 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Curtis W Noonan, PhD1, Judy Henry, MS2, Robert W. Indian, MS3, Sharon Lynch, MD4, Judith Maher, MD5, Ruth Ann Marrie, MD6, John Neuberger, MBA, MPH, DrPH7, Randolph Schiffer, MD8, William R. Schmidt, MPH9, Marla Sutton7, Janine Trottier, RN10, Laurie Wagner, MS11, and Dhelia Maria Williamson, MS12. (1) Health Investigations Branch/Division of Health Studies, Agency for Toxic Substances and Diseases Registry, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, MS E-31, Atlanta, GA 30333, 404-498-0588, cnoonan@cdc.gov, (2) Texas Department of Health, Environmental Epidemiology, 1100 West 49th Street, Austin, TX 78756, (3) Division of Prevention and Risk Reduction, Ohio Department of Health, 246 N. High Street, Columbus, OH 43216-0118, (4) Department of Neurology, University of Kansas School of Medicine, 3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Kansas City, KS, KS 66160, (5) Lorain County Medical Association, 5320 Hoag Drive, Elyria, OH unknown, (6) Department: Mellen Center for MS Treatment and Research, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, 1900 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44195, (7) Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Kansas School of Medicine, 3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Mail Stop 1008, Kansas City, KS 66160, (8) Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Steeet, STOP 8103, Lubbock, TX 79430-8103, (9) unknown, 5400 Cherry St, Kansas City, MO 64110, (10) Lorain County Health Department, 9880 South Murray Ridge Road, Elyria, OH 44035, (11) Environmental Epidemiology, Texas Department of Health, 1100 West 49th Street, Austin, TX 78756, (12) Health Investigations Branch, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), 1600 Clifton Road, MS E-31, Atlanta, GA 30333
Residents of communities across the United States have expressed concern about elevated rates of neurological conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and possible associations with environmental exposures. Local, state, and federal public health agencies presently do not have the data or case-gathering methodologies to respond to these questions. There is limited information on the expected age- and sex-specific prevalence of MS, and the absence of MS registries complicates the task of enumerating cases in a community. Recently, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry collaborated with researchers from Texas, Ohio, and Missouri to respond to community concerns of MS and possible associations with hazardous waste sites. Methodologies were developed for determining population-based prevalence estimates for MS in communities near hazardous waste sites and in nearby comparison areas. Abstracted medical records from neurologists’ practices were used as the primary data source. Additional data sources included patient advocacy groups, hospital discharge records, death certificates, and general practitioners. We abstracted and reviewed more than 950 medical records of potential MS cases residing in the three study areas during the years 1998 through 2000. Preliminary results indicated MS prevalence of 43 per 100,000 in a 19-county area surrounding Lubbock, Texas; 90 per 100,000 for the communities of Independence and Sugar Creek, Missouri; and 161 per 100,000 for Lorain County, Ohio. Findings from these studies will be presented with a focus on variations in prevalence by geography, methods for cost-effective case ascertainment, and future approaches for the investigation of environmental risk factors for MS.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Environmental Health,
Presenting author's disclosure statement: