1 March, 2014

Indian children not aware of warning labels on cigarette packets

Children in India, especially those living in low-literacy populations, are not aware of warning labels on cigarette packets as these are not shown big enough and are graphically poor.

In the six countries studied, researchers found that awareness about warning labels was greatest among children in Brazil where graphics often featured extremely gruesome pictures and covered 100 percent of either the front or back of the cigarette packet.

Awareness of health warning labels was lowest among children from India and Nigeria.  

The Indian warning label shows an image of a symbolic scorpion and the Nigerian warning label uses only a vague text message.

‘Pro-smoking messages are reaching the world’s most susceptible audiences. We need to do a better job globally to reach children with anti-smoking messages,’ said lead author Dina Borzekowski from University of Maryland School of Public Health (UMD).

The study showed that only 38 percent of children had any awareness of warning labels currently being featured on cigarette packages.

Their findings offer data from 2,423 five and six year-old children interviewed in Brazil, India, China, Nigeria, Pakistan and Russia about their awareness and understanding of cigarette health warning labels.

Even after showing warning labels to participating children, around two-thirds (62 percent) of the children were unable to explain what the health warnings were about, noted the study.

‘Heath warning labels on cigarette packs are an important medium for communicating about the serious health effects caused by tobacco products,’ stressed Joanna Cohen from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. 

The messages are most effective when the labels are large and include pictures that evoke an emotional response, said the study published in Journal of Public Health. 

Source: http://health.india.com

01.03.2014

Blood test to tell you when are you going to die!

A novel blood test may predict if you are at the risk of dying in next five years, claims research. With Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, over 200 biomarkers predicting short-term mortality have now been discovered. ‘If a person belongs to a risk group based on these biomarker concentrations, he/she has a multifold risk of dying in the next five years compared to the general population,’ claimed Professor Mika Ala-Korpela from the University of Oulu in Finland. 

The study is based on blood samples of over 17,000 Finnish and Estonian people. In the research, mortality was related to four biomarkers in the blood: levels of two proteins (albumin and alpha-1 acidic glycoprotein), lipid metabolism variables (size of large lipoprotein particles responsible for lipid metabolism in the body) and citric acid concentration. These biomarkers relate to normal metabolism and are present in the blood of all people, but according to the study, their relative amounts are crucial. The biomarkers were independent of known mortality risk factors such as age, smoking, alcohol use, cholesterol, obesity and blood pressure. 

The biomarkers associated with mortality also in healthy subjects with no diagnosed diabetes, cancer or vascular diseases. ‘This study is the first of its kind in the world. More research is needed for possible clinical applications in health care,’ added Pasi Soininen, head of the NMR metabolomics laboratory in University of Eastern Finland. The new blood analysis method gives hope that in the future, it would be possible to identify increased risk of death at an early stage so that people could be directed to appropriate follow-up examinations and treatment. 

The new blood analysis method has been applied in recent years extensively for the research of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Application of this methodology has also provided new information on the health effects of long-term exercise, said the study published in the journal PLoS Medicine.

Source: http://health.india.com

01.03.2014

People with good intentions make promises, but people with good character keep them

28 February, 2014

Donor lungs from heavy smokers 'safe for transplantation'

The lungs of individuals who have a smoking history of 20 pack years - the equivalent to smoking one pack a day for 20 years - are usually deemed ineligible for donation. But new research suggests that transplanting lungs from heavy-smoking donors does not affect patient outcomes after surgery.

This is according to a study recently published in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery.

The research team, including Dr. Anton Sabashnikov of the Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospital in the UK, analyzed data of 237 patients who underwent lung transplantation at Harefield Hospital between 2007 and 2012.

Characteristics of both patients and donors were assessed, as well as patient outcomes following transplantations.

The lung transplant patients were split into three groups:

§  Patients who were transplanted with lungs from smoking donors (less than 20 pack years)

§  Patients who were transplanted with lungs from heavy-smoking donors (more than 20 pack years), and

§  Patients who were transplanted with lungs from non-smoking donors.

The investigators say that all patients had comparable characteristics at the baseline of the study, and they excluded patients who were transplanted with lungs from donors with an unknown smoking history.

However, they note that heavy-smoking donors were much older than non-smoking and smoking donors.

The analysis revealed that patients transplanted with lungs from donors who smoked or were heavy smokers did not experience any severe negative outcomes following surgery, compared with patients transplanted with lungs from donors who did not smoke.

The United Network for Organ Sharing states that there were 1,763 lungs donated for transplantation in the US last year. But there continues to be a shortage relative to the number of lung transplantations required. According to Dr. Sabashnikov, these findings show that using donor lungs from heavy smokers could be a way of tackling this shortage.

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com

28.02.2014

Passive smoking 'increases risk of miscarriage, stillbirth and ectopic pregnancy'

Past research has linked passive smoking to an increased risk of obesity, diabetes and even hearing loss. Now, a new study suggests that exposure to secondhand smoke may increase a woman's risk of miscarriage, stillbirth and ectopic pregnancy.

The study findings were recently published online in the journal Tobacco Control - a journal of the BMJ.

In their background information of the study, the researchers note that smoking during pregnancy can increase the risk of miscarriage and birth complications. But they point out that it is unclear as to whether passive smoking can have a similar impact. To find out, the investigators analyzed data from 80,762 women who were a part of the Women's Health Initiative Observation Study.

All women had been pregnant at least once and had gone through menopause.

Of these women, 5,082 (6.3%) were current smokers, 34,830 were former smokers (smoked more than 100 cigarettes in their lifetime) and 40,850 were never-smokers (had not smoked more than 100 cigarettes in their lifetime). The women who were never-smokers were split into groups dependent on the levels of secondhand smoke they were exposed to as a child, as an adult at home and as an adult at work.

Of all the women in the study, 26,307 (32.6%) reported having a miscarriage at least once, while 3,552 (4.4%) had a stillbirth and 2,033 (2.5%) experienced a tubal ectopic pregnancy.

Women who had ever smoked during their reproductive years were 44% more likely to have a stillborn child, 43% more likely to have an ectopic pregnancy and 16% more likely to miscarry, compared with never-smokers.

However, the researchers found that never-smokers who had been exposed to secondhand smoke also had a significantly higher risk of stillbirth, miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy, compared with never-smokers who had not been exposed to secondhand smoke.

Furthermore, the investigators found that the longer these never-smokers had been exposed to secondhand smoke, the greater their risk.

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com

28.02.2014

Don’t live your life impressing others, live your life impressing yourself

26 February, 2014

Study shows evidence that BP should be measured in both arms

Washington: A new study has suggested that there is an association between a difference in interarm systolic blood pressure and a significant increased risk for future cardiovascular events, leading researchers to recommend expanded clinical use of interarm blood pressure measurement.

Measuring interarm blood pressure involves taking two readings, one for each arm.

Increased interarm systolic blood pressure differences are defined as 10 mmHg or greater, and while a link between interarm blood pressure and cardiovascular risk was suspected, little data existed to support the hypothesis until now.

The new study, led by Ido Weinberg, MD, Institute for Heart Vascular and Stroke Care, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, examined 3,390 participants aged 40 years and older from the Framingham Heart Study.

All subjects were free of cardiovascular disease at baseline, but investigators found that participants with higher interarm systolic blood pressure differences were at a much higher risk for future cardiovascular events than those with less than a 10 mm Hg difference between arms.

Researchers also found that participants with elevated interarm blood pressure difference were older, had a greater prevalence of diabetes mellitus, higher systolic blood pressure, and a higher total cholesterol level.

The study is published in the American Journal of Medicine. 

Source: www.zeenews.india.com/news/health

26.02.2014

3D-printed heart aids life-saving surgery on US baby

  

Washington: A newly developed 3D-printed heart has helped doctors perform a life-saving heart surgery on a 14-month old infant in the US.

Researchers from the University of Louisville and Kosair Children's Hospital created a 3D printed model of the organ 1.5 times its actual size that helped the surgeons to prepare for the surgery.

Built in three pieces using a flexible filament, the printing reportedly took around 20 hours and cost USD 600.

