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Interregional migration in the U.S.S.R., 1981-1985 and 1971-1975.

"The publication in 1987 of a Soviet compendium of population statistics has made possible the calculation of net migration balances for the U.S.S.R.'s 20 large economic planning regions.... This paper compares the results for 1981-1985 and 1971-1975 and finds that Siberia has changed from a net loser to a net gainer of migrants, that the shift of population to the southern regions has been reversed, and that the traditional rural outflow from central-eastern European Russia has diminished. Nevertheless, the acclimatization of newcomers in the eastern regions, the stabilization of rural dwellers in the central regions, and the mobility of rural residents in Central Asia and the Transcaucasus all remain insufficient to overcome regional imbalances in labour." (SUMMARY IN FRE)

Demography↗

Fertility determinants in the oil region of Mexico.

This study analyzes fertility determinants in the oil region of Mexico, consisting of the states of Veracruz, Tabasco, and Campeche. Data are from the 1980 Mexican census and the unit of analysis is the municipio. The regression models, in which the dependent variables of children ever born and child-woman ratio are examined, reveal religious variables to be most significant, with greater fertility for non-Catholics and persons with no religion than for Catholics. Also of great importance are economic variables. Literacy and urbanization, both "classical" Mexican fertility variables, reduce fertility. There are major differences among three urban/rural and three indigenous language subsamples. Results are discussed vis-a-vis demographic theories and prior research.

Adolescent↗

HIV infection and asymptomatic sexually transmitted infections in a rural South African community.

The objective was to determine the prevalence of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in a rural community. A population-based survey of adults in 110 homesteads was conducted in 1995. A questionnaire on demographics, sexual practices and history of STDs was administered. Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis infections were detected using ligase chain reaction (LCR) assay of urine. The seroprevalence of syphilis rapid plasma reagin (RPR) and Treponema pallidum haemagglutination assay (TPHA) and HIV infection (ELISA) was determined. Among 259 subjects the prevalence of HIV was 10.5%, N. gonorrhoeae 4.5%, C. trachomatis 6.1% and active syphilis 8.8%. All infections were asymptomatic. Forty per cent of sexually active men had more than one concurrent sexual partner. Only 14% of subjects had ever used condoms. The STI epidemic is being promoted by high levels of asymptomatic infections, high partner concurrency and low condom use.

Adult↗

The spatial distribution of health resources within countries and communities: examples from India and Zambia.

"Between one country and another, one province and another and even one locality and another there will always exist a certain inequality in the conditions of life, which it will be possible to reduce to a minimum but never entirely remove", Friedrich Engels, 1875, Quoted from D. M. Smith's Where the Grass is Greener; Geographical Perspectives on Inequality. London, 1979. And it is true that there are wide disparities in the availability of welfare facilities including health at international, national, regional and inter-regional levels. At the same time such disparities are increasing over time. In terms of spatial distribution, not only the developing world but even developed countries such as the U.S.A. and the United Kingdom, face problems resulting from wide imbalances in the provision of welfare facilities. In this paper, an attempt has been made to study inequalities in the distribution of health facilities in India and Zambia.

Delivery of Health Care↗

Geographical determinants and environmental implications of livestock production intensification in Asia.

Under growing and urbanizing demand, livestock production is rapidly evolving in South, East and South-east Asia, with both an increase of production and a shift to intensive production systems. These changes infer impacts on the environment, on public health and on rural development. Environmental impacts are mainly associated with a mismanagement of animal excreta, leading to pollution of surface water, ground water and soils by nutrients, organic matter, and heavy metals. In the framework of the Livestock Environment and Development Initiative, this research aims at assessing, on a regional scale, the impacts of livestock production on nutrient fluxes. Phosphate (P(2)O(5)) mass balances were chosen as an indicator and were calculated on the basis of spatially modelled livestock densities, estimated excretion values and crop uptake. The results show a strong West--East gradient regarding the distribution of monogastrics, with clear concentration in densely populated areas and around urban centres. P(2)O(5) overloads are estimated on 23.6% of the study area's agricultural land, mainly located in eastern China, the Ganges basin and around urban centres such as Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City and Manila. On average, livestock manure is estimated to account for 39.4% of the agricultural P(2)O(5) supply (the remaining share being supplied by chemical fertilisers). Livestock is the dominant agricultural source of P(2)O(5) around urban centres and in livestock specialised areas (southern and north-eastern China), while chemical fertilisers are dominant in crop (rice) intensive areas.

Agriculture↗

Lichen distribution and bioindicator tobacco plants give discordant response: a case study from Italy.

Epiphytic lichen biodiversity (LB) distribution was evaluated in a 1000 km2 area in Tuscany (Central Italy). In the same area, a survey was performed to monitor tropospheric ozone (O3) phytotoxic effects using tobacco plants (Nicotiana tabacum) cv. Bel-W3 (O3 supersensitive) and cv. Bel-B (O3 resistant) as bioindicators. The LB proved to be negatively correlated with ambient levels of nitrogen oxides, particulate and carbon monoxide, but not with benzene. LB spatial distribution followed a peculiar trend, with highest values in areas with low population density. Data from an O3 analyser set in evidence a typical circadian profile, confirming the photochemical nature of this pollutant. Quite high nocturnal values along the coast were related to the presence of surrounding mountains which constrained the back-and-forth flow of the air in sea breezes. Long- and short-term phytotoxicity critical levels for O3 were systematically trespassed. Bel-W3 tobacco was always affected in every site involved in the study; average O3 injury distribution was greater in rural areas; tobacco response was positively correlated to several O3 descriptors with second-order functions. Correlation analysis failed to demonstrate any association between lichen and tobacco data, due to the fact that LB values were higher in inland zones, far from the main urban and industrial areas, where instead damage to tobacco plants was generally lower. It is concluded that the lichen biodiversity is not suitable for monitoring O3 levels, at least in the study area.

