PARADIGM BYTES
Newsletter for Paradigm 97
March 7, 2008
PARADIGM DEFINED:1) an outstandingly clear or typical example or archetype.2) a philosophical and theoretical framework of a scientific school or discipline within which theories, laws, and generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them, are formulated.Our website...... http://paradigm97.blogspot.com/
MISSION STATEMENT
We believe that nurses need each other for support during the "lean and mean" days to help survive them. We offer research results and other ideas to enrich the nursing experience.
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Please drop in ...the AOL chatroom is Paradigm97 chatroom is always there....door open, lights on, waiting for you to come in. Check your Buddy List.....and invite your friends in for a short or long chat
We believe that nurses need each other for support during the "lean and mean" days to help survive them. We offer research results and other ideas to enrich the nursing experience.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
Please drop in ...the AOL chatroom is Paradigm97 chatroom is always there....door open, lights on, waiting for you to come in. Check your Buddy List.....and invite your friends in for a short or long chat
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SNIPPETS
SNIPPETS
This isn't my usual SNIPPET, as you well know, but I thought this was a very good idea..and wanted to share. Frankie
Q: Should we create a Modern Museum of Nursing to show the world how vital, exciting, and technologically advanced nursing really is?
A: Why, yes, what a great idea!
We should establish a Modern Museum of Nursing where people from all over the world can come to learn about what nurses today do to save lives and improve outcomes. Public understanding of nursing is abysmally poor. This is a major factor underlying many of the more immediate causes of the deadly global nursing shortage. By increasing understanding of the profession, nursing can attract the new members and resources it needs to meet the health care challenges of the 21st century. A landmark, high-tech science museum devoted to nursing could be a powerful tool in these efforts.
We envision an interactive nursing science museum in a major city that would garner national and local financial support and become one of the sites that travelers to that city "must visit." The museum would show not only the development of nursing, but also the diverse and exciting modern reality: that nursing is an autonomous profession whose members use innovative practice and the latest technologies to help people regain and maintain health, and that nurse scholars work on the cutting edge of health research. Visitors would be invited to put themselves in the place of nurses on the front lines, in settings ranging from the extreme high-tech of teaching hospital ICU's, to chaotic urban level one trauma centers, to major health policymaking and research centers, to small community health projects in remote locations, to development and humanitarian relief projects around the world.
Imagine a museum visitor walks into a "patient's room" in a "hospital." The visitor might be asked what he has seen in the first few seconds. Then the visitor might be shown, through audio and visual displays, the countless things a skilled nurse would have seen in this same time--aspects of the patient's physical and emotional state, things that provide clues to the patient's condition. Suddenly, monitors starting beeping. The patient is coding! What will the visitor do? Again the visitor can be shown the many things a skilled nurse would have done in the first few moments. Perhaps the visitor can take part in simulated versions of some of them, like defibrillation (obviously without live current). Or perhaps the patient is not in immediate physical danger, but is in despair because of the toll her chronic illness has taken on her and her family. What would the "visitor" say and do? What would a skilled nurse say and do?
But aren't there already museums of nursing? There are, and we believe that many of these museums play an important role in preserving the profession's history, particularly as to specific geographic and specialty areas and institutions. Such museums often focus on preserving artifacts of nursing in prior eras. However, to our knowledge there is no major museum devoted to showing the broader public what nursing really is today and why it matters.
The new museum we propose might utilize the kind of evolving technologies that major science museums are now using to bring scientific endeavors alive for the public. Examples include the Field Museum in Chicago, the Science Museum in London, and the Deutsches Museum in Munich. The Science Museum's Health Matters gallery includes a range of interactive exhibits to give visitors a sense of the scope and importance of modern health science. Philadelphia's Franklin Institute currently devotes significant resources not only to its giant walk-through heart, but a range of related health exhibits and equipment.
These museums convey the value of modern science and technology. They inspire public support for the ongoing work of science--support that nursing needs desperately. A world-class Museum of Modern Nursing could attract new generations of potential nurses, and just as importantly, build the widespread community support that will translate into the clinical, educational, and research resources needed to strengthen the profession and combat the shortage.
We urge nursing advocates to consider how a Modern Museum of Nursing might be developed, financed, and managed. http://www.nursingadvocacy.org/faq/museum.html
Q: Should we create a Modern Museum of Nursing to show the world how vital, exciting, and technologically advanced nursing really is?
A: Why, yes, what a great idea!
We should establish a Modern Museum of Nursing where people from all over the world can come to learn about what nurses today do to save lives and improve outcomes. Public understanding of nursing is abysmally poor. This is a major factor underlying many of the more immediate causes of the deadly global nursing shortage. By increasing understanding of the profession, nursing can attract the new members and resources it needs to meet the health care challenges of the 21st century. A landmark, high-tech science museum devoted to nursing could be a powerful tool in these efforts.
We envision an interactive nursing science museum in a major city that would garner national and local financial support and become one of the sites that travelers to that city "must visit." The museum would show not only the development of nursing, but also the diverse and exciting modern reality: that nursing is an autonomous profession whose members use innovative practice and the latest technologies to help people regain and maintain health, and that nurse scholars work on the cutting edge of health research. Visitors would be invited to put themselves in the place of nurses on the front lines, in settings ranging from the extreme high-tech of teaching hospital ICU's, to chaotic urban level one trauma centers, to major health policymaking and research centers, to small community health projects in remote locations, to development and humanitarian relief projects around the world.
Imagine a museum visitor walks into a "patient's room" in a "hospital." The visitor might be asked what he has seen in the first few seconds. Then the visitor might be shown, through audio and visual displays, the countless things a skilled nurse would have seen in this same time--aspects of the patient's physical and emotional state, things that provide clues to the patient's condition. Suddenly, monitors starting beeping. The patient is coding! What will the visitor do? Again the visitor can be shown the many things a skilled nurse would have done in the first few moments. Perhaps the visitor can take part in simulated versions of some of them, like defibrillation (obviously without live current). Or perhaps the patient is not in immediate physical danger, but is in despair because of the toll her chronic illness has taken on her and her family. What would the "visitor" say and do? What would a skilled nurse say and do?
But aren't there already museums of nursing? There are, and we believe that many of these museums play an important role in preserving the profession's history, particularly as to specific geographic and specialty areas and institutions. Such museums often focus on preserving artifacts of nursing in prior eras. However, to our knowledge there is no major museum devoted to showing the broader public what nursing really is today and why it matters.
The new museum we propose might utilize the kind of evolving technologies that major science museums are now using to bring scientific endeavors alive for the public. Examples include the Field Museum in Chicago, the Science Museum in London, and the Deutsches Museum in Munich. The Science Museum's Health Matters gallery includes a range of interactive exhibits to give visitors a sense of the scope and importance of modern health science. Philadelphia's Franklin Institute currently devotes significant resources not only to its giant walk-through heart, but a range of related health exhibits and equipment.
These museums convey the value of modern science and technology. They inspire public support for the ongoing work of science--support that nursing needs desperately. A world-class Museum of Modern Nursing could attract new generations of potential nurses, and just as importantly, build the widespread community support that will translate into the clinical, educational, and research resources needed to strengthen the profession and combat the shortage.
We urge nursing advocates to consider how a Modern Museum of Nursing might be developed, financed, and managed. http://www.nursingadvocacy.org/faq/museum.html
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MEDICAL NEWS
Health Care Spending Expected To Double By 2017, Federal Report SaysBy 2017, U.S. health care spending is expected to nearly double from 2007¹s projected level, reaching $4.3 trillion and consuming 19.5 percent of the nation¹s gross domestic product (GDP), analysts at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report in today¹s Health Affairs Web Exclusive.The authors note that they expect the leading edge of the baby-boom generation to begin to affect the Medicare program. Over the next decade, a slowdown in growth in private spending is expected to be offset by accelerating growth in public-sector spending, partially attributable to the baby-boomer generation enrolling in Medicare. The CMS analysts say that this increase in the number of Medicare enrollees is projected to contribute 2.9 percentage points to growth in Medicare spending by 2017. You can read the article by Sean Keehan and colleagues athttp://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/abstract/hlthaff.27.2.w145
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Coverage Losses Continued Even As The Economy Improved From 2004 Through 2006 The number of uninsured people in the United States grew by 3.4 million from 2004 to 2006, even as a resurgent economy raised incomes and lowered poverty rates, Urban Institute researchers say in a Health Affairs Web Exclusive study published today.The economy¹s emergence from recession did not interrupt the rise in uninsurance dating back to 2000. In fact, on an annual basis, the ranks of the uninsured grew faster in 2005 and 2006 than they did during the four years from 2000 through 2004, when a total of 6 million people became uninsured.You can read the study by John Holahan and Allison Cook at http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/abstract/hlthaff.27.2.w135
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ANNOUNCEMENT
ISMP High-Alert Medications Series teleconferences. Please join us for the 1st of ISMP’s three teleconferences focusing on high-alert medications. Reducing the Risk of Patient Harm with Anticoagulation Therapy, was held on February 21, 2008. This presentation provided you with the building blocks necessary to define and implement an anticoagulation management program in your hospital, as required by one of The Joint Commission (TJC) National Patient Safety Goals for 2008. With a special focus on heparin and warfarin, speakers from ISMP will describe the causes of harmful errors with these anticoagulants.
Part two of ISMP’s three-part teleconference series on high-alert medications, Reducing the Risk of Patient Harm with Opiates, will be held on March 26, 2008 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm ET. To assist your organization with reducing the risk of patient harm, this teleconference will explore the current trends in opiate therapy, barriers to optimal therapy and safety, and common types of errors that occur with opiates.
Please join us for the 3rd part of ISMP’s High Alert Medications Series teleconference, Preventing Errors with Insulin: A Multidisciplinary Approach, to be held on April 23, 2008 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm ET. This teleconference will explore the current trends in insulin therapy, barriers to optimal therapy and safety, and common types of errors that occur with insulin. To register visit: www.ismp.org/educational/teleconferences.asp.
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INTERESTING READING
Please remember that the REUTERS articles are usually good for only 30 days
MEDICAL NEWS
Health Care Spending Expected To Double By 2017, Federal Report SaysBy 2017, U.S. health care spending is expected to nearly double from 2007¹s projected level, reaching $4.3 trillion and consuming 19.5 percent of the nation¹s gross domestic product (GDP), analysts at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report in today¹s Health Affairs Web Exclusive.The authors note that they expect the leading edge of the baby-boom generation to begin to affect the Medicare program. Over the next decade, a slowdown in growth in private spending is expected to be offset by accelerating growth in public-sector spending, partially attributable to the baby-boomer generation enrolling in Medicare. The CMS analysts say that this increase in the number of Medicare enrollees is projected to contribute 2.9 percentage points to growth in Medicare spending by 2017. You can read the article by Sean Keehan and colleagues athttp://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/abstract/hlthaff.27.2.w145
*************
Coverage Losses Continued Even As The Economy Improved From 2004 Through 2006 The number of uninsured people in the United States grew by 3.4 million from 2004 to 2006, even as a resurgent economy raised incomes and lowered poverty rates, Urban Institute researchers say in a Health Affairs Web Exclusive study published today.The economy¹s emergence from recession did not interrupt the rise in uninsurance dating back to 2000. In fact, on an annual basis, the ranks of the uninsured grew faster in 2005 and 2006 than they did during the four years from 2000 through 2004, when a total of 6 million people became uninsured.You can read the study by John Holahan and Allison Cook at http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/abstract/hlthaff.27.2.w135
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
ANNOUNCEMENT
ISMP High-Alert Medications Series teleconferences. Please join us for the 1st of ISMP’s three teleconferences focusing on high-alert medications. Reducing the Risk of Patient Harm with Anticoagulation Therapy, was held on February 21, 2008. This presentation provided you with the building blocks necessary to define and implement an anticoagulation management program in your hospital, as required by one of The Joint Commission (TJC) National Patient Safety Goals for 2008. With a special focus on heparin and warfarin, speakers from ISMP will describe the causes of harmful errors with these anticoagulants.
Part two of ISMP’s three-part teleconference series on high-alert medications, Reducing the Risk of Patient Harm with Opiates, will be held on March 26, 2008 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm ET. To assist your organization with reducing the risk of patient harm, this teleconference will explore the current trends in opiate therapy, barriers to optimal therapy and safety, and common types of errors that occur with opiates.
Please join us for the 3rd part of ISMP’s High Alert Medications Series teleconference, Preventing Errors with Insulin: A Multidisciplinary Approach, to be held on April 23, 2008 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm ET. This teleconference will explore the current trends in insulin therapy, barriers to optimal therapy and safety, and common types of errors that occur with insulin. To register visit: www.ismp.org/educational/teleconferences.asp.
