August 26th 2008
This week in medicine
The following will be published in the Aug 30 issue of The Lancet:
Rising floods WHO reports that flooding caused by heavy rain across west Africa poses major health risks. Malaria, yellow fever, and diarrhoea are among the potential diseases, and tens of thousands of people have been displaced. Damage to bridges, roads, and railway lines is making aid access difficult. Futhermore, the loss of food crops will exacerbate the food crisis in this malnourished region.
American measles The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is concerned about an upsurge in measles—131 cases across 16 US states were reported between January and July, 2008. This incidence is the highest since 1996. Of 95 patients who were eligible for vaccination, 63 were unvaccinated because of philosophical or religious beliefs. The CDC aims to educate parents on the dangers of measles and the importance of vaccination.
Safer medicines Iraq has pledged to stop the import of illegal medicines by Sept 1, 2008. The Ministry of Health has concluded that 70% of all Iraq’s medicines are either illegally imported or have expired. These drugs can cause adverse effects such as internal bleeding. Medicines can now only be imported at six border points, where strict checks are in place to ensure their authenticity.
Neuroscience centre University College London (UCL), UK, is expected to host a research centre to investigate the role of neural circuits in behaviour. The £140 million centre will be jointly funded by the Wellcome Trust and the Gatsby Charitable Foundation. The strength of the neuroscience centre at UCL might have led to its selection as the preferred host university, but a final decision is yet to be made.
Cancer PET scans The Academy of Molecular Imaging has called for positron emission tomography (PET) scans to be covered by Medicare, the US Government’s health plan, for nine additional cancer types. However, a panel of experts expressed a lack of confidence that the scans could help doctors to make better decisions.
Aid effectiveness The third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness meets in Accra, Ghana, this week. Ministers from more than 100 countries, heads of development agencies, and donor and civil-society organisations, will “review progress in improving aid effectiveness, broaden the dialogue to newer actors, and chart a course for continuing international action”.
Palliative care Audit Scotland reports that availability of specialist palliative care varies significantly across Scotland-numbers of specialist staff vary from 4·1 per 100 000 people in NHS Ayrshire and Arran to 11·2 in NHS Highland. 90% of specialist care was delivered to patients with cancer, which accounts for less than 30% of deaths.
Chinese counselling A pilot programme in China will set up counselling hotlines in all major cities to help the population to cope with rapid social and economic changes that might lead to increasing psychological pressures. The service will be especially important for provinces affected by the Sichuan earthquake in May.
Huntington’s drug Tetrabenazine is the first drug to be approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat chorea in Huntington’s disease. Tetrabenazine is a centrally acting, selective, and reversible dopamine-depleting drug. It is contraindicated in patients who are depressed or suicidal, and side-effects can include insomnia, drowsiness, restlessness, and nausea.
Breastfeeding The Goverment of Kyrgyzstan is considering a draft law to boost breastfeeding by regulating the sale of infant milk formula. According to the Health Ministry, 50% of children are anaemic in some provinces and 25% are stunted because of insufficient nutrition. This is probably caused by low rates of exclusive breastfeeding in infants younger than 6 months and proliferation of infant milk products.
Beating leukaemia Dutch swimmer Maarten van der Weijden raced to win gold at the Beijing Olympics, finishing the 10 km marathon in 1 h 51 min and 51·6 s. This feat is all the more miraculous given that he was diagnosed with leukaemia in 2001, but recovered after a stem-cell transplant and chemotherapy. He said his illness taught him “to think step by step and to be patient.”
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