|
The
Approaching Storm in American Health
Care |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts,
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Susan Bartlett,
Ph.D., Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of
Rheumatology, Johns Hopkins University, explains how
arthritis, aging, and obesity are combining to create a
“perfect” storm for American Health Care. If you read
Sebastian Junger’s Perfect Storm or saw the Hollywood
adaptation, you will probably recall the scene in which
a weatherman stares in horror at the radar charts on his
computer screen. He watches as three massive weather
systems converge toward a point at which… More...
Posted
in Arthritis
on April 9, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Arthritis
Health Alerts |
|
Are
You a Good Candidate for Spinal
Fusion? |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts,
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
The use of
spinal-fusion surgery has increased drastically in
recent years, from 150,000 procedures in 1993 to 300,000
in 2001. Although many long established uses exist for
spinal fusion -- for the treatment of severe scoliosis,
spinal tuberculosis, and vertebral fractures -- doctors
are increasingly using spinal fusion to treat back pain
resulting from degenerative changes in the spine, disk
disorders such as herniated disks, and spinal
stenosis. More...
Posted
in Back
Pain & Osteoporosis on March 23, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Back
Pain and Osteoporosis Health
Alerts |
|
What
You Can Do To Prevent Colorectal
Polyps |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts;
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Low-dose aspirin
can help protect against colorectal cancer, but talk to
your doctor first. Colorectal polyps are small,
non-cancerous (benign) clumps of cells that grow in the
rectum and colon. Over the course of 10–15 years, some
of these polyps—usually the ones that are larger than a
pea—may become cancerous. Fortunately, regular screening
for colorectal cancer helps to identify and remove
polyps, often before they progress to cancer. … More...
Posted
in Colon
Cancer on April 10, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Colon
Cancer Health Alerts |
|
Qs
& As on Insomnia |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts,
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Melatonin,
antihistamines, and bright light therapy for insomnia Q.
What do you think about melatonin and valerian as
treatments for insomnia? A. Melatonin is a hormone
produced in the body by the pineal gland in response to
darkness and as a cue for sleep. Valerian is an herb
promoted as a mild sedative. Both melatonin and valerian
are sold as dietary supplements in the United States and
are marketed as sleep aids. The National Institutes
of… More...
Posted
in Depression
and Anxiety on May 2, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Depression
and Anxiety Health
Alerts |
|
Recognizing
and Treating Hypoglycemia |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts,
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Patients with
diabetes who take insulin are susceptible to
hypoglycemia (low blood glucose) when they administer
too much insulin, delay or miss a meal, exercise without
first eating a snack, or drink alcohol on an empty
stomach. But insulin treatment isn’t the only cause of
hypoglycemia. More...
Posted
in Diabetes
on May 3, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Diabetes
Health Alerts |
|
Testosterone
for Women |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts;
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Men may have
grabbed the sexual spotlight with Viagra (sildenafil
citrate) and erectile dysfunction (ED), but women are
equally prone to have concerns about their sex lives.
While there may not be a woman’s equivalent to Viagra,
if you are concerned about sex, take comfort in knowing
that you are not alone. Upwards of 43% of women report
some degree of dissatisfaction with their sexual health
-- and help is available. More...
Posted
in Healthy
Living on April 18, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Healthy
Living Health Alerts |
|
Cholesterol-Busting
Foods |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts;
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
When people need
to reduce cholesterol, they often think about
eliminating some foods from their diet. But research
increasingly shows that adding certain foods can also
reduce cholesterol levels significantly. In fact, a 2003
study in Metabolism found that people with high
cholesterol who ate a diet not only low in saturated fat
but high in plant sterols, soluble fibers,… More...
Posted
in Heart
Health on March 30, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Heart
Health Alerts |
|
8
Asthma Triggers to Avoid |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts,
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
May 1 is World
Asthma Day – the perfect time to review allergens that
may trigger your asthma symptoms and to discuss steps
you can take to breathe easier. Here Dr. Peter B. Terry,
professor of medicine in the division of Pulmonary
Medicine at Johns Hopkins, offers advice that can help –
even if you suffer from chronic, long-term asthma. … More...
Posted
in Lung
Disorders on May 1, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Lung
Disorders Health
Alerts |
|
Research
on Dementia Biomarker |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts;
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Researchers at
Yale and at Johns Hopkins, led by Barry Gordon, M.D.,
Ph.D., a professor of Therapeutic Cognitive Neuroscience
at Johns Hopkins, have found that a simple blood test to
measure uric acid, a measure of kidney function, might
reveal a risk factor for cognitive problems and dementia
in old age. Of 96 adults age 60 to 92 years, those with
uric-acid levels at the high end of the normal range had
the lowest scores on tests of mental processing speed,
verbal memory, and working memory. More...
Posted
in Memory
on April 23, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Memory
Health Alerts |
|
Drugstore
Aisle Updates |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts;
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Medication
Mistakes: Many elderly Americans are taking prescription
medications that may be inappropriate. Authors of a
study in the Archives of Internal Medicine reviewed a
prescription claim database for 765,423 adults (mean age
74 years) for the year 1999. Using a list of 28
medications that experts had linked to a high likelihood
of adverse outcomes in older patients, the authors found
that 21.2% of the patients filled prescriptions for
these medications -- results strongly… More...
Posted
in Prescription
Drugs on April 17, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Prescription
Drugs Health Alerts |
|
PSA
Terminology Explained |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts;
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
All men, aged 40
or so, undergo PSA (prostate-specific antigen) testing
to screen them for prostate cancer. PSA is an enzyme
produced almost exclusively by the glandular cells of
the prostate and normally only very small amounts of PSA
are present in the blood. High levels of PSA can
indicate prostate problems, including BPH and prostate
cancer. But high PSA levels can also be caused by a
variety of daily activities. Recently, researchers have
developed several ways to improve the PSA test’s
accuracy. More...
Posted
in Prostate
Disorders on April 26, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Prostate
Disorders Health
Alerts |
|
Neuroprotection
-- New Frontier in the Treatment of
Glaucoma |
|
By Johns Hopkins Health Alerts;
www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com
Johns Hopkins
reports on new drugs for fighting glaucoma. Physicians
have recently confirmed through large clinical studies
that lowering intraocular pressure (IOP) is highly
beneficial in reducing vision loss in people with
glaucoma. Indeed, the lowering of IOP is the only
FDA-approved approach for treating glaucoma. However,
newer approaches to the treatment of glaucoma are being
studied to supplement present therapy in order to reduce
the progressive loss of vision in glaucoma even further.
… More...
Posted
in Vision
on April 6, 2007 |
|
Read
Alert | Read
Comments |
|
View more Vision
Health
Alerts |
|
.gif){kind=spacer}
.gif){kind=tracking}
.gif){kind=tracking}
.gif){kind=tracking}
.gif){kind=tracking}
