Radiation Exposure

Radiation Exposure Radiation is energy that travels in the form of waves or high-speed particles. It occurs naturally in sunlight and sound waves. Man-made radiation is used in X-rays, nuclear weapons, nuclear power plants and cancer treatment. If you are exposed to small amounts of radiation over a long time, it raises your risk of cancer. It can also cause mutations in your genes, which you could pass on to any children you have after the exposure. A lot of radiation over a short period, such as from a radiation emergency, can cause burns or radiation sickness. Symptoms of radiation sickness include nausea, weakness, hair loss, skin burns and reduced organ function. If the exposure is large enough, it can cause premature aging or even death. You may be able to take medicine to reduce the radioactive material in your body. Environmental Protection Agency

Younger Docs More Likely to Prescribe Drugs for Heart Disease: Study But their patients are not better off than those of older docs who stress lifestyle changes

Younger Docs More Likely to Prescribe Drugs for Heart Disease: Study But their patients are not better off than those of older docs who stress lifestyle changes By Robert Preidt MONDAY, May 23 (HealthDay News) -- Older doctors are more likely to recommend lifestyle changes for patients with heart disease risk factors, while younger doctors are more likely to prescribe medications, a new study finds. But despite seeing doctors that prescribed more medications, the patients of younger doctors had no better control of their heart disease risk factors, according to the study by Italian researchers in the June issue of the International Journal of Clinical Practice. "Although younger doctors prescribed more drugs, this did not result in significantly better control of their patients' major CV [cardiovascular] risk factors, suggesting that other factors have an important role to play in the clinical management of CV risk, including lifestyle changes," Professor Massimo Volpe from the Faculty of Medicine at Sapienza University in Rome said in a journal news release. Volpe and his colleagues looked at the attitudes and prescribing habits of 1,078 family physicians, cardiologists and diabetes specialists, along with data from nearly 10,000 of their outpatients, whose average age was 67. The study found that 75 percent of the patients had high blood pressure, making it the most common cardiovascular disease risk factor. That was followed by abnormal lipid levels (cholesterol and/or fat in the blood), which affected 59 percent of patients, and diabetes (37 percent). Blood pressure drugs were the most commonly prescribed medications -- by 83 percent of doctors younger than 45, 78 percent of doctors aged 46-55, and 80 percent of doctors over 55. Younger doctors were also more likely to prescribe diabetes drugs, lipid-lowering and anti-platelet agents than older doctors. Older doctors were most likely to recommend lifestyle changes. For example, doctors over 55 were most likely to tell patients to quit smoking and doctors aged 46 to 55 were most likely to recommend a healthier diet and exercise. "We believe these findings have important implications for the ongoing professional education of doctors treating patients with CV risk," Volpe added. SOURCE: International Journal of Clinical Practice, news release, May 16, 2011

Too Many Kids Getting Antibiotics for Asthma But researchers found fewer were prescribed when doctors educated parents during visits

