Big Jump Seen in War Vets Suffering From Stress
A new Veterans Health Administration report found that more than one-third of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are now seeking medical treatment for stress or other mental disorders -- a ten-fold increase in the last 18 months, the Associated Press reported.
The surge in cases, which coincides with more troops facing multiple tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan to combat stubborn insurgency groups, has prompted some veterans organizations to say they're concerned the VA may not be able to meet the demand for mental-health services. They say veterans have had to contend with long waits for doctor appointments, staffing shortages, and lack of equipment at VA-run medical centers, the AP said.
On the plus side, VA and Defense Department officials said the increase in soldiers complaining of stress or mental-health problems may indicate that efforts to reduce the stigma of problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder are working. Also, commanders and medical personnel may be more skilled at recognizing symptoms.
VA officials say they've increased funding for mental-health services, have hired at least 100 more counselors, and aren't struggling to meet the rising demand, the AP said.
"We're not aware that people are having trouble getting services from us in any consistent way or pattern around the country," said Dr. Michael Kussman, acting undersecretary for health and the top doctor at the VA.
Possible New Approach to Stem-Cell Research Reported
European researchers say they may have come up with an alternative method of harvesting embryonic stem cells, one that doesn't require destruction of an embryo.
If the research proves successful, it could blunt criticism of embryonic stem-cell research, which opponents say leads to the destruction of human life.
The scientists, from Spain and England, said they created a stem-cell line from a human embryo that had stopped developing naturally in a laboratory setting. The researchers studied embryos donated by an in-vitro fertilization clinic with consent of the patients. Part of the research focused on 132 "arrested" embryos -- those that had stopped dividing for 24 or 48 hours after reaching various stages of development, the Associated Press reported.
Thirteen of those embryos had developed more than the others, reaching 16 to 24 cells before cell division stopped. The researchers were able to create a stem-cell line from just one of these embryos. But, these stem cells performed normally on a series of tests, Miodrag Stojkovic of the Prince Felipe Research Center in Valencia, Spain, told the AP.
The research was published online Thursday by the journal Stem Cells.
But opponents of stem-cell research said there's no way to know if an arrested embryo would have continued growing if it had been removed from a lab dish and placed into woman's womb, said Robin Lovell-Badge of the Medical Research Council's National Institute for Medical Research in London.
Many scientists believe that embryonic stem cells have the ability to develop into any cell type in the body. They envision a future where stem cells might help replace diseased or injured tissue, thereby treating a host of ailments.
FDA Needs New Tools to Fix Drug System: Study
The safety of the nation's drug supply is inadequate, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's oversight is beset with poor management, internal squabbling and chronic underfunding, according to a congressional advisory report released Friday.
The report by the Institute of Medicine, a nonprofit organization created by Congress to advise the federal government on health issues, was conducted at the FDA's request, the New York Times reported Friday.
Among the panel's recommendations, most of which would require Congressional authorization:
* Drugs should only be approved for five-year periods so that the FDA can thoroughly review post-approval safety questions.
* Newly approved drugs should display a black triangle on their labels to warn consumers that their safety is more uncertain than that of older drugs.
* Drug advertisements should be banned during this initial period.
* The FDA should be given the authority to issue fines, injunctions and withdrawals when drug makers fail to complete required safety studies.
* The FDA commissioner should be appointed to a six-year term.
The report also suggested that one of the agency's biggest problems is a deal struck between Congress and the drug industry in 1992, in which drug makers agreed to pay millions in fees in order to speed reviews, and thereby increased pressures on drug reviewers to act quickly, the Times reported.
It is unlikely that Congress will act on the proposals before next year, when it must reauthorize the 1992 funding deal with the drug industry. Despite its strong words, however, the report, according to the Times, may actually bolster the confirmation prospects of Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, who is now the FDA's acting commissioner.
ADHD Drug Misuse Tied to Higher ER Visits
Polydrug use -- taking at least one other drug in addition to medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- was a common factor in increased emergency room visits by those 12-to-17 years old and could lead to serious health problems such as heart attack or stroke, a new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows.
In its latest "Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) Report" released Friday, the agency found that emergency visits resulting from misuse of one drug or two drugs by teen patients were higher in 2004 than the rates for patients aged 18 or older. For patients aged 12 to 17 taking methylphenidate (Ritalin) for medical use, there were 1.6 visits to the emergency department per 100,000 people in this age group, compared to 0.4 visits per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For patients aged 12 to 17, taking amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for medical use, there were 1.2 visits per 100,000 people compared to 0.6 per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For all age groups reporting nonmedical use of ADHD medications, 32 percent ingested the ADHD medication alone. For the 68 percent using at least one additional drugs with the ADHD medication, 20 percent reported using alcohol, 26 percent used an illicit drug, and 57 percent used another pharmaceutical, the report found.
Drug-Resistant TB Gaining Ground in U.S.
The worst forms of tuberculosis bug have been gaining ground in the United States, and states with the highest numbers of multi-drug resistant cases in the last decade were New York, California, Texas and Florida, according to a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What is alarming public health officials are imported drug-resistant strains of a disease that is mostly under control in this country but is being brought in by legal visitors. Often those with drug-resistant strains stop taking their medicine when they feel better but aren't cured, and health officials said that simply tightening immigration controls won't solve the problem, the Associated Press reported.
Monday, September 25, 2006
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Health Headlines - September 24
Possible New Approach to Stem-Cell Research Reported
European researchers say they may have come up with an alternative method of harvesting embryonic stem cells, one that doesn't require destruction of an embryo.
If the research proves successful, it could blunt criticism of embryonic stem-cell research, which opponents say leads to the destruction of human life.
The scientists, from Spain and England, said they created a stem-cell line from a human embryo that had stopped developing naturally in a laboratory setting. The researchers studied embryos donated by an in-vitro fertilization clinic with consent of the patients. Part of the research focused on 132 "arrested" embryos -- those that had stopped dividing for 24 or 48 hours after reaching various stages of development, the Associated Press reported.
Thirteen of those embryos had developed more than the others, reaching 16 to 24 cells before cell division stopped. The researchers were able to create a stem-cell line from just one of these embryos. But, these stem cells performed normally on a series of tests, Miodrag Stojkovic of the Prince Felipe Research Center in Valencia, Spain, told the AP.
The research was published online Thursday by the journal Stem Cells.
But opponents of stem-cell research said there's no way to know if an arrested embryo would have continued growing if it had been removed from a lab dish and placed into woman's womb, said Robin Lovell-Badge of the Medical Research Council's National Institute for Medical Research in London.
Many scientists believe that embryonic stem cells have the ability to develop into any cell type in the body. They envision a future where stem cells might help replace diseased or injured tissue, thereby treating a host of ailments.
FDA Needs New Tools to Fix Drug System: Study
The safety of the nation's drug supply is inadequate, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's oversight is beset with poor management, internal squabbling and chronic underfunding, according to a congressional advisory report released Friday.
The report by the Institute of Medicine, a nonprofit organization created by Congress to advise the federal government on health issues, was conducted at the FDA's request, the New York Times reported Friday.
Among the panel's recommendations, most of which would require Congressional authorization:
* Drugs should only be approved for five-year periods so that the FDA can thoroughly review post-approval safety questions.
* Newly approved drugs should display a black triangle on their labels to warn consumers that their safety is more uncertain than that of older drugs.
* Drug advertisements should be banned during this initial period.
* The FDA should be given the authority to issue fines, injunctions and withdrawals when drug makers fail to complete required safety studies.
* The FDA commissioner should be appointed to a six-year term.
The report also suggested that one of the agency's biggest problems is a deal struck between Congress and the drug industry in 1992, in which drug makers agreed to pay millions in fees in order to speed reviews, and thereby increased pressures on drug reviewers to act quickly, the Times reported.
It is unlikely that Congress will act on the proposals before next year, when it must reauthorize the 1992 funding deal with the drug industry. Despite its strong words, however, the report, according to the Times, may actually bolster the confirmation prospects of Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, who is now the FDA's acting commissioner.
ADHD Drug Misuse Tied to Higher ER Visits
Polydrug use -- taking at least one other drug in addition to medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- was a common factor in increased emergency room visits by those 12-to-17 years old and could lead to serious health problems such as heart attack or stroke, a new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows.
In its latest "Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) Report" released Friday, the agency found that emergency visits resulting from misuse of one drug or two drugs by teen patients were higher in 2004 than the rates for patients aged 18 or older. For patients aged 12 to 17 taking methylphenidate (Ritalin) for medical use, there were 1.6 visits to the emergency department per 100,000 people in this age group, compared to 0.4 visits per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For patients aged 12 to 17, taking amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for medical use, there were 1.2 visits per 100,000 people compared to 0.6 per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For all age groups reporting nonmedical use of ADHD medications, 32 percent ingested the ADHD medication alone. For the 68 percent using at least one additional drugs with the ADHD medication, 20 percent reported using alcohol, 26 percent used an illicit drug, and 57 percent used another pharmaceutical, the report found.
Drug-Resistant TB Gaining Ground in U.S.
The worst forms of tuberculosis bug have been gaining ground in the United States, and states with the highest numbers of multi-drug resistant cases in the last decade were New York, California, Texas and Florida, according to a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What is alarming public health officials are imported drug-resistant strains of a disease that is mostly under control in this country but is being brought in by legal visitors. Often those with drug-resistant strains stop taking their medicine when they feel better but aren't cured, and health officials said that simply tightening immigration controls won't solve the problem, the Associated Press reported Friday.
In the United States, 128 people were diagnosed with TB in 2004, a 13 percent spike from the previous year, the CDC said. "That's a red light flashing," said Dr. Charles Wallace, an infectious disease specialist with the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Deal Could Ease Ban on Canadian Drug Imports
U.S. House Republicans tentatively agreed to a deal that would allow Americans to carry up to a 90-day supply of medication back to the United States from Canada without being stopped by U.S. Customs agents.
Purchasing cheaper prescriptions over the Internet or by mail-order from Canadian pharmacies would still be prohibited, however, the Associated Press reported on Thursday.
Because of government price controls in Canada, many popular prescription drugs sell there for 30 percent to 80 percent lower than in the United States, according to surveys by the AP and others. On average, brand-name drugs cost 35 percent to 55 percent less in other industrialized nations than they do in the United States, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
"This really breaks the dam, and it shows that it's only a matter of time before we pass a full-blown reimportation bill," Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said of the agreement, which came on the same day that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced plans to slash prices for generic prescriptions. Target Corp. said Friday that it would match Wal-Mart's lower prices for generics immediately.
European researchers say they may have come up with an alternative method of harvesting embryonic stem cells, one that doesn't require destruction of an embryo.
If the research proves successful, it could blunt criticism of embryonic stem-cell research, which opponents say leads to the destruction of human life.
The scientists, from Spain and England, said they created a stem-cell line from a human embryo that had stopped developing naturally in a laboratory setting. The researchers studied embryos donated by an in-vitro fertilization clinic with consent of the patients. Part of the research focused on 132 "arrested" embryos -- those that had stopped dividing for 24 or 48 hours after reaching various stages of development, the Associated Press reported.
Thirteen of those embryos had developed more than the others, reaching 16 to 24 cells before cell division stopped. The researchers were able to create a stem-cell line from just one of these embryos. But, these stem cells performed normally on a series of tests, Miodrag Stojkovic of the Prince Felipe Research Center in Valencia, Spain, told the AP.
The research was published online Thursday by the journal Stem Cells.
But opponents of stem-cell research said there's no way to know if an arrested embryo would have continued growing if it had been removed from a lab dish and placed into woman's womb, said Robin Lovell-Badge of the Medical Research Council's National Institute for Medical Research in London.
Many scientists believe that embryonic stem cells have the ability to develop into any cell type in the body. They envision a future where stem cells might help replace diseased or injured tissue, thereby treating a host of ailments.
FDA Needs New Tools to Fix Drug System: Study
The safety of the nation's drug supply is inadequate, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's oversight is beset with poor management, internal squabbling and chronic underfunding, according to a congressional advisory report released Friday.
The report by the Institute of Medicine, a nonprofit organization created by Congress to advise the federal government on health issues, was conducted at the FDA's request, the New York Times reported Friday.
Among the panel's recommendations, most of which would require Congressional authorization:
* Drugs should only be approved for five-year periods so that the FDA can thoroughly review post-approval safety questions.
* Newly approved drugs should display a black triangle on their labels to warn consumers that their safety is more uncertain than that of older drugs.
* Drug advertisements should be banned during this initial period.
* The FDA should be given the authority to issue fines, injunctions and withdrawals when drug makers fail to complete required safety studies.
* The FDA commissioner should be appointed to a six-year term.
The report also suggested that one of the agency's biggest problems is a deal struck between Congress and the drug industry in 1992, in which drug makers agreed to pay millions in fees in order to speed reviews, and thereby increased pressures on drug reviewers to act quickly, the Times reported.
It is unlikely that Congress will act on the proposals before next year, when it must reauthorize the 1992 funding deal with the drug industry. Despite its strong words, however, the report, according to the Times, may actually bolster the confirmation prospects of Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, who is now the FDA's acting commissioner.
ADHD Drug Misuse Tied to Higher ER Visits
Polydrug use -- taking at least one other drug in addition to medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- was a common factor in increased emergency room visits by those 12-to-17 years old and could lead to serious health problems such as heart attack or stroke, a new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows.
In its latest "Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) Report" released Friday, the agency found that emergency visits resulting from misuse of one drug or two drugs by teen patients were higher in 2004 than the rates for patients aged 18 or older. For patients aged 12 to 17 taking methylphenidate (Ritalin) for medical use, there were 1.6 visits to the emergency department per 100,000 people in this age group, compared to 0.4 visits per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For patients aged 12 to 17, taking amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for medical use, there were 1.2 visits per 100,000 people compared to 0.6 per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For all age groups reporting nonmedical use of ADHD medications, 32 percent ingested the ADHD medication alone. For the 68 percent using at least one additional drugs with the ADHD medication, 20 percent reported using alcohol, 26 percent used an illicit drug, and 57 percent used another pharmaceutical, the report found.
Drug-Resistant TB Gaining Ground in U.S.
The worst forms of tuberculosis bug have been gaining ground in the United States, and states with the highest numbers of multi-drug resistant cases in the last decade were New York, California, Texas and Florida, according to a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What is alarming public health officials are imported drug-resistant strains of a disease that is mostly under control in this country but is being brought in by legal visitors. Often those with drug-resistant strains stop taking their medicine when they feel better but aren't cured, and health officials said that simply tightening immigration controls won't solve the problem, the Associated Press reported Friday.
In the United States, 128 people were diagnosed with TB in 2004, a 13 percent spike from the previous year, the CDC said. "That's a red light flashing," said Dr. Charles Wallace, an infectious disease specialist with the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Deal Could Ease Ban on Canadian Drug Imports
U.S. House Republicans tentatively agreed to a deal that would allow Americans to carry up to a 90-day supply of medication back to the United States from Canada without being stopped by U.S. Customs agents.
Purchasing cheaper prescriptions over the Internet or by mail-order from Canadian pharmacies would still be prohibited, however, the Associated Press reported on Thursday.
Because of government price controls in Canada, many popular prescription drugs sell there for 30 percent to 80 percent lower than in the United States, according to surveys by the AP and others. On average, brand-name drugs cost 35 percent to 55 percent less in other industrialized nations than they do in the United States, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
"This really breaks the dam, and it shows that it's only a matter of time before we pass a full-blown reimportation bill," Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said of the agreement, which came on the same day that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced plans to slash prices for generic prescriptions. Target Corp. said Friday that it would match Wal-Mart's lower prices for generics immediately.
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Health Headlines - September 23
FDA Needs New Tools to Fix Drug System: Study
The safety of the nation's drug supply is inadequate, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's oversight is beset with poor management, internal squabbling and chronic underfunding, according to a congressional advisory report released Friday.
The report by the Institute of Medicine, a nonprofit organization created by Congress to advise the federal government on health issues, was conducted at the FDA's request, the New York Times reported Friday.
Among the panel's recommendations, most of which would require Congressional authorization:
* Drugs should only be approved for five-year periods so that the FDA can thoroughly review post-approval safety questions.
* Newly approved drugs should display a black triangle on their labels to warn consumers that their safety is more uncertain than that of older drugs.
* Drug advertisements should be banned during this initial period.
* The FDA should be given the authority to issue fines, injunctions and withdrawals when drug makers fail to complete required safety studies.
* The FDA commissioner should be appointed to a six-year term.
The report also suggested that one of the agency's biggest problems is a deal struck between Congress and the drug industry in 1992, in which drug makers agreed to pay millions in fees in order to speed reviews, and thereby increased pressures on drug reviewers to act quickly, the Times reported.
It is unlikely that Congress will act on the proposals before next year, when it must reauthorize the 1992 funding deal with the drug industry. Despite its strong words, however, the report, according to the Times, may actually bolster the confirmation prospects of Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, who is now the FDA's acting commissioner.
ADHD Drug Misuse Tied to Higher ER Visits
Polydrug use -- taking at least one other drug in addition to medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- was a common factor in increased emergency room visits by those 12-to-17 years old and could lead to serious health problems such as heart attack or stroke, a new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows.
In its latest "Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) Report" released Friday, the agency found that emergency visits resulting from misuse of one drug or two drugs by teen patients were higher in 2004 than the rates for patients aged 18 or older. For patients aged 12 to 17 taking methylphenidate (Ritalin) for medical use, there were 1.6 visits to the emergency department per 100,000 people in this age group, compared to 0.4 visits per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For patients aged 12 to 17, taking amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for medical use, there were 1.2 visits per 100,000 people compared to 0.6 per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For all age groups reporting nonmedical use of ADHD medications, 32 percent ingested the ADHD medication alone. For the 68 percent using at least one additional drugs with the ADHD medication, 20 percent reported using alcohol, 26 percent used an illicit drug, and 57 percent used another pharmaceutical, the report found.
