Previous Medical News
2010/06/05
1. New Guidelines for Immunizations (Pediatrics, 6/10)
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), in a revised policy statement, says increasing immunization coverage for children, teens, and young adults should be promoted more aggressively to achieve better immunization rates. The AAP says data from the 2007 National Immunization Survey indicates that about 90% of children between 19 months and 35 months old have received recommended doses of most vaccines.
2. Acupuncture May Trigger Natural Painkiller (Nature, 5/30/10)
Acupuncture can relieve pain. How it works has been a mystery. The neurotransmitter adenosine is released surrounding the needle points and reduces the pain. Adenosine, which inhibits nerve cells in response to injury, acts like the local anesthetic lidocaine.
3. Dogs Sniff Out Prostate Cancer (Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Urological Association, 6/2/10)
Dogs may be able to sniff out the smell of chemicals released into urine by prostate tumors. Many tumors release chemicals with distinct odors that can be picked up by dogs, whose sense of smell is much more sensitive than that of humans.
4. Hospital Stays Shorter for Heart Failure (The Journal of the American Medical Association, 6/2/10)
The average hospital stay for heart failure has declined from almost nine days to just over six days in a little over a decade, but there is new evidence patients may be being sent home too soon.
5. Contaminated Cocaine Can Cause Flesh to Rot (Annals of Internal Medicine, 6/1/10)
Cocaine abusers -- already at risk for an abnormal heartbeat, blood pressure problems, hallucinations, convulsions and stroke -- can add another potential health complication to the list: rotting flesh. Some of the cocaine is not clean and can have other agents that can cause you to have a low white-cell count or skin tissue death. Their profiles were typical of toxicity with levamisole. The medication is a veterinary anti-worming agent, approved for use in cattle, sheep and pigs. It was once used to treat cancer, autoimmune diseases and kidney problems in humans. It's no longer approved for use in people in the United States because of adverse side effects.
6. Caffeine addicts get no real perk from morning cup (Neuropsychopharmacology, 6/10)
Caffeine addiction is such a downer that regular coffee drinkers may get no real pick-me-up from their morning cup. Heavy coffee drinkers develop a tolerance to both the anxiety-producing and the stimulating effects of caffeine, meaning that it only brings them back to baseline levels of alertness, not above them.
7. Chocolate may cut cholesterol but only in some people (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 6/10)
Eating chocolate could bring down cholesterol levels -- but only in small amounts and only in people who already had risk factors for heart disease.
8. Low Fitness in Youth Linked to Hypertension (Hypertension, 6/1/10)
Young adults who don't get enough physical and aerobic exercise increase their risk of having high blood pressure in middle age.
9. Shapewear Garment Burns Calories ((annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine, 6/3/10)
Women who wear a tight girdle-like “shaper garment” while walking on a treadmill burn more calories than they would without it.
10. Waning Sexual Desire May Be Early Sign of ED (annual meeting of the American Urological Association, 6/3/10)
Waning sexual desire may be an early sign of erectile dysfunction (ED). In a study of more than 800 men, those who reported fewer sexual thoughts and desires were more likely to develop ED by nine years later than those who had more sexual fantasies and feelings.
11. ED Can Improve Years After Prostate Surgery (annual meeting of the American Urological Association, 6/1/10)
If your sexual function's not what it used to be a year or two after prostate surgery, hang in there. Men who are having trouble achieving erections after prostatectomy for prostate cancer can achieve improvement in function that's sufficient for sexual intercourse more than two years later.
12. New Drug Spray May Help Premature Ejaculation (annual meeting of the American Urological Association, San Francisco, 6/2/10)
A quick spray of a new drug may help men who suffer from premature ejaculation last nearly six times longer. Men who sprayed the head of their penis with PSD502 five minutes before sex lasted an average of just over three minutes after three months of treatment, compared with just over 30 seconds before. PSD502 contains two common topical painkillers, lidocaine and prilocaine.
