Press Releases
Year
Fox with Rabies identified in Champaign County, September 2005
MEMORANDUM
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TO: |
Local Health Departments, Regional Offices of Illinois Department of Public Health, other agencies |
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FROM: |
Connie Austin, D.V.M., M.P.H., Ph.D. |
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DATE: |
September 16, 2005 |
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SUBJECT: |
Fox with Rabies identified in Champaign County, September 2005 |
On September 15, 2005, the Illinois Department of Public Health laboratory in Springfield reported that a fox from Champaign County tested positive for rabies. The fox was collected by Champaign County Animal Control. Champaign-Urbana Public Health District has reported that the fox was found wandering in broad daylight in a Champaign shopping center. The fox was staggering and aggressive as people approached and died shortly after capture.
This fox is the first terrestrial mammal (non-bat) testing positive for rabies in Champaign County since 1984 when a skunk tested positive. The last time a fox tested positive for rabies in the state was in 1989 in a fox from Kankakee County. Further testing to identify the rabies variant that affected the fox will be performed by the IDPH laboratory early next week. In addition, specimens from the fox brain will be sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for confirmation and further rabies variant typing.
Veterinarians in this area of the state in particular should consider the diagnosis of rabies in animals with consistent symptoms and arrange for testing as needed. They should also encourage rabies vaccination of dogs, cats and ferrets and consider vaccination of valuable livestock and horses. If veterinarians in this area hear reports of wild animals, such as foxes or skunks, acting abnormally they should report this to their local animal control agencies. This is also a good opportunity for veterinarians to review the rabies pre-exposure vaccination status of the staff in their clinic. Rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for those with appropriate pre-exposure rabies vaccination is far simpler than rabies PEP for those who have not previously received rabies vaccination.
In Illinois from January 1 through September 15, 2005, 40 animals have tested positive for rabies. The animals testing positive include 32 bats, 6 skunks, one cow and one red fox. The 6 rabid skunks and cow are from a three county area in north central Illinois (LaSalle, DeKalb and Lee Counties).
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Public Health Study Finds Dangerous Pollution Levels in Restaurants and Bars That Permit Smoking
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 9, 2005
Contact
Nikki Hillier, Health Educator Community Health Surveillance, Planning and Education
217-531-2914
Diana Yates, Communications Coordinator
217-531-4275
Public Health Study Finds Dangerous Pollution Levels in Restaurants and Bars That Permit Smoking
Two or More Smokers Can Produce Levels of Particulate Matter in the Air That Are Significantly Higher Than Federal Safety Standards
Restaurant and bar workers and patrons of local establishments that permit cigarette smoking may be exposed to dangerously high levels of particulate matter from ambient tobacco smoke, according to data released today by the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District.
Public Health staff measured the concentration of particles the air smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5) in thirteen local taverns, bar and grills, and bars. Particles of this size are released in the air in significant amounts from burning cigarettes and are easily inhaled deeply into the lungs.
In the six local smoking-permitted establishments sampled where more than 1 person was smoking, particulate matter averaged 310 micrograms per cubic meter of air when smoking was present. The maximum number of smokers recorded during any observations was eight.
The EPA has set limits of 15 micrograms per cubic meter as the maximum average annual level of PM2.5 exposure and 65 micrograms per cubic meter as the maximum safe level of exposure over a 24 hour period [US Environmental Protection Agency. National ambient air quality standards for particulate matter; final rule. Federal Register 1997; 62(138):38651-38701].
Not surprisingly, smaller establishments with a higher density of smokers yield extremely high levels of particulate matter exposure. In such establishments, Public Health staff recorded PM2.5 rates over 1,000 micrograms per cubic meter, far in excess of EPA recommended safe maximums.
In addition to the above findings, Public Health notes that air quality in smoking permitted establishments remains poor even when few if any smokers are present. Particulate matter levels averaged 128 (more than twice the standard) for such establishments even when only one or no smokers were smoking.
Sitting outdoors may bring exposure down to safe levels (average for outdoor areas was 51), but PM2.5 rates over 200 were recorded in outdoor areas where smokers were present. Consistently safe levels of particulate matter well below the EPA maximums are only found in smoke-free public places according to the results of the study.
“These data show that the quality of the air we breathe in public places is seriously compromised,” said Kerisa Fish, a health educator at the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District. “Workers in any smoking-permitted establishment should be very concerned about the consequences for their health.”
“This also reinforces the need for a comprehensive approach to a smoke-free Champaign and Urbana by requiring public places and workplaces to be smoke-free,” she said.
Other cities, such as Bloomington, Indiana have experienced up to an 84% reduction in particulate matter pollution as a result of going smoke-free.
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Public Health Hosts Conference on Methamphetamines
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 9, 2005
Contact
Julie Pryde, Director Division of HIV/STD/TB Prevention & Management
217-239-7827
Diana Yates, Communications Coordinator
217-531-4275
Public Health Hosts Conference on Methamphetamines
“Harm Reduction in the Heartland” to Offer Guidance on Interventions to Reduce the Public Health Cost of Crystal Meth Use
Urbana, IL – Public Health will host a conference on methamphetamine use, with a special emphasis on interventions that can reduce the health risks associated with this drug.
“Harm Reduction in the Heartland,” an all-day conference to be held at the Urbana Civic Center on September 16, will outline the physical and psychological effects of crystal methamphetamine use; its prevalence in the gay community; methods to reduce the risk of HIV infection in meth users; and the substance abuse treatment needs of methamphetamine abusers.
According to the National Drug Intelligence Center, crystal methamphetamine use can cause rapid heart rate, increased blood pressure and damage to the small blood vessels in the brain which can lead to stroke. Chronic use of the drug can result in inflammation of the heart lining. Overdoses can cause hyperthermia (elevated body temperature), convulsions and death.
Those who use crystal methamphetamine may have episodes of violent behavior, paranoia, anxiety, confusion, and insomnia. The drug can produce psychotic symptoms that persist for months or years after an individual has stopped using the drug.
Crystal methamphetamine users who inject the drug expose themselves to additional risks, including contracting HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), hepatitis B and C, and other blood-borne viruses. Chronic injectors also risk scarred or collapsed veins, infections of the heart lining and valves, abscesses, pneumonia, tuberculosis and liver or kidney disease.
For more information, please call Candi Crause at 217-239-7827. Or visit the Public Health website at www.cuphd.org.
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