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INTERESTING READING
Please remember that the REUTERS articles are usually good for only 30 days
The U.S. is in desperate need of more nurses. And many young people would like to become nurses. So why is the nurse shortage worse than ever? The problem is there aren’t enough educational programs to train nurses. And there aren’t enough teachers of nursing. For this reason, Dr. Cindy Mailloux recently went to Washington and joined nurse educators from across the country to urge their legislators to designate more funding for nurse education.Dr. Mailloux is the chairman of the nursing department at Misericordia University. “By increasing our legislators’ awareness, we’re hoping funding can be found to meet the needs of the profession and improve the quality of care patients receive,” said Mailloux. Specifically, Mailloux and her colleagues are asking their U.S. senators to support Nursing Workforce Development programs under Title VIII, the largest source of federal funding for nursing education.To their credit, both Pennsylvania senators, Alren Specter and Bob Casey, through their aids, indicated support for more funding for nursing education. http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=19044840&BRD=2259&PAG=461&dept_id=456222&rfi=6
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How many of you would advocate for breast feeding with these odds? HIV Drugs make breast feeding safer WASHINGTON (Reuters 2/4) A drug that helps prevent babies from catching the AIDS virus at birth can also protect them while nursing, researchers reported on Monday.
Babies of HIV-infected women who were given the drug nevirapine while they breast-fed were half as likely to become infected, the researchers told a meeting in Boston of AIDS experts.
Nevirapine is already widely used to protect babies at birth. A single dose given to the mother as she goes into labor and to the baby at birth cuts transmission by 47 percent.
But babies continue to become infected after birth, via their mothers' breast milk, which can carry the virus. In many developing countries breast-feeding is the only option.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN0461960320080204?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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I wanted to share this information despite it concerning animal vaccinations. This is from a newspaper in West Palm Beach...the column is entitled: Ask The Vet by Dr. Michael Fox
(A woman wrote in asking how often the pet should be vaccinated and with which vaccine. Her dog had died.)
He answered " There are several core vaccinations that dogs should be given: canine parvovirus, canine, distemper, canine adenovirus-2, and rabies.
Adult dogs with a record of shots during puppyhood up to a year old do not need to be revaccinated for three years with any of the above vaccines unless a 1-year-duration rabies shot was given. Revaccination may not be needed if a blood-titer test is done to determine whether each vaccine is still providing protection. If your veterinarian insists that all these core vacinations be given annually, have him or her read the American Animal Hospital Association's 2006 Canine Vaccine Guidelines, or find another doctor".
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Surgical Fires An important priority for health care organizations is to reduce the risk of surgical fires. Organizations should educate staff, including operating licensed independent practitioners and anesthesia providers, on how to control heat sources and manage fuels and establish guidelines to minimize oxygen concentration under drapes.A wide range of combustibles and flammables are found in the surgical suite. As a result, all staff, including operating room licensed independent practitioners and anesthesia providers, need to know how to control heat sources and manage fuels to reduce the risk of fire. ... http://www.medinfonow.com/min/ct/5/62730/fuwluz/KAAK/569/default.aspx © 2006 Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
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Bull's eye Target for Child Leukemia Found LONDON (Reuters 1/17/08) - British researchers have identified the cancer stem cells that spawn tumors in the most common form of childhood leukemia, and said on Thursday it provided a "bull's eye" target for new drugs.
These rare stem cells are a minute component of the blood but self-renew and act like a control centre, producing millions of cancerous leukemia cells that overwhelm the normal system, said Tariq Enver, a researcher at the University of Oxford, who worked on the study.
"Our next goal is to target both the pre-leukaemic stem cell and the cancer stem cell itself with new or existing drugs to cure leukemia while avoiding the debilitating and often harmful side effects of current treatments," Enver said. ... http://health.yahoo.com/news/reuters/leukaemia_target_dc.html;_ylt=A0S02_DaBZBH0ZsAykmz5xcB
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[ I had three children...and drank black coffee during all three pregnancies sans miscarriage problems....guess I was just lucky (?) ]
CHICAGO (Reuters 1/21) - Pregnant women who drink two or more cups of coffee a day have twice the risk of having a miscarriage as those who avoid caffeine, U.S. researchers said on Monday. They said the study provides strong evidence that high doses of caffeine during pregnancy -- 200 milligrams or more per day or the equivalent of two cups of coffee -- significantly increase the risk of miscarriage. And they said the research may finally put to rest conflicting reports about the link between caffeine consumption and miscarriage.
"Women who are pregnant or are actively seeking to become pregnant should stop drinking coffee for three months or hopefully throughout pregnancy," said Dr. De-Kun Li of Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, whose study appears in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2034583320080121?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Gene studies home in on lupus cause WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/20) - Four separate studies published on Sunday identify a series of genes linked with lupus, a debilitating illness that can affect various parts of the body at once.
The studies show that, as suspected, the immune system is going haywire in lupus. But it also points to some previously unsuspected causes of the once-mysterious disease.
And the findings may not only help scientists find better treatments for the disease -- but may help in diagnosing it in the first place, as it is easily confused with other conditions.
Systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus for short, affects at least 1.4 million people in the United States and 50,000 in Britain, advocacy groups say....
http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2033315020080120?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Please pass the following on to your patients........
Signs of a Stroke..............STR
S* Ask the individual to SMILE
T* Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK a simple Sentence (coherently) (i.e. It is sunny out today)
R* Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS
A new sign: Stick the tongue out. If it isn't centered.........
Call 911 immediately.......get the person to the hospital
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Cervical cancer vaccine cost-effective: EU agency LONDON (Reuters 1/22) - The vaccine against the sexually transmitted virus that causes the most cases of cervical cancer is cost-effective and should be given to adolescent girls before they start having sex, an EU agency said on Tuesday.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said in a report that Merck & Co Inc's Gardasil and GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Cervarix vaccines could best help reduce cervical cancer when used with screening programs.
"We are saying the vaccine is probably cost effective and should be given to girls before they start their sexual life," Johan Giesecke, the agency's chief scientist, said in a telephone interview.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL2233091420080122?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Child Mortality Toll dips below 10 million: UNICEF GENEVA (Reuters 1/22) - About 9.7 million children die each year before their fifth birthday, mostly from diseases that could be prevented with simple, affordable measures, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday. While the annual toll fell below 10 million for the first time, it still means more than 26,000 young children succumb every day to pneumonia, malaria and other scourges. Four million of them die in their first month of life.
"It is still completely and totally unacceptable that nearly 10 million children die every year of largely preventable causes," UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman said, noting that many infants also lose their mothers in childbirth. ... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL1819018020080122?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Under the tongue flu vaccinations HONG KONG (Reuters 1/29) - Administering flu vaccines under the tongue may be more effective and offer more protection than injecting or inhaling the drug, a study with mice in South Korea has found.
The base of the mouth is a "very good absorbent and competent tissue ... in taking vaccine and presenting it to the immune system ... to initiate an immune response," Cecil Czerkinsky, biological sciences professor at the Seoul National University, said in a telephone interview.
There is currently no vaccine that is administered under the tongue, or what is known as the sublingual area. But there have been recent studies testing its effectiveness in inducing immune responses in mucosal tissues in the respiratory system, gut and inside of the cheek, and blood.... http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2008/01/29/eline/links/20080129elin012.html
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Drug-name mix-ups hurt patients, getting worse WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/30) - Dr. Julius Pham's stomach churned when he saw a critically ill heart patient getting an antibiotic instead of a drug to support his blood pressure -- the kind of mix-up that is increasingly common in the United States, according to a new report.
"If you have ever had that sinking feeling that drops to the bottom of your stomach, I had it," Pham, then a critical care physician at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, told reporters. "Unfortunately, the patient did not do well."
A nurse had confused Levophed, which can boost blood pressure, with the antibiotic Levaquin.
The rate of drug name mix-ups has more than doubled since 2004, the U.S. Pharmacopeia said in a report on Tuesday. The group, which regulates the generic names of drugs and advises pharmaceutical companies, reviewed more than 26,000 records and identified 1,470 unique drugs involved in errors due to similar brand or generic names.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2960814420080130?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Infant study casts doubt on vaccine-autism link WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/31) - The mercury in a vaccine preservative is pumped out of a baby's body too quickly for it to do any damage, researchers reported on Wednesday in a study they say should further absolve shots of causing autism.
The study in the journal Pediatrics reinforces what many vaccine experts have said for years -- that the form of mercury found in the preservative is handled differently by the body than the kind found in pollution and contaminated fish.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN3050545420080131?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Elephants are the only mammal that cannot jump... just a random fact..........
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Premature births lower in women taking folic acid WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/31) - Women who take folic acid supplements for at least a year before becoming pregnant can greatly reduce their risk of delivering a baby prematurely, researchers said on Thursday. Folic acid, a B vitamin, already is known to prevent major birth defects that involve a baby's brain or spine.
This study shows it may provide another benefit -- cutting down on premature births in which babies have less time to develop in the womb and are more likely to experience serious medical problems....http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN3024373620080131?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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If you've ever had a pulsating, throbbing headache for several hours or even a few days which was possibly accompanied by an upset stomach and sensitivity to light, you're probably familiar with migraines. Experts think migraines are caused by a chemical or electrical problem in certain parts of the brain. When your nervous system responds to a trigger, such as stress, spasms then occur in the nerve-rich areas at the base of the brain and constrict the blood vessels supplying blood to the brain. The migraine pain comes from other blood vessels that open up further to compensate for the constricted blood vessels. Pain also comes from the excitation of the nerve pathway that runs from the brain stem to the head and face. Here are the nine most common triggers for migraines. If you can learn what your triggers are, you can learn ways to avoid them. http://slideshow.ivillage.com/health/dealing_with_9_common_migraine_triggers/causes_and_triggers.html?nlcid=pa03-05-2008
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How many of you would advocate for breast feeding with these odds? HIV Drugs make breast feeding safer WASHINGTON (Reuters 2/4) A drug that helps prevent babies from catching the AIDS virus at birth can also protect them while nursing, researchers reported on Monday.
Babies of HIV-infected women who were given the drug nevirapine while they breast-fed were half as likely to become infected, the researchers told a meeting in Boston of AIDS experts.
Nevirapine is already widely used to protect babies at birth. A single dose given to the mother as she goes into labor and to the baby at birth cuts transmission by 47 percent.
But babies continue to become infected after birth, via their mothers' breast milk, which can carry the virus. In many developing countries breast-feeding is the only option.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN0461960320080204?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
************************
I wanted to share this information despite it concerning animal vaccinations. This is from a newspaper in West Palm Beach...the column is entitled: Ask The Vet by Dr. Michael Fox
(A woman wrote in asking how often the pet should be vaccinated and with which vaccine. Her dog had died.)
He answered " There are several core vaccinations that dogs should be given: canine parvovirus, canine, distemper, canine adenovirus-2, and rabies.
Adult dogs with a record of shots during puppyhood up to a year old do not need to be revaccinated for three years with any of the above vaccines unless a 1-year-duration rabies shot was given. Revaccination may not be needed if a blood-titer test is done to determine whether each vaccine is still providing protection. If your veterinarian insists that all these core vacinations be given annually, have him or her read the American Animal Hospital Association's 2006 Canine Vaccine Guidelines, or find another doctor".
************************
Surgical Fires An important priority for health care organizations is to reduce the risk of surgical fires. Organizations should educate staff, including operating licensed independent practitioners and anesthesia providers, on how to control heat sources and manage fuels and establish guidelines to minimize oxygen concentration under drapes.A wide range of combustibles and flammables are found in the surgical suite. As a result, all staff, including operating room licensed independent practitioners and anesthesia providers, need to know how to control heat sources and manage fuels to reduce the risk of fire. ... http://www.medinfonow.com/min/ct/5/62730/fuwluz/KAAK/569/default.aspx © 2006 Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
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Bull's eye Target for Child Leukemia Found LONDON (Reuters 1/17/08) - British researchers have identified the cancer stem cells that spawn tumors in the most common form of childhood leukemia, and said on Thursday it provided a "bull's eye" target for new drugs.
These rare stem cells are a minute component of the blood but self-renew and act like a control centre, producing millions of cancerous leukemia cells that overwhelm the normal system, said Tariq Enver, a researcher at the University of Oxford, who worked on the study.
"Our next goal is to target both the pre-leukaemic stem cell and the cancer stem cell itself with new or existing drugs to cure leukemia while avoiding the debilitating and often harmful side effects of current treatments," Enver said. ... http://health.yahoo.com/news/reuters/leukaemia_target_dc.html;_ylt=A0S02_DaBZBH0ZsAykmz5xcB
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[ I had three children...and drank black coffee during all three pregnancies sans miscarriage problems....guess I was just lucky (?) ]
CHICAGO (Reuters 1/21) - Pregnant women who drink two or more cups of coffee a day have twice the risk of having a miscarriage as those who avoid caffeine, U.S. researchers said on Monday. They said the study provides strong evidence that high doses of caffeine during pregnancy -- 200 milligrams or more per day or the equivalent of two cups of coffee -- significantly increase the risk of miscarriage. And they said the research may finally put to rest conflicting reports about the link between caffeine consumption and miscarriage.
"Women who are pregnant or are actively seeking to become pregnant should stop drinking coffee for three months or hopefully throughout pregnancy," said Dr. De-Kun Li of Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, whose study appears in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2034583320080121?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
***************
Gene studies home in on lupus cause WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/20) - Four separate studies published on Sunday identify a series of genes linked with lupus, a debilitating illness that can affect various parts of the body at once.
The studies show that, as suspected, the immune system is going haywire in lupus. But it also points to some previously unsuspected causes of the once-mysterious disease.
And the findings may not only help scientists find better treatments for the disease -- but may help in diagnosing it in the first place, as it is easily confused with other conditions.
Systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus for short, affects at least 1.4 million people in the United States and 50,000 in Britain, advocacy groups say....
http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2033315020080120?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
*****************************
Please pass the following on to your patients........
Signs of a Stroke..............STR
S* Ask the individual to SMILE
T* Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK a simple Sentence (coherently) (i.e. It is sunny out today)
R* Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS
A new sign: Stick the tongue out. If it isn't centered.........
Call 911 immediately.......get the person to the hospital
******************
Cervical cancer vaccine cost-effective: EU agency LONDON (Reuters 1/22) - The vaccine against the sexually transmitted virus that causes the most cases of cervical cancer is cost-effective and should be given to adolescent girls before they start having sex, an EU agency said on Tuesday.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said in a report that Merck & Co Inc's Gardasil and GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Cervarix vaccines could best help reduce cervical cancer when used with screening programs.
"We are saying the vaccine is probably cost effective and should be given to girls before they start their sexual life," Johan Giesecke, the agency's chief scientist, said in a telephone interview.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL2233091420080122?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Child Mortality Toll dips below 10 million: UNICEF GENEVA (Reuters 1/22) - About 9.7 million children die each year before their fifth birthday, mostly from diseases that could be prevented with simple, affordable measures, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday. While the annual toll fell below 10 million for the first time, it still means more than 26,000 young children succumb every day to pneumonia, malaria and other scourges. Four million of them die in their first month of life.
"It is still completely and totally unacceptable that nearly 10 million children die every year of largely preventable causes," UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman said, noting that many infants also lose their mothers in childbirth. ... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL1819018020080122?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Under the tongue flu vaccinations HONG KONG (Reuters 1/29) - Administering flu vaccines under the tongue may be more effective and offer more protection than injecting or inhaling the drug, a study with mice in South Korea has found.
The base of the mouth is a "very good absorbent and competent tissue ... in taking vaccine and presenting it to the immune system ... to initiate an immune response," Cecil Czerkinsky, biological sciences professor at the Seoul National University, said in a telephone interview.
There is currently no vaccine that is administered under the tongue, or what is known as the sublingual area. But there have been recent studies testing its effectiveness in inducing immune responses in mucosal tissues in the respiratory system, gut and inside of the cheek, and blood.... http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2008/01/29/eline/links/20080129elin012.html
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Drug-name mix-ups hurt patients, getting worse WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/30) - Dr. Julius Pham's stomach churned when he saw a critically ill heart patient getting an antibiotic instead of a drug to support his blood pressure -- the kind of mix-up that is increasingly common in the United States, according to a new report.
"If you have ever had that sinking feeling that drops to the bottom of your stomach, I had it," Pham, then a critical care physician at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, told reporters. "Unfortunately, the patient did not do well."
A nurse had confused Levophed, which can boost blood pressure, with the antibiotic Levaquin.
The rate of drug name mix-ups has more than doubled since 2004, the U.S. Pharmacopeia said in a report on Tuesday. The group, which regulates the generic names of drugs and advises pharmaceutical companies, reviewed more than 26,000 records and identified 1,470 unique drugs involved in errors due to similar brand or generic names.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2960814420080130?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Infant study casts doubt on vaccine-autism link WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/31) - The mercury in a vaccine preservative is pumped out of a baby's body too quickly for it to do any damage, researchers reported on Wednesday in a study they say should further absolve shots of causing autism.
The study in the journal Pediatrics reinforces what many vaccine experts have said for years -- that the form of mercury found in the preservative is handled differently by the body than the kind found in pollution and contaminated fish.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN3050545420080131?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Elephants are the only mammal that cannot jump... just a random fact..........
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Premature births lower in women taking folic acid WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/31) - Women who take folic acid supplements for at least a year before becoming pregnant can greatly reduce their risk of delivering a baby prematurely, researchers said on Thursday. Folic acid, a B vitamin, already is known to prevent major birth defects that involve a baby's brain or spine.
This study shows it may provide another benefit -- cutting down on premature births in which babies have less time to develop in the womb and are more likely to experience serious medical problems....http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN3024373620080131?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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If you've ever had a pulsating, throbbing headache for several hours or even a few days which was possibly accompanied by an upset stomach and sensitivity to light, you're probably familiar with migraines. Experts think migraines are caused by a chemical or electrical problem in certain parts of the brain. When your nervous system responds to a trigger, such as stress, spasms then occur in the nerve-rich areas at the base of the brain and constrict the blood vessels supplying blood to the brain. The migraine pain comes from other blood vessels that open up further to compensate for the constricted blood vessels. Pain also comes from the excitation of the nerve pathway that runs from the brain stem to the head and face. Here are the nine most common triggers for migraines. If you can learn what your triggers are, you can learn ways to avoid them. http://slideshow.ivillage.com/health/dealing_with_9_common_migraine_triggers/causes_and_triggers.html?nlcid=pa03-05-2008
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Hand washing can reduce diarrhoea episodes by about one third Both in institutions and in communities, interventions that promote hand washing lead to significant reductions in the incidence of diarrhoea. The WHO* estimates that diarrhoea kills around 2.2 million people annually, mostly young children in middle- or low-income countries. Encouraging children and adults to wash their hands after using the lavatory is one intervention that has potential to reduce the risk. A team of Cochrane Researchers set out to assess the strength of evidence for the benefits of hand washing. They studied data in 14 randomised controlled trials, eight of which had been conducted in day-care centres and schools mainly in high-income countries; five had been community-based trials in low- and middle-income countries, and one looked at a specific high-risk group of HIV- infected adults living in the USA. The data showed that interventions promoting hand washing can reduce diarrhoea episodes by 29% in day-care centres in high-income countries and by 31% in communities in low- or middle- income countries. “This is a huge benefit. For people in low-income areas this effect is comparable to providing clean water,” says lead author Dr Regina Ejemot. “The challenge is to find ways of promoting hand washing, as well as to set up long term trials that test whether good practice has become part of a person’s way of life,” says Ejemot. Ejemot RI, Ehiri JE, Meremikwu MM, Critchley JA. Hand washing for preventing diarrhoea. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2008, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD004265. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD004265.pub2. * http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/diseases/diarrhoea/en
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Cranberry juice may help women with recurrent urinary tract infections There is some evidence that cranberry juice may decrease the number of occasions when people notice they have a urinary tract infection (UTI), a Cochrane Systematic Review has found. This is particularly the case for those who have recurrent UTIs. UTIs are one of the most common reasons why people seek outpatient medical treatment, and lead to over one million hospital admissions a year in the USA alone. Cranberries, and particularly cranberry juice, have been used for decades as a means of preventing or treating UTIs. The mechanism of action is unsure. One theory is that molecules in the juice may make it harder for bacteria such as E. coli to stick to surfaces, and therefore make it difficult for an infection to build up. ...
Jepson RG, Craig JC. Cranberries for preventing urinary tract infections. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2008, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD001321. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001321.pub4.
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Got this from the list serve.....Check this out weekly, on the weekend, as they update the site daily. It is a sampling of abstracts from reputable journals from all over the world. If you enjoy getting news about science, health, medicine, nursing, education, astronomy, geriatrics,psychiatry, nutrition, etc. before your newspaper gets it, you'll love this web site. http://www.eurekalert.org/pubnews.php
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This was sent to me from another list. Health-evidence.ca (http://health-evidence.ca) is a free, searchable online registry that provides public health practitioners, program planners, and polciy makers with quality research evidence to inform public health decision making. Health-evidence.ca saves you time since the searching, screening, and appraising the systematic review evidence has been done for you. Health-evidence.ca houses over 1000 reviews - all related to public health, health promotion and/or population health. On this site, you can locate references to systematic reviews and meta-analyses, gathered through a comprehensive search of electronic databases, journal tables of contents, and reference lists. All reviews in this online registry have been screened for relevance to public health, and appraised for quality. You can see whether reviews are strong, moderate, or weak in terms of their methodological quality. This is important information that you need to determine whether and how to incorporate the evidence from the reviews in your practice, program, or policy decisions.Full reviews have been located and are linked wherever access is possible through the public domain. Direct links are also provided through IP authentication wherever a user may already have access through an existing subscription that is linked to the IP address of their workstation or home computer.We are also working to provide summary statements for each of the reviews in the registry. A summary statement is a short (2 page) synopsis of the review¢s content, highlighting key evidence points and corresponding implications for practice, programs, and policy. Not all reviews in the registry have summary statements at present, but we are working to find funding (and authors!) to fill in the gaps. Future plans for the website include development of a discussion group, offering the opportunity for users to ask questions and connect with other Canadian and internationally-based public health decision makers. We hope to provide education, information, and networking opportunities through this site and we look forward to receiving your feedback and suggestions.
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Homocysteine inversely tied to cognitive function after age 60 By Megan Rauscher NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Data from the Framingham Offspring Study provide more evidence that increasing levels of homocysteine are associated with lower cognitive functioning in adults older than 60, but not in younger and middle-aged adults. The finding suggests to researchers that folate and vitamin B6 and B12 supplements may help prevent homocysteine-related cognitive decline.
"My concern," Dr. Merrill F. Elias said, "is that many physicians still do not routinely include homocysteine determinations as part of the physical examination."
High levels of homocysteine are related to risk of stroke, cardiovascular disease and must be controlled for when relating homocysteine to cognitive ability, the Boston University researcher explained.
For persons over age 60 in the Framingham Offspring Study, statistically significant inverse associations between plasma total homocysteine and multiple cognitive domains were evident, regardless of adjustment for risk for stroke, cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, vitamins B6, B12, and folate, he and colleagues report in the October 1st issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.... http://www.realage.com/news_features/articler.aspx?id=11169
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The following three articles are from : www.rnweb.com Vol. 70, No. 4 April 2007 RN p.55
What is JBI and What does it do? The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) established in 1996, is a growing, dynamic international collaboration of more than 200 researchers, clinicians, academicians, and quality managers who have set out to promote and support evidence-based practices (EBP) in healthcare. There are currently more than 2,000 JBI members from 34 countries.
Of the ten JBI Collaborating Centers dedcated exclusively to nursing, three are located in the United States: The New Jersey JBI center of Evidence Based Nursing Practice, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, School of Nursing, Newark, NJ; The Northwest Indiana JBI Center of Evidence-Based Nursing Practice, Purdue University Calumet, School of Nursing, Hammond, IN; and the JBI EBP Practice Center of Oklahoma, University of Oklahoma, School of Nursing, Oklahoma City, OK. For additional information and to download the JBI Best Practice Information Sheets... www.joannabriggs.edu.au D. Anthony (Tony) Forrester, RN, PhD Morristown, NJ
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Don't Come Back to Work Too Soon After The Flu Noroviruses, the culprits responsible for the stomach flu, cause muscle aches, vomiting, diarrhea, and low-grade fever and chills about 24-48 hours after exposure. They are highly contagious. For most the flu is self-limiting. children often have more vomiting than adults, but it is th elderly who are at risk for a severe case and possibly death. While handwashing is critical to prevention, sick employees should be told to stay home for 72 hours after diarrhea and vomiting stop. Hospitals should also limit visitors (for the same reasons). Rebecca Ruppert, RN, MS, Salem, OR
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Encourage Your Patients to Breastfeed The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is encouraging healthcare providers to support women who elect to breastfeed their infants. Breastfeeding offers a number of benefits for the mother and infant, and is the preferred method of feeding, according to ACOG. Moreover, the group emphasizes that nearly all women are capable of breastfeeding their children. There are only a few contraindications to breastfeeding: use of illegal drugs or high alcohol intake, HIV or certain other infections, and an infant with galactosemia. ACOG continues to recommend exclusive breastfeeding for at least the first six months of life. The group emphasized that education and support for breastfeeding can improve breastfeeding rates for all women and would be a positive economic investment for both health plans and employers because there are lower rates of illness among infants who are breastfed. (Home Health nurses are especially important in this situation...hospitals are "set up" to help new mothers. If any problem occurs, one can always find a Lactation Consultant to give advice if needed. Frankie)
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. "ACOG calls on ob-gyns, health care professionals, hospitals, and employers for increased support for breastfeeding." 2007. www.acog.org/from_home/publicatins/press_releases/nr02-01-07-1.cfm (1 Feb. 2007)
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Did you remember this fact?
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Cranberry juice may help women with recurrent urinary tract infections There is some evidence that cranberry juice may decrease the number of occasions when people notice they have a urinary tract infection (UTI), a Cochrane Systematic Review has found. This is particularly the case for those who have recurrent UTIs. UTIs are one of the most common reasons why people seek outpatient medical treatment, and lead to over one million hospital admissions a year in the USA alone. Cranberries, and particularly cranberry juice, have been used for decades as a means of preventing or treating UTIs. The mechanism of action is unsure. One theory is that molecules in the juice may make it harder for bacteria such as E. coli to stick to surfaces, and therefore make it difficult for an infection to build up. ...
Jepson RG, Craig JC. Cranberries for preventing urinary tract infections. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2008, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD001321. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001321.pub4.
********************
Got this from the list serve.....Check this out weekly, on the weekend, as they update the site daily. It is a sampling of abstracts from reputable journals from all over the world. If you enjoy getting news about science, health, medicine, nursing, education, astronomy, geriatrics,psychiatry, nutrition, etc. before your newspaper gets it, you'll love this web site. http://www.eurekalert.org/pubnews.php
*****************************
This was sent to me from another list. Health-evidence.ca (http://health-evidence.ca) is a free, searchable online registry that provides public health practitioners, program planners, and polciy makers with quality research evidence to inform public health decision making. Health-evidence.ca saves you time since the searching, screening, and appraising the systematic review evidence has been done for you. Health-evidence.ca houses over 1000 reviews - all related to public health, health promotion and/or population health. On this site, you can locate references to systematic reviews and meta-analyses, gathered through a comprehensive search of electronic databases, journal tables of contents, and reference lists. All reviews in this online registry have been screened for relevance to public health, and appraised for quality. You can see whether reviews are strong, moderate, or weak in terms of their methodological quality. This is important information that you need to determine whether and how to incorporate the evidence from the reviews in your practice, program, or policy decisions.Full reviews have been located and are linked wherever access is possible through the public domain. Direct links are also provided through IP authentication wherever a user may already have access through an existing subscription that is linked to the IP address of their workstation or home computer.We are also working to provide summary statements for each of the reviews in the registry. A summary statement is a short (2 page) synopsis of the review¢s content, highlighting key evidence points and corresponding implications for practice, programs, and policy. Not all reviews in the registry have summary statements at present, but we are working to find funding (and authors!) to fill in the gaps. Future plans for the website include development of a discussion group, offering the opportunity for users to ask questions and connect with other Canadian and internationally-based public health decision makers. We hope to provide education, information, and networking opportunities through this site and we look forward to receiving your feedback and suggestions.
*****************************
Homocysteine inversely tied to cognitive function after age 60 By Megan Rauscher NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Data from the Framingham Offspring Study provide more evidence that increasing levels of homocysteine are associated with lower cognitive functioning in adults older than 60, but not in younger and middle-aged adults. The finding suggests to researchers that folate and vitamin B6 and B12 supplements may help prevent homocysteine-related cognitive decline.
"My concern," Dr. Merrill F. Elias said, "is that many physicians still do not routinely include homocysteine determinations as part of the physical examination."
High levels of homocysteine are related to risk of stroke, cardiovascular disease and must be controlled for when relating homocysteine to cognitive ability, the Boston University researcher explained.
For persons over age 60 in the Framingham Offspring Study, statistically significant inverse associations between plasma total homocysteine and multiple cognitive domains were evident, regardless of adjustment for risk for stroke, cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, vitamins B6, B12, and folate, he and colleagues report in the October 1st issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.... http://www.realage.com/news_features/articler.aspx?id=11169
*****************************
The following three articles are from : www.rnweb.com Vol. 70, No. 4 April 2007 RN p.55
What is JBI and What does it do? The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) established in 1996, is a growing, dynamic international collaboration of more than 200 researchers, clinicians, academicians, and quality managers who have set out to promote and support evidence-based practices (EBP) in healthcare. There are currently more than 2,000 JBI members from 34 countries.
Of the ten JBI Collaborating Centers dedcated exclusively to nursing, three are located in the United States: The New Jersey JBI center of Evidence Based Nursing Practice, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, School of Nursing, Newark, NJ; The Northwest Indiana JBI Center of Evidence-Based Nursing Practice, Purdue University Calumet, School of Nursing, Hammond, IN; and the JBI EBP Practice Center of Oklahoma, University of Oklahoma, School of Nursing, Oklahoma City, OK. For additional information and to download the JBI Best Practice Information Sheets... www.joannabriggs.edu.au D. Anthony (Tony) Forrester, RN, PhD Morristown, NJ
******************
Don't Come Back to Work Too Soon After The Flu Noroviruses, the culprits responsible for the stomach flu, cause muscle aches, vomiting, diarrhea, and low-grade fever and chills about 24-48 hours after exposure. They are highly contagious. For most the flu is self-limiting. children often have more vomiting than adults, but it is th elderly who are at risk for a severe case and possibly death. While handwashing is critical to prevention, sick employees should be told to stay home for 72 hours after diarrhea and vomiting stop. Hospitals should also limit visitors (for the same reasons). Rebecca Ruppert, RN, MS, Salem, OR
*******************
Encourage Your Patients to Breastfeed The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is encouraging healthcare providers to support women who elect to breastfeed their infants. Breastfeeding offers a number of benefits for the mother and infant, and is the preferred method of feeding, according to ACOG. Moreover, the group emphasizes that nearly all women are capable of breastfeeding their children. There are only a few contraindications to breastfeeding: use of illegal drugs or high alcohol intake, HIV or certain other infections, and an infant with galactosemia. ACOG continues to recommend exclusive breastfeeding for at least the first six months of life. The group emphasized that education and support for breastfeeding can improve breastfeeding rates for all women and would be a positive economic investment for both health plans and employers because there are lower rates of illness among infants who are breastfed. (Home Health nurses are especially important in this situation...hospitals are "set up" to help new mothers. If any problem occurs, one can always find a Lactation Consultant to give advice if needed. Frankie)
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. "ACOG calls on ob-gyns, health care professionals, hospitals, and employers for increased support for breastfeeding." 2007. www.acog.org/from_home/publicatins/press_releases/nr02-01-07-1.cfm (1 Feb. 2007)
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Did you remember this fact?
Your stomach has to produce a new layer of mucus every two weeks otherwise it will digents itself.
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Nurses again perceived as having highest honesty and ethical standards December 10, 2007 by Jeffrey M. Jones PRINCETON, NJ -- Gallup's annual update on the honesty and ethical standards of people in various professions finds a new entry ranking at the bottom of the list. For the first time, Gallup asked the public to rate the honesty and ethical standards of lobbyists, and only 5% describe their ethics as "very high" or "high." Lobbyists, car salesmen (5%), and advertising practitioners (6%) are the lowest-rated professions. Nurses, typically the top-rated profession each year, again get the highest ratings. Ratings of congressmen are the worst Gallup has ever recorded.
The Nov. 30-Dec. 2 USA Today/Gallup poll asked Americans to rate the honesty and ethical standards of people in each of 22 different professions, using a five-point scale ranging from "very high" to "very low."
Eighty-three percent of Americans rate nurses' honesty and ethical standards as very high or high, easily the most positively rated profession. Nurses were first included in 1999 and have averaged an 81% very high/high rating since then. That has been good for first place each year except 2001, when firefighters were included after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and received a 90% rating.
After nurses, grade-school teachers (74%) and pharmacists (71%) are rated next most highly this year. Just under two-thirds of Americans give high ratings to military officers and medical doctors. Clergy and policemen are the only other two professions that receive positive ratings above 50%.... http://www.gallup.com/poll/103123/LobbyistsDebut-Bottom-Honesty-Ethics-List.aspx
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Glucosamine no better than placebo for hip arthritis NEW YORK (Reuters 2/18) - Many people take glucosamine for arthritis-like symptoms but results of a new study suggest that glucosamine has no clinically meaningful effect on pain, function, or disease progression in patients with arthritis of the hip.
In a study lasting 2 years, Dr. Rianne M. Rozendaal and colleagues at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands randomly assigned 222 patients to glucosamine (1500 milligrams daily) or to placebo. The patients had relatively early stages of the hip arthritis; about half of them had mild arthritis for a period of 3 years or less.
The research team took care to ensure the integrity of their results. The supplier of the glucosamine was required to double-check that the tablets were the correct dose, and all physicians, patients, and researchers were blinded to group assignment. The rate of completion was high (93 percent), and the study was conducted without drug company funding.... http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2008/02/18/eline/links/20080218elin028.html
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WASHINGTON (Reuters 2/20) - The U.S. death rate from cancer has continued a steady decline that began in the early 1990s but it will still kill a projected 565,650 Americans this year, the American Cancer Society said on Wednesday.
The death rate from lung, colorectal, prostate, breast and other cancer types fell in 2005, the most recent year for which figures were available, but not as much as in 2003 and 2004, the group said. The actual number of cancer deaths rose.
The cancer death rate for men has fallen by 18.4 percent since peaking in 1990 and for women has fallen by 10.5 percent since peaking in 1991. Cancer is the No. 2 cause of death in the United States, behind heart disease. http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN1926392720080220?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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CHICAGO (Reuters) - People who have a cardiac arrest in the hospital at night or on the weekend are far less likely to survive than those who suffer one during the day, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.
Studies suggest this may be at least partly because of inadequate staffing at off-peak hours. (DUH my comment to the above statement)
The researchers found only 14.7 percent of people whose hearts stop pumping during the night survive, compared with nearly 20 percent of people during the day.
Those who had a cardiac arrest at around 3 p.m. had the survival rate, Dr. Mary Ann Peberdy of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and colleagues reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association. http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN1929246120080220?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Single pill helps control Bp, cholesterol NEW YORK (Reuters 2/19) - In African-Americans with poorly controlled high blood pressure (hypertension) and high cholesterol, treatment with a single pill containing a blood pressure-lowering drug and a cholesterol-lowering drug may prove particularly useful, researchers say.
Getting blood pressure and "bad" LDL-cholesterol under control has been harder to do in African Americans than in the overall U.S. population, note the researchers in a report in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, a medical journal. The current study, they say, suggests that the single-pill option may help more of them reach their goals.
The single pill combo is marketed as Caduet by Pfizer, the company that supported the study. Caduet contains the drug amlodipine, used to treat high blood pressure and atorvastatin, used to lower cholesterol.
In the study, 499 African Americans with uncontrolled hypertension and "dyslipidemia" (elevations in cholesterol or triglycerides) received Caduet in eight different dosage strengths, which were flexibly increased as needed.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSKIM95148120080219?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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More E. Coli Conservation Than Ever Sam Boyd 2/19/08 The USDA issued a recall over the weekend for 143 million pounds of beef produced over the last two years by a California company which, the USDA has recently learned had not been properly reporting "downer" cows--those too sick to stand. These cows have entered the food supply (links to a summary, see the USDA's recall notice here) and may carry E. Coli or mad-cow disease (BSE)
The USDA’s largest-ever recall is now under way — "approximately 143,383,823 pounds" (give or take a few ounces?) of raw and frozen beef products from the disgraced Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co. in Chino, California. That’s almost half the amount of beef and poultry recalled since 1994 in the United States
What's more, the use of downer cows (see more on the topic from Rick) by the company was reported three weeks ago by the Washington Post after the Humane Society provided video evidence of downer cows being lifted with forklifts and sprayed with water in the nose for the same reason.
This is just the latest in a series of steadily increasing E. Coli recalls that have reached record levels in recent years. What's more, just because meat is recalled by the USDA does not mean it actually comes off store shelves... http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/more-e-coli-conservatism-ever
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This editorial is from the New York Times....2/18/08 Have health insurers been systematically cheating patients and doctors of fair reimbursement for medical services? That is the disturbing possibility raised by an investigation of the industry’s arcane procedures for calculating “reasonable and customary” rates
The investigation, by the New York State attorney general, Andrew Cuomo, and his staff, suggests that these procedures — used by major insurance companies to determine what they will pay when patients visit a doctor who is not in the company’s network — may be rigged to shortchange the beneficiaries..... http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/18/opinion/18mon1.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
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Top Internet Threats Right Now While it may not feel quite like the Wild West anymore, the Internet is still full of people looking to rip you off -- the anonymity and secretive nature of online dealings makes them much more prone to fraud than in the real world. We've compiled a list of the top threats to your security lurking around the Internet -- and what you can do to avoid them. While it may not feel quite like the Wild West anymore, the Internet is still full of people looking to rip you off -- the anonymity and secretive nature of online dealings makes them much more prone to fraud than in the real world. We've compiled a list of the top threats to your security lurking around the Internet -- and what you can do to avoid them. ...
http://www.switched.com/2008/02/14/top-internet-threats- **********************
Daytime dozing may be warning sign of stroke CHICAGO (Reuters 2/21) - Older people who have significant trouble staying awake during the day have more than four times the normal risk of having a stroke, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.
They also found a higher risk of heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems in seniors who regularly nod off during the day without planning to.
"Even when we controlled for things like hypertension, diabetes, physical activity, obesity and socioeconomic status, we found that people who had significant daytime dozing were much more likely to end up with stroke," said Bernadette Boden-Albala of Columbia University in New York.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2148427820080221?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Swimming eases pain of "mystery ailment": study LONDON (Reuters 2/21) - Swimming can significantly ease the debilitating pain of fibromyalgia, an ailment with no known cure, European researchers said on Friday.
The condition mainly strikes women and can cause severe pain and tenderness in muscles, ligaments and tendons. Shoulder and neck pain is common but some people with the condition also have problems sleeping, and suffer anxiety and depression.
In their study of 33 women, the researchers had one group exercise in warm water for more than an hour three times a week for eight months while the others did no aquatic training.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL2182563120080222?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Besides boosting your bone health, taking vitamin D with your calcium could give you another big benefit: protection from cancer. It's true. This powerful pair may help reduce the risk of five different kinds of cancer, according to a recent study.
Cancer D-fense Healthy postmenopausal women taking vitamin D daily with their calcium over 4 years had fewer breast, colon, lung, lymph/leukemia, and uterine cancers than women taking calcium alone.When calcium and vitamin D get together, their powers multiply. Not only do they help build your bones and boost your immune system function, but, according to new research, they also help ward off type 2 diabetes. Research shows you'll be a whopping 33 percent less likely to develop the condition if you get at least 1,200 milligrams (mg) of calcium and 800 international units (IU) of vitamin D per day compared to an intake of only 600 mg of calcium and less than 400 IU of vitamin D daily. How the vitamin might defend against cancer still needs to be determined, but researchers know that certain genes and cells need adequate D to do their jobs flawlessly. A dose of vitamin D is 400 IU per day for people under age 70 and 600 IU per day for people over age 70. But the upper intake level is 2,000 IU -- meaning anything up to that level is generally considered safe. Reference: Vitamin D and calcium intake in relation to type 2 diabetes in women. Pittas, A. G., Dawson-Hughes, B., Li, T., Van Dam, R. M., Willett, W. C., Manson, J. E., Hu, F. B., Diabetes Care 2006 Mar;29(3):650-656.
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Nurses again perceived as having highest honesty and ethical standards December 10, 2007 by Jeffrey M. Jones PRINCETON, NJ -- Gallup's annual update on the honesty and ethical standards of people in various professions finds a new entry ranking at the bottom of the list. For the first time, Gallup asked the public to rate the honesty and ethical standards of lobbyists, and only 5% describe their ethics as "very high" or "high." Lobbyists, car salesmen (5%), and advertising practitioners (6%) are the lowest-rated professions. Nurses, typically the top-rated profession each year, again get the highest ratings. Ratings of congressmen are the worst Gallup has ever recorded.
The Nov. 30-Dec. 2 USA Today/Gallup poll asked Americans to rate the honesty and ethical standards of people in each of 22 different professions, using a five-point scale ranging from "very high" to "very low."
Eighty-three percent of Americans rate nurses' honesty and ethical standards as very high or high, easily the most positively rated profession. Nurses were first included in 1999 and have averaged an 81% very high/high rating since then. That has been good for first place each year except 2001, when firefighters were included after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and received a 90% rating.
After nurses, grade-school teachers (74%) and pharmacists (71%) are rated next most highly this year. Just under two-thirds of Americans give high ratings to military officers and medical doctors. Clergy and policemen are the only other two professions that receive positive ratings above 50%.... http://www.gallup.com/poll/103123/LobbyistsDebut-Bottom-Honesty-Ethics-List.aspx
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Glucosamine no better than placebo for hip arthritis NEW YORK (Reuters 2/18) - Many people take glucosamine for arthritis-like symptoms but results of a new study suggest that glucosamine has no clinically meaningful effect on pain, function, or disease progression in patients with arthritis of the hip.
In a study lasting 2 years, Dr. Rianne M. Rozendaal and colleagues at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands randomly assigned 222 patients to glucosamine (1500 milligrams daily) or to placebo. The patients had relatively early stages of the hip arthritis; about half of them had mild arthritis for a period of 3 years or less.
The research team took care to ensure the integrity of their results. The supplier of the glucosamine was required to double-check that the tablets were the correct dose, and all physicians, patients, and researchers were blinded to group assignment. The rate of completion was high (93 percent), and the study was conducted without drug company funding.... http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2008/02/18/eline/links/20080218elin028.html
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WASHINGTON (Reuters 2/20) - The U.S. death rate from cancer has continued a steady decline that began in the early 1990s but it will still kill a projected 565,650 Americans this year, the American Cancer Society said on Wednesday.
The death rate from lung, colorectal, prostate, breast and other cancer types fell in 2005, the most recent year for which figures were available, but not as much as in 2003 and 2004, the group said. The actual number of cancer deaths rose.
The cancer death rate for men has fallen by 18.4 percent since peaking in 1990 and for women has fallen by 10.5 percent since peaking in 1991. Cancer is the No. 2 cause of death in the United States, behind heart disease. http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN1926392720080220?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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CHICAGO (Reuters) - People who have a cardiac arrest in the hospital at night or on the weekend are far less likely to survive than those who suffer one during the day, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.
Studies suggest this may be at least partly because of inadequate staffing at off-peak hours. (DUH my comment to the above statement)
The researchers found only 14.7 percent of people whose hearts stop pumping during the night survive, compared with nearly 20 percent of people during the day.
Those who had a cardiac arrest at around 3 p.m. had the survival rate, Dr. Mary Ann Peberdy of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and colleagues reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association. http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN1929246120080220?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Single pill helps control Bp, cholesterol NEW YORK (Reuters 2/19) - In African-Americans with poorly controlled high blood pressure (hypertension) and high cholesterol, treatment with a single pill containing a blood pressure-lowering drug and a cholesterol-lowering drug may prove particularly useful, researchers say.
Getting blood pressure and "bad" LDL-cholesterol under control has been harder to do in African Americans than in the overall U.S. population, note the researchers in a report in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, a medical journal. The current study, they say, suggests that the single-pill option may help more of them reach their goals.
The single pill combo is marketed as Caduet by Pfizer, the company that supported the study. Caduet contains the drug amlodipine, used to treat high blood pressure and atorvastatin, used to lower cholesterol.
In the study, 499 African Americans with uncontrolled hypertension and "dyslipidemia" (elevations in cholesterol or triglycerides) received Caduet in eight different dosage strengths, which were flexibly increased as needed.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSKIM95148120080219?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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More E. Coli Conservation Than Ever Sam Boyd 2/19/08 The USDA issued a recall over the weekend for 143 million pounds of beef produced over the last two years by a California company which, the USDA has recently learned had not been properly reporting "downer" cows--those too sick to stand. These cows have entered the food supply (links to a summary, see the USDA's recall notice here) and may carry E. Coli or mad-cow disease (BSE)
The USDA’s largest-ever recall is now under way — "approximately 143,383,823 pounds" (give or take a few ounces?) of raw and frozen beef products from the disgraced Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co. in Chino, California. That’s almost half the amount of beef and poultry recalled since 1994 in the United States
What's more, the use of downer cows (see more on the topic from Rick) by the company was reported three weeks ago by the Washington Post after the Humane Society provided video evidence of downer cows being lifted with forklifts and sprayed with water in the nose for the same reason.
This is just the latest in a series of steadily increasing E. Coli recalls that have reached record levels in recent years. What's more, just because meat is recalled by the USDA does not mean it actually comes off store shelves... http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/more-e-coli-conservatism-ever
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This editorial is from the New York Times....2/18/08 Have health insurers been systematically cheating patients and doctors of fair reimbursement for medical services? That is the disturbing possibility raised by an investigation of the industry’s arcane procedures for calculating “reasonable and customary” rates
The investigation, by the New York State attorney general, Andrew Cuomo, and his staff, suggests that these procedures — used by major insurance companies to determine what they will pay when patients visit a doctor who is not in the company’s network — may be rigged to shortchange the beneficiaries..... http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/18/opinion/18mon1.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
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Top Internet Threats Right Now While it may not feel quite like the Wild West anymore, the Internet is still full of people looking to rip you off -- the anonymity and secretive nature of online dealings makes them much more prone to fraud than in the real world. We've compiled a list of the top threats to your security lurking around the Internet -- and what you can do to avoid them. While it may not feel quite like the Wild West anymore, the Internet is still full of people looking to rip you off -- the anonymity and secretive nature of online dealings makes them much more prone to fraud than in the real world. We've compiled a list of the top threats to your security lurking around the Internet -- and what you can do to avoid them. ...
http://www.switched.com/2008/02/14/top-internet-threats- **********************
Daytime dozing may be warning sign of stroke CHICAGO (Reuters 2/21) - Older people who have significant trouble staying awake during the day have more than four times the normal risk of having a stroke, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.
They also found a higher risk of heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems in seniors who regularly nod off during the day without planning to.
"Even when we controlled for things like hypertension, diabetes, physical activity, obesity and socioeconomic status, we found that people who had significant daytime dozing were much more likely to end up with stroke," said Bernadette Boden-Albala of Columbia University in New York.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2148427820080221?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Swimming eases pain of "mystery ailment": study LONDON (Reuters 2/21) - Swimming can significantly ease the debilitating pain of fibromyalgia, an ailment with no known cure, European researchers said on Friday.
The condition mainly strikes women and can cause severe pain and tenderness in muscles, ligaments and tendons. Shoulder and neck pain is common but some people with the condition also have problems sleeping, and suffer anxiety and depression.
In their study of 33 women, the researchers had one group exercise in warm water for more than an hour three times a week for eight months while the others did no aquatic training.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL2182563120080222?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Besides boosting your bone health, taking vitamin D with your calcium could give you another big benefit: protection from cancer. It's true. This powerful pair may help reduce the risk of five different kinds of cancer, according to a recent study.
Cancer D-fense Healthy postmenopausal women taking vitamin D daily with their calcium over 4 years had fewer breast, colon, lung, lymph/leukemia, and uterine cancers than women taking calcium alone.When calcium and vitamin D get together, their powers multiply. Not only do they help build your bones and boost your immune system function, but, according to new research, they also help ward off type 2 diabetes. Research shows you'll be a whopping 33 percent less likely to develop the condition if you get at least 1,200 milligrams (mg) of calcium and 800 international units (IU) of vitamin D per day compared to an intake of only 600 mg of calcium and less than 400 IU of vitamin D daily. How the vitamin might defend against cancer still needs to be determined, but researchers know that certain genes and cells need adequate D to do their jobs flawlessly. A dose of vitamin D is 400 IU per day for people under age 70 and 600 IU per day for people over age 70. But the upper intake level is 2,000 IU -- meaning anything up to that level is generally considered safe. Reference: Vitamin D and calcium intake in relation to type 2 diabetes in women. Pittas, A. G., Dawson-Hughes, B., Li, T., Van Dam, R. M., Willett, W. C., Manson, J. E., Hu, F. B., Diabetes Care 2006 Mar;29(3):650-656.
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Pedometers help people lose weight: U. S. study WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/17) - Walking can help people lose weight, especially if they use a pedometer to make sure they are going far enough, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.
People who added 20 to 40 minutes of walking a day lost a small but steady amount of weight, the team at the University of Michigan found.
"The increase in physical activity can be expected to result in health benefits that are independent of weight loss," said Dr. Caroline Richardson, who led the study.
"Increasing physical activity reduces the risk of cardiovascular problems, lowers blood pressure and helps dieters maintain lean muscle tissue when they are dieting."
Writing in the Annals of Family Medicine, Richardson and colleagues said they reviewed nine studies involving 307 men and women. They took part in studies of pedometer use that ranged from four weeks to a year.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN165157820080117?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Undernutrition behind third of child deaths: studies LONDON (Reuters 1/17) - Undernutrition causes more than a third of child deaths worldwide, but simple programs like promoting breastfeeding and providing supplements could keep some of those children alive, experts said on Thursday.
The new figures, which were taken from surveys of some 139 countries and a re-analysis of existing data, are lower than previous estimates attributing 50 percent of childhood deaths to undernutrition -- a severe form of malnutrition, the international team of researchers said.
