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During January 12 –February 25, CDC received reports of 11 laboratory-confirmed cases of P. falciparum malaria acquired in Haiti.

Patients included seven U.S. residents who were emergency responders, three Haitian residents, and one U.S. traveler. This report summarizes the 11 cases and provides chemoprophylactic and additional preventive recommendations to minimize the risk for acquiring malaria for persons traveling to Haiti.

Of the seven emergency responders, six were U.S. military personnel. Among the six, four cases were uncomplicated and treated locally in Haiti. Two other patients were moderately to seriously ill and transferred to the United States for intensive care; one required intubation and mechanical ventilation for acute respiratory distress syndrome. All are expected to make a full recovery.

All six military personnel had been provided oral chemoprophylaxis with doxycycline before departure from the United States and personal protective equipment (e.g., insect repellent and insecticide-treated netting and uniforms) after arrival in Haiti. Of the 11 total patients, chemoprophylaxis was indicated for the seven emergency responders and the lone U.S. traveler. Six of these eight patients (including the two hospitalized military personnel) reported nonadherence to the recommended malaria medication regimen. Adherence status was unknown for the remaining two patients.

Three cases occurred in Haitian residents who traveled to the United States, including one Haitian adoptee. The number of U.S. malaria cases imported from Haiti likely is underestimated because typically not all cases are reported to CDC.

Click on this link for the whole article from the Center for Disease Control - CDC

Technorati Tags: Haiti, Malaria

Accelerated approval process used in flu vaccine approval

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Fluzone High-Dose, an inactivated influenza virus vaccine for people ages 65 years and older to prevent disease caused by influenza virus subtypes A and B.

People in this age group are at highest risk for seasonal influenza complications, which may result in hospitalization and death. Annual vaccination remains the best protection from influenza, particularly for people 65 and older.

Fluzone High-Dose was approved via the accelerated approval pathway. FDA’s accelerated approval pathway helps safe and effective medical products for serious or life-threatening diseases become available sooner. In clinical studies, Fluzone High-Dose demonstrated an enhanced immune response compared with Fluzone in individuals 65 and older.

Click here to read the rest of this FDA seasonal flu press release

Also

H1N1 Swine Flu Update

Technorati Tags: flu vaccine, Season flu

by David B. Schulman M.D., F.A.A.D.

There is a true epidemic of skin cancer in America. One million cases of skin cancer will occur this year in America. Lifelong sun exposure is increasing for Americans as we spend more time outdoors and the sun’s rays are becoming more intense with our loss of ozone. The use of tanning booths is a new way to further damage our skin and raise our risk for skin cancers. There are three common forms of skin cancer and we are seeing dramatic annual increases in the number of these skin cancers. Melanoma, which is the most aggressive form of skin cancer, is now the most common cause of cancer deaths in American women under forty years old.

Basal Cell Carcinoma The most common and least aggressive form of skin cancer is basal cell carcinoma. This is the most common cancer in America and happily it causes nearly no fatalities. This cancer is most common on light skinned people and thirty percent of Caucasian people in America are expected to have a basal cell in their lifetime. The great majority of basal cell carcinomas will occur on the head and neck. Though this form of cancer almost never enters the bloodstream or the lymph system, it may be locally invasive. Basal cells do grow by local extension and over time can erode and invade not just skin, but other important areas down to muscle or bone. There are more aggressive forms of basal cell carcinoma that will infiltrate and extend below the surface more than above the surface. These tumors are especially dangerous for the surrounding tissue. Basal cell tumors often appear as pale or translucent patches or raised bumps on the skin with fine blood vessels in them. They may grow for months or years without detection. The often ulcerate and bleed as they grow, but otherwise have no symptoms like itching or pain. The tendency towards growing basal cells is inherited and many patients report at least one family member with a history of basal cell. Patients will often have more than one basal cell in their lifetime and I have seen patients who have had dozens of them. Darker skin tends to get fewer basal cells but one of the first lesions I had in my new practice was an African-American women with a basal cell on the leg. She is fine and nearly everyone who has this is fine. With early detection and removal this should simply be a speed bump on the road of life.

Click here for the rest of this article from South Charlotte Dermatology

Technorati Tags: Basal Cell Carcinoma, Melanoma, Squamous Cell Carcinoma

By Nancy Klobassa, R.N., and Peggy Moreland, R.N.

I recently found out that someone from my past, whom I had lost contact with, died several years ago at age 51. This young man had a special place in my teenage heart and I’m grieving his death. I was also informed that he had developed type 1 diabetes, after my knowing him (it’s my understanding his death was unrelated to the diabetes).

Lately, I’ve been feeling a little more philosophical and I’ve been thinking about the ups and downs we all face in life. Just when we think everything is going well, we hit a speed bump, a roadblock or even our own demise. I think being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes would be a definite roadblock — or more likely make you feel like you got hit by a Mack truck.

How does one, day in and day out, cope and continue to cope with a chronic disease such as diabetes? Is there ever a halcyon time? “Halcyon” comes from a bird identified with the kingfisher, and in an ancient legend it nested at sea during winter solstice and just by its very presence calmed the waves during incubation. Does it seem that there periods when managing your diabetes is easier than usual, and other times it seems like no matter what you do the blood sugars are out of control?

I see in my practice some people who never find a halcyon period in coping with their diabetes. We all know that everyone has different coping skills, and I’ve seen individuals with diabetes who have great coping skills. To them, diabetes is little more than an inconvenience.

