[at-l] Water Treatment Survey in American Journal of Medicine

[quoleldil at yahoo.com (Quoleldil)]

FYI:

"The American Journal of Medicine" <http://www.amjmed.org/> 
It does not appear to put its articles on line ...
An abstract is available at Pub Med by searching for "boulware dr" or going to
<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12681456&dopt=Abstract>
A more complete abstract is available at:
<http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6TDC-488FKJ1-6&_coverDate=03%2F31%2F2003&_alid=90914167&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_qd=1&_cdi=5195&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=c02a8a62a6d3617a7709b1b334f461a9>
The corresponding author is William J. Martin, II, MD and that link has an email button if you
want to get more info from him.

Here is a copy of the publicly available abstract, which is copyrighted:
Clinical study 
Medical risks of wilderness hiking 

David R. Boulware MDa, William W. Forgey MDa and William J. Martin, II MD, , a 

a Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Department of Medicine and Department of Family
Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA 

Received 15 October 2001;  accepted 16 August 2002. ; Available online 1 April 2003. 




Abstract
Purpose
We sought to determine the extent to which injuries and illnesses limit long-distance or endurance
outdoor recreational activities.

Methods
In a prospective surveillance study, 334 persons who hiked the Appalachian Trail for at least 7
days (mean [± SD] length of hike, 140 ± 60 days) in 1997 were interviewed. At the end of their
hike, subjects completed a questionnaire on injuries, illnesses, water purification methods, and
hygiene practices.

Results
Of the 280 backpackers who responded (a combined 38,940 days of wilderness exposure), 69% (n =
192) achieved their goal. The most important reasons for ending a hike prematurely were injury,
time limitation, and psychosocial reasons. The most common medical complaints were feet blisters
(64%; N = 180), diarrhea (56%, N = 156), skin irritation (51%, N = 143), and acute joint pain
(36%, N = 102). The incidence of vector-borne disease was 4% (n = 11); physician-diagnosed Lyme
disease was the most common, and 24% of hikers (n = 68) reported tick bites. The risk of diarrhea
was greater among those who frequently drank untreated water from streams or ponds (odds ratio
[OR] = 7.7; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.7 to 23; P <0.0001), whereas practicing "good hygiene"
(defined as routine cleaning of cooking utensils and cleaning hands after bowel movements) was
associated with a decreased risk (OR = 0.46; 95% CI: 0.22 to 0.97; P =0.04).

Conclusion
Diarrhea is the most common illness limiting long-distance hikers. Hikers should purify water
routinely, avoiding using untreated surface water. The risk of gastrointestinal illness can also
be reduced by maintaining personal hygiene practices and cleaning cookware. 

Author Keywords: Wilderness medicine; backpacking; mountaineering; camping; diarrhea; hygiene;
Lyme disease 
 

Corresponding author. Requests for reprints should be addressed to William J. Martin II, MD,
College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, P.O. Box 670555, , Cincinnati, Ohio 45267-0555, ,
USA 



OB>>I haven't received this week's JAMA yet, which was the most likely misquoted 
version of the journal's name.

TW> A friend saw a notice on a Yahoo news page titled "Backpackers: Don't Drink 
> the Water" *** It turns out the article
<http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20030424/hl_nm/hikers_water_dc_1> ***


=====
David Addleton
vocate atque non vocate deus aderit
http://dfaddleton.home.att.net/

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