Georgia’s Kidney Community Praises House Insurance Committee for Advancing Medigap Bill; Strongly Urges Bill Passage Before Close of Legislative Session

(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Georgia House Insurance Committee today passed patient-centered legislation (S.B. 316) that will allow more than 2,000 kidney failure patients and those deemed disabled in Georgia to obtain secondary insurance coverage for medical care. Members of the kidney care community, including dialysis patients, caregivers and advocates praised committee members for recognizing the valuable role Medigap reform will have in improving patient access to life-saving care, including dialysis or transplant medications. The bill, which was unanimously passed by the Senate earlier this year, will now advance to a full House vote.

“We encourage state lawmakers to pass Medigap reform before the close of this legislative session to ensure that all patients, regardless of age or financial standing, can obtain the healthcare coverage they need and deserve.”

Georgians of all ages diagnosed with end state renal disease (ESRD), or kidney failure, currently qualify for insurance coverage under the federal Medicare benefit; however, patients are still responsible to paying additional out of pocket costs such as deductibles and co-pays. Federal law allows patients over age 65 to purchase private secondary coverage – known as Medigap insurance – which enables them to access medical treatment without cost being a barrier to care.

In Georgia, kidney failure and disabled patients under age 65 have limited ability to purchase Medigap insurance; therefore restricting patient access to care and creating financial roadblocks for patients in need of medical attention. In fact, patients unable to afford the cost of care are often time forced to deplete their financial savings in order to qualify for state Medicaid coverage. This legislation would expand the ability of patients in Georgia under age 65 to purchase Medigap coverage; therefore protecting them from having to “spend down” their assets and improving access to health care.

“We applaud the members of the Georgia State Assembly for embracing this smart, patient-focused legislation, which will improve access to care and quality of life for thousands of Georgians,” stated Chad Lennox, Executive Director of Dialysis Patient Citizens, a national patient advocacy organization that represents more than 1,300 kidney community members across the state. “We encourage state lawmakers to pass Medigap reform before the close of this legislative session to ensure that all patients, regardless of age or financial standing, can obtain the healthcare coverage they need and deserve.”

This legislation is also estimated to result in $20 million of Medicaid savings over the next five years for Georgia by reducing the number of patients entering the program. This not only improves patient access, it also protects taxpayers from higher program costs. If passed, Georgia will join 29 other states across the country that have already passed similar reforms.

The bill is available at http://www.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2009_10/sum/sb316.htm.

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Georgia tobacco yields worst in decades

Volatile spring weather and diseases have left Georgia’s tobacco crop hurting, as farmers prepare to harvest what could be their worst yields in decades, says a University of Georgia tobacco specialist.

Earlier this spring, farmers had one of the toughest times in recent memory just trying to get the tobacco crop securely planted, said J. Michael Moore, a tobacco expert with UGA Cooperative Extension. Repeated rain deluges of five and six inches across south Georgia, where the crop is grown, washed away planting beds, chemicals, plants and delayed planting all together.

“There were a lot of headaches just getting started this year,” he said.

Farmers eventually planted 15,000 acres by May 1, he said. Then came more rain followed by a hot, dry June. Then the diseases hit -- hard.

Tobacco’s deadliest foe is tomato spotted wilt virus, which is carried by tiny insects called thrips. Over the past few years, it has infected 15 percent of the plants. This year, as much as 30 percent of plants statewide have shown symptoms of the disease. Many plants have died and yields have been reduced, he said.

The increased damage from TSWV this year was likely due to the weather. “We know there is a relation to the type of weather we had and this disease pressure,” Moore said. “But at this point we don’t know exactly what that relation is.”

Due to the excessive rain, two other diseases called target spot and white mold also caused problems for farmers, he said.

Of the 15,000 acres planted, Moore said, 1,700 acres were lost either to extreme rain or disease. Due to weather- and disease-related problems, tobacco yields are expected to average 1,700 pounds per acre, or 400 pounds per acre less than last year. This is the lowest average yield since 1973.

In total, Georgia farmers are expected to harvest 23.8 million pounds of tobacco this year, or 29 percent less than last year. Harvest will start in the next two weeks, a month behind the typical schedule.

The number of tobacco farmers continues to decline in Georgia. Today, only 200 actively grow the crop. There were around 350 two years ago.

In 2004, Georgia had 1,000 tobacco farmers. That same year, the federal government ended its Depression-era tobacco quota program at the farmers' request. It provided price support but restricted how much tobacco farmers could grow and where. Farmers and quota owners were compensated for the end of the program.

