DC Metro Area Medical Malpractice Law Blog

Common ultrasound imaging may be able to reveal which patients face a particularly high risk for heart attack or other heart-related illnesses, according to research recently published in the journal Radiology -- official journal of the Radiological Society of North America.

Rotavirus cases in the current 2007-2008 season showed up much later than usual and have been less severe, overall, than during any previous season on record, according to an interim report issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

A six-fold increase in the number of liver cancer patients receiving transplants has been linked to a method of donor organ allocation which was initiated in early 2002.  The research finding was recently published in Gastroenterology, official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association.

Whole milk is as effective as diluted barium when used as an oral contrast agent for patients undergoing a gastrointestinal CT scan.  It's cheaper and safer for patients, according to a new study published in a recent edition of the American Journal of Roentgenology.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) -- a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), recently launched an educational campaign to encourage patients (particularly those 50 years of age or older) to speak openly with their primary care providers about complementary and alternative medicines.  The campaign, known as Time to Talk, focuses on medical practices and products that aren't presently considered to be conventional medicine -- items such as herbal supplements, meditation and acupuncture.

Patients who suffer a heart attack often subsequently develop acute kidney injury, a complication significantly increases a patient's risk of death.  The finding is the result of new research published in a recent edition of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

According to statistics reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), almost one in three Americans will develop shingles (herpes zoster) during their lifetime.  The disease is particularly dangerous to people over age 60 and those who are immunocompromised.  Fortunately, there is a way to reduce the risk of developing shingles and the long-term pain that often follows an outbreak of the disease.

The 2008 edition of the schedule of recommended immunizations for people 18 years of age and younger has been posted by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) -- a division of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  The advisory committee releases new recommendations annually to reflect changes in vaccine formulations and current recommendations for the use of licensed vaccines. 

This summer, don't wait until the last few busy weeks before fall school registration begins to make your child's vaccination appointment -- schedule an appointment now, and enjoy a safer summer. 

Changes from the 2007 immunization schedule are as follows:

Elevated levels of allergens in the home are associated with asthma symptoms in allergic individuals, and asthmatics who experience allergies may improve their health by reducing allergen exposures.  The findings are the result of new research published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, and reported in a recent press release by the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

A newly updated annual ranking of state medical boards by the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen has revealed widespread discrepancies in both the numbers of disciplinary actions taken against physicians' licenses, and the rates of those disciplinary actions from state to state.  Though the specific numbers have changed again this year, a pronounced trend of significant discrepancies between individual states has held constant for years.  Unless geography influences a physician's competence, these state-by-state discrepancies point to a dangerously inadequate national system of physician oversight -- one that could conceivably allow dangerous, incompetent physicians to continue to practice medicine by moving from state to state.

Despite the rising costs of fuel this year, millions of Americans will be hitting the nation's roads and airports for a summer vacation -- and for those who suffer from seasonal allergies, summer traveling can pose some unique challenges.  The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI), reminds travelers that the climate of your destination, rather than your home, determines the pollens and molds to which you'll be exposed on vacation, and that all seasonal allergy sufferers should take time to plan their clothing and needed medications appropriately. 

The academy offers the following additional allergy management tips for summer vacationers:

New hemoglobin-based artificial blood -- still unapproved for use in the U.S., but heavily studied -- appears to raise a patient's risk of heart attack and death according to an exhaustive review of clinical research data.  This latest research was published in a recent edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).  The findings have spurred critics to allege that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) put clinical trial participants in imminent danger by failing to detect or act on research data illustrating significant increases in the rates of heart attack and death reported in trials of these blood substitutes.

Laser eye surgeries such as LASIK (Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis) are quickly becoming some of the most common and technologically sophisticated procedures available for correcting relatively minor vision problems.  Generally performed on an out-patient basis with the aid of only anesthetic eye drops, LASIK procedures are usually quick and easy, and the results are often remarkable.  Unfortunately, however, the results can be underwhelming, too -- and occasionally even catastrophic. 

To help clear up some misconceptions and misinformation regarding LASIK procedures, and to help consumers better understand the risks of laser eye surgeries, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has established a web page devoted specifically to patient education.  According to the agency, there are a few categories of people who should think twice before they attempt to resolve their vision problems with LASIK surgery.

Melanoma is one of the deadliest skin cancers, but new research demonstrates that melanomas located on the scalp or neck are even twice as deadly as those found on other parts of the body.  The finding is the result of a study published in a recent edition of the medical journal Archives of Dermatology. 

