. The epidemiology of WNV in Illinois in 2002 was examined to determine factors associated with severe disease and death. A total of 884 cases were identified and there were 66 deaths. The overall attack rate of WNV infection was 7.1 per 100,000 population and this increased with age. The median ages of patients and patients who died were 56 and 78 years, respectively. Among patients who died, 91% were diagnosed with encephalitis and the case-fatality rate for patients with encephalitis was 18.6%. Patients more than 50 years old had a significantly higher risk of being reported with encephalitis (relative risk [RR] = 3.3, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.6-4.3%) and death (RR = 22.3, 95% CI = 5.5-90.4%). Clinicians evaluating elderly patients with WNV infection should assess patients closely for progression of disease.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Environmental and social determinants of human risk during a West Nile virus outbreak in the greater Chicago area, 2002.

BACKGROUND: The outbreak of West Nile Virus (WNV) in and around Chicago in 2002 included over 680 cases of human illness caused by the virus within this region. The notable clustering of the cases in two well-defined areas suggests the existence of specific environmental and social factors that increase the risk for WNV infection and/or illness in these locations. This investigation sought to create an empirically based model to account for these factors and to assess their importance in explaining the possible processes that may have led to this pattern. RESULTS: The cluster pattern of high incidence of cases was statistically significant. The risk factors that were found to be important included the presence of vegetation, age, income, and race of the human population, distance to a WNV positive dead bird specimen, age of housing, mosquito abatement and geological factors. The effect of different mosquito abatement efforts was particularly notable. About 53 percent of the variation of the location of WNV clusters was explained by these factors. CONCLUSION: The models developed indicate that differential mosquito abatement efforts are especially important risk factors, even when controlling for key environmental factors. Human population characteristics play a role in risk that is measurable in this ecological study but would require further research to associate causality with risk. The analysis of spatial clusters of case incidence indicates that this approach provides more insight into the focal nature of differential risk factors that tend to be associated with WNV than an analysis of all individual cases.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Measuring learning, student engagement, and program effectiveness: a strategic process.

What if there was an effective way to address the age-old question from students, "Why do we have to do this assignment?" And from faculty, "How do we know our students are really learning?" And from administrators, "How will we demonstrate to our peers, our accrediting agencies, and other program stakeholders that our programs are educationally effective?" As it undertook a curriculum redesign, faculty in a baccalaureate school of nursing developed a 9-step process for curriculum implementation. The authors discuss how they applied the 9 steps strategically, positioning the program for 2 successful accreditation self-studies and concurrently addressing, with greater confidence, some of these age-old questions.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