Farmers now can grow as much tobacco as they feel they need to fill contracts they get directly from cigarette manufactures or marketing companies. For decades, south Georgia has been a place to get sweet-flavored, aromatic tobacco, the kind manufacturers add to tobacco blends to improve taste.

But delivering quality tobacco this year will be hard for Georgia, Moore said. And making any profit will be, too.

Tobacco quality is graded on a scale from 1 to 4, with No. 1 being the best, which has golden leaves and no blemishes. Most companies now only want No. 1- or No. 2-graded tobacco. They have enough of the No. 3 and No. 4 in storage to use for the next 15 years, he said.

“Growers are concerned that the companies are no longer seeing south Georgia as a reliable region for quality tobacco,” he said. “There is a demand for this style of tobacco, and there will continue to be. But it’s critical for us to produce the tobacco in this area to keep the market.”

For now, the remaining farmers are cobbling together a tobacco-growing industry in Georgia, scavenging from old, abandoned equipment to fix equipment currently in use.

“I’d hate to be a dealer trying to sell any tobacco-related equipment today,” Moore said. “Nobody has the money to buy anything new.”

By Brad Haire
University of Georgia

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Peanut’s sleep habit helps farmers fight diseases

The peanut plant grows a thick canopy of compound leaves close to the ground. This structure provides for good nuts, but makes it hard for farmers to fight diseases that attack near the soil. The plants do something naturally that can help farmers fight these threats, says a University of Georgia researcher, and the difference can be night and day—literally.

In the field, the peanut plant spreads its growth to capture sunlight. It uses it to make sugar and grow healthy peanut pods below ground, says Tim Brennemen, a plant pathologist with the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in Tifton, Ga.

But at night, he said, the plant does the opposite. Instead of spreading out, its paired leaflets fold up, often revealing the base of the plant and the soil under it. Farmers can use this natural event to get fungicides through the plant’s canopy and to its base where soil-borne diseases attack.

After the tomato spotted wilt virus, Brennemen said, white mold is the peanut’s toughest enemy. It attacks low-lying parts of the plant and produces oxalic acid that kills the plant. It can go underground, too, and destroy developing peanut pods.

To fight disease, farmers typically spray peanuts with fungicides six to seven times a year. Two to three of these sprays are primarily to prevent or control white mold, he said. They almost exclusively do this during the day in the United States.

In Nicaragua a few years ago, Brennemen learned farmers there spray fungicides at night. They do this to fight white mold, which thrives in hot, humid weather. Farmers there knew the nighttime habits of the peanut plant and used it to their advantage.

Having toyed with the idea before, Brennemen and CAES graduate student Joao Augusto began experiments three years ago to see if nighttime spraying could benefit Georgia farmers. What they found surprised them.

The openness of the canopy at night allows more of the fungicide droplets to reach the lower parts of the plant. The fungicide lasts longer there, too, protected during the day by the open leaves, which prevent UV rays from reaching it and breaking it down.

They found that early morning before sunrise was the best time to spray. The dew on curled leaves helps the fungicide slide further down the plant.

Last year, Georgia farmers averaged 3,400 pounds of peanuts per acre. In research plots, switching to nighttime spraying typically improved yields by 200 pounds to 800 pounds per acre. In plots where white mold was a severe problem, nighttime spraying increased yields by 1,800 pounds per acre. In research plots where white mold was not a problem, switching spray times made little improvement.

“It was fascinating to me to see the level of improved control without there being any additional cost. That’s unusual,” said Brenneman, a plant pathologist for 25 years.

Most tractors have lights for night work. Satellites can now guide many tractors. Spraying at night, he said, wouldn’t cost farmers more money. The same product would be sprayed at the same rate, just at night. The only cost might be an occasional shift in sleeping habits.

All farmers shouldn’t rush to set the alarm earlier or pull an all-nighter to spray, he said. But the information will be useful for some.

A farmer who has had trouble controlling soil-borne diseases with fungicides or is looking to reduce costs by using less-expensive chemicals this year would see benefit, he said.

Georgia farmers will soon finish planting what is expected to be 500,000 acres of peanuts this year.

By Brad Haire
University of Georgia

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Georgians must take precautions against "whooping cough" (pertussis)

Several recently reported cases of pertussis (commonly referred to as “whooping cough”) in some Cobb County schools has prompted the Georgia Department of Human Resources (DHR) Division of Public Health (DPH) to remind the public about the dangers of the disease and what they can do to prevent it.