What are good coping skills and how do we develop them? Try these tips:

§ Avoid negative thinking — “It doesn’t matter what I do, I’ll get diabetes complications anyway (not true).”

§ Self talk — It’s OK to talk to yourself, you’ll feel better.

§ Play music — I play the drums and there are times they really vibrate.

§ Do something — Walk, dance, clean the house, wash the car.

§ Call someone — Friends are good.

§ Pray — Someone who always listens.

§ Ride it out — Experience the wave of emotion and let it go.

§ Take a bath and add candlelight

§ Help someone else — Take the focus off yourself (poor you).

§ Write a blog — This week it was a helpful coping skill.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/managing-diabetes/MY01060/rss=5

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Technorati Tags: H1N1, swine flu, Swine flu vaccination

Food facilities now required to report potentially dangerous products

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has a new way to head off potential cases of foodborne illness – the Reportable Food Registry (RFR), where food industry officials must use to alert the FDA quickly, through an electronic portal when they find their products might sicken or kill people or animals. The requirement, a result of legislation, took effect with the launch of the portal.

Facilities that manufacture, process or hold food for consumption in the United States now must tell the FDA within 24 hours if they find a reasonable probability that an article of food will cause severe health problems or death to a person or an animal.

The reporting requirement applies to all foods and animal feed regulated by the FDA, except infant formula and dietary supplements, which are covered by other regulatory requirements. Some examples of reasons a food may be reportable include bacterial contamination, allergen mislabeling or elevated levels of certain chemical components.

The opening of the RFR electronic portal reflects a fundamental principle of the President’s Food Safety Working Group that “preventing harm to consumers is our first priority.”

“President Obama has pledged to strengthen food safety,” said Commissioner of Food and Drugs Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D. “The opening of the Reportable Food Registry electronic portal represents a significant step toward that pledge.”

“By fostering real-time submission to the FDA of information on food safety hazards, the registry enhances FDA’s ability to act quickly to prevent foodborne illness,” said Michael R. Taylor, senior advisor to the commissioner. “Working with the food industry, we can swiftly remove contaminated products from commerce and keep them out of consumers’ hands.”

The requirements apply to any person who has to submit registration information to the FDA for a food facility that manufactures, processes, packs, or holds food for human or animal consumption in the United States. These people are termed responsible parties.

A responsible party:

1. Must investigate the cause of the adulteration if the adulteration of food may have originated with the responsible party
2. Must submit initial information; followed by supplemental reports
3. Must work with the FDA authorities to follow up as needed

A responsible party is not required to report if it found the problem before the food was shipped, and corrected the problem or destroyed the food.

The agency issued draft guidance on the RFR in June and sought comment. The FDA also held three public workshops across the country in which FDA representatives explained the RFR requirements and how the portal will work. A Federal Register notice was issued today announcing the opening of the RFR electronic portal and the availability of final guidance to assist the food industry in complying with the requirements of the RFR.

For more information:

The RFR Guidance
www.fda.gov/ReportableFoodRegistry

Technorati Tags: FDA, FDA Food Registry

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Taking aspirin not only can help keep colon cancer from coming back, but it also can lower the risk of dying from the disease, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

Aspirin already occupies a prominent spot in many medicine cabinets. Daily use of low-dose aspirin can stave off heart attacks and strokes, as well as chase away aches and pains.

Other studies have found it can reduce the risk of developing colon cancer. The latest study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, shows it can prevent colorectal cancer deaths.

Dr. Andrew Chan of Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston and colleagues studied aspirin use in 1,279 men and women with colorectal cancer that had not spread to other parts of the body.

They found that people who took aspirin regularly after their diagnosis were nearly 30 percent less likely to die from their cancer than people who did not take aspirin. These people also were 21 percent less likely to die for any reason while they were in the study lasting more than two decades.

“These results suggest that aspirin may influence the biology of established colorectal tumors in addition to preventing their occurrence,” Chan said in a statement.

Chan said aspirin likely works by blocking the enzyme cyclooxygenase2, or COX-2, which promotes inflammation and cell division. Many tumors make an abundance of COX-2, he said.

Despite its benefits, aspirin can cause serious bleeding in the stomach. The team said further study in carefully controlled clinical trials should be done before the drug could be recommended for routine use by colon cancer patients.

Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cancer killer in the United States behind lung cancer. It will kill an estimated 50,000 Americans this year, according to the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; Editing by Will Dunham

Technorati Tags: Aspirin, colon cancer

When does menopause start?

On average, women are 51 at natural menopause, notes the National Institute on Aging. But menopause can start earlier or later. A few women start menopause as young as 40, and a very small percentage as late as 60. Women who smoke tend to go through menopause a few years earlier than nonsmokers. There is no proven way to predict menopause age. It’s only after a woman has missed her periods for 12 straight months, without other obvious causes, that menopause can be confirmed.

Menopause is the permanent end of menstruation.

It’s a turning point, not a disease, but it can have a big impact on a woman’s wellbeing. Although menopause can bring physical upheaval from hot flashes, night sweats, and other symptoms, it can also be the start of a new and rewarding phase of a woman’s life — and a golden opportunity to guard against major health risks like heart disease and osteoporosis.

What Causes Menopause?

Technorati Tags: menpopause, peri-menopause