The researchers estimated that problems relating to a severe lack of food resulted in 2.2 million deaths of children under the age of five in 2005.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL1652413820080117?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Half of all hospital patients at clot risk: study LONDON (Reuters 1/31) - More than half of all hospital patients are at risk of blood clots but many do not receive simple treatment that could prevent them, British researchers said on Thursday.
The study published in the journal Lancet looked at more than 68,000 patients at 358 hospitals in 32 countries and found that people who had undergone surgery were most likely to develop venous thromboembolism, or blood clots.
"The data show that, worldwide, more than half of all hospitalized patients are at risk for venous thromboembolism and that surgical patients seem to be at higher risk than medical patients," Ander Cohen of King's College London and Ajay Kakkar at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry wrote.
The condition includes deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, which most commonly occurs when the blood clot dislodges to the lungs. Such clots account for an estimated 10 percent of all in-hospital patient deaths.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL3192716220080131?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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An Oldie Vies for Nutrient of the Decade By Jane E. Brody, the New York times (Feb. 19) - The so-called sunshine vitamin is poised to become the nutrient of the decade, if a host of recent findings are to be believed. Vitamin D, an essential nutrient found in a limited number of foods, has long been renowned for its role in creating strong bones, which is why it is added to milk.Now a growing legion of medical researchers have raised strong doubts about the adequacy of currently recommended levels of intake, from birth through the sunset years. The researchers maintain, based on a plethora of studies, that vitamin D levels considered adequate to prevent bone malformations like rickets in children are not optimal to counter a host of serious ailments that are now linked to low vitamin D levels....
http://body.aol.com/news/health/article/_a/an-oldie-vies-for-nutrient-of-the-decade/20080221113709990001
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This article will make you sit up and take notice.......for sure !
Reduced exercise capacity an ominous sign NEW YORK (Reuters 2/7) - People who have trouble exercising on a treadmill are at increased risk of suffering a heart attack or other heart-related event and of dying, according to results of a study.
"Exercise capacity" is one of many important prognostic factors measured during an exercise treadmill test, a simple procedure often performed in doctors' offices. But "little is known about the association between exercise capacity among patients referred for exercise treadmill testing and nonfatal cardiac events," Dr. Pamela N. Peterson, of the University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center, and colleagues note in a report.
Among 9191 adults who had a treadmill test and who were followed for a median of 2.7 years, 119 were hospitalized for heart attack and 259 for chest pain. Moreover, 749 required revascularization procedures to restore blood flow to the heart, and 132 patients died.
According to Peterson's team, people with low exercise capacity, relative to those with normal exercise capacity, on the treadmill test, had more than a twofold increased risk of having a heart attack, experiencing chest pain, or needing a revascularization procedure.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSCOL77254720080207?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
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Adults Understand Factors of High Blood Pressure, Not Risks Most Americans say they are knowledgeable about high blood pressure, but less than 50 percent know that it's associated with heart attack and stroke, a survey by the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) has found.
The survey found that 72 percent of Americans are aware of the multiple factors contributing to high blood pressure, including obesity, lack of exercise, salt intake and alcohol consumption. Yet, only 42 percent associate high blood pressure with stroke and heart attack. High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease, but it can be controlled through medication, diet and exercise... http://nursing.advanceweb.com/editorial/content/editorial.aspx?cc=107133
Pedometers help people lose weight: U. S. study WASHINGTON (Reuters 1/17) - Walking can help people lose weight, especially if they use a pedometer to make sure they are going far enough, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.
People who added 20 to 40 minutes of walking a day lost a small but steady amount of weight, the team at the University of Michigan found.
"The increase in physical activity can be expected to result in health benefits that are independent of weight loss," said Dr. Caroline Richardson, who led the study.
"Increasing physical activity reduces the risk of cardiovascular problems, lowers blood pressure and helps dieters maintain lean muscle tissue when they are dieting."
Writing in the Annals of Family Medicine, Richardson and colleagues said they reviewed nine studies involving 307 men and women. They took part in studies of pedometer use that ranged from four weeks to a year.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN165157820080117?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
***************
Undernutrition behind third of child deaths: studies LONDON (Reuters 1/17) - Undernutrition causes more than a third of child deaths worldwide, but simple programs like promoting breastfeeding and providing supplements could keep some of those children alive, experts said on Thursday.
The new figures, which were taken from surveys of some 139 countries and a re-analysis of existing data, are lower than previous estimates attributing 50 percent of childhood deaths to undernutrition -- a severe form of malnutrition, the international team of researchers said.
The researchers estimated that problems relating to a severe lack of food resulted in 2.2 million deaths of children under the age of five in 2005.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL1652413820080117?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
*********************
Half of all hospital patients at clot risk: study LONDON (Reuters 1/31) - More than half of all hospital patients are at risk of blood clots but many do not receive simple treatment that could prevent them, British researchers said on Thursday.
The study published in the journal Lancet looked at more than 68,000 patients at 358 hospitals in 32 countries and found that people who had undergone surgery were most likely to develop venous thromboembolism, or blood clots.
"The data show that, worldwide, more than half of all hospitalized patients are at risk for venous thromboembolism and that surgical patients seem to be at higher risk than medical patients," Ander Cohen of King's College London and Ajay Kakkar at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry wrote.
The condition includes deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, which most commonly occurs when the blood clot dislodges to the lungs. Such clots account for an estimated 10 percent of all in-hospital patient deaths.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSL3192716220080131?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
*********************
An Oldie Vies for Nutrient of the Decade By Jane E. Brody, the New York times (Feb. 19) - The so-called sunshine vitamin is poised to become the nutrient of the decade, if a host of recent findings are to be believed. Vitamin D, an essential nutrient found in a limited number of foods, has long been renowned for its role in creating strong bones, which is why it is added to milk.Now a growing legion of medical researchers have raised strong doubts about the adequacy of currently recommended levels of intake, from birth through the sunset years. The researchers maintain, based on a plethora of studies, that vitamin D levels considered adequate to prevent bone malformations like rickets in children are not optimal to counter a host of serious ailments that are now linked to low vitamin D levels....
http://body.aol.com/news/health/article/_a/an-oldie-vies-for-nutrient-of-the-decade/20080221113709990001
**********************
This article will make you sit up and take notice.......for sure !
Reduced exercise capacity an ominous sign NEW YORK (Reuters 2/7) - People who have trouble exercising on a treadmill are at increased risk of suffering a heart attack or other heart-related event and of dying, according to results of a study.
"Exercise capacity" is one of many important prognostic factors measured during an exercise treadmill test, a simple procedure often performed in doctors' offices. But "little is known about the association between exercise capacity among patients referred for exercise treadmill testing and nonfatal cardiac events," Dr. Pamela N. Peterson, of the University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center, and colleagues note in a report.
Among 9191 adults who had a treadmill test and who were followed for a median of 2.7 years, 119 were hospitalized for heart attack and 259 for chest pain. Moreover, 749 required revascularization procedures to restore blood flow to the heart, and 132 patients died.
According to Peterson's team, people with low exercise capacity, relative to those with normal exercise capacity, on the treadmill test, had more than a twofold increased risk of having a heart attack, experiencing chest pain, or needing a revascularization procedure.... http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSCOL77254720080207?feedType=nl&feedName=ushealth1100
****************
Adults Understand Factors of High Blood Pressure, Not Risks Most Americans say they are knowledgeable about high blood pressure, but less than 50 percent know that it's associated with heart attack and stroke, a survey by the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) has found.
The survey found that 72 percent of Americans are aware of the multiple factors contributing to high blood pressure, including obesity, lack of exercise, salt intake and alcohol consumption. Yet, only 42 percent associate high blood pressure with stroke and heart attack. High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease, but it can be controlled through medication, diet and exercise... http://nursing.advanceweb.com/editorial/content/editorial.aspx?cc=107133
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HUMOR SECTION
HUMOR SECTION
Thanks to Rozalfaro (Roz) here is the humor for March.
These are actual comments made on students' report cards teachers in the New York City public school system. All teachers were reprimanded.
These are actual comments made on students' report cards teachers in the New York City public school system. All teachers were reprimanded.
1. Since my last report, your child has reached rock bottom and has started to dig.
2. I would not allow this student to breed.
3. Your child has delusions of adequacy.
4. Your son is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot.
5. Your son sets low personal standards and then consistently fails to achieve them. 6. The student has a "full six-pack" but lacks the plastic thing to hold it all together. 7. This child has been working with glue too much.
8. When your daughter's IQ reaches 50, she should sell.
9. The gates are down, the lights are flashing, but the train isn't coming.
10. If this student were any more stupid, he'd have to be watered twice a week.
11. It's impossible to believe the sperm that created this child beat out 1,000,000 others.
12. The wheel is turning but the hamster is definitely dead.
These 16 Police comments were taken off actual police car videos around the country:
16 "You know, stop lights don't come any redder than the one you just went through."
15 "Relax, the handcuffs are tight because they're new. They'll stretch after
you wear them a while."
15 "Relax, the handcuffs are tight because they're new. They'll stretch after
you wear them a while."
14 "If you take your hands off the car,
I'll make your birth certificate a worthless document."
13 "If you run, you'll only go to jail tired."
I'll make your birth certificate a worthless document."
13 "If you run, you'll only go to jail tired."
12 "Can you run faster than 1200 feet per second? Because that's the speed
of the bullet that'll be chasing you."
of the bullet that'll be chasing you."
11 "You don't know how fast you were going? I guess that means I can
write anything I want to on the ticket, huh?"
write anything I want to on the ticket, huh?"
10 "Yes, sir, you can talk to the shift supervisor, but I don't think it will help.
Oh, did I mention that I'm the shift supervisor?"
Oh, did I mention that I'm the shift supervisor?"
9 "Warning! You want a warning? O.K, I'm warning you not to do that again or
I'll give you another ticket."
I'll give you another ticket."
8 "The answer to this last question will determine whether you are drunk or
not. Was Mickey Mouse a cat or a dog?"
7 "Fair? You want me to be fair? Listen, fair is a place where you go to ride
on rides, eat cotton candy and corn dogs and step in monkey poop."
6 "Yeah, we have a quota. Two more tickets and my wife gets a toater oven.
not. Was Mickey Mouse a cat or a dog?"
7 "Fair? You want me to be fair? Listen, fair is a place where you go to ride
on rides, eat cotton candy and corn dogs and step in monkey poop."
6 "Yeah, we have a quota. Two more tickets and my wife gets a toater oven.
5 "In God we trust, all others we run through NCIC."
4 "How big were those 'two beers' you say you had?"
3 "No sir, we don't have quotas anymore. We used to, but now we're allowed
to write as many tickets as we can."
2. "I'm glad to hear that the Chief (of Police) is a personal friend of yous. So you know someone who can post your bail ."
to write as many tickets as we can."
2. "I'm glad to hear that the Chief (of Police) is a personal friend of yous. So you know someone who can post your bail ."
AND THE WINNER IS....
1 "You didn't think we give pretty women tickets? You're right, we don't. Sign here."
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CEU SITES---(CME and CE)
Those that are-----Free and Otherwise..........
A CME/CE/CPE online slide presentation recorded in Chicago IL on October 4, 2007. The effectiveness of opioids for chronic pain is unchallenged, but issues of potential dependence and abuse, as well as social legal concerns, have rendered their use in chronic non-malignant pain controversial. Under treatment of chronic pain persists despite the availability of pharmaceuticals and other therapies that are effective for the management of pain. Physicians and other healthcare providers are sometimes reluctant to prescribe appropriate pain medications because of the perceived danger of misuse, abuse and diversion of these drugs.http://www.pain.com/sections/professional/cme_slide_presentations/Alpharma/aafp/
This site contains a huge number of CME/CE offerings....check it out. http://www.medscape.com/nurses/ce
Chronic Pain, Addiction and the Law A CME/CE/CPE online monograph discussing the controversy of the appropriate role of prescription medications for moderate to severe pain-specifically, the role of opioid analgesics. As with any medication, selecting a prescription pain medication involves assessing benefits and risks. Unlike the risks of most other classes of medications, the risks of opioid pain medications also include the potential for abuse and diversion to illicit channels of distribution for illegal use.
http://www.pain.com/sections/professional/cme_article/Chronic_Pain_Addiction_and_The_Law.pdf
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C-Reactive Protein (270) CEU.....RN/LPN $8.00 *(couldn't find the # of hrs)
C-reactive protein is a plasma protein produced by the liver in response to acute infection or inflammation. When the body's immune system is activated, C-reactive protein is one of the first substances to be released by the liver.It is released in conjunction with interleukin-6, which is produced from macrophages, endothelial cells and T-cells. Once released, C-reactive protein binds to a chemical on the surface of microbes or damaged tissues, helping the body recognize the foreign invader or injured cells. Once this recognition occurs, the process of phagocytosis from macrophages can begin, eliminating or reducing the infectious agent or diseased or damaged tissues.The goal of this continuing education offering is to acquaint nurses with the role of C-reactive protein in the body and increase awareness of how this protein is viewed diagnostically. After reading this article, you will be able to:...
https://nursing.advanceweb.com/CE/TestCenter/Course.aspx?CourseID=649&CreditID=1
CEU SITES---(CME and CE)
Those that are-----Free and Otherwise..........
