TOO MANY X-RAYS ARE HARMFUL

CT scans is associated with significant radiation exposure in some patients; the risks should be considered carefully when imaging for chronic disease and when screening asymptomatic individuals .It is estimated that 1.5-2.0% of US population cancers may be caused by CT radiation exposure. A retrospective, cohort study at a tertiary academic medical center identified 31,462 patients undergoing diagnostic CT during 2007; and 190,712 CTs over 22 years. Estimated lifetime attributable risk (LAR) for cancer was calculated. In this cohort, baseline cancer rates predicted 13,214 cancers and 6,292 fatal cancers; 98 additional cancers (62 fatal) were predicted from CT.

REFERENCE: “Recurrent CT, Cumulative Radiation Exposure and Associated Radiation-Induced Cancer Risks from CT of Adults” by Sodickson A et al. Radiology 2009;251:175-184 Colonoscopy Prevents 15,000 Cancer Cases

 Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.Please remember, as
with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.

Deepen your understanding of "medical malpractice"... www.MedMalBook.com

For more health info and links visit the author's web site www.hookman.com

Use Genetic Tests To Help Make Prescription Decisions

Medco Health Solutions Inc. "is encouraging doctors to use genetic tests to determine whether drugs will work for particular patients -- saving money and reducing harm caused when prescriptions are wrong." Medco and CVS Caremark Corp. also have increased their investments in providers of genetic testing services. Bloomberg notes that the FDA requires genetic testing for six drugs, "recommends testing before prescribing for more than two dozen medicines, and mentions diagnostic tests in the labels...of more than 150 others."

Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.Please remember, as
with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.

Deepen your understanding of "medical malpractice"... www.MedMalBook.com

For more health info and links visit the author's web site www.hookman.com

Whole-genome sequencing may soon become clinically useful.

Two newly published papers may reignite the once-"disappointing" search for the "genetic roots of major killers like heart disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer's." In the seven or so years "since first full genetic code of a human was sequenced for some $500 million, less than a dozen genomes had been decoded, all of healthy people." Now, researchers at Baylor College and the Institute for Systems Biology were able to demonstrate that it is "possible to sequence the entire genome of a patient at reasonable cost and with sufficient accuracy to be of practical use to medical researchers."

        

What makes the technology even more impressive, she said, is that these were whole genomes of people that provided 'very interesting stories about rare diseases.'" 

        University of Utah researchers, "used gene sequencing technology to take a closer look at a "four-member family. After completing and comparing the genomes, investigators were able to tell that the "two parents passed recessive genes to their two children, each of whom had a condition called Miller Syndrome that may cause cleft palates, misshapen ears, and short stature." According to the paper in Science, the children also had "a lung disorder called primary ciliary dyskinesia that can lead to pneumonia, bronchitis and other respiratory infections." 

        Indeed, "experts have long known that Miller syndrome is genetic."But they had never been able to pinpoint the gene." Having the entire family's genomes in their hands, however, "helped shrink the genetic haystack from thousands of genes to four likely targets," and investigators were also able to calculate the odds of inheriting the variants.

Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.

Deepen your understanding of "medical malpractice"... www.MedMalBook.com
For more health info and links visit the author's web site www.hookman.com

GARLIC CAN CAUSE INCREASED BLEEDING. RISKS OF “NATURAL” MEDICINES

Herbal medicines are not always the harmless nostrums that many patients and even some physicians think, but may actually contribute to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, researchers warned in a review published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology[JACC].
Many such products, including aloe vera, ginkgo biloba, ginseng, and green tea, can interact with conventional cardiovascular drugs and lead to serious adverse reactions, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The JACC article also listed 15 common herbal medicines known to interact adversely with conventional cardiovascular drugs.In many cases, the herbal products compete with the regular medicines for the same drug-metabolizing cytochrome P450 enzymes, potentiating the latter's effects. In other cases, the herbal products have their own cardiovascular effects.

Many physicians already know that even “natural” grapefruit juice occupies the CYP3A4 enzyme, leading to slower-than-expected metabolism and, therefore, higher blood levels of a host of pharmaceuticals.These include the statins, calcium channel antagonists, several common anti-arrhythmic drugs, and the angiotensin receptor blocker irbesartan (Avapro), Jahangir and colleagues noted.