“Pertussis is a highly contagious disease that can occur at any age,” said Dr. Sandra Elizabeth Ford, acting director of the Division of Public Health. “One of the most effective ways to prevent the disease is to get vaccinated – whether you are a child or an adult.”

Pertussis is an infectious disease of the respiratory tract caused by bacteria found in the mouth, nose and throat of an infected person. Pertussis starts like the common cold with runny nose or congestion, sneezing and, in some instances, a mild cough or fever. But after one to two weeks, individuals begin to experience severe coughing that sounds like a “whoop” as they try to catch their breath.

Pertussis is usually spread by coughing or sneezing while in close contact with others, who then breathe in the pertussis bacteria. Infants who get pertussis are often infected by older siblings or parents who are unaware they have the disease.

While pertussis can cause serious illness in children and adults, hospitalization is rarely necessary. However, for infants and those with weakened immune systems or pre-existing breathing problems such as asthma, pertussis can be serious. The disease is rarely fatal, although fatalities have occurred in infants.

According to the DPH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the best way to prevent pertussis is to get vaccinated. The recommended pertussis vaccine for children is called DTaP. It is a safe and effective combination vaccine that protects children against three diseases: pertussis, diphtheria and tetanus. For maximum protection, children need five DTaP shots: the first at 2 months old, the second at 4 months old, the third at 6 months old, the fourth sometime between 15 and 18 months old, and the final shot at between 4 and 6 years old. Since protection after vaccination or disease only lasts a few years, adolescents should get a Tdap shot sometime between 11 and 12 years old. Adults should be vaccinated as well by getting Tdap, instead of their regular booster, every 10 years.

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Recent Rains May Provide Too Much Water for Trees

Recent rains left soils soggy across the state. The muddy puddles are doing more than making a mess. The stress the pools of water are placing on trees can cause serious problems down the road.

The first week of 2009 brought five or more inches of rainfall to some North Georgia cities. Rome received 6.15 inches of rain between Jan. 1 and 7, according to the University of Georgia's Georgia Automated Environmental Monitoring Network. GAEMN recorded 5.47 inches in Blue Ridge, 5.12 inches in Calhoun, 5.10 in Gainesville and 5.12 in Lafayette.

“It seems strange to talk about too much water when we have experienced a drought for several years,” said Jean Woodward, a plant pathologist with UGA Cooperative Extension. “However, the drought-weakened trees, particularly those damaged by construction injury, are more susceptible to wood decay fungal diseases. Excess water now can increase disease development.”
Trees with stressed or damaged root systems are at a greater risk for disease and fallout, risking property damage and injury. Driving cars over root systems or cutting them for construction purposes damages the tree, too.

“The biggest thing homeowners can do is not stress them out,” Woodward said. “Avoid driving over saturated soils. Soils will become compacted and put the tree under greater stress. Once roots are damaged, the tree will slowly decline over time.”

A large amount of rainfall after trees have shed their leaves helps to limit the immediate risk of tree fallout. But, damage to root systems now will increase risks for falling trees when leaves and powerful thunderstorms return in the spring and fall.

“Trees being without leaves now is actually helpful,” Woodward said. “The biggest concern is with full canopy trees. When leaves become saturated with water it can weigh down the tree. The leaves also act like a sail capturing the wind making it more prone to fall in stormy weather.”

One thing to watch out for is fungal growth around the base of the tree.

“People will start seeing mushrooms around the base of the trees or conks coming off the trunks that indicate rot in the center of the tree,” she said. “Once you see these signs of disease, there is no control. The tree will continue to decline and you need to think about taking the tree down.”

But, these disease indicators won’t surface until the spring or fall and most often go unnoticed.

“Mushrooms and conks indicate that there is rot, but they don’t mean that the tree will die overnight,” she said. “Depending on the stress of the tree and the amount of damage to roots or trunks, the tree can die within a few years or live for more than 10 years.”

Woodward said the best thing to do to protect your trees is don’t injure plant roots and to correct conditions that may weaken the tree, such as diverting pooling water.

“During heavy rain, it is a good time to take a look and see if landscapes are draining well,” she said. “Check plants to see if water is pooling around them. If it is, try to redirect the water.”

She suggests adding extenders to downspouts and installing French drains to divert excess rainwater. Don’t add mulch to absorb the moisture. Doing so will only add more stress to the drowning plant as it will take away much-needed oxygen.

