community | Page 28 of 29 | Health Newstrack

Consumer Healthcare supports FDA over OTC cough and cold medicines withdrawal

FDA Bulletin on Kids’ Oral, Over-the-Counter Cough and Cold Reaffirms Industry’s October 2007 Voluntary Withdrawal; Agency announcement reinforces need for increased communication with consumers. – On behalf of the leading makers of over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold medicines, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) offered its support for U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision against the use of oral OTC cough and cold medicines in children under the age of two.

Quick Test For Drug-Resistant Staph Infections MRSA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first rapid blood test for the drug-resistant staph bacterium known as MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it has cleared for marketing the first rapid blood test for the drug-resistant staph bacterium known as MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), which can cause potentially deadly infections.

Religious activities good for mental health in women

Religious activities good for mental health in women, revealed by Temple University?s researchers. Religiously active women were less likely to suffer anxiety and depression. – For many, religious activity changes between childhood and adulthood, and a new study finds this could affect one’s mental health. According to Temple University’s Joanna Maselko, Sc.D., women who had stopped being religiously active were more than three times more likely to have suffered generalized anxiety and alcohol abuse/dependence than women who reported always having been active.

New screening strategy for detection of chagas disease

A new screening strategy could make it easier to diagnose and treat Chagas disease caused by a single cell parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, according to a US study. – A new targeted screening strategy could make the diagnosis and treatment of Chagas disease more feasible in low-resource settings, concludes a new study, publishing on December 26, 2007, in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Most parents underestimate children’s obesity

Despite ongoing reports of the global obesity epidemic, many American parents whose children are obese do not see it, a new survey finds. – Large numbers of parents fail to recognize that their children are overweight or obese, and therefore may be less inclined to modify their children’s diet and activity levels. More than 40 percent of parents with obese children ages 6 to 11 describe their child not as obese, but as “about the right weight.”

8 human cases of H5N1 avian influenza in Peshawar, Pakistan

The World Health Organization warned Monday that countries should be on alert for bird flu because it is again on the move, with Pakistan reporting South Asia’s first human infections and Myanmar logging its first human case. – The Ministry of Health in Pakistan has informed WHO of 8 suspected human cases of H5N1 avian influenza infection in the Peshawar area of the country. These cases were detected following a series of culling operations in response to outbreaks of H5N1 in poultry. One of the cases has now recovered and a further two suspected cases have since died.

Decline in smoking in Minnesota Adolescent

Adolescents who obtained cigarettes from social sources were less likely to become heavy smokers compared to youth who bought their cigarettes from commercial sources.
– New research in the December issue of Preventive Medicine, published by Elsevier, shows that there was a decline in access to cigarettes from commercial venues from 2000 to 2003. These findings are specific to the Minnesota Adolescent Community Cohort study, a longitudinal telephone survey of youth less than 18 years old.

Ebola virus outbreak in Uganda worsens, says WHO

The number of suspected cases of Ebola haemorrhagic fever in western Uganda has almost doubled in the past 10 days, and four health-care workers are now among the fatalities, the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) reported.
– The number of suspected cases of Ebola haemorrhagic fever in the Bundibugyo District of western Uganda has now risen to 93, including 22 fatalities. Laboratory analysis has confirmed the presence of a new species of the virus in 9 of these cases.

India to share experience in controlling avian flu

India is committed to share the experience of control and containment of the outbreak of influenza in poultry.
– The Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh has said that India is committed to share the experience of control and containment of the outbreak of influenza in poultry. He was speaking at a three-day International Ministerial Conference on Avian and Pandemic Influenza, here.

Hazards of CT scans overstated in NEJM

A recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine has suggested that the radiation dose from CT scans is a cause for concern, and CT scans should only be used judiciously and when medically necessary.
– A recent article by Drs. David Brenner and Eric Hall in the New England Journal of Medicine has suggested that the radiation dose from CT scans is a cause for concern, and may be responsible for a small percentage of cancer deaths in the United States. While the conclusions of the Brenner article have been portrayed by some as conclusive, in reality the scientific community remains divided in regards to the radiation dose effects of CT.