Air Pollutants↗

Knowledge about sexually transmitted diseases in rural and periurban communities of the Asaro Valley of Eastern Highlands Province: the health education component of an STD study.

Community health education played a major role in a study of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and other reproductive tract infections which we conducted in rural and periurban communities of the Asaro Valley near Goroka in the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. We found that most women had little knowledge about STDs, which they often did not realize were sexually transmitted. Even major signs and symptoms were thought to be normal and many women had not sought treatment until irreversible damage was done. Knowledge of the complications of STDs, such as infertility and stillbirth, was also slight in these women. It is apparent that there is a desperate need for more reproductive health education at the community level. In developing our health education methods, we found that simple line drawings of male and female reproductive organs and of people with different signs of STDs proved useful. These were quick and easy to produce from readily available materials. It was important to separate men and women into different groups with educators of the same sex, and to create a very informal atmosphere, encouraging free-ranging discussion. Following health education and sensitive interviewing, almost all the women selected for the community-based study of the prevalence of reproductive tract infections consented to vaginal examination, even if they were asymptomatic. Additionally, many nonselected women requested examination.

Adolescent↗

Alzheimer's disease: preliminary study of spatial distribution at birth place.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder which is characterized by a progressive loss of memory and the alteration of cognitive functions. At least three chromosomal segments have been associated with early-onset AD in genetic linkage studies. These results argue for a certain degree of heterogeneity in the genetic origin of some forms of AD, although environmental risk factors cannot be ruled out in late-onset AD. In this preliminary study, we analyzed the geographical distribution of the birth places of a sample of 235 AD cases born in a defined region of Quebec (Canada), between 1895 and 1935. We wished to test the hypothesis that risk factors acting at, or around birth place and time play a role in the etiology of AD. The field of study was divided into rural and urban areas. A reference population of live births was used to compute a measure of odds ratio (OR). The OR results showed a statistically significant excess of AD cases in the rural area as compared to the reference population. When stratified for sex, the OR results showed a global excess of female AD cases in both the rural and the urban areas. For men, only the urban area presented a statistically significant deficit. We also analyzed the structures of the genealogical kinships of the rural and urban sub-groups. Although AD cases from the rural sub-group were more closely related to each other than those from the urban one, removal of the kin pairs from the OR analysis seemed to have little effect on the rural/urban distribution of cases. Therefore, the OR results would not appear to be due primarily to a difference in the kinship structures of the two sub-groups. This could mean that some risk factors for AD afflict women more strongly than men, the effect being different depending on the urban or rural origin. However, potential biases such as a higher rate of report for women, differential migration between birth places or a differential mortality ratio between sexes could produce spurious results in the direction of what we have observed in this preliminary study.

Aged↗

At-risk individuals in Feline Immunodeficiency Virus epidemiology: evidence from a multivariate approach in a natural population of domestic cats (Felis catus).

Prevalence of Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) infection was measured during 6 consecutive years in a natural rural population of domestic cats. Sex, age, weight, origin, group size and presence of antibodies to FIV were recorded for each sampled cat. Logistic regressions were used to estimate the influence of the recorded parameters on infection. FIV prevalence rates are as high as 19.6% in the total population, and do not statistically change between years, after controlling for changes in samples' age structure. FIV infection is characterized by risk factors linked to aggressive behaviour: old mature male adults having dispersed are more likely to be infected. A study of the cats group size and of the spatial distribution of infected individuals indicates the absence of infection clusters in males, and suggests the importance of roaming in the spreading of FIV. In conclusion, FIV infection spreads, with low contagiousness, mainly between particularly aggressive individuals, and the virus is endemic in this population.

Animals↗

Temporal changes of access to primary health care in Illinois (1990-2000) and policy implications.

This paper examines temporal changes of access to primary health care in Illinois between 1990 and 2000 in a Geographic Information System (GIS) environment. Census data at the census tract level in 1990 and 2000 were used to define the population (demand) distribution and related socioeconomic attributes, and the Physician Masterfile of American Medical Association in corresponding years was used to define the physician (supply) distribution at the zip code level. A two-step floating catchment method was employed to measure the spatial access, considering locations of physicians and population and travel times between them. Various socioeconomic and demographic variables were consolidated into three factors (i.e., socioeconomic disadvantages, sociocultural barriers, and high healthcare needs) for measuring the nonspatial access. Spatial and nonspatial factors were finally integrated together to assess the primary care physician shortage areas. The study shows that spatial accessibility to primary care physician for the majority of the state improved from 1990 to 2000. Areas with worsened spatial accessibility were primarily concentrated in rural areas and some limited pockets in urban areas. The worst among these worsened areas appeared to be associated with populations with high scores of socioeconomically disadvantages, sociocultural barriers, and healthcare needs. Improving the accessibility of those socioeconomically disadvantaged population groups is critical for the success of future policies.

Catchment Area, Health↗