Drug-Resistant TB Gaining Ground in U.S.
The worst forms of tuberculosis bug have been gaining ground in the United States, and states with the highest numbers of multi-drug resistant cases in the last decade were New York, California, Texas and Florida, according to a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What is alarming public health officials are imported drug-resistant strains of a disease that is mostly under control in this country but is being brought in by legal visitors. Often those with drug-resistant strains stop taking their medicine when they feel better but aren't cured, and health officials said that simply tightening immigration controls won't solve the problem, the Associated Press reported Friday.
In the United States, 128 people were diagnosed with TB in 2004, a 13 percent spike from the previous year, the CDC said. "That's a red light flashing," said Dr. Charles Wallace, an infectious disease specialist with the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Deal Could Ease Ban on Canadian Drug Imports
U.S. House Republicans tentatively agreed to a deal that would allow Americans to carry up to a 90-day supply of medication back to the United States from Canada without being stopped by U.S. Customs agents.
Purchasing cheaper prescriptions over the Internet or by mail-order from Canadian pharmacies would still be prohibited, however, the Associated Press reported on Thursday.
Because of government price controls in Canada, many popular prescription drugs sell there for 30 percent to 80 percent lower than in the United States, according to surveys by the AP and others. On average, brand-name drugs cost 35 percent to 55 percent less in other industrialized nations than they do in the United States, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
"This really breaks the dam, and it shows that it's only a matter of time before we pass a full-blown reimportation bill," Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said of the agreement, which came on the same day that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced plans to slash prices for generic prescriptions. Target Corp. said Friday that it would match Wal-Mart's lower prices for generics immediately.
EPA Chief Rejected Key Soot Recommendation: Report
The Environmental Protection Agency's administrator has tightened by half the short-term daily standards regulating minute particles of soot in the nation's air, but rejected a broader annual standard recommended by his own staff and independent science advisors, the New York Times reported Thursday.
Last updated in 1997, the new standards increase short-term exposure rates of fine particles from 65 micrograms of particles per cubic meter to 35 micrograms of particles per cubic meter of air. Particle pollution exposure has been linked to health problems ranging from aggravated asthma to premature death in people with heart and lung disease. But the annual standard, which affects long-term chronic exposure, would remains at its original level of 15 micrograms per cubic meter, the Times reported.
E.P.A. chief Stephen L. Johnson, rejecting the staff recommendations, said that the annual standard would remain at its current level while research continued. No change was made now, he said, due to insufficient evidence linking health problems to long-term exposure. All but two of the 22 members on the agency's Clean Air Scientific Advisory Council had urged that the long-term standard be lowered to a range of 12 to 14 micrograms per cubic meter, the Times reported.
Reaction from medical and environmental groups was sharp, however. Frank ODonnell, head of Clean Air Watch, a Washington-D.C.-based environmental lobbying group, told the Times that particle soot kills more people than any other form of air pollution.
The safety of the nation's drug supply is inadequate, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's oversight is beset with poor management, internal squabbling and chronic underfunding, according to a congressional advisory report released Friday.
The report by the Institute of Medicine, a nonprofit organization created by Congress to advise the federal government on health issues, was conducted at the FDA's request, the New York Times reported Friday.
Among the panel's recommendations, most of which would require Congressional authorization:
* Drugs should only be approved for five-year periods so that the FDA can thoroughly review post-approval safety questions.
* Newly approved drugs should display a black triangle on their labels to warn consumers that their safety is more uncertain than that of older drugs.
* Drug advertisements should be banned during this initial period.
* The FDA should be given the authority to issue fines, injunctions and withdrawals when drug makers fail to complete required safety studies.
* The FDA commissioner should be appointed to a six-year term.
The report also suggested that one of the agency's biggest problems is a deal struck between Congress and the drug industry in 1992, in which drug makers agreed to pay millions in fees in order to speed reviews, and thereby increased pressures on drug reviewers to act quickly, the Times reported.
It is unlikely that Congress will act on the proposals before next year, when it must reauthorize the 1992 funding deal with the drug industry. Despite its strong words, however, the report, according to the Times, may actually bolster the confirmation prospects of Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, who is now the FDA's acting commissioner.
ADHD Drug Misuse Tied to Higher ER Visits
Polydrug use -- taking at least one other drug in addition to medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- was a common factor in increased emergency room visits by those 12-to-17 years old and could lead to serious health problems such as heart attack or stroke, a new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows.
In its latest "Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) Report" released Friday, the agency found that emergency visits resulting from misuse of one drug or two drugs by teen patients were higher in 2004 than the rates for patients aged 18 or older. For patients aged 12 to 17 taking methylphenidate (Ritalin) for medical use, there were 1.6 visits to the emergency department per 100,000 people in this age group, compared to 0.4 visits per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For patients aged 12 to 17, taking amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for medical use, there were 1.2 visits per 100,000 people compared to 0.6 per 100,000 people in the 18-to-24 age group.
For all age groups reporting nonmedical use of ADHD medications, 32 percent ingested the ADHD medication alone. For the 68 percent using at least one additional drugs with the ADHD medication, 20 percent reported using alcohol, 26 percent used an illicit drug, and 57 percent used another pharmaceutical, the report found.
Drug-Resistant TB Gaining Ground in U.S.
The worst forms of tuberculosis bug have been gaining ground in the United States, and states with the highest numbers of multi-drug resistant cases in the last decade were New York, California, Texas and Florida, according to a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What is alarming public health officials are imported drug-resistant strains of a disease that is mostly under control in this country but is being brought in by legal visitors. Often those with drug-resistant strains stop taking their medicine when they feel better but aren't cured, and health officials said that simply tightening immigration controls won't solve the problem, the Associated Press reported Friday.
In the United States, 128 people were diagnosed with TB in 2004, a 13 percent spike from the previous year, the CDC said. "That's a red light flashing," said Dr. Charles Wallace, an infectious disease specialist with the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Deal Could Ease Ban on Canadian Drug Imports
U.S. House Republicans tentatively agreed to a deal that would allow Americans to carry up to a 90-day supply of medication back to the United States from Canada without being stopped by U.S. Customs agents.
Purchasing cheaper prescriptions over the Internet or by mail-order from Canadian pharmacies would still be prohibited, however, the Associated Press reported on Thursday.
Because of government price controls in Canada, many popular prescription drugs sell there for 30 percent to 80 percent lower than in the United States, according to surveys by the AP and others. On average, brand-name drugs cost 35 percent to 55 percent less in other industrialized nations than they do in the United States, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
"This really breaks the dam, and it shows that it's only a matter of time before we pass a full-blown reimportation bill," Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said of the agreement, which came on the same day that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced plans to slash prices for generic prescriptions. Target Corp. said Friday that it would match Wal-Mart's lower prices for generics immediately.
EPA Chief Rejected Key Soot Recommendation: Report
The Environmental Protection Agency's administrator has tightened by half the short-term daily standards regulating minute particles of soot in the nation's air, but rejected a broader annual standard recommended by his own staff and independent science advisors, the New York Times reported Thursday.
Last updated in 1997, the new standards increase short-term exposure rates of fine particles from 65 micrograms of particles per cubic meter to 35 micrograms of particles per cubic meter of air. Particle pollution exposure has been linked to health problems ranging from aggravated asthma to premature death in people with heart and lung disease. But the annual standard, which affects long-term chronic exposure, would remains at its original level of 15 micrograms per cubic meter, the Times reported.
E.P.A. chief Stephen L. Johnson, rejecting the staff recommendations, said that the annual standard would remain at its current level while research continued. No change was made now, he said, due to insufficient evidence linking health problems to long-term exposure. All but two of the 22 members on the agency's Clean Air Scientific Advisory Council had urged that the long-term standard be lowered to a range of 12 to 14 micrograms per cubic meter, the Times reported.
Reaction from medical and environmental groups was sharp, however. Frank ODonnell, head of Clean Air Watch, a Washington-D.C.-based environmental lobbying group, told the Times that particle soot kills more people than any other form of air pollution.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Officials find E. coli concerns in inspections
U.S. officials searching for the source of an E. coli outbreak that may have killed three people said on Friday they had found "situations of concern" at farms and food processing plants in California but cleared spinach grown elsewhere in the country.
The Food and Drug Administration said 166 people in 25 states had been sickened in the outbreak, with one death. State health officials reported on Friday a 2-year-old boy from Idaho and an 86-year-old woman from Maryland had died and said they suspected E. coli from spinach was to blame. FDA officials said they could not confirm that link.
Federal and state officials were inspecting nine farms in California's Salinas Valley, where the outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7 is suspected to have originated.
"There are some situations of concern, may I say, that would warrant some possible correction in the near future," Mark Roh, acting regional food and drug director for the FDA's Pacific Region, told reporters. He declined to give details.
Roh and Dr. David Acheson of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition said inspectors were looking at 10 fields representing six growers in California's Salinas Valley, looking for evidence of contaminated water, equipment or other signs of poor hygiene.
"All the farms that we have been visiting have been linked somehow to the illnesses," Roh said.
"We know that spinach grown in the rest of the United States ... has not been implicated in the current E. coli 0157 outbreak," Acheson added.
"Therefore, the public can be confident that spinach not grown in the implicated areas is safe."
He said the food industry was working with the FDA to get safe spinach back on store shelves.
State health officials were recording reports of diarrheal illness without a fever, which could indicate E. coli infection. Acheson said it could take up to two more weeks to hear about all the possible cases.
TAKING SAMPLES
Each time a case is reported, doctors must take fecal samples to be sent for testing. Field officers ask questions about what the patient ate, where the food was bought and then search for the actual packages, which can be traced back to the farms.
"The current information that we have from the bags we have allowed us to narrow it down from nationwide to the state of California to three counties," Acheson said. "The intention is to narrow it further within these three counties."
Growers pledged to help find and plug safety gaps.
The Produce Marketing Association, the largest group representing companies along supply chains for fruits, vegetables and flowers, estimates farmers and food processors may lose up to $100 million a month if consumers stop eating spinach.
"Obviously there was a breakdown in the system somewhere," added Dave Kranz, spokesman for the California Farm Bureau Federation, the state's largest farm organization.
"Now we need to find out if the system was flawed ... or if it was a breakdown that can be corrected."
At least two Democratic congressmen raised questions about farm and food safety regulation.
"Quick action is needed at the federal level. Today, we have 12 different federal agencies stumbling over each other to ensure the safety of our food supply," Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin told a news conference held with consumer and food safety advocates.
"I am concerned that FDA has not conducted adequate inspections of the plants that process spinach and other produce," California Democratic Rep. Henry Waxman wrote in a letter to the FDA.
The Food and Drug Administration said 166 people in 25 states had been sickened in the outbreak, with one death. State health officials reported on Friday a 2-year-old boy from Idaho and an 86-year-old woman from Maryland had died and said they suspected E. coli from spinach was to blame. FDA officials said they could not confirm that link.
Federal and state officials were inspecting nine farms in California's Salinas Valley, where the outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7 is suspected to have originated.
"There are some situations of concern, may I say, that would warrant some possible correction in the near future," Mark Roh, acting regional food and drug director for the FDA's Pacific Region, told reporters. He declined to give details.
Roh and Dr. David Acheson of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition said inspectors were looking at 10 fields representing six growers in California's Salinas Valley, looking for evidence of contaminated water, equipment or other signs of poor hygiene.
"All the farms that we have been visiting have been linked somehow to the illnesses," Roh said.
"We know that spinach grown in the rest of the United States ... has not been implicated in the current E. coli 0157 outbreak," Acheson added.
"Therefore, the public can be confident that spinach not grown in the implicated areas is safe."
He said the food industry was working with the FDA to get safe spinach back on store shelves.
State health officials were recording reports of diarrheal illness without a fever, which could indicate E. coli infection. Acheson said it could take up to two more weeks to hear about all the possible cases.
TAKING SAMPLES
Each time a case is reported, doctors must take fecal samples to be sent for testing. Field officers ask questions about what the patient ate, where the food was bought and then search for the actual packages, which can be traced back to the farms.
"The current information that we have from the bags we have allowed us to narrow it down from nationwide to the state of California to three counties," Acheson said. "The intention is to narrow it further within these three counties."
Growers pledged to help find and plug safety gaps.
The Produce Marketing Association, the largest group representing companies along supply chains for fruits, vegetables and flowers, estimates farmers and food processors may lose up to $100 million a month if consumers stop eating spinach.
"Obviously there was a breakdown in the system somewhere," added Dave Kranz, spokesman for the California Farm Bureau Federation, the state's largest farm organization.
"Now we need to find out if the system was flawed ... or if it was a breakdown that can be corrected."
At least two Democratic congressmen raised questions about farm and food safety regulation.
"Quick action is needed at the federal level. Today, we have 12 different federal agencies stumbling over each other to ensure the safety of our food supply," Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin told a news conference held with consumer and food safety advocates.
"I am concerned that FDA has not conducted adequate inspections of the plants that process spinach and other produce," California Democratic Rep. Henry Waxman wrote in a letter to the FDA.
Tainted spinach sickens 166 in 25 states
Spinach grown outside California's Salinas Valley got the all-clear from federal health officials Friday, but it could be days before the leafy green returns to store shelves.
An ongoing outbreak of E. coli linked to spinach has sickened 166 people in half the states as of midday Friday. That's up from 157 victims in 23 states a day earlier, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For more than a week, the Food and Drug Administration has recommend people not eat fresh, raw spinach. State and federal investigators since have traced the contaminated spinach back to three California counties, and already farm inspections there are turning up possible problems.
On Friday, officials said spinach grown anywhere outside that area is safe to eat -— but industry needs to figure out how to let consumers know the origin of what they're buying before the green can return to sale, said Dr. David Acheson of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.
"The public can be confident that spinach grown in those non-implicated areas can be consumed and industry is working to get spinach from these areas back on the market," Acheson told reporters.
"I anticipate it will be fast," he later said of that process. "Whether it will be three days, four days -— I don't know. That will be an industry determination."
Of those infected in the outbreak, 88 have been hospitalized, including a Wisconsin woman who died. Two other deaths have been reported in suspected cases -— a child in Idaho and an elderly woman in Maryland -— but those cases are still being investigated.
A team of 20 state and federal investigators on Friday were to visit the 10th California field associated with the contaminated spinach, said Mark Roh, the FDA's acting regional food and drug director for the Pacific region. Inspectors were looking for standing water, animal droppings and anything else unusual, as well as assessing the sanitation practices of farm workers. They also have taken 188 water, soil and produce samples from fields and processing plants.
The team already has spotted some potential problems.
"There are some situations of concern, may I say, that would warrant some possible corrections in the near future," Roh told reporters by telephone. When asked to elaborate, a spokeswoman broke in and said the FDA would not, citing the ongoing nature of the investigation. The farm and plant inspections are expected to last another week.
Last week, Natural Selection Foods LLC of San Juan Bautista, Calif., recalled all its spinach and spinach-containing products. Many people reported eating the company's spinach, sold under multiple brands, before falling sick. And a package of Dole baby spinach, one of those brands, taken from a victim's refrigerator tested positive for E. coli.
On Friday, S.T. Produce, based in Seattle, became the third company to recall salad products that may have included Natural Selection spinach. The other two are River Ranch Fresh Foods of Salinas, Calif., and RLB Food Distributors of West Caldwell, N.J.
S.T. Produce said its salads were distributed to stores and delis in Washington state, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.
States newly reporting cases as of Friday were Maryland, with three cases, and Tennessee, one.
Other states reporting cases are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Acheson said the CDC could continue to receive new reports of illness into the first week of October.
An ongoing outbreak of E. coli linked to spinach has sickened 166 people in half the states as of midday Friday. That's up from 157 victims in 23 states a day earlier, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For more than a week, the Food and Drug Administration has recommend people not eat fresh, raw spinach. State and federal investigators since have traced the contaminated spinach back to three California counties, and already farm inspections there are turning up possible problems.
On Friday, officials said spinach grown anywhere outside that area is safe to eat -— but industry needs to figure out how to let consumers know the origin of what they're buying before the green can return to sale, said Dr. David Acheson of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.
"The public can be confident that spinach grown in those non-implicated areas can be consumed and industry is working to get spinach from these areas back on the market," Acheson told reporters.
"I anticipate it will be fast," he later said of that process. "Whether it will be three days, four days -— I don't know. That will be an industry determination."
Of those infected in the outbreak, 88 have been hospitalized, including a Wisconsin woman who died. Two other deaths have been reported in suspected cases -— a child in Idaho and an elderly woman in Maryland -— but those cases are still being investigated.
A team of 20 state and federal investigators on Friday were to visit the 10th California field associated with the contaminated spinach, said Mark Roh, the FDA's acting regional food and drug director for the Pacific region. Inspectors were looking for standing water, animal droppings and anything else unusual, as well as assessing the sanitation practices of farm workers. They also have taken 188 water, soil and produce samples from fields and processing plants.
The team already has spotted some potential problems.
"There are some situations of concern, may I say, that would warrant some possible corrections in the near future," Roh told reporters by telephone. When asked to elaborate, a spokeswoman broke in and said the FDA would not, citing the ongoing nature of the investigation. The farm and plant inspections are expected to last another week.
Last week, Natural Selection Foods LLC of San Juan Bautista, Calif., recalled all its spinach and spinach-containing products. Many people reported eating the company's spinach, sold under multiple brands, before falling sick. And a package of Dole baby spinach, one of those brands, taken from a victim's refrigerator tested positive for E. coli.
On Friday, S.T. Produce, based in Seattle, became the third company to recall salad products that may have included Natural Selection spinach. The other two are River Ranch Fresh Foods of Salinas, Calif., and RLB Food Distributors of West Caldwell, N.J.
