[sunnykerr]

http://www.fanforum.com/f117/girl-cr...tone-62882670/
http://www.fanforum.com/f117/abortio...s-nd-62880081/
http://www.fanforum.com/f117/vaccine...ules-62879117/
http://www.fanforum.com/f117/third-h...-too-62872549/
http://www.fanforum.com/f117/interna...tems-62842095/
http://www.fanforum.com/f117/listeri...call-62852325/

Banned by 4N6 DNA

[sunnykerr]

IVF: First baby born using 'safer' method In a world first, a healthy baby has been born using a "safer" method of the infertility treatment IVF. Baby Heath - who is now nearly eight weeks old - was conceived using a natural hormone to kick-start his mother's ovaries. UK doctors at Hammersmith Hospital and Imperial College London say their pioneering "kisspeptin" treatment could help many other women. It avoids a rare but fatal complication seen with conventional IVF. Experts welcomed the breakthrough but warned it would be years before the treatment became widely available. Studies in more women are needed. IVF risks About one in every 100 women undergoing usual IVF treatment will develop a severe form of a medical condition called ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome or OHSS. Instead of producing a few eggs as desired, the ovaries go into overdrive and produce lots in response to the potent fertility drugs. While most women with OHSS will have mild symptoms and recover, those few with severe OHSS become very ill and can die. Doctors are always on the look-out for warning signs of OHSS and keep a close eye on the tens of thousands of women who undergo IVF each year in the UK. Now UK experts say they have found a way to make IVF safer by using kisspeptin. Lead researcher Prof Waljit Dhillo, from Imperial College London, and Dr Geoffrey Trew, who runs an IVF clinic at London's Hammersmith Hospital, have carried out the first human trials of this new fertility drug. The early results in 30 women show kisspeptin can be used to stimulate egg release in a gentler, more natural way. Kisspeptin worked in 29 of the 30 women and 28 of the women were then able to use their eggs to attempt IVF. So far only one baby - a healthy boy called Heath - has been born. Success story Heath's mother, Suzie Kidd who is 34 and from Hitchen, says she is ecstatic that she was chosen to take part in the trial. "We already have one son, Lochlann, through IVF on the NHS so I didn't think we could be that lucky again. "We are so, so grateful." When asked if, in the future, she would tell Heath about his importance to medical science, she said: "I guess. I wasn't really aware it was a big deal." Dr Trew said: "We're absolutely thrilled that this study has resulted in the birth of a healthy baby boy. "Each year, thousands of couples in the UK start families using IVF treatment and if we can work towards eliminating the risk of OHSS, using the naturally occurring hormone kisspeptin, we can hopefully help even more women and make the treatment potentially safer." When the researchers finish their current study this summer they hope to begin bigger trials in patients at high risk of OHSS. Prof Richard Fleming of the British Fertility Society said experts have been striving to make IVF less risky, although it is generally a safe procedure. "What's been the conventional treatment for the last 30 years is risky. This looks like another way to make the whole IVF process safer." He said it was too early to recommend kisspeptin routinely as more trails were needed. "If women are concerned, their doctor can explain the risks and merits of IVF and recommend what is the best treatment. There are patients who are far better treated with conventional IVF." The study was funded by the Medical Research Council UK and the National Institute for Health Research and the results are being presented this week at The Endocrine Society's annual meeting in San Francisco, California.

Source

So, obviously, more results have to be produced before this becomes a standard practice.

But, for women who will use IVF down the line, I suppose it's progress, right?

[quaist]

Tftnt! That's apparently great news

[sunnykerr]

You're quite welcome.

And it seems to be developing towards good news, for sure.

