USA TODAY articles from February 2008

USA TODAY archives from February 2008

Lowering BMI cutoff may reduce heart attacks.(Bariatric Surgery)(body mass index )
February 1, 2008... Existing body mass index criteria for obesity surgery often exclude a group of obese patients at risk for cardiovascular disease, according to researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas. Their study is among the...

Medical boards fear aggressive prosecution.(pain management issue)
February 1, 2008... A majority of state medical board members recognizes that prolonged opioid prescribing for chronic cancer and noncancer pain is legitimate, but they believe that prosecutions of doctors for overprescribing pain medications are on the rise,...

Gastric bypass extends lifespan.(Weight Loss)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Gastric bypass and other abdominal surgeries--means of helping severely obese individuals lose large amounts of weight--have gained in popularity as more people see their relatively immediate success in individuals wanting to drop 50, 60, or...

"Skinny gene" does exist.(Obesity)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... A single gene that might control whether or not individuals tend to pile on fat has been found, a discovery that may point to new ways to fight obesity and diabetes, indicate researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center,...

Overweight toddlers most at risk.(Iron Deficiency)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Overweight toddlers and those not enrolled in day care are at high risk for iron deficiency, maintain nutritional researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas. Based on data from a national survey, their study...

Poor options affect kids' weight gain.(Nutrition)
February 1, 2008... Unhealthy options and pressures influence nearly every part of children's daily lives, maintains a study by the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. It asserts that, in most middle and high schools across the nation, contracts with soft drink...

The energy bill signed into law by Pres. George W. Bush may be a significant victory for environmentalists--mandating that auto manufacturers increase average mileage of cars, SUVs, and light trucks to 35 mpg by 2020.(HEALTH BEAT)
February 1, 2008... The energy bill signed into law by Pres. George W. Bush may be a significant victory for environmentalists--mandating that auto manufacturers increase average mileage of cars, SUVs, and light trucks to 35 mpg by 2020--but the new "standards...

For many with chronic headaches, the anxiety-laden anticipation of an episode could be as debilitating as the pain itself.(HEALTH BEAT)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... For many with chronic headaches, the anxiety-laden anticipation of an episode could be as debilitating as the pain itself. An important predictor of adjustment to pain is catastrophizing, the exaggerated anxious mental state brought on during a...

Breast cancer is among the top 10 causes of death--more than 40,000 in 2007--in women in the U.S.(HEALTH BEAT)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Breast cancer is among the top 10 causes of death--more than 40,000 in 2007--in women in the U.S. As for African-American females, notes Sulma Mohammed, associate professor of cancer biology at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind., they...

Pathological gambling appears to run in families, assert researchers at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, as their children are more likely to become pathological gamblers themselves.(HEALTH BEAT)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Pathological gambling appears to run in families, assert researchers at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, as their children are more likely to become pathological gamblers themselves. They and members of their families also are more likely to...

The ability to treat men who repeatedly abuse women may be improved through individualized therapy rather than the traditional group approach.(HEALTH BEAT)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The ability to treat men who repeatedly abuse women may be improved through individualized therapy rather than the traditional group approach. "Group treatments work for some men, but others will continue to physically, verbally,...

Antibodies associated with transplant rejection of otherwise healthy kidneys have been identified for the first time by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, collaborating with colleagues in Germany.(HEALTH BEAT)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Antibodies associated with transplant rejection of otherwise healthy kidneys have been identified for the first time by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, collaborating with colleagues in Germany....

Real food better than supplements.(Antioxidants)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... When it comes to boosting antioxidant intake, research indicates there is little benefit from ingesting supplements. A better way, according to nutritionists at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn., is eating a diet rich in antioxidant-containing...

Opening doors for African-American surgeons.(Surgery)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... "Opening Doors: Contemporary African-American Academic Surgeons" celebrates blacks' countributions to medicine and medical education. It tells the stories of four pioneers who exemplify excellence in their fields and believe in continuing that...

Pioneers of the O.R.(African-american surgeons, operating room)
February 1, 2008... Here is a closer look at the four pioneers spotlighted in "Opening Doors: Contemporary African-American Academic Surgeons": Dr. Alexa I. Canady is a neurosurgeon and professor of surgery. She was the first African-American woman pediatric...

Mineral zinc linked to blindness.(Macular Degeneration)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The mineral zinc could play a role in the development of macular degeneration, according to a team of scientists which included researchers from George Mason University, Fairfax, Va. In studying eye tissue samples, the researchers found that...

Risk of opioid addiction remains low.(Pain Management)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Some four percent of patients prescribed opioid pain medications by primary care physicians abuse the drugs, but the risk of addiction is small compared with the alternative of continuous pain and suffering from chronic noncancer pain,...

Gulf War vets more susceptible.(chronic pain)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Veterans deployed in the first Gulf War during the early 1990s have a significantly higher incidence of chronic widespread pain and poorer overall health status than vets not deployed in combat, indicates a study by the American Pain Society,...

Drug marketing aids medical decisions.(Prescriptions)
February 1, 2008... When it comes to giving samples and writing prescriptions, physicians are swayed by science--not by cozy relationships between themselves and pharmaceutical marketing reps or by advertising aimed at patients, maintains research from Emory...

Meth-laced ecstasy coming from Canda.(Drug Abuse)
February 1, 2008... Ecstasy--or MDMA, a synthetic, psychoactive (mind-altering) drug with hallucinogenic and amphetamine-like properties--laced with methamphetamine (meth) has been entering the U.S. illegal drug markets, particularly in northern border states,...

