Reports of the norovirus illness have been increasing across Iowa in recent weeks, and Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids is seeing more patients than usual with the symptoms. The Cedar Rapids medical center is classifying the apparent spread as a “sporadic outbreak,” with an average 10 to 15 people coming in for treatment...
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Deep cuts in spending on tobacco prevention and cessation programs has dropped Iowa eight spots in a national ranking of states based on their support of anti-smoking efforts. The national report released Wednesday by a coalition of public health organizations ranks Iowa 28th for its funding of programs that aim to keep kids from...
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Grinning from ear to ear, a Nigerian mother smiled for the camera in 2009 while holding her twin babies after being fitted with Ponseti-style casts to treat their club feet. It’s images like that — children in developing countries receiving proven treatment to correct a common deformity — that has the University of Iowa’s...
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Living with a rare medical condition that causes her hands, face and even windpipe to swell has, for as long as she can remember, cluttered Maureen Picciallo’s days with doctor’s calls and tedious recording of symptoms. Then, last summer, the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics – where Picciallo’s receives care for her hereditary...
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Iowa prides itself on having one of the lowest HIV infection rates in the nation, but that positive statistic has triggered a negative consequence: federal officials are planning to take a chunk of the state’s HIV prevention funds and redistribute that money to areas with higher needs. In the next five years, Iowa expects...
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The tattoo industry in Iowa is held to high safety, sanitation, training and operational standards, but the same is not true for piercing — a service that many tattoo establishments provide. In fact, there is no oversight of the body piercing and modification industry in Iowa, and some state officials, legislators and local business...
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Health inspectors with Linn and Johnson counties found violations in dozens of tanning facilities during the most recent inspections, prompting public health officials to recheck some businesses and educate all of them on the importance of limiting tanning times, cleaning beds and maintaining equipment. Nearly two-thirds of the 53 tanning facilities inspected by Linn...
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While working tirelessly to be the intermediary for vaccines, gloves, masks and another supplies at the height of the H1N1 flu scare in 2009, Johnson County Public Health in its need to track the provisions become somewhat of a bottleneck between supplies and the people who needed them. Should another public health emergency strike,...
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