MedPage Today

Articles, page 20

October 29, 2009Oct 29, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent The Internet can be a great source of information about the pandemic H1N1 flu, but it's also the mother lode of swine flu scams, the FDA is…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent

The Internet can be a great source of information about the pandemic H1N1 flu, but it’s also the mother lode of swine flu scams, the FDA is warning.

The agency says consumers should beware of products sold over the Internet that claim to diagnose, prevent, treat, or cure the …

Drugs and prescribing

This is why children need the H1N1 flu vaccine

MedPage Today

October 28, 2009Oct 28, 20097

by Crystal Phend, MedPage Today Senior Staff Writer The pandemic H1N1 influenza virus continues to disproportionately attack the young, the CDC warned. Children and adults under age 25 have accounted for 53% of hospitalizations for laboratory-confirmed H1N1 and 23.6% of…

by Crystal Phend, MedPage Today Senior Staff Writer

The pandemic H1N1 influenza virus continues to disproportionately attack the young, the CDC warned.

Children and adults under age 25 have accounted for 53% of hospitalizations for laboratory-confirmed H1N1 and 23.6% of related deaths since Sept. 1, the agency reported at a press briefing.

Seniors, on the other hand, have accounted for just 7% of …

Conditions and diseases

What does H1N1 pandemic flu as a national emergency mean?

MedPage Today

October 27, 2009Oct 27, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent President Barack Obama's declaration that the H1N1 pandemic flu is a national emergency doesn't mean the course of the outbreak has changed, health experts said. But as…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent

President Barack Obama’s declaration that the H1N1 pandemic flu is a national emergency doesn’t mean the course of the outbreak has changed, health experts said.

But as the volume of cases increases, the declaration allows doctors and hospitals more flexibility in handling the expected surge in patients, they said.

“I …

Conditions and diseases

Should doctors fire young patients if their parents refuse to vaccinate them?

MedPage Today

October 22, 2009Oct 22, 200917

Originally published in MedPage Today by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent If parents refuse to vaccinate their children, it's ethical and legal to dismiss the child as a patient, a pediatrician told attendees of the American Academy of…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent

If parents refuse to vaccinate their children, it’s ethical and legal to dismiss the child as a patient, a pediatrician told attendees of the American Academy of Pediatrics meeting here.

“In the middle of treatment, you can’t just say, I’m done,” Gary Marshall, MD, of the University of Louisville …

Conditions and diseases

When patients receive too much radiation from CT scans by mistake

MedPage Today

October 21, 2009Oct 21, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Crystal Phend, MedPage Today Senior Staff Writer Reports of stroke patients who were accidentally exposed to eight times the normal radiation dose during diagnostic CT scans at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles are…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Crystal Phend, MedPage Today Senior Staff Writer

Reports of stroke patients who were accidentally exposed to eight times the normal radiation dose during diagnostic CT scans at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles are prompting safety warnings and soul searching among radiologists nationwide.

Over an 18-month period, 206 patients at the center received 3 to 4 …

Conditions and diseases

Will co-sleeping with your infant increase the risk of SIDS?

MedPage Today

October 20, 2009Oct 20, 200912

Originally published in MedPage Today by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer Just over half -- 54% -- of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) cases in southwest England occurred when the baby was co-sleeping in the same bed as a…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Just over half — 54% — of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) cases in southwest England occurred when the baby was co-sleeping in the same bed as a parent, a case-control study showed.

That compares with 20% of infants among randomly selected families and controls deemed to be at high …

Conditions and diseases

Does robotic surgery for prostate cancer help patients?

MedPage Today

October 19, 2009Oct 19, 20092

Originally published in MedPage Today by Peggy Peck, MedPage Today Executive Editor Men who opt for minimally invasive prostate surgery -- often with a helping hand from a robot -- are twice as likely to have genitourinary complications as men…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Peggy Peck, MedPage Today Executive Editor

Men who opt for minimally invasive prostate surgery — often with a helping hand from a robot — are twice as likely to have genitourinary complications as men who have a traditional prostatectomy.

That finding is especially troubling because the use of robotic-assisted minimally invasive prostatectomy has increased exponentially in …

Conditions and diseases

Texting young liver transplant patients to take their medications

MedPage Today

October 16, 2009Oct 16, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer Here's a case where texting may actually improve a teenager's health: Text message reminders appear to be effective in getting young liver transplant patients to take their immunosuppressive…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Here’s a case where texting may actually improve a teenager’s health: Text message reminders appear to be effective in getting young liver transplant patients to take their immunosuppressive medications, a small study showed.

In 41 patients with a median age of 15, there was a significant improvement in medication compliance …

Conditions and diseases

One way to treat patients with severe H1N1 flu

MedPage Today

October 15, 2009Oct 15, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer Most patients who underwent extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) for respiratory failure survived their struggle with pandemic H1N1 flu, according to a study by researchers from Australia and New…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Most patients who underwent extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) for respiratory failure survived their struggle with pandemic H1N1 flu, according to a study by researchers from Australia and New Zealand.

Of the 68 patients treated with ECMO during the Southern Hemisphere’s winter, 54 were still alive as of Sept. 7, according to …

Conditions and diseases

How H1N1 pandemic flu will affect intensive care units

MedPage Today

October 14, 2009Oct 14, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent The winter wave of the pandemic H1N1 flu hit intensive care units in Australia and New Zealand hard, researchers said, and may offer lessons for doctors bracing…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent

The winter wave of the pandemic H1N1 flu hit intensive care units in Australia and New Zealand hard, researchers said, and may offer lessons for doctors bracing for the pandemic’s return to the Northern Hemisphere.

