Category: public health
The Impact of Family History on the Public Health Burden of Diagnosed Diabetes, Undiagnosed Diabetes and Prediabetes in the United States: Using Family History for Diabetes Control and Prevention
This blog post is a summary of our recently published paper in Genetics in Medicine. Type 2 diabetes is a major public health problem in the United States and globally. Among adults 20 years and older, 9.2% have diagnosed diabetes (DD), 3.1% have undiagnosed diabetes (UD), and 36% have prediabetes (PD), a major precursor for Read More >
Posted on byPublic health genomics information is now easily accessible online
The amount of emerging genomic information related to healthcare and public health is staggering. PHGKB is a one-stop shop for information relevant to genomics translation and population health impact for almost all diseases across the life span. MyPHGKB allows end users to customize their own PHGKB databases and type of information. The Public Health Genomics Read More >
Posted on byIntegrating Genomics into Public Health Surveillance: Ushering in a New Era of Precision Public Health
Public health surveillance has been defined as “the ongoing systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of data, closely integrated with the dissemination of these data to the public health practitioners, clinicians, and policy makers responsible for preventing and controlling disease and injury.” Surveillance provides an essential scientific foundation for both clinical and public health practice. In Read More >
Posted on byThe need for a next-generation public health response to rare diseases.
In recognition of Rare Disease Day 2017, we republish, with permission, a modified extract from our recent commentary in Genetics in Medicine. Few public health research activities trigger stronger calls to public health action than research into the burden of disease. This research uses standard measures to quantify actual or potential losses that populations may Read More >
Posted on by 4 CommentsHappy Thanksgiving: Collect & Act on Your Family Health History
As you celebrate Thanksgiving with your family this November, remember that this special day is also National Family Health History Day. Family health history is important to your health and can help you detect unique disease risks and manage them before becoming sick, or find the right diagnosis and treatments when you have a certain Read More >
Posted on byWhat Gets Measured Gets Done: Public Health Progress in Familial Hypercholesterolemia
Just 4 years ago, one of us (MJK) co-chaired the Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) Foundation’s first FH Global Summit: Awareness to Action held in Annapolis, Maryland. The Summit brought together people from academia, government, the private sector, clinicians, as well as patients with the ambitious goals of raising awareness of FH, identifying key knowledge gaps, and Read More >
Posted on by 1 CommentPrecision Public Health: More Precision Ahead for Individual and Population Interventions
In August 2016, we published a point-counterpoint viewpoint asking a crucial question that has been on the minds of researchers, health care providers and the public health community: “will precision medicine improve population health?” We understood that we were tackling “the elephant in the room” and hoped for reactions to this viewpoint. We were pleased Read More >
Posted on by 2 CommentsFive Misconceptions About the Role of Genomics in Public Health
In a recent post, I reviewed the progress of genomics in public health over the past two decades and pondered on the lingering skepticism about genomics in the public health community. I propose that this skepticism is driven, at least in part, by 5 common misconceptions about the role of genomics in public health. In Read More >
Posted on by 1 CommentFrom Genes to Public Health 1996-2016: The Train Has Left the Station
In 1996, a working group from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published an article in the American Journal of Public Health entitled: “From Genes to Public Health: Applications of Genetic Technology in Disease Prevention.” The agency-wide group assessed the implications of the Human Genome Project and related technologies for public health and disease Read More >
Posted on byPrecision Public Health: Reconciling Biological and Social Determinants of Health
On June 6-7, 2016, I had the honor of participating in the “Precision Public Health” summit hosted by the Gates Foundation and the White House Office of Science and Technology at the University of California in San Francisco. The summit focused on developing a global “precision” agenda to improve health and prevent death and disease Read More >
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