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The use of restraints in motor vehicles is less common in minority and low-income populations than in the general population. A preliminary survey of Hispanic preschool-aged children in west Dallas, Tex, conducted in 1997 showed much lower child restraint use (19% of those surveyed) than among preschool children of all races in the rest of the city (62%). Because there are few reports of successful programs to increase child restraint use among Hispanics, we undertook to implement and evaluate such a program. The program was conducted by bilingual staff and was tailored for this community. It was successful in increasing both child restraint use and driver seat belt use.

Deaths and injuries from house fires still occur among the elderly, minorities, the poor, and those without a functioning smoke detector. Fires that begin in bedrooms or those caused by heating equipment, smoking, or children playing with fire are the most deadly.

The rate of fire-related injuries dropped significantly in a section of Oklahoma City after volunteers gave free smoke detectors to residents of an inner city area. This 24-square-mile area in the center of the city accounted for 45% of fire-related injuries even though only 16% of the population lived there. A survey revealed that 11,881 homes in the area did not have a smoke detector. A total of 10,100 smoke detectors were distributed to these homes and in the fours years that followed, the rate of fire-related injuries in the area fell 80%.

In recent years, the state with the most cases of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF) has been Oklahoma. But when patients have been tested for antibodies to Rickettsia ricketsii, the tick-borne parasite that causes RMSF, four out of five persons have tested negative for exposure to it. This has suggested that other pathogens, which may also be transmitted by tick bites, are causing illnesses similar to RMSF. One pathogen that has been implicated is Ehrlichia canis, which causes an infectious disease in dogs. Since 1986, cases of human infection with E. canis have been reported from 11 states. This study involved 144 Oklahoma residents who were tested for RMSF and found not to have it; they were subsequently tested for antibodies to E. canis. Of the 144 persons screened, 16 (11 percent) had a significant increase in antibodies to E. canis, which was taken as evidence of infection with the organism. Symptoms present in virtually all patients were fever, headache and fatigue, and many patients reported loss of appetite, nausea and rash. The researchers also compared the group that tested positive for E. canis infection with the group that did not show this infection, and the former had higher rates of both tick exposure and reduced white blood cell counts. Most persons with E. canis infection lived in small towns of under 10,000 people, and 69 percent were men. It appears likely that E. canis or a similar pathogen causes this illness in humans and that the organism is transmitted by tick bites. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Transmission of hepatitis A has been described in many settings, although few outbreaks have been reported among illicit drug users. We report six unrelated outbreaks of hepatitis A among users of marijuana and intravenously administered methamphetamine. Although the exact mode of transmission could not be etermined, practices associated with illicit drug use may have facilitated transmission of hepatitis A. These outbreaks and other recent information indicate that illicit drug users may be at increased risk of acquiring hepatitis A infection., Transmission of hepatitis A has been described in many settings, although few outbreaks have been reported among illicit drug users. The authors report six unrelated outbreaks of hepatitis A among users of marijuana and intravenously administered methamphetamine. Although the exact mode of transmission could not be determined, practices associated with illicit drug use may have facilitated transmission of hepatitis A. These outbreaks and other recent information indicate that illicit drug users may be at increased risk of acquiring hepatitis A infection.

Surveillance for Injuries: Cluster of Finger Amputations from Snowblowers Synopsis In an investigation of the health effects of a Christmas eve snowstorm in 1982, a review of emergency room records […]

Relatively penicillin-resistant pneumococci havecaused 10%of invasivepneumococcal disease in central Oklahoma during the last decade, but almost no high-level penicillin or other antibiotic resistance has been described. This study evaluated antibiotic susceptibility and serotype distribution in invasive pneumococcal disease in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area (1990 population 848,000). A total of 144 cases of invasive infection was collected in 1 year (17 with meningitis, 120 with other bacteremic infections, and 7 with other invasive infections), for a rate of 16.9/100,000 (95% confidence interval [CI], 14.0–19.5). For the population aged ⩾60, invasive pneumococcal disease rates were higher among nursing home residents (352/100,000) than among nonresidents (25.6/100,000; relative risk, 13.7; 95% CI, 7.7–24.7). Antibiotic-resistant organisms caused 19.4% of the cases: relative penicillin resistance, 7.6%; high-level penicillin resistance, 1.4% (2 cases), and 11% resistance to erythromycin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, or both, with 5% Sharing both resistances plus a MIC of penicillin of 0.06 µg/mL. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

During 1984 we conducted a population-based survey of culture-confirmed invasive disease due to Streptococcus pneumoniae among persons who lived in the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, metropolitan area (population, 846,000) through the 20 clinical laboratories in the area. There were 139 residents identified with invasive pneumococcal disease (11 with meningitis and 128 with other bacteremic infections), for an infection rate of 16.4 per 100,000 population (meningitis, 1.3 cases per 100,000; other bacteremias, 15.1 cases per 100,000). Cases peaked in January-May and December(75% of cases). Rates were highest among infants <12 months old (97 cases per 100,000) and persons ⩾80 years old (87 cases per 100,000. Seventeen (12.2%) of the pneumococcal isolates were relatively penicillin resistant. These isolates were most prevalent among elderly persons ⩾70 years old (six [17.6%] of 34)and young children 0–4 yearsold (7 [15.9%] of 44) compared with persons 5–69 years old (four [6.6%] of 61). [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]