Roland Lian Cung Bawi of Owensboro, Kentucky, was born with four congenital heart defects and his doctors were looking for greater insights into his condition prior to a February 10 operation.

Philip Dydynski, chief of radiology at Kosair Children's Hospital wondered if a 3D model of the child's heart could be constructed using a template created by images from a CT scan to allow doctors to better plan and prepare for his surgery.

The result was a model heart 1.5 times the size of the child's.

Once the model was built, Erle Austin III, cardiothoracic surgeon at Louisville, was able to develop a surgical plan and complete the heart repair with only one operation.

"I found the model to be a game changer in planning to do surgery on a complex congenital heart defect," he said.

Roland was released from Kosair Children's Hospital on February 14. His prognosis is good, doctors said.

Source: www.zeenews.india.com/news/health

26.02.2014

The problem is not the problem, the problem is our attitude about the problem

Jack Sparrow

25 February, 2014

Now a simple paper test to detect cancer!

US researchers said Monday they have developed a simple, cheap paper test that could reveal within minutes whether a person has cancer.

The diagnostic, based on a urine sample, works much like a pregnancy test, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) reported in the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, according to Xinhua. The approach involves using a technology to amplify signals from tumour proteins that would be hard to detect on their own, simply by injecting special nanoparticles into the body, the researchers said. These nanoparticles, coated with peptides, can interact with tumour proteins called proteases. In a patient’s body, these particles congregate at tumour sites, where cancer proteases cleave the peptides, which then accumulate in the kidneys and are excreted in the patient’s urine.

These biomarkers are easily detectable using an approach known as a lateral flow assay, the same technology used in pregnancy tests. In tests in mice, the researchers were able to accurately identify colon tumours, as well as blood clots. MIT professor and the paper’s senior author Sangeeta Bhatia described these tests as the first step toward a diagnostic device that could someday be useful in human patients.  

‘This is a new idea — to create an excreted biomarker instead of relying on what the body gives you,’ Bhatia said. ‘To prove this approach is really going to be a useful diagnostic, the next step is to test it in patient populations. Bhatia said the technology would likely first be applied to high-risk populations, such as people who have had cancer previously, or had a family member with the disease. Eventually, she would like to see it used for early detection in developing countries, where cancer rates have climbed sharply in recent years.  

With the current version of the technology, patients would first receive an injection of the nanoparticles, then urinate onto the paper test strip. To make the process more convenient, the researchers are now working on a nanoparticle formulation that could be implanted under the skin for longer-term monitoring.  

Source: http://health.india.com

25.02.2014

Coming soon — a bionic pancreas that can monitor and adjust blood sugar levels!

Scientists are trialling bionic pancreas that can monitor and adjust blood sugar levels and may be available to diabetics within three years.  The bionic pancreas trialled among 30 adults was very well-received by the participants, and has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for three transitional outpatient studies over the next 18 months.  People with type 1 diabetes are unable to produce insulin, a hormone that is required to control the level of sugar in the bloodstream.

Associate professor of biomedical engineering at Boston University Dr Edward Damiano, and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School Dr Steven Russell developed the bionic pancreas.  The device comprises a sensor inserted under the skin that relays hormone level data to a monitoring device, which in turn sends the information wirelessly to an app on the user’s smartphone, ‘Gizmag’ reported.

Based on the data, which is provided every five minutes, the app calculates required dosages of insulin or glucagon to maintain optimal blood sugar levels and communicates the information to two corresponding hormone infusion pumps worn by the patient.  The bionic pancreas has been trialled with diabetic pigs and in three hospital-based feasibility studies amongst adults and adolescents over 24-48 hour periods.   The upcoming studies will allow the device to be tested by participants in real-world scenarios with decreasing amounts of supervision.  If the trials are successful, a more developed version of the bionic pancreas will be created.  The device will be a single, dual-chamber insulin and glucagon pump, without the need for being paired with a smartphone app.

It will be tested in hundreds of participants with type 1 diabetes over a six-month period, with the results compared against participants in a control group using their usual care routine.  According to ‘USA Today’, Damiano hopes that the bionic pancreas will gain FDA approval and be rolled out by 2017.