Garlic is one of several common herbal remedies with specific cardiovascular effects in its own right (others include ginkgo biloba, ginseng, and saw palmetto). Garlic inhibits platelet aggregation and thus can lead to increased bleeding risks when combined with aspirin, clopidogrel (Plavix), or warfarin (Coumadin), the researchers noted.

The Mayo group identified 10 herbal products that increase bleeding risks with anticoagulant and antiplatelet drugs, and listed 27 herbal products that patients with cardiovascular diseases would do well to avoid. These include such common and harmless-seeming products as green tea, capsicum pepper, licorice, and kelp, as well as grapefruit juice and garlic.

Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.

Deepen your understanding of "medical malpractice"... www.MedMalBook.com
For more health info and links visit the author's web site www.hookman.com

Boxed Warning Added to Clopidogrel [PLAVIX] Label

Prescribing information for clopidogrel (Plavix) will now include a boxed warning that the drug can be less effective in poor metabolizers, the FDA indicated. The new warning suggests that many if not all patients on clopidogrel should undergo genetic testing to determine whether they have variants of the CYP2C19 gene associated with poor metabolism of the antiplatelet drug. Clopidogrel is actually a prodrug that requires metabolic activation by the CYP2C19 enzyme to become effective. Poor metabolizers get little or no benefit from the drug at standard doses, and therefore are at increased risk for thrombotic events and death, the FDA said. The drug's label has carried a similar warning since May 2009, but the FDA said today that "it was important to highlight this risk in a boxed warning" in light of a subsequent review of data. Seven different variants of the CYP2C19 gene are associated with poor metabolism of clopidogrel. According to the FDA, patients with two loss-of-function alleles, which do not have to be identical, will be poor metabolizers. The agency estimated that 2% to 14% of patients are poor metabolizers, with some racial-ethnic groups more likely to be affected than others. Whites have the lowest prevalence of poor metabolism and Asians have the highest. The boxed warning also includes this advice to healthcare providers: "Tests are available to identify a patient's CYP2C19 genotype and can be used as an aid in determining therapeutic strategy." A Cardiologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, claims the warning effectively means every patient on clopidogrel needs to be tested, although the new label does not say so directly. Some 25 million prescriptions for clopidogrel were written in 2008, according to Drugs.com. The FDA also recommended that physicians "consider alternative dosing" if patients are found to be poor metabolizers. The FDA urged patients currently taking clopidogrel not to stop the drug unless told to do so by their physician. Concerned patients should discuss the new information with their doctors before making any change. Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice. Deepen your understanding of "medical malpractice"... www.MedMalBook.com For more health info and links visit the author's web site www.hookman.com

40,000 Former Clinic Patients Notified About Possible Exposure To Blood-Borne Diseases Because Of Unsafe Injection Practices.

Nurse anesthetists reusing single-dose medicine vials among different patients led to as many as 115 people who contracted hepatitis C because of these unsafe injection practices at two Endoscopy centers. Officials notified 40,000 former clinic patients about possible exposure to blood-borne diseases because of unsafe injection practices. The Clinic’s staff told health investigators they were ordered by administrators, principally the physician owner, to reuse supplies and medications to save money, according to a Las Vegas letter suspending the center’s business license The police investigation ended late last year. Hundreds of former patients have sued the physician, his clinics and the manufacturers of the anesthetic, propofol, that was used during their colonoscopies. Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice. Deepen your understanding of "medical malpractice"... www.MedMalBook.com For more health info and links visit the author's web site www.hookman.com

HOW ACCURATE ARE NUTRITION PACKAGE LABELS?

According to a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, "prepared foods may contain an average of 8% more calories than their package labels own up to, and restaurant meals may contain a whopping 18% more." The misleading labels are also said to be "perfectly o.k." with the Food and Drug Administration, which "plays no role in checking the calorie claims in restaurants." Without federal regulation, "it's up to the states to handle the job - with the predictable patchwork results." Susan Roberts, who conducted the study, described the unregulated menu counts as "the Wild West when it comes to this."

Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.Please remember, as with all our articles we provide information, not medical advice. For any treatment of your own medical condition you must visit your local doctor, with or without our article[s]. These articles are not to be taken as individual medical advice.

Deepen your understanding of "medical malpractice"... www.MedMalBook.com
For more health info and links visit the author's web site www.hookman.com