Vital Signs Town Hall Teleconferences

Preventing 1 Million Heart Attacks and Strokes
Heart attacks and strokes can be catastrophic, life-changing events that are all too common—over 800,000 in 2016. Heart disease and stroke are preventable, yet they remain leading causes of death, disability, and healthcare spending in the US. Million Hearts® is a national initiative with a network of partners focused on preventing one million heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular events by 2022. This teleconference featured a Vital Signs summary and discussion about coordinated actions by public health and healthcare professionals, communities, and healthcare systems that will keep people healthy, optimize care, and improve outcomes.

Zika in Babies: Opportunities for Monitoring Health and Development
Zika virus (“Zika”) infection during pregnancy can cause severe health problems in babies, such as birth defects, problems with vision and hearing, seizures, and developmental delays. More than 4,800 pregnancies in the US territories (American Samoa, Federated States of Micronesia, Puerto Rico, Republic of Marshall Islands, US Virgin Islands) had a lab result showing confirmed or possible Zika from 2016-2018. About 1 in 7 babies that were at least one year old and had some follow-up care reported, had one or more health problems possibly caused by Zika reported to the US Zika Pregnancy and Infant Registry. This teleconference featured a Vital Signs summary and discussion about the importance of identifying these health problems early and helping parents get their babies and children the care they need.

Rising Suicide Rates Across the US
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in the US. Suicide rates increased in nearly every state from 1999 through 2016. Mental health conditions are often seen as the cause of suicide, but suicide is rarely caused by any single factor. In fact, many people who die by suicide are not known to have a diagnosed mental health condition at the time of death. Other problems often contribute to suicide, such as those related to relationships, substance use, physical health, and job, money, legal, or housing stress. This teleconference featured a Vital Signs summary and discussion about the increase in suicide deaths and highlights programs and strategies that support local, state, tribal, national, and other partners in preventing suicide.

Vector-Borne Diseases: The Growing Threat
Almost everyone has been bitten by a mosquito, tick, or flea. These can be vectors for spreading germs. A person who gets bitten by a vector and gets sick has a vector-borne disease, like dengue, Zika, Lyme, or plague. Between 2004 and 2016, 9 new germs spread by bites from infected mosquitoes and ticks were discovered or introduced in the US. State and local health departments and vector control organizations are the nation’s main defense against this increasing threat. This teleconference featured a Vital Signs summary and discussion about public health programs that test and track germs and the mosquitoes and ticks that spread them.

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