S.T. Produce said its salads were distributed to stores and delis in Washington state, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.
States newly reporting cases as of Friday were Maryland, with three cases, and Tennessee, one.
Other states reporting cases are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Acheson said the CDC could continue to receive new reports of illness into the first week of October.
Health Headlines - September 22
Wal-Mart to Test Price Cuts on Generic Drugs
Wal-Mart has announced a test program to sell generic versions of about 300 widely prescribed drugs for as low as $4 for a standard prescription to its workers and customers, The New York Times reported.
If implemented, the move by the nation's largest retailer, frequently criticized for its poor employee-health benefits, would mark the first time that the giant discounter has used its economic clout to lower health-care costs for customers they way it has on toys, clothing and groceries. On average, generic drugs cost between $10 and $30 for a 30-day prescription.
A Wal-Mart spokeswoman said the company would test the lower prices in 65 Tampa, Fla.-area stores and, depending on consumer response, would likely expand the program around the state and the country next year, the Times reported.
In the past year, the company has introduced several programs to improve workers' benefits, such as extending insurance coverage to the children of part-time workers and starting a benefit plan with monthly premiums as low as $11. Critics, nevertheless, complain that the insurance is out of reach for many of Wal-Mart's 1.3 million U.S. employees, forcing thousands of them to turn to state-sponsored programs or forgo health coverage altogether.
Several states have considered legislation that would force the chain to increase its spending on health care, according to the Times, but only one such bill, in Maryland, became law. The law has since been struck down by a judge, and its future is in doubt.
Report Urges Pay-for-Performance System for Medicare
A report requested by Congress has urged that Medicare replace its current fee-for-service payment system and replace it with a new pay-for-performance system for reimbursing participating health-care providers.
"Medicare beneficiaries are not getting the highest possible quality of care because the program's payment system encourages volume rather than efficiency and quality," said committee chairman Steven A. Schroeder, Distinguished Professor of Health and Health Care at the University of California, San Francisco. "Pay for performance has demonstrated sufficient promise based on early experience that it should be pursued, albeit cautiously, and in a manner that allows for learning and adjustment as needed," he added.
Medicare currently provides more than $300 billion in benefits annually to about 42 million older and disabled Americans through a system that reimburses participating providers for services delivered. Reimbursement rates do not vary with the quality of the care that patients receive, the report noted. And the program does not generally reimburse for preventive services such as patient education or coordination of patients whose conditions involve multiple providers.
The committee deferred to Congress to determine how much to decrease Medicare base payments to create a pool of funds for bonus payments. However, it did recommend that the percentage be sufficient to create rewards large enough to motivate health-care providers' participation until other, more sustainable long-term strategies are explored.
The study was sponsored by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
EPA Strengthens U.S. Air Standards on 'Soot'
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday that it was strengthening standards by almost 50 percent on particulate matter in the nation's air -- commonly known as "soot" -- calling the move its strongest in history to improve air quality for America's 300 million citizens.
Last updated in 1997, the standards increase short-term exposure rates of fine particles from 65 micrograms of particles per cubic meter to 35 micrograms of particles per cubic meter of air. Particle pollution exposure has been linked to health problems ranging from aggravated asthma to premature death in people with heart and lung disease. Revising the daily fine particle standard will yield additional estimated health benefits valued at between $9 billion to $75 billion a year, the EPA said.
EPA said it was also retaining the current annual standard for long-term exposure to fine particles at 15 micrograms per cubic meter. Based on recently updated benefits estimates, meeting this standard will result in benefits ranging from $20 billion to $160 billion a year, EPA added.
A critic of the new regulations, however, called the action "inadequate and demonstrably unhealthy."
"The science is clear," Dr. John E. Heffner, president of the American Thoracic Society, said in a prepared statement Thursday. "People develop respiratory disorders and those with existing lung, heart, and other chronic diseases die prematurely because they are exposed to these microscopic pollutants at levels well below those set by the EPA today."
The Thoracic Society and other medical associations supported both a tighter annual standard -- 12 micrograms per cubic meter -- and a more stringent 24-hour standard -- 25 micrograms per cubic meter.
Human Stem Cells Found to Help Rats' Vision
Oregon Health and Science University scientists report that they have used human embryonic stem cells to improve vision in rats suffering from a disease similar to age-related macular degeneration.
A group led by Raymond Lund, a retinal cell expert, injected the human cells into the retina of a special breed of rat in which the retina degenerates shortly after birth. Subsequent tests found that the cells rescued the rats vision for three months after birth, The New York Times reported.
The injected human cells seemed to behave as retinal cells should, and the treated rats retained some six layers of rods and cones in their retinas, as much as half the normal value. While more research lies ahead before any clinical test of the cells in patients with macular degeneration could be tried, Dr. Neal Adams of the Wilmer Eye Institute in Baltimore said the development was important and "shows us some of the hope that regenerative medicine possesses," the Times reported.
The findings were published Wednesday in the journal Cloning and Stem Cells.
Company Recalls 'Natural' Male Performance Supplement
Makers of a "natural" impotence drug sold over the Internet have recalled their product because it contains an active ingredient similar to the prescription impotence drug Viagara.
Nasutra LLC said Wednesday that it was withdrawing its Nasutra-brand dietary supplements marketed as treatments to enhance male sexual performance. U.S. Food and Food and Drug Administration tests showed that the supplements contained acetildenafil, which is similar to sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, the impotence drug made by Pfizer Inc. and sold only by prescription in the United States, the Associated Press reported.
The FDA had warned consumers in July not to buy Nasutra and six other brands of similar supplements because they illegally contained ingredients similar to sildenafil or to vardenafil in Levitra, an impotence drug sold by GlaxoSmithKline and Schering-Plough. Acetildenafil can interact with ingredients in other prescription drugs and lower blood pressure to dangerous levels, the FDA said.
Wal-Mart has announced a test program to sell generic versions of about 300 widely prescribed drugs for as low as $4 for a standard prescription to its workers and customers, The New York Times reported.
If implemented, the move by the nation's largest retailer, frequently criticized for its poor employee-health benefits, would mark the first time that the giant discounter has used its economic clout to lower health-care costs for customers they way it has on toys, clothing and groceries. On average, generic drugs cost between $10 and $30 for a 30-day prescription.
A Wal-Mart spokeswoman said the company would test the lower prices in 65 Tampa, Fla.-area stores and, depending on consumer response, would likely expand the program around the state and the country next year, the Times reported.
In the past year, the company has introduced several programs to improve workers' benefits, such as extending insurance coverage to the children of part-time workers and starting a benefit plan with monthly premiums as low as $11. Critics, nevertheless, complain that the insurance is out of reach for many of Wal-Mart's 1.3 million U.S. employees, forcing thousands of them to turn to state-sponsored programs or forgo health coverage altogether.
Several states have considered legislation that would force the chain to increase its spending on health care, according to the Times, but only one such bill, in Maryland, became law. The law has since been struck down by a judge, and its future is in doubt.
Report Urges Pay-for-Performance System for Medicare
A report requested by Congress has urged that Medicare replace its current fee-for-service payment system and replace it with a new pay-for-performance system for reimbursing participating health-care providers.
"Medicare beneficiaries are not getting the highest possible quality of care because the program's payment system encourages volume rather than efficiency and quality," said committee chairman Steven A. Schroeder, Distinguished Professor of Health and Health Care at the University of California, San Francisco. "Pay for performance has demonstrated sufficient promise based on early experience that it should be pursued, albeit cautiously, and in a manner that allows for learning and adjustment as needed," he added.
Medicare currently provides more than $300 billion in benefits annually to about 42 million older and disabled Americans through a system that reimburses participating providers for services delivered. Reimbursement rates do not vary with the quality of the care that patients receive, the report noted. And the program does not generally reimburse for preventive services such as patient education or coordination of patients whose conditions involve multiple providers.
The committee deferred to Congress to determine how much to decrease Medicare base payments to create a pool of funds for bonus payments. However, it did recommend that the percentage be sufficient to create rewards large enough to motivate health-care providers' participation until other, more sustainable long-term strategies are explored.
The study was sponsored by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
EPA Strengthens U.S. Air Standards on 'Soot'
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday that it was strengthening standards by almost 50 percent on particulate matter in the nation's air -- commonly known as "soot" -- calling the move its strongest in history to improve air quality for America's 300 million citizens.
Last updated in 1997, the standards increase short-term exposure rates of fine particles from 65 micrograms of particles per cubic meter to 35 micrograms of particles per cubic meter of air. Particle pollution exposure has been linked to health problems ranging from aggravated asthma to premature death in people with heart and lung disease. Revising the daily fine particle standard will yield additional estimated health benefits valued at between $9 billion to $75 billion a year, the EPA said.
EPA said it was also retaining the current annual standard for long-term exposure to fine particles at 15 micrograms per cubic meter. Based on recently updated benefits estimates, meeting this standard will result in benefits ranging from $20 billion to $160 billion a year, EPA added.
A critic of the new regulations, however, called the action "inadequate and demonstrably unhealthy."
"The science is clear," Dr. John E. Heffner, president of the American Thoracic Society, said in a prepared statement Thursday. "People develop respiratory disorders and those with existing lung, heart, and other chronic diseases die prematurely because they are exposed to these microscopic pollutants at levels well below those set by the EPA today."
The Thoracic Society and other medical associations supported both a tighter annual standard -- 12 micrograms per cubic meter -- and a more stringent 24-hour standard -- 25 micrograms per cubic meter.
Human Stem Cells Found to Help Rats' Vision
Oregon Health and Science University scientists report that they have used human embryonic stem cells to improve vision in rats suffering from a disease similar to age-related macular degeneration.
A group led by Raymond Lund, a retinal cell expert, injected the human cells into the retina of a special breed of rat in which the retina degenerates shortly after birth. Subsequent tests found that the cells rescued the rats vision for three months after birth, The New York Times reported.
The injected human cells seemed to behave as retinal cells should, and the treated rats retained some six layers of rods and cones in their retinas, as much as half the normal value. While more research lies ahead before any clinical test of the cells in patients with macular degeneration could be tried, Dr. Neal Adams of the Wilmer Eye Institute in Baltimore said the development was important and "shows us some of the hope that regenerative medicine possesses," the Times reported.
The findings were published Wednesday in the journal Cloning and Stem Cells.
Company Recalls 'Natural' Male Performance Supplement
Makers of a "natural" impotence drug sold over the Internet have recalled their product because it contains an active ingredient similar to the prescription impotence drug Viagara.
Nasutra LLC said Wednesday that it was withdrawing its Nasutra-brand dietary supplements marketed as treatments to enhance male sexual performance. U.S. Food and Food and Drug Administration tests showed that the supplements contained acetildenafil, which is similar to sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, the impotence drug made by Pfizer Inc. and sold only by prescription in the United States, the Associated Press reported.
The FDA had warned consumers in July not to buy Nasutra and six other brands of similar supplements because they illegally contained ingredients similar to sildenafil or to vardenafil in Levitra, an impotence drug sold by GlaxoSmithKline and Schering-Plough. Acetildenafil can interact with ingredients in other prescription drugs and lower blood pressure to dangerous levels, the FDA said.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Health Headlines - September 21
Surveys Find Outright Hunger Among N.C. Latino Immigrants
Latino immigrant families in North Carolina and parts of southwestern Virginia live with hunger at a rate up to eight times the national average, according to four new U.S. health studies released Wednesday.
The studies, paid for by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health, were conducted by Wake Forest University School of Medicine researchers. They found that about 40 percent of the respondents in each study reported "food insecurity," which was worrying that food would run out and that food bought would not last.
The overall U.S. hunger rate is 4.3 percent, but the Wake Forest surveys found that hunger among Latino immigrants ranged from almost twice the national rate (8 percent) to more than eight times the national rate (35.6 percent). The results are reported in the October issue of the Journal of Nutrition.
"Although the United States enjoys a relative lack of hunger, there are segments of the N.C. population -- Latino immigrants -- with hunger more severe than areas of persistent poverty like Appalachia," Sara A. Quandt, lead author from the department of family and community medicine, said in a prepared statement.
Quandt and her colleagues found that "food insecurity" ranged from 35.6 percent to 41.8 percent in the four surveys, compared to 13.3 percent in the United States in general.
In addition, more than 25 percent of the respondents in each study reported that their children were not eating enough because of lack of money to buy food, the researchers added. Immigrants who lived in the mountain counties were better off because of the year-round nature of the Christmas tree industry, but specific data on overall participation in food programs wasn't collected, the authors said.
FDA Advisers Support Spinal Disc Device
A two-part stainless steel device meant as an artificial alternative to spinal fusion surgery in patients with degenerative disc disease should get government approval, U.S. health advisers said Tuesday.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Devices panel unanimously recommended the agency approve the device with conditions, including a requirement that the company continue to study the device after it's marketed. While the FDA isn't required to follow the advice of its advisory committees, it usually does.
The manufacturer of the Prestige Cervical Disc System, Medtronic Inc., said the apparatus could replace natural but diseased shock-absorbing disks in the neck and help maintain motion and flexibility while relieving pain, the Associated Press reported. The device is surgically implanted between the bones of the spine, with plates screwed into the vertebrae. The ball-and-socket connection between the device's two plates allows for movement.
An FDA review of the device found it just as safe and effective as the surgical fusing of vertebrae in the neck area of the spine, AP reported.
Acne Drug Linked to Depression in Mice
Roaccutane, a treatment for severe acne used by some 13 million people worldwide, has been found to produce depressive behavior in mice, British scientists reported Tuesday.
Working with colleagues at the University of Texas at Austin, British researchers from the University of Bath gave Roaccutane to adolescent mice over a six-week period and monitored the animals' behavior. While there was no change in their physical abilities, the rodents spent more time being immobile in response to stress tests, which was interpreted as a sign of depression. The drug's maker, Roche, does include a warning about depression in packets, BBC News reported.
"Without more research, it is difficult to say for sure whether the same link applies to people taking the drug," said researcher Dr. Sarah Bailey of the University of Bath. Bailey said teenagers should not stop taking the drug, but should seek medical advice if they start to feel depressed. Parents should also watch out for any mood changes in their children, she added.
From 1992 until this month, Britain's drug regulatory agency has received 1,588 reports of suspected adverse events among people taking Roaccutane, including 25 people who died from suicide, the BBC reported.
The mouse study was published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.
Third Preemie Dies After Blood Thinner Mishap
A third premature infant who was inadvertently given an adult dose of a powerful blood thinner has died at an Indianapolis hospital, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.
The latest death came at a different institution, where the infant was transferred after being born at Methodist Hospital, the wire service said.
Methodist officials say a total of six premature infants were mistakenly given adult doses of the blood thinner heparin, used to prevent blood clots from clogging I.V. tubes. Two other infants died before the latest fatality, and three infants remain hospitalized, the AP said.
Adult doses of the drug -- similar in look and size to child doses -- were mistakenly stored in a drawer normally reserved for preemies, the hospital said. A spokesman said the hospital has taken unspecified steps to prevent a recurrence.
1st Penis Transplant Reversed After 14 Days
Doctors in China said Tuesday that they had successfully transplanted a penis on a man who had lost his own in an accident, but were forced to remove it only two weeks later because of psychological problems experienced by the man and his wife.
Surgeons at Guangzhou General Hospital in southern Guangdong Province performed the transplant in September 2005, a hospital spokesperson said. The penis came from a 22-year-old brain-dead man whose parents had agreed to donate the organ. But the report did not explain how the 44-year-old man lost his own penis, saying only that "an unfortunate traumatic accident" left him with a small stump, unable to urinate or have sex normally, the Associated Press reported.
Fourteen days after the penis transplant, the recipient and his wife asked that the organ be removed "because of the wife's psychological rejection as well as the swollen shape of the transplanted penis," the surgeons reported in the journal European Urology, published by the European Association of Urology.
The doctors said lab examinations showed no sign of rejection. The procedure was believed to the first such transplant reported in a medical journal, according to the AP.
Latino immigrant families in North Carolina and parts of southwestern Virginia live with hunger at a rate up to eight times the national average, according to four new U.S. health studies released Wednesday.
The studies, paid for by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health, were conducted by Wake Forest University School of Medicine researchers. They found that about 40 percent of the respondents in each study reported "food insecurity," which was worrying that food would run out and that food bought would not last.
The overall U.S. hunger rate is 4.3 percent, but the Wake Forest surveys found that hunger among Latino immigrants ranged from almost twice the national rate (8 percent) to more than eight times the national rate (35.6 percent). The results are reported in the October issue of the Journal of Nutrition.
"Although the United States enjoys a relative lack of hunger, there are segments of the N.C. population -- Latino immigrants -- with hunger more severe than areas of persistent poverty like Appalachia," Sara A. Quandt, lead author from the department of family and community medicine, said in a prepared statement.
Quandt and her colleagues found that "food insecurity" ranged from 35.6 percent to 41.8 percent in the four surveys, compared to 13.3 percent in the United States in general.
In addition, more than 25 percent of the respondents in each study reported that their children were not eating enough because of lack of money to buy food, the researchers added. Immigrants who lived in the mountain counties were better off because of the year-round nature of the Christmas tree industry, but specific data on overall participation in food programs wasn't collected, the authors said.
FDA Advisers Support Spinal Disc Device
A two-part stainless steel device meant as an artificial alternative to spinal fusion surgery in patients with degenerative disc disease should get government approval, U.S. health advisers said Tuesday.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Devices panel unanimously recommended the agency approve the device with conditions, including a requirement that the company continue to study the device after it's marketed. While the FDA isn't required to follow the advice of its advisory committees, it usually does.