Too Many Kids Getting Antibiotics for Asthma But researchers found fewer were prescribed when doctors educated parents during visits TUESDAY, May 24 (HealthDay News) -- Although guidelines don't recommend antibiotics for asthma, almost 1 million children with the respiratory condition are prescribed the medications each year in the United States, a new study finds. "We are trying to reduce unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions, and this suggests that we as pediatricians are prescribing them way too often," said lead researcher Dr. Ian M. Paul, an associate professor of pediatrics at the College of Medicine of Pennsylvania State University in Hershey. Why doctors are prescribing antibiotics for asthma is not clear, Paul said. One reason might be that doctors treating severe asthma attacks "feel the need to cover all their bases by also prescribing antibiotics," he suggested. Sometimes parents may ask doctors to give their child antibiotics, but it doesn't seem to be a big factor, Paul noted. "It probably exists to some degree in clinical practice, but I don't think it happens all that frequently -- certainly not in one in every six visits for asthma," he said. "The one encouraging finding was, when asthma education was delivered as part of the visit, antibiotics were less likely to be prescribed," he added. When asthma education was not part of the visit, 19 percent of the time antibiotics were prescribed, compared with 11 percent when asthma education was given. "This suggests that we can educate families and patients and explain the causes of asthma and, hopefully, reduce unnecessary antibiotic prescribing," Paul said. The dangers of overprescribing antibiotics are that it promotes the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and there are side effects for the drugs themselves, Paul pointed out. The report was published in the May 23 online edition of Pediatrics. For the study, Paul's team used data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys and National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey to see the rate of antibiotics prescribed for children between 1998 and 2007. Over that time, there were some 60.4 million medical care visits for children with asthma for which no prescription for antibiotics was warranted. However, antibiotics were prescribed 16 percent of the time, the researchers found. Primary care doctors were most likely to prescribe antibiotics, while emergency department doctors were least likely to prescribe them, Paul said. Other factors that were linked with increased antibiotic prescribing included use of inhaled corticosteroids and being treated in the winter, the researchers noted. However, when visits to primary care doctors included asthma education, the rate of antibiotic prescribing went down, Paul stated. In a second study in the same journal, Belgian investigators led by Dr. Kris De Boeck, from the department of pediatric pulmonology and infectious diseases at the University Hospital of Leuven, found similar overprescribing of antibiotics to asthmatic children. These researchers found children treated with asthma medications were 1.9 times more likely to also get a prescription for antibiotics, compared with children not treated with asthma drugs. In fact, 35.6 percent of children who were prescribed asthma drugs were also prescribed antibiotics, the researchers found. "This finding highlights the need for educational opportunities to inform clinicians that such co-prescription should be limited," the authors concluded. Commenting on both studies, Dr. Paul Krogstad, a professor of pediatric infectious diseases at the University of California, Los Angeles, and co-author of an accompanying journal editorial, said that "these articles indicate that asthma medications and antibiotics were very commonly prescribed in tandem both here and in Belgium, which conflicts with domestic and international recommendations that point out that antibiotics have no routine use in the care of asthmatics." Antibiotic overuse confuses patients and family, Krogstad said. "They don't understand the true nature of asthma as an inflammatory, not an infectious disorder," he explained. In addition, overprescribing antibiotics entails personal and societal risks, Krogstad said. "Personal risks include allergic reactions, side effects, drug interactions and expense. Societal costs include medication-related costs and selection for drug-resistant bacteria. Antibiotic overuse is being reduced, but this remains an area where improvement is sorely needed," he said. SOURCES: Ian M. Paul, M.D., associate professor, pediatrics, College of Medicine, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, Pa.; Paul Krogstad, M.D., professor, pediatric infectious diseases, University of California, Los Angeles; May 23, 2011, Pediatrics, online

FDA Advisers Urge Infant Doses for Kids' OTC Fever Relievers Would better protect those under 2 who use products like Children's Tylenol, experts say