All told, 722 people with confirmed pandemic flu were admitted to one of the …

Physician voices

Do HMOs drive blacks to the emergency room?

MedPage Today

October 13, 2009Oct 13, 20092

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor Many African-Americans in California enrolled in health maintenance organizations (HMOs) appear to prefer getting medical treatment in emergency rooms, researchers said. One-quarter of African-Americans enrolled in Kaiser Permanente…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

Many African-Americans in California enrolled in health maintenance organizations (HMOs) appear to prefer getting medical treatment in emergency rooms, researchers said.

One-quarter of African-Americans enrolled in Kaiser Permanente or other commercial HMOs in California, who would therefore have a range of treatment options, sought treatment in emergency rooms in 2007, …

Physician voices

Why rapid viral testing for kids with URIs may not help in the ER

MedPage Today

October 12, 2009Oct 12, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer Rapid viral diagnostic testing did not reduce the burden of treating children with respiratory symptoms and fever in the emergency department, according to a Cochrane Review meta-analysis. Pooling…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Rapid viral diagnostic testing did not reduce the burden of treating children with respiratory symptoms and fever in the emergency department, according to a Cochrane Review meta-analysis.

Pooling the results of four trials, researchers found a significant reduction in the use of chest radiography (RR 0.77, 95% CI 0.65 to …

Conditions and diseases

Will riding in a convertible harm your hearing?

MedPage Today

October 10, 2009Oct 10, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Ed Susman, MedPage Today Contributing Writer Cruising down the highway in a sleek convertible, with the wind blowing in your hair, may sound like the ideal road trip -- but it could harm your…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Ed Susman, MedPage Today Contributing Writer

Cruising down the highway in a sleek convertible, with the wind blowing in your hair, may sound like the ideal road trip — but it could harm your hearing, British scientists said.

In a study conducted on the high-speed motorways of the U.K., doctors found that at highway speeds, …

Conditions and diseases

Can ventilating patients spread H1N1 flu in hospitals?

MedPage Today

October 9, 2009Oct 9, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Crystal Phend, MedPage Today Senior Staff Writer Plumes of virus-laden air shooting out from the masks of patients undergoing noninvasive ventilation could put healthcare workers at increased risk for infectious diseases such as the…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Crystal Phend, MedPage Today Senior Staff Writer

Plumes of virus-laden air shooting out from the masks of patients undergoing noninvasive ventilation could put healthcare workers at increased risk for infectious diseases such as the pandemic H1N1 (swine) flu, researchers said.

A positive-pressure ventilation mask on a simulated patient yielded a jet of exhaled air extending …

Health policy

CBO cost analysis of the Baucus health reform plan

MedPage Today

October 7, 2009Oct 7, 2009

Originally posted in MedPage Today by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent In its much-anticipated cost estimate, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said the Senate Finance Committee's healthcare reform bill would cost $829 billion over 10 years and begin…

Originally posted in MedPage Today

by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent

In its much-anticipated cost estimate, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said the Senate Finance Committee’s healthcare reform bill would cost $829 billion over 10 years and begin to drive down the federal deficit after that first decade.

The price tag is lower than Sen. Max Baucus’ (D-Mont.) previous …

Conditions and diseases

Is a cocaine abuse vaccine coming soon?

MedPage Today

October 7, 2009Oct 7, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent A vaccine against cocaine was effective in nearly 40% of users of the drug, researchers said. In a randomized, placebo-controlled study, volunteers who reached a high level…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent

A vaccine against cocaine was effective in nearly 40% of users of the drug, researchers said.

In a randomized, placebo-controlled study, volunteers who reached a high level of antibodies after vaccination used less cocaine than those whose response was lower, according to Thomas Kosten, MD, of Baylor College …

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Is a cocaine abuse vaccine coming soon?

Drugs and prescribing

Does Chantix increase suicide risk?

MedPage Today

October 6, 2009Oct 6, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer Contrary to information that led the FDA and other regulatory agencies to release warnings about varenicline (Chantix), a new study has found "no clear evidence" of a relationship…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Contrary to information that led the FDA and other regulatory agencies to release warnings about varenicline (Chantix), a new study has found “no clear evidence” of a relationship between the risk of suicide and the smoking-cessation drug.

Both varenicline and bupropion (Zyban), another drug used in smoking cessation programs, were …

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Does Chantix increase suicide risk?

Conditions and diseases

Did the 1918 flu pandemic increase the risk of heart disease?

MedPage Today

October 5, 2009Oct 5, 2009

Originally published in MedPage Today by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent Men who were in utero during the peak of the 1918-1919 flu pandemic were at increased risk of heart disease when they reached their 60s, 70s, and…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent

Men who were in utero during the peak of the 1918-1919 flu pandemic were at increased risk of heart disease when they reached their 60s, 70s, and 80s, researchers said.

In those men, the rate of heart disease was more than 23% higher than among those whose mothers …

Health policy

Analysis of the Senate Finance Committee health care reform bill

MedPage Today

October 3, 2009Oct 3, 20094

Originally posted in MedPage Today by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent The Senate Finance Committee finished work on its healthcare reform bill in the wee hours of Friday morning, paving the way for a committee vote next week.…

Originally posted in MedPage Today

by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent

The Senate Finance Committee finished work on its healthcare reform bill in the wee hours of Friday morning, paving the way for a committee vote next week.

After considering hundreds of amendments, the committee is now waiting for a cost-estimate from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) before it …