[sunnykerr]

Lancet call for independent Guantanamo medical care An open letter published in the Lancet medical journal calls for hunger-striking Guantanamo Bay detainees to receive independent medical care. More than 150 doctors and medical professionals signed the letter to US President Barack Obama. At least 100 prisoners are protesting against their indefinite detention by refusing food. An earlier letter by 13 detainees said it was impossible to trust military doctors who had helped force-feed them. The detainees are being held at the US military prison on Cuba which Mr Obama has said he will make a renewed attempt to close. Lawyers representing some of those on hunger strike say their clients regularly collapse through weakness as the protest takes its toll. The letter published in the Lancet on Wednesday said the detainees had "very good reason" not to trust US medical doctors, as they are required to follow orders of military commanders. "Without trust, safe and acceptable medical care of mentally competent patients is impossible," the letter said. "Since the detainees do not trust their military doctors, they are unlikely to comply with current medical advice. "That makes it imperative for them to have access to independent medical examination and advice, as they ask, and as required by the UN and World Medical Association." Ahmed Belbacha, a 43-year-old Algerian who has been held at Guantanamo for the past 11 years, said every day of the hunger strike was "an ordeal". Speaking to the BBC's Newshour through his lawyer, he said prisoners are shackled as they are force-fed, and strapped into a feeding chair with their hands tied to their stomachs. The process is often made worse by the "inexperience or indifference" of medical staff, and many detainees vomit during or after the process, he said. "I try to do it when they will not notice - because if they did they would put me in the chair and feed me again. "The medical staff is scared because they don't know how to measure the vitals with all the shackling and cannot complain," he said. "I tell the doctors that force feeding me is a violation of their medical ethics, but they say that the order comes from the guards and they have no control." 'Koran mishandled' The current hunger strike, which began in February, is the longest in the military prison's history. Lawyers representing detainees say it was sparked by tougher prison searches. The US military, which runs the camp, says those searches uncovered various banned items, including homemade weapons that have been used to attack prison guards. The detainees' lawyers claim that during those searches the Koran was mishandled - something the US military strongly denies. The signatories to the Lancet letter add that if detainees are ever to be transferred out of Guantanamo, they must be fit to do so. They said doctors were "prepared to visit [the detainees] under appropriate conditions, to assist in their recovery and release, and certify when we are confident it is medically safe for them to fly".

Source

The fact that the prison continues to be open is an obvious political and human-rights catastrophe.

But, putting that aside since nothing really new can be said about that, the hunger strike brings an interesting new consideration to my attention.

It does seem particularly bizarre that these detainees cannot have access to medical staff outside of the jurisdiction of the military.

I mean, even war zones have Doctor Without Borders. Most prisons will allow outisde consultants if the need arises and/or a detainee makes the proper request through the proper channels.

I'm not saying that, outside of Gitmo, people only need to snap their fingers to get proper medical care, far from it of course. But usually there is at least the possibility of seeing someone who isn't under orders to make your life as hard as humanly possible.

Whether that is deserved or not.

[sunnykerr]

Brazil, Colombia to study Vancouver's harm reduction drug strategy VANCOUVER -- Delegates from Colombia and Brazil hope to replicate Vancouver's innovative approach to harm reduction around illegal drug use even as the Canadian government aims to impose stricter rules for opening supervised injection sites. Representatives of Viva Rio, a non-profit organization in Rio De Janeiro, and a government official from Colombia visited Insite, Vancouver's safe injection site, on Tuesday, saying they're looking for a way to lower the impact of drug use in their countries. Ines Mejia, an advisor to Colombia's public health ministry, said marijuana and cocaine are the most prevalent drugs in the country, particularly in large cities such as Medelline and Bogota. However, she said the country is witnessing a rise in heroine consumption, and there are few resources available to respond to the drug use. Mejia said she hopes to sell the Vancouver model of needle-exchange programs to her government when she gets home. "The money that is allotted to drugs is more than anything used in supplies for fighting the drug lords, the illicit plantations," she said through an interpreter. "The internal use of drugs in our country is just starting to be identified, so the percentage of those resources being used now is only at 10 per cent. It's very low." The visit came in the wake of new federal legislation tabled earlier this month that would require a list of conditions to be met before new Canadian facilities can be allowed to open. The conditions listed in Bill C-65 include requiring applicants of drug injection sites to consult with community, provincial and municipal authorities, as well as law enforcement, before they will be granted an exemption that allows for illegal drugs to be used for medical and scientific purposes and for activities that are in the public interest. The bill, called the Respect for Communities Act, didn't pass through Parliament before the House recessed for summer. Liz Evans, executive director of the Portland Hotel Society, which co-manages Insite, said many countries have expressed an interest in the supervised injection facility since it opened in 2003. Just weeks ago, the deputy mayor of Rio De Janeiro visited the facility in preparation for the 2016 Summer Olympics and the Fifa World Cup next year. "It's sort of shocking that in our own country, the acknowledgment isn't there that this is actually saving lives and improving the health of the community in a very effective way," Evans said. No one from the federal Ministry of Health responded to a request for an interview on the subject. Earlier this week, a report by the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS said that Vancouver's approach to illicit drug use is effective because the number of people reported sharing needles dropped dramatically between 1996 and 2011. The report also concluded that the health of drug users has improved, and more people are accessing addictions treatment. Evans said lawyers are currently examining how Bill C-65 could impact Insite's potential to renew its exemption from the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. A Supreme Court of Canada decision in 2011 allowed the Vancouver clinic to stay open despite the Conservative government's repeated objections.

