Previous Medical News

2009/04/11

1.  Farrah Fawcett Update (Various News Sources)
For the last three years, Farrah Fawcett has been battling anal cancer involving her liver. Her hospitalization this week , was due to a blood clot from a mysterious treatment in Germany. Her medical team is denying she received any stem cell treatment. Her 5 year survival rate is 19%. Risk factors for anal cancer include: smoking, HPV virus exposure, multiple sex partners, and anal intercourse.

2.  Baby broccoli may help prevent stomach cancer (Cancer Prevention Research, 4/09)
Eating two and a half ounces of baby broccoli daily for two months may protect against Hilicobacter pylori, a common stomach bug that is linked to gastritis, ulcers and even stomach cancer. Fresh broccoli sprouts contain plenty of sulforaphane. Sulforaphane is a potent antibiotic against Helicobacter pylori.

3.  Report warns of problems with multivitamins (ConsumerLab, 4/09/09)
One-third, of the multivitamins tested by ConsumerLab/ were found to contain significantly more or less ingredient than claimed or were contaminated with lead. In addition, several products (including three for children) exceeded tolerable limits established by the Institute of Medicine for nutrients such as vitamin A, folic acid, niacin and zinc.

4.  Rapid Test to Detect Bird Flu in People Approved: Results available in less than 40 minutes (FDA, 4/07/09)
A rapid test to detect Bird Flu (the H5N1 strain of avian influenza) has been approved by the FDA. The AVantage A/H5N1 Flu Test detects the deadly strain of bird flu using throat or nose swabs from people with flu-like symptoms. It takes less than 40 minutes to yield results, compared with previous tests that take three or four hours.

5.  New Drug Could Help Wipe Out Scars: Avotermin (Lancet, 4/09)
People left with unsightly scars from injuries or surgery may soon be able to tone down their blemishes with a new drug. Avotermin, has the potential to reduce scarring when administered before a surgical operation or on existing scars. The drug is injected under the skin at the site of the wound before and after an incision is made or surgery is carried out on an existing scar.

6.  FDA reversal OKs morphine painkiller for dying (FDA, 4/10/09)
A liquid morphine painkiller given by family caregivers to dying patients can remain on the market, federal regulators have decided after hearing protests over their decision to remove it. The FDA had announced last week that it was ordering manufacturers to stop making 14 medications including the liquid morphine. All were developed so long ago they had never received FDA approval.

7.  VA Patient Positive for HIV, 10,000 Told to Get Tested (AP, 4/07/09)
The Veterans Affairs Department is investigating whether there's a link between a patient's positive HIV test and unsterilized equipment that may have exposed thousands of veterans to infectious diseases. The positive test was the first reported since the department warned veterans treated at three clinics that they might be at risk for hepatitis. The VA earlier this year warned more than 10,000 veterans to get blood tests because they could have been exposed to contamination while getting colonoscopies in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and Miami. The endoscopic equipment in question was also used at an ear, nose and throat facility in Augusta, Ga. All three sites failed to properly sterilize the equipment between treatments.

8.  Acid reflux medication does not improve asthma: Millions with asthma don't need PPIs (New England Journal of Medicine, 4/09/09)
Heartburn medication for treating asthma is "ineffective" and doesn't improve any asthma symptoms like sneezing, coughing and breathlessness. Asthma patients using powerful acid reflux drugs even though they don't have heartburn should stop taking them. “Silent" acid reflux doesn't have a role in poor asthma control.

9.  Benzyl Alcohol Lotion Approved for Head Lice (FDA, 4/10/09)
A prescription medication, benzyl alcohol lotion 5 percent, has been approved by the FDA to treat head lice. After two, 10-minute treatments given a week apart, more than 75 percent of trial participants treated with the lotion were lice free. The most common side effects of the treatment were irritations of the skin, scalp and eyes, and application site numbness. The product should never be used in infants younger than six months.

10.  Should the U.S. Tax High-Sugar Drinks? (In the News)
It’s an idea that is here to stay. The need for revenue and to control health care costs are just too pressing. Desperate for revenue, states are considering taxes on sugared beverages, those drinks with added sugar, high fructose corn syrup or other caloric sweeteners. The governor of New York has proposed an 18 percent tax on sugared beverages. Is it good for your health or too much big brother?

11.  Cutting out sugary drinks helps weight loss (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 4/09)
When it comes to losing weight, what you drink may be more important than what you eat.

12.  Diet soda linked to higher diabetes risk (Diabetes Care, 4/09)
Middle-aged and older adults who drink diet soda everyday may have a heightened risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

13.  As Work Stress Rises, So May Depression (Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 4/08/09)
A stressful work environment brought on by lack of team spirit increases worker depression and the odds that employees will turn to antidepressants for relief.

14.  1 in 5 obese among 4-year-olds (Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 4/6/09)
Almost 1 in 5 American 4-year-olds is obese, and the rate is alarmingly higher among American Indian children, with nearly a third of them obese.

15.  Obesity Boosts Gum Disease Risk (International Association of Dental Research general session, 4/4/09)
Obese adults are at higher risk of gum disease than are normal-weight people. The common denominator may be inflammation.

16.  Large waist may boost heart failure risk (Circulation, 4/7/09)
Both body mass index (BMI) and waist size influence a person's risk of being hospitalized with heart failure or dying of the condition.

17.  Teen pregnancy boosts girls' risk of getting fat (Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 4/09)
Young women who have children in their teens are at greater risk of becoming fat than their peers who don't get pregnant.

18.  Topical Spray Helped Men With Premature Ejaculation: PSD502 spray (BJU International, 4/09)
A new spray enabled men with premature ejaculation to delay their orgasm six times longer than before. The spray contains 7.5 milligrams of lidocaine and 2.5 mg of prilocaine (200 men).

19.  'Good 'baby fat keeps adults slim (New England Journal of Medicine, 4/09/09)
Adults who retain their 'good' baby fat (brown fat) may be buffered against obesity and type 2 diabetes. It may one day be possible to stimulate brown fat growth to both control weight and improve glucose metabolism, thereby preventing obesity and type 2 diabetes.

20.  Belly Fat May Raise Restless Legs Risk (Neurology, 4/7/09)
There’s a link between belly fat and the movement disorder restless legs syndrome.

21.  More U.S. Kids Taking Diabetes, Blood Pressure Drugs (Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 4/09)
The number of American children and teens taking drugs to lower blood pressure and control diabetes has risen significantly since 2004.

22.  Troubled teen? A summer job might help (Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 9/09)
When a friend of a friend attempts suicide, at-risk teens are more likely to attempt suicide as well. But having a summer job may protect vulnerable teens from copycat suicide attempts.

23.  Recall: Psoriasis Drug Raptiva Pulled From Market (Genentech, 4/8/09)
The psoriasis drug Raptiva is being withdrawn from the U.S. market. The drug has been linked to a rare brain infection called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).