Public Health

OBJECTIVE: To review the published literature on the efficacy of ketamine for the treatment of suicidal ideation (SI). METHODS: The PubMed and Cochrane databases were searched up to January 2015 for clinical trials and case reports describing therapeutic ketamine administration to patients presenting with SI/suicidality. Searches were also conducted for relevant background material regarding the pharmacological function of ketamine. RESULTS: Nine publications (six studies and three case reports) met the search criteria for assessing SI after administration of subanesthetic ketamine...

BACKGROUND: Chronic hepatitis B is a liver disease associated with high morbidity and mortality. Chronic hepatitis B requires long-term management aiming to reduce the risks of hepatocellular inflammatory necrosis, liver fibrosis, decompensated liver cirrhosis, liver failure, and liver cancer, as well as to improve health-related quality of life. Acupuncture is being used to decrease discomfort and improve immune function in people with chronic hepatitis B. However, the benefits and harms of acupuncture still need to be established in a rigorous way...

The recent conference Turning the Tide: A New Generation of Public Health Interventions highlighted the need to utilize innovative and emergent methodologies to confront increasingly complex public health challenges. In this commentary, we discuss three dominant themes from the conference: addressing multiple levels of causality in reducing health problems; technology-based methodologies to enhance health promotion; and improving translation and sustainment of effective health promotion programs. The subsequent articles, included in this supplement issue of AJPH, provide compelling examples and arguments supporting these progressive approaches to public health promotion...