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II. SCREENING INITIATIVESOne of the major problems facing minority women’s health is the lack of health screening initiatives of the individual. Screening is the #1 means of preventing disease. There are certain screening measures that are important for women of any ethnic group. A major risk factor for the number one cause of death (heart disease x-link to CAD) among all women is hypertension x-link to HTN. The need for blood pressure screening cannot be emphasized enough. Similarly, one way of beating the second leading cause of cancer death among women (breast cancer) is mammograms x-link to mammograms (x-ray of breast). Unfortunately, the lack of early screening disallows early detection, which causes higher incidence of death due to breast cancer. Similarly before the introduction of the Papanicolau (PAP smear x-link to Pap smear), death due to cervical cancer x-link to cervical CA was at a rampantly high rate. Since the introduction of the PAP smear screen, the incidence of cervical cancer has declined significantly. The Pneumococcal vaccine (protects against pneumonia), and the Influenza vaccine (flu shot) are both recommended screenings for women aged 65 years and older. Figure 2 shows the percentage of women among different minority groups who have not undergone the preventative health screens mentioned in a one year period.
Figure 1 A. Pneumococcal and Influenza VaccinationsA single-dose pneumococcal vaccine is recommended for all adults 65 years of age and over because it provides protection against the adverse consequences of pneumonia. However, few women aged 65 and over have ever received a pneumococcal vaccination: only 23% of African American women and 19% of Hispanic women. (Of Caucasian women in this age group, 36% reported having received a pneumococcal vaccine.) An annual influenza vaccination is also recommended for all persons 65 years of age and over. It offers substantial protection against complications from the influenza virus. Many women have not received an influenza vaccination—a flu shot—in the past year: 40% of African American women and 49% of Hispanic women. (The proportion of Caucasian women who had not received an influenza vaccine in the last year was similar: 40%.) B. Cervical Cancer ScreeningsLarge percentages of minority women reported that they had not been screened for cervical cancer within the past year: 55% of Asian American women, 43% of Hispanic women, 37% of African American women, and 40% of American Indian/Alaskan Native women who reported to the Indian Health Service. (Of Caucasian women, 44% did not have a Pap smear during that period of time.) Consequently, more African American women (63%) had a cervical cancer screening than any other group of females, including Caucasian women. Asian American women (45%) were the least likely to have had a Pap test of all women. C. Breast Cancer ScreeningsOf minority women aged 40 and over, many had not had a mammogram x-link to mammograms & breast CA in the past two years: 54% of Asian American women, 52% of African American women, and 51% of Hispanic women. Of American Indian/Alaskan Native women aged 50 and over, 54% have not had a mammogram in the last 24 months. (Forty-four percent of Caucasian women aged 40 and over did not have a mammogram in the past two years.) Among all women, a larger proportion of Caucasian women had a mammogram (56%) than did minority women. Among minority women, fewer than half in each racial/ethnic group reported having had a mammogram during the past two years. D. Blood Pressure ScreeningsA staggering 73% of American Indian/Alaskan Native women have not had a blood pressure screening x-link to HTN in the past 12 months. Of Hispanic and Asian American women, 26% and 27%, respectively, have not had a blood pressure screening in the past 12 months. In contrast, 20% percent of Caucasian women and 18% of African American women reported that they have not had a blood pressure screening. Among all women, American Indian/Alaskan Native women were the least likely to have had a blood pressure screening, with only 27% reporting that they have had such a test. A larger proportion of African American women (82%) have had a blood pressure screening in the past year than any other group of women. Tables 1&2 are recommended screenings according to age : screening charts Table 1
Source of Table 1: http://www.4woman.org/screeningcharts/general.htm Table 2
Source of Table 2: http://www.4woman.org/screeningcharts/general2.htm Home Page Newsletters FAQs H-SCAN Physical Age Test Our Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