Source: http://health.india.com

25.02.2014

No matter how badly people treat you, never drop down to their level, just know you’re better and walk away

24 February, 2014

Students' Health Habits Tied to School Success

Eating a healthy diet, getting enough sleep and being physically fit are important for students' success in school, a new study suggests.

When students' home and school environments support their physical health and well-being, they perform better academically, the researchers found, so programs in and out of the classroom to promote healthy behavior may be a smart investment.

The study looked at survey results and district test scores of 940 fifth- and sixth-grade students attending 12 randomly selected schools in New Haven, Conn., a poor and ethnically diverse city.

Researchers also assessed the students' physical fitness three to six months before they were tested and again after the scores of the standardized tests were released.

Students with environments that supported their physical health were more likely to reach their target scores in reading, writing and math. They were more than twice as likely to achieve this academic success than students whose environments supported their health the least, the investigators found. However, the study did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.

The study, published online recently in the Journal of School Health, revealed health factors that were linked to improved test scores in the children, including the following:

·         Not having a television in the bedroom

·         Maintaining a healthy weight

·         Being physically fit

·         Having access to healthy foods

·         Rarely eating fast food

·         Not drinking sugary drinks, such as soda

·         Getting enough sleep

"Many urban families sadly face the harsh challenges of persistent poverty," study lead author Jeannette Ickovics, a professor of epidemiology and psychology at Yale University, said in a Yale news release.

"Health and social disparities, including academic achievement, are increasing," said Ickovics, also director of the Community Alliance for Research and Engagement, a research program at the Yale School of Public Health.

"One way to reduce disparities and close the equity gaps in health and education is to coordinate community and family-based efforts with comprehensive school-based approaches," she concluded in the news release.

Source: www.news.yahoo.com

24.02.2014

Frequent School Moves May Harm Kids' Mental Health

Preteens who changed schools frequently when they were children are at increased risk of developing psychotic symptoms, a new study suggests.

Having such symptoms at a young age is associated with a greater likelihood of mental health problems and suicide in adulthood, according to the researchers at Warwick Medical School in Coventry, England.

They analyzed data on nearly 6,500 families from a long-term study of children in southwest England. At age 12, the participants were asked if they had experienced psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions in the past six months.

Those who had changed schools three times or more when they were younger had a 60 percent increased risk of having at least one psychotic symptom, according to the study published online recently in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

"Changing schools can be very stressful for students," study leader Swaran Singh said in a Warwick news release. "Our study found that the process of moving schools may itself increase the risk of psychotic symptoms -- independent of other factors. But additionally, being involved in bullying, sometimes as a consequence of repeated school moves, may exacerbate risk for the individual."

Changing schools often may cause youngsters to develop low self-esteem and a "sense of social defeat," the researchers noted. They also said that feelings of isolation can lead to brain changes that increase the risk of psychotic symptoms in vulnerable youngsters.

"It's clear that we need to keep school mobility in mind when clinically assessing young people with psychotic disorders," study co-author Dr. Cath Winsper, a senior research fellow at the medical school, said in the news release. "It should be explored as a matter of course as the impact can be both serious and potentially long-lasting. Schools should develop strategies to help these students to establish themselves in their new environment."

Although the study found a connection between frequent school changes and an increased risk of psychosis symptoms in preteens, it did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.

Source: www.news.yahoo.com

24.02.2014

A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking, because bird’s trust is not on the branch but on its wings

22 February, 2014

Bad roads killing more people than poor health: Study

New York: Whenever you read about news related to traffic accidents and deaths on Indian roads, realise that bad roads put more people at risk in some countries than three leading causes of death worldwide - cancer, heart disease and stroke.

While global death rates per 100,000 population are higher from chronic health-related causes than from traffic accidents, the latter does claim more victims in some countries - especially in developing nations.

Namibia and Chad are among the African nations that have the highest traffic fatality rates per 100,000 population, reveal researchers at University of Michigan's transportation research institute.

Using data from the World Health Organisation (WHO), researchers Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle compared fatality from road crashes with mortality from cancer, heart disease and stroke.