The manufacturer of the Prestige Cervical Disc System, Medtronic Inc., said the apparatus could replace natural but diseased shock-absorbing disks in the neck and help maintain motion and flexibility while relieving pain, the Associated Press reported. The device is surgically implanted between the bones of the spine, with plates screwed into the vertebrae. The ball-and-socket connection between the device's two plates allows for movement.
An FDA review of the device found it just as safe and effective as the surgical fusing of vertebrae in the neck area of the spine, AP reported.
Acne Drug Linked to Depression in Mice
Roaccutane, a treatment for severe acne used by some 13 million people worldwide, has been found to produce depressive behavior in mice, British scientists reported Tuesday.
Working with colleagues at the University of Texas at Austin, British researchers from the University of Bath gave Roaccutane to adolescent mice over a six-week period and monitored the animals' behavior. While there was no change in their physical abilities, the rodents spent more time being immobile in response to stress tests, which was interpreted as a sign of depression. The drug's maker, Roche, does include a warning about depression in packets, BBC News reported.
"Without more research, it is difficult to say for sure whether the same link applies to people taking the drug," said researcher Dr. Sarah Bailey of the University of Bath. Bailey said teenagers should not stop taking the drug, but should seek medical advice if they start to feel depressed. Parents should also watch out for any mood changes in their children, she added.
From 1992 until this month, Britain's drug regulatory agency has received 1,588 reports of suspected adverse events among people taking Roaccutane, including 25 people who died from suicide, the BBC reported.
The mouse study was published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.
Third Preemie Dies After Blood Thinner Mishap
A third premature infant who was inadvertently given an adult dose of a powerful blood thinner has died at an Indianapolis hospital, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.
The latest death came at a different institution, where the infant was transferred after being born at Methodist Hospital, the wire service said.
Methodist officials say a total of six premature infants were mistakenly given adult doses of the blood thinner heparin, used to prevent blood clots from clogging I.V. tubes. Two other infants died before the latest fatality, and three infants remain hospitalized, the AP said.
Adult doses of the drug -- similar in look and size to child doses -- were mistakenly stored in a drawer normally reserved for preemies, the hospital said. A spokesman said the hospital has taken unspecified steps to prevent a recurrence.
1st Penis Transplant Reversed After 14 Days
Doctors in China said Tuesday that they had successfully transplanted a penis on a man who had lost his own in an accident, but were forced to remove it only two weeks later because of psychological problems experienced by the man and his wife.
Surgeons at Guangzhou General Hospital in southern Guangdong Province performed the transplant in September 2005, a hospital spokesperson said. The penis came from a 22-year-old brain-dead man whose parents had agreed to donate the organ. But the report did not explain how the 44-year-old man lost his own penis, saying only that "an unfortunate traumatic accident" left him with a small stump, unable to urinate or have sex normally, the Associated Press reported.
Fourteen days after the penis transplant, the recipient and his wife asked that the organ be removed "because of the wife's psychological rejection as well as the swollen shape of the transplanted penis," the surgeons reported in the journal European Urology, published by the European Association of Urology.
The doctors said lab examinations showed no sign of rejection. The procedure was believed to the first such transplant reported in a medical journal, according to the AP.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Health Headlines - September 20
1st Penis Transplant Reversed After 14 Days
Doctors in China said Tuesday that they had successfully transplanted a penis on a man who had lost his own in an accident, but were forced to remove it only two weeks later because of psychological problems experienced by the man and his wife.
Surgeons at Guangzhou General Hospital in southern Guangdong Province performed the transplant in September 2005, a hospital spokesperson said. The penis came from a 22-year-old brain-dead man whose parents had agreed to donate the organ. But the report did not explain how the 44-year-old man lost his own penis, saying only that "an unfortunate traumatic accident" left him with a small stump, unable to urinate or have sex normally, the Associated Press reported.
Fourteen days after the penis transplant, the recipient and his wife asked that the organ be removed "because of the wife's psychological rejection as well as the swollen shape of the transplanted penis," the surgeons reported in the journal European Urology, published by the European Association of Urology.
The doctors said lab examinations showed no sign of rejection. The procedure was believed to the first such transplant reported in a medical journal, according to the AP.
Hundreds in Oklahoma May Have Been Exposed to TB
Ten people tested positive for tuberculosis at an Oklahoma medical center and more than 2,000 other patients, workers and members of the public may have been exposed by a sick health-care worker, public health officials said Monday.
A letter sent to about 1,650 patients and 350 workers at Integris Southwest Medical Center in Oklahoma City warned of their potential exposure and urged them to get skin tests for the disease, said Dr. Gene Claflin, medical director of the Oklahoma City-County Health Department. About 250 members of the public have also been alerted, the Associated Press reported.
So far, an estimated 600 people have been tested, including all of the hospital's employees. More people are expected to test positive as the examinations continue. The exposure reportedly began with an unidentified female health-care worker at the facility who was found to have the disease Aug. 14 but reported experiencing symptoms six months earlier, the AP reported.
The disease is spread when an infected person coughs, shouts or sneezes and spreads germs in the air that are inhaled by others. TB primarily affects the lungs, and symptoms include coughing, shortness of breath, low-grade fever, chills and possible weight loss.
Health officials said there were 144 confirmed cases of TB in the state last year, while in 2003, 28 percent of all TB cases in the state occurred in Oklahoma County, where the latest outbreak occurred, the AP reported.
Typical HS Gym Workout Averages Just 16 Minutes
U.S. kids aren't exactly go-getters in gym classes, averaging just 16 minutes of half-hearted exercise that might include a few jumping jacks or a lazy game of softball, according to a Cornell University study released Tuesday.
The study was based on annual surveys of 37,000 high schoolers by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to the Associated Press. The data come from the annual youth behavior surveys from 1999, 2001 and 2003, which include questions about students' exercise habits.
The Cornell report also found that adding an additional 200 minutes of physical education a week -- long urged by several groups concerned about the growing obesity epidemic in America -- resulted in boys spending only about 7 1/2 more minutes being active in gym class. For girls, an additional 200 minutes of PE resulted in about eight more minutes of being active in gym each week. The rest of the extra gym time was likely spent being sedentary -- standing around idly while playing sports like softball or volleyball that don't require constant movement, according to the study.
ADHD Cases Linked to Smoke Exposure, Lead
Childhood exposure to lead and smoking during pregnancy may be responsible for one-third of the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder cases in the United States, researchers reported Monday.
The study, headed by researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, was the first to estimate the number of ADHD cases attributable to environmental toxins. The study was published online Tuesday in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, according to an Associated Press report.
The findings build on previous research linking toxic chemicals and other environmental factors to attention problems and developmental and neurological disorders in about 3 percent of all U.S. children.
The researchers analyzed data on almost 4,000 U.S. children ages 4 to 15 who were part of a 1999-2002 government health survey. Included were 135 children treated for ADHD. Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy were 2.5 times more likely to have ADHD than children who weren't prenatally exposed to tobacco, and children with blood lead levels of more than 2 micrograms per deciliter were four times more likely to have ADHD than children with levels below 0.8 microgram per deciliter.
The government's "acceptable" blood lead level is 10 micrograms per deciliter, and an estimated 310,000 U.S. children ages 1 to 5 have levels exceeding that, the AP reported.
FDA Approves Fast Test for Lead Poisoning
A new machine that can test children and adults for lead poisoning in minutes was approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday, but funding problems may slow its distribution.
Acting FDA Commissioner Andrew C. von Eschenbach said that the testing device -- about the size of a laptop computer -- could be used in as many as 115,000 locations nationwide, including health clinics, schools, mobile labs and workplaces.
"Before today, [testing] was only available in certain settings, like hospitals," he said, adding that devices eliminate the need to send a blood sample to a lab and wait several days for results.
The government has set a goal of eradicating childhood lead poisoning by 2010, The Los Angeles Times reported Monday, but it has not offered financial aid to speed adoption of the technology. The new machines costs about $2,200 each and are considered key to combating the problem because they enables medical personnel to offer immediate guidance to parents on how to help their children.
Lead poisoning is most commonly caused by children's ingestion of dust or other residue from lead-based paints. Lead paint was banned for residential use in 1978, but about 40 precent of the nation's housing still contains some. Medicaid pays for lead tests for low-income families, and federal guidelines call for testing all Medicaid recipients at ages 1 and 2, the Times reported, but fewer than 25 percent of such children are actually tested.
Doctors in China said Tuesday that they had successfully transplanted a penis on a man who had lost his own in an accident, but were forced to remove it only two weeks later because of psychological problems experienced by the man and his wife.
Surgeons at Guangzhou General Hospital in southern Guangdong Province performed the transplant in September 2005, a hospital spokesperson said. The penis came from a 22-year-old brain-dead man whose parents had agreed to donate the organ. But the report did not explain how the 44-year-old man lost his own penis, saying only that "an unfortunate traumatic accident" left him with a small stump, unable to urinate or have sex normally, the Associated Press reported.
Fourteen days after the penis transplant, the recipient and his wife asked that the organ be removed "because of the wife's psychological rejection as well as the swollen shape of the transplanted penis," the surgeons reported in the journal European Urology, published by the European Association of Urology.
The doctors said lab examinations showed no sign of rejection. The procedure was believed to the first such transplant reported in a medical journal, according to the AP.
Hundreds in Oklahoma May Have Been Exposed to TB
Ten people tested positive for tuberculosis at an Oklahoma medical center and more than 2,000 other patients, workers and members of the public may have been exposed by a sick health-care worker, public health officials said Monday.
A letter sent to about 1,650 patients and 350 workers at Integris Southwest Medical Center in Oklahoma City warned of their potential exposure and urged them to get skin tests for the disease, said Dr. Gene Claflin, medical director of the Oklahoma City-County Health Department. About 250 members of the public have also been alerted, the Associated Press reported.
So far, an estimated 600 people have been tested, including all of the hospital's employees. More people are expected to test positive as the examinations continue. The exposure reportedly began with an unidentified female health-care worker at the facility who was found to have the disease Aug. 14 but reported experiencing symptoms six months earlier, the AP reported.
The disease is spread when an infected person coughs, shouts or sneezes and spreads germs in the air that are inhaled by others. TB primarily affects the lungs, and symptoms include coughing, shortness of breath, low-grade fever, chills and possible weight loss.
Health officials said there were 144 confirmed cases of TB in the state last year, while in 2003, 28 percent of all TB cases in the state occurred in Oklahoma County, where the latest outbreak occurred, the AP reported.
Typical HS Gym Workout Averages Just 16 Minutes
U.S. kids aren't exactly go-getters in gym classes, averaging just 16 minutes of half-hearted exercise that might include a few jumping jacks or a lazy game of softball, according to a Cornell University study released Tuesday.
The study was based on annual surveys of 37,000 high schoolers by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to the Associated Press. The data come from the annual youth behavior surveys from 1999, 2001 and 2003, which include questions about students' exercise habits.
The Cornell report also found that adding an additional 200 minutes of physical education a week -- long urged by several groups concerned about the growing obesity epidemic in America -- resulted in boys spending only about 7 1/2 more minutes being active in gym class. For girls, an additional 200 minutes of PE resulted in about eight more minutes of being active in gym each week. The rest of the extra gym time was likely spent being sedentary -- standing around idly while playing sports like softball or volleyball that don't require constant movement, according to the study.
ADHD Cases Linked to Smoke Exposure, Lead
Childhood exposure to lead and smoking during pregnancy may be responsible for one-third of the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder cases in the United States, researchers reported Monday.
The study, headed by researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, was the first to estimate the number of ADHD cases attributable to environmental toxins. The study was published online Tuesday in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, according to an Associated Press report.
The findings build on previous research linking toxic chemicals and other environmental factors to attention problems and developmental and neurological disorders in about 3 percent of all U.S. children.
The researchers analyzed data on almost 4,000 U.S. children ages 4 to 15 who were part of a 1999-2002 government health survey. Included were 135 children treated for ADHD. Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy were 2.5 times more likely to have ADHD than children who weren't prenatally exposed to tobacco, and children with blood lead levels of more than 2 micrograms per deciliter were four times more likely to have ADHD than children with levels below 0.8 microgram per deciliter.
The government's "acceptable" blood lead level is 10 micrograms per deciliter, and an estimated 310,000 U.S. children ages 1 to 5 have levels exceeding that, the AP reported.
FDA Approves Fast Test for Lead Poisoning
A new machine that can test children and adults for lead poisoning in minutes was approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday, but funding problems may slow its distribution.
Acting FDA Commissioner Andrew C. von Eschenbach said that the testing device -- about the size of a laptop computer -- could be used in as many as 115,000 locations nationwide, including health clinics, schools, mobile labs and workplaces.
"Before today, [testing] was only available in certain settings, like hospitals," he said, adding that devices eliminate the need to send a blood sample to a lab and wait several days for results.
The government has set a goal of eradicating childhood lead poisoning by 2010, The Los Angeles Times reported Monday, but it has not offered financial aid to speed adoption of the technology. The new machines costs about $2,200 each and are considered key to combating the problem because they enables medical personnel to offer immediate guidance to parents on how to help their children.
Lead poisoning is most commonly caused by children's ingestion of dust or other residue from lead-based paints. Lead paint was banned for residential use in 1978, but about 40 precent of the nation's housing still contains some. Medicaid pays for lead tests for low-income families, and federal guidelines call for testing all Medicaid recipients at ages 1 and 2, the Times reported, but fewer than 25 percent of such children are actually tested.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Health Headlines - September 19
Bioterror Remedy Program Yielding Few Results: Report
A bioterror drug stockpiling program whose roots stem from the 2001 anthrax-by-mail attacks has produced only a fraction of the anticipated remedies, The New York Times reported Monday.
Project Bioshield, a $5.6 billion effort to gather remedies for a host of possible terror threats, is partly stymied by government agencies that can't seem to decide which treatments they want and in what quantities, the newspaper reported.
Also unable to attract the world's largest drugmakers, the government has enlisted smaller start-up firms with no proven history, the Times said.
The problem is most acute in development of a new anthrax vaccine. The two biotech firms picked for the $900 million effort have hired lobbyists to attack each other's pending products, and the delivery date is far behind schedule, the newspaper said.
Outside observers, including Michael Greenberger, director of the Center for Health and Homeland Security at the University of Maryland, offered grim assessments of Project Bioshield's progress.
"The inept implementation of the program has led the best brains and the best scientists to give up, to look elsewhere or devote their resources to medical initiatives that are not focused on biodefense," he told the Times.
A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services acknowledged problems, but denied the project was floundering. "Medical discovery is an unpredictable process," spokesman Bill Hall told the newspaper. "It is the nature of science."
Novel Drug Approved for Fungal Infections
A new molecular drug designed to prevent fungal infections in post-surgical patients and others with weaker immune systems has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Schering Corp.'s Noxafil (posaconazole) contains a substance that has never before been approved in the United States, the FDA said in a statement. The drug was approved to prevent infections caused by certain molds and yeast-like fungi called Aspergillus and Candida.
While people with healthy immune systems are normally unaffected by these fungi, they tend to cause invasive infections in people who have had bone-marrow transplants and people with low white blood cell counts, the agency said.
Noxafil's safety and effectiveness were evaluated in clinical trials involving 1,844 people between ages 13 and 82. Common side effects included nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, rash, a drop in blood potassium levels, and in rare cases, problems with heart or liver function.
The drug should be taken with a full meal to allow for adequate absorption into the body, the FDA said.
Preemies Die After Getting Wrong Drug Doses
Two premature infants died after an Indianapolis hospital gave them adult doses of a blood thinner, the Associated Press reported.
Four other infants at Methodist Hospital also got adult doses of Heparin, the wire service said. One may require surgery and the other three were listed in serious condition.
The drug is frequently given to premature infants to prevent blood clots. Experts told the wire service that an overdose could lead to severe internal bleeding.
A hospital spokesman said pre-measured vials containing adult doses of the drug were mistakenly placed in a cabinet drawer that was reserved only for preemies. The packaging for both doses is similar, the AP said.
The hospital said it was investigating the incident and had taken unspecified steps to prevent a recurrence.
DDT Endorsed by World Health Organization to Fight Malaria
DDT, the pesticide long banned in the United States, has received a limited endorsement from an unlikely source -- the World Health Organization (WHO).
In order to combat the growing scourge of malaria, which kills more than 800,000 African children annually, the health expert leading WHO's effort to fight malaria in Africa "unequivocally declared" that DDT should be used in small amounts on the inner walls of people's homes to kill the mosquitoes that carry the disease, according to The New York Times.
WHO's Dr. Arata Kochi was joined at a news conference by Adm. R. Timothy Ziemer, representing the Bush administration's $1.2 billion anti-malaria project. The Times quoted Ziemer as saying that spraying with insecticides was a method "that must be deployed as robustly and strategically as possible."
For almost 45 years, DDT's use as an insecticide has been questioned -- and sometimes banned -- after Rachel Carson's 1962 book "The Silent Spring" documented how massive spraying allowed DDT to enter the food chain and suggested it might be a cause for cancer and genetic damage.
According to the Times, an international nonprofit group, Beyond Pesticides, distributed news releases on Friday opposing WHO's change in direction. Dependence on pesticides like DDT "causes greater long-tem problems than those that are being addressed in the short-term," the group said.
U.K. Scientists Report New Test to Detect TB
A new blood test to detect tuberculosis has been developed by scientists in the United Kingdom. It is hoped that the test will be particularly effective in developing countries where TB still kills millions of people, BBC News reported.
According to the BBC, researchers from George's Hospital and the Medical Research Council National Institute for Medical Research say the serum test is 94 percent accurate. Results of the study were published in the latest issue of The Lancet.
This isn't the first time scientists have tried to come up with an alternative to the standard examination of sputum from the lungs under a microscope. This test requires equipment that may not be available in many parts of the world, and it takes a long time to get results. According to BBC News, the blood test looks for indicators of infection, and these results could outperform alternatives.
