Previous Medical News
2009/08/22
1. FDA cracks down on ibuprofen pain relief gels (FDA, 8/20/09)
The Food and Drug Administration has issued warnings to eight companies for illegally marketing pain relief ointments containing ibuprofen. The companies do not have federal permission to market their products, which mix the popular pain relief drug with other ingredients. While ibuprofen is available in a variety of tablets like Advil, the FDA has not approved any ointments. Ibuprofen ointments are often promoted as a safer alternative to pills because they do not carry side effects like stomach ulcers. However, the FDA said there is no research to support that claim.
2. United Health to fully cover swine flu vaccine (United Health, 8/20/09)
Health insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc. said it will cover swine flu vaccines for all of its members.
3. Canadian Health Officials: Our Universal Health Care Is 'Sick,' Private Insurance Should Be Welcomed (CMA, 8/17/09)
Dr. Anne Doig, the incoming president of the Canadian Medical Association, said her country’s health care system is “sick” and “imploding.” Canada’s universal health care system is not giving patients optimal care according to Dr. Doig.
4. Vaccinating school kids best to stop flu (Science, 8/20/09)
New research says the best way to protect society's most vulnerable from the flu: Vaccinate school-age children and their parents. Vaccinating students should be a priority every year — because schoolchildren are influenza's prime spreaders and their parents then are the virus' bridge to the rest of the community.
5. Novartis says FDA approves interferon drug for MS: Extavia (FDA, 8/17/09)
400,000 people have multiple sclerosis in the U.S. which is due to loss of the insulation of the nerve cell. The FDA has approved the drug Extavia, a form of interferon, intended to treat multiple sclerosis. The FDA approved Extavia for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, which is the most common form of the disease. Patients with that type of MS have new symptoms that occur suddenly, or old symptoms that suddenly get worse. Extavia was also approved in patients who experience a first episode of the disease and have symptoms consistent with MS.
6. Popcorn, Whole Grain Cereal Pack Antioxidant Punch (American Chemical Society, 8/18/09)
Whole grains pack a powerful antioxidant punch along with their well-known fiber muscle. Early researchers thought the fiber was the active ingredient for these benefits in whole grains, the reason why they may reduce the risk of cancer and coronary heart disease. But recently, polyphenols emerged as potentially more important. Breakfast cereals, pasta, crackers, and salty snacks constitute over 66% of whole grain intake in the U.S. diet.
7. Cervical Cancer Vaccine Seems Safe (Journal of the American Medical Association, 8/19/09)
The vaccine that protects against human papillomavirus (HPV), a cause of cervical cancer, appears safe, with relatively few serious side effects. For every 100,000 doses of HPV vaccine distributed, the study found 8.2 episodes of fainting and 0.2 episodes involving blood clotting.
8. 'DASH' diet may prevent kidney stones (Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 8/13/09)
A diet widely recommended for lowering blood pressure may also curb people's risk of developing kidney stones. The diet, known as Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH), advocates eating plenty of fruits, vegetables and whole grains, and moderate amounts of low-fat dairy and lean meat and fish as well as beans, seeds and nuts.
9. VA cancer probe finds 6 more botched cases: 98 patients got wrong radiation dose over a six-year period (AP, 8/18/09)
Six more cases have been found of cancer patients being given incorrect radiation doses at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Philadelphia. The errors happened in a common surgical procedure to treat prostate cancer. That brings the total to 98 veterans who were given incorrect radiation doses over a six-year period at the hospital.
10. Heart Attack Survival Rates Rise (Journal of the American Medical Association, 8/19/09)
Americans aged 65 and older are becoming more likely to survive the first month after hospitalization for a heart attack. Data came from more than 2.7 million people aged 65 and older who were admitted to more than 4,000 U.S. hospitals for heart attack treatment between 1995 and 2006.
11. People With Low IQs Die Younger (Pediatrics, 8/09)
Children with lower-than-average intelligence are more likely to die young. The risk of dying by midlife was about twice as high in individuals with low IQ at age 11 as in those with high IQ. Children with parents who were very interested in their child's education (as reported by the children's teachers) had a lower mortality risk than children whose parents had only little interest in how their child was faring in school. Childhood problem behavior, which is known to be associated later on with risky and antisocial behavior, accounted for part of the increased risk that came with a lower IQ.