They realised that several countries in Africa and Middle East fare worse when it comes to traffic fatality rates.

When it comes to the greatest number of deaths from road crashes as a percentage of fatalities from all causes of death, several countries in the Middle East are at the top.

“The United Arab Emirates (16 percent) and Qatar (14 percent) are by far the worst, leading a total of 12 nations from that part of the world among the top 20 countries,” explained Sivak.

The results indicate that road safety is a greatly under-appreciated component of public health in many parts of the world, added Schoettle.

Another 10 of the top 25 nations with the worst road crash death rates are evenly split among the Middle East and Latin America.

By comparison, the US and Canada are both below 2 percent and several European nations are under 1 percent in terms of road deaths.

Overall, traffic deaths account for about 2 percent of all fatalities from all causes worldwide, noted the study.

Source: www.zeenews.india.com/news/health

22.02.2014

Talk to premature babies to boost growth: Study

Washington: Premature babies benefit from being exposed to adult talk as early as possible, shows a new research.

A study led by a team at the Women and Infants Hospital of Rhode Island and the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, both of the US, has been published in the February 2014 online edition of Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

It indicates that premature babies benefit from being exposed to adult talk as early as possible, reported Science Daily.

The research, entitled "Adult Talk in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) with Pre-term Infants and Developmental Outcomes", was led by Betty Vohr, MD, director of Women and Infants' Neonatal Follow-Up Programme and professor of pediatrics, along with her colleagues.

The aim of the study was to test the association of the amount of talking that a baby was exposed to at what would have been the 32nd and 36th weeks gestation if a baby had been born full term, using the Bayley scales of infant and toddler development, 3rd Edition (Bayley - III) cognitive and language scores.

It was hypothesised that pre-term infants exposed to higher word counts would have higher cognitive and language scores at seven and 18 months corrected age.

At 32nd and 36th week, staff recorded the NICU environment for 16 hours with a Language Environment Analysis (LENA) microprocessor. The adult word count, child vocalisations and "conversation turns" (words of mother or vocalisations of infant within five seconds) between mother and infant are recorded and analysed by computer.

The results showed the hypothesis to be true.

"Our study demonstrates the powerful impact of parents visiting and talking to their infants in the NICU on their developmental outcomes," Vohr said.

Historically, many premature infants are at increased risk of language delay. The study now identifies an easy-to-implement and cost-effective intervention to improve outcomes - come talk and sing to your baby!

Source: www.zeenews.india.com/news/health

22.02.2014

Never discourage anyone who continually makes progress, no matter how slow

Plato

21 February, 2014

Blood pressure medications not beneficial after stroke

Lowering blood pressure during the first 48 hours after a stroke does not reduce the likelihood of death or major disability, claims research.

Blood pressure often is elevated following a stroke. ‘In most cases, treatment is unnecessary because the blood pressure declines naturally over time and lowering blood pressure may be contra-indicated,’ warned stroke specialist Jose Biller at Loyola University Medical Centre. It is important not to overtreat and cause low blood pressure, because the most important objective is to maintain adequate blood flow to the brain, Biller advised.

Lowering blood pressure has been shown to reduce the risk of stroke. The study investigated whether there also would be a benefit to lowering blood pressure immediately after a stroke. The study included more than 4,000 stroke patients in 26 hospitals across China who were randomly assigned to receive blood pressure medications or to discontinue blood pressure medications.  At 14 days or hospital discharge, there were no statistically significant differences between the groups in mortality or disability, said the study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. 

It involved patients who had suffered ischemic strokes, which account for about 85 percent of all strokes. Such strokes are caused by blood clots that block blood flow to a part of the brain.  

The more you sit after 60, the likelier you’re to be disabled

No matter how much moderate exercise you get, a new study suggest that if you’re 60 and older, every additional hour a day you spend sitting is linked to doubling the risk of being disabled. The Northwestern Medicine study is the first to show sedentary behavior is its own risk factor for disability, separate from lack of moderate vigorous physical activity. In fact, sedentary behavior is almost as strong a risk factor for disability as lack of moderate exercise.