The World Health Organization estimates that there were 1.4 million deaths from tuberculosis in 2004, with Southeast Asia and Africa particularly hard hit. In 2003, 14,000 new cases of TB were reported in the United States. The United Kingdom has about 7,000 new cases annually.
A bioterror drug stockpiling program whose roots stem from the 2001 anthrax-by-mail attacks has produced only a fraction of the anticipated remedies, The New York Times reported Monday.
Project Bioshield, a $5.6 billion effort to gather remedies for a host of possible terror threats, is partly stymied by government agencies that can't seem to decide which treatments they want and in what quantities, the newspaper reported.
Also unable to attract the world's largest drugmakers, the government has enlisted smaller start-up firms with no proven history, the Times said.
The problem is most acute in development of a new anthrax vaccine. The two biotech firms picked for the $900 million effort have hired lobbyists to attack each other's pending products, and the delivery date is far behind schedule, the newspaper said.
Outside observers, including Michael Greenberger, director of the Center for Health and Homeland Security at the University of Maryland, offered grim assessments of Project Bioshield's progress.
"The inept implementation of the program has led the best brains and the best scientists to give up, to look elsewhere or devote their resources to medical initiatives that are not focused on biodefense," he told the Times.
A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services acknowledged problems, but denied the project was floundering. "Medical discovery is an unpredictable process," spokesman Bill Hall told the newspaper. "It is the nature of science."
Novel Drug Approved for Fungal Infections
A new molecular drug designed to prevent fungal infections in post-surgical patients and others with weaker immune systems has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Schering Corp.'s Noxafil (posaconazole) contains a substance that has never before been approved in the United States, the FDA said in a statement. The drug was approved to prevent infections caused by certain molds and yeast-like fungi called Aspergillus and Candida.
While people with healthy immune systems are normally unaffected by these fungi, they tend to cause invasive infections in people who have had bone-marrow transplants and people with low white blood cell counts, the agency said.
Noxafil's safety and effectiveness were evaluated in clinical trials involving 1,844 people between ages 13 and 82. Common side effects included nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, rash, a drop in blood potassium levels, and in rare cases, problems with heart or liver function.
The drug should be taken with a full meal to allow for adequate absorption into the body, the FDA said.
Preemies Die After Getting Wrong Drug Doses
Two premature infants died after an Indianapolis hospital gave them adult doses of a blood thinner, the Associated Press reported.
Four other infants at Methodist Hospital also got adult doses of Heparin, the wire service said. One may require surgery and the other three were listed in serious condition.
The drug is frequently given to premature infants to prevent blood clots. Experts told the wire service that an overdose could lead to severe internal bleeding.
A hospital spokesman said pre-measured vials containing adult doses of the drug were mistakenly placed in a cabinet drawer that was reserved only for preemies. The packaging for both doses is similar, the AP said.
The hospital said it was investigating the incident and had taken unspecified steps to prevent a recurrence.
DDT Endorsed by World Health Organization to Fight Malaria
DDT, the pesticide long banned in the United States, has received a limited endorsement from an unlikely source -- the World Health Organization (WHO).
In order to combat the growing scourge of malaria, which kills more than 800,000 African children annually, the health expert leading WHO's effort to fight malaria in Africa "unequivocally declared" that DDT should be used in small amounts on the inner walls of people's homes to kill the mosquitoes that carry the disease, according to The New York Times.
WHO's Dr. Arata Kochi was joined at a news conference by Adm. R. Timothy Ziemer, representing the Bush administration's $1.2 billion anti-malaria project. The Times quoted Ziemer as saying that spraying with insecticides was a method "that must be deployed as robustly and strategically as possible."
For almost 45 years, DDT's use as an insecticide has been questioned -- and sometimes banned -- after Rachel Carson's 1962 book "The Silent Spring" documented how massive spraying allowed DDT to enter the food chain and suggested it might be a cause for cancer and genetic damage.
According to the Times, an international nonprofit group, Beyond Pesticides, distributed news releases on Friday opposing WHO's change in direction. Dependence on pesticides like DDT "causes greater long-tem problems than those that are being addressed in the short-term," the group said.
U.K. Scientists Report New Test to Detect TB
A new blood test to detect tuberculosis has been developed by scientists in the United Kingdom. It is hoped that the test will be particularly effective in developing countries where TB still kills millions of people, BBC News reported.
According to the BBC, researchers from George's Hospital and the Medical Research Council National Institute for Medical Research say the serum test is 94 percent accurate. Results of the study were published in the latest issue of The Lancet.
This isn't the first time scientists have tried to come up with an alternative to the standard examination of sputum from the lungs under a microscope. This test requires equipment that may not be available in many parts of the world, and it takes a long time to get results. According to BBC News, the blood test looks for indicators of infection, and these results could outperform alternatives.
The World Health Organization estimates that there were 1.4 million deaths from tuberculosis in 2004, with Southeast Asia and Africa particularly hard hit. In 2003, 14,000 new cases of TB were reported in the United States. The United Kingdom has about 7,000 new cases annually.
Monday, September 18, 2006
FDA says spinach tampering not suspected
Tampering is not suspected in an outbreak of E. coli linked to fresh spinach, federal health officials said Monday as they probed for a source of the contamination and warned consumers not to resume eating uncooked spinach products.
Growers have been warned on the subject, too. In 2004 and again in 2005, the Food and Drug Administration's top food safety official told California farmers they needed to do more to increase the safety of the fresh leafy greens they grow.
The FDA has linked a California company's fresh spinach to the outbreak, which has killed one person and sickened at least 108 others. Investigators are working to pinpoint the source of the bacteria. Possible sources include contaminated irrigation water, known to be a problem in the state's Salinas Valley, a major produce-growing area.
"At this time we have no evidence supporting tampering," FDA spokeswoman Susan Bro said.
The FBI is monitoring the situation, said FBI spokesman Rich Kolko. Kolko added it was a routine and precautionary measure, and is not indicative of any suspicious activity.
Bro also dismissed a claim by Natural Selection Foods LLC, the country's largest grower of organic produce, that its organic spinach products had been cleared of suspicion. "The FDA has not cleared any products from the list and continues to recommend consumers avoid eating fresh spinach products," Bro said.
The current cases are the latest in a string of 19 food-poisoning outbreaks since 1995 that have been linked to lettuce and spinach. At least eight were tied to produce grown in the Salinas Valley.
"In light of continuing outbreaks, it is clear that more needs to be done," the FDA's Robert Brackett wrote in a Nov. 4, 2005, letter.
Suggested actions included discarding any produce that comes into contact with floodwaters. Rivers and creeks in the Salinas watershed are known to be periodically contaminated with E. coli, Brackett said.
Natural Selection has maintained its recall of 34 brands of fresh spinach products. However, the company said late Sunday the manufacturing codes from packages of spinach that had infected patients turned over to health officials all were from non-organic spinach. The company packages both organic and conventionally grown spinach in separate areas at its San Juan Bautista, Calif. plant.
Those brands include the company's own labels and those of other companies that had contracts with Natural Selection to produce or package its spinach.
Meanwhile, Salinas-based River Ranch Fresh Foods added to its recall spring mixes containing spinach sold under the labels Hy-Vee, Fresh N' Easy and Farmers Market, FDA officials said. All contain spinach purchased from Natural Selection, they said.
The FDA and California Department of Health Services were reviewing irrigation methods, harvest conditions and other practices at farms possibly involved.
The spinach could have been contaminated in the field or during processing. About 74 percent of the fresh-market spinach grown in the U.S. comes from California, according to the California Farm Bureau Federation.
E. coli cases linked to tainted spinach have been reported in 19 states, with Wisconsin reporting the most cases, including the death of a 77-year-old woman.
Other states reporting cases were California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming, according to the CDC. Seven new cases reported Sunday were in states with previous illnesses.
In Ohio, state health officials said they were investigating the death of a 23-month-old girl who was sickened by E. coli to determine whether the case was related to the outbreak. The girl's mother said she often buys bagged spinach.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Sunday they've started an Atlanta-based emergency operations center to help state health agencies with E. coli testing. Epidemiologists are helping test spinach samples and stool samples of infected people, center spokeswoman Lola Russell said.
Natural Selection recalled its packaged spinach throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico as a precaution after federal health officials said some of those hospitalized reported eating brands of prepackaged spinach distributed by the company.
However, some restaurants and retailers may be taking spinach out of bags before selling it, so consumers shouldn't buy it at all, the FDA said.
Boiling contaminated spinach can kill the bacteria, but washing won't eliminate it, the CDC warned.
Federal officials stressed that the bacteria had not been isolated in products sold by Natural Selection. As the investigation continues, other brands may be implicated, officials said.
Natural Selection was founded in 1984 by Drew and Myra Goodman. Within two years, its best-known brand, Earthbound Farm, began shipping pre-washed, packaged salad fixings, and the company's "spring mix" became a mainstay of restaurants and supermarkets.
Growers have been warned on the subject, too. In 2004 and again in 2005, the Food and Drug Administration's top food safety official told California farmers they needed to do more to increase the safety of the fresh leafy greens they grow.
The FDA has linked a California company's fresh spinach to the outbreak, which has killed one person and sickened at least 108 others. Investigators are working to pinpoint the source of the bacteria. Possible sources include contaminated irrigation water, known to be a problem in the state's Salinas Valley, a major produce-growing area.
"At this time we have no evidence supporting tampering," FDA spokeswoman Susan Bro said.
The FBI is monitoring the situation, said FBI spokesman Rich Kolko. Kolko added it was a routine and precautionary measure, and is not indicative of any suspicious activity.
Bro also dismissed a claim by Natural Selection Foods LLC, the country's largest grower of organic produce, that its organic spinach products had been cleared of suspicion. "The FDA has not cleared any products from the list and continues to recommend consumers avoid eating fresh spinach products," Bro said.
The current cases are the latest in a string of 19 food-poisoning outbreaks since 1995 that have been linked to lettuce and spinach. At least eight were tied to produce grown in the Salinas Valley.
"In light of continuing outbreaks, it is clear that more needs to be done," the FDA's Robert Brackett wrote in a Nov. 4, 2005, letter.
Suggested actions included discarding any produce that comes into contact with floodwaters. Rivers and creeks in the Salinas watershed are known to be periodically contaminated with E. coli, Brackett said.
Natural Selection has maintained its recall of 34 brands of fresh spinach products. However, the company said late Sunday the manufacturing codes from packages of spinach that had infected patients turned over to health officials all were from non-organic spinach. The company packages both organic and conventionally grown spinach in separate areas at its San Juan Bautista, Calif. plant.
Those brands include the company's own labels and those of other companies that had contracts with Natural Selection to produce or package its spinach.
Meanwhile, Salinas-based River Ranch Fresh Foods added to its recall spring mixes containing spinach sold under the labels Hy-Vee, Fresh N' Easy and Farmers Market, FDA officials said. All contain spinach purchased from Natural Selection, they said.
The FDA and California Department of Health Services were reviewing irrigation methods, harvest conditions and other practices at farms possibly involved.
The spinach could have been contaminated in the field or during processing. About 74 percent of the fresh-market spinach grown in the U.S. comes from California, according to the California Farm Bureau Federation.
E. coli cases linked to tainted spinach have been reported in 19 states, with Wisconsin reporting the most cases, including the death of a 77-year-old woman.
Other states reporting cases were California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming, according to the CDC. Seven new cases reported Sunday were in states with previous illnesses.
In Ohio, state health officials said they were investigating the death of a 23-month-old girl who was sickened by E. coli to determine whether the case was related to the outbreak. The girl's mother said she often buys bagged spinach.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Sunday they've started an Atlanta-based emergency operations center to help state health agencies with E. coli testing. Epidemiologists are helping test spinach samples and stool samples of infected people, center spokeswoman Lola Russell said.
Natural Selection recalled its packaged spinach throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico as a precaution after federal health officials said some of those hospitalized reported eating brands of prepackaged spinach distributed by the company.
However, some restaurants and retailers may be taking spinach out of bags before selling it, so consumers shouldn't buy it at all, the FDA said.
Boiling contaminated spinach can kill the bacteria, but washing won't eliminate it, the CDC warned.
Federal officials stressed that the bacteria had not been isolated in products sold by Natural Selection. As the investigation continues, other brands may be implicated, officials said.
Natural Selection was founded in 1984 by Drew and Myra Goodman. Within two years, its best-known brand, Earthbound Farm, began shipping pre-washed, packaged salad fixings, and the company's "spring mix" became a mainstay of restaurants and supermarkets.
Health Headlines - September 18
DDT Endorsed by World Health Organization to Fight Malaria
DDT, the pesticide long banned in the United States, has received a limited endorsement from an unlikely source - the World Health Organization (WHO).
In order to combat the growing scourge of malaria, which kills more than 800,000 African children annually, the health expert leading WHO's effort to combat malaria in Africa "unequivocally declared" that DDT should be used in small amounts on the inner walls of people's homes to kill the mosquitoes that carry the disease, according to the New York Times.
WHO's Dr. Arata Kochi was joined at a news conference by Adm. R. Timothy Ziemer, representing the Bush administration's $1.2 billion anti-malaria project. The Times quotes Ziemer as saying that spraying with insecticides was a method "that must be deployed as robustly and strategically as possible."
For almost 45 years, DDT's use as an insecticide has been questioned -- and sometimes banned -- after Rachel Carson's 1962 book "The Silent Spring" documented how massive sprating allowed DDT to enter the food chain and suggested it might be a cause for cancer and genetic damage.
According to the Times, an international nonprofit group, Beyond Pesticides, distributed news releases on Friday opposing WHO's change in direction. Dependence on pesticides like DDT "causes greater long-tem problems than those that are being addressed in the short-term," the group said.
UK Scientists Report New Test to Detect TB
A new blood test to detect tuberculosis has been developed by scientists in the United Kingdom. It is hoped that the test will be particularly effective in developing countries where TB still kills millions of people, BBC News reports.
According to the BBC, researchers from George's Hospital and the Medical Research Council National Institute for Medical Research say the serum test is 94 percent accurate. Results of the study were published in the latest issue of Lancet.
This isn't the first time scientists have tried to come up with an alternative to the standard examination of sputum from the lungs under a microscope. This test requires equipment that may not be available in many parts of the world, and it takes a long time to get results. According to BBC News, the blood test looks for indicators of infection, and these results could out-perform alternatives.
The World Health Organization estimates that there were 1.4 million deaths from tuberculosis in 2004, with Southeast Asia and Africa particularly hard-hit. In 2003, 14,000 new cases of TB were reported in the United States. The United Kingdom has about 7,000 new cases annually.
Once-a-Year Injection for Osteoporosis Revealed
A once-a-year injection of a drug designed to treat osteoporosis may eventually eliminate the need for taking a pill daily or monthly to combat the bone-thinnning disease.
The Associated Press reports that Reclast, made by the pharmaceutical firm Novartis, appears to prevent spine and hip fractures, according to a presentation given at the annual meeting of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research in Philadelphia.
Novartis paid for the international research of 7,736 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis into the effects of the drug, known chemically as zoledronic acid. The results showed that spine fractures were reduced by 70 percent and hip fractures by 40 percent, the wire service reported.
"This is very good news," the A.P. quotes Dr. Ethel Siris, president of the National Osteoporosis Foundation and director of the Osteoporosis Center at Columbia University, as saying. "Because it can be given once a year, it's going to be terrific for women who like that option," she added. Siris has consulted for Novartis and other drug companies, the wire service reported.
AARP Campaigns for Foreign Drug Purchases
Starting Sunday, AARP, the advocacy group for older Americans, will unveil a $500,000 advertising campaign in 14 states, designed to persuade the U.S. Senate to pass legislation that would let consumers buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
The Associated Press reported that the ads will appear in newspapers and on radio stations in cities such as Anchorage, Alaska; Baltimore; Des Moines, Iowa; and Indianapolis. AARP said the campaign will zero in on the home states of senators who've shown some support for cross-border purchases of U.S.-made medicines.
Price controls in other countries mean the drugs often cost less than in the United States. Drug companies say such price controls limit profits, threatening future drug development.
The bill backed by AARP, written by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has bipartisan support from 31 co-sponsors. It would allow consumers to buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and eventually from other countries, including Australia, Japan and nations within the European Union, the AP said.
While the new Medicare drug benefit has helped millions of seniors, AARP said millions more aren't yet eligible for the benefit.
Teenage Cancer Patient Seems Better Even After Discontinuing Chemo
A month after he won a court battle to discontinue chemotherapy as part of his cancer treatment, 16-year-old Starchild Abraham Cherrix says he's feeling fine and has "a tremendous boost of energy."
The Associated Press reports that Cherrix, a Virginia resident with Hodgkins disease, which attacks the lymphatic system, appears to be improving since a court ruled in his favor in August and allowed him to pursue alternative therapies. Cherrix had been taking an alternative organic diet and herbal supplements from Mexico to treat the disease, but neither he nor his parents would comment Friday on what medicines he was now taking, the wire service reported.
"His tumor is shrinking very nicely and he's gaining energy and stamina," the A.P. quotes Dr. Arnold Smith, medical director and radiation oncologist at the North Central Mississippi Regional Cancer Center in Greenwood, as saying.
Cherrix and his parents had endured a series of court battles over his desire to discontinue chemotherapy. He claimed the chemo made him nauseated and weak. At one point in July, a Virginia judge had ordered the teenager to report to a local hospital to resume chemotherapy treatment, but that order was overturned in August.
Depression a Major Risk Factor for Suicide: Report
Depression, particularly if combined with substance abuse, is a major risk factor for suicide, according to a new study by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
About 10 percent of surveyed adults who had a major depressive episode actually attempted suicide, 14.5 percent made a plan to commit suicide, 40.3 percent thought about committing suicide, and 56.3 percent thought it would be better if they were dead, the agency said in a statement.
