Schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease caused by snail-transmitted flatworms. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the disease—which can cause scarring and inflammation of the liver, intestines and bladder, leading to anemia, malnutrition and learning difficulties, particularly in children—affects some 200 million people worldwide. The disease is most […]
Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is about 99 percent effective in reducing the risk of contracting HIV from sex, but that’s only if it’s taken daily. When users forget, lack motivation for taking a daily pill or experience barriers to getting the drug, risk goes up. An implantable, biodegradable PrEP device, […]
With the help of a grant from the international nonprofit Task Force for Global Health, USF College of Public Health (COPH) associate professor Dr. Ben Jacob has brought his “slash and clear” method of eliminating the breeding grounds of Simulium damnosum s.l. (the blackfly vector of onchocerciasis) to Cameroon. Blackflies and […]
Dr. Ryan Tokarz, who received both his MPH and PhD in global communicable diseases from the USF College of Public Health (COPH), had a childhood dream of being a marine biologist who studied sharks. As time went on, the Lutz, Fla., native went a little off course, swapping biology for […]
Dr. Tom Unnasch, the strategic area lead of Global and Planetary Health in the USF College of Public Health (COPH) was recently named a USF Distinguished University Professor. According to the website of the USF Office of the Provost, Dr. Ralph Wilcox, the award “recognizes senior faculty members who have […]
Until just a few months ago, the people of Masala, Kenya, had no potable water. “They would have to walk seven miles to get drinkable water,” said Oddi Diaz, a USF College of Public Health videographer in the Office of Educational Technology and Assessment. Diaz, who has been with the […]
“Coming from Malawi where access to quality health care, or even just information, is beyond the reach of many is what fuels my passion for public health,” said USF College of Public Health alumna Elizabeth Mkutumula. At only 37-years-old, she said she’s seen too many people die from preventable causes. […]
USF College of Public Health alumna Laura Collins departed for the African island of Mauritius on August 12 where she will be researching primary prevention techniques and observing for unique contributors to the very high incidence of Diabetes Mellitus (Type 2) on the island. Collins will be conducting her independent research […]