Previous Medical News
2010/07/17
1. Avandia Raises Heart Risk But Should Stay on Market (FDA, 7/14/10)
An expert panel convened by the Food and Drug Administration voted to keep the diabetes drug Avandia on the market even though a 2007 study found a 43 percent increase in heart attacks and a 64 percent spike in heart disease deaths in diabetics taking Avandia. The recommendations now go to the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of the FDA for final decision.FDA is requiring GlaxoSmithKline to conduct a definitive study comparing the safety of Avandia compared to Actos, but the results will not be available for at least five years.
2. Glaucoma Cases on the Rise in U.S. (Prevent Blindness America, 7/11/10)
The changing makeup of the U.S. population is expected to lead to an increase in cases of glaucoma, the leading cause of vision loss in the country. A number of demographic and health trends have increased the number of Americans who fall into the major risk groups for glaucoma. These trends include:
- The aging of America
- Growth in the black and Hispanic populations
- The ongoing obesity epidemic
And as more people become at risk, regular eye exams become increasingly important. Glaucoma is most often caused by an increase in the normal fluid pressure inside the eye. The added pressure damages the optic nerve, the bundle of more than a million nerve fibers that send signals from the eye to the brain. In most cases, people first notice that they have glaucoma when they begin to lose their peripheral vision. By then, it's too late to save much of their eyesight. Risk factors for glaucoma: age over 60, race (African -American or Hispanic), obesity, and diabetes. The National Eye Institute recommends dilated eye exams at least every two years for people at increased risk for glaucoma.
3. Cheney Has 'Bridge to Transplant' Heart Device Implanted (Multiple sources, 7/10)
69 year old former vice president Cheney has undergone surgery for heart failure to have a pump implanted in his heart. It’s called a Left Ventricular Assist Device. The left ventricular assist device is a more modest version of the "artificial heart" that physicians have used for more than 25 years, without much success, to save people whose hearts are weakened by disease. The mechanism aids in pumping blood through the body. Hazards include mechanical failure, and a blood clot in the pump can cause stroke.
4. Many docs don't blow whistle on colleagues (Journal of the American Medical Association, 7/14/10)
17 percent of the doctors surveyed had direct, personal knowledge of an impaired or incompetent physician in their workplace. One-third of those doctors had not reported the matter to authorities such as hospital officials or state medical boards. The American Medical Association and other professional groups say doctors have an ethical obligation to make such reports. And many states require doctors to tell authorities about colleagues who endanger patients because of alcoholism, drug abuse or mental illness.
5. Salsa, Guacamole Rising Source of Foodborne Illness (CDC, 7/10/10)
Salsa and guacamole are becoming increasingly significant causes of foodborne disease. Between 1998 and 2008, nearly one out of every 25 restaurant-associated foodborne disease outbreaks with food sources that could be identified were caused by contaminated salsa or guacamole. Improper storage times or temperatures may have contributed to the foodborne illnesses, and were reported in 30 percent of salsa/guacamole outbreaks in restaurants or delis. In addition, in 20 percent of the restaurant outbreaks, food workers were reportedly the source of contamination.
6. Cancer survivors have higher death risk for decades: Childhood Cancer Survivors Face Higher Death Risk (Journal of the American Medical Association, 7/14/10)
People who survive cancer in childhood have a heightened risk of dying of a heart attack, stroke or another cancer decades later -- a risk that is likely to be due to the original treatment. We need to find ways of improving the treatment and ensuring these patients have better access to long-term care.
7. More than 1,000 exposed to dengue in Florida: Nearly 5% Exposed to Dengue Virus in Key West (CDC, 7/13/10)
Five percent of the population of Key West, Florida -- more than 1,000 people -- have been infected at some point with the dengue virus. This sometimes deadly infection is making its way north into the United States. Dengue is the most common virus transmitted by mosquitoes, infecting 50 million to 100 million people every year and killing 25,000 of them. It can cause classic flu-like symptoms but can also take on a hemorrhagic form that causes internal and external bleeding and sudden death. Companies are working on a vaccine but there is not any effective drug to treat it. Dengue was eradicated in the United States in the 1940s but a few locally acquired U.S. cases have been confirmed along the Texas-Mexico border since the 1980s. More cases have been reported recently in Mexico and the Caribbean.
8. Being a perfectionist can take toll on health (Association for Psychological Science, 7/12/10)
Though perfection is an impossible goal, striving for it can be a boon for one’s health. But the same lofty goals can mean added mental pressure when mistakes are made and cause resistance to asking for help from others in fear of revealing one's true, imperfect self. In fact, studies show the personality trait of perfectionism is linked to poor physical health and an increased risk of death.