12. Strep Throat May Have Killed Mozart (Annals of Internal Medicine, 8/17/09)
The death of composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart at the age of 35 may have been caused by complications stemming from strep throat. Mozart fell victim to an epidemic of strep throat infection that was contracted by many Viennese people in Mozart's month of death, and Mozart was one of several persons in that epidemic that developed a deadly kidney complication.
13. Sleep disorders linked to premature deaths: Sleep apnea raises death risk 46 percent (PLoS Medicine, 8/09)
Persons afflicted with severe breathing disorders during sleep face an increased risk of premature death. Earlier research has shown that sleep apnea can lead to increased incidence of hypertension, heart failure and stroke. It can also cause daytime sleepiness, impairing an individual's ability to drive a car or operate machinery.
14. Baby boomers still getting high, US agency says (U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 8/19/09)
Baby boomers, now well into middle age, are still turning on to illegal drugs, doubling the rates of illicit drug use for the older generation. The rates of people aged 50 to 59 who admit to using illicit drugs in the past year nearly doubled from 5.1 percent in 2002 to 9.4 percent in 2007 while rates among all other age groups are the same or decreasing.
15. Overweight friends eat more when they dine together (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 8/09)
Overweight children and teenagers may eat more when they have a snack with an overweight friend /rather than a thinner peer,
16. Chinese Herb May Ease Rheumatoid Arthritis: Triptergium wilfordii (Annals of Internal Medicine, 8/09)
The Chinese herbal remedy Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F (TwHF), also known as “lei gong teng” or "thunder god vine," helped decrease joint tenderness and pain in a small group of people treated with the medicinal plant. Those who took an extract of the herb's roots experienced greater improvement in rheumatoid arthritis symptoms than those who took the anti-inflammatory drug sulfasalazine.
17. Good Jokes Cure Bad Moods (Emotion, 8/09)
A great joke can often quickly lift us out of a bad mood. A joke works not just because the humor distracts us from negative emotions but because of the cognitive work we need to do to "get" the joke.
18. U.S. Life Expectancy Hits a New High of 78 (CDC, 8/19/09)
U.S. life expectancy is the highest it has ever been at 77.9 years. Women still live on average more than five years longer than men. Death rates also fell, with the age-adjusted death rate dropping to 760.3 deaths per 100,000 people. The 2007 increase in life expectancy, up from 77.7 in 2006, represents a continuation of a trend. Over a decade, life expectancy has increased 1.4 years from 76.5 years in 1997 to 77.9 in 2007.
19. Depression's Effect on Pleasure Is Real (NeuroReport, 8/26/09)
Loss of interest in previously enjoyable activities is a common sign of depression -- and it's a neurological response that researchers can actually see in the brain. When listening to their favorite music, depressed people showed less activity in regions of the brain that are involved with experiencing pleasure and processing rewards compared with healthy people.
20. Romantic Candlelit Dinners Could Cause Cancer (annual meeting of the American Chemical Society, 8/19/09)
Burning certain kinds of candles may actually be hazardous to your health. Fumes from paraffin wax candles — the most popular and cheapest kind of candles — can be poisonous and even cause cancer. Candles made from beeswax and soy, although more expensive, apparently are healthier. They do not release potentially harmful amounts of indoor air pollutants.
21. Obsession With Healthy Eating Strains Relations: Orthorexia (British Dietetic Association, 8/17/09)
Orthorexia is an obsession with eating only healthy foods. It is motivated by a desire to feel healthy, natural, and "pure" -- as opposed to anorexia, which is motivated by a desire to lose weight.
22. Adult video gamers often overweight, depressed (American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 10/09)
The average video gamer in the U.S. today is 35 years old -- and not all that healthy physically or emotionally. The typical adult video game player is overweight, introverted and may be a little bit depressed.
23. Recalled Bassinets Blamed for Deaths of 2 More Infants, Bringing Total Deaths to 4 (Consumer Product Safety Commission, 8/20/09)
The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that two young children died after getting trapped in previously recalled Simplicity close-sleeper/beside sleeper bassinets.
24. Many teens share prescription drugs (Journal of Adolescent Health, 8/3/09)
Many teenagers may be sharing their prescription medications with their friends, putting them at risk of drug side effects or having a health problem go undiagnosed. 20 percent admitted to having lent a prescription drug to a friend, while a similar percentage said they had done the borrowing. The most commonly shared prescriptions were allergy drugs and narcotic pain relievers like Oxycontin and Darvocet, followed by antibiotics, acne medications like Accutane, and mood drugs such antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications.
25. Recall: Accusure Insulin Syringes from Qualitest Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (FDA, 8/21/09)