A CME/CE/CPE online slide presentation recorded in Chicago IL on October 4, 2007. The effectiveness of opioids for chronic pain is unchallenged, but issues of potential dependence and abuse, as well as social legal concerns, have rendered their use in chronic non-malignant pain controversial. Under treatment of chronic pain persists despite the availability of pharmaceuticals and other therapies that are effective for the management of pain. Physicians and other healthcare providers are sometimes reluctant to prescribe appropriate pain medications because of the perceived danger of misuse, abuse and diversion of these drugs.http://www.pain.com/sections/professional/cme_slide_presentations/Alpharma/aafp/
This site contains a huge number of CME/CE offerings....check it out. http://www.medscape.com/nurses/ce
Chronic Pain, Addiction and the Law A CME/CE/CPE online monograph discussing the controversy of the appropriate role of prescription medications for moderate to severe pain-specifically, the role of opioid analgesics. As with any medication, selecting a prescription pain medication involves assessing benefits and risks. Unlike the risks of most other classes of medications, the risks of opioid pain medications also include the potential for abuse and diversion to illicit channels of distribution for illegal use.
http://www.pain.com/sections/professional/cme_article/Chronic_Pain_Addiction_and_The_Law.pdf
***********************
C-Reactive Protein (270) CEU.....RN/LPN $8.00 *(couldn't find the # of hrs)
C-reactive protein is a plasma protein produced by the liver in response to acute infection or inflammation. When the body's immune system is activated, C-reactive protein is one of the first substances to be released by the liver.It is released in conjunction with interleukin-6, which is produced from macrophages, endothelial cells and T-cells. Once released, C-reactive protein binds to a chemical on the surface of microbes or damaged tissues, helping the body recognize the foreign invader or injured cells. Once this recognition occurs, the process of phagocytosis from macrophages can begin, eliminating or reducing the infectious agent or diseased or damaged tissues.The goal of this continuing education offering is to acquaint nurses with the role of C-reactive protein in the body and increase awareness of how this protein is viewed diagnostically. After reading this article, you will be able to:...
https://nursing.advanceweb.com/CE/TestCenter/Course.aspx?CourseID=649&CreditID=1
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Pay Only $34.99 for a full year of CONTACT HOURS http://www.nursingspectrum.com /
Pay Only $34.99 for a full year of CONTACT HOURS http://www.nursingspectrum.com /
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WEBSITES/ LINKS
Always on the lookout for interesting websites / links. Please send them to:RNFrankie@AOL.com.
WEBSITES/ LINKS
Always on the lookout for interesting websites / links. Please send them to:RNFrankie@AOL.com.
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2
http://www.snopes.com/
Criminal Mapping in your neighborhood: http://www.felonspy.com/
Leaky gut is increased intestinal permeability. Here are a couple sites withcomplete explanations. http://www.mdheal.org/leakygut.htm http://altmedicine.about.com/od/healthconditionsdisease/a/TestLeakyGut.htm
http://www.healthaffairs.org/Most_Read.php for the most read articles. Individual subscriptions for full text
Reuters News
Growth potential seen in heart structures after treatment of aortic valve stenosis
Nephron-sparing surgery feasible in renal cancer
Male osteoporosis not always correlated with severity of ankylosing spondylitis
Vildagliptin effective monotherapy for treatment-naive elderly type 2 diabetics
Vacuum assisted closure dressing improves skin graft healing
The research articles in all journals published by BioMed Central are 'Open Access'. They are immediately and permanently available online without charge. A number of journals require an institutional or a personal subscription to view other content, such as reviews or paper reports. Free trial subscriptions to these journals are available. http://www.biomedcentral.com/browse/journals/
If the following aren't enough.......go to http://www.eurekalert.org/nih/ for all the rest !
4-Mar-2008 - Genome-wide association study on Parkinson's disease finds public home at NIH
NIH/National Human Genome Research Institute
4-Mar-2008 - Irritating smells alert special cells, NIH-funded study finds
NIH/National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
3-Mar-2008 - NIDDK releases new awareness and prevention series for community health events
NIH/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
3-Mar-2008 - New test for joint infection could spare some patients an unnecessary procedure
NIH/National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
3-Mar-2008 - Clinical depression raises risk of death for heart attack patients years after attack
Washington University School of Medicine
3-Mar-2008 - Restricting kids' video time reduces obesity, randomized trial shows
University at Buffalo
3-Mar-2008 - Researchers develop new tool to predict who will use microbicides
Lifespan
3-Mar-2008 - Gender differences in language appear biological
Northwestern University
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MEDICAL RECALLS
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http://www.snopes.com/
Criminal Mapping in your neighborhood: http://www.felonspy.com/
Leaky gut is increased intestinal permeability. Here are a couple sites withcomplete explanations. http://www.mdheal.org/leakygut.htm http://altmedicine.about.com/od/healthconditionsdisease/a/TestLeakyGut.htm
http://www.healthaffairs.org/Most_Read.php for the most read articles. Individual subscriptions for full text
Reuters News
Growth potential seen in heart structures after treatment of aortic valve stenosis
Nephron-sparing surgery feasible in renal cancer
Male osteoporosis not always correlated with severity of ankylosing spondylitis
Vildagliptin effective monotherapy for treatment-naive elderly type 2 diabetics
Vacuum assisted closure dressing improves skin graft healing
The research articles in all journals published by BioMed Central are 'Open Access'. They are immediately and permanently available online without charge. A number of journals require an institutional or a personal subscription to view other content, such as reviews or paper reports. Free trial subscriptions to these journals are available. http://www.biomedcentral.com/browse/journals/
If the following aren't enough.......go to http://www.eurekalert.org/nih/ for all the rest !
4-Mar-2008 - Genome-wide association study on Parkinson's disease finds public home at NIH
NIH/National Human Genome Research Institute
4-Mar-2008 - Irritating smells alert special cells, NIH-funded study finds
NIH/National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
3-Mar-2008 - NIDDK releases new awareness and prevention series for community health events
NIH/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
3-Mar-2008 - New test for joint infection could spare some patients an unnecessary procedure
NIH/National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
3-Mar-2008 - Clinical depression raises risk of death for heart attack patients years after attack
Washington University School of Medicine
3-Mar-2008 - Restricting kids' video time reduces obesity, randomized trial shows
University at Buffalo
3-Mar-2008 - Researchers develop new tool to predict who will use microbicides
Lifespan
3-Mar-2008 - Gender differences in language appear biological
Northwestern University
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*
MEDICAL RECALLS
*
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If I have printed this before ...Excuse the repetition, please.
Heparin Sodium Injection (Baxter) [Posted 02/11/2008] FDA informed healthcare professionals of important warnings and instructions for Heparin Sodium Injection use. There have been reports of serious adverse events including allergic or hypersensitivity-type reactions, with symptoms of oral swelling, nausea, vomiting, sweating, shortness of breath, and cases of severe hypotension. Most events developed within minutes of heparin initiation although the possibility for a delayed response has not been excluded. The reports have largely involved use of multiple-dose vials. However, there have been several cases in which product from multiple, single-dose vials have been combined to administer a bolus dose. Heparin sodium is an anticoagulant (blood thinner) that is used in patients undergoing kidney dialysis, certain types of cardiac surgery, and treatment or prevention of other serious medical conditions, including deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary emboli. Heparin treatment is initiated using high doses (5000-50,000 units) given directly into the blood stream (intravenously) as a bolus. Serious adverse events have recently been reported in patients who received these higher bolus doses. The manufacture of multiple-dose vials of heparin sodium has been suspended pending the completion of an extensive ongoing investigation to determine the root cause of the problem. Because heparin sodium is a medically necessary product and serious public health consequences would result if there were a sudden shortage of the drug, the multiple-dose vials of heparin sodium manufactured by Baxter that are currently in distribution will not be recalled. See the FDA Public Health Advisory for Agency recommendations to healthcare professionals on the use of heparin sodium for injection. http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#HeparinInj2
***********************
Spiriva (tiotropium bromide inhalation powder) capsules/ Foradil (formoterol fumarate inhalation powder) capsules FDA informed healthcare professionals and consumers of the correct way to use Spiriva and Foradil inhalation powder capsules. FDA and the National Poison Control Center have received many reports of patients swallowing Spiriva and Foradil capsules rather than placing the capsules in the inhalation devices. Both products are to be used in the HandiHaler (Spiriva) and Aerolizer (Foradil) devices to deliver the medicine to the lungs to improve breathing in patients with asthma, and in individuals affected by chronic obstructive lung disease and bronchitis. Both products will not treat a patient's breathing condition if the contents of a capsule are swallowed rather than inhaled. Healthcare professionals should discuss with patients how to correctly use the Spiriva HandiHaler or Foradil Aerolizer. See the Public Health Advisory for important information on the correct use of both products. http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Spiriva
****************
Leukine (sargramostim) Bayer and FDA informed healthcare professionals of the market withdrawal of the current liquid formulation of Leukine, a growth factor that helps fight infection and disease in appropriate patients by enhancing immune cell function. The product was withdrawn because of an upward trend in spontaneous reports of adverse reactions, including syncope (fainting), which are temporally correlated with a change in the formulation of liquid Leukine to include edetate disodium (EDTA). The upward trend in adverse reaction reporting rates has not been observed with the use of lyophilized Leukine. Healthcare professionals should immediately stop using liquid Leukine and return unused vials to the manufacturer.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Leukine
********************
Injectable Colchicine (including drugs containing colchicine) FDA announced its intention to take enforcement action against companies marketing unapproved, injectable colchicine, a drug used to treat gout. Colchicine is a highly toxic drug that can easily be administered in excessive doses, especially when given intravenously. There is a narrow margin between an effective dose of the drug and a toxic dose that can result in serious health risks, including death. The FDA is aware of 50 reports of adverse events associated with the use of intravenous colchicine, including 23 deaths. Potentially fatal effects include low blood cell counts, cardiac events, and organ failure. This action does not affect colchicine products that are dispensed in tablet form.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#colchicine
*****************
Medtronic SynchroMed EL Implantable Infusion Pump FDA issued a Class I Recall of Medtronic Inc, SynchroMed EL Implantable Infusion Pump Models 8626-10, 8626L-10, 8626-18, 8626L-18, 8627-10, 8627L-10, 8627-18, and 8627L-18. The device administers drugs to a specific site in the body to treat pain, spasticity (continuous muscle contraction), and cancer. The pump is implanted in the patient, either with or without a side catheter access port, catheters, and catheter accessories. The models were recalled because there is a potential pump motor stall issue that affects SynchroMed EL infusion pumps with motors manufactured before September 1999. If a pump motor stalls, drug delivery will stop suddenly and without warning. This stoppage will result in loss of therapy, return of the patient's symptoms, and/or symptoms of drug under infusion or withdrawal. Healthcare professionals and patients with questions should contact the manufacturer.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#SynchroMed
******************
Varenicline (marketed as Chantix) FDA informed healthcare professionals and consumers of important revisions to the WARNINGS and PRECAUTIONS sections of the prescribing information for Chantix regarding serious neuropsychiatric symptoms experienced in patients taking Chantix. These symptoms include changes in behavior, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal ideation, and attempted and completed suicide. While some patients may have experienced these types of symptoms and events as a result of nicotine withdrawal, some patients taking Chantix who experienced serious neuropsychiatric symptoms and events had not yet discontinued smoking. In most cases, neuropsychiatric symptoms developed during Chantix treatment, but in others, symptoms developed following withdrawal of Chantix therapy. See the FDA Information for Healthcare Professionals Sheet for recommendations and considerations for healthcare professionals on using Chantix therapy for patients.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Varenicline
***********************
PriCara and Sandoz Inc. announced a nationwide recall of all lots of 25 mcg/hr Duragesic Patches sold in the United States. The product is being recalled because the patches may have a cut along one side of the drug reservoir within the patch which may result in the possible release of fentanyl gel that may expose patients or caregivers directly to fentanyl gel on the skin. Fentanyl is a potent Schedule II opioid medication and exposure to the gel may lead to serious adverse events, including respiratory depression and possible overdose, that may be fatal. Patches with a cut edge should not be used. These recalled patches have expiration dates on or before December 2009 and are all manufactured by ALZA Corporation. ... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Duragesic ~~**~~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
