Cocaine: a catalyst for human immunodeficiency virus-associated dementia.
Abstract: Injection drug use has been recognized as a major risk factor for AIDS from the outset of the epidemic. Cocaine, one of the most widely abused drugs in the United States can both impair the functions of macrophages & [CD4.sup.+] lymphocytes and also activate HIV-1 expression in these...

Natural vertical transmission of dengue viruses by Aedes aegypti in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
Background & objectives: Dengue viruses are spread and maintained in an Aedes aegypti-human-Ae. aegypti cycle in urban areas of the tropics. Dengue viruses are also maintained in nature by vertical transmission by Ae. aegypti. A study was undertaken in Chennai, a known endemic city in south India, to comprehend...

Influenza and its global public health significance.
Influenza and its global public health significance, T. M. Mathew & T. Mathew, editors (Thejma Publishers, West Orange, NJ, USA) 2006. 203 pages. Price: $ 33.99 ISBN: 0-9727597-5-1 This book published in 2006 is aimed for the public, and government authorities dealing with the influenza epidemic, researchers,...

NACO must clean up phony NGOs in India.
Sir, Money spent on HIV/AIDS prevention is essential; money wasted in the name of such prevention is a deadly sham: The World Bank lashed out recently at nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in India that practice financial deceit in the name of bettering the health of a nation which...

Changing epidemiology of hepatitis A infection.
Viral hepatitis continues to be a major public health problem in India. Since the first officially reported epidemic of viral hepatitis in 1955 at Delhi (1), many outbreaks of hepatitis have occurred in different parts of the country (1-3). In India, hepatitis A virus (HAV) is still a major...

Sexual networking and HIV on a Malawian island.
Sexual transmission accounts for most HIV infection in sub-Saharan Africa but there is limited knowledge about the structure and characteristics of sexual networks among the general population. This study combines complete population data on the networks of sexual relationships of roughly 1,000 individuals aged 18-35 living in seven of...

Reproductive health education and services needs of internally displaced persons and refugees following disaster.
ABSTRACT Background: Following the occurrence of natural or manmade disaster, relief worker priorities include providing water, food, shelter, and immunizations for displaced persons. Like these essential initiatives, reproductive health education and services must also be incorporated into recovery efforts. Purpose: This study examined reproductive health care indicators,...

The "National Nurse" initiative.
Recently, the IPNRC endorsed the "Office of the National Nurse" initiative of the National Nursing Network Organization. We received the following information from their President, Teri Mills, RN, MS, ANP, CNE. Thank you for the International Parish Nurse Resource Center's endorsement of the Office of the National...

India hotspot for new infectious diseases: Report.
NEW DELHI: India is a hotspot for emerging infectious diseases (EIDs), a study by an international team of scientists which recently published its findings in the journal Nature has warned. Of special concern are zoonoses (diseases that travel from animals to humans) such as bird flu, incidences...

For better health, let's stick to the basics.
Byline: Gireesh Chandra Prasad Given the state of affairs, the Economic Survey's recommendations on healthcare might sound like truisms. But then, the truth does need to be oft-repeated. Not surprisingly, the Survey says that the central and state governments should make health insurance affordable to people and...