Mild Flu Season Eased Impact of Vaccine Shortage Last Winter
A mild flu season last winter helped offset the flu vaccine shortage in the United States, said a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released Thursday.
That unexpected shortage occurred when Chiron Corp. was unable to provide any flu vaccine for the United States due to possible vaccine contamination at a production plant outside Liverpool, England. As a result, the number of available flu vaccine doses available nationwide -- expected to be about 100 million -- was cut in half.
In an attempt to boost vaccine supplies, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention took a number measures, including the purchase of a flu vaccine not licensed for the U.S. market. However, by the time those vaccine supplies were secured in December and January, there was little demand for them, the GAO report said, according to the Associated Press.
One of the lessons learned from last year is that foreign-bought vaccines should be shipped to the United States no later than the beginning of October, the report said.
An estimated 17.5 million people in the United States decided not to get a flu shot last year to ensure there was enough vaccine for people at greatest need for a shot. The report said some health experts believe the people who deferred their flu shots should have been told to check later in the winter for a flu shot, the AP reported.
China Faces Another Bird Flu Outbreak
Chinese authorities ordered the destruction of 370,000 more birds in its fourth bird flu outbreak in three weeks, despite a nationwide effort to contain the virus. The latest outbreak occurred in a northeastern village, the Associated Press reported.
In Japan, signs of bird flu were detected at a northern plant and authorities planned to kill 180,000 chickens after it was found that some of the chickens tested positive for antibodies to the H5 family of avian flu.
The H5 family of bird flu includes the deadly H5N1 strain, the only one that has spread to humans. The H5N1 strain has not been detected in Japan, but the less virulent H5N2 strain was found in the country last year, the AP reported.
On Friday, the head of Thailand's state drug production company said the country could begin distributing its own generic version of the drug Tamiflu as early as February. Tamiflu is considered to be one of the most effective anti-viral drugs to treat avian flu.
Tamiflu is not patented in Thailand, so the country can manufacture a generic version without having to compensate Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche, which created Tamiflu.
In the United States, meanwhile, the federal government says it will install a new quarantine station at Logan International Airport in Boston. The quarantine area, patterned after one at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, will be used to evaluate travelers who pose a potential health risk, the AP reported.
The Logan station is part of a federal government program to triple the number of quarantine stations around the United States.
Patient Information Found on Internet
Personal information about an estimated 2,800 Ohio State University (OSU) Medical Center patients appeared on the Internet, hospital officials revealed Thursday.
Names, addresses, phone numbers, Social Security numbers and the reason why the patients were making appointments at the medical center were included in the information that appeared on the Internet, The Columbus Dispatch reported.
Patient medical records were not exposed to public scrutiny.
Hospital officials were alerted about the problem three weeks ago and immediately pulled the information from the Web. They have no idea how long the patient information was on the Internet.
The error involved medical center patients who made or changed appointments on April 19, 2004. The hospital has offered to pay for all affected patients to enroll in a 12-month credit protection service, the Dispatch reported.
L.A. Hospital Closes Liver Transplant Program
St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles will close its liver transplant program in response to revelations that program doctors committed a serious breach of national standards by misappropriating a liver.
"It's the right thing to do for this organization," Gus Valdespino, president and chief executive of St. Vincent, told the Los Angeles Times.
He suspended the hospital's liver transplant program in late September after learning about the inappropriate transplant, which occurred in 2003. Doctors bypassed patients in more dire need of a new liver and performed a liver transplant on a Saudi national who ranked 52nd on the regional liver transplant waiting list.
Documents were then falsified to cover up the inappropriate transplant. A patient who was at the top of the regional list for a liver transplant -- but did not receive one -- later died.
Ongoing investigations and the challenges of rebuilding the program were among the reasons cited by Valdespino for permanently closing down the liver transplant program at St. Vincent, the Times reported.
Clinton Launches Breast Cancer Fund
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton is establishing a breast cancer fund in honor of his mother, who died of the disease in 1994.
The Virginia Clinton Kelley Fund, which will be part of the National Breast Cancer Coalition Fund, will educate and train breast cancer survivors to influence research and increase access to care, the Associated Press reported.
"She had a very upbeat attitude and never thought of herself as dying from the disease but living with it. She was totally at ease with her own mortality and yet ferocious in fighting against the disease," Clinton told the AP.
"Basically, we're going to train people to do what she did by second nature. We're doing better with breast cancer but we've still got a long way to go," Clinton said.
This is the latest in a series of health-related issues, such as fighting AIDS in African and other developing countries and combating child obesity, supported by the former president.
Clinton said his own health problems -- he had quadruple heart bypass surgery last year -- are a source of motivation.
"The fact that I survived made me feel an even deeper sense of obligation to spend whatever time I've got left on Earth doing what I can for other people to make sure they have a chance to live a full and rich life," Clinton told the AP.
Health Tip: If You Dislocate Your Shoulder
The shoulder has a wide range of motion, making it easier to disconnect the joints and cause a dislocated shoulder, the Mayo Clinic says.
If this happens to you, get medical attention as soon as possible. To reset the bones in proper alignment and help ease pain, your doctor may try gently maneuvering the shoulder in a process called reduction.
If the shoulder won't go back into place, surgery may be necessary. The doctor may also put your shoulder in a sling to prevent re-injury.
Avoid strenuous activity for as long as your doctor advises. When treated properly, the shoulder should heal normally. However, it may be more susceptible to dislocation again.
Health Tip: Stretch Your Back
It's important for back health that you keep the spine and surrounding muscles and tendons loose. Tightness in the spine can hinder normal movement and cause back pain, according to the Baystate Health System of New England.
Poor flexibility also can lead to muscle weakness, stiffness, poor posture and a higher risk of injury to muscles or tendons.
Flexibility can be improved, regardless of age. Stretches should be done until the point of mild discomfort, without bouncing or pulling too hard. It is recommended that major joints be stretched at least three times a week.
Talk to your doctor before you begin, and ask if he or she can recommend some basic stretches.
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