If there are two 65-year-old women, one sedentary for 12 hours a day and another sedentary for 13 hours a day, the second one is 50 percent more likely to be disabled, the study found. ‘This is the first time we’ve shown sedentary behavior was related to increased disability regardless of the amount of moderate exercise,’ Dorothy Dunlop, professor of medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and lead author of the study, said.  

‘Being sedentary is not just a synonym for inadequate physical activity,’ she said. The finding — that being sedentary was almost as strong a risk factor for disability as lack of moderate vigorous activity — surprised Dunlop. ‘It means older adults need to reduce the amount of time they spend sitting, whether in front of the TV or at the computer, regardless of their participation in moderate or vigorous activity,’ she said. The study is set to be published in the Journal of Physical Activity and Health.  

If you can’t do anything about it, then let it go. Don’t be a prisoner to things you can’t change

Tony Gaskins

19 February, 2014

Doctors Find 44-Year-Old Fetus in Woman, 84

 Doctors in Brazil have removed a 44-year-old foetus from an 84-year-old woman. It was discovered when the woman’s intense stomach pains landed her in a hospital in Tocantins state in Brazil. Subsequent examinations revealed a ‘stone baby’, reported Daily Mail. A ‘stone baby’ is a rare phenomenon in which the foetus grows and then dies outside of the uterus.

With the body unable to rid itself of it, the dead foetus is instead covered in calcium as a means of protection, resulting in the ‘stone baby’. The woman reportedly told doctors that she became pregnant more than 40 years ago but suffered pain during the pregnancy, and visited a healer for help. 

After taking what he had given her, ‘her stomach didn’t grow any more, the baby stopped moving, and she thought it had been aborted’, a gynaecologist at the hospital was quoted as saying. The gynaecologist said X-rays revealed “the face, the bones of the arms, of the legs, the ribs, and the spine” of the foetus, which is believed to have died at between 20 and 28 weeks. The woman reportedly told doctors she did not want the foetus removed

Source: http://health.india.com/news

19.02.2014

Meet Jangid — a man who can hear without ears!

Jangid is a very unique individual. He can hear and talk normally despite not having ears, well external ears. To the outside world, it appears he has ears or a visible ear canal but the man from Dausa in Rajasthan seems to have his middle and internal hearing intact.

‘Of course, a human being without pinnae (external ears) and hole can hear if his middle and internal organs are fit. Such patient listens through bone conduction of skull but the quality of voice heard might not be clear because there is absence of air conduction,’ Dr Neeraj Kasliwal , head of ENT department at Fortis Hospital in Jaipur told IBN.

A new implant Bone Anchord Hearing Aid (BAHA) could be tried to improve the hearing ability and plastic surgery could provide artificial pinnae, Kasliwal said. Daulatram Jangid toldIBN: ‘I have this defect by birth and have no external pinnae nor any hole.’ Jangid’s four siblings don’t have this defect but Jangid feels he couldn’t get married because of this problem.

The Ear’s Anatomical Structure

The ear can be broadly divided into three structures – external, middle and internal. The outer ear is also called the pinna and is made of cartilage and covered by skin. When you hear something, sound travels through the pinna into the external auditory canal which essentially is a short tube that ends at the eardrum. Basically, sound causes the eardrum to vibrate and the vibrations are conducted to the cochlea which part of the inner ear whose purpose is to transform sound into nerve impulses that travel to the brain.

Source: http://health.india.com/news

19.02.2014

Coming soon — a cure for blindness?

An Indian-origin scientist has discovered an ultra-thin layer hidden deep in the eye that can help treat glaucoma, thus taking a step closer to curing blindness caused by the ocular disorder.

Harminder Dua, a professor at Nottingham University, has discovered how a new layer in the human cornea plays a vital role in the structure of the tissue that controls the flow of fluid from the eye, a university press release stated. 

The findings, published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, could shed new light on glaucoma, a disease normally associated with increased fluid pressure in the eye which can lead to blindness if left untreated. 

The new layer, dubbed as Dua’s Layer, is considered an important contribution to medical science.

Source: http://health.india.com/news

19.02.2014

Whatever makes you feel bad leave it, whatever makes you smile keep it