Hurricane Katrina experience and the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression among pregnant women.
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OBJECTIVE: Little is known about the effects of disaster exposure and intensity on the development of mental disorders among pregnant women. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of exposure to Hurricane Katrina on mental health in pregnant women. DESIGN: Prospective cohort epidemiological study. SETTING: Tertiary hospitals in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, U.S.A. PARTICIPANTS: Women who were pregnant during Hurricane Katrina or became pregnant immediately after the hurricane. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. RESULTS: The frequency of PTSD was higher in women with high hurricane exposure (13.8 percent) than women without high hurricane exposure (1.3 percent), with an adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of 16.8 (95% confidence interval: 2.6-106.6) after adjustment for maternal race, age, education, smoking and alcohol use, family income, parity, and other confounders. The frequency of depression was higher in women with high hurricane exposure (32.3 percent) than women without high hurricane exposure (12.3 percent), with an aOR of 3.3 (1.6-7.1). Moreover, the risk of PTSD and depression increased with an increasing number of severe experiences of the hurricane. CONCLUSIONS: Pregnant women who had severe hurricane experiences were at a significantly increased risk for PTSD and depression. This information should be useful for screening pregnant women who are at higher risk of developing mental disorders after a disaster. (+info)
Temperatures and cyclones strongly associated with economic production in the Caribbean and Central America.
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Is Vibrio fluvialis emerging as a pathogen with epidemic potential in coastal region of eastern India following cyclone Aila?
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An isolated area with diarrhoea epidemic was explored at Pakhirala village of the Sundarbans, a coastal region of South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, eastern India. The Pakhirala village was surrounded by other villages affected by a similar epidemic. The affected villages experienced this epidemic following the cyclone Aila, which had hit the coastal region of the Sundarbans in eastern India. In Pakhirala, the situation was the worst. Within a span of six weeks (5 June-20 July 2009), 3,529 (91.2%) of 3,871 residents were affected by watery diarrhoea. Of all the cases (n = 3,529), 918 (26%) were affected by moderate to severe diarrhoea. In other villages, 28,550 (70%) of the 40,786 people were affected; of them, 3,997 (14%) had moderate to severe watery diarrhoea. The attack rate and the severity of the cases were significantly higher in Pakhirala village compared to other affected villages. The laboratory results revealed that Vibrio fluvialis was the predominant pathogen in Pakhirala village (5 of 6 laboratory-confirmed organisms) whereas Vibrio cholerae O1 Ogawa was the predominant pathogen in other villages of Gosaba block (7 of 9 bacteriologically-confirmed organisms). This result indicates that V fluvialis behaves more aggressively than V cholerae O1 in an epidemic situation with a higher attack rate and a different clinical picture. An in-depth study is required to explore its pathogenicity in detail, geographical distribution, and possible control measures, including development of specific vaccine preparation and determination of its efficacy. (+info)
Trends in serious emotional disturbance among youths exposed to Hurricane Katrina.
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