Category: Health Investigations

New ATSDR Brownfield and Land Reuse Site Tools Now Available

NCEH/ATSDR works to keep you safe and secure from things in the environment that threaten the public’s health. Read on to learn more about how the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) protects communities from harmful exposures at hazardous waste sites. Is there a vacant lot in your neighborhood that’s an eyesore? Do Read More >

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Meet the Scientist – Jennifer Lyke

The NCEH/ATSDR “Meet the Scientist” series provides insight into the work the talented people who are working to keep you safe and secure from things in the environment that threaten our nation’s health For three decades, scientists at CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Read More >

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Community Health Education & Outreach in Texas

ATSDR’s Division of Community Health Investigations If you like eating crab, finding and digging out the tender, flavorful meat can be hard work that may be worth the effort. But getting to the crabmeat is not the only problem with eating crab; crab and other seafood with high fat content are very susceptible to contamination Read More >

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Six Pathways at the Midnite Mine

Multiple Exposure Pathways Let’s face it: toxic substances are all around us. They are part of the natural and man-made world. That can be pretty frightening. But to cause harm, toxic substances must actually get into your body through your skin, eyes, digestive system, or lungs. And even if you do touch, swallow, or breathe Read More >

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What’s in the air?

April 13-19 is National Environmental Education Week. Both NCEH and ATSDR work to protect people from exposure to environmental public health hazards. The blog is featuring a series of six posts explaining exposure pathways or the ways in which people can come into contact with toxic substances. This post explains how people can be exposed Read More >

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Epidemic Intelligence Service: Disease Detectives at Work

The news is out. A potentially lethal disease is spreading rapidly. Doctors report the illness to public health departments, but no one knows whether it is contagious or has an environmental link. Health professionals turn to the CDC for help. Does this sound like the plot for a movie? Actually, it is—the 2010 movie Contagion Read More >

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Lead Poisoning in Nigeria

  Rows of tiny graves peppered the Nigerian landscape. In May 2010, NCEH/ATSDR assembled a team to investigate children’s deaths in at least six villages in Zamfara, Nigeria. Investigation Results The team helped quickly identify the source of contamination—the processing of gold ore rich in lead. The previous November, unidentified persons had installed an estimated Read More >

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International Environmental Health

April 7 is United Nations World Health Day, marking the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1948. CDC works in close partnership with WHO and its regional offices, other UN agencies (like UNICEF) as well as other international health agencies to help people throughout the world live healthier, safer, longer Read More >

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Aflatoxin in Kenya: Finding Our Way Through the Maize

In April 2004, illness and death plagued rural Kenya. No one knew what the source could be. At the core of this mystery, however, was an outbreak— jaundice with a high rate of fatality in the districts of Makueni and Kitui, Eastern Province. Officials were at a loss for answers. Stumped, they were catapulted into Read More >

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International Disease Detectives Discover Cause of Disease in Ethiopia

Mystery Illness in Ethiopia A strange new illness was spreading throughout Tigray, the northern region of Ethiopia. People living in remote homes and villages developed swollen, painful abdomens and then lost weight. Some of them had trouble breathing as the fluid in their abdomens crowded their lungs. Three or four family members in one household Read More >

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