Source

It would be so ironic if the world started copying the Vancouver model only for the Harper government to render it completely moot.

Of course, it is in line with the Harper government to criminalize behaviour and morality as opposed to trying to reduce harm to society and people.

Here's to hoping that the Brazilian and Columbian visitors walk away with the right message.

[GardenSirens]

That is a wonderful opportunity to set a good example! I hope it happens!

[sunnykerr]

A sensible approach to drug policy would be something I'd be in favour of.

I've never though drugs were a good thing, but then neither are cigarettes and alcohol when you think about it.

Some drugs are obviously far more harmful than others but I don't think it helps anyone to come down hard on the people who do the drugs. They're not the ones enriching themselves.

I don't know. It may be incredibly naive of me, but I do feel like the real objective should be harm reduction.

Treat the bit that's addiction as the disease that it is and leave the criminal element... well, as out of it as it can reasonably be expected to be left out of it.

[sunnykerr]

At least 22 Indian schoolchildren die, more sick after eating tainted free lunch PATNA, India -- The children started falling violently ill soon after they ate the free school lunch of rice, lentils, soybeans and potatoes. The food, part of a program that gives poor Indian students at least one hot meal a day, was tainted with insecticide, and soon 22 of the students were dead and dozens were hospitalized, officials said Wednesday. It was not immediately clear how chemicals ended up in the food at the school in the eastern state of Bihar. One official said that the food may not have been properly washed before it was cooked. The children, between the ages of 5 and 12, got sick soon after eating lunch Tuesday in Gandamal village in Masrakh block, 80 kilometres north of the state capital of Patna. School authorities immediately stopped serving the meal as the children started vomiting. Savita, a 12-year-old student who uses only one name, said she had a stomach ache after eating soybeans and potatoes and started vomiting. "I don't know what happened after that," Savita said in an interview at Patna Medical College Hospital, where she and many other children were recovering. The lunch was cooked in the school kitchen. The children were rushed to a local hospital and later to Patna for treatment, said state official Abhijit Sinha. In addition to the 22 children who died, another 25 children and the school cook were in hospital undergoing treatment, P.K. Sahi, the state education minister. Three children were in serious condition. Authorities suspended an official in charge of the free meal scheme in the school and registered a case of criminal negligence against the school headmistress, who fled as soon as the children fell ill. Angry villagers, joined by members of local opposition parties, closed shops and businesses near the school and overturned and burned four police vehicles. Sahi said a preliminary investigation suggested the food contained an organophosphate used as an insecticide on rice and wheat crops. It's believed the grain was not washed before it was served at the school, he said. However, local villagers said the problem appeared to be with a side dish of soybeans and potatoes, not grain. Children who had not eaten that dish were fine, although they had eaten the rice and lentils, several villagers told the AP. Sinha said the cooked food and kitchen utensils have been seized by investigators. "Whether it was a case of negligence or was intentional, we will only know once the inquiry has been conducted," he said. India's midday meal scheme is one of the world's biggest school nutrition programs. State governments have the freedom to decide on menus and timings of the meals, depending on local conditions and availability of food rations. It was first introduced in southern India, where it was seen as an incentive for poor parents to send their children to school. Since then the program has been replicated across the country, covering some 120 million school children. It's as part of an effort to address concerns about malnutrition, which the government says nearly half of all Indian children suffer from. Although there have been occasional complaints about the quality of the food served, or the lack of hygiene, the tragedy in Bihar appeared to be unprecedented for the massive food program.

Source

It's really sad that a programme bourne out of good intentions turned so tragic.

