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Features

Filter strips can control dangerous parasite, says new research

[SEPT. 23, 2002]  URBANA — A tiny, yet potent, one-celled protozoan is the subject of extensive research at the University of Illinois.

And for good reason.

The protozoal parasite, Cryptosporidium parvum (also known as Crypto), can cause acute gastrointestinal problems in healthy people and can be fatal to anyone with a compromised immune system.

More than 400,000 residents of Milwaukee, three out of every four people, were stricken with Cryptosporidiosis, the disease caused by the parasite, in 1993. In the summer of 2001, it is believed 26 people were infected at a water park in Peoria. In both cases, contaminated water was the likely source of infection.

The good news is that U of I researchers have found that vegetative filters can effectively reduce the presence of Crypto in runoff water.

Crypto is a pathogen young livestock shed in their waste, said Prasanta Kalita, U of I agricultural engineer. Runoff from animal production operations can sometimes enter a nearby water source undetected, carrying Crypto with it.

Once drinking water is contaminated, Kalita said, treatment of the water is difficult. The dormant form of Crypto, called an oocyst (oh’-a-sist), is very small, with a tough outer shell, and has the ability to withstand many environmental extremes. Crypto is also one of the most resistant parasites to water chemical treatment.

So University of Illinois researchers are looking for ways to control Crypto at its source — such as using vegetative filters.

"Initially, these strips were used at the edges of fields to buffer waterways," said Kalita, who has worked with buffer strips for many years. "They were found to be very beneficial in keeping sediments and chemicals like nitrogen and phosphorous from getting into streams."

Now Kalita and his colleague Mark Kuhlenschmidt, a veterinary pathobiology professor, are studying them to see if they can control Crypto as well.

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Funded by the Illinois Council on Food and Agricultural Research, Kalita and Kuhlenschmidt have built a tilting soil bed 12 feet long, 5 feet wide and a foot deep. Filled with soils from Champaign and Effingham counties, the bed is divided in half by a metal border. One half is left bare, the other planted with brome grass.

"We spray the live Crypto at the top of the bed," Kalita explained. "We spray the same amount on both sides, set the bed on a certain slope and rain on it. Then we collect all of the water that comes off the surface and the water infiltrated 1 foot below the soil surface."

The researchers have tested several variables, including different rainfall intensities and slopes, as well as two different soil types.

In both soil types, researches saw the similar results — vegetation greatly reduced the amount of Crypto in the runoff.

"But slope made a lot of difference," said Kalita. "We found when we had a steep, 4.5 percent slope, the reduction was not very high, because the water went straight across the filter."

Kalita and Kulenschmidt are also doing tests to see if the Crypto absorbed by the soil and vegetation later seeps down into the groundwater.

The researchers filled eight columns with 3 feet of soil and applied high concentrations of Crypto to each. When water was drained from the columns, no parasites were detected in the samples.

"That is a preliminary indication that Crypto doesn’t go through the soil. The soil acts like a barrier to filter it out," said Kalita.

If these results hold true, he believes vegetative filter strips, especially in fields with tile drains, will be an excellent management practice for the containment of Crypto coming from animal feeding operations.

[U of I news release]

State-of-the-art technology to provide mental health services for deaf

[SEPT. 19, 2002]  Illinois Department of Human Services Secretary Linda Reneé Baker recently announced a technological partnership that improves mental health services for deaf and hard of hearing people in Illinois. The collaborative effort involving the Illinois Department of Human Services Office of Mental Health and mental health providers in Chicago and Springfield will allow doctors and patients to communicate via videoconference.

"Today’s technological advances are making it possible for the state to reach more people with expanded and improved services," said Baker. "The telepsychiatry services for deaf and hard of hearing persons can bring a doctor in Chicago together with a client in central Illinois. It’s another example of using available resources to maximize state services."

The announcement was made Sept. 9 during a "digital ribbon-cutting" at McFarland Mental Health Center in Springfield. It marked the first time a doctor specializing in services for deaf and hard of hearing people communicated with a patient in another location. Joining the DHS Office of Mental Health in the demonstration were the Illinois Masonic Medical Center’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing Program and the Mental Health Centers of Illinois.

