A three-dimensional approach to the elimination of racial-ethnic disparities in lung health.

Significant racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic health disparities have been documented in asthma, lung cancer, sarcoidosis, vaccine-preventable pneumonias, tuberculosis, and HIV-related pulmonary infections. Given the complex causation of health disparities,and their resistance to simple interventions, the authors propose a three-dimensional approach for eliminating racial and ethnic health disparities in America. The three dimensions include surveillance and monitoring, research into causes and potential cures, and rapid-cycle testing of interventions to reduce or eliminate disparities.