Health Headlines - April 28

U.S. Has Mild Flu Season

The fact that this year's flu vaccine was a good match for the winter's most common flu virus helped make this one of the United States' mildest flu seasons in recent years, health officials say.

There were fewer flu and pneumonia deaths than normally recorded in a typical flu season and fewer than two dozen children's deaths were reported.

As of April 9-15, flu was widespread in only five states: Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, New York and Rhode Island, the Associated Press reported.

In about half the states in the country, there are now virtually no reports of flu-like illnesses, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While the mild flu season is good news, health experts are concerned it may lull people into forgetting the danger posed by common flu viruses and a potential flu pandemic that could erupt from the H5N1 bird flu virus currently stalking Africa, Asia and Europe.

"I hope people would not judge what might be coming in the future based on what's happened this year," Dr. Roland Levandowski of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases told AP.

Bausch & Lomb Alerted About Eye Infections Last Year

U.S. eye-care products maker Bausch & Lomb said Thursday that it was alerted last November about an increase in fungal eye infections among contact lens wearers in Hong Kong.

The company halted shipments of ReNu with MoistureLoc contact lens solution to the Far East in February of this year after it was told about "an unusual spike" in the rate of Fusarium keratitis infections in Singapore, the Associated Press reported.

But Bausch & Lomb had already been informed last November by Hong Kong health officials that they'd seen an increase in hospital admissions due to this kind of infection. However, an investigation by both company and Hong Kong officials found no firm link between the fungal infections and ReNu with MoistureLoc, company spokeswoman Meg Graham said.

"We looked into it, they looked into it and, as far as we know, the case was closed and this was just considered to be some sort of aberrational occurrence," Graham told the AP.

On April 10, the company suspended U.S. shipments of its ReNu with MoistureLoc in the United States due to an outbreak of Fusarium keratitis infections among Americans. So far, there have been 186 suspected or confirmed cases in 29 states. The infection can scar the cornea and result in blindness.

While no firm link between the solution and the eye infections has been established, many of the affected U.S. patients used ReNu with MoistureLoc.

Exercise Reduces Arthritis Joint Pain

People with arthritis who get regular exercise have less joint pain than those who don't get as much exercise, says a poll released Thursday by the Arthritis Foundation.

The survey of more than 2,000 people found that 81 percent of arthritis patients who exercise at least three days a week reported that they have almost no joint pain, compared to 66 percent of those who exercise fewer than two days a week.

"The recommended guideline for people with arthritis is to participate in physical activity three or more days per week, as studies have shown that amount of activity lessens pain and disability," Dr. Patience White, chief public health officer of the Arthritis Foundation, said in a prepared statement.

However, the survey found that, overall, 43 percent of people with arthritis exercise less than three days a week and that 75 percent of those who are inactive are physically limited in some way.

Among arthritis patients 55 and older, 59 percent exercise less than three days a week and 31 percent said that joint pain limits their activities.

"Although the temptation may be to stay inactive in order to avoid aggravating the condition, by being physically active people with arthritis can actually improve their quality of life," White said.

Don't Reuse Disposable Masks During Flu Pandemic: Report

The reuse of disposable medical masks during a flu pandemic is not recommended because there's no simple, reliable way to decontaminate them in order to ensure they can be safely used more than once, says a report from the U.S. Institute of Medicine.

Disposable masks are made of a mesh of fibers, which can trap harmful particles. Such a hazardous buildup can't be cleaned out or disinfected without damaging the fibers or other components of the mask, such as the strap or nose clip.

The report also said that it is possible to reuse an N95 respirator by following a series of steps to protect it from contamination. However, since the reliability of any face coverings against flu is unclear, wearers should not risk unnecessary exposure.

"Respiratory protection through the use of face coverings is only one of the many strategies that will be needed to slow or halt a pandemic outbreak of influenza, and people should not engage in activities that would increase their risk of exposure to flu just because they have a mask or respirator," report committee co-chair John C. Bailar, professor emeritus, University of Chicago, said in a prepared statement.

Kentucky First, Mississippi Worst in State Medical Board Ranking

Kentucky's state medical board gets top marks, while Mississippi's is at the bottom, according to an annual ranking released Thursday by the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen.

The rankings are based on data from the Federation of State Medical Boards on the number of disciplinary actions taken against doctors from 2003-2005. In 2005, there were 3,255 serious disciplinary actions taken by state medical boards, a 1.2 percent decrease from the 3,296 in 2004.

The three-year state disciplinary rates ranged from 9.08 serious actions per 1,000 doctors in Kentucky to 1.62 per 1,000 in Mississippi. That's a 5.6-fold difference between the best and the worst.

Rounding out the top five were: Alaska (8.49), Wyoming (8.19), Ohio (6.33), and Arizona (6.20).

Rounding out the bottom five were: Delaware (1.63), Minnesota (1.65), Wisconsin (1.72), and Nevada (2.03).

"These data again raise serious questions about the extent to which patients in many of these states with poorer records of serious doctor discipline are being protected from physicians who might well be barred from practice in states with boards that are doing a better job of disciplining physicians," Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group, said in a prepared statement.