Research Roundup: Premature Births; Azithromycin; Alzheimer’s; Isolation; Insurance Coverage

The Hill: Research Links Climate Change To Premature, Underweight Or Stillborn Babies 
A new study has found that pregnant women exposed to air pollution and high temperatures are more likely to give birth to preterm, stillborn or underweight children. The review, published in JAMA Network Open, examined more than 32 million births and found an association between climate change effects such as heat, ozone and fine particulate matter, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Researchers also found that minority women, particularly black mothers, were impacted the most. (Mihaly, 6/18)

The New York Times: Climate Change Tied To Pregnancy Risks, Affecting Black Mothers Most
Pregnant women exposed to high temperatures or air pollution are more likely to have children who are premature, underweight or stillborn, and African-American mothers and babies are harmed at a much higher rate than the population at large, according to sweeping new research examining more than 32 million births in the United States. The research adds to a growing body of evidence that minorities bear a disproportionate share of the danger from pollution and global warming. Not only are minority communities in the United States far more likely to be hotter than the surrounding areas, a phenomenon known as the “heat island” effect, but they are also more likely to be located near polluting industries. (Flavelle, 6/18)

CIDRAP: Azithromycin Tied To Higher Risk Of Death
A large new study has found that outpatient use of the antibiotic azithromycin is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular death compared with use of amoxicillin, US researchers reported this week in JAMA Network Open. The retrospective cohort study looked at nearly 8 million prescriptions given to nearly 3 million patients over a 16-year period and found that, compared with the use of amoxicillin, azithromycin was associated with approximately twice the risk of cardiovascular death and non-cardiovascular death within 5 days of exposure. (Dall, 6/19)

The New York Times: Living In Poverty May Increase Alzheimer’s Risk
Living in a poor neighborhood may increase the risk for the brain changes characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, researchers report. A study in JAMA Network Open included 427 people who had donated their brains to two research center brain banks. Scientists linked their addresses to the Area Deprivation Index, a 10-point scale that ranks neighborhoods by their level of socioeconomic disadvantage. (Bakalar, 6/22)

Health Affairs: Isolation And Health
Social isolation and loneliness are increasingly recognized as important public health issues. Evidence of social isolation’s negative effect on health is robust, and there is a great need for the expansion of effective interventions and policies to reduce isolation and its health consequences. Indeed, as described in a Health Affairs blog post accompanying this brief, with the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and the associated recommendations regarding sheltering in place, self-isolation, and social distancing, these consequences may be more salient. This brief defines social isolation and loneliness, reviews their prevalence and likely causes, discusses evidence connecting them to health, and outlines potential policy interventions and challenges to be addressed. (Holt-Lunstad, 6/22)

The Commonwealth Fund: Early Look At Implications COVID-19 Pandemic For Health Coverage 
This survey, conducted in late May through early June, provides a snapshot of U.S. health insurance coverage in the midst of a severe recession. The survey findings also highlight the complexity of our health insurance system, and the ways in which families, both pre- and post-pandemic, piece together both their employment and coverage. (Collins et al, 6/23)