“There is not a whole lot people can do now except keep water from pooling,” she said. “It is that type of change that can help save those trees in the future.”

By April Sorrow
University of Georgia

April Sorrow is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

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Georgia Disaster Mental Health Site is Online

The Georgia Disaster Mental Health website, designed and produced by University of West Georgia faculty, staff and graduate students, is operational and available for public use.

Sponsored by the Georgia Department of Human Resources, Georgia Division of Public Health and Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases, the far reaching site for residents is one of the most comprehensive sites of its kind in the nation and addresses many of the stresses any kind of catastrophe can bring to an individual, a family or a community.

Dr. Larry Schor, associate professor of psychology, and Vicki Rogers, a service desk manager in Information Technology Services at UWG, worked with colleagues and students for six months to create the site.

“Common setbacks result from the chaos and confusion that occurs when people are affected by disaster,” said Schor. “My experience as a disaster mental health counselor is that people really want the life they had before the disaster. The challenge is to find ways to begin to move forward.”

The response from state agencies and the public has been positive and frequent with agencies in other states requesting information on how the site was developed. Rogers said it was quite an undertaking.

“As a technical consultant and webmaster, this was the largest project I’ve ever worked on,” said Rogers. “We have already begun to update the site and I plan on working on the project over the holiday break. It’s a huge undertaking with a lot of information. Larry’s passion and expertise on the subject of disaster mental health makes this a very good site.”

Schor has assisted in mental health counseling after many disasters including the aftermath of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina.

“I am optimistic that people will benefit from the website,” said Schor. “Although I think the challenge will be getting the word out and convincing people on the importance of being prepared. Just as we tend to think about changing our windshield wiper blades when it is raining, people tend to deal with disaster needs only when they are affected directly.”

Schor said that people could go to the site and read about preparedness before a disaster and use the internal search to find topics such as “preparedness kits.” The website is also available in Spanish and offers resources and information on how to cope and prepare for a disaster to the elderly, members of the military, persons with disabilities and public school systems.

The site also links to a wide range of organizations including the American Red Cross, Center for Disease Control and Georgia911.org, Georgia’s disaster and emergency website. For more information, go to http://www.westga.edu/~gadmh/.

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Bananas Tapped as Georgia’s Next Fruit Commodity

Americans eat $1.1 billion worth of bananas each year, or as much as 33 pounds per person. Almost all of it comes from foreign countries. University of Georgia researchers are working on ways to get Georgia a slice of that banana cash pie.

Georgia may be known for peaches, but pecan is the state’s top fruit and nut commodity, followed by blueberries and then peaches. While it may seem far-fetched to add bananas to that list now, Georgia is a fine place to grow bananas for food or as a landscape plant, says Greg Fonsah, an economist with the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

“If our research succeeds, bananas will be like other fruits such as blueberries and strawberries,” said Fonsah, who heads the UGA banana project. “It will be our new commodity, and at least part of that $1.1 billion spent to import bananas to the United States would be going back to boost our economy.”

American bananas — worth $13 million annually — are currently grown on 1,500 acres in Hawaii and 500 acres in Florida. The types produced in Florida are ethnic varieties, unlike the ones typically found in grocery stores.

Georgia bananas could be grown in coastal and southern areas of the state, he said. These areas have a subtropical climate much like Israel, South Africa and some Asian countries that successfully grow and export bananas to the U.S., which imports 31 percent of the world’s bananas.

“Globally, banana and plantain are the fourth most important crops in terms of food security and value,” Fonsah said.

The UGA banana collaborative team includes plant pathologists Alex Csinos and Pingsheng Ji and Fulbright scholar Daouda Kone from Cocody-Abidjan University, Cote D’Ivoire. CAES horticulturist Gerard Krewer has helped, too.

The team is working with 35 different banana varieties at the Bamboo Farm and Coastal Garden in Savannah, Ga. They’re trying to find the best banana varieties for Georgia’s climate and to discover which diseases Georgia producers will have to fight once they grow bananas commercially.

The work is already paying off.

A disease called black leaf spot was confirmed for the first time in Georgia last year at the Savannah research plots. Caused by the fungus Deightoniella torulosa, the disease causes problems in major banana-producing countries in Central America.

“Black leaf spot affects the fruit and makes it get rotten very fast,” Fonsah said. “It looks so bad cosmetically, like a big black scar on the banana’s body.”

