Mask research by the CDC--inaccurate

"The CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, which is widely cited but not externally peer-reviewed, serially exaggerated the evidence for mask-wearing among 77 such outside studies it published, according to an independent review by epidemiologists at the University of California San Francisco, the system's health sciences campus.

Just 14% of MMWR studies reached statistical significance and 30% actually studied mask effectiveness. Yet three-quarters concluded that masks were effective, authors Tracy Beth Hoeg, Alyson Haslam and Vinay Prasad wrote in the peer-reviewed American Journal of Medicine, the official journal of a consortium of five associations in academic internal medicine.

 
None of the 77 was randomized, the strongest form of evidence, and just one study each "used causal language appropriately" ("particle filtration on mannequins") or "cited conflicting evidence" (mostly about influenza), they wrote. "The level of evidence generated was low and the conclusions were most often unsupported by the data." "

This is not called science it's called an agenda.

CDC repeatedly misrepresents mask research, mask mandates worsen depression: studies | Just The News

Middle aged increases in binge drinking in U.S.

"The total annual number of binge drinks consumed per U.S. adult who reported binge drinking increased significantly by 12% from 2011 to 2017, including among non-Hispanic white adults and those aged ≥35 years." https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/pdfs/mm6902a2-H.pdf

One is tempted to ask who was in the White House and Congress during the years of study?  I'm not making light of binge drinking, but it was during the Obama years that the hate and division really escalated--but then, so did the nastiness on social media. That said, when we see this, the federal government is quick to see $$$ in grant money for more study of socioeconomic causes, when maybe it needs to look in the mirror.

This was reported in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report from the CDC and you should read carefully rather than accepting the headline version you'll see on internet news (like my source did using Yahoo instead of CDC). Just saying though, Ohio was one of the 9 states reporting a significant increase. And Wyoming? What's going on? The CDC backed up its claims with data on increase in alcohol sales.

I mention my source because it is a pet peeve that I receive “Healthbeat” in my e-mail from Ohio State University Medical Center Communications Center, and it is citing Yahoo!  Do they have no experts of their own who can read a CDC MMWR report?

Gay sex and syphilis

After being on the verge of elimination in 2000 in the United States, syphilis cases have rebounded. Rates of primary and secondary syphilis continued to increase overall during 2005–2013; although rates stabilized during 2009–2010, rates have increased since 2011. Increases have occurred primarily among men, and particularly among MSM [men who have sex with men], who contributed the vast majority of male primary and secondary syphilis cases during 2009–2012.

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6318a4.htm?s_cid=mm6318a4_w

Today's New Word--BRFSS

There are websites devoted to acronyms, but here's one that affects you whether or not you know what it means. "The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) is a state-based system of health surveys that collects information on health risk behaviors, preventive health practices, and health care access primarily related to chronic disease and injury. For many states, the BRFSS is the only available source of timely, accurate data on health-related behaviors. Established by the CDC in 1984, more than 350,000 adults are interviewed each year, making the BRFSS the largest telephone health survey in the world. [If you don't have a land line, are you in the game? I'm sure buried in the code book are corrections for that or they'd lose the younger population.] Here's why you should know what it is: States use BRFSS data to identify emerging health problems, establish and track health objectives, and develop and evaluate public health policies and programs. Many states also use BRFSS data to support health-related legislative efforts.

Here's the context. In the December 16 issue of JAMA there was an article about perceived insufficient rest or sleep. I like this section of JAMA because 1) I can usually understand a MMWR report, and 2) if I can't there is a good editorial explanation. This one's a bit tricky--the old double negative. "Insufficient sleep" means "not enough sleep" to me, but the wording is "no days of insufficient sleep or rest." So my brain has to stop and think "no no sleep days." But. . . here's what was interesting.

"Retired persons (43.8%) were most likely to report no days of insufficient rest or sleep in comparison with adults reporting other types of employment status (P = .003). Those with less than a high school diploma or general education development certificate (GED) (37.9%) also were more likely to report no days of insufficient rest or sleep in comparison with those with a high school diploma or GED (33.8%) or with some college or college degree (28.0%). Finally, reports of no days of insufficient rest or sleep were similar among adults of varying marital status, although never married adults (31.6%) were more likely to report no days than members of an unmarried couple (28.4%; P = .005)."

Almost everyone my age that I've ever talked to complains about not sleeping as well as she or he did when younger. But BRFSS data says that's not how it's reported--assuming I'm reading that double negative correctly. Also, could there be a trifecta here? It looks like elderly, less educated old maids sleep better than the rest of us. Is that how you read it?

