Discuss risks of radiation imaging: cardiologists

Posted on Tuesday, September 30, 2014


Discuss risks of radiation imaging: cardiologists

By Kathryn Doyle NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Cardiologists should discuss with patients the risks and benefits of chest imaging using ionizing radiation before the procedure, according to a new statement endorsed by several medical organizations. Ionizing radiation, which can come from cardiac stress tests, CT scans and certain heart procedures, is tied to increased cancer risk. “There is continuing concern on the part of patients in the area of ionizing radiation,” said Dr. Andrew J. Einstein, an associate professor of medicine in radiology at Columbia University in New York. ...

After-school exercise may improve thinking skills, fitness

By Kathryn Doyle NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children who participated in a physical activity program after school did better on thinking tasks than kids who didn’t take part in the program, according to a new study. Participants in the nine-month program performed better on tasks that tested their abilities to block out distractions, focus and multitask, said Charles H. Hillman, the study’s lead author from the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Those skills, he added, are needed by people throughout their lives. ...

Acupuncture may not be effective for knee pain: study

A patient lies on a bed as he undergoes acupuncture treatment at Beijing's Capital Medical University Traditional Chinese Medicine HospitalBy Kathryn Doyle NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Acupuncture won't improve chronic knee pain in middle-aged people, researchers say. In their study, real acupuncture using needles and lasers was no more helpful than sham acupuncture for chronic knee pain among people 50 years old and older. “It is surprising that our study showed acupuncture was not effective compared to sham acupuncture, because many people with chronic knee pain report that treatment with acupuncture is beneficial for their symptoms,” said Rana S. Hinman, the study’s lead author from the University of Melbourne, Australia. ...



Obama has been briefed about Ebola case in Dallas: White House

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has been briefed about the case of Ebola diagnosed in Dallas, the White House said on Tuesday. Obama was given the details by Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Frieden told reporters earlier he had no doubt that local and federal health authorities could contain the potential spread of the deadly virus in the United States. (Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Advocates file petition to legalize marijuana in Mississippi

By David Minsky (Reuters) - Marijuana advocates in Mississippi have filed a petition to put the legalization of recreational pot use on the politically conservative state's 2016 ballot, state officials said Tuesday. The petition, filed Monday, comes amid a broader, nationwide push for marijuana legalization spurred by Washington state and Colorado voting to become the first U.S. states to allow recreational use of the drug in 2012. Some 23 states and the District of Columbia permit medical marijuana use, though the drug remains illegal under federal law. ...

Time to Let the Sunshine In

By AARP Executive Vice President Debra Whitman, Ph.D. and AARP Director of Health Services Research Leigh PurvisStarting today, AARP members and consumers of all ages will be able to get a better idea of what may be driving their health care provider's decisions thanks to the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, or Sunshine Act. The Sunshine Act...

Cameron to woo voters with healthcare spending pledge

Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron leaves Downing Street for the House of Commons, in central LondonBy William James BIRMINGHAM England (Reuters) - British Prime Minster David Cameron will on Wednesday promise increased healthcare spending if voters re-elect him next year -- a political carrot aimed at balancing the stick of welfare cuts set out by his finance minister earlier in the week. The pledge will come in the final address of what has been a turbulent annual party conference for Cameron's Conservatives, after a sex scandal and the embarrassing defection of a lawmaker to the anti-European Union UK Independence Party threatened to overshadow their rallying cry for the 2015 vote. ...



FTC to retailers: Drop your caffeinated drawers

In this 2006 photo, airport passengers pass by Norm Thompson retail outlet at Portland International Airport in Portland. The Federal Trade Commission announced this week that two companies have agreed to refund $1.5 million to consumers who purchased "shapewear" that supposedly can reduce cellulite and fat because it's infused with caffeine, vitamin E and other things. In a settlement, Norm Thompson Outfitters of Oregon, and Wacoal America Inc. of New Jersey agree not to make claims that their products cause weight loss or a reduction of body size. (AP Photo/The Oregonian, Dana E. Olsen)PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — If you purchased caffeine-infused underwear because of promises it will make you thinner, federal regulators say you were hoodwinked — but at least you can get your money back.



Texas patient confirmed as first Ebola case diagnosed in U.S.

DALLAS – A man who recently arrived in Texas from Liberia has been confirmed as having the first case of Ebola to be diagnosed in the U.S.

Cutting Greenhouse Gas Emissions Could Save 3,500 Lives Per Year: Report

Cutting Greenhouse Gas Emissions Could Save 3,500 Lives Per Year: ReportWASHINGTON –- Save the planet, save lives?A study released Tuesday says reducing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants in order to curb global warming also would improve health for Americans. That's because reducing greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide would lead to declines in other pollutants -- saving up to 3,500 American lives per...



Government confirms first case of Ebola in US

Director of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Dr. Tom Frieden speaks during a news conference after confirming that a patient at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital has tested positive for Ebola, the first case of the disease to be diagnosed in the United States, announced Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2014, in Atlanta. The person, an adult who was not publicly identified, developed symptoms days after returning to Texas from Liberia and showed no symptoms on the plane, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)DALLAS (AP) — The first case of Ebola diagnosed in the U.S. was confirmed Tuesday in a patient who recently traveled from Liberia to Dallas — a sign of the far-reaching impact of the out-of-control epidemic in West Africa.



Olympic swimming champ Phelps arrested on drunken driving charge

Swimming: USA National Championships-FinalsBy Steve Ginsburg WASHINGTON (Reuters) - American swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, was arrested for drunken driving early on Tuesday after speeding and then crossing the double-lane lines inside a Baltimore tunnel, police said. The 18-time Olympic gold medalist later apologized for the incident, saying he was "deeply sorry to everyone I have let down." Police said Phelps, 29, was clocked by radar around 1:40 a.m. traveling 84 miles per hour (135 kph) in a 45-mph (72-kph) zone. He was booked and released. ...



Watch: CDC Director Confirms First Ebola Diagnosis in US

Dr. Tom Frieden holds a news conference to confirm patient traveling from Liberia was diagnosed in a hospital in Texas.

Trio of pharma companies jump after CDC confirms U.S. Ebola case

Some of the ultrastructural morphology displayed by an Ebola virus virion is revealed in this undated handout colorized transmission electron micrographNEW YORK (Reuters) - Several pharmaceutical companies with potential Ebola treatments jumped in extended trade on Tuesday after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the first case of the virus diagnosed in the country. U.S.-listed shares of Tekmira Pharmaceuticals jumped 20.6 percent to $25.50, BioCryst Pharmaceuticals surged 14.5 percent to $11.20 while Sarepta Therapeutics climbed 8.2 percent to $22.83. (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Chris Reese)



Worst Ebola outbreak on record tests global response

(Reuters) - International agencies and governments are fighting to contain the world's worst Ebola epidemic since the disease was identified in 1976. The virus, which causes fever and bleeding, has killed at least 3,000 people. Here is a timeline of the outbreak: March 22: Guinea confirms a previously unidentified hemorrhagic fever, which killed over 50 people in its southeastern Forest Region, is Ebola. One study traces the suspected original source to a 2-year-old boy in the town of Gueckedou. Cases are also reported in the capital, Conakry. ...





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