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Children would need different medical care in wake of dirty bomb

If terrorists were to attack with a dirty bomb, medical authorities should be prepared to treat children differently than adults because their developing bodies would absorb and respond to the radiation exposure in distinct ways, according to a new study from the University of Rochester Medical Center.

31 Oct 2007

Pre-op antibiotics prevent infection for wisdom teeth surger

Patients who have their wisdom teeth pulled and do not take antibiotics before surgery are twice as likely to get an infection after the surgery than those who take a single dose of antibiotics shortly before surgery, says Eastman Dental Center researchersYan-Fang Ren, DDS, PhD, MPH and Hans Malmstrom, DDS.

30 Oct 2007

Smoked salmon dip recalled because of Listeria contamination

The Food and Drug Administration in the U.S. has alerted retailers and the public over food suspected of being contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

30 Oct 2007

Tests find lead in more products

Lead hazards in consumer products aren’t limited to the millions of toys recalled so far this year, according to test results and a four-month investigation published in the December issue of Consumer Reports magazine.

29 Oct 2007

Firing clay in unvented kilns could be a significant source of dioxins

The results came out of follow-up interviews with subjects who participated in the University of Michigan Dioxin Exposure Study, which measured dioxin levels in residents in Midland and the Tittabawassee River flood plain between Midland and Saginaw.

24 Oct 2007

Contamination from depleted uranium found in urine 20 years later

Inhaled depleted uranium (DU) oxide aerosols are recognised as a distinct human health hazard and DU has been suggested to be responsible in part for illness in both military and civilian populations that may have been exposed.

24 Oct 2007

Surge in E. coli food contamination recalls prompts aggressive action

As a result of the increasing numbers of food recalls this year involving food contaminated with E. coli, the U.S. Agriculture Department's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) says it will expand tests and recall infected meat more rapidly.

24 Oct 2007

Arsenic exposure during pregnancy linked to low-birth-weight infants

Bangladeshi women exposed to high levels of arsenic during pregnancy are at increased risk of having a low-birth-weight infant, reports a study in the October Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine , official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).

15 Oct 2007

Mouse mammary tumor virus might be involved in causing human breast cancer

Mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) - which causes mammary cancer in mice - can replicate and spread in human cells, research published this week shows.

10 Oct 2007

Salmonella outbreak traced to all Banquet and store brand pot pie products

The Pennsylvania Department of Health today is emphasizing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) advisory for consumers not to eat Banquet brand and store brand frozen, not-ready-to-eat pot pie products due to possible Salmonella contamination.

10 Oct 2007

Folic acid supplements dramatically lower blood arsenic levels in those exposed to contaminated water

A new study conducted in Bangladesh finds that folic acid supplements can dramatically lower blood arsenic levels in individuals chronically exposed to arsenic-contaminated drinking water.

10 Oct 2007

Brookhaven microgrid allows simultaneous study of multiple variables

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have developed a method for correlating the results of microscopic imaging techniques in a way that could lead to improved understanding, diagnosis, and possibly treatment of a variety of disease conditions, including Alzheimer's disease. The Laboratory has filed a U.S. provisional patent application for the invention.

10 Oct 2007

Another E. coli scare... 844,812 pounds of frozen ground beef patties recalled

Consumers in the United States who are beginning to feel that the only food safe to eat is food they themselves have grown, should be forgiven.

10 Oct 2007

Latest salmonella scare over chicken and turkey pies

The U.S. Agriculture Department (USDA) has warned the public about more food contaminated with salmonella.

10 Oct 2007

Folic acid supplements can dramatically lower blood arsenic levels

A new study by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health finds that folic acid supplements can dramatically lower blood arsenic levels in individuals exposed to arsenic through contaminated drinking water.

9 Oct 2007

White baking chocolate tainted with salmonella latest U.S. food scare

In yet another food scare in the United States salmonella is again involved, this time the culprit is baking chocolate.

8 Oct 2007

Reservoir of Marburg virus identified in a species of fruit bat

The Marburg virus, like its fearsome cousin Ebola, belongs to the Filoviridae family. It carries the name of the German town where it was first detected in 1967, after a mysterious epidemic had hit employees of the Behring laboratory.

8 Oct 2007

Fungus genome yielding answers to protect grains, people and animals

Why a pathogen is a pathogen may be answered as scientists study the recently mapped genetic makeup of a fungus that spawns the worst cereal grains disease known and also can produce toxins potentially fatal to people and livestock.

8 Oct 2007

Judge acquits Canadian doctors, U.S. drug company in tainted blood case

A Canadian judge on Monday acquitted New Jersey-based Armour Pharmaceutical Company and four Canadian doctors -- including the former medical director of the Canadian Red Cross and two government officials -- of charges related to blood products contaminated with HIV and hepatitis C, the New York Times reports (Austen, New York Times, 10/2).

2 Oct 2007

Million of pounds of frozen ground beef contaminated with E.coli

The latest recall of food products in the United States has left consumers alarmed and also at a loss when it comes to the safety and reliability of many foods offered for sale in stores.

2 Oct 2007