UW Department of Epidemiology

People in Seattle took more than 10.5 million e-scooter and e-bike trips last year. But in 2024 Harborview treated 163 serious injuries from e-scooters or e-bikes. UW Epi professor Steve Mooney talks with KUOW about injury prevention.

Seattle loves its scooters, just stay off the sidewalk please People in Seattle took more than 10.5 million e-scooter and e-bike trips last year. But scooters can be a risky choice. Harborview treated 163 serious injuries from e-scooters or e-bikes in 2024. Recently, Seattle began requiring companies to use technology to prevent people from riding on the sidew...

Don't miss Riffat Ara Shawon's defense: "Malnutrition Among Children Under Five with Neurodevelopmental Disabilities: Identifying and Managing Risk." Come show your support TOMORROW, and congratulations, Riffat! Event details: https://buff.ly/KH1xGcA

TOMORROW: Anna Harrington will defend her dissertation: "Living Apart, Breathing Apart: Associations between Racial Residential Segregation, Air Pollution Exposure, and Chronic Disease". Good luck tomorrow, Anna! Event details: https://buff.ly/s0i4CDW

What do shingles vaccines, dementia risk, and respiratory viruses have in common? UW Epi faculty member and physician Helen Chu joined epidemiologist Pascal Geldsetzer to discuss new research on the potential benefits of vaccines beyond preventing infection, including findings linking the shingles vaccine to a lower risk of dementia. Listen here:

Can the shingles vaccine stave off dementia? A growing body of research suggests that some common vaccinations have benefits far beyond preventing the disease they were designed for.

New UW-led research found that older adults experiencing cognitive decline that affects daily life were 58% more likely to have an unsecured firearm in their home. The study, co-authored by Epidemiology professor Ali Rowhani-Rahbar and published in JAMA Internal Medicine, highlights the importance of secure firearm storage and provider-patient conversations about safety. Read more in the UW Daily: https://buff.ly/STLT0Xy

TOMORROW: Molly Fischer will be presenting on "Herpes Simplex Virus in Transplant Recipients: Evaluating Serostatus, Shedding, and Breakthrough Infection". Best of luck, Molly! Event details: https://buff.ly/pV0Qo42

Don't miss Omolara Akingba's defense: "STI Burden, PrEP Use, and Client Experiences in Integrated Pharmacy-Based Sexual Health Services for Adolescent Girls and Young Women in Kisumu, Kenya". Congratulations, Omolara! Event details: https://buff.ly/3sgiFJW

On Monday, June 1, Ruby Lucas will defend their dissertation: "Characterizing sexual and reproductive health needs, experiences, and disparities in care access among transgender, nonbinary, and gender expansive communities in the United States." Good luck, Ruby! Event details: https://buff.ly/AvY8jZk

TOMORROW at 10:00 AM, David Coomes will be defending "Geographic mortality and morbidity disparities in the US and Washington State: Migration, rurality, and wildfire smoke. Best of luck, David! event details: https://buff.ly/qFRH0qb

Thank you to Matt Doxey, Senior Applied AI Engineer at Google, for joining yesterday for a fascinating discussion on the future of AI-driven public health surveillance. His presentation, “Towards Agentic Health Surveillance,” highlighted the exciting potential for AI-driven systems to move public health. We greatly appreciated the opportunity to learn from his expertise spanning Google, WA DOH, and IHME.