The disease can affect bananas while they’re still in the field. But its economic hit comes when it shows up as spots on the banana’s skin en route to marketing outlets. Cosmetic appearance is how consumers judge banana quality.

“Ultimately, consumers reject the fruit, and if they reject the fruit, you’re losing a lot of money,” Fonsah said.

Now that black leaf spot has been discovered in Georgia, the team, Fonsah said, will continue to trace other possible diseases and other growing problems. He hopes to compile a book to help guide Georgia farmers on how to plant and market their bananas.

Before joining CAES, Fonsah worked for two decades with multinational companies such as Del Monte Fresh Produce, Lapanday Food Co. in the Philippines and Aloha Farms Inc. in Hawaii, where he initiated their banana export market to Japan, Dubai and Hong Kong. He has also served as a banana and marketing consultant in many countries.

By Stephanie Schupska
University of Georgia

Stephanie Schupska is a news editor for the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

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UGA Symposium Covers Outbreaks and How to Prepare November 21

Deadly disease outbreaks that could threaten public safety and how the university and the government are preparing to handle them will be the topics of a campus symposium, “Diseases—What’s next… How are we preparing?” on Friday, Nov. 21, 8:30 a.m.– noon in rooms K-L of the Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center and Hotel. The symposium brings together UGA professors and a public health professional to discuss biological outbreaks, zoonotic diseases and threat responses. It is free and open to the public.

This forum is a way to educate the public about what threats are out there and inform people about the best practices they can use to protect themselves and their families,” said John Newton, event organizer and an emergency operations coordinator in the UGA Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness.

The forum features three prominent experts in the fields of life sciences and public health: Corrie Brown, pathology professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine; Chris Whalen, professor of epidemiology and biostatistics in the College of Public Health; and Dr. Stan Edwards, from the Georgia Division of Public Health and recently retired emergency coordinator with Gwinnett County.

“Seventy-five percent of all emerging diseases come from animals—think SARS, bird flu, West Nile virus. Hey, it’s time to think one medicine,” said Brown. “There is always the possibility of a terrorist introducing a new disease, but I think Mother Nature is probably the most dependable terrorist—she is always coming up with new diseases,” added Brown. “It’s not a question of if, but when.”

“I will be presenting some basic information about how epidemics develop and spread. From our understanding of the spread of an infectious disease we can devise interventions to limit, or better to prevent, the spread of infection,” said Whalen. “I will provide a framework for thinking about these questions.”

Edwards will discuss the public health response to disease outbreaks and what individuals can do to protect themselves when outbreaks occur.

The forum, part of the Academic-Professional Security Series, is sponsored by the Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness and the Center for International Trade and Security.

For more information, see www.osep.uga.edu.

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Kids and Pets: CDC Advice for Staying Healthy and Happy

PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- CDC experts caution parents, pediatricians, and veterinarians to be aware of the risks that exotic animals and pets can pose to children. A study released in Pediatrics' October issue outlined the diseases that can be transmitted to children when they come in contact with reptiles, rodents, mammals, birds, amphibians, non-human primates and fish. Many families own non-traditional pets, and children may encounter animals at petting zoos, farms and pet stores. Parents are urged to talk to the family veterinarian or pediatrician to learn how to ensure that their child's experience with animals is both safe and enjoyable.

Diseases and injuries associated with non-traditional pets and wildlife:


Reptiles (e.g., turtles, lizards,
snakes, etc.) Salmonella infection

Rodents (e.g., hamsters, rates,
mice, gerbils, guinea pigs,
squirrels, etc.) Salmonella infection, plague,
rabies

Fish Mycobacterium, Aeromonas, Vibrio,
Salmonella, and Streptococcus
infections

Cattle E. coli infection

Goats Cryptosporidium and E. coli
infections, rabies

Baby poultry (e.g., chicks,
ducklings, etc.) Salmonella infection

Ferrets Bite injuries


Pediatricians, veterinarians and parents play an important role in preventing animal-related illness.

-- Children should wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after
touching animals.
-- Parents should supervise handwashing for children younger than five
years of age.
-- Never touch wild animals or bring them home as pets.
-- Always supervise children, especially those younger than five, during
interaction with animals.
-- Children should not be allowed to kiss animals or put their hands or
other objects in their mouth after handling animals.
-- Pediatricians and veterinarians should advise parents about
appropriate pet selection and how to avoid animal-transmitted
illnesses.
-- Family pets should be kept in good health and vaccinated
appropriately.


