On Native Origin of the American Indians

There have been controversies over differing opinions in the source of the American Indians. In this paper, the writer criticized the so-called classical theory that the remote ancestors of the American Indians entered America from Asia through the Bering Straits 14,000 ~ 20,000 years ago, worn their “clothes” and carried kindling during the late Paleolithic, no matter how by “boat” across the Bering Sea or by foot through a “Bering Land Bridge” which might once link up Asia and North America during glacial period;and independently proposed a new hypothesis that American Indians might be originated from the Western Rift Valley of North America. On the basis of locus distribution of American ancient human’s remnants, the writer pointed out that American ancient humans might be first originated at Yukon Territory of Canada within the Western Rift Valley of North America (the Basin & Range Province), and then migrated south ward (Yukon Territory → Mojave Desert → Mexico → Peru → Chile). Moreover, American Indians would have long been a presence for 40,000 years, or even 100,000 ~ 200,000 years in the American continents. So far, the logical basis which American Indians came from Asia 14,000 ~ 20,000 years ago was crushed, and derived two inferences: 1) American Indians might be originated from the Western Rift Valley of North America;2) Only the Eskimo might be the mover eastward from Asia, because of their gene B.

Chronic Hepatitis B in Indian Americans: Lack of Screening and Poor Linkage to Care

Background: Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is a major cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality in the United States (US) and globally. CHB disproportionately affects Asian Americans and many other immigrant minority populations, primarily owing to the high prevalence of CHB in their countries of origin. India is a country with a medium-to-high prevalence of hepatitis B (HB) (>2%) and has over 40 million people infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV), with more than 115,000 deaths annually from HBV-related complications. Indian Americans are one of the largest immigrant populations in the US but remain underdiagnosed and poorly linked to clinical care. We, therefore, assessed the HBV prevalence and evaluated the linkage-to-care (LTC) among Indian Americans to develop strategic plans to reduce the impact of HBV in the US. Methods: Between April 2022 and January 2024, serologic screening and surveys were provided to 328 Indian American adults (age 20 - 80) in New York City. All participants were tested for a triple panel consisting of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs), and hepatitis B core IgG antibody (anti-HBc). A survey was conducted on the subjects chronically infected with HBV regarding their histories of infection. Self-administered questionnaires were employed to evaluate demographic and epidemiologic characteristics. Results: Of 328 screened and evaluated (246 males and 82 females), 10 (3.0%) were HBV-infected, 222 (67.7%) were susceptible to HBV, and 96 (29.3%) were immune. The prevalence of chronic HBV varied between the age groups: 4.6% (age 20 - 40), 3.4% (age 41 - 60), and 1.7% (age 61 - 80). Of 10 chronically infected, only two subjects had been previously diagnosed but were not engaged in care. Conclusion: HBV disproportionately affects Asian Americans, primarily owing to immigration from parts of the world where the disease is endemic. Indian Americans belong to an intermediate-risk group, with an HBV prevalence of >2%, but remain underdiagnosed and poorly linked to care. Our pilot study on Indian American populations, the first of its kind, demonstrates a 3% prevalence of CHB, none of whom are linked to care. In addition, this population has a high percentage of unimmune subjects, creating a large reservoir for future infection. With the growing population of Indian Americans, our findings can be used to develop community-based strategies for HBV screenings and LTC that target high-risk groups.

Does Prenatal Exposure to Alcohol and Cigarette Smoking Increase Risk of Hospitalization for American Indian Infants

Background: Prenatal exposure to alcohol and tobacco are both associated with increased risk for adverse outcomes. American Indians experience disproportionate rates of adverse birth outcomes. The Indian people living in the Great Plains Area of the Indian Health Services have increased exposure to alcohol and smoking during pregnancy. This study aims to assess the relationship between prenatal alcohol and tobacco exposure and early hospitalization in a rural Tribal Nation. Methods: We used data from the prospective Safe Passage Study on pregnancies and hospitalizations within the first year of life. The relationship between time to hospitalization and prenatal tobacco/alcohol exposure, maternal demographics, post-traumatic stress disorder and depression were evaluated. The analysis utilized Chi-square tests. Kaplan-Meier curves were used to estimate the likelihood of hospitalization during the first year of life by substance use category. Results: From a sample of 432 infants, we identified 260 (60.2%) who had a hospitalization. We found no significant effect from that if mother drank, amount drank, amount smoked or if mother smoked, on the risk of hospitalization. We did identify an effect for exposure to alcohol or smoking and age to hospitalization. Exposure was associated with younger age at hospitalization. However, after controlling for mother’s age, this effect was not significant. Mother’s age was significant in all models of hospitalization risk from parental exposure. Discussion: Reducing prenatal exposure to tobacco and alcohol may decrease hospitalization rates for infants from this Tribal Nation, especially among young mothers.

Chronic liver disease in Aboriginal North Americans

A structured literature review was performed to detail the frequency and etiology of chronic liver disease (CLD) in Aboriginal North Americans. CLD affects Aboriginal North Americans disproportionately and is now one of the most common causes of death. Alcoholic liver disease is the leading etiology of CLD, but viral hepatitis, particularly hepatitis C, is an important and growing cause of CLD. High rates of autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) are reported in regions of coastal British Columbia and southeastern Alaska. Non-alcoholic liver disease is a common, but understudied, cause of CLD. Future research should monitor the incidence and etiology of CLD and should be geographically inclusive. In addition, more research is needed on the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in this population.

