Haruka Morita

• MPH
• Columbia University

Viral respiratory infections are an important public health concern due to their prevalence, transmissibility, and potential to cause serious disease. Disease severity is the product of several factors beyond the presence of the infectious agent, including specific host immune responses, host genetic makeup, and bacterial coinfections. To understan...

Background Respiratory viral infections account for a substantial fraction of pediatric emergency department (ED) visits. We examined the epidemiological patterns of seven common respiratory viruses in children presenting to EDs with influenza‐like illness (ILI). Additionally, we examined the co‐occurrence of viral infections in the accompanying ad...

Background Respiratory viral infections are a leading cause of disease worldwide. However, the overall community prevalence of infections has not been properly assessed, as standard surveillance is typically acquired passively among individuals seeking clinical care. Methods We conducted a prospective cohort study in which participants provided da...

Background: Viral infection of the respiratory tract is one of the major causes of hospital visits for young children. In this study, we report the occurrence and co-occurrence of different virus types and subtypes among the patients arriving at the pediatric emergency room of New York Presbyterian Hospital, a major urban hospital. Methods: We coll...

Climate change is acknowledged to be a major risk to public health. Skills and competencies related to climate change are becoming a part of the curriculum at schools of public health and are now a competency required by schools in Europe and Australia. However, it is unclear whether graduates of public health programs focusing on climate change ar...

Background Respiratory viral infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. However, their characterization is incomplete because prevalence estimates are based on syndromic surveillance data. Here, we address this shortcoming through the analysis of infection rates among individuals tested regularly for respiratory viral infect...

Since 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has hosted an annual influenza season forecasting challenge. The 2015–2016 challenge consisted of weekly probabilistic forecasts of multiple targets, including fourteen models submitted by eleven teams. Forecast skill was evaluated using a modified logarithmic score. We averaged submi...

A variety of mechanistic and statistical methods to forecast seasonal influenza have been proposed and are in use; however, the effects of various data issues and design choices (statistical versus mechanistic methods, for example) on the accuracy of these approaches have not been thoroughly assessed. Here, we compare the accuracy of three forecast...

Background Advance warning of influenza incidence levels from skillful forecasts could help public health officials and health care providers implement more timely preparedness and intervention measures to combat outbreaks. Compared to influenza predictions generated at regional and national levels, those generated at finer scales could offer great...

Respiratory viruses are common in human populations, causing significant levels of morbidity. Understanding the distribution of these viruses is critical for designing control methods. However, most data available are from medical records and thus predominantly represent symptomatic infections. Estimates for asymptomatic prevalence are sparse and s...

To determine rates of both symptomatic and asymptomatic infection among ambulatory adults, we collected nasopharyngeal swabs, demographics, and survey information from 1477 adult visitors to a New York City tourist attraction during April-July 2016. Multiplex PCR was used to identify specimens positive for common respiratory viruses. 7.2% of sample...

The use of health communication extends beyond simply promoting or disseminating a particular product or proposed behavior change; it involves the systematic and strategic integration and execution of evidence-based, theory-driven, and community engagement strategies. Much like in public health intervention design based on health behavior theory, h...

There is strong evidence of an association between fine particulate matter less than 2.5μm (PM2.5) in aerodynamic diameter and adverse health outcomes. This study analyzes the global excess mortality attributable to the aviation sector in the present (2006) and in the future (three 2050 scenarios) using the integrated exposure response model that w...

There is increasing understanding that climate change will have profound, mostly harmful effects on human health. In this authoritative book, international experts examine long-recognised areas of health concern for populations vulnerable to climate change, describing effects that are both direct (such as heat waves) and indirect, such as via vecto...

Extreme heat is one of the most important global causes of weather-related mortality, and climate change is leading to more frequent and intense heat waves. Recent epidemiologic findings on heat-related health impacts have reinforced our understanding of the mortality impacts of extreme heat and have shown a range of impacts on morbidity outcomes,...

The process of creating a geographically tailored health information website with ongoing feedback from community members is one of inquiry and discovery, frustration and triumph, and development and reevaluation. This article reviews the development and implementation of GetHealthyHarlem.org, a health literacy level-appropriate consumer health inf...

This chapter explores the positive (reinforcing) feedback loop created by the impact of climate change on wildfires and their consequent harmful emissions, including greenhouse gases (GHGs) and other compounds which harm human health. The meteorological factors affecting wildfire risk, the health effects of smoke exposure, the wildfire impacts on c...