title: Decreasing rates of hospitalization for varicella among young adults.
abstract: Hospitalizations for varicella-zoster virus infection (n = 13,018) among active-duty Navy and Marine Corps personnel were studied retrospectively for the years 1981-1994. A large increase in hospitalization rates occurred during the 1980s, peaking in 1987 with 2025 total hospitalizations and a crude rate of 258/100,000 persons. Since that time, hospitalization rates have decreased markedly, with only 473 hospitalizations in 1994 (rate, 74/100,000 persons). In unconditional logistic regression risk factor modeling for varicella hospitalization, personnel at highest risk of hospitalization had foreign homes of record, were most junior in rank, had < or = 2 years of military service, were Filipino or black, were male, and served in the Navy. Adjusted risk of hospitalization fell > 2-fold from 1987-1988 to 1993-1994. These finding may assist military public health officials in developing strategies to prevent varicella morbidity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, USA.
authors.forename: V E
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Herrin
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Gray
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002644:Chickenpox / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D019433:Chickenpox Vaccine / Q000276:immunology; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D019433:Chickenpox Vaccine