From 1991 to 1997, HIV-related risk behaviors have decreased among high school students nationwide. To determine whether HIV-related risk behaviors among high school students were also declining in urban areas, CDC examined data from eight cities that conducted the Youth Risk Behavior Survey between 1991 and 1997. Those cities were Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Fort Lauderdale, Jersey City, Miami, Philadelphia, and San Diego. The study found that in most of the eight cities, the proportions of high school students who ever had sex, who had sex with multiple partners, and who had sex during the past 3 months decreased significantly. Many factors contributed to the reduction of sexual activity and the increase in condom use by teens, including HIV prevention efforts and parental involvement in the community.
Pesticide poisoning continues to occur among workers using flea-control products.
Sixteen cases were reported by state-based surveillance systems. Eight of these resulted in systemic illnesses, and eight involved chemical conjunctivitis resulting from splashing of flea-control products into workers' eyes. Most of the products associated with illness contained either phosmet, an organophosphate insecticide, or pyrethrin. A notifiable disease is one for which regular, frequent, and timely information regarding individual cases is considered necessary for the prevention and control of the disease. Reporting of notifiable diseases is mandated only at the state and local levels.