Monday, November 12, 2012

York County Health Trends


Rebecca Cutler
Public Health 100

Public Health York County Trends

I received all of my information from two different doctors who work in the York County and Hampton Roads, Virginia area.  Their names were Brian McCormick, M.D. and Bobbie Sperry, M.D.

1.  Pertussis (whooping cough) was one of the trends noted to be on the rise in Virginia and in most of the United StatesVirginia has seen more than double the number of cases of whooping cough since 2007, and in 2010 there were the most reported cases in 6 years and the total just seems to keep rising.  Adults and teens are advised to be re-vaccinated since the vaccination wears off over time.  Young mothers as well as the elderly who spend time around infants should also be sure to get the vaccination since infants are too young to get it for themselves.  Pertussis is highly contagious and is characterized by severe coughing and may cause lung infections, or in severe cases, even death.
2.  Obesity is another trend that is on the rise in York County.  Adult obesity has now reached 28% in York County, which is also the rate for adult obesity in the state of Virginia, and is higher than the national benchmark of 25%. Obesity is a very dangerous problem both in Virginia and in the United States as a whole.  This is a problem that is in part created by unhealthy eating that comes from fast food and an unbalanced diet, as well as a decrease in the amount of physical activity done.  Obesity can lead to many other health problems including high blood pressure, diabetes, or even heart attack.
3.  Diabetes is a growing problem in my hometown.  It is a problem that can, in part be linked to obesity.  Diabetes is an incurable disease where the body has high blood sugar it doesn't make enough insulin, the cells don’t respond to the insulin correctly, or some mixture of the two happen.  These events can cause one of three types of diabetes.  Type I diabetes is mostly diagnosed in children and young adults and requires daily injections of insulin.  Type II diabetes typically occurs in adults because of obesity.  Gestational diabetes develops during pregnancy.
4.  A fourth, and more positive trend is that the Tuberculosis rates in York County and in the whole state of Virginia are dropping.  Over the past two years, the TB rates in Virginia have dropped over 17%, which is almost 50 fewer cases annually.  This is in part contributed to better vaccinating.  There are two TB-related conditions, because not everyone who is infected with TB gets sick.  The first is latent TB infection, where the person tests positively for TB but doesn't feel sick.  A minority of these people will get TB at some point in time of their life if not treated, so they are given a 12 week treatment.  The second type of people have TB disease and display symptoms of TB such as coughing, weakness, chest pain, or fever.
5.  A final trend in York County is that of excessive drinking continuing to rise.  Binge drinking can be considered a serious health risk, not only for those who do it but also for everyone else in the county.  It has led to an increase in arrests for driving drunk and also in motor vehicle crash death rates in the past few years in our county. This excessive drinking can also lead to the struggles with alcohol addiction.  It can also lead to other problems such as liver disease, stroke or high blood pressure.

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