The Madison Miracle

As you probably know if you live in the midwest, Madison, Wisconsin is our most left leaning city. Detractors sometimes called it the "People's Republic of Madison," or "The left coast of the midwest" and it is the home of "The Progressive." I've only been there once or twice, and so I'm just passing along rumors about its reputation. Personal observation here. A recent issue of JAMA had an interesting CDC study on Dane County (Madison) on the the Infant Mortality Gap. JAMA itself is editorially a very liberal journal (with almost all the advertising from pharmaceutical companies), so it's important to remember that "gap" is the key word here--it's what liberals care most about--especially academicians and researchers paid by government grants. Never the individual, or even the group, but the GAP. It doesn't matter one bit if a second generation Hispanic family lives in a home with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 3 color TV sets, and a 2 car garage, because if a 5th generation white family has 6 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 4 HDTV sets, and a 3 car garage, you have a terrible gap problem that only demonstrates the evils of free market capitalism.

Well, somehow, the Infant Mortality Gap has disappeared in Dane County, and they can't figure out why--obviously, someone has miscalculated, because this just can't happen, not even in liberal Madison. I was a little puzzled too, reading through the stats

Of a population of 472,000 in 2007, only 4.8% is black

black women giving birth in Dane County have a median household income of $28,103 compared to white women giving birth with a household income of $50,927

77% of the black women giving birth are unmarried, compared to 19% of the white women (That ought to clear up the household income problem, right? Two incomes instead of one--duh!)

71% of the black women giving birth in Dane County have a high school diploma or less versus 21% of the white women (This is a very awkward way to say the white women are more likely to be college educated--the University of Wisconsin is located there.)

and

62% of the black mothers are on Medicaid, but only 13% of the white mothers in Dane County.

Despite poverty ($28,103 is called poverty in this study), out of wedlock births, and incomplete education, the gap has disappeared. So they're looking for all sorts of possibilities since 2002, the first year of the decline--increase in graduation rate, reduction in smoking, improved prenatal care, better record keeping, broader health insurance coverage, targeted public health programs, better neighborhood safety, advocacy for black women and their families and other variables. For now it will remain a mystery, because anything good that happened during the Bush Administration will have to be debunked, especially in Madison.

February 7 is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

"Blacks are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. While making up only 13 percent of the U.S. population, they account for more than 49 percent of AIDS cases. AIDS is now the leading cause of death for Black women ages 25 to 34, and the second leading cause of death for Black men ages 35 to 44." Link to CDC site

MSM is reported in MMWR. That's the problem with acronyms. MSM can mean mainstream media or men having sex with men.

There’s an article in the Feb. 6, 2009 MMWR on the increase of HIV among gay and bisexual young black men. It’s a fairly small study done in Jackson, Mississippi, but I’ve seen very similar ones for other areas of the country. Men having sex with men, younger men with older men, anal intercourse, multiple partners, are primarily the causes of HIV/AIDS. It’s not a national epidemic--it’s a very specific disease caused by very specific behavior. Between that and abortion, blacks are destroying their families. Yes, women do get AIDS, but primarily from their men who don’t admit to their infidelities or sexual taste for men. I have no idea why it’s so high among black men, but I’m really tired of reading that homophobia and poverty are the problem, but that's the best way to get the grant money for these studies.

“Reducing HIV transmission among young black MSM is challenging because of many factors, including sexual network patterns, sexual partnering with older men, high prevalence of STDs, lack of awareness of one's HIV status, homophobia, HIV-related stigma and discrimination, and socioeconomic issues. CDC's Heightened National Response to the HIV/AIDS Crisis among African Americans aims to reduce HIV/AIDS in this population by expanding the reach of prevention services, increasing opportunities for diagnosis and treatment, developing new prevention interventions, and mobilizing broader community action. In the United States, reducing the toll of HIV/AIDS on young black MSM will require a combination of strategies, including culturally specific behavioral interventions, expanded testing programs, and comprehensive campaigns to combat stigma.”

Homophobia and no meaningful paycheck don't cause a man to have anal intercourse with another man, and then go home and crawl in bed with his girl friend. Sorry, I just don’t buy it. You could eliminate every last vestige of dislike or fear of homosexuality, you could give every gay man a middle class income, and HIV/AIDS will not go away as long has men continue to have sex with men and bring the disease home to their wives and girlfriends. Ask any rich man who's had several young male partners this past year. Ask the widow of the artist, professor or musician who cared for him as he wasted away when there was no one else.