As an intern at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Steve Lao investigated the burden of neonatal herpes in New York City. Contracted as the baby passes through the birth canal, often to mothers who are not aware that they have genital herpes, it frequently leads to death or long-term neurodevelopmental disabilities. Neonatal herpes is a serious condition, affecting as many as 1 in 3,000 live births, but is not a nationally reportable disease. Asking such questions as: do these children require repeat hospitalizations and what is the cost of ongoing treatment, Steve used hospital discharge data to try to piece together a more complete picture of the effects of this disease in the city.
Taking the work a step further, Steve is evaluating the use of hospital discharge data to track neonatal herpes patients over time against the city’s surveillance data for this MPH thesis. “New York City has one of the most robust disease surveillance organizations in the country,” says Steven. “If the hospital data proves to be a reliable alternative to surveillance data, that opens opportunities to other states that do not have the capacity to track the condition.”