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Japanese Rock Pool Mosquitoes Become Established In Minnesota, USA
Faced with a new mosquito species that could transmit disease in Minnesota, state health and mosquito control officials are urging residents to rid their property of water-holding containers. The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District (MMCD) confirmed that the Japanese rock pool mosquito (Aedes japonicus) is established in at least five southeastern Minnesota counties. This mosquito could potentially transmit LaCrosse encephalitis virus (LAC) and West Nile virus (WNV) to humans.
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East Texas Health Organization Sees Increase In HIV Cases
Officials at an East Texas health care organization, Health Horizons, which provides HIV testing and other services to people in 12 counties, "has seen more East Texans test positive for [HIV] so far this year than it did for all of 2008," the Lufkin Daily News reports. Executive Director Wilbert Brown said, "We"ve had eight people out of more than 800 test positive for HIV in the first seven months of this year. Most of those have been African-American men. Last year we had a total of six out of more than 1,000. I expect us to see two or three more positives before the year is out. The state average for testing positive is one in 100, and we"re getting close to that number." According to the article, "Brown said he attributes the increase to Health Horizon"s aggressive outreach program targeting high-risk groups and to people realizing the importance of getting tested." The Daily News article also profiles a client of Health Horizons (Cooley, 8/2)
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APhA Publishes New Print, CD-ROM Editions Of Handbook Of Pharmaceutical Excipients
The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) will publish this month the sixth edition of Handbook of Pharmaceutical Excipients and the corresponding single-user CD ROM, titled Pharmaceutical Excipients 6.
Mental Health

Study Shows Teen Contraception Use Declining, Level Of Sexual Activity Unchanged

After years of declining teenage pregnancy rates and improved teen contraception use during the 1990s and early 2000s, the trends appeared to have flattened or even reversed among some groups of teens in recent years, according to a study from Columbia University"s Mailman School of Public Health and the Guttmacher Institute, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Researchers found that from 2003 to 2007, teens" contraceptive use declined by 10%, while their level of sexual activity did not change. The decrease in contraceptive use was particularly prevalent among black teens. The figures take into account the rate of contraception use as well as the types of contraceptives used, as methods vary in effectiveness. Teen condom use leveled off and in some cases declined, according to the study. The study also reported that the teen birth rate increased by 5% from 2005 to 2007. According to the study"s authors, the findings suggest a link between declining teen contraception use and the rise in abstinence-only education during former President George W. Bush"s administration. President Obama"s fiscal year 2010 budget proposal calls for redirecting some abstinence-only funds toward increased comprehensive sex education, the Monitor reports. In addition to the effects of abstinence-only sex education, the decline in condom use also could be tied to lessening concern about sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS. A shift in the teen population to include a higher number of Hispanics -- who have the highest rates of teen pregnancy and birth -- also could contribute to the findings. Laura Lindberg, one of the study"s authors and a senior research associate at Guttmacher, said, "In the end, this story is really about the loss of momentum." She added that although the statistical changes are small, "they raise concern about what the next few years will bring in this country." Sarah Brown, director of the National Campaign To Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, noted that the proportion of births to unmarried women, particularly among women ages 20 to 24, also is on the upswing (Feldmann, Christian Science Monitor, 6/18). Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women"s Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women"s Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company. © 2009 The Advisory Board Company. All rights reserved.


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