13. Sexual, Urinary Health Boosted in Exercisers, Nonsmokers (annual meeting of the American Urological Association in San Francisco, 6/1/10)
Moving around and rejecting cigarettes can improve urinary health in women and sexual health in men.
14. To burn more fat, skip breakfast before workout (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 4/10)
If you really want to get rid of more fat, you should skip the pre-workout snack.
15. New finding could yield urine test for autism (Journal of Proteome Research, 6/10)
A newly discovered chemical fingerprint could yield a simple urine test to determine if a child has autism. Autism and related disorders affect up to six or seven out of every 1,000 individuals. Symptoms are life-long and can vary widely, but often include impaired social skills, repetitive behaviors, difficulty in expressing one's emotions, and an aversion to physical intimacy. There is no known cure. A confirmed diagnosis is rare before the age of 18 months, and most often occurs much later. People with autism typically suffer from gastrointestinal problems stemming from a different bacterial makeup in the gut. The way in which the body metabolizes these unique intestinal flora creates a chemical signature in urine.
16. Hormone patch may be safer for women (British Medical Journal, 6/3/10)
Women who want to use hormone replacement therapy may be less likely to have a stroke if they use low-dose patches instead of pills. Those who used estrogen patches to control symptoms of menopause did not have any higher risk of stroke than women who did not use HRT.
17. Breast Cancer Vaccine Possible (Nature Medicine, 5/30/10)
This is a study in mice but the results suggest that a preventive breast cancer vaccine might be possible in humans. The study authors gave vaccinations to mice that were genetically engineered to be susceptible to cancer. The mice that were vaccinated with an anti-cancer antigen didn't develop tumors, but all the others did.
18. Warning about Protein drinks (Consumer Reports, 6/2/10)
Consumer Reports is warning people who work out to exercise caution when taking protein shakes. Their investigation studied 15 different protein powders and drinks and found that they could poison you with toxic heavy metals if you drink them too often. The dangerous metals include arsenic, cadmium, mercury and lead. The drinks causing the most concern are EAS Myoplex Original Rich Dark Chocolate Shake, and two Muscle Milk powders - the Vanilla Crème and Chocolate - which only needed 3 servings a day to be over the limit.
19. Prolia Approved for Post-Menopausal Women with Osteoporosis: Injectable drug given once every 6 months (FDA, 6/2/10)
The Food and Drug Administration has approved Amgen's bone strengthening drug, Prolia, for postmenopausal women at risk for fractures. The injectable drug is given once every six months to increase bone mass and strength. Common side effects with the drug included back pain, high cholesterol and urinary bladder infections. Prolia will cost $825 per injection.
20. Experts find compound to fight bird, seasonal flu: Nucleozin (Nature Biotechnology, 5/10)
Scientists have identified a chemical compound that can stop the H5N1 bird flu virus as well as seasonal human flu viruses from replicating. The chemical is called "nucleozin." Finding new flu drugs is essential as flu viruses mutate they become resistant to the current available anti-flu drugs: Tamiflu and Ralenza.
21. Survey: Talk Therapy as Good as Antidepressants (Consumer Reports Health, 7/10)
Antidepressants are commonly prescribed for treating both anxiety and depression, but talk therapy appears to work just as well as the medications. People who both take medicine and get therapy fare even better.
22. Farm kids at lower allergy risk, even in their 70s (Allergy, 5/17/10)
People who spent the first five years of their lives on a farm were about 20 percent less likely to have itchy, runny eyes and noses due to allergies, from age 16 up through to age 75. Only farms with livestock confer this protection. How contact with farm animals might cut allergy risk is not clear, although drinking unpasteurized milk and exposure to certain types of bacteria are two mechanisms that have been proposed.
23. Too Much Pregnancy Weight Gain Hurts Child's Heart (Circulation, 6/15/10)
Any weight gain during the first 14 weeks of pregnancy -- or more than a pound a week between weeks 14 and 36 -- raise the odds your child will show signs of heart disease by age 9.
