Subject(s)
Airway Obstruction/complications , Calcinosis/diagnosis , Cricoid Cartilage/pathology , Neck Pain/etiology , Neck/diagnostic imaging , Adolescent , Airway Obstruction/etiology , Calcinosis/complications , Calcinosis/pathology , Cough/etiology , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , Fever/etiology , Humans , Pharyngitis/etiology , RadiographyABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: When the federal levee system broke after Hurricane Katrina, 80 percent of New Orleans, approximately 134,000 homes, flooded. As repopulation and revitalization activities continue, exposure to mold and other respiratory irritants has emerged as a major health concern; however, there has been no study examining children's respiratory health and indoor mold levels in the post-Katrina environment. OBJECTIVE: The Children's Respiratory Health Study was designed as a preliminary examination of indoor air levels of mold, children's lung function, and common indices of respiratory health in a select sample of children returning to live in New Orleans immediately after Hurricane Katrina. METHODS: Children were recruited from a private primary school in the Garden District of New Orleans. Respiratory health questionnaire and spirometric data were collected on children 7 to 14 years of age, and mold air sampling was conducted at baseline and again after 2 months. CONCLUSIONS: There was an overall decrease in mold levels and respiratory symptoms over the study period, and indoor mold levels were low despite reported hurricane damage.
Subject(s)
Air Pollution, Indoor/adverse effects , Disasters , Fungi , Respiratory System/microbiology , Respiratory System/pathology , Adolescent , Air Microbiology , Air Pollution, Indoor/analysis , Child , Humans , Respiratory Function TestsABSTRACT
A 9 1/2-month-old girl was transferred to our institution for evaluation and treatment of a lung abscess. Presenting symptoms included low-grade fever, irritability, diarrhea, and tachypnea. Chest radiograph showed a dense opacity with an air-fluid level in the lower portion of the right hemithorax. When the radiograph was reviewed carefully, surgical clips from a previous Nissen fundoplication were visible within the area of consolidation. A barium study revealed evidence of a large paraesophageal hernia with an air fluid level, and no evidence of a lung abscess. The patient had a laparoscopic revision of the Nissen, which had slipped superiorly, and an esophageal hernia repair. Postoperatively, the patient did well and was discharged without any complications.
Subject(s)
Foreign Bodies/diagnostic imaging , Fundoplication/adverse effects , Hernia, Hiatal/etiology , Barium Sulfate , Contrast Media , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , Hernia, Hiatal/diagnostic imaging , Humans , Infant , Laparoscopy , Lung Abscess/diagnosis , Reoperation , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
Smoking is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Preventing and halting tobacco use are worthy strategies to improve the overall health of any population. Smoking and tobacco use begin during early adolescence, and most smokers try their first cigarette by age 12. A variety of psychosocial factors are involved in the initiation of tobacco use by adolescents. Strategies to prevent tobacco use should address these factors. Cessation efforts are hampered by nicotine addiction, which occurs in adolescents in a manner comparable to adults. Physicians and health care providers can assist adolescents in their attempts to quit tobacco use. A combination of counseling, peer and family support and, for some, nicotine replacement therapy, is the best approach to tobacco cessation. This paper reviews the findings of the major epidemiologic surveys of adolescent tobacco use and suggests strategies that health care providers can employ to reduce tobacco use among their adolescent patients.