I really hope this wasn't a result of safety corners being cut because, this being a charity programme, there probably wasn't a whole lot of money being made.

And hopefully the kids who have survived thus far but remain very sick will work towards recovery.

[sunnykerr]

Menthol cigarettes pose greater public health risk: FDA RICHMOND, Va. -- A Food and Drug Administration review concludes that menthol cigarettes likely pose a greater public health risk than regular cigarettes but does not make a recommendation on whether to limit or ban the minty smokes -- one of the few growth sectors of the shrinking cigarette business. The federal agency released the independent review on Tuesday and is seeking input from the health community, the tobacco industry and others on possible restrictions on the mint-flavoured cigarettes. The FDA evaluation concluded that there is little evidence to suggest that menthol cigarettes are more or less toxic or contribute to more disease risk to smokers than regular cigarettes. However, there is adequate data to suggest that menthol use is likely associated with increased smoking initiation by younger people and that menthol smokers have a harder time quitting, the review said. There's also evidence indicating that menthol's cooling properties can reduce the harshness of cigarette smoke and that menthol cigarettes are marketed as a smoother alternative, the review said. "Menthol cigarettes raise critical public health questions," Mitch Zeller, director of the Center for Tobacco Products, said in a conference call with reporters. Zeller said there's "no holdup" on the FDA proposing restrictions on menthol but that there are still "some important questions" that need to be answered. The agency is commissioning further research. A 2011 FDA advisory panel report, which was mandated under the 2009 law giving the agency the authority to regulate tobacco, made many of the same findings, and said that removing menthol cigarettes from the market would benefit public health and highlighted greater use among minorities, teenagers and low-income people. Panels like the tobacco committee advise the FDA on scientific issues. The agency doesn't have to follow its recommendations, but often does. Meanwhile, a tobacco industry report to the FDA acknowledged that all cigarettes are hazardous but said there's no scientific basis for regulating menthols differently. The industry also has raised concerns that restrictions on menthol would lead to a black market for the cigarettes. Menthol cigarettes are one of the few growth areas in a shrinking cigarette market. The percentage of U.S. cigarette smokers using menthol brands grew from 33.9 per cent in 2008 to 37.5 per cent in 2011, according to a study by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, with more significant growth among younger smokers. A menthol ban or other restriction on the flavoured cigarettes would fall heavily on Lorillard Inc., whose Newport brand is the top-selling menthol cigarette in the U.S., with nearly 38 per cent of the market. Lorillard, based in Greensboro, N.C., is the country's third-largest tobacco company. CEO Murray Kessler said in a statement Lorillard looks forward to participating in the regulatory process and reiterated its long-held belief that menthol cigarettes shouldn't be treated differently. The move comes ahead of a Wednesday deadline for the U.S. to respond to the World Trade Organization's findings last year that the FDA's ban on manufacturing, importing, marketing and distributing candy-, fruit- and clove-flavoured tobacco breaks trade rules because it exempts menthol cigarettes, most of which are made in the U.S.. The investigation was launched following a request from Indonesia, which claims more than 6 million of its people depend on the production of clove cigarettes -- a staple of the country's smoking culture.

Source

In other words, it's not that menthol cigarettes are inherently worse than the other kind. It's that they make it easier for a person to take up smoking and to keep on smoking, because it seems a milder alternative.

I'll be honest, it feels like I've heard this before.

And I don't smoke, so it's easy enough for me to feel superior here.

I do think it's not a bad message to repeat, if it is indeed being repeated.

[sunnykerr]

Little-to-no link between sleep, fatigue level: Swedish study New Swedish research has shown that there is little or no relation between how much sleep people get at night and how fatigued they feel, the head researcher said Thursday. "The length of sleep is not a good measurement to analyse whether we get enough sleep or not," Torbjoern Aakerstedt told AFP of the studies conducted at the Stress Research Institute of Stockholm University. "It's genetically conditioned and dependent on age and health," he said. Aakerstedt's team has conducted three different studies, one of which investigated the sleep patterns of nearly 6,000 individuals. The research suggests that the number of hours slept is of much less importance in determining how a person functions throughout the day. "If you feel fine and dynamic during the day, you've probably slept enough," said Aakerstedt. The research, to be published later this year, found the average number of hours slept during a working week is six hours 55 minutes, with an extra hour's sleep during holidays. The researcher said that 20-year-olds should sleep eight hours on average, whilst 60-year-olds require only six. "But there is no general average," Aakerstedt added. "Twenty-year-olds can sleep even more, but still be tired during the day" as their brain is still developing. Yet, although more sleep does not mean more energy, no one should sleep too little, as it affects one's health, he said. Too little sleep can result in a weak immune system, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, weight gain, workplace incidents and traffic accidents.