24. 'Helicopter' Parents Have Neurotic Kids (Association of Psychological Science Convention, 5/29/10)
Overly protective parents might be leaving a lasting impact on their child's personality, and not in a good way. Having so-called "helicopter parents" was associated with being dependent, neurotic and less open. This study demonstrates that hovering parents produce neurotic children.
25. 20% of U.S. High Schoolers Abuse Prescription Drugs (CDC, 6/3/10)
One in five high school students in the United States has taken a prescription medication that was not prescribed for them.
26. Recall: Newborn Death Prompts Recall of Baby Slings from Sprout Stuff (Consumer Product Safety Commission, 6/02/10)
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has urged parents to immediately stop using the infant slings from Sprout Stuff in Austin, Texas — saying the slings pose a suffocation risk. The death of a 10-day-old boy in Texas has prompted the recall.
27. Recall: PediaCare Children's Drugs Recalled (Blacksmith Brands, 6/1/10)
More children's medicines -- four products sold under the PediaCare brand name -- have been recalled. The drugs contain incorrect dosages and were produced in unsafe manufacturing conditions
- PediaCare Multi-Symptom Cold 4oz. UPC # 3 0045-0556-05 9
- PediaCare Long Acting Cough 4oz. UPC# 3 0045-0465-04
- PediaCare Decongestant 4oz. UPC# 3 0045-0554-04 8
- PediaCare Allergy and Cold 4oz. UPC# 3 0045-0552-04 4
28. Recall: McDonald's pulls cadmium-tainted 'Shrek' glasses (Consumer Product Safety Commission, 6/4/10)
Cadmium has been discovered in the painted design on "Shrek"-themed drinking glasses being sold nationwide at McDonald's. The 16-ounce glasses are being sold for about $2 each as part of a promotional campaign for the movie "Shrek Forever After.” Cadmium is a known carcinogen that research shows also can cause bone softening and severe kidney problems. The glasses were manufactured by ARC International of Millville, N.J.
29. Obesity and asthma are linked (Allergy, 5/7/10)
A new study confirms a link between obesity and asthma. Twelve percent of the obese individuals had asthma, compared to six percent of the normal-weight study participants.
30. Link Between Antidepressants and Miscarriage (Canadian Medical Association Journal, 6/10)
Women who take antidepressant medications during pregnancy may have an increased risk of miscarriage. This includes selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) and the older tricyclics.
31. Certain Popular Antidepressants Linked to Cataracts in Seniors (Ophthalmology, 6/10)
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) appear to boost the risk for developing cataracts among seniors by approximately 15 percent. Strong links to cataract risk were found for three specific SSRI drugs: fluvoxamine (Luvox), venlafaxine (Effexor) and paroxetine (Paxil). Each contributed to an elevated risk of 39 percent, 33 percent and 23 percent, respectively.
32. Burger diet linked to higher childhood asthma risk (Thorax, 6/10)
Children who eat three or more burgers a week may be at a higher risk of asthma and wheezing, but a healthy diet rich in fruit and fish seems to stave off the risk.
33. Nighttime Urination Linked to Higher Death Risk (Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Urological Association, 6/1/10)
Men and women who have to get up two or more times a night to urinate appear to be at an increased risk of death. The greater risk of deaths in younger adults suggests frequent night urination is a warning sign for subclinical disease or for the impending development of chronic disease. In older adults, falls and fractures that occur when people get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night may account for some of the increase in mortality. You should advise your physician of the problem and undergo a thorough workup to determine if there is an underlying cause to your nocturia. Even simple steps like avoiding fluids at night may help.
34. Study confirms link between migraines and stroke (American Journal of Medicine, 5/20/10)
People who suffer migraines are about twice as likely as people without the painful headaches to suffer a stroke caused by a blood clot.
