Health Headlines - January 24

Impotence Drug May Reduce Heart Failure

The impotence drug Viagra may also help prevent the abnormal growth of the heart seen in some types of heart disease, researchers reported on Sunday.

Bird Flu Likely Jumped Between Humans Last Year

A fatally ill Thai girl probably spread deadly bird flu to her relatives last year in what would mark the first documented case of human-to-human transmission of the feared virus, medical investigators said on Monday.

States Lifting Flu Vaccine Restrictions

States have begun dropping their restrictions on flu shots now that falling demand has led to surpluses, and some health officials want the federal government to take similar action.

Stem Cell Lines Reported Contaminated

The human embryonic stem cells available for research are contaminated with nonhuman molecules from the culture medium used to grow the cells, researchers report.

Genetic Tests May Prevent Drug Reactions

Medical experts say genetic tests offer hope for people whose bodies have trouble processing certain drugs. In theory, such tests might help prevent some of the 100,000 deaths and the more than 2 million serious drug reactions in the United States every year.

Cooking Fires Leading Cause of Home Blazes

Cooking fires are still the leading cause of home fires and home-fire injures in the United States, says a new National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) study.

Brain dead girl at center of row over Taipei's healthcare system

A critically injured young girl who sparked an uproar over Taipei's healthcare system after being turned away from several city hospitals was declared brain dead, throwing the health system further into crisis.

Malnutrition on the rise in tsunami-hit Indonesia, UN says

Malnutrition is a growing problem among tsunami survivors in Indonesia, the United Nations warned, with high prices and poor quality food leaving many vulnerable to sickness.

World's oldest mother, 67-year-old Romanian, had two abortions

A 67-year-old Romanian woman who last week became the oldest known person to give birth has said she had two abortions in her early twenties, a newspaper reported.