Health @ Heart
Implants and suicide link
The suicide rate among Swedish women who underwent breast implants were three times greater than its general women population, stated a report in the Annals of Plastic Surgery.
The investigators revealed that "5 previous epidemiologic studies looked at mortality patterns among 5 cohorts of women in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Canada, and the United States who received cosmetic breast implants, and found out that an approximately 2- to 3-fold higher rate of suicide in the women who received implants compared with other women." The suicide was higher among those who were 45 years and older at the time of breat augmentation, and happened about 10 years post-implant.
Among those who had breast implants, deaths from drug and alcohol abuse later on was likewise 3 times higher, according to this 19-year study, which spanned from 1965 to 1993.
In 2006, there were more than 300,000 cosmetic breasts augmentation in the United States, and expected to increase since the US-FDA has re-approved the use of silicone breast implants, which was recalled from 1992 to 2006.
These findings warrant a pre-implant psychiatric evaluation and monitoring among women seeking breast augmentation.
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In compliance with an US-FDA request, Novartis has suspended marketing and sales of its irritable bowel/constipation drug Zelnorm (tegaserod maleate) which was approved by the US-FDA in July 2002, after an analysis of its clinical database (involving 18,000 patients) showed a greater incidence of MI (myocardial infarction: heart attack), stroke, and unstable angina (chest pains) among patients taking the drug, stated in a MedScape report. Access www.novartis.com for more information.
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Another drug, Permex (peroglude), manufactured by Valeant Pharmaceuticals, was voluntarily taken off the market, following two studies that revealed that this dopamine-agonist used for Parkinson's disease cause serious heart valve dysfunction. The other similar class drug implicated was cabergoline.
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A recent study revealed that radiation from CT scans (computed tomography scans) may be causing cancer. Done properly, with standard precautions to limit patient and staff exposure, the diagnostic benefit from the test still far outweighs the possible risk involved and should not deter patients from having the test performed, according to experts.
"There is no definitive evidence to suggest the risk is as bad as they state… I'm not saying radiation is good; I am saying we have absolutely no idea what the real lifetime risk from CTs is," according to Dr. Carl Schultz, professor of clinical emergency medicine at the University of California Irvine School of Medicine.
Dr. Robert Smith, director of cancer screening at the American Cancer Society, stated that "concerns about excess exams and excess exposure, especially among pediatric patients, are appropriate."
While the dose of radiation in some tests, like an abdominal CT scan is about 50 times greater compared to plain abdominal x-ray, this imaging tool is still considered very valuable and safe, so long as they are not abused and done utilizing all the available measures to minimize radiation exposure for everyone concerned.
In the meantime, more controlled epidemiological clinical studies are needed to settle this particular issue, as medical science and engineering continues to develop diagnostic and therapeutic machines that are more sensitive, more accurate, more efficient, and safer to the patients and the healthcare providers.
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Eating grapes may lower the risk for the development of Alzheimer's disease. This was the result of the research presented at the recent conference of the Society of Neuroscience in San Diego, California, which was attended by about 31,000 neuroscientists from around the world and exhibitors.
Lead investigator Nancy Berman, MD, of the University of Kansas School of Medicine, pointed out that "the unique combination of components in grapes, which includes resveratrol, quercetin, catechins and other phytonutrients, is thought to be responsible for the protective effects."
Dr. Berman's report said that "grape-enriched diet dramatically increases the expression of critical target genes that block the Alzheimer's pathway and decrease inflammation in the brain." She explained that Alzheimer's is "characterized by the formation of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain… and oxidative stress and inflammation are thought to play a role in facilitating neurodegenerative disease."
A grape-enriched diet, according to Dr. Berman, "induced a 246-fold increase in the expression of transthyretin, a beta-amyloid scavenger known to reduce plaque formation in Alzheimer's disease."
For this and other antioxidants to work more effectively, living a healthy lifestyle is obviously a must. Staying healthy and alive takes a great deal of effort and a lot of sacrifices. But the easier option is not as appealing.
(email: scalpelpen@gmail.com)