Search

Background: Hypertension is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States and disproportionately affects African-Americans. A cornerstone to treatment is nonpharmacologic lifestyle modifications. Despite such recommendations, many patients fail to exercise., Methods: An anonymous survey (n = 285) of hypertensive patients cared for at 2 offices within the Ohio State University Primary Care Practice-Based Research Network. Survey questions included demographics, recommendations for diet, and exercise lifestyle modification for reducing blood pressure. Questions were phrased as multiple choice or based on Prochaska and DiClemente's readiness to change model., Results: Of the 244 respondents, 57% were women and 43% were African-American. The income of African-Americans was significantly lower than that of whites. Exercise and increased fruit/vegetable consumption were the preferred lifestyle modifications and did not differ by race. Race and exercise were associated; a majority of whites were engaged in exercise whereas this was not so for African Americans., Conclusions: Although exercise as a preferred lifestyle modification habit does not differ by race, implementation of such a behavior does. This may be related to differing income levels. When counseling patients, physicians must be prepared to ask what may hinder the adoption of such behavior and be prepared to offer possible solutions to overcoming such factors.

Purpose: To quantify the degree of association between juvenile myopia and parental myopia, near work, and school achievement., Methods: Refractive error, parental refractive status, current level of near activities (assumed working distance-weighted hours per week spent studying, reading for pleasure, watching television, playing video games or working on the computer), hours per week spent playing sports, and level of school achievement (scores on the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills [ITBS]) were assessed in 366 eighth grade children who participated in the Orinda Longitudinal Study of Myopia in 1991 to 1996., Results: Children with myopia were more likely to have parents with myopia; to spend significantly more time studying, more time reading, and less time playing sports; and to score higher on the ITBS Reading and Total Language subtests than emmetropic children (chi(2) and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests; P < 0.024). Multivariate logistic regression models showed no substantial confounding effects between parental myopia, near work, sports activity, and school achievement, suggesting that each factor has an independent association with myopia. The multivariate odds ratio (95% confidence interval) for two compared with no parents with myopia was 6.40 (2.17-18.87) and was 1.020 (1.008-1.032) for each diopter-hour per week of near work. Interactions between parental myopia and near work were not significant (P = 0.67), indicating no increase in the risk associated with near work with an increasing number of parents with myopia., Conclusions: Heredity was the most important factor associated with juvenile myopia, with smaller independent contributions from more near work, higher school achievement, and less time in sports activity. There was no evidence that children inherit a myopigenic environment or a susceptibility to the effects of near work from their parents.

In response to congressional concerns, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) initiated a multistate agricultural surveillance effort in 1990. The Farm Family Health and Hazard Surveillance (FFHHS) program involved separate population-based surveillance efforts by six state agencies or universities which gathered health and hazard data on farm operators and farm families. The results of the Ohio program are presented as an example of the data collection capabilities developed during the course of this project, which include the application of these data in documenting the prevalence of specific agricultural occupational hazards as well as the current attitudes of agricultural operators toward control and elimination of safety and health hazards. Specifically, three operationally defined areas of hazard audit (Structures, Landscape, and Mobile Equipment) are examined for the prevalence of such safety hazards as potential electrical shock, slippery or badly maintained walkways, inadequate chemical and fuel storage, and missing farm equipment moving-part guards. Questionnaire survey response examples are presented as an indication of farm operator attitudes toward safety and health training, on-site professional service access, and use of personal protective equipment. Current plans for data use and distribution, and the potential applications of the data as an occupational safety and health tool are also discussed.

The agricultural industry has consistently been ranked among the most hazardous in the U.S. To date, few analytic studies of occupational injury among farm operators and workers have been conducted. A case control study was undertaken to investigate risk factors for agricultural work-related injury among Ohio farm operators. Cases were selected from among 1,793 respondents to a questionnaire administered during the first phase of the NIOSH-sponsored Ohio Farm Family Health and Hazard Study (OFFHHS). Analysis consisted of description of the injury experience of the sample as a whole, followed by logistic estimation of prevalence odds ratios (pORs) measuring the effect of potential risk factors on injury risk. The case series consisted of 90 white male principal operators (POs) injured doing farm work in the 12 months prior to questionnaire completion. Controls consisted of 1,475 white male POs who reported no injuries. The overall rate of injury was 5 per 100 person-years. The most notable result is the relationship between self-reported neurotoxic symptoms and injury, suggesting those with more reported symptoms were at greater risk of injury. The crude OR, when compared to the reference score of < or = 27, increased from 1.74 (95% CI = 0.60-5.09) in the 28-30 category, to 1.89 (95% CI = 0.71-5.03) in the 31-35 category, to 2.96 (95% CI = 1.10-7.96) in the highest category of test score. The P value for trend was 0.0218. These associations largely persisted after controlling for potential confounders with multiple logistic regression. Risk was inversely related to age. The results show marked increases in risk of injury associated with farmers younger than 30 and increased severity of self-reported neurological symptoms, controlling for potential confounding.