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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Infectious diseases

Infectious Diseases and Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) Policy Issues and Recommendations
Report details policy recommendations regarding infectious diseases, such as HIV and HCV, linked to injection drug use (IDU). Recommendations look at prevention as well as treatment. Features several important policy considerations for rural communities.
Date: 03/2018
Sponsoring organizations: HIV Medicine Association, Infectious Disease Society of America, Pediatric Infectious Disease Society
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Notes from the Field: HIV Infection Investigation in a Rural Area — West Virginia, 2017
Reports on an investigation by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources that began with 10 cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection identified in 3 counties during January-July 2017. Describes how the investigation broadened to 15 counties based on injection drug use and sexual contacts. Identifies risk reduction and treatment options available in these counties and discusses strategies undertaken to limit further transmission of HIV.
Author(s): Mary E. Evans, Sarah M. Labuda, Vicki Hogan, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 67(8), 257-258
Date: 03/2018
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Vaccine-Preventable, Hospitalizations among American Indian/Alaska Native Children Using the 2012 Kid's Inpatient Database
Explores health disparities in American Indian (AI) children related to vaccine-preventable infectious disease (VP-ID) hospitalizations. Utilizes the Kid's Inpatient Database (KID) to examine 12,732 VP-ID hospitalizations in 2012. Includes demographic breakdowns of hospitalized patients according to racial/ethnic group, age, sex, household income, geographic location, and metropolitan versus nonmetropolitan location.
Author(s): Amanda J. Nickel, Susan E. Puumala, Anupam B. Kharbanda
Citation: Vaccine, 36(7), 945-948
Date: 02/2018
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Epidemiological Study of People Living in Rural North Carolina for Novel Respiratory Viruses
Pilot study at an outpatient clinic in North Carolina examining individuals with influenza-like symptoms to identify respiratory viruses among people residing in a rural area with dense swine and poultry farming. Includes results from nasal swab and air samples as well as participant characteristics, including sex, age, animal exposure, and antibiotic and hospitalization history.
Author(s): X. Wang, B. D. Anderson, L. A. Pulscher, et al.
Citation: Zoonoses and Public Health, 65(1), e265–e269
Date: 02/2018
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Community Response Planning for Outbreaks of Hepatitis and HIV among People who Inject Drugs: A Case Study from Lenowisco Health District, A Rural Community in Virginia
Provides guidance to rural health departments when developing a comprehensive community response plan for hepatitis and HIV outbreaks among persons who inject drugs (PWIDs). Integrates key components of controlling and preventing communicable disease with emergency management strategies and community resource utilization. Offers lessons learned from the experiences of the LENOWISCO Health District located in the Appalachian region of Virginia. .
Date: 2018
Sponsoring organization: National Association of County and City Health Officials
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Addressing Hepatitis C within a Southwest Tribal Community
Presents a study on a tribal-based hepatitis C (HCV) intervention to identify and treat HCV in a rural tribal community. Highlights data by age and sex of HCV patients from 2009-2014.
Author(s): Francine C. Gachupin, Rene Harbaugh, Alex Amarillas, et al.
Citation: Ethnicity and Disease, 28(4), 549–554
Date: 2018
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Zika in Babies in US Territories
Provides an overview of the Zika infection in pregnancy and its impact on babies. Focuses on babies born in American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, Puerto Rico, the Republic of Marshall Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Identifies what health departments, healthcare providers, and parents can do.
Additional links: Video
Date: 2018
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Tuberculosis
Provides information and statistics about tuberculosis in the U.S., globally, and specifically among migrant agricultural workers. Discusses symptoms, treatment, and risk factors.
Date: 2018
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Farmworker Health
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Characteristics of Inpatient Stays Involving Hepatitis C, 2005-2014
Examines adult hospitalizations involving hepatitis C in 2014. Includes data by age group for hepatitis C inpatient stays for metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore (rural) areas.
Author(s): Quyen Ngo-Metzger, Iris Mabry-Hernandez, Kevin C. Heslin, et al.
Date: 12/2017
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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Silence Surrounding Hepatitis C Status in Risk Relationships among Rural People Who Use Drugs
Highlights a study on hepatitis C (HCV) status among rural people who use drugs by injection (PWIDs). Discusses the rates at which HCV-positive PWIDs disclosed their diagnosis to their partners, close friends, and family.
Author(s): Megan G. Hofmeister, Jennifer R. Havens, April M. Young
Citation: The Journal of Primary Prevention, 38(5), 481-494
Date: 10/2017
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