In our currently fragile economy, lifestyle changes are often necessary to maintain a reasonable budget. We may carpool more often, eat out less frequently, or reduce the number of foreign excursions. While making changes to shave costs are generally helpful, there are some corners that should not be cut.
In a recent study published in the European Journal of Epidemiology, the cost-cutting practice of replacing water for windshield wiper fluid has been linked with an increased risk of developing Legionnaire’s disease.
It appears that stagnant water in wiper fluid reservoirs promote bacterial growth, including the Legionella bacteria that are typically spread through water systems (e.g., air conditioners, showers, and fountains). When sprayed on the windshield, the bacteria are aerosolized and disseminated through air vents or open windows. Read more … »
While a graduate student at Caltech, Frederick Balagaddé (now a research scientist in the Engineering Technologies Division at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory) invented the micro-chemostat. This novel device is a computer-controlled miniaturized fluidic system designed to mimic a cell culture environment. Its components include human hair-sized valves, pumps, mixers, and injectors. Balagaddé describes it as a “wet lab on a chip”, which he presented at a TED Talk while discussing its potential revolutionary implications in health care.
Balagaddé begins his talk with his view of an irony in public health: the poorest countries carry the largest disease burden. Not surprisingly, Third-world countries have the highest prevalence of disease while experiencing a shortage in health care resources. Fortunately, Western countries have implemented programs to provide free drugs to these needy nations, resulting in millions of saved lives. Balagaddé adds, however, that without adequate diagnostic tools, these same drugs may eventually breed resistance and exacerbate the problem.
Balagaddé plans to use his micro-chemostat to build an HIV diagnostic kit. According to initial estimates, one miniaturized low-cost micro-chemostat the size of an iPhone could diagnose 100 patients and measure 100 viral load levels in each patient. The testing would complete in a mere 4 hours (50 times faster than current standards) at a cost 5-500 times cheaper than done conventional methods. While this technology could have marked impact on health care in Third-world countries, it also has positive implications of what can be done to improve diagnostics on local soil.
The cost of designing, developing, and marketing a new pharmaceutical drug can literally exceed a billion dollars. Even millions more are invested in non-industry trials to demonstrate the efficacy — or lack thereof — of these drugs with certain medical conditions or clinical parameters. The process of getting FDA approval is another separate adventure in itself. Given the enormous effort in ensuring that drugs are safe and efficacious, it is curious that the same stringency is not applied in prescribing these drugs at the time of health care delivery.
Disclaimer: this is not a critique of health care professionals, but a discussion of some challenges surrounding medication reconciliation. Read more … »
The “New & Interesting” series is a biweekly compilation of select research findings, news articles, and random tidbits in bullet-point format. The entries are highly abbreviated, but provide links to the original articles or abstracts if you desire to read further.
General Articles
Video games may cause kids to suffer finger and wrist pain (WebMD)
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine employed high-sensitivity MRI scanners to evaluate the effect of glucosamine on progression of knee osteoarthritis. They “did not find any evidence that glucosamine can prevent or slow joint damage in individuals with mild to moderate knee pain.” The results from the study resemble findings from an earlier meta-analysis that did not demonstrate substantive symptomatic benefit from the use of chondroitin. (WebMD)
Universal health coverage in Massachusetts does not reduce visits to the Emergency Department (American Medical News)
Technical Articles
Prophylactic administration of acetaminophen for febrile reactions at the time of vaccination reduces antibody responses to vaccine antigens in children (Lancet)
Just as time and money are valuable commodities for most people–and often in short supply–sleep can be a particularly scarce one for many. According to a study published in the October 30 edition of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, approximately 28% of U.S. adults do not get enough rest or sleep for at least 14 out of the 30 days in a month.
The data for the report originate from the 2008 BRFSS (Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System), which involved a random-digit-dialed telephone survey of 403,981 U.S. adults (ages 18 or older) inquiring about their self-perceptions of restfulness or sleeplessness. One question asked, “During the past 30 days, for about how many days have you felt you did not get enough rest or sleep?” About 11.1% of respondents had insufficient rest or sleep for the entire month. This contrasts from the 30.7% who had no days of insufficient rest or sleep.
Where are the sleepiest people in the United States?
The sleepiest states include those with the highest percentage of respondents who reported 30 days of sleep deprivation for the last month. For those states where the percentages were equivalent, I further stratified them according to the percentage of respondents who reported sleeplessness for 14-29 days of the preceding month. Without further ado, here are the sleepiest states …
In our currently fragile economy, lifestyle changes are often necessary to maintain a reasonable budget. We may carpool more often, eat out less frequently, or reduce the number of foreign excursions. While making changes to shave costs are generally helpful, there are some corners that should not be cut.
The cost of designing, developing, and marketing a new pharmaceutical drug can literally exceed a billion dollars. Even millions more are invested in non-industry trials to demonstrate the efficacy — or lack thereof — of these drugs with certain medical conditions or clinical parameters. The process of getting FDA approval is another separate adventure in itself. Given the enormous effort in ensuring that drugs are safe and efficacious, it is curious that the same stringency is not applied in prescribing these drugs at the time of health care delivery.
The “New & Interesting” series is a biweekly compilation of select research findings, news articles, and random tidbits in bullet-point format. The entries are highly abbreviated, but provide links to the original articles or abstracts if you desire to read further.
Just as time and money are valuable commodities for most people–and often in short supply–sleep can be a particularly scarce one for many. According to a study published in the October 30 edition of 
