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Introduction Nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy ( NAION), a rare visual disorder, has been reported in men using phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors ( PDE5i) for erectile dysfunction. Aim We examined whether intermittent use of PDE5i is associated with acute NAION onset within approximately five half-lives following drug ingestion. Methods One hundred two ophthalmology centers in the United States and Europe identified potential cases of NAION. An expert adjudication committee conducted a blind review of the records of those with recent PDE5i use to classify cases as Definite, Possible, or not NAION. Subjects provided information on PDEi use via telephone interview. Each NAION case's PDE5i exposure immediately prior to onset was compared against his recent patterns of use in an observational case-crossover design. A sample size of 40 cases with intermittent PDE5i exposure in the 30 days prior to NAION onset was needed to detect an odds ratio ( OR) of 3.0 with 80% power. Main Outcome Measures The daily relative risk for acute NAION on days within five half-lives of PDE5i use vs. other days was estimated via an OR obtained from conditional logistic regression. Results Among 43 Definite NAION cases with PDE5i exposure in the prior 30 days, the OR was 2.15 (95% confidence interval [ CI]: 1.06, 4.34). When 21 Possible NAION cases were included (n = 64), the OR was 2.36 (95% CI: 1.33, 4.19). Conclusions We found an approximately twofold increased risk of acute NAION within five half-lives of PDE5i use compared with use in a more prior time period. Bias from inaccurate recall of exposure was unlikely to have substantially affected the results. Based on our results, we estimate that weekly use of PDE5i adds three NAION cases per 100,000 men 50 years and older annually. Campbell UB, Walker AM, Gaffney M, Petronis KR, Creanga D, Quinn S, Klein BEK, Laties AM, Lewis M, Sharlip ID, Kolitsopoulos F, Klee BJ, Mo J, and Reynolds RF. Acute nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy and exposure to phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors. J Sex Med 2015;12:139-151. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The areas of overlap of confidence intervals from several studies can be used to create summary confidence regions. These summary regions lend themselves to graphical display, have readily derivable statistical properties, and can carry information about the influence both of available studies and of hypothetical future investigations. The case of a region covered by at least N-1 out of N confidence intervals is presented in some detail. (Am J Public Health 1988; 78:961-966.) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DMFT scores, total sugar intakes and snack habits were determined in 1918 South African Black pupils (923 rural, 995 urban) and 724 White pupils (English and Afrikaans speaking) aged 16-18 years inclusive. Mean DMFT scores of school groups of Black pupils (both sexes) ranged from 0.9 and 2.0 in rural areas, to 4.2-6.7 in urban areas (where data were far higher than such obtained 7 years ago), and were 9.2 and 10.2 for White pupils. Corresponding mean daily sugar intakes were - rural Blacks, 69 g and 97 g, urban Blacks 118-141 g, respectively (all slightly higher than previously); and Whites 102 g and 123 g. Mean DMFT scores of girls were higher than those of boys; yet while mean sugar intakes of Black girls and boys were somewhat similar, White girls' intakes were much lower than those of White boys. In the ethnic-sex groups studied, mean DMFT scores for pupils in upper, compared with lower, third of sugar intake, were higher in nine of the 14 sub-groups. Mean DMFT scores in upper, compared with lower, third of exposure to snack practices were higher in 11 of the 14 groups. However, most of the differences were slight. In further research, more intensive enquiries should be pursued on roles of ethnic and familial factors, as well as on roles of inter-acting dietary components additional to sugar and sugar-containing foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health guidance (e.g., regarding the use of non-medical masks) changed over time. Although many revisions were a result of gains in scientific understanding, we nonetheless hypothesized that making changes in guidance salient would negatively affect evaluations of experts and health-protective intentions. In Study 1 (N = 300), we demonstrate that describing COVID-19 guidance in terms of inconsistency (versus consistency) leads people to perceive scientists and public health authorities less favorably (e.g., as less expert). For participants in Canada (n = 190), though not the U.S. (n = 110), making guidance change salient also reduced intentions to download a contact tracing app. In Study 2 (N = 1399), we show that a brief forewarning intervention mitigates detrimental effects of changes in guidance. In the absence of forewarning, emphasizing inconsistency harmed judgments of public health authorities and reduced health-protective intentions, but forewarning eliminated this effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the condition of public health in various countries. In the United States there is now 99% survival of infants, with life expectancy of 70-00 years and more, a far cry from the figure of 50 years in 1900. Funds for health have reached a high of 16% in the United States. The chief "killers", coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke, have had their mortality rates almost halved, yet CHD incidence rate has not changed. Total mortality rate from cancer is stationary, or falling only slightly. The prevalence of obesity in women, and of hypertension and diabetes, already exceeds that in the white population. In most countries there is a tremendous health burden from infections, not only from malaria, but also from tuberculosis, and, more recently, from HIV infection. Rates of HIV infection in South Africa are the highest in the world; in parts, nearly 50% of antenatal African women are infected. In Spain, although mean serum cholesterol is rising, CHD mortality is falling. In Japan, although some risk factors are rising, inexplicably, mortality rates for breast and colon cancers are falling.