9. Tea, exercise, vitamin D reduce risk of dementia (International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease, 7/11/10)
Lifestyle does matter when it comes to lowering your risk of getting Alzheimer’s disease. Certain habit change including drinking tea regularly, physical exercise, and vitamin D intake, may help prevent dementia. The studies were presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Honolulu.
First Study: Those who had moderate to heavy amounts of physical activity had about a 40% lower risk of developing dementia, while participants engaging in the least amount of activity were 45% more likely to develop dementia.
Second Study: Those who drank tea one to four times a week had a 37% lower chance of developing dementia than participants who didn't drink tea at all.
Third Study: Those who are deficient in vitamin D have 42% higher chances of suffering from cognitive impairment.
10. Bad hot flashes? Try dropping a few pounds (Archives of Internal Medicine, 7/12/10)
Overweight women who suffer from bothersome hot flashes may find some relief by losing some weight. Women who participated in a program that encouraged them to exercise more and eat less improved their hot flashes more than a group with little weight-loss coaching.
11. Stroke Risk Higher in Hour After 'Happy Hour' (Stroke, 7/15/10)
Just one drink -- whether beer, wine, or hard liquor -- may double your risk of stroke in the hour after your cocktail hour. A few hours later your risk seems to return to its previous level. Alcohol may increase blood pressure levels or affect the blood's ability to clot. One drink consists of either 12-ounces of beer, 4 ounces of wine, 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits, or 1 ounce of 100-proof spirits.
12. High heels 'shrink calf muscle fibers’: The Pain of High Heels, Explained at Last (Journal of Experimental Biology, 7/10)
Researchers have discovered why women who often wear high heels can find it painful to wear flat shoes. Scans of the calf muscles in a group of frequent heel wearers found muscle fibres were, on average, 13% shorter than in those who avoided high heels. High heels led to stiffer tendons in the calf. Some time spent in flatter footwear as well as stretching exercises would help to combat the effect and counteract some of these changes. One useful tip is for high heel wearers to stand on tip toes on a step, and using a handrail for balance to lower their heels as far as they can before raising them up again. Also, don’t wear heels or flat shoes all the time but wear a variety of heel heights to get the calf muscles working through the greatest range of movement.
13. Farm, food service jobs tied to heart disease risk (Diabetes Care, 7/10)
Americans in certain lines of work, including transportation, food service and farming, may have a relatively high rate of risk factors for heart disease, diabetes and stroke. At the other end of the spectrum health professionals, scientists and artists are among those with the lowest rates of so-called metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome refers to a collection of risk factors for diabetes, heart disease and stroke -- including abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, low levels of "good" HDL cholesterol and high triglycerides (another type of blood fat). The syndrome is typically diagnosed when a person has three or more of those conditions, and it can double the risk of heart attack and stroke. Workers in the farm industry and food service (other than waiters and waitresses) had the highest rates of metabolic syndrome -- at around 30 percent. That compares to an overall U.S. risk of about 22 percent. Meanwhile, the risk factors were seen in roughly one-quarter of Americans in the transportation industry (truck drivers and other workers), construction and non-professional health services (excluding people such as doctors and nurses). At the other end of the heart-risk spectrum were writers, artists, entertainers and athletes and the category that included scientists, engineers and architects, where the rates of metabolic syndrome were 8 percent to 9 percent. Doctors, nurses and other health professionals had a rate of 12 percent. In most cases, the job-related differences in metabolic syndrome appeared to be explained by differences in other associated factors -- including rates of obesity and smoking, exercise habits and race. The exception was the transportation industry, where the work itself remained linked to an increased risk of metabolic syndrome even with the other factors taken into account. Factors not measured in this study -- such as irregular work schedules and poorer sleep habits, or job stress -- might help explain the link between transportation work and metabolic syndrome. People in certain job fields need to be especially aware of ways to control their risk factors for heart disease and diabetes.
14. Sleep apnea increases the risk of heart disease or death by two-thirds (Circulation, 7/10)
Moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea increases the risk of coronary heart disease or death by 68% in men under the age of 70, but does not increase the risk for men over 70 or for women. Obstructive sleep apnea is marked by the frequent collapse of the airway during sleep, making it difficult for victims to breathe for periods lasting as long as 10 seconds. Those with a severe form of the disorder have at least 30 disruptions per hour. These disruptions not only interfere with sleep, leaving the victim unusually tired the next day, but also reduce the amount of oxygen in the blood, which can impair the function of internal organs. An estimated 24% of adult men and 9% of adult women suffer from it.
