HEALTH
What prevents falls after strokes? Study: Not much Posted July 30, 2010
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - While most stroke survivors will suffer falls, strategies to prevent these dangerous events continue to fall short, suggests a new study out of Australia. Up to three in four stroke survivors fall within six months of their stroke, and these falls can lead to serious injuries ...More
The pill equally effective in obese, thin women Posted July 30, 2010
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Despite studies suggesting that birth control pills might not work as well in obese women, a new study suggests that they prevent pregnancy the same no matter what a woman weighs. As long as a woman-heavy or thin--took the pill consistently, Dr. Carolyn L. Westhoff of ...More
Does CPR on a moving stretcher work? Posted July 30, 2010
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Paging script-writers: Pumping on a patient's chest during CPR while a stretcher careens down a hospital hallway works just fine, Chinese researchers have found. By straddling patients on the stretcher -- think "ER," the American TV drama -- paramedics can get them faster to and from the ...More
Editor changes industry-backed tanning pill study Posted July 30, 2010
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A journal editor has scrubbed a line supporting the use of a L'Oreal-Nestle tanning pill from the conclusion of a company-sponsored study. The edits come days after a Reuters Health story -- http://link.reuters.com/wuv52n -- about serious shortcomings in the report. Dr. Tanya Bleiker ...More
Two die in Florida from mosquito-borne disease Posted July 30, 2010
TAMPA, Florida (Reuters) - Two Florida residents have died from Eastern equine encephalitis, a mosquito-borne disease that is rare among humans but has infected a rising number of horses in the state, health officials said on Friday. Both deaths were in the Tampa area, where a woman died on July 1 ...More
Eastern Africa polio-free, but cases found in Russia Posted July 30, 2010
GENEVA (Reuters) - Eastern Africa is free of polio again, with four countries -- Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda -- having reported no cases of the crippling disease for more than a year, U.N. and other aid agencies said Friday. But the virus appears to have spread from Tajikistan, where it has ...More
Little harm seen from painkiller shots for pro athletes Posted July 30, 2010
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - When professional athletes in sports like football and rugby are injured, they commonly get injections of pain-numbing anesthetics to help them stay in the game. Now a new study suggests that, while safety concerns remain, most athletes may not suffer any long-term harm from the practice ...More