FDA Advisers Urge Infant Doses for Kids' OTC Fever Relievers Would better protect those under 2 who use products like Children's Tylenol, experts say WEDNESDAY, May 18 (HealthDay News) -- U.S. health advisers recommended Wednesday that dosing instructions should be added to the labels of medicines containing the widely used pain reliever and fever reducer acetaminophen to better protect children under the age of 2. In a 21-0 vote, the panel of U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisers called for adding dosing information for children 6 months to 2 years old to over-the-counter medicines such as Children's Tylenol and similar products containing acetaminophen, the Associated Press reported. Currently, the labels of such medications have dosing instructions for children aged 2 and up. For kids under 2, the labels on the liquid medicines simply tell parents to "ask a doctor." The FDA advisers said the lack of specific dosing recommendations can lead to confusion, with parents unintentionally giving too much of the medicine to children under age 2. Acetaminophen-related overdoses are most common among children younger than 2, and have increased over the past decade, according to FDA data. Wednesday's vote focused only on a small group of single-ingredient products, including J&J's Children and Infants' Tylenol, Novartis' Triaminic, Prestige Brands' Little Fevers and assorted drugstore brands, the AP said. In a second vote Wednesday, the panel recommended unanimously that these medicines should also include dosing information based on children's weight -- considered the most accurate way to determine the proper dose. Nearly all over-the-counter manufacturers already include a dosing table with both weight and age. But the FDA advisers said instructions must emphasize that weight is the preferred approach, the AP reported. In a third vote, the advisers recommended 17-3, with one abstention, that the FDA consider requiring a single dosage for children's solid acetaminophen tablets, the news service said. While the FDA is not required to follow the recommendations of its advisory panels, it usually does so. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and drug manufacturers are both strongly in favor of giving parents the additional dosing information. "If we give parents better information, they will be able to give enough of the medicine to work well, at the same time minimizing the side effects," said Dr. Daniel Frattarelli, a pediatrician in Dearborn, Mich., who chairs the academy's drug committee and who planned to testify before the joint, two-day meeting of the FDA's Nonprescription Drugs Advisory Committee and the Pediatric Advisory Committee. "Parents want to do the right thing for their children," he said. "We as a medical community have to give them that information so they are able to do this." Although the evidence shows that acetaminophen is safe for young children, parents have to be careful with it, pediatricians noted. Giving too much can be toxic to the liver, causing poisoning and even liver failure. In 2010, there were 270,000 reported overdoses of acetaminophen, according to the American Association of Poison Control Centers. Dosing errors involving children's acetaminophen products accounted for almost 7,500 cases -- nearly 3 percent. In an ideal world, the parents of infants and toddlers would still consult with their pediatrician or pharmacist to get the proper medication dosing, said Dr. William Basco, director of general pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina. But the reality is that many parents aren't doing that and are instead guessing about proper dosing. "There is no benefit to having parents guess at the right dose," Basco said. Drug makers, including McNeil Consumer Healthcare, which makes Tylenol, also support the change. "McNeil is committed to encouraging the appropriate and safe use of medicines in children, including adding new dosing information on the OTC pediatric acetaminophen label to assist caregivers and health-care providers in appropriately dosing children, especially those 6 to 23 months of age," the company wrote in materials submitted to the FDA. By way of comparison, drugs containing ibuprofen -- another heavily used over-the-counter fever reducer -- already include dosing information for children under age 2. Children's medications containing acetaminophen have been sold over-the-counter since 1959, and dosing information for children has been on the labels since the 1970s, according to McNeil. Back then, doses for kids were somewhat crude -- children 12 and up were advised to take the adult dose, kids 6 to 12 were told to take half that, and kids younger than 6 were told to take a quarter of the adult dose. Since then, as physicians have learned more about the medications, dosing recommendations for infants and toddlers have become more refined and now should be based on weight, not age, according to the AAP. (Age is still listed on package labeling, the AAP explained.) Kids' weights can range widely at any given age, so the correct dose for a child on the heavier side may not be the correct dose for a smaller child of the same age. Though acetaminophen is safe even in newborns if used correctly, the drug makers and the AAP called for expanding the labeling information for children 6 months old and up. Parents should still be encouraged to consult with their physicians before giving medication to younger children, especially those under the age of 3 months, Frattarelli said. Fevers of more than 100.4 degrees need to be taken very seriously in infants, whose immune systems are not fully developed and whose vaccinations haven't yet fully kicked in, he explained. Earlier this month, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, a trade association for over-the-counter drug-makers, agreed to sell only one concentration of acetaminophen in products for infants and children to prevent dosing errors. Previously, for example, Infant's Tylenol liquid drops were much more concentrated than Children's Tylenol, which could easily lead to confusion if parents didn't read the label or know there was a difference. Drug-makers agreed to phase out the infant drops concentration starting in the middle of this year. In any given week, about 23 percent of kids under age 2 are given acetaminophen, according to background information from McNeil. "Acetaminophen dosing errors are a rare but potentially very severe adverse event that could lead to liver failure or even death for kids," said Dr. Richard Dart, president of the American Association of Poison Control Centers, in a news release. "This decision will lessen the chance that parents will give their children the wrong dose." SOURCES: William Basco, M.D., director, general pediatrics, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston; Daniel Frattarelli, M.D., pediatrician, Dearborn, Mich., and chair, American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs; U.S. Food and Drug Administration Web site; Associated Press

Is My Child at Risk for Kidney Disease?