15. Higher vitamin E intake tied to lower dementia risk (Archives of Neurology, 7/10)
Older adults who get plenty of vitamin E in their diets may have a somewhat lower risk of developing dementia than those who consume less of the nutrient. Food sources of vitamin E include wheat germ, nuts such as almonds and hazelnuts, vegetable oils such as sunflower and safflower oils, and some green vegetables, such as spinach and broccoli.
16. Being Obese Can Cost a Man Eight Years (International Congress on Obesity, 7/13/10)
Men who are obese at age 20 die about eight years earlier than other men.
17. Excess Weight in Older Women Linked to Diminished Memory: Body Shape May Affect Mental Acuity (Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 8/10)
The more a postmenopausal woman weighs, the worse her memory. The negative impact on memory was more pronounced in "pear-shaped" women who carry excess weight around their hips, and less of a factor in "apple-shaped" women who carry it around their waists.
18. Could Having a Bigger Head Help Slow Alzheimer's? (Neurology, 7/13/10)
Alzheimer's disease develops slower in people with bigger heads, perhaps because their larger brains have more cognitive power in reserve.
19. Vitamin D levels linked to Parkinson's disease risk (Archives of Neurology, 7/10)
Greater levels of vitamin D have been linked to a lower risk of Parkinson's disease. Continuously inadequate vitamin D status leads to a chronic loss of dopaminergic neurons in the brain. The researchers could not explain how vitamin D levels may affect Parkinson's risk, but we know the nutrient has been shown to exert a protective effect on the brain through antioxidant activities, regulation of calcium levels, detoxification, modulation of the immune system and enhanced conduction of electricity through neurons.
20. Air pollution, asthma linked to suicide (American Journal of Psychiatry, 7/10)
Asthma -- and even days of unusually bad air pollution – appear to increase the risk of suicide. Respiratory problems may worsen a person’s mental state.
21. Sony Warns of 3D Sickness With PlayStation 3 (IGN, 7/13/10)
Sony has updated its Terms of Service for the PlayStation 3. Some people may experience discomfort (such as eye strain, eye fatigue or nausea) while watching 3D video images or playing stereoscopic 3D games on 3D televisions. Sony recommends that all viewers take regular breaks while watching 3D video or playing stereoscopic 3D games. Take breaks that are long enough to allow any feelings of discomfort to subside.
22. Beauty and skin: Women Likely to Change Their Hairstyle 100 Times in a Lifetime (Grazia, 7/14/10)
A typical woman changes her hairstyle more than 100 times throughout her life. The average female gets her locks layered, shortened or colored at least twice a year between the ages of 13 and 65. Most women will experiment with at least three colors. A third will change their hair after a breakup and nearly half will opt for a new look simply because they are bored.
23. Smoking Alters Gene Function (BMC Medical Genomics, 7/10)
Exposure to cigarette smoke dramatically altered genes including those linked to tumor growth, inflammatory disease, and immune system suppression. It is not clear if the changes reverse when you stop smoking.
24. Study Suggests Screening Kids for Cholesterol (Pediatrics, 7/12/10)
One in three children with dangerously high cholesterol is missed by current screening recommendations. Kids with LDL "bad” cholesterol levels of 160 mg/dL or higher are at risk of type 2 diabetes and heart attacks in early adulthood.
25. Recall: Coumadin Samples Recalled: Bristol-Myers Squibb Starts Recall of Coumadin (Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., 7/12/10)
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. is recalling eight production lots of its anti-clotting drug Coumadin because the amount of the active ingredient in the drug could change. A total of 144,672 1-milligram tablets of Coumadin are being recalled which includes five production lots of Coumadin hospital unit doses and three lots of physician samples. All the tablets were distributed in blister packs. No bottled medicine or other doses are involved.
26. Recall: 'Fresh Express' Lettuce Recalled Over E. Coli Strain (FDA, 7/15/10)
Fresh Express is voluntarily recalling certain Romaine lettuce salad products because they may be contaminated with E. coli. The affected Romaine lettuce products have use-by dates of July 8, July 9, July 10, July 11 and July 12, and have an "S" in the product code. No other Fresh Express salads are included in the recall. No illnesses have been reported in association with the recall. Anyone with questions may call the Fresh Express Consumer Response Center at (800) 242-5472, Monday – Friday, 5 a.m. – 8 p.m., Pacific Time.
27. Recall: 'Toxic' Jewelry Recalled From Two Popular Tween Stores: Justice and Limited Too-High levels of Cadmium (U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 7/13/10)
About 137,000 pieces of children's jewelry sold at two stores popular with pre-teen girls — Justice and Limited Too — have been recalled for high levels of the toxic metal cadmium. This recall involves 19 different styles of necklaces, bracelets and earrings distributed by Tween Brands.
