July 27th 2010
This week in medicine
The following will be published in the July 31 issue of The Lancet:
Death rates A report from the UK Office for National Statistics shows that death rates in England and Wales fell by 3·5% overall between 2008 and 2009, with a decline of 2% for men and nearly 5% for women. There were 509 090 registered deaths in 2008 and 491 348 in 2009. Age-standardised rates are now the lowest ever recorded in England and Wales.
Dengue epidemic Dengue fever is reaching epidemic proportions across the Caribbean. Health officials in Puerto Rico are calling the outbreak the worst in more than a decade, and hospitals across the region are struggling with floods of new patients and overflowing emergency rooms. Officials are blaming the warm weather and early rainy season for the striking increase in numbers of mosquitoes.
Food standards Despite concerns for the future of the UK Food Standards Agency, the government has said it will retain the food safety watchdog, albeit under different divisions of labour. According to Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, by handing over some responsibilities to the government, the agency will be able to focus completely on food safety.
Rape in Borneo A report by Malaysian human rights groups has exposed cases of repeated rape and sexual assault of Penan tribeswomen in Borneo by loggers. The Penan women made previous allegations in 2008, which were dismissed by the Chief Minister of Sarawak as “lies”. A government investigation has now confirmed that the claims are true.
Regulation of cosmetics The Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010 was submitted to the US Congress on July 20. The legislation would give the US Food and Drug Administration the authority to ensure that cosmetics are free from potentially harmful ingredients and that there is transparency in product labelling. It would thus bring cosmetics into regulatory alignment with drugs and medical devices.
Yarl’s Wood closure The UK Government is to close the “family wing” of the Yarl’s Wood immigration detention centre in Bedfordshire. Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg called the imprisonment of children while they await deportation a “moral outrage”. Asylum seekers’ support groups have welcomed the decision, but lamented the government’s failure to close the facility altogether.
Bushmen’s rights Kalahari bushmen have lost a court case to lift the Government of Botswana’s ban on reopening a vital waterhole in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, the bushmen’s traditional home. The tribe was evicted to make way for diamond mines in 2002 and the waterhole sealed. Although the evictions were later declared unconstitutional, the waterhole remains inaccessible.
Australian hospitals As part of the Australian Government’s health reform agenda, a website known as MyHospitals is to be launched next month. The site will enable the public to compare accessibility, performance, quality, and safety of hospitals throughout most of Australia, as well as listing medical services, bed numbers, and whether allied health and dental services are provided.
Iraqi aid A report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that insufficient donor funding has “seriously constrained” implementation of the country’s long-term recovery programme. The report suggests that political uncertainty in Iraq has hindered financial support for the Humanitarian Action Plan launched at the beginning of the year.
Biomarkers for brain injury The US Defense Department is expected to provide US$17 million to fund a first-of-its-kind study to explore whether biomarkers can reliably assess the extent of brain injury and help doctors to decide on treatment. It is hoped that the study, expected to start next year and to involve 1000 patients across 20 hospitals, will revolutionise brain-injury care.
Deadly mushroom A rare mushroom belonging to the genus Trogia has been linked with the deaths of 400 villagers in the past 30 years in Yunnan province, China. Scientists are studying the mushroom’s toxins, which could be the cause of the Yunnan sudden death syndrome, and whether the local water supply, which contains high concentrations of barium, could increase the effect of these toxins.
World Breastfeeding Week Aug 1–7 is World Breastfeeding Week. Organised by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action, the event aims to support breastfeeding mothers and encourage adoption of WHO’s Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Innocenti Declaration on the Protection, Promotion and Support of Breastfeeding.
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