Year: 2013

Can Early Deep-Brain Stimulation Surgery Help More Parkinson’s Patients?

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – There’s no good evidence to say what types of treatment might help ward off anxiety and stress disorders in kids and teens exposed to traumatic events, according to a new analysis. Researchers said that a few psychological interventions, including talk therapy and school-based programs, “appear promising” for helping young people cope with the kind of trauma stemming from accidents, mass shootings and natural disasters. …

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – The amount of vitamin D in some supplements may be either much lower or much higher than what’s written on the label, according to a new analysis. Researchers found that off-the-shelf pills from 12 different manufacturers had between 52 percent and 135 percent of their advertised vitamin D content. And among vitamins mixed by compounding pharmacies, the variation in doses was even greater – from 23 percent to 146 percent of the labeled amount. “I’m not at all surprised that they’re very variable,” said Dr. …

New Zealand coroner lists excessive drinking of Coke as a factor in Natasha Harris’s death.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – No standard policy covers whether the state-level Medicaid committee members choosing which drugs and treatments the program pays for should disclose their ties to drug and medical device companies, according to a new report. Health policy researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, who set out to examine conflict of interest policies for the 47 U.S. states plus the District of Columbia with Medicaid Preferred Drug List committees, found that many have no policy, and in the states that do, rules vary widely. …

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission has proposed extra tests on meat products by governments to assess the scale of a suspected fraud involving mislabeled horsemeat in food sold as beef, the bloc’s health chief said on Wednesday. European Union governments will vote on the proposals on Friday. The Commission has also recommended tests on EU businesses handling horsemeat to check for residues of equine medicines in meat that could pose a health risk. (Reporting by Charlie Dunmore; editing by Barbara Lewis)

ZURICH (Reuters) – Swiss supermarket chain Coop has found horsemeat in its own-brand lasagne, which has the same French supplier, Comigel, at the heart of a scandal in Britain. Growing revelations about the use of horsemeat in products labeled beef have raised questions about the safety of the European food supply chain and prompted governments to send out a European Union-wide alert. Switzerland’s Coop had already withdrawn the suspect lasagne from its freezers earlier in the week for tests, which confirmed on Wednesday the products contained horsemeat. …

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – A common knee surgery that can sideline athletes for months does not ultimately affect the career length of women invited to the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), according to a new study. “With appropriate rehabilitation, ACL injuries do not mean an early end to an otherwise promising athletic career,” said lead author Dr. Moira McCarthy, an orthopedic surgeon at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. McCarthy told Reuters Health she was surprised and impressed by just how many women enter the WNBA with a history of knee injury or surgery. …

Katie’s Take It’s Monday morning, and the day begins with a moment of panic. “Where are my keys?” As the search begins, the clock is ticking and you’re already late for work. After turning over pillows, opening drawers and even checking the trash can, you…