Add alcohol abuse to the equation, and the percentage of people who attempted suicide rose to nearly 14 percent, and nearly 20 percent among those who engaged in illicit drug use.
In 2004, 106,000 visits to the emergency room were attributed to suicide attempts, and if a mental disorder was diagnosed, depression was chief among them, SAMHSA said.
DDT, the pesticide long banned in the United States, has received a limited endorsement from an unlikely source - the World Health Organization (WHO).
In order to combat the growing scourge of malaria, which kills more than 800,000 African children annually, the health expert leading WHO's effort to combat malaria in Africa "unequivocally declared" that DDT should be used in small amounts on the inner walls of people's homes to kill the mosquitoes that carry the disease, according to the New York Times.
WHO's Dr. Arata Kochi was joined at a news conference by Adm. R. Timothy Ziemer, representing the Bush administration's $1.2 billion anti-malaria project. The Times quotes Ziemer as saying that spraying with insecticides was a method "that must be deployed as robustly and strategically as possible."
For almost 45 years, DDT's use as an insecticide has been questioned -- and sometimes banned -- after Rachel Carson's 1962 book "The Silent Spring" documented how massive sprating allowed DDT to enter the food chain and suggested it might be a cause for cancer and genetic damage.
According to the Times, an international nonprofit group, Beyond Pesticides, distributed news releases on Friday opposing WHO's change in direction. Dependence on pesticides like DDT "causes greater long-tem problems than those that are being addressed in the short-term," the group said.
UK Scientists Report New Test to Detect TB
A new blood test to detect tuberculosis has been developed by scientists in the United Kingdom. It is hoped that the test will be particularly effective in developing countries where TB still kills millions of people, BBC News reports.
According to the BBC, researchers from George's Hospital and the Medical Research Council National Institute for Medical Research say the serum test is 94 percent accurate. Results of the study were published in the latest issue of Lancet.
This isn't the first time scientists have tried to come up with an alternative to the standard examination of sputum from the lungs under a microscope. This test requires equipment that may not be available in many parts of the world, and it takes a long time to get results. According to BBC News, the blood test looks for indicators of infection, and these results could out-perform alternatives.
The World Health Organization estimates that there were 1.4 million deaths from tuberculosis in 2004, with Southeast Asia and Africa particularly hard-hit. In 2003, 14,000 new cases of TB were reported in the United States. The United Kingdom has about 7,000 new cases annually.
Once-a-Year Injection for Osteoporosis Revealed
A once-a-year injection of a drug designed to treat osteoporosis may eventually eliminate the need for taking a pill daily or monthly to combat the bone-thinnning disease.
The Associated Press reports that Reclast, made by the pharmaceutical firm Novartis, appears to prevent spine and hip fractures, according to a presentation given at the annual meeting of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research in Philadelphia.
Novartis paid for the international research of 7,736 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis into the effects of the drug, known chemically as zoledronic acid. The results showed that spine fractures were reduced by 70 percent and hip fractures by 40 percent, the wire service reported.
"This is very good news," the A.P. quotes Dr. Ethel Siris, president of the National Osteoporosis Foundation and director of the Osteoporosis Center at Columbia University, as saying. "Because it can be given once a year, it's going to be terrific for women who like that option," she added. Siris has consulted for Novartis and other drug companies, the wire service reported.
AARP Campaigns for Foreign Drug Purchases
Starting Sunday, AARP, the advocacy group for older Americans, will unveil a $500,000 advertising campaign in 14 states, designed to persuade the U.S. Senate to pass legislation that would let consumers buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
The Associated Press reported that the ads will appear in newspapers and on radio stations in cities such as Anchorage, Alaska; Baltimore; Des Moines, Iowa; and Indianapolis. AARP said the campaign will zero in on the home states of senators who've shown some support for cross-border purchases of U.S.-made medicines.
Price controls in other countries mean the drugs often cost less than in the United States. Drug companies say such price controls limit profits, threatening future drug development.
The bill backed by AARP, written by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has bipartisan support from 31 co-sponsors. It would allow consumers to buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and eventually from other countries, including Australia, Japan and nations within the European Union, the AP said.
While the new Medicare drug benefit has helped millions of seniors, AARP said millions more aren't yet eligible for the benefit.
Teenage Cancer Patient Seems Better Even After Discontinuing Chemo
A month after he won a court battle to discontinue chemotherapy as part of his cancer treatment, 16-year-old Starchild Abraham Cherrix says he's feeling fine and has "a tremendous boost of energy."
The Associated Press reports that Cherrix, a Virginia resident with Hodgkins disease, which attacks the lymphatic system, appears to be improving since a court ruled in his favor in August and allowed him to pursue alternative therapies. Cherrix had been taking an alternative organic diet and herbal supplements from Mexico to treat the disease, but neither he nor his parents would comment Friday on what medicines he was now taking, the wire service reported.
"His tumor is shrinking very nicely and he's gaining energy and stamina," the A.P. quotes Dr. Arnold Smith, medical director and radiation oncologist at the North Central Mississippi Regional Cancer Center in Greenwood, as saying.
Cherrix and his parents had endured a series of court battles over his desire to discontinue chemotherapy. He claimed the chemo made him nauseated and weak. At one point in July, a Virginia judge had ordered the teenager to report to a local hospital to resume chemotherapy treatment, but that order was overturned in August.
Depression a Major Risk Factor for Suicide: Report
Depression, particularly if combined with substance abuse, is a major risk factor for suicide, according to a new study by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
About 10 percent of surveyed adults who had a major depressive episode actually attempted suicide, 14.5 percent made a plan to commit suicide, 40.3 percent thought about committing suicide, and 56.3 percent thought it would be better if they were dead, the agency said in a statement.
Add alcohol abuse to the equation, and the percentage of people who attempted suicide rose to nearly 14 percent, and nearly 20 percent among those who engaged in illicit drug use.
In 2004, 106,000 visits to the emergency room were attributed to suicide attempts, and if a mental disorder was diagnosed, depression was chief among them, SAMHSA said.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Feds help probe spinach E. coli outbreak
Federal agents from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention intervened this weekend to help investigate an
E. coli outbreak tied to tainted spinach from California's Salinas Valley.
The greens, which appear to be grown by the world's largest producer of organic produce, have sickened 102 people, including the death of a 77-year-old woman, according to health officials.
CDC officials said Sunday they've started an Atlanta-based emergency operations center to help state health agencies with E. coli testing. Epidemiologists are helping test spinach samples and stool samples of those who have been infected, center spokeswoman Lola Russell said.
The center is helping when state health agencies can't perform the tests or when a second opinion is needed, Russell said.
E. coli cases linked to tainted spinach have been reported in 19 states, with a majority of cases in Wisconsin.
Other states reporting cases were California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming, according to the CDC.
The Food and Drug Administration continued to warn consumers not to eat fresh spinach or fresh spinach-containing products until further notice.
Natural Selection Foods LLC recalled its packaged spinach throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico as a precaution after federal health officials said some of those hospitalized reported eating brands of prepackaged spinach distributed by the company.
However, some restaurants and retailers may be taking spinach out of bags before selling it, so consumers shouldn't buy it at all, the FDA said.
Boiling contaminated spinach can kill the bacteria but washing won't eliminate it, the CDC warned.
"We're still in the process of alerting people of the fact that they need to check the refrigerator," Russell said.
The spinach could have been contaminated in the field or during processing. About 74 percent of the fresh market spinach grown in the U.S. comes from California, according to the California Farm Bureau Federation.
There have been previous bacterial contamination outbreaks linked to spinach and lettuce grown in the state.
Federal officials stressed that the bacteria had not been isolated in products sold by Natural Selection Foods, based in San Juan Bautista, Calif., and known for Earthbound Farm and other brands. As the investigation continues, other brands may be implicated, officials said.
Natural Selection officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Sunday.
The company was founded in 1984 by Drew and Myra Goodman. Within two years, Earthbound Farm began shipping pre-washed, packaged salad fixings, and the company's "spring mix" became a mainstay of restaurants and supermarkets.
E. coli outbreak tied to tainted spinach from California's Salinas Valley.
The greens, which appear to be grown by the world's largest producer of organic produce, have sickened 102 people, including the death of a 77-year-old woman, according to health officials.
CDC officials said Sunday they've started an Atlanta-based emergency operations center to help state health agencies with E. coli testing. Epidemiologists are helping test spinach samples and stool samples of those who have been infected, center spokeswoman Lola Russell said.
The center is helping when state health agencies can't perform the tests or when a second opinion is needed, Russell said.
E. coli cases linked to tainted spinach have been reported in 19 states, with a majority of cases in Wisconsin.
Other states reporting cases were California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming, according to the CDC.
The Food and Drug Administration continued to warn consumers not to eat fresh spinach or fresh spinach-containing products until further notice.
Natural Selection Foods LLC recalled its packaged spinach throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico as a precaution after federal health officials said some of those hospitalized reported eating brands of prepackaged spinach distributed by the company.
However, some restaurants and retailers may be taking spinach out of bags before selling it, so consumers shouldn't buy it at all, the FDA said.
Boiling contaminated spinach can kill the bacteria but washing won't eliminate it, the CDC warned.
"We're still in the process of alerting people of the fact that they need to check the refrigerator," Russell said.
The spinach could have been contaminated in the field or during processing. About 74 percent of the fresh market spinach grown in the U.S. comes from California, according to the California Farm Bureau Federation.
There have been previous bacterial contamination outbreaks linked to spinach and lettuce grown in the state.
Federal officials stressed that the bacteria had not been isolated in products sold by Natural Selection Foods, based in San Juan Bautista, Calif., and known for Earthbound Farm and other brands. As the investigation continues, other brands may be implicated, officials said.
Natural Selection officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Sunday.
The company was founded in 1984 by Drew and Myra Goodman. Within two years, Earthbound Farm began shipping pre-washed, packaged salad fixings, and the company's "spring mix" became a mainstay of restaurants and supermarkets.
Health Headlines - September 17
DDT Endorsed by World Health Organization to Fight Malaria
DDT, the pesticide long banned in the United States, has received a limited endorsement from an unlikely source - the World Health Organization (WHO).
In order to combat the growing scourge of malaria, which kills more than 800,000 African children annually, the health expert leading WHO's effort to combat malaria in Africa "unequivocally declared" that DDT should be used in small amounts on the inner walls of people's homes to kill the mosquitoes that carry the disease, according to the New York Times.
WHO's Dr. Arata Kochi was joined at a news conference by Adm. R. Timothy Ziemer, representing the Bush administration's $1.2 billion anti-malaria project. The Times quotes Ziemer as saying that spraying with insecticides was a method "that must be deployed as robustly and strategically as possible."
For almost 45 years, DDT's use as an insecticide has been questioned -- and sometimes banned -- after Rachel Carson's 1962 book "The Silent Spring" documented how massive sprating allowed DDT to enter the food chain and suggested it might be a cause for cancer and genetic damage.
According to the Times, an international nonprofit group, Beyond Pesticides, distributed news releases on Friday opposing WHO's change in direction. Dependence on pesticides like DDT "causes greater long-tem problems than those that are being addressed in the short-term," the group said.
AARP Campaigns for Foreign Drug Purchases
Starting Sunday, AARP, the advocacy group for older Americans, will unveil a $500,000 advertising campaign in 14 states, designed to persuade the U.S. Senate to pass legislation that would let consumers buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
The Associated Press reported that the ads will appear in newspapers and on radio stations in cities such as Anchorage, Alaska; Baltimore; Des Moines, Iowa; and Indianapolis. AARP said the campaign will zero in on the home states of senators who've shown some support for cross-border purchases of U.S.-made medicines.
Price controls in other countries mean the drugs often cost less than in the United States. Drug companies say such price controls limit profits, threatening future drug development.
The bill backed by AARP, written by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has bipartisan support from 31 co-sponsors. It would allow consumers to buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and eventually from other countries, including Australia, Japan and nations within the European Union, the AP said.
While the new Medicare drug benefit has helped millions of seniors, AARP said millions more aren't yet eligible for the benefit.
Teenage Cancer Patient Seems Better Even After Discontinuing Chemo
A month after he won a court battle to discontinue chemotherapy as part of his cancer treatment, 16-year-old Starchild Abraham Cherrix says he's feeling fine and has "a tremendous boost of energy."
The Associated Press reports that Cherrix, a Virginia resident with Hodgkins disease, which attacks the lymphatic system, appears to be improving since a court ruled in his favor in August and allowed him to pursue alternative therapies. Cherrix had been taking an alternative organic diet and herbal supplements from Mexico to treat the disease, but neither he nor his parents would comment Friday on what medicines he was now taking, the wire service reported.
"His tumor is shrinking very nicely and he's gaining energy and stamina," the A.P. quotes Dr. Arnold Smith, medical director and radiation oncologist at the North Central Mississippi Regional Cancer Center in Greenwood, as saying.
Cherrix and his parents had endured a series of court battles over his desire to discontinue chemotherapy. He claimed the chemo made him nauseated and weak. At one point in July, a Virginia judge had ordered the teenager to report to a local hospital to resume chemotherapy treatment, but that order was overturned in August.
Depression a Major Risk Factor for Suicide: Report
Depression, particularly if combined with substance abuse, is a major risk factor for suicide, according to a new study by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
About 10 percent of surveyed adults who had a major depressive episode actually attempted suicide, 14.5 percent made a plan to commit suicide, 40.3 percent thought about committing suicide, and 56.3 percent thought it would be better if they were dead, the agency said in a statement.
Add alcohol abuse to the equation, and the percentage of people who attempted suicide rose to nearly 14 percent, and nearly 20 percent among those who engaged in illicit drug use.
In 2004, 106,000 visits to the emergency room were attributed to suicide attempts, and if a mental disorder was diagnosed, depression was chief among them, SAMHSA said.
Nationwide, someone dies by suicide every 17 minutes. To mark Suicide Prevention Week from Sept. 10-16, SAMHSA said it has awarded 46 grants totaling $25.7 million for a broad range of anti-suicide programs. These include efforts by states and colleges to diagnose and treat youth depression and prevent substance abuse, the agency said.
SAMHSA offers a toll-free suicide prevention hotline at 1-800-273-TALK.
Acupuncture Helps Back Pain: Study
Acupuncture is an effective and cost-justified way to treat lower back pain, British researchers have found.
Doctors at the University of York and Sheffield University studied 241 adults, some of whom had up to 10 acupuncture treatments for lower back pain while others underwent traditional pain therapy, BBC Online reported.
Those who had acupuncture had less pain and used fewer painkillers than other participants in the two-year study, the researchers wrote in the online version of the British Medical Journal. While the pain score differences were small, use of acupuncture still offered a "clinically worthwhile benefit," the scientists said.
Two percent of the population in the United Kingdom is said to use acupuncture in any given year, BBC Online reported.
Too Much Lead in Toy Jewelry, Lawsuit Says
An environmental group says excessive lead in toy jewelry can cause developmental damage in children and wants the U.S. Environmental Protection agency to crack down on the sale of these products, the Associated Press reported.
The Sierra Club has sued the EPA in federal court, and the attorneys general of California and Illinois have sent letters to the agency in support of the suit, the wire service said.
"I don't think parents realize that these pieces of jewelry have the potential to be harmful," said Sierra Club spokeswoman Jessica Frohman. She said children could be exposed to harmful lead levels if they sucked on or swallowed the jewelry.
The EPA refused direct comment on the court case, but said it had a "comprehensive set of regulations" to protect children from lead exposure. But the agency does not have rules that specifically govern toy jewelry, an EPA spokesman told the AP.
DDT, the pesticide long banned in the United States, has received a limited endorsement from an unlikely source - the World Health Organization (WHO).
In order to combat the growing scourge of malaria, which kills more than 800,000 African children annually, the health expert leading WHO's effort to combat malaria in Africa "unequivocally declared" that DDT should be used in small amounts on the inner walls of people's homes to kill the mosquitoes that carry the disease, according to the New York Times.
WHO's Dr. Arata Kochi was joined at a news conference by Adm. R. Timothy Ziemer, representing the Bush administration's $1.2 billion anti-malaria project. The Times quotes Ziemer as saying that spraying with insecticides was a method "that must be deployed as robustly and strategically as possible."
For almost 45 years, DDT's use as an insecticide has been questioned -- and sometimes banned -- after Rachel Carson's 1962 book "The Silent Spring" documented how massive sprating allowed DDT to enter the food chain and suggested it might be a cause for cancer and genetic damage.
According to the Times, an international nonprofit group, Beyond Pesticides, distributed news releases on Friday opposing WHO's change in direction. Dependence on pesticides like DDT "causes greater long-tem problems than those that are being addressed in the short-term," the group said.
AARP Campaigns for Foreign Drug Purchases
Starting Sunday, AARP, the advocacy group for older Americans, will unveil a $500,000 advertising campaign in 14 states, designed to persuade the U.S. Senate to pass legislation that would let consumers buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
The Associated Press reported that the ads will appear in newspapers and on radio stations in cities such as Anchorage, Alaska; Baltimore; Des Moines, Iowa; and Indianapolis. AARP said the campaign will zero in on the home states of senators who've shown some support for cross-border purchases of U.S.-made medicines.
Price controls in other countries mean the drugs often cost less than in the United States. Drug companies say such price controls limit profits, threatening future drug development.
The bill backed by AARP, written by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has bipartisan support from 31 co-sponsors. It would allow consumers to buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and eventually from other countries, including Australia, Japan and nations within the European Union, the AP said.
While the new Medicare drug benefit has helped millions of seniors, AARP said millions more aren't yet eligible for the benefit.