"This is exciting because it marks the first in a succession of advancements in making human services accessible to all Illinoisans," said Baker. "Illinois is one of the first states in the nation to provide sophisticated mental health services for deaf and hard of hearing persons in areas where they otherwise would not be available."

There are an estimated 214,000 deaf or hard of hearing people in Illinois who suffer from mental illness. DHS has worked closely with advocate groups to expand services for this population.

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Under the new program, patients will receive a psychiatric evaluation and consultation from Dorothea L. De Gutis, M.D., who has many years of experience in providing treatment to people who are deaf or hard of hearing. From her office in Chicago, Dr. De Gutis will use sign language to consult with patients in central Illinois using telepsychiatry. Telepsychiatry is the use of videoconference technology to provide psychiatric services from a distance.

Telepsychiatry service has already proven to be successful for deaf consumers in the metropolitan Chicago area. Although the downstate services will initially be provided in the Springfield area, plans are under way to duplicate those services throughout the state. 

[Department of Human Services press release]

Health Matters

A monthly feature from  Logan County Health Department

The flu and you

[SEPT. 3, 2002]  As the fall weather approaches, flu season begins. Influenza is a serious and widespread illness that is the cause of as many as 4,000 deaths each year in Illinois. Influenza is caused by a virus that spreads from infected people to the nose or throat of others and can cause fever, cough, chills, sore throat, headache and muscle aches in people of any age. Influenza should not be confused with intestinal illness.

People considered at high risk should get a flu shot every year. The optimal time for these individuals to receive influenza vaccine is during October and November.

High-risk categories include:

•  People 65 years of age or older.

•  People with chronic medical conditions.

•  People with immune system problems.

•  Women who will be in the second or third trimester of pregnancy during flu season.

•  Children receiving long-term aspirin therapy.

•  Employees of nursing homes or other chronic care facilities.

•  Health-care workers.

•  Household contacts of people at increased risk for influenza-related complications.

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All others should begin their flu shots in November and later, for as long as vaccine is available.

Beginning in October, Logan County Health Department will have flu and pneumonia immunizations available at the Health Department, 109 Third St., and on the Rural Health Van.

Flu shots and pneumonia shots cost $16 each. Medicare will pay for flu and pneumonia shots; clients must bring their Medicare card with them. Medicaid will pay for only flu shots; clients must bring their Medicaid card with them.

Watch the newspapers for upcoming schedules of flu clinics or call Logan County Health Department at (217) 735-2317 for more information.

[News release]

Red Cross

West Nile Virus

West Nile virus links

LDN articles

• Local authorities watching WNV

Federal websites

• CDC WNV home page

State websites

• State WNV website

• Protect your home against mosquitoes
• State surveillance site
• Logan County surveillance site

Honors & Awards

Announcements

ALMH offers prenatal classes

[SEPT. 18, 2002]  The next series of prenatal classes at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital will be in October. The series consists of four Wednesday evening classes, Oct. 2, 9, 16 and 23. Sessions are from 7 to 9 p.m.

Classes will be in conference rooms A and B on the lower level at ALMH. The cost of the series for expectant mothers and their significant others is $30. Participants will receive information on topics including warning signs during pregnancy; labor; breathing and relaxation techniques; delivery; infant care; and breast-feeding. A tour of the ALMH Family Maternity Suites will also be given.

For more information or to register for the prenatal classes, call ALMH’s Family Maternity Suites at (217) 732-2161, Ext. 235.

[News release]

The Rural Health Partnership has announced the schedule for its mobile health unit for 2002.

For more information on the mobile health unit schedule and services, contact Dayle Eldredge at (217) 732-2161, Ext. 409.

Community resource list

This family resource list to save and use is provided by the Healthy Communities Partnership and the Healthy Families Task Force, 732-2161, Ext. 409.         

(updated 2-15-02)

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