Heparin Sodium Injection (Baxter) [Posted 02/11/2008] FDA informed healthcare professionals of important warnings and instructions for Heparin Sodium Injection use. There have been reports of serious adverse events including allergic or hypersensitivity-type reactions, with symptoms of oral swelling, nausea, vomiting, sweating, shortness of breath, and cases of severe hypotension. Most events developed within minutes of heparin initiation although the possibility for a delayed response has not been excluded. The reports have largely involved use of multiple-dose vials. However, there have been several cases in which product from multiple, single-dose vials have been combined to administer a bolus dose. Heparin sodium is an anticoagulant (blood thinner) that is used in patients undergoing kidney dialysis, certain types of cardiac surgery, and treatment or prevention of other serious medical conditions, including deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary emboli. Heparin treatment is initiated using high doses (5000-50,000 units) given directly into the blood stream (intravenously) as a bolus. Serious adverse events have recently been reported in patients who received these higher bolus doses. The manufacture of multiple-dose vials of heparin sodium has been suspended pending the completion of an extensive ongoing investigation to determine the root cause of the problem. Because heparin sodium is a medically necessary product and serious public health consequences would result if there were a sudden shortage of the drug, the multiple-dose vials of heparin sodium manufactured by Baxter that are currently in distribution will not be recalled. See the FDA Public Health Advisory for Agency recommendations to healthcare professionals on the use of heparin sodium for injection. http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#HeparinInj2
***********************
Spiriva (tiotropium bromide inhalation powder) capsules/ Foradil (formoterol fumarate inhalation powder) capsules FDA informed healthcare professionals and consumers of the correct way to use Spiriva and Foradil inhalation powder capsules. FDA and the National Poison Control Center have received many reports of patients swallowing Spiriva and Foradil capsules rather than placing the capsules in the inhalation devices. Both products are to be used in the HandiHaler (Spiriva) and Aerolizer (Foradil) devices to deliver the medicine to the lungs to improve breathing in patients with asthma, and in individuals affected by chronic obstructive lung disease and bronchitis. Both products will not treat a patient's breathing condition if the contents of a capsule are swallowed rather than inhaled. Healthcare professionals should discuss with patients how to correctly use the Spiriva HandiHaler or Foradil Aerolizer. See the Public Health Advisory for important information on the correct use of both products. http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Spiriva
****************
Leukine (sargramostim) Bayer and FDA informed healthcare professionals of the market withdrawal of the current liquid formulation of Leukine, a growth factor that helps fight infection and disease in appropriate patients by enhancing immune cell function. The product was withdrawn because of an upward trend in spontaneous reports of adverse reactions, including syncope (fainting), which are temporally correlated with a change in the formulation of liquid Leukine to include edetate disodium (EDTA). The upward trend in adverse reaction reporting rates has not been observed with the use of lyophilized Leukine. Healthcare professionals should immediately stop using liquid Leukine and return unused vials to the manufacturer.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Leukine
********************
Injectable Colchicine (including drugs containing colchicine) FDA announced its intention to take enforcement action against companies marketing unapproved, injectable colchicine, a drug used to treat gout. Colchicine is a highly toxic drug that can easily be administered in excessive doses, especially when given intravenously. There is a narrow margin between an effective dose of the drug and a toxic dose that can result in serious health risks, including death. The FDA is aware of 50 reports of adverse events associated with the use of intravenous colchicine, including 23 deaths. Potentially fatal effects include low blood cell counts, cardiac events, and organ failure. This action does not affect colchicine products that are dispensed in tablet form.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#colchicine
*****************
Medtronic SynchroMed EL Implantable Infusion Pump FDA issued a Class I Recall of Medtronic Inc, SynchroMed EL Implantable Infusion Pump Models 8626-10, 8626L-10, 8626-18, 8626L-18, 8627-10, 8627L-10, 8627-18, and 8627L-18. The device administers drugs to a specific site in the body to treat pain, spasticity (continuous muscle contraction), and cancer. The pump is implanted in the patient, either with or without a side catheter access port, catheters, and catheter accessories. The models were recalled because there is a potential pump motor stall issue that affects SynchroMed EL infusion pumps with motors manufactured before September 1999. If a pump motor stalls, drug delivery will stop suddenly and without warning. This stoppage will result in loss of therapy, return of the patient's symptoms, and/or symptoms of drug under infusion or withdrawal. Healthcare professionals and patients with questions should contact the manufacturer.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#SynchroMed
******************
Varenicline (marketed as Chantix) FDA informed healthcare professionals and consumers of important revisions to the WARNINGS and PRECAUTIONS sections of the prescribing information for Chantix regarding serious neuropsychiatric symptoms experienced in patients taking Chantix. These symptoms include changes in behavior, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal ideation, and attempted and completed suicide. While some patients may have experienced these types of symptoms and events as a result of nicotine withdrawal, some patients taking Chantix who experienced serious neuropsychiatric symptoms and events had not yet discontinued smoking. In most cases, neuropsychiatric symptoms developed during Chantix treatment, but in others, symptoms developed following withdrawal of Chantix therapy. See the FDA Information for Healthcare Professionals Sheet for recommendations and considerations for healthcare professionals on using Chantix therapy for patients.... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Varenicline
***********************
PriCara and Sandoz Inc. announced a nationwide recall of all lots of 25 mcg/hr Duragesic Patches sold in the United States. The product is being recalled because the patches may have a cut along one side of the drug reservoir within the patch which may result in the possible release of fentanyl gel that may expose patients or caregivers directly to fentanyl gel on the skin. Fentanyl is a potent Schedule II opioid medication and exposure to the gel may lead to serious adverse events, including respiratory depression and possible overdose, that may be fatal. Patches with a cut edge should not be used. These recalled patches have expiration dates on or before December 2009 and are all manufactured by ALZA Corporation. ... http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Duragesic ~~**~~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
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NURSING HINTS CORNER
Preventing traction reaction An orthopedic surgeon gave me a tip for preventing blisters on the heels and ankles of pediatric patients in Buck's or Byant's tractioon. First paint the affected leg with tincture of benzoin too toughen the skin. Then wrap the leg with web roll, followed by foam strips. Finally, wrap the leg in an elastick bandage.
Now you are ready to add the appropriate weights. Don't forget to check frequently for skin breakdown. Always get a doctor's order before using this procedure.
Preventing traction reaction An orthopedic surgeon gave me a tip for preventing blisters on the heels and ankles of pediatric patients in Buck's or Byant's tractioon. First paint the affected leg with tincture of benzoin too toughen the skin. Then wrap the leg with web roll, followed by foam strips. Finally, wrap the leg in an elastick bandage.
Now you are ready to add the appropriate weights. Don't forget to check frequently for skin breakdown. Always get a doctor's order before using this procedure.
Margaret P. Carson, RN, MS
Used with permission from 1,001 Nursing Tips & Timesavers, Third Edition, 1997, p.75 Springhouse Corporation/www.springnetcom. ~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
ADVERTISEMENTS
from the members
This ad is from Decubqueen (Gerry)..........Accu-RulerAccurate wound measurement designed by nurses, for nurses. Now carrying wound care and first-aid supplies at prices you can afford.Visit us at http://www.accu-ruler.com/.
ADVERTISEMENTS
from the members
This ad is from Decubqueen (Gerry)..........Accu-RulerAccurate wound measurement designed by nurses, for nurses. Now carrying wound care and first-aid supplies at prices you can afford.Visit us at http://www.accu-ruler.com/.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
This ad is from: GShort @AOL.com (Gwen) These are great little cakes ! http://www.delightfulgreetingcakes.com/worldsgreatest.php
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
This ad is from Wendie
The eLifeCard can save your life when seconds count! Carry this life-saving card in your wallet in case of emergency at home, at work, at school, traveling, or on vacation! NEW online estate planning system membership makes it possible for you to buy, upload, change and securely store your health care directive, allergies and medication lists, emergency contacts, and more. Exceptional package of other benefits. Give yourself and your family the gift of peace of mind. For FREE information, email name & phone number. All responses kept confidential and answered promptly.
Wendie Howland, CEO Miracle Group TFN Affiliate #10136
508-564-9556 (office) 915-990-1367 (fax)
whowland1@mac.com www.thefoundationnetwork.com
This ad is from: GShort @AOL.com (Gwen) These are great little cakes ! http://www.delightfulgreetingcakes.com/worldsgreatest.php
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
This ad is from Wendie
The eLifeCard can save your life when seconds count! Carry this life-saving card in your wallet in case of emergency at home, at work, at school, traveling, or on vacation! NEW online estate planning system membership makes it possible for you to buy, upload, change and securely store your health care directive, allergies and medication lists, emergency contacts, and more. Exceptional package of other benefits. Give yourself and your family the gift of peace of mind. For FREE information, email name & phone number. All responses kept confidential and answered promptly.
Wendie Howland, CEO Miracle Group TFN Affiliate #10136
508-564-9556 (office) 915-990-1367 (fax)
whowland1@mac.com www.thefoundationnetwork.com
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
NEW MEMBERS
No new members this issue Please send the prospective members' screen names and first names to me: RNFrankie@AOL.com
NEW MEMBERS
No new members this issue Please send the prospective members' screen names and first names to me: RNFrankie@AOL.com
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NOTICE:
I attempt to send newsletters to your current email addresses on file and if the newsletters are rejected THREE consecutive times, I must then delete the email address until you contact me with an updated email address; I have no way to reach you without a correct email address....You could always send me your Home number.......lol So please send me your new name/address, ok? RNFrankie@AOL.com
NOTICE:
I attempt to send newsletters to your current email addresses on file and if the newsletters are rejected THREE consecutive times, I must then delete the email address until you contact me with an updated email address; I have no way to reach you without a correct email address....You could always send me your Home number.......lol So please send me your new name/address, ok? RNFrankie@AOL.com
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
EDITORIAL STAFF:
GingerMyst @AOL.com (Anne), GALLO RN @AOL.com (Sue), HSears9868 @AOL.com (Bonnie), Laregis @AOL.com (Laura), Mrwrn @AOL.com (Miriam), and Schulthe @AOL.com (Susan)
Membership BIO Committee...(if you haven't sent in your BIO....Please send it to the appropriate section below) : Check by your screen name's first letter.........BCK131 @AOL.com (Chris) A thru B section,Dick515 @AOL.com (Eileen) C thru D section,GALLO RN@AOL.com (Sue) E thru I section, RNFrankie @AOL.com (Frankie) J thru K section,Jntcln@AOL.com (Janet) L thru M section,GALLO RN @AOL.com (Sue) N thru Q section Schulthe@AOL.com (Susan) R thru T sectionSandy1956@AOL.com (Sandy) U thru Z section.
EDITORIAL STAFF:
GingerMyst @AOL.com (Anne), GALLO RN @AOL.com (Sue), HSears9868 @AOL.com (Bonnie), Laregis @AOL.com (Laura), Mrwrn @AOL.com (Miriam), and Schulthe @AOL.com (Susan)
Membership BIO Committee...(if you haven't sent in your BIO....Please send it to the appropriate section below) : Check by your screen name's first letter.........BCK131 @AOL.com (Chris) A thru B section,Dick515 @AOL.com (Eileen) C thru D section,GALLO RN@AOL.com (Sue) E thru I section, RNFrankie @AOL.com (Frankie) J thru K section,Jntcln@AOL.com (Janet) L thru M section,GALLO RN @AOL.com (Sue) N thru Q section Schulthe@AOL.com (Susan) R thru T sectionSandy1956@AOL.com (Sandy) U thru Z section.
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PARADIGM 97 CO-FOUNDERS:
MarGerlach @AOL.com (Marlene) and RNFrankie @AOL.com (Frankie) ~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
DISCLAIMER: The intent of this PARADIGM BYTES Newsletter is to provide communication and information for our members. Please research the hyperlinks and information provided by our members. The articles and web sites are not personally endorsed by the editors, nor do the articles necessarily reflect the staff's views.~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
PARADIGM 97 CO-FOUNDERS:
MarGerlach @AOL.com (Marlene) and RNFrankie @AOL.com (Frankie) ~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
DISCLAIMER: The intent of this PARADIGM BYTES Newsletter is to provide communication and information for our members. Please research the hyperlinks and information provided by our members. The articles and web sites are not personally endorsed by the editors, nor do the articles necessarily reflect the staff's views.~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
To eat bread without hope is still slowly to starve to death.
--PEARL S. BUCK
Dreams do not vanish, so long as people do not abandon them.
Phantom F. Harlock
Hope to see you online..... Frankie
(RNFrankie@AOL.com)
To eat bread without hope is still slowly to starve to death.
--PEARL S. BUCK
Dreams do not vanish, so long as people do not abandon them.
Phantom F. Harlock
Hope to see you online..... Frankie
(RNFrankie@AOL.com)
