Stroke Drops to Fourth Leading Cause of Death in 2008

/PRNewswire/ -- Stroke is now the fourth leading cause of death in the United States, down from the third place ranking it has held for decades, according to preliminary 2008 death statistics released today by CDC's National Center for Health Statistics. While deaths from stroke and several other chronic diseases are down, deaths due to chronic lower respiratory disease increased in 2008.

There were 133,750 deaths from stroke in 2008. Age-adjusted death rates from stroke declined 3.8 percent between 2007 and 2008. Meantime, there were 141,075 deaths from chronic lower respiratory disease, and the death rate increased by 7.8 percent.

Some of the increase in deaths may be due to a modification made by the World Health Organization in the way deaths from chronic lower respiratory diseases are classified and coded. The National Center for Health Statistics will conduct a thorough analysis on this change and its effect on the chronic lower respiratory disease category before the final 2008 deaths data are released.

"Deaths: Preliminary Data for 2008," also finds that life expectancy at birth dropped slightly to 77.8 years from 77.9 years in 2007. Life expectancy was down by one-tenth of a year (a little over a month) for both men and women. However, black males had a record high life expectancy in 2008 of 70.2 years – up from 70 years in 2007. The life expectancy gap between the white and black populations was 4.6 years in 2008, a decrease of two-tenths of a year from 2007.

The data are based on 99 percent of death certificates reported to NCHS through the National Vital Statistics System from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories.

Other findings:

* Heart disease and cancer, the two leading causes of death, still accounted for nearly half (48 percent) of all deaths in 2008.
* In addition to stroke, mortality rates declined significantly for five of the other 15 leading causes of death: accidents/unintentional injuries (3.5 percent), homicide (3.3 percent), diabetes (3.1 percent), heart disease (2.2 percent), and cancer (1.6 percent).
* In addition to chronic lower respiratory disease, death rates increased significantly in 2008 for Alzheimer's disease (7.5 percent), influenza and pneumonia (4.9 percent), high blood pressure (4.1 percent), suicide (2.7 percent), and kidney disease (2.1 percent).
* The preliminary infant mortality rate for 2008 was 6.59 infant deaths per 1,000 live births, a 2.4 percent decline from the 2007 rate of 6.77 and an all-time record low. Birth defects were the leading cause of infant death in 2008, followed by disorders related to preterm birth and low birth weight. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) was the third leading cause of infant death in the United States.
* Overall, there were 2,473,018 deaths in the United States in 2008, according to the preliminary deaths report -- 49,306 more deaths than the 2007 total.
* The age-adjusted death rate for the U.S. population fell to 758.7 deaths per 100,000 in 2008 compared to the 2007 rate of 760.2.

------
Community News You Can Use
Click to read MORE news:
www.GeorgiaFrontPage.com
Twitter: @gafrontpage & @TheGATable @HookedonHistory
www.ArtsAcrossGeorgia.com
Twitter: @artsacrossga, @softnblue, @RimbomboAAG
www.FayetteFrontPage.com
Twitter: @FayetteFP

CSTE National Assessment Finds Critical Public Health Disease Surveillance Capacity Lacking

/PRNewswire/ -- Today, CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) released a report showing that the number of state-level epidemiologists has decreased steadily since 2004, with a marked decline of over 10% since 2006. There was also a substantial decrease in core epidemiology capacity over this same period, including epidemiology capacity for bioterrorism and emergency response. For some important subject areas such as occupational health, substance abuse, and oral health, basic epidemiology capacity in most states is described as minimal to non-existent, and many states still lack the 21st century technology capacity needed for state-of-the-art surveillance. Dr. James Hadler, the lead author of this article, concluded that "The current condition of national epidemiology is a preparedness and public health vulnerability." States indicated a substantial need for more epidemiologists in all program areas. The deterioration of state epidemiology capacity is a consequence of declines in funding for bioterrorism preparedness and emergency response as well as an effect of the economic downturn on state budgets.

CSTE's 2009 Epidemiology Capacity Assessment (ECA) is the most recent in a series of epidemiology capacity assessments that enumerate and characterize epidemiologists, measure core epidemiology capacity, and assess competency-specific training. The 2009 ECA also conducted initial assessments of surveillance system technologic capacity and substance abuse program capacity. The 2009 ECA builds on the previous ECAs of 2004 and 2006. This year's assessment indicates a substantial decline in overall epidemiology capacity across the nation.

