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Some caregivers unsure about when to give epinephrine for children with food allergies

Young children with allergies to milk and egg experience reactions to these and other foods more often than researchers had expected, a study reports. The study also found that severe and potentially life-threatening reactions in a significant number of these children occur and that some caregivers are hesitant to give such children epinephrine, a medication that reverses the symptoms of such reactions and can save lives.

26 Jun 2012

Study reinforces importance of educating parents and other caregivers of children with food allergy

A team of researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine and four other institutions have found that young children with documented or likely allergies to milk and/or eggs, whose families were instructed on how to avoid these and other foods, still experienced allergic reactions at a rate of almost once per year. Of severe cases, less than a third received epinephrine, a medication used to counter anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic condition.

25 Jun 2012

Reumofan Plus may have harmful pharmaceutical ingredients, warns FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers that Reumofan Plus, marketed as a "natural" dietary supplement for pain relief and other serious conditions, contains several active pharmaceutical ingredients not listed on the label that could be harmful.

2 Jun 2012

Important heat safety tips from Pennsylvania Departments of Health and Aging

With hot temperatures and high humidity expected to make an early appearance in some parts of Pennsylvania this Memorial Day weekend, the Departments of Health and Aging are urging everyone to take simple steps to prevent serious heat-related illness or even death.

28 May 2012

Novel heart monitoring device helps ER patients avoid unnecessary follow-up care

A study conducted at Scripps Health has found that a novel new heart monitoring device helped emergency room patients avoid unnecessary follow-up care. Scripps Health electrophysiologist Steven Higgins, MD, presented findings of the study titled, "Prevalence of Arrhythmias in Emergency Department Patients Discharged Using a Novel Ambulatory Cardiac Monitor", today at the Heart Rhythm Society's 33rd Annual Scientific Sessions in Boston.

14 May 2012

Article evaluates benefits and costs of screening programs for prevention of SCD

An article, published in Circulation by Laurel K. Leslie, MD, MPH from the Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) and colleagues from Tufts Medical Center and Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center, has evaluated the lifesaving benefits and costs of screening programs for the prevention of sudden cardiac death (SCD) in children and adolescents.

10 May 2012

Health Canada announces labelling update for Cipralex

Health Canada is informing Canadians of a labelling update for the prescription drug Cipralex (the brand name of the drug escitalopram) regarding a dose-related risk of abnormal heart rhythms. Cipralex is used to treat depression and belongs to a family of drugs known as Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs).

7 May 2012

Nine physician organizations identify specific tests or procedures that may be unnecessary

Nine leading physician specialty societies have identified specific tests or procedures that they say are commonly used but not always necessary in their respective fields. Patient advocates are calling the move a significant step toward improving the quality and safety of health care.

4 Apr 2012

Young girls face increased risk of side effects after Gardasil vaccination

Younger girls are more likely than adult women to report side effects after receiving Gardasil, the human papillomavirus vaccine.

4 Apr 2012

Public service announcement on pediatric pulmonary hypertension

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) sounds like an adult disease, but the life-threatening lung condition strikes children too. Ten-year-old Lucas Van Wormer is one of them.

3 Apr 2012

Catheter-based heart valve procedures effective for patients with aortic stenosis

Patients diagnosed with aortic stenosis who are too sick for open-heart surgery have better survival rates and an improved quality of life after undergoing catheter-based heart valve replacement than if the patients had been treated with standard medical therapy, according to a study authored by a Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute physician based on results from a multicenter clinical trial.

27 Mar 2012

Pacemaker may effectively prevent NMS-related fainting spells

A select number of patients who suffer from neurally mediated synope (NMS) - a disorder in which the brain fails to regulate heart rate and blood pressure - may be good candidates to receive a dual-chamber pacemaker to prevent common NMS-related fainting spells, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 61st Annual Scientific Session.

27 Mar 2012

Medtronic pacemaker reduces risk of syncope recurrence

Medtronic, Inc. today announced the results of a double-blind, randomized study, ISSUE-3, which found that patients who suffered from fainting due to neurocardiogenic syncope had fewer fainting occurrences when treated with a Medtronic pacemaker.

From Medtronic 27 Mar 2012

Roundup: States face new revenue downturn; Calif. county has disparities in life expectancy

Revenues in most U.S. states increased in the fourth quarter of 2011, but their recent surge is tapering off, as they grew just 2.7 percent from the final quarter of 2010, according to a report released on Monday. "This is a noticeable slowdown from the 11.1 (percent) and 6.1 percent year-over-year growth reported in the second and third quarters of 2011, respectively," the Rockefeller Institute, a think tank that closely watches states' revenues, said in the report.

21 Mar 2012

First use of HeartLight Endoscopic Ablation System to treat atrial fibrillation

For the first time in a new U.S. clinical trial, researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have used the HeartLight Endoscopic Ablation System (EAS) to correct abnormal electrical signals inside the heart of a patient affected by atrial fibrillation (AFib), one of the nation's most common heart ailments.

22 Feb 2012

Study aims to achieve early detection of heart disease

With the month of February designated as Heart Health Month, physician-researchers in the Division of Cardiology at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) - Dr. Matthew Budoff and Dr. Ronald Oudiz - continue to pave the way with their efforts to develop treatments and therapies for conditions affecting the heart, and to help improve overall heart health.

22 Feb 2012

UC San Diego offers catheter ablation for patients with atrial fibrillation

UC San Diego Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center is now offering patients with atrial fibrillation the breakthrough benefits of heat energy, or radio frequency waves, to irreversibly alter heart tissue that triggers an abnormal heart rhythm or arrhythmia.

17 Feb 2012

Study: Syncope results in unexplained cardiac arrests

Up to 45,000 sudden cardiac arrests occur each year in Canada, and less than five percent survive. In some of these cases, the event cannot be explained by the presence of underlying heart disease. In order to identify people at risk of these unexplained cardiac events, a newly published study examined the presence of certain warning symptoms that are present in people who have been resuscitated from a cardiac arrest.

10 Feb 2012

Nearly 1 out of 7 Texas college students participate in Choking Game

Nearly one out of seven college students surveyed at a Texas university has participated in the Choking Game, a dangerous behavior where blood flow is deliberately cut off to the brain in order to achieve a high, according to a study by The Crime Victims' Institute at Sam Houston State University.

19 Jan 2012

Physiological impact of hurt feelings

Working up your courage to ask someone to be your Valentine? Science is uncovering the reason why we fear social rejection: Not only does it dash our hopes, it actually puts the brakes on our heart. Specifically, learning that someone doesn't like you triggers a drop in heart rate.

11 Jan 2012