Teenage Cancer Patient Seems Better Even After Discontinuing Chemo
A month after he won a court battle to discontinue chemotherapy as part of his cancer treatment, 16-year-old Starchild Abraham Cherrix says he's feeling fine and has "a tremendous boost of energy."
The Associated Press reports that Cherrix, a Virginia resident with Hodgkins disease, which attacks the lymphatic system, appears to be improving since a court ruled in his favor in August and allowed him to pursue alternative therapies. Cherrix had been taking an alternative organic diet and herbal supplements from Mexico to treat the disease, but neither he nor his parents would comment Friday on what medicines he was now taking, the wire service reported.
"His tumor is shrinking very nicely and he's gaining energy and stamina," the A.P. quotes Dr. Arnold Smith, medical director and radiation oncologist at the North Central Mississippi Regional Cancer Center in Greenwood, as saying.
Cherrix and his parents had endured a series of court battles over his desire to discontinue chemotherapy. He claimed the chemo made him nauseated and weak. At one point in July, a Virginia judge had ordered the teenager to report to a local hospital to resume chemotherapy treatment, but that order was overturned in August.
Depression a Major Risk Factor for Suicide: Report
Depression, particularly if combined with substance abuse, is a major risk factor for suicide, according to a new study by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
About 10 percent of surveyed adults who had a major depressive episode actually attempted suicide, 14.5 percent made a plan to commit suicide, 40.3 percent thought about committing suicide, and 56.3 percent thought it would be better if they were dead, the agency said in a statement.
Add alcohol abuse to the equation, and the percentage of people who attempted suicide rose to nearly 14 percent, and nearly 20 percent among those who engaged in illicit drug use.
In 2004, 106,000 visits to the emergency room were attributed to suicide attempts, and if a mental disorder was diagnosed, depression was chief among them, SAMHSA said.
Nationwide, someone dies by suicide every 17 minutes. To mark Suicide Prevention Week from Sept. 10-16, SAMHSA said it has awarded 46 grants totaling $25.7 million for a broad range of anti-suicide programs. These include efforts by states and colleges to diagnose and treat youth depression and prevent substance abuse, the agency said.
SAMHSA offers a toll-free suicide prevention hotline at 1-800-273-TALK.
Acupuncture Helps Back Pain: Study
Acupuncture is an effective and cost-justified way to treat lower back pain, British researchers have found.
Doctors at the University of York and Sheffield University studied 241 adults, some of whom had up to 10 acupuncture treatments for lower back pain while others underwent traditional pain therapy, BBC Online reported.
Those who had acupuncture had less pain and used fewer painkillers than other participants in the two-year study, the researchers wrote in the online version of the British Medical Journal. While the pain score differences were small, use of acupuncture still offered a "clinically worthwhile benefit," the scientists said.
Two percent of the population in the United Kingdom is said to use acupuncture in any given year, BBC Online reported.
Too Much Lead in Toy Jewelry, Lawsuit Says
An environmental group says excessive lead in toy jewelry can cause developmental damage in children and wants the U.S. Environmental Protection agency to crack down on the sale of these products, the Associated Press reported.
The Sierra Club has sued the EPA in federal court, and the attorneys general of California and Illinois have sent letters to the agency in support of the suit, the wire service said.
"I don't think parents realize that these pieces of jewelry have the potential to be harmful," said Sierra Club spokeswoman Jessica Frohman. She said children could be exposed to harmful lead levels if they sucked on or swallowed the jewelry.
The EPA refused direct comment on the court case, but said it had a "comprehensive set of regulations" to protect children from lead exposure. But the agency does not have rules that specifically govern toy jewelry, an EPA spokesman told the AP.
Saturday, September 16, 2006
U.S. expands warning to cover all fresh spinach
Consumers should avoid all fresh spinach, regardless of whether it is pre-packaged, a chief U.S. food safety official warned on Saturday, saying the number of E. coli illnesses had passed 100.
"We need to get a clear message to consumers," said Dr. David Acheson, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's director of food safety and security.
"Some consumers may not be aware that spinach that may be available to them may have been pre-packaged," he said referring to loose spinach sold in restaurants and supermarkets.
While the FDA did not expand the warning beyond fresh spinach, Acheson said the investigation into the cause of the illnesses was continuing and other possible sources had not been excluded.
Investigators believe that the spinach was contaminated before it was bagged since more than one bag contained contaminated product, Acheson said on a Saturday evening conference call with reporters.
Since August 2, one person has died and 102 people have fallen ill, including 16 who suffered kidney failure after eating spinach suspected of being contaminated with the E. coli 0157:H7 -- a potentially deadly bacterium that causes bloody diarrhea and dehydration.
Wisconsin health authorities said the E. coli fatality was a 77-year-old woman from Manitowoc who died September 7.
The most recent case in the 19-state outbreak was reported on September 9, Acheson said.
On Friday, Natural Selection Foods LLC/Earthbound Farm, the nation's largest grower of organic produce, voluntarily recalled fresh spinach products sold in the United States, Mexico and Canada after the U.S. government said they could be linked to the worsening outbreak.
Patients infected with the bacterial illness told researchers they had eaten pre-packaged spinach packed by Natural Selection, including some sold under the Dole label, prompting the company to start its recall, Acheson said earlier this week.
Acheson was not able to predict when the warnings would be lifted, saying it would "go on as long as it needs to protect public health."
"We need to get a clear message to consumers," said Dr. David Acheson, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's director of food safety and security.
"Some consumers may not be aware that spinach that may be available to them may have been pre-packaged," he said referring to loose spinach sold in restaurants and supermarkets.
While the FDA did not expand the warning beyond fresh spinach, Acheson said the investigation into the cause of the illnesses was continuing and other possible sources had not been excluded.
Investigators believe that the spinach was contaminated before it was bagged since more than one bag contained contaminated product, Acheson said on a Saturday evening conference call with reporters.
Since August 2, one person has died and 102 people have fallen ill, including 16 who suffered kidney failure after eating spinach suspected of being contaminated with the E. coli 0157:H7 -- a potentially deadly bacterium that causes bloody diarrhea and dehydration.
Wisconsin health authorities said the E. coli fatality was a 77-year-old woman from Manitowoc who died September 7.
The most recent case in the 19-state outbreak was reported on September 9, Acheson said.
On Friday, Natural Selection Foods LLC/Earthbound Farm, the nation's largest grower of organic produce, voluntarily recalled fresh spinach products sold in the United States, Mexico and Canada after the U.S. government said they could be linked to the worsening outbreak.
Patients infected with the bacterial illness told researchers they had eaten pre-packaged spinach packed by Natural Selection, including some sold under the Dole label, prompting the company to start its recall, Acheson said earlier this week.
Acheson was not able to predict when the warnings would be lifted, saying it would "go on as long as it needs to protect public health."
Tainted spinach traced to California
A California natural foods company was linked Friday to a nationwide E. coli outbreak that has killed one person and sickened nearly 100 others. Supermarkets across the country pulled spinach from shelves, and consumers tossed out the leafy green.
Food and Drug Administration officials said that they had received reports of illness in 19 states.
The outbreak was traced to Natural Selection Foods, based in San Juan Bautista, Calif., and the company has voluntarily recalled products containing spinach.
FDA officials stressed that the bacteria had not been isolated in products sold by Natural Selection Foods but that the link was established by patient accounts of what they had eaten before becoming ill.
An investigation was continuing.
"It is possible that the recall and the information will extend beyond Natural Selection Foods and involve other brands and other companies, at other dates," said Dr. David Acheson, the chief medical officer with the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.
Natural Selection Foods LLC said in a statement that it was cooperating with federal and state health officials to identify the source of the contamination and had stopped shipping all fresh spinach products. They are sold as Rave Spinach, Natural Selection Foods, Dole, Earthbound Farm, Trader Joe's, Ready Pac, Green Harvest, among other brand names.
State health officials received the first reports of illness on Aug. 25, and the FDA was informed on Wednesday, Acheson said.
The FDA warned people nationwide not to eat the spinach. Washing won't get rid of the tenacious bug, though thorough cooking can kill it.
"We're waiting for the all-clear. In the meantime, Popeye the Sailor Man and this family will not be eating bagged spinach," said Dr. William Schaffner, chairman of preventative medicine at Vanderbilt University. The Tennessee university's medical center was treating a 17-year-old Kentucky girl for E. coli infection. That case originally was listed as being from Tennessee, but federal health officials changed it to Kentucky.
Each year, consumers buy hundreds of millions of pounds of bagged spinach — triple-washed and packaged in cellophane bags and clamshell boxes.
"We will do whatever is necessary to help protect the health and safety of the public," Earthbound Farm spokeswoman Samantha Cabaluna said in a statement.
The company said consumers could call 800-690-3200 for a refund or replacement coupons for tossed-out spinach products.
Wisconsin accounted for 29 illnesses, about one-third of the cases, including the lone death.
Other states reporting cases were: California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Wisconsin accounted for 29 illnesses, about one-third of the cases, including the lone death.
"We are telling everyone to get rid of fresh bagged spinach right now. Don't assume anything is over," Gov. Jim Doyle said.
The bug has sickened at least 94 people across the nation, the CDC said. The agency added that 29 people have been hospitalized, 14 of them with kidney failure.
FDA officials said they issued the nationwide consumer alert without waiting to identify the still-unknown source of the tainted spinach.
"Early is good," said Caroline Smith DeWaal, food safety director for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, adding that the alert may have prevented hundreds more cases.
An industry spokeswoman said public health concerns justified the blanket warning: "It needed to happen this way," said Kathy Means, a spokeswoman for the Produce Marketing Association. "Public health has to trump economics at this time."
More than half the nation's 500 million-pound spinach crop is grown in California's Monterey County, according to the Agriculture Department.
"We're trying to get to the bottom of this and figure out what happened. Everybody is terribly concerned," said Dave Kranz, a spokesman for the California Farm Bureau Federation.
Even before the latest outbreak, a joint state and federal effort has been under way in the California county to find and eliminate any possible sources of E. coli contamination.
"We need to strive to do even better so even one life is not lost," said Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, FDA's acting commissioner.
The FDA's top food expert stressed the importance of stopping the bacterium at its source, since rinsing spinach won't eliminate the risk. "If you wash it, it is not going to get rid of it," said Robert Brackett, director of the agency's Center for Food Safety and Nutrition.
E. coli lives in the intestines of cattle and other animals and typically is spread through contamination by fecal material. Brackett said the use of manure as a fertilizer for produce typically consumed raw, such as spinach, is not in keeping with good agricultural practices. "It is something we don't want to see," he told a food policy conference.
Meanwhile, Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Safeway Inc., SuperValu Inc. and other major grocery chains stopped selling spinach, removing it from shelves and salad bars.
"We pulled everything that we have spinach in," said Dan Brettelle, manager of a Piggly Wiggly store in Columbia, S.C.
Consumer activist Barb Kowalcyk said fixing the nation's "fractured network" of food safety agencies could save lives. In 2001, her 2-year-old son, Kevin, died of E. coli, possibly after eating tainted ground beef.
"How can we improve communication between agencies? That needs to happen," the Loveland, Ohio, resident said.
Not all strains of E. coli cause illness: E. coli O157:H7, the strain involved in the current outbreak, was first recognized as a cause of illness in 1982. That strain causes an estimated 73,000 cases of infection, including 61 deaths, each year in the United States, according to the CDC.
When ingested, the bug can cause diarrhea, often with bloody stools. Most healthy adults can recover completely within a week, although some people — including the very young and old — can develop a form of kidney failure that often leads to death.
Sources of the bacterium include uncooked produce, raw milk, unpasteurized juice, contaminated water and meat, especially undercooked or raw hamburger.
Food and Drug Administration officials said that they had received reports of illness in 19 states.
The outbreak was traced to Natural Selection Foods, based in San Juan Bautista, Calif., and the company has voluntarily recalled products containing spinach.
FDA officials stressed that the bacteria had not been isolated in products sold by Natural Selection Foods but that the link was established by patient accounts of what they had eaten before becoming ill.
An investigation was continuing.
"It is possible that the recall and the information will extend beyond Natural Selection Foods and involve other brands and other companies, at other dates," said Dr. David Acheson, the chief medical officer with the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.
Natural Selection Foods LLC said in a statement that it was cooperating with federal and state health officials to identify the source of the contamination and had stopped shipping all fresh spinach products. They are sold as Rave Spinach, Natural Selection Foods, Dole, Earthbound Farm, Trader Joe's, Ready Pac, Green Harvest, among other brand names.
State health officials received the first reports of illness on Aug. 25, and the FDA was informed on Wednesday, Acheson said.
The FDA warned people nationwide not to eat the spinach. Washing won't get rid of the tenacious bug, though thorough cooking can kill it.
"We're waiting for the all-clear. In the meantime, Popeye the Sailor Man and this family will not be eating bagged spinach," said Dr. William Schaffner, chairman of preventative medicine at Vanderbilt University. The Tennessee university's medical center was treating a 17-year-old Kentucky girl for E. coli infection. That case originally was listed as being from Tennessee, but federal health officials changed it to Kentucky.
Each year, consumers buy hundreds of millions of pounds of bagged spinach — triple-washed and packaged in cellophane bags and clamshell boxes.
"We will do whatever is necessary to help protect the health and safety of the public," Earthbound Farm spokeswoman Samantha Cabaluna said in a statement.
The company said consumers could call 800-690-3200 for a refund or replacement coupons for tossed-out spinach products.
Wisconsin accounted for 29 illnesses, about one-third of the cases, including the lone death.
Other states reporting cases were: California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Wisconsin accounted for 29 illnesses, about one-third of the cases, including the lone death.
"We are telling everyone to get rid of fresh bagged spinach right now. Don't assume anything is over," Gov. Jim Doyle said.
The bug has sickened at least 94 people across the nation, the CDC said. The agency added that 29 people have been hospitalized, 14 of them with kidney failure.
FDA officials said they issued the nationwide consumer alert without waiting to identify the still-unknown source of the tainted spinach.
"Early is good," said Caroline Smith DeWaal, food safety director for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, adding that the alert may have prevented hundreds more cases.
An industry spokeswoman said public health concerns justified the blanket warning: "It needed to happen this way," said Kathy Means, a spokeswoman for the Produce Marketing Association. "Public health has to trump economics at this time."
More than half the nation's 500 million-pound spinach crop is grown in California's Monterey County, according to the Agriculture Department.
"We're trying to get to the bottom of this and figure out what happened. Everybody is terribly concerned," said Dave Kranz, a spokesman for the California Farm Bureau Federation.
Even before the latest outbreak, a joint state and federal effort has been under way in the California county to find and eliminate any possible sources of E. coli contamination.
"We need to strive to do even better so even one life is not lost," said Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, FDA's acting commissioner.
The FDA's top food expert stressed the importance of stopping the bacterium at its source, since rinsing spinach won't eliminate the risk. "If you wash it, it is not going to get rid of it," said Robert Brackett, director of the agency's Center for Food Safety and Nutrition.
E. coli lives in the intestines of cattle and other animals and typically is spread through contamination by fecal material. Brackett said the use of manure as a fertilizer for produce typically consumed raw, such as spinach, is not in keeping with good agricultural practices. "It is something we don't want to see," he told a food policy conference.
Meanwhile, Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Safeway Inc., SuperValu Inc. and other major grocery chains stopped selling spinach, removing it from shelves and salad bars.
"We pulled everything that we have spinach in," said Dan Brettelle, manager of a Piggly Wiggly store in Columbia, S.C.
Consumer activist Barb Kowalcyk said fixing the nation's "fractured network" of food safety agencies could save lives. In 2001, her 2-year-old son, Kevin, died of E. coli, possibly after eating tainted ground beef.
"How can we improve communication between agencies? That needs to happen," the Loveland, Ohio, resident said.
Not all strains of E. coli cause illness: E. coli O157:H7, the strain involved in the current outbreak, was first recognized as a cause of illness in 1982. That strain causes an estimated 73,000 cases of infection, including 61 deaths, each year in the United States, according to the CDC.
When ingested, the bug can cause diarrhea, often with bloody stools. Most healthy adults can recover completely within a week, although some people — including the very young and old — can develop a form of kidney failure that often leads to death.
Sources of the bacterium include uncooked produce, raw milk, unpasteurized juice, contaminated water and meat, especially undercooked or raw hamburger.
Health Headlines - September 16
AARP Campaigns for Foreign Drug Purchases
Starting Sunday, AARP, the advocacy group for older Americans, will unveil a $500,000 advertising campaign in 14 states, designed to persuade the U.S. Senate to pass legislation that would let consumers buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
The Associated Press reported that the ads will appear in newspapers and on radio stations in cities such as Anchorage, Alaska; Baltimore; Des Moines, Iowa; and Indianapolis. AARP said the campaign will zero in on the home states of senators who've shown some support for cross-border purchases of U.S.-made medicines.
Price controls in other countries mean the drugs often cost less than in the United States. Drug companies say such price controls limit profits, threatening future drug development.
The bill backed by AARP, written by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has bipartisan support from 31 co-sponsors. It would allow consumers to buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and eventually from other countries, including Australia, Japan and nations within the European Union, the AP said.
While the new Medicare drug benefit has helped millions of seniors, AARP said millions more aren't yet eligible for the benefit.
Depression a Major Risk Factor for Suicide: Report
Depression, particularly if combined with substance abuse, is a major risk factor for suicide, according to a new study by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
About 10 percent of surveyed adults who had a major depressive episode actually attempted suicide, 14.5 percent made a plan to commit suicide, 40.3 percent thought about committing suicide, and 56.3 percent thought it would be better if they were dead, the agency said in a statement.
Add alcohol abuse to the equation, and the percentage of people who attempted suicide rose to nearly 14 percent, and nearly 20 percent among those who engaged in illicit drug use.
In 2004, 106,000 visits to the emergency room were attributed to suicide attempts, and if a mental disorder was diagnosed, depression was chief among them, SAMHSA said.
