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Greetings,
I have promised Herman that I would help transmit the medical news items to the
biomechanics list once finished my doctoral work. Having that happily behind
me (as of December), I will now be taking on that task. I will attempt to
choose items which are relevant to the list and would appreciate feedback from
you all as to whether you find these items useful/interesting. These items are
published monthly; however, for the next few months, you will be receiving two
mailings per month until I get us caught up to date.
Respectfully,
Irene McClay, PhD, PT
University of Delaware
CWV03814@UDELVM
VITAMIN C IS CATARACT REDUCER:
Taking relatively high levels of vitamin C and cutting calories may be two
ways of reducing the risk of cataracts, a leading cause of blindness, new
research suggests. Researchers at Boston's Tufts University tested vitamin C
in animals and humans. Findings, presented at a Research to Prevent Blindness
seminar, show that people with higher blood levels of vitamin C have a reduced
risk.
Health InfoCom Network News Page 1
Volume 3, Number 32 September 25, 1990
VITAMIN C HAS OTHER BENEFITS:
In three animal studies, researcher Allen Taylor found cutting calories 20
to 40 percent delayed development of cataracts and produced other major
benefits: Risk of getting cataracts was cut by 30 to 50 percent. Lifespan was
30 percent longer. Animals were trimmer, had stronger immune systems, delayed
developing cancer. Annually, 400,000 in the USA get cataracts.
VENEREAL DISEASE RATES RISING:
Statistics on venereal diseases are piling up. A report in Wednesday's
issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that the rate
of new U.S. cases of gonorrhea and syphilis rose 34 percent in the 1980s, with
almost all the increase appearing among blacks since 1986. The rate among
black men rose 106 percent, for black women 176 percent.
VD RATES DROP FOR SOME MALES:
While the rates of new cases of gonorrhea and syphilis rose 34 percent in
the 1980s, rates for white and Hispanic men dropped, according to the Journal
of the American Medical Association. The rate for white women remained
unchanged and the rate for Hispanic women rose 19 percent. Centers for Disease
Control reseachers said the increase among blacks might be linked to drug
abuse.
BELIEVED MISCARRIAGE LINK FOUND:
Pregnant women with thyroid autoantibodies - an abnormal immune condition
that causes the body to attack itself - are more than twice as likely to
suffer early miscarriage, say researchers at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in
New York. Research on 492 pregnant women found that 17 percent of women with
the antibodies suffered miscarriage, vs. 8.4 percent of those without them.
LASER SURGERY TO HELP THE AGING:
Laser surgeries now being pioneered may help baby boomers avoid the leading
cause of age-related irreversible blindness, as well as cornea transplants for
certain eye ailments. Among preliminary findings presented at a Research to
Prevent Blindness seminar is a laser that fired hundreds of beams into the eye
and stopped bleeding and fluid leakage caused by abnormal blood vessel growth.
SEDATED KIDS AT RISK:
Some children who get body scans at hospitals are sedated under
circumstances the medical profession considers unnecessarily risky. X-ray
technicians often sedate and monitor children, although the technicians are
not taught about the medications and may not be able to watch the children
closely enough, according to three articles published in the medical journal
Radiology.
`YO-YO' DIETS SLOW BODY'S RATE:
Many people who lose weight on a diet will regain all of it within a year,
and the same discouraging rebound may follow repeated efforts to diet. Doctors
studying yo-yo dieting have suggested that such cycles prompt the body to
permanently lower the rate at which it burns food, making weight loss through
dieting increasingly difficult.
STUDY DISPUTES METABOLIC THEORY:
A new study of 12 college wrestlers casts doubt on the idea that repeat
dieters lower their metabolism rate. The study, published in the current issue
of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, shows that as they dieted to
make their weight, their metabolic rates fell, but not much more than a group
of non-wrestlers. After the season their metabolic rates returned to preseason
levels.
AGAIN, ASPIRIN CUTS STROKE RISK:
Aspirin has again shown it can reduce the risk of strokes, this time in a
European study in which it was given three times a day to 2,500 stroke victims
with dipyridamole, a drug that prevents clotting. After two years, they had
had 33 percent fewer strokes than a comparison group receiving dummy pills.
The research was published in the August issue of the journal Stroke.
TECH TO DECODE DNA:
An ambitious international plan to decipher the human genetic code will
depend on better lab and computer science to handle the drudgery of sorting
and reading billions of bits of information affordably. Scientists at the
University of Wisconsin at Madison recently have made one such step, sorting
DNA fragments by applying voltage as they pass through a tiny gel-filled glass
tube.
CARROT POWER DOWNGRADED:
A study casts doubt on the cancer-prevention powers of beta carotene, the
substance that makes carrots orange. Skin cancer patients who took beta
carotene pills developed as many new lesions as patients taking placebos, says
a study in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine. However, fruits and
vegetables with beta carotene contain nutrients that may prevent several
cancer forms.
ALCOHOL, ASPIRIN BAD FOR FETUS:
Four-year-olds whose moms had even one alcoholic drink a day when pregnant
may have impaired motor skills, a new study suggests. The kids were tested on
such skills as skipping and balance beam walking, grip strength and ability to
manipulate things with their fingers. Researchers found that children exposed
in the womb to aspirin or caffeine also scored slightly lower on similar
tests.
CF CURE IS A POSSIBILITY:
The basic inherited defect behind cystic fibrosis can be corrected by gene
therapy - at least in a lab dish, new studies show. The breakthrough, reported
by two scientific teams, raises hopes for treating the USA's most common fatal
genetic disease and comes a year after discovery of the CF gene. (For more,
see special CF package below. From the USA TODAY Life section.)
SURGICAL MICROMACHINES POSSIBLE:
that could travel inside the body and make surgical repairs. Japan's Ministry
of International Trade and Industry is launching research to develop the basic
technologies. By the early 21st century, Japan plans to develop tiny machines
that travel through the body, zapping cancer cells or repairing damaged
tissue.
NUMBER OF LSD VICTIMS RISING:
As the LSD gains popularity with dealers, the number of LSD victims also
rising. According to the Illinois Department of Alcohol and Substance Abuse,
429 people were treated for LSD-related problems at state-run treatment
centers in 1989, compared to 149 in 1988. Agency officials say there appears
to be more experimentation with LSD by young users.