A Mumps comeback in the U.S. in 2006 was alarming in its severity, and the disease may now take several years to completely eradicate, according to federal public health experts.  Interestingly, the viral outbreak occurred despite the routine administration of a second dose of a mumps vaccine throughout the early 1990s.  These findings were reported in a recent edition of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).  Among other data presented in the article is the fact that 84% of people between 18 and 24 years of age who contracted Mumps during the outbreak had already been given the second recommended dose of MMR vaccine -- a dose that should have protected them from Mumps.

Physicians treating chest pain in patients who are young, or in those who have no obvious risk factors for heart disease, should ask those patients about their potential cocaine use.  The advice is a key recommendation by the American Heart Association (AHA), recently published in the medical journal Circulation. 

If you see someone suffer a heart attack and go unconscious, immediately dial 9-1-1 and begin pushing on his or her chest as hard and as often as you can -- don't stop until someone else can take over, or until paramedics arrive.  Those are the latest instructions from the American Heart Association (AHA), which is now confident that hands-only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can be done in an emergency, even by people who have no CPR training.  Throat sweeping and mouth-to-mouth emergency breathing are still recommended, but not for bystanders -- those components are only encouraged for trained medical personnel.  The organization's new position appears in the March 29 issue of the medical journal Circulation.

Emergency Room patients treated for severe asthma often continue to have poorly controlled symptoms as much as one month afterward, according to new research published in a recent issue of  Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

West Nile virus infections can lead to significant long-term health problems, including mental and functional impairment and depression, according to data from an ongoing National Institutes of Health study recently presented at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases in Atlanta, Georgia.  The research data collected thus far, as reported by Reuters Health, suggests that the most common long-term symptoms include fatigue, weakness, depression, personality changes, difficulty walking, memory loss and blurry vision.

An American woman's risk of developing particular skin cancers is influenced by where she lives, according to a new study published in a recent edition of Archives of Internal Medicine.

National survey findings released this month demonstrate that although most adults are aware of serious eye diseases commonly associated with visual impairment, they lack critical knowledge concerning how and when to seek timely detection and treatment of those diseases.  The Survey of Public Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Related to Eye Health and Disease, was jointly sponsored by the National Eye Institute (NEI), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF).  Conducted in 2005, the survey data was made available just this month. 

A diet rich in fresh vegetables, fruits and whole grains is an excellent defense against many chronic diseases -- even some cancers -- but routinely including them in your diet can seem challenging.  University of Michigan dietary experts advise this approach:  Include them for just one day.  One day of healthy lifestyle choices, they reason, can give you the perspective and direction needed to stay the course.  Erica Wald, registered dietitian for the University of Michigan's health promotion division, provides the following suggestions for eating healthier and removing many processed foods from your diet:

As a hospital patient, you're significantly less likely to survive a heart attack on night and weekend shifts, according to a new study published in a recent edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). 

The earlier evenings and colder weather of winter are hardly as uplifting as a crisp, spring morning.  For people with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), however, the winter season can be dangerously depressing.  According to experts at the Mayo Clinic, SAD may be rooted in three components of patients' chemical makeup:

Abdominal obesity indices are a better predictor of heart disease than body mass index, according to a new study published in Circulation, the official journal of the American Heart Association.  According to the authors of the study, reliance on a waist-hip ratio, rather than a waist measurement alone, generates more accurate predictions of heart disease risk in both men and women.

The American College of Physicians (ACP) has issued clinical recommendations for the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The recommendations are published in the November 6, 2007 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine and include the use of spirometry to diagnose airflow obstruction as well as oxygen therapy in patients with resting hypoxemia. 

A new study of doctor-patient conversations regarding domestic violence reveals that cases of abuse are likely under-identified in U.S. Emergency Rooms, and that properly trained physicians can successfully convince the victims of domestic abuse to reveal the truth of their injuries, even in a hectic clinical environment.  The study, which helps to highlight the link between physical and social ills, was underwritten by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and published in the latest edition of Annals of Internal Medicine. 

There is an abundance of medical information on the Internet, but unfortunately, not all of it is accurate.  Previously on the DC Metro Area Medical Malpractice Law Blog, we've highlighted trustworthy sources of medical information on the web.  Distributors of drugs and dietary supplements sometimes use deliberately misleading marketing ploys to sell their products, though, and in those cases, knowing how to evaluate a website, itself, is a good way to safeguard against fraud.