Nationwide, someone dies by suicide every 17 minutes. To mark Suicide Prevention Week from Sept. 10-16, SAMHSA said it has awarded 46 grants totaling $25.7 million for a broad range of anti-suicide programs. These include efforts by states and colleges to diagnose and treat youth depression and prevent substance abuse, the agency said.
SAMHSA offers a toll-free suicide prevention hotline at 1-800-273-TALK.
Acupuncture Helps Back Pain: Study
Acupuncture is an effective and cost-justified way to treat lower back pain, British researchers have found.
Doctors at the University of York and Sheffield University studied 241 adults, some of whom had up to 10 acupuncture treatments for lower back pain while others underwent traditional pain therapy, BBC Online reported.
Those who had acupuncture had less pain and used fewer painkillers than other participants in the two-year study, the researchers wrote in the online version of the British Medical Journal. While the pain score differences were small, use of acupuncture still offered a "clinically worthwhile benefit," the scientists said.
Two percent of the population in the United Kingdom is said to use acupuncture in any given year, BBC Online reported.
Too Much Lead in Toy Jewelry, Lawsuit Says
An environmental group says excessive lead in toy jewelry can cause developmental damage in children and wants the U.S. Environmental Protection agency to crack down on the sale of these products, the Associated Press reported.
The Sierra Club has sued the EPA in federal court, and the attorneys general of California and Illinois have sent letters to the agency in support of the suit, the wire service said.
"I don't think parents realize that these pieces of jewelry have the potential to be harmful," said Sierra Club spokeswoman Jessica Frohman. She said children could be exposed to harmful lead levels if they sucked on or swallowed the jewelry.
The EPA refused direct comment on the court case, but said it had a "comprehensive set of regulations" to protect children from lead exposure. But the agency does not have rules that specifically govern toy jewelry, an EPA spokesman told the AP.
Earlier this year, more than 70 U.S. retailers agreed to stop selling lead-based toy jewelry in California after the state attorney general and an advocacy group filed suit in 2004, the wire service said.
FDA to Examine Drug-Coated Stents
Drug-coated stents used to open clogged arteries will be examined by an expert panel advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on the possibility that the devices may produce deadly blood clots, the Associated Press reported.
Nearly 6 million people worldwide have had the metal-mesh tubes inserted since they were first coated in 2002 with a drug designed to prevent arteries from re-clogging, the wire service said. Two recent studies suggested a small but significant increase in heart-attack risk and death from blood clots among stent recipients.
While the FDA said it still believes the devices are safe, it wants the additional opinion of its expert advisers about whether further study is needed, the AP said.
The agency said it's also seeking the experts' recommendations on how long stent users should take anti-clotting drugs such as Plavix or aspirin.
U.S. Obesity Rates Soaring: CDC
More than 60 percent of adults in the United States are now overweight or obese, according to a report issued Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Nearly a quarter of American adults were classified as obese last year, a problem that has increased significantly over the past decade, the agency said in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).
While no state had an obesity rate of more than 20 percent a decade ago, 46 states reported obesity rates of 20 percent or greater last year, the agency said. And three states said 30 percent or more of its residents were considered obese.
"The magnitude of this rising obesity trend and its implications for the health of the nation calls for a strong, sustained, and effective response to alter the course of this epidemic, with the main focus being nutrition and physical activity," the report said.
Obesity has been linked to a variety of health problems, including diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and some cancers.
The agency evaluated statistics from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System collected from all 50 states between 1995 and 2005.
Starting Sunday, AARP, the advocacy group for older Americans, will unveil a $500,000 advertising campaign in 14 states, designed to persuade the U.S. Senate to pass legislation that would let consumers buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
The Associated Press reported that the ads will appear in newspapers and on radio stations in cities such as Anchorage, Alaska; Baltimore; Des Moines, Iowa; and Indianapolis. AARP said the campaign will zero in on the home states of senators who've shown some support for cross-border purchases of U.S.-made medicines.
Price controls in other countries mean the drugs often cost less than in the United States. Drug companies say such price controls limit profits, threatening future drug development.
The bill backed by AARP, written by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has bipartisan support from 31 co-sponsors. It would allow consumers to buy U.S.-made prescription drugs from Canada and eventually from other countries, including Australia, Japan and nations within the European Union, the AP said.
While the new Medicare drug benefit has helped millions of seniors, AARP said millions more aren't yet eligible for the benefit.
Depression a Major Risk Factor for Suicide: Report
Depression, particularly if combined with substance abuse, is a major risk factor for suicide, according to a new study by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
About 10 percent of surveyed adults who had a major depressive episode actually attempted suicide, 14.5 percent made a plan to commit suicide, 40.3 percent thought about committing suicide, and 56.3 percent thought it would be better if they were dead, the agency said in a statement.
Add alcohol abuse to the equation, and the percentage of people who attempted suicide rose to nearly 14 percent, and nearly 20 percent among those who engaged in illicit drug use.
In 2004, 106,000 visits to the emergency room were attributed to suicide attempts, and if a mental disorder was diagnosed, depression was chief among them, SAMHSA said.
Nationwide, someone dies by suicide every 17 minutes. To mark Suicide Prevention Week from Sept. 10-16, SAMHSA said it has awarded 46 grants totaling $25.7 million for a broad range of anti-suicide programs. These include efforts by states and colleges to diagnose and treat youth depression and prevent substance abuse, the agency said.
SAMHSA offers a toll-free suicide prevention hotline at 1-800-273-TALK.
Acupuncture Helps Back Pain: Study
Acupuncture is an effective and cost-justified way to treat lower back pain, British researchers have found.
Doctors at the University of York and Sheffield University studied 241 adults, some of whom had up to 10 acupuncture treatments for lower back pain while others underwent traditional pain therapy, BBC Online reported.
Those who had acupuncture had less pain and used fewer painkillers than other participants in the two-year study, the researchers wrote in the online version of the British Medical Journal. While the pain score differences were small, use of acupuncture still offered a "clinically worthwhile benefit," the scientists said.
Two percent of the population in the United Kingdom is said to use acupuncture in any given year, BBC Online reported.
Too Much Lead in Toy Jewelry, Lawsuit Says
An environmental group says excessive lead in toy jewelry can cause developmental damage in children and wants the U.S. Environmental Protection agency to crack down on the sale of these products, the Associated Press reported.
The Sierra Club has sued the EPA in federal court, and the attorneys general of California and Illinois have sent letters to the agency in support of the suit, the wire service said.
"I don't think parents realize that these pieces of jewelry have the potential to be harmful," said Sierra Club spokeswoman Jessica Frohman. She said children could be exposed to harmful lead levels if they sucked on or swallowed the jewelry.
The EPA refused direct comment on the court case, but said it had a "comprehensive set of regulations" to protect children from lead exposure. But the agency does not have rules that specifically govern toy jewelry, an EPA spokesman told the AP.
Earlier this year, more than 70 U.S. retailers agreed to stop selling lead-based toy jewelry in California after the state attorney general and an advocacy group filed suit in 2004, the wire service said.
FDA to Examine Drug-Coated Stents
Drug-coated stents used to open clogged arteries will be examined by an expert panel advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on the possibility that the devices may produce deadly blood clots, the Associated Press reported.
Nearly 6 million people worldwide have had the metal-mesh tubes inserted since they were first coated in 2002 with a drug designed to prevent arteries from re-clogging, the wire service said. Two recent studies suggested a small but significant increase in heart-attack risk and death from blood clots among stent recipients.
While the FDA said it still believes the devices are safe, it wants the additional opinion of its expert advisers about whether further study is needed, the AP said.
The agency said it's also seeking the experts' recommendations on how long stent users should take anti-clotting drugs such as Plavix or aspirin.
U.S. Obesity Rates Soaring: CDC
More than 60 percent of adults in the United States are now overweight or obese, according to a report issued Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Nearly a quarter of American adults were classified as obese last year, a problem that has increased significantly over the past decade, the agency said in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).
While no state had an obesity rate of more than 20 percent a decade ago, 46 states reported obesity rates of 20 percent or greater last year, the agency said. And three states said 30 percent or more of its residents were considered obese.
"The magnitude of this rising obesity trend and its implications for the health of the nation calls for a strong, sustained, and effective response to alter the course of this epidemic, with the main focus being nutrition and physical activity," the report said.
Obesity has been linked to a variety of health problems, including diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and some cancers.
The agency evaluated statistics from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System collected from all 50 states between 1995 and 2005.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Health Headlines - September 15
FDA to Examine Drug-Coated Stents
Drug-coated stents used to open clogged arteries will be examined by an expert panel advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on the possibility that the devices may produce deadly blood clots, the Associated Press reported.
Nearly 6 million people worldwide have had the metal-mesh tubes inserted since they were first coated in 2002 with a drug designed to prevent arteries from re-clogging, the wire service said. Two recent studies suggested a small but significant increase in heart-attack risk and death from blood clots among stent recipients.
While the FDA said it still believes the devices are safe, it wants the additional opinion of its expert advisers about whether further study is needed, the AP said.
The agency said it's also seeking the experts' recommendations on how long stent users should take anti-clotting drugs such as Plavix or aspirin.
U.S. Obesity Rates Soaring: CDC
More than 60 percent of adults in the United States are now overweight or obese, according to a report issued Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Nearly a quarter of American adults were classified as obese last year, a problem that has increased significantly over the past decade, the agency said in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).
While no state had an obesity rate of more than 20 percent a decade ago, 46 states reported obesity rates of 20 percent or greater last year, the agency said. And three states said 30 percent or more of its residents were considered obese.
"The magnitude of this rising obesity trend and its implications for the health of the nation calls for a strong, sustained, and effective response to alter the course of this epidemic, with the main focus being nutrition and physical activity," the report said.
Obesity has been linked to a variety of health problems, including diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and some cancers.
The agency evaluated statistics from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System collected from all 50 states between 1995 and 2005.
New Diabetes Drug Improves Blood Sugar, Maker Says
Merck & Co.'s experimental diabetes drug Januvia lowered blood-sugar levels when combined with another drug by an average of 2.1 points among study participants who had an average reading of 8.8 percent when the study began, the company said Thursday.
Study participants took 50 milligrams of Januvia (sitagliptin phosphate) twice daily, combined with 1,000 mg. twice daily of another drug, metformin. Januvia is the first in a new class of drugs called DPP-4 inhibitors that enhance the body's ability to lower blood sugar, Merck said in a statement.
Merck said it was testing use of Januvia by itself, and the same drug combination but with lower doses of metformin. Results from those studies will be released later this year, the company said.
Merck said it has applied for approval of Januvia by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and expects action on the application next month. Study results were released in Copenhagen at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.
Scooters Recalled for Dangerous Computer Glitch
Segway Inc. is recalling all 23,500 self-balancing scooters it has ever produced because a software bug can make the wheels reverse direction without notice, the Associated Press reported.
The company has six incident reports involving the Personal Transporter, including head, wrist and mouth injuries. The product was first known as the Human Transporter.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, working with the company, said consumers should stop using the vehicles immediately. Segway is offering a free software upgrade that should end the problem, the AP said.
Some of the scooters, which hit the market in 2002, were involved in a 2003 recall to fix a battery problem. They were sold nationwide for $4,000 to $5,000.
Call Segway Inc. at 800-750-6557 for more information.
House Members Seek Probe Into 9/11 EPA Comments
House of Representatives Democrats from states surrounding New York City's Ground Zero say they want an investigation into the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's assurances immediately following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that the air near the site was safe to breathe.
Congressmen Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.), and Bill Pascrell Jr. (D-N.J.) denied Thursday that politics was behind their call for an investigation into comments by then-EPA chief Christie Todd Whitman that the air quality in lower Manhattan was safe for rescue workers and nearby residents, the Associated Press reported. Such an investigation, if approved by U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, could lead to criminal charges.
Whitman, interviewed by the wire service, denied any wrongdoing. "[The EPA and I] agreed then and I reiterate now that the air on the [World Trade Center] site was not clean -- the consequence of millions of tons of burned debris from the most horrific attack in our nation's history," she said.
Whitman, a former governor of New Jersey, denied suggestions that the EPA was lax about forcing rescue and cleanup workers to protect themselves. "We were emphatic that workers needed to wear respirators, a message I repeated frequently," she told the AP.
Last week, New York City's Mount Sinai Medical Center released study results showing that about seven of 10 rescue workers suffered post-9/11 lung problems.
FDA Reminds Tissue Banks of Regulations
Companies that recover, process, store or distribute human tissue must adhere to federal guidelines to prevent possible contamination and spread of disease, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned Thursday, in the wake of two recent scandals involving the tissue-transplant industry.
"Patient safety is our primary concern," said a statement by Jesse Goodman, director of the agency's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. He said manufacturers must also ensure that contractors who work for them adhere to the same regulations.
In August, hundreds of human-tissue products destined for transplants across the United States were recalled by a Colorado provider. The products were supplied by a North Carolina body-parts broker who allegedly used an unsterile embalming room to extract tissue from dozens of corpses.
And in 2005, a New Jersey firm was accused of using stolen bodies and of shipping about 20,000 potentially tainted body parts nationwide.
Drug-coated stents used to open clogged arteries will be examined by an expert panel advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on the possibility that the devices may produce deadly blood clots, the Associated Press reported.
Nearly 6 million people worldwide have had the metal-mesh tubes inserted since they were first coated in 2002 with a drug designed to prevent arteries from re-clogging, the wire service said. Two recent studies suggested a small but significant increase in heart-attack risk and death from blood clots among stent recipients.
While the FDA said it still believes the devices are safe, it wants the additional opinion of its expert advisers about whether further study is needed, the AP said.
The agency said it's also seeking the experts' recommendations on how long stent users should take anti-clotting drugs such as Plavix or aspirin.
U.S. Obesity Rates Soaring: CDC
More than 60 percent of adults in the United States are now overweight or obese, according to a report issued Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Nearly a quarter of American adults were classified as obese last year, a problem that has increased significantly over the past decade, the agency said in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).
While no state had an obesity rate of more than 20 percent a decade ago, 46 states reported obesity rates of 20 percent or greater last year, the agency said. And three states said 30 percent or more of its residents were considered obese.
"The magnitude of this rising obesity trend and its implications for the health of the nation calls for a strong, sustained, and effective response to alter the course of this epidemic, with the main focus being nutrition and physical activity," the report said.
Obesity has been linked to a variety of health problems, including diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and some cancers.
The agency evaluated statistics from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System collected from all 50 states between 1995 and 2005.
New Diabetes Drug Improves Blood Sugar, Maker Says
Merck & Co.'s experimental diabetes drug Januvia lowered blood-sugar levels when combined with another drug by an average of 2.1 points among study participants who had an average reading of 8.8 percent when the study began, the company said Thursday.
Study participants took 50 milligrams of Januvia (sitagliptin phosphate) twice daily, combined with 1,000 mg. twice daily of another drug, metformin. Januvia is the first in a new class of drugs called DPP-4 inhibitors that enhance the body's ability to lower blood sugar, Merck said in a statement.
Merck said it was testing use of Januvia by itself, and the same drug combination but with lower doses of metformin. Results from those studies will be released later this year, the company said.
Merck said it has applied for approval of Januvia by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and expects action on the application next month. Study results were released in Copenhagen at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.
Scooters Recalled for Dangerous Computer Glitch
Segway Inc. is recalling all 23,500 self-balancing scooters it has ever produced because a software bug can make the wheels reverse direction without notice, the Associated Press reported.
The company has six incident reports involving the Personal Transporter, including head, wrist and mouth injuries. The product was first known as the Human Transporter.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, working with the company, said consumers should stop using the vehicles immediately. Segway is offering a free software upgrade that should end the problem, the AP said.
Some of the scooters, which hit the market in 2002, were involved in a 2003 recall to fix a battery problem. They were sold nationwide for $4,000 to $5,000.
Call Segway Inc. at 800-750-6557 for more information.
House Members Seek Probe Into 9/11 EPA Comments
House of Representatives Democrats from states surrounding New York City's Ground Zero say they want an investigation into the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's assurances immediately following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that the air near the site was safe to breathe.
Congressmen Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.), and Bill Pascrell Jr. (D-N.J.) denied Thursday that politics was behind their call for an investigation into comments by then-EPA chief Christie Todd Whitman that the air quality in lower Manhattan was safe for rescue workers and nearby residents, the Associated Press reported. Such an investigation, if approved by U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, could lead to criminal charges.
Whitman, interviewed by the wire service, denied any wrongdoing. "[The EPA and I] agreed then and I reiterate now that the air on the [World Trade Center] site was not clean -- the consequence of millions of tons of burned debris from the most horrific attack in our nation's history," she said.
Whitman, a former governor of New Jersey, denied suggestions that the EPA was lax about forcing rescue and cleanup workers to protect themselves. "We were emphatic that workers needed to wear respirators, a message I repeated frequently," she told the AP.
Last week, New York City's Mount Sinai Medical Center released study results showing that about seven of 10 rescue workers suffered post-9/11 lung problems.
FDA Reminds Tissue Banks of Regulations
Companies that recover, process, store or distribute human tissue must adhere to federal guidelines to prevent possible contamination and spread of disease, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned Thursday, in the wake of two recent scandals involving the tissue-transplant industry.
"Patient safety is our primary concern," said a statement by Jesse Goodman, director of the agency's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. He said manufacturers must also ensure that contractors who work for them adhere to the same regulations.
In August, hundreds of human-tissue products destined for transplants across the United States were recalled by a Colorado provider. The products were supplied by a North Carolina body-parts broker who allegedly used an unsterile embalming room to extract tissue from dozens of corpses.
And in 2005, a New Jersey firm was accused of using stolen bodies and of shipping about 20,000 potentially tainted body parts nationwide.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)