To read the full text of the article, including expanded lists of animals, diseases, and prevention advice, click here: (http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/122/4/876). More information on this subject can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/.

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HHS Announces $36 Million to Help Older Americans and Veterans Remain Independent

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced
$36 million in new grant programs to 28 states to help older Americans
and veterans remain independent and to support people with Alzheimer's
disease to remain in their homes and communities. Just over $19 million
of this funding involves a new collaboration with the U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA).

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt and VA Secretary James Peake, M.D., announced
the joint effort to provide essential consumer-directed home and
community-based services to older Americans and veterans of all ages, as
part of a Nursing Home Diversion (NHD) grants program. The new
initiative builds on the similar missions of HHS and the VA with regard
to caring for the populations they serve. In addition, Secretary
Leavitt announced a $17 million investment to improve the delivery of
home and community-based services to people with Alzheimer's disease and
their family caregivers.

In announcing the collaboration, Secretary Leavitt said, "This historic
HHS-VA initiative combines the expertise of the HHS' national network of
aging services providers with the resources of the Veterans Health
Administration to provide more people, including our nation's veterans,
with improved long-term care options. This unique effort supports the
President's New Freedom Initiative which calls upon all federal agencies
to help people who need long-term care and prefer to live in their own
homes and communities to do so. Through this joint program, many people
who would have previously been placed in nursing homes will be able to
remain at home."

"Our mission is to honor and support America's veterans, and this
collaboration provides an additional opportunity to do that by offering
more services, choices and control over decisions to veterans in the
least restrictive environment consistent with their needs and
preferences," Secretary Peake said.

The new program will be administered by HHS' Administration on Aging
(AoA) in collaboration with the Veterans Health Administration. Under
the program, $10.5 million is being provided by HHS through AoA, and
$5.7 million by the states. VA estimates purchasing at least $3 million
in veteran-directed home and community-based services for older veterans
and for recently returned veterans with long-term care needs. The
number of veterans over age 85 has tripled during the past decade,
creating a significant expansion in the need for long term care.

"The HHS funding is specifically designed to reach people who are not
eligible for Medicaid, but who are at high risk of nursing home
placement and spend-down to Medicaid -which often occurs when private
pay individuals enter a nursing home," said Assistant Secretary for
Aging Josefina G. Carbonell. "The program will also offer consumers
more control over their long-term care, including the ability to
determine the types of services they receive and the manner in which
they receive them, including the option of hiring their own care
workers."

The $17 million for individuals with Alzheimer's disease and their
caregivers involves grants to 22 states under AoA's Alzheimer's disease
demonstration programs. States were able to apply for two types of
grants: Innovation Grants and Evidence-Based Program Grants. Innovation
Grants will demonstrate new approaches to delivering services and
supports, and the Evidence-Based Grants will support the replication of
science-based interventions that have already proven to be effective at
helping people with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders to
continue to live in the community.

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UGA’s Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases to Host Global Health Research Symposium

The University of Georgia’s Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases will host an international research symposium, “Global Health through Research,” on Sept. 19 and 20 at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center and Hotel on the UGA campus. The symposium will be held in conjunction with the 18th Annual Molecular Parasitology/Vector Biology Symposium.

To recognize and help celebrate the center’s tenth anniversary, symposium organizers planned the event as an expanded version of their traditional annual meeting. The program will feature ten of the world’s most prominent researchers who study human parasites and the insect vectors that spread them.

“This will be an exciting conference packed with cutting-edge presentations from the best investigators in the field,” said Boris Striepen, a symposium organizer. “We are also eager to present the outstanding work of UGA students and postdoctoral researchers to this highly accomplished audience.”

Scheduled speakers will discuss a wide range of scientific issues, including how parasites conquer their hosts, secure nutrients, and outwit the immune system to cause deadly diseases. Wielding sophisticated tools of molecular biology and genome science, these researchers work to reveal the parasites’ tricks and to develop urgently needed drugs and vaccines. Diseases to be discussed include malaria, sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis and several other diseases associated with AIDS.

The Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases is a university-wide, interdisciplinary center established in 1998 to foster research, education and service related to tropical and emerging infectious diseases. Over the past decade CTEGD has grown into one of the nation’s preeminent institutes for tropical disease research. The center’s 18 members include faculty from eight UGA departments and four colleges. The center also benefits from the participation of adjunct faculty from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

by Helen Fosgate
University of Georgia

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