| Managing asthma
The great majority of the nearly 23 million people with asthma, including 6.5 million children, can avoid serious symptoms and disability if they follow the latest guidelines to keep their disease under control. Highlights of the 2007 asthma guidelines from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) were presented during the Annual Meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in an effort not only to increase awareness of the new recommendations, but to help make sure they get put into practice. "Asthma is not an event, it is a chronic disease that can be managed so that symptoms are controlled and severe attacks are prevented," said Michael B. Foggs, M.D chief of asthma, allergy and immunology, Advocate Health Care, Chicago.
Novel Therapies May At Last Bring Relief for U.S. Hereditary Angioedema Patients
Although there is currently no treatment approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) for acute attacks of hereditary angioedema (HAE) – a genetic disease causing swelling of extremities, face and internal organs that can be life-threatening – hope is on the horizon according to a team of experts presenting the latest research at the ACAAI Annual Meeting. .
Scott County: Group OKs consolidated dispatch
An intergovernmental agreement creating a consolidated dispatching center came one step closer to completion Tuesday with approval by the Scott County Emergency Management Commission.The commission approved the agreement 5-1, with Maysville Fire Chief Scott Roenfeldt casting the lone dissenting vote.The Davenport and Bettendorf city councils and Scott County Board of Supervisors are scheduled to vote on the agreement to create the Scott Emergency Communications Center (SECC) at a combined meeting Dec. 12.Roenfeldt wasn’t against consolidated dispatching, but opposed the agreement because he would like to see representation from rural communities. The agreement calls for a caucus of mayors of the outlying communities to choose one mayor to serve on the governing board. Roenfeldt would like to see four mayors serving on it."I think consolidated dispatching is good for Scott County," he said.Along with the rural mayor, the proposed governing board would include the mayors of Davenport and Bettendorf, the chairman of the board of supervisors and the executive director of Medic EMS.Scott County Sheriff Dennis Conard said a concern that the rural areas of the county don’t have a strong enough voice on the governing board is unfounded, saying the board will work for consensus as it moves forward.Rural communities are represented by the mayor, but also have representation by the Scott County board chairman, while the county’s largest city has one vote, Scott County administrator Ray Wierson said.Bettendorf Fire Chief Gerry Voelliger called the intergovernmental agreement "a framework document.""It is the first official step toward consolidated dispatch in Scott County," he said.
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Washington Adventist, Shady Grove Adventist, Suburban, Montgomery General, Holy Cross and Frederick Memorial are the latest in Maryland to enact a stricter ban. They join major companies such as Bethesda defense and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin Corp. and other hospitals including Greater Baltimore Medical Center. Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, where it is responsible for about 438,000 deaths annually, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some 38,000 die because of secondhand smoke exposure, the agency says. Cigarette smoking costs more than $167 billion in lost employee productivity and medical expenses, according to the center. Health care costs related to secondhand smoke run about $10 billion annually.
Unions organize to protest anti-strike legislation: 500 protesters rally at Province House
Chanting and taunting premier Rodney MacDonald, about 500 unionized health-care workers and their supporters demanded their right to strike be left alone. "Hey hey, ho ho, Rodney's gotta go," they chanted in a brief march around Province House and numerous times through the rally. Even though both opposition parties have said they will defeat the government's plan to introduce anti-strike legislation for health-care workers, the unions said the government measures are really anti-labour. Union speakers said the issue could one day extend beyond health workers. The upbeat crowd waved union flags and yelled "shame" when talking about the legislation and other perceived injustices. Janet Hazelton, president of the Nova Scotia Nurses Union, said nurses are over-worked and tired. "They're tired of all the work, tired of the overtime, tired of their vacations being cancelled, they're just tired.
CT Scans To Determine Heart Disease In The Emergency Room
In the future, patients who arrive at a hospital Emergency Department complaining of chest pain may be diagnosed with a sophisticated CT scan. If the diagnosis is negative, the patient can go home�"and the total time at the hospital will be much shorter than it is today.
That is the theory behind a study being presented at the RSNA (Abstract ID: 5009389; Monday, November 26, 3:10 p.m.) by Rajan Agarwal, M.D., a resident in Radiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
"The cost of chest pain triage (where patients in the Emergency Department are prioritized based on their symptoms) and management has been estimated to be as high as $8 billion annually, with most patients ultimately not having to remain in the hospital. Therefore," Dr. Agarwal states, "there is a tremendous opportunity to reduce health care costs if we can demonstrate the cost-effectiveness of this procedure with low-risk patients who go to the Emergency Department."
Further, this reduced length of stay improves resource utilization by decreasing costs, improving inpatient bed shortages and reducing crowding in the Emergency Department.
AAAAI: 'Tis the Season for Allergic Reactions
With the holiday season just around the corner, millions of Americans are preparing to decorate their homes, gather for feasts and travel to visit relatives. However, for allergy and asthma sufferers, the holiday season presents several potential triggers, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI). "Whether it's feasting on holiday meals, setting up your Christmas tree, or visiting your pet-owning relatives, allergy triggers may be lurking inside of our warm, cozy homes this time of year," said Alisa M. Smith, PhD, FAAAAI, vice-chair of the AAAAI's Indoor Allergen Committee. "Unfortunately, with busy schedules, travel time and the stress of the holidays, it is easy to forget to take the proper care when dealing with allergies and asthma. However, avoiding potential triggers and taking the proper precautions is necessary to keep symptoms under control," Smith added.
Food v drugs
Out of all the things likely to shorten our lives in the UK, coronary heart disease is the most likely. It is believed that almost 80 per cent of adults have total cholesterol levels above the ideal and that raised cholesterol and fats in the blood are responsible for well over half the deaths caused by the disease. Lowering cholesterol levels has, not surprisingly, become a big focus of the NHS, and to this end, the mass prescription of a group of cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins is under way to those whose cholesterol levels register as "high" in routine GP tests. Statins work by blocking enzymes that play a key role in the production of cholesterol in your liver (most cholesterol in our blood is made in our liver rather than being eaten directly in food). About three million of us are knocking back statins daily, millions more are being offered them and there is a proposal that these drugs should ultimately be offered to all men over 50 and women from the age of 60.
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