Options to prevent pounding pain.(Migraines)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Migraines are more than a bad headache. As nearly 30,000,000 Americans can attest, the throbbing pain of a migraine can be debilitating, lasting from a few hours to several days. The condition can be aggravated by light, sounds, odors,...

Drawing blood no longer necessary.(cancer detection)
February 1, 2008... A technology for cancer detection that eliminates the need for drawing blood has been developed by researchers at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. In addition to being less invasive, the new detection method is able to evaluate a much...

Post-40 weight gain decreases survival.(weight management for breast cancer patients)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Women sometimes feel there is nothing they can do to improve their chances of survival after a breast cancer diagnosis. Yet, there is, according to scientists at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill--do not gain weight after age 40....

An "Expression of Hope" from the afflicted.(exhibition of stories and art of people with Lysosomal Storage Disorders)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "I am ten years old and have MPS I. My painting of a dragon expresses the courage that everyone needs when they have MPS." Artist Nicklas Harkins describes his life with Mucopolysaccharidosis I and his strength,...

MRI reveals disease in "opposite" breast.(magnetic resonance imaging)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Women with a recent diagnosis of cancer in one breast should have a magnetic resonance imaging screening of the opposite breast, concludes a multicenter study involving University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, researchers. The international...

Pill provides tasteless alternative.(colonoscopy)
February 1, 2008... With ABC movie critic Joel Siegel's passing from colorectal cancer, Americans are reminded once again to undergo a routine colonoscopy starting at the age of 50 to screen for this disease. Timely screenings can detect the majority of colorectal...

Constipation likely cause in children.(Abdominal Pain)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The combination of acute and chronic constipation accounts for nearly half of all cases of abdominal pain in children, reports a study by the University of Iowa, Iowa City, suggesting that physicians should do a simple rectal examination for...

Benefits of community health screenings.(Diagnosis)
February 1, 2008... Consumers who queue up for health screenings at the mall, a senior center, a drug store, or other retail business could benefit from the information they learn. However, screenings in community settings have limitations. Proponents of...

Preventive measures for high school sports.(Infectious Diseases)
February 1, 2008... A set of recommendations for precautions that should be followed by parents, coaches, athletic trainers, and other health care professionals and participants in secondary school athletics has been re-released by the National Athletic Trainers'...

New technique better detects hearing loss.(Auditory System)
February 1, 2008... A new technique to diagnose hearing loss in a way that more accurately reflects real-world situations is being worked on by a researcher from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "The traditional method to assess speech understanding in...

Stress may leave your mouth a mess.(Periodontology)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... There is a positive relationship between periodontal diseases and psychological factors such as stress, distress, anxiety, depression, and loneliness, according to the American Academy of Periodontology, Chicago. Researchers speculate that the...

More effective method needed.(CPR)
February 1, 2008... A new way to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation that promises to be more effective than standard CPR because it increases nourishing blood flow through the heart by 25% over the current method has been developed by a biomedical engineer at...

Viable human blood substitute found?(Circulatory System)
February 1, 2008... Every three seconds, someone, somewhere in the U.S. needs a blood transfusion, and one in three people will need a blood transfusion in his or her lifetime. In developing countries, an average of 25% of blood in blood banks is contaminated. In...

Insulin pen saves thousands of dollars.(Diabetes)
February 1, 2008... Diabetics who need to switch from oral medications to insulin could reduce their annual health care costs up to $17,000 by using an insulin pen instead of a syringe to deliver their daily dose of medication. A study by Ohio State University,...

Chronic stress steals years from caregivers.(Alzheimer's Disease)
February 1, 2008... The chronic stress that spouses and children develop while caring for Alzheimer's disease patients may shorten the caregivers' lives by as much as four to eight years, suggests a study from Ohio State University, Columbus. The research provides...

Hospice use saves money for Medicare.(Terminal Illness)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Hospice care not only provides dying people with quality-of-life benefits, it results in significant savings to Medicare, reveals a study from Duke University, Durham, N.C. "We found that hospice care reduces Medicare spending by an average of...

Decision analysis of when to have child.(Motherhood)
February 1, 2008... Women seeking to balance career, social life, and family life in making the decision on when to have a child may benefit from applying formal decisionmaking science to this complex emotional choice. "This decision is too complex to...

Maternal and newborn death rates rising.(MORTALITY)
February 1, 2008... The global maternal death rate is estimated at between 500,000 and 600,000 a year, with 99% of the deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. However, it not only is mothers who die from the lack of maternal and obstetrical...

Estrogen protects pregnant women.(Choline Deficiency)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Young women are less likely than men or post-menopausal females to suffer liver or muscle damage from a deficiency of the nutrient choline, according to a study from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Researchers discovered that the...

Sex ed programs actually can work.(Teenage Intercourse)
February 1, 2008... A growing number of sex education programs that support abstinence and the use of contraception for sexually active teens have shown positive effects in delaying first intercourse, improving contraceptive use, and preventing pregnancy or...

HIV-1 in U.S. traced back to Haiti.(AIDS)
February 1, 2008... The AIDS virus entered the U.S. via Haiti, probably arriving in just one person in about 1969, earlier than previously believed, according to research by the University of Arizona, Tucson. After the virus, HIV-1, came into the U.S., it...

Microbicide design for AIDS prevention.(HIV Virus)
February 1, 2008... Biomedical engineers have developed a computer tool they say could lead to improvements in topical microbicides being developed for women to use to prevent infection by the virus that causes AIDS, report researchers at Duke University, Durham,...

Dark days for the dark continent.(Epidemics)
February 1, 2008... There is no precedent for the number of lives affected by the HIV epidemic, maintains Lester R. Brown, president of Earth Policy Institute, Washington, D.C., and author of Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization. To find anything similar to...