Our weekly roundup of the latest developments in the world of health.p> This week we look at how obesity affects a woman's risk for miscarriage and complications during pregnancy, at how excess fat affects young people's blood vessels, and at the flu shot's effectiveness in an at-risk group. We also look at the effectiveness of newer and older drugs to treat schizophrenia and learn that women's hands tend to be cleaner than men's.
Stay well. This Issue:
Obesity and Miscarriage Risk Fat Affects Teen's Blood Vessels Flu Shot Less Effective in Seniors Comparing Schizophrenia Drugs Women Wash Hands More In the News:
Obesity and Miscarriage Risk The best time for a woman to worry about extra weight and pregnancy is before she conceives. New guidelines from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommend that doctors begin talking to their patients about weight management before the women get pregnant. Obesity is dangerous for both baby and mother: Obese women are at higher risk of having a miscarriage and of developing serious complications such as gestational diabetes or pre-eclampsia, The Associated Press reports. Babies whose mothers are obese during pregnancy have a double the risk for neural tube birth defects such as spina bifida, the guidelines say. Excess weight also increases the chance that a woman will need to deliver by Caesarean section, while increasing the risks of complications during C-section, the AP says. The guidelines suggest that physicians offer pregnant women nutritional counseling and exercise recommendation so they don't gain too much weight during pregnancy, that obese women get screened during the first trimester for gestational diabetes, and that they begin talking to an anesthesiologist early about safe sedation in case a C-section is necessary.
Fat Affects Teen's Blood Vessels
The road to heart disease can start in adolescence. A study published in the American Heart Association journal
Circulation finds that teens who are carrying excess body fat have less elasticity in their blood vessels,a condition that can lead to high blood pressure and a cascade of other cardiovascular problems later on. In the study, researchers used ultrasound to measure the elasticity of the blood vessels of 471 children aged 13 to 15. They found that children who had excess body fat -- even a few pounds -- were more likely to have stiffer blood vessels. Body fat was more closely linked to stiffer blood vessels than high cholesterol levels, the researchers found. Less elasticity in the blood vessels means the heart has to work harder to pump blood, The Associated Press reports. The study also found an association between stiffer blood vessels and metabolic syndrome, a condition that can be a precursor to heart disease and is characterized by a big waist, high blood pressure and triglycerides, low levels of "good" HDL cholesterol, and insulin resistance, the AP says. The researchers say their findings underscore the importance of early intervention to keep children from becoming overweight and sedentary.
Flu Shot Less Effective in Seniors
Flu shots may not do as good a job as was thought at protecting older people from complications of influenza. A study published online in the British medical journal
Lancet looked at combined results of 64 studies of the flu vaccine. The researchers found that the vaccine is about 28% effective at helping people 65 and older avoid hospitalization for influenza or pneumonia. But health officials say elderly people should still get the vaccine, since vaccination provides some protection against infection and lessens the severity of illness in people who get the flu, The Associated Press reports.
Comparing Schizophrenia Drugs
Newer may not be better when it comes to medications for schizophrenia. A study published in the
New England Journal of Medicine finds that an older and much cheaper drug called perphenazine works as well as all but one of the newer atypical antipsychotic drugs in treating schizophrenia, with no more side effects. The study looked at 1,493 schizophrenia patients at 57 medical centers. The patients took one of four newer antipsychotics -- Zyprexa, Seroquel, Risperdal, Geodon -- or else perphenazine for 18 months. Over the course of the study, 74% of the patients switched drugs because the medication they were given did not control symptoms or caused intolerable side effects. Perphenazine was as effective and no more likely to cause severe side effects than Seroquel, Risperdal or Geodon, the researchers found. Zyprexa was the only drug that seemed to show a treatment advantage in the study; fewer patients taking Zyprexa switched to another drug, and they were less likely to be hospitalized for schizophrenia symptoms than the other patients. But people taking Zyprexa were more likely to experience side effects of excessive weight gain, accompanied by higher cholesterol and blood sugar, and in some cases full-blown type 2 diabetes. The researchers say their findings show that perphenazine -- which costs only fraction of the price of the newer drugs -- is still effective and not be disregarded simply because it's older. They say patients prescribed Zyprexa should also receive counseling about diet and exercise and should be switched to another drug if they develop health problems from weight gain, The Associated Press reports.
Women Wash Hands More
With the approach of flu season, it's a good time to bolster your first line of defense against infection -- your hand-washing habits. And those habits could use some work, according to the American Society of Microbiology. The society used hidden cameras to monitor hand washing in public restrooms in locations around the United States. The findings: Overall, 83% of the people washed their hands after using the restroom, and women washed their hands more often than men -- in some cases, much more often. People's observed hand washing is somewhat at odds with their reported behavior -- in a telephone survey of 1,000 adults, 91% said they always washed their hands after using the bathroom, The Associated Press reports. Seventy-seven percent said they always washed their hands before handling food, although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says poor hand washing plays a role in almost half of all foodborne disease outbreaks, the AP says.
Used with the permission of the copyright owner. All rights reserved. The above summaries are not intended to provide advice on personal medical matters, nor are they intended to be a substitute for consultation with a physician.