Is My Child at Risk for Kidney Disease? Some diseases and conditions put children at risk for kidney disease. A urine test is used to check for kidney disease before symptoms appear. Read more to learn about risk factors, the urine test, and treatment for kidney disease. What do the kidneys do? Your child has two kidneys. Their main job is to filter wastes and extra water from the blood. Wastes and water pass through the kidneys and leave the body as urine. The kidneys also make hormones that help the body make blood and keep the bones strong. What is kidney disease? Infections or other health problems can cause kidney disease. When a child has kidney disease, the kidneys may not work normally. This may lead to a harmful buildup of wastes in the body. How can I find out if my child has kidney disease? A urine test can be used to check for kidney disease if your child is at risk. Testing is important because early kidney disease often has no symptoms. Your child will urinate in a cup, and the sample will be tested for kidney disease. What does the urine test look for? The urine test checks for albumin. Albumin is a protein in your child’s blood that is too big to pass through healthy kidneys. If your child’s kidneys are damaged, small amounts of albumin can pass into the urine through the kidneys. In general, the more albumin there is in the urine, the more damaged the kidneys are. What does high urine albumin mean? A high urine albumin level may mean that your child has kidney disease. Your health care provider may do other tests for kidney disease, including a blood test, which checks how well the kidneys are filtering. Can kidney disease be treated? Kidney disease has many possible causes. The first step is to learn the cause of the kidney disease. Medicine and other treatments usually can’t undo the damage that has been done, but they may help prevent more harm. Your provider may ask you to take your child to a nephrologist—a doctor who treats patients with kidney disease. How do I know if my child is at risk for kidney disease? Your child may be at risk for kidney disease if he or she: is overweight has pain in the back, side, or lower belly complains of burning or pain when urinating, has changes in the urine, or often wets his or her pants has unexplained fever has swelling in the feet, ankles, or legs wakes up with swollen eyelids becomes dehydrated often has a family member with kidney disease Other conditions that may put your child at increased risk for kidney disease include: SGA (small for gestational age) a growth disorder diabetes high blood pressure rickets (soft bones caused by too little vitamin D) other conditions that run in families, such as polycystic kidney disease, Alport Syndrome, or heart disease

FDA clears first test to diagnose Q fever in military personnel serving overseas

FDA clears first test to diagnose Q fever in military personnel serving overseas The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today cleared the first nucleic acid amplification test to diagnose the early stages of Q fever infections in military personnel serving overseas. The Chemical Biological Medical System Joint Project Management Office within the U.S. Department of Defense funded the development of this test, which identifies and detects the bacteria that cause Q fever (Coxiella burnetii) within four hours. The test was developed by Idaho Technology Inc. Q fever is an emerging infectious disease among U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq and worldwide. Q fever can cause acute or chronic illness in humans, who usually acquire infections after contact with infected animals or exposure to contaminated environments. If diagnosed early, most people with Q fever fully recover after treatment with appropriate antibiotics. Failure to treat an infection can, however, result in serious chronic illness. The FDA cleared this test to be used on the Defense Department’s Joint Biological Agency Identification and Diagnostic System (JBAIDS), a multiple use instrument that can be used for the rapid detection of numerous bacteria and viruses, such as the bacteria that cause Q fever. The test is performed on the JBAIDS instrument and determines if Coxiella burnetii DNA is present in a patient’s blood sample. Use of the test is limited to designated Department of Defense laboratories equipped with the JBAIDS. “It’s important that the FDA protect our troops from biothreats using innovative diagnostics,” said Jeffrey Shuren, M.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health. “Q fever bacteria is considered a biothreat agent in part due to the fact that fewer than 10 organisms need to be inhaled to cause infection and its ability to withstand open environments.” According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Q fever was first recognized as a human disease in Australia in 1935 and in the United States in the early 1940s. The “Q” stands for “query”—at that time, the causative agent was unknown. Idaho Technology Inc. is based in Salt Lake City.