The Search for the Lost American Indian Identity in Louis Owens’s Wolfsong

The problem of identity is a hot issue frequently talked about in many literary works.Especially,the identity problem or the search for identity can be seen as one of the major themes in the literary works written by ethnic writers.Louis Owens is a distinguished American Indian writer who has Choctaw,Cherokee,and Irish descent.In his debut work Wolfsong which was published in 1995,Louis Owens depicts the story about the protagonist Tom Joseph’s search for his lost American Indian identity.With deep knowledge and notion about American Indian culture and tradition,Owens reveals his worry about their own identity and precious culture and tradition which are disappearing gradually.This paper tries to analyze Tom Joseph’s search for his identity,and discusses how the American Indian tradition and culture influence his endeavor to find the lost American Indian identity.

The Intergenerational Conflicts in Selected Chinese/Indian American Literature

For the early generation of both Chinese and Indian immigrants,their deep immersion in their own language and cultural environment has given their life experience an indelible nostalgia.However,the children of their descendants born in the United States have no such cultural heritage and spiritual burden,their thinking on values,languages,education,occupation,clothing,social communications,etc.are more largely Americanized and culturally identified with the mainstream society.In this way,the various intergenerational conflicts reflected in Chinese and Indian American literature implies the importance of negotiation through the use of shared resource between the old and new identities to balance,adapt and integrate in the adopted land.

Mimicry anp Masquerade in Faulkner's American Indian Characters

Faulkner once said that he made up his American native characters out of his imagination.His American Indian characters are hybrid and grotesque,a disturbing and troubling presence in his work.Yet some critics point out that the construction of Faulkner's American Indians in Yoknapatawpha is not created out of a cultural vacuum and Faulkner assimilated both local and national popular thinking about American Indian people as presented in his stories.Homi K.Bhabha argues that the narration o f a nation is a double address,and there is a split between the pedagogical narrative and the performative narrative of a nation.The pedagogical narrative is horizontal and historicist,which intends to indicate the people as one,whereas the performative narrative obscures the nation's self as one and shows the heterogeneity of the nation.Bhabha argues that there exists a liminal space,a temporality of the“in-between,”in which the nation splits within itself,articulating the heterogeneity of its people rather than the homogeneity.Jacques Lacan's paradigm of the relationship between the subject and the Other is helpful in the understanding of Bhabha's national narration as a double address.I argue that Lacan's paradigm of the intersection of the subject and the Other shows the liminal space of the national narrative by Bhabha.By combining Bhabha's double narrative of the nation and Lacan's graph on the subject and the Other,we could have a new understanding of Faulkner’s American Indian characters in his stories.In this essay,I show how some of Faulkner's American Indian narratives are depicted as the Other,which reflects the characteristics of the pedagogical narrative;and how others can be read as the performative narrative due to the multiple effects of the mimicry of the American Indian characters such as Ikkemotubbe and Sam Fathers.I argue that Faulkner's American Indian narratives are twisted and obscure which can be read as a double narrative,with both the characteristics of the pedagogical and the performative narrative.The narrative of American Indian characters can be regarded as happening in a liminal space where race is fluid and hybrid.

Racial and Health Disparities among Cirrhosis-related Hospitalizations in the USA

Background and Aims:Alcohol-associated liver disease(ALD)is the most common cause of advanced liver disease worldwide,including in the USA.Alcohol use and cirrhosis mortality is higher in American Indian/Alaska Native(AI/AN)compared to Whites.Data are scanty on ALD as a liver disease etiology in AI/AN compared to other races and ethnicities.Methods:The National Inpatient Sample on 199,748 cirrhosis-related hospitalizations,14,241(2,893 AI/AN,2,893 Whites,2,882 Blacks,2,879 Hispanics,and 2,694 Asians or other races)matched 1:1 for race/ethnicity on demographics,insurance,and income quartile of the residence zip code analyzed.Results:After controlling for geographic location and hospital type,odds ratio(OR)and 95%confidence interval(CI)for ALD as cirrhosis etiology was higher among admissions in AI/AN vs.Whites[1.55(1.37–1.75)],vs.Blacks[1.87(1.65–2.11)],vs.Hispanic[1.89(1.68–2.13)]and Asians/other races[2.24(1.98–2.53)].OR was also higher for AI/AN vs.all other races for alcohol-associated hepatitis(AH)as one of the discharge diagnoses.The findings were similar in a subgroup of 4,649 admissions with decompensated cirrhosis and in a cohort of 350 admissions with acute-on-chronic liver failure as defined by EASL-CLIF criteria.Alcohol use disorder diagnosis was present in 38%of admissions in AI/AN vs.24–30%in other races,p<0.001.A total of 838(5.9%)admissions were associated with in-hospital mortality.OR(95%CI)for in-hospital mortality in AI/AN individuals was 34%reduced vs.Blacks[0.66(0.51–0.84)],but no difference was observed on comparison with other races.Conclusions:ALD,including AH,is the most common etiology among cirrhosisrelated hospitalizations in the USA among AI/AN individuals.In-hospital mortality was observed in about 6%of admissions,which was higher for Blacks and similar in other races compared to admissions for AI/AN.Public health policies should be implemented to reduce the burden of advanced ALD among AI/AN individuals.