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Admissions for medication, drug-related conditions increase by 117% among Americans aged 45 and older

The number of hospital admissions among Americans ages 45 and older for medication and drug-related conditions doubled between 1997 and 2008, according to a new report released today by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Medication and drug-related conditions include effects of both prescription and over-the-counter medications as well as illicit drugs.

26 Oct 2010

Lead exposure may reverse blindness: Research

Some unexpected effects of lead exposure that may one day help prevent and reverse blindness have been uncovered by a University of Houston (UH) professor and his team.

26 Oct 2010

Safety tips to reduce risk of lead exposure

With more than 2,700 children having elevated blood lead levels in 2009, the Department of Health today reminds parents to test young children for lead exposure, especially during National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, Oct. 24-30.

25 Oct 2010

Research finds succimer drug not effective in removing mercury

Succimer, a drug used for treating lead poisoning, does not effectively remove mercury from the body, according to research supported by the National Institutes of Health. Some families have turned to succimer as an alternative therapy for treating autism.

25 Oct 2010

Few legitimate opioid users are getting information to keep medications safe

For some people with ongoing or chronic pain, opioids (medications such as oxycodone or hydrocodone) can make the difference between disability and the ability to function at near-normal levels. For those with acute pain, such as pain after surgery or injury, sound pain management with opioids can speed healing and recovery.

19 Oct 2010

Acetadote Injection is now commercially available in Australia

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Phebra Pty Ltd. today announced that Acetadote (acetylcysteine) Injection, an injectable product used to treat acetaminophen (paracetamol) overdose, is now commercially available in the Australian market. Phebra Pty Ltd., an Australian-based specialty pharmaceutical company, has an exclusive license from U.S.-based Cumberland Pharmaceuticals to market and distribute the product in Australia.

15 Oct 2010

Mystery of arsenite solved

Scientists have solved an important mystery about why an arsenic compound, called arsenite, can kill us, and yet function as an effective therapeutic agent against disease and infections. According to new research published in the October 2010 issue of Genetics scientists from Johns Hopkins, Baylor and Stanford discovered that arsenite, a common water contaminant in many parts of the world, affects a special protein folding machine in yeast, called TCP, also present in humans.

14 Oct 2010

Investigators wondering: Fraud, bad medicine or Union manuevering at Calif. hospital chain?

The Los Angeles Times reports that state and federal investigators are trying to determine whether "a serious health problem or multimillion-dollar Medicare fraud" is behind a reported spike in blood poisoning cases at hospitals operated by Prime Healthcare Services, "a Southern California hospital chain known for aggressive billing practices and cost-cutting."

13 Oct 2010

Researchers unveil clues to combat enteritis in humans

The bacterium Campylobacter jejuni is a major cause of food poisoning in humans. It is normally transmitted from contaminted chicken meat, as it is frequently found in the intestines of chickens, where it apparently does not result in any symptoms. Researchers at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna have now solved the puzzle, showing that Campylobacter can survive ambient oxygen levels thanks to the presence of other bacteria, species of Pseudomonas.

7 Oct 2010

CDC grant to support community-based public health project in RI and CT

A $250,000 grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will support a Rhode Island Hospital research study aimed at reducing the state's leading cause of accidental death among adults. Researchers will explore the use and effectiveness of statewide prescription monitoring programs (PMP) in reducing the number of accidental overdose deaths involving prescription opioids like OxyContin and Vicodin in both Rhode Island and Connecticut.

6 Oct 2010

Scientists find new replicating mechanism of Salmonella bacteria

New findings by National Institutes of Health scientists could explain how Salmonella bacteria, a common cause of food poisoning, efficiently spread in people. In a study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers describe finding a reservoir of rapidly replicating Salmonella inside epithelial cells. These bacteria are primed to infect other cells and are pushed from the epithelial layer by a new mechanism that frees the Salmonella to infect other cells or be shed into the intestine.

3 Oct 2010

New method for detecting spores of non-proteolytic Clostridium botulinum

The Institute of Food Research has collaborated in the development of a new method for detecting spores of non-proteolytic Clostridium botulinum. This bacterium is the major health hazard associated with refrigerated convenience foods, and these developments give the food industry and regulators more quantitative information on which to base the procedures that ensure food safety.

1 Oct 2010

Increase in sales of new antidepressants not linked to decline in suicide rate

Many researchers have studied the relationship between the increase in sales of new antidepressants in recent decades and a simultaneous decline in the suicide rate. In a study based on figures from the Nordic countries, researchers at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health found no evidence that increased sales of the new medicines could be linked to a lower suicide rate. The researchers also did not find any relationship between reduced sales of the older and more toxic antidepressants and a reduction in suicide rates.

30 Sep 2010

Medical team uses LeadCare II blood-lead test to examine people exposed to lead poisoning in Nigeria

As part of the international response to the lead-poisoning crisis linked to small-scale gold-mining activities in this northwestern region of Nigeria, a medical crisis team is deploying Magellan's three-minute LeadCare II blood-lead test in the triage, assessment, and clinical follow-up of thousands of villagers who have been exposed to extremely high levels of lead in the soil and water.

29 Sep 2010

New book relates mercury in vaccines to autism

The U.S. government revealed last week that they will compensate a family millions of dollars for their daughter's injury related to her infant vaccines that contained mercury and the subsequent development of autism. Yet, the CDC continues to tell the public that there is no connection between vaccines and autism and that the mercury has been removed, although the flu shot recommended for all pregnant women, infants, and children continues to be preserved with mercury.

13 Sep 2010

FDA approves pediatric use of Protopam Chloride

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the pediatric use of Protopam Chloride (pralidoxime chloride), a drug used to treat poisoning by organophosphate pesticides and chemicals (e.g., nerve agents). The drug is approved to be administered either by intravenous (IV) or intramuscular (IM) injections.

10 Sep 2010

Unpredictable food poisoning

While we are often exposed to bacteria in our food which could cause food poisoning, we don't always become ill - why should this be so?

6 Sep 2010

NCF announces formal disease model for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

The National CFIDS Foundation Inc., of Needham Mass, has announced its formal disease model for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) also known as Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) as well as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). According to the NCF, a subgroup of patients with CFS fit a unique disease profile based on a model for a radioactive toxin.

21 Aug 2010

FDA extends review on Acetadote for non-acetaminophen acute liver failure

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended its review of the supplemental new drug application (sNDA) for the use of Acetadote® (acetylcysteine) Injection in patients with non-acetaminophen acute liver failure.

21 Aug 2010

Research on ocean-dwelling bacterium unveils food poisoning mechanism in human

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered a key weapon in the molecular arsenal the infectious bacterium Vibrio parahaemolyticus (V. para) uses to kill cells and cause food poisoning in its human host.

20 Aug 2010