Source

I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but I'm willing to buy it.

Of course, the article clearly states that the study isn't saying that the amount of sleep we have has zero incidence on our level of fatigue. Just not as much as we usually give it credence.

Which sounds actually pretty realistic to me.

I think people who exercise regularly, eat healthy, see plenty of sun, etc. are usually known to have less overall fatigue, no?

[quaist]

Interesting study.

I regularly have problems with feeling fatigued... Though, in my case it might as well be too little sleep, because I just can't seem to get 8h a night together

[sunnykerr]

Well, I have heard that the eight-hour sleep thing isn't necessarily a solid rule.

I mean, children and the elderly typically need upwards of eight of sleep a night, for sure, but as you reach adulthood, apparently we don't necessarily need as much.

Not that we should try and make it on five hours of sleep a night but, apparently, in the neighbourhood of seven hours (give or take a little) would be alright.

And the article doesn't say that the lack of sleep means nothing.

Just that other components might have more of an incidence.

[quaist]

It never ceases to impress me just how much our fellow creatures are capable of:

Dogs help sniff out ovarian cancer in Pa. study Researchers trying to develop a diagnostic tool for ovarian cancer are hoping dogs' keen sense of smell will lead them down the right path. An early detection device that combines old-fashioned olfactory skills, chemical analysis and modern technology could lead to better survival rates for the disease, which is particularly deadly because it's often not caught until an advanced stage. Using blood and tissue samples donated by patients, the University of Pennsylvania's Working Dog Center has started training three canines to sniff out the signature compound that indicates the presence of ovarian cancer. If the animals can isolate the chemical marker, scientists at the nearby Monell Chemical Senses Center will work to create an electronic sensor to identify the same odorant. "Because if the dogs can do it, then the question is, Can our analytical instrumentation do it? We think we can," Monell organic chemist George Preti said. More than 20,000 Americans are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year. When it's caught early, women have a five-year survival rate of 90 percent. But because of its generic symptoms _ weight gain, bloating or constipation _ the disease is more often caught late. About 70 percent of cases are identified after the cancer has spread, said Dr. Janos Tanyi, a Penn oncologist whose patients are participating in the study. For those women, the five-year survival rate is less than 40 percent, he said. The Philadelphia researchers will build on previous work showing that early stage ovarian cancer alters odorous compounds in the body. Another study in Britain in 2004 demonstrated that dogs could identify bladder cancer patients by smelling their urine. Dr. Leonard Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, said while the canine concept has shown promise for several years, there haven't been any major breakthroughs yet. "We're still looking to see whether something could be developed and be useful in routine patient care, and we're not there yet," said Lichtenfeld, who is not involved in the study. Cindy Otto, director of the Working Dog Center, hopes to change that with the help of McBaine, a springer spaniel; Ohlin, a Labrador retriever; and Tsunami, a German shepherd. "If we can figure out what those chemicals are, what that fingerprint of ovarian cancer is that's in the blood _ or maybe even eventually in the urine or something like that _ then we can have that automated test that will be less expensive and very efficient at screening those samples," Otto said. Ovarian cancer patient Marta Drexler, 57, is heartened by the effort. Drexler describes herself as a textbook case of the disease not being detected early enough because she had no symptoms. After two surgeries and two rounds of chemotherapy, Drexler said she didn't hesitate when Dr. Tanyi, her physician, asked her to donate tissue to the study. Last week, she visited the Working Dog Center to meet the animals whose work might one day lead to fewer battles like hers. "To have the opportunity to help with this dreadful disease, to do something about it, even if it's just a tiny little bit of something, it's a big thing," said Drexler, of nearby Lansdowne.

[sunnykerr]

I had heard before that dogs can "sniff out" cancers like that, but I don't think I'd heard the specific types yet.

So that's really impressive.