QUESTION 6

Soon after preliminary results of the NYSDH study were first reported (summer of 1978), a similar health questionnaire survey was begun by members of a neighborhood homeowners association working with a biologist from Buffalo. This survey covered families living east and north of the Canal, and it focused on potential differences in illness frequencies among persons living in the "wet" and "dry" areas. Information was obtained from 314 persons living in wet areas and 826 in dry areas. Questions were asked about particular health concerns in the community and including asthma, epilepsy, nervous breakdown, urinary disease, childhood hyperactivity, miscarriage, birth defects, infections, rashes, depression, and headache.

Data from this survey were presented as preliminary findings to a Congressional hearing in Washington, DC, in March of 1979 (Paigen, 1979). In Part a) of this question, you will see some of the information provided at the hearing . On the basis of these data, more extensive evacuation of residents and remedial drainage construction were urged.

With this background in mind, answer Part 6a and Part 6b of this question.



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Postgraduate Diploma in Occupational Health (DOH) - Modules 3: Occupational Medicine & Toxicology (Basic) by Profs Mohamed Jeebhay and Rodney Ehrlich, Health Sciences UCT is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 South Africa License. Major contributors: Mohamed Jeebhay, Rodney Ehrlich, Jonny Myers, Leslie London, Sophie Kisting, Rajen Naidoo, Saloshni Naidoo. Source available from here. For any updates to the material, or more permissions beyond the scope of this license, please email healthoer@uct.ac.za or visit www.healthedu.uct.ac.za. Last updated Jan 2007.
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