Epidemiologists are best known for their "disease detective" work with infectious diseases that are naturally occurring or intentionally released, but they are mainly involved in everyday surveillance/monitoring and study of many diseases and conditions that affect the health of the their state's population. These activities can range from food and waterborne disease investigations to disease monitoring for environmental health conditions, chronic diseases, maternal and child health, injury, occupational and oral health and substance abuse.

"State, federal and local agencies need to work together to address the understaffed epidemiology workforce, the downward trends in capacity and the looming epidemiology workforce shortage. Public health needs to achieve a full, well-trained and competent workforce prepared with the appropriate tools and skills for the 21st century," says co-author Matthew Boulton from the University of Michigan School of Public Health, Center of Excellence in Public Health Workforce Studies. Access to the full report, 2009 Epidemiology Capacity Assessment: Findings and Recommendations, can be found at www.cste.org.

-----
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page

Global Measles Deaths Drop By 74%

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Measles deaths worldwide fell by 74% between 2000 and 2007, from an estimated 750,000 to 197,000. In addition, the Eastern Mediterranean region* which includes countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, and the Sudan has cut measles deaths by a remarkable 90% -- from an estimated 96,000 to 10,000 -- during the same period, thus achieving the United Nations goal to reduce measles deaths by 90% by 2010, three years early.

The progress was announced today by the founding partners of the Measles Initiative: the American Red Cross, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United Nations Foundation (UN Foundation), UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO). The data will be published in the 5 December edition of WHO's Weekly Epidemiological Record and CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

"This achievement is a tribute to the hard work and commitment of countries in the Eastern Mediterranean region to combat measles," said Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General. "With only two years until the 2010 target date, I urge all countries affected by measles to intensify their efforts to immunize all children against the disease."

The significant decline in measles deaths in the Eastern Mediterranean region was the result of intensified vaccination campaigns including several countries with hard-to-reach areas. In 2007, more than twice the number of children were immunized in the region through such campaigns as compared to 2006.

"There are thousands of health workers and volunteers from our Red Cross and Red Crescent family who deserve much of the credit for this success. They give their time to literally go door-to-door informing, educating and motivating mothers and caregivers about the critical need to vaccinate their children," said Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, Chairman of the Board of the American Red Cross. "This mobilization helps us to consistently reach more than 90% of the vulnerable population and save countless lives."

The African region was the largest contributor to the global decline in measles deaths, accounting for about 63% of the reduction in deaths worldwide over the eight-year period. In 2007, measles outbreaks occurred in a number of African countries due to gaps in immunization coverage, reinforcing the need to continue immunization support.

"It's absolutely wonderful that so many children are off to a healthy start in life thanks to the progress we've made in combating measles through immunization," said Dr. Julie Gerberding, CDC Director. "Other children's lives are still at risk, however, so it's time we refocus our attention on sustaining our immunization efforts in countries where rates are low."

The progress in South-East Asia has been limited -- with just a 42% decline in measles deaths. This is due to the delayed implementation of large-scale vaccination campaigns in India, which currently accounts for two thirds of global measles deaths. Political commitment in India is essential if the 2010 global goal is to be achieved.

"The progress that has been made shows what can be achieved through measles vaccination campaigns, but much more needs to be done," said Ann M. Veneman, Executive Director of UNICEF. "It is a tragedy that measles still kills more than 500 children a day when there is a safe, effective and inexpensive vaccine to prevent the disease."

The world's success in reaching the 2010 measles goal depends on ensuring that all children receive two doses of measles vaccine including one dose by their first birthday, strengthening disease surveillance systems, and providing effective treatment for measles.

"Progress also depends on addressing the considerable funding gap," said Kathy Calvin, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for the UN Foundation. "The shortfall stands at US $176 million for 2009-2010, of which US $35 million is urgently needed for 2009. With continued funding and increasing ownership and commitment of countries, we can sustain our progress and achieve our goal by 2010. We ask our supporters to stay with us and strongly encourage new supporters to join us in our effort to save lives."

-----
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page