Back on 2/12/10 I posted an alert from the Food and Drug Administration about a recall of automatic defibrillators by Cardiac Science Corporation.

Today the FDA issued a warning once again concerning Cardiac Science defibrillators which fail to deliver a shock during resuscitation attempts and several other problems in their operation. Cardiac Science recalled various Powerheart and CardioVive models back in November 2009 but the FDA has now announced similar problems with various Nihon Kohden and GE Healthcare models prompting this warning.

Cardiac Science has updated some software associated with some of the defibrillators and plans others but the FDA says that these updates don’t solve all of the problems. bjmdjd

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automatic defibrillator · CardioVive · Food and Drug Administration · GE Healthcare · Nihon Kohden · Powerheart

An advisory panel recommended to the Food and Drug Administration last month that a ban on the use of tanning beds by anyone under the age of 18 be implemented. They stated that tanning beds are classified as class I medical devices which puts them in the same category as tongue depressors and elastic bandages which allows for very little over-site and regulation.

The American Academy of Dermatology has taken a strong stance against the use of tanning beds stating that skin cancer used to be a disease of older men but now it is becoming more common in young women in their teens and twenties. The exact sex and age group using tanning beds the most.

The tanning bed industry was well represented at the meeting saying that they were already well regulated and that there is much misinformation about tanning beds and their dangers.  Other recommendations concerning the use and regulation of tanning beds were also suggested. The FDA doesn’t have to take the advisory groups recommendations but they usually do. I guess that there are still plenty of smokers and cigarette industry reps who claim that there is no evidence that cigarette smoking causes lung cancer.  bjmdjd

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American Academy of Dermatology · Food and Drug Administration · tanning beds and skin cancer

I noticed that Katie Couric had a story on the salt/sodium intake of Americans on the “Evening News” last night.

The Institute of Medicine has asked the Food and Drug Administration to set new federal guidelines as to how much salt can be added to foods by restaurants, food and beverage service companies, and food manufacturers. The FDA is expected to make their decision soon after reviewing various information.

All parties concerned feel that as a country the U.S. has not had much luck in lowering the amount of salt/sodium intake in our foods. It is hoped that by requiring less salt in prepared meals and processed foods that total salt consumption will be greatly reduced.  bjmdjd

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Food and Drug Administration · Institute of Medicine · salt/sodium intake

As I mentioned recently on a radio program that I record, stents are usually placed after a  balloon angioplasty procedure. It’s also important to have these patients be put on anti platelet drugs immediately. Most people refer to these anti platelet medications as blood thinners (though this is not exactly correct). The most popular one available by prescription is clopidogrel (Plavix).

Research published in the April 20, 2010 online edition of Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes reported that patients who had a drug eluding stent placed and delayed in filling their prescription for clopidogrel had much higher rates of death/heart attack during the follow up period.

The reasons for filling the prescriptions were varied but showed how important discharge planning is for many patients after hospitalization. Money is not always the determining factor as many patients have co-morbid conditions and transportation problems that may delay their going to the pharmacy.  bjmdjd

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Circulation Journal · clopidogrel · drug eluding stents · Plavix

An article published in the May 2010 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine reported that researchers at the West Virginia University School of Medicine have found that hospitalizations due to poisoning from opioids, sedatives, and tranquilizers is on the rise. Data studied from 1999 to 2006 revealed that those hospitalizations had risen 65% during that period of time.

This increase was double the increase in the number of hospitalizations from poisonings due to other drugs and substances. While most of these poisonings were noted to be unintentional there was still a large increase in intentional events. Benzodiazepines (drugs like diazepam = Valium, alprazolam = Xanax, and lorazepam = Ativan) showed the greatest increase in the number of cases over the time period studied.

The researchers noted that the increase in hospitalizations mirrored the increase in mortality from prescription drugs during this same period of time. The increase in the availability of these useful but dangerous drugs is concerning. The fact that these drugs were ingested unintentionally in most cases is more worrisome than their availability for intentional ingestion.  bjmdjd

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American Journal of Preventive Medicine · benzodiazepines · prescription drug poisoning · West Virginia School of Medicine

Once again it appears that I am in the wrong business. Prescription drug sales in the U.S. climbed to $300.3 billion in 2009. Here are some interesting facts surrounding that number:

• 75% of all dispensed prescriptions were generic, up from 57% five years ago
• When a product goes generic almost all (around 90%) of the prescriptions are dispensed in their generic form
• Anti psychotics were the top selling class of drugs in the U.S. in 2009
• Acid reflux drugs were the second biggest selling class
• Lipid regulators (like Lipitor and Crestor) were the third biggest selling class
• Antidepressants were fourth

The move toward generics is expected to grow even more by 2012 when two huge selling drugs, Lipitor and Plavix, will become available in generic form.  bjmdjd

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acid reflux drugs · antidepressants · antipsychotics · generic drugs · lipid regulators · prescription drug sales in 2009

Well, it looks like there is another quick fix on the market for those who want the easy way out when it comes to being over weight. The Food and Drug Administration has sent warning letters to six medical spas in the U.S. and a Brazilian company that makes the product about misleading or false statements made online about drugs claimed to eliminate fat in a procedure called “lipodissolve.”

The Brazilian company’s website now claims that they no longer sell the drugs used in the procedure. The FDA says that there is no evidence to support any of the medical uses that the spas and manufacturer claim. As a matter of fact there have been many adverse reactions, some serious, to the use of these injectable drugs.

The spas in the U.S. are located in Pennsylvania, Idaho, Maryland, Minnesota, Florida, and Indiana. 

It appears that the best way to fight the fat fight is to exercise and push away from the table! bjmdjd

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fat dissolving product · Food and Drug Administration · lipodissolve

I have referred you to Dr. Toni Brayer’s blog before when she posted something that I thought you really needed to see. Well I don’t know if you really NEED to see this or not but it is something that I strongly agree with her about!

http://getbetterhealth.com/sexual-addiction-is-it-real/2010.04.06?utm_source=Better+Health%2C+LLC+List&utm_campaign=b15af440c4-All+Better+Health+posts+newsletter&utm_medium=email      bjmdjd

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sexual addiction

Sorry for being absent for the past few days but it was necessary and there hasn’t been a lot going on anyway.

I recently saw a segment on television about this story so I was glad to find some further information on it. It is also of some interest to me due to the fact that one of my family members is having fairly severe memory problems now.

Accoring to the April issue of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease there is now an  online screening tool that has been found to be better and more reliable that standard tests in diagnosing cognitive impairment. It not only can determine who did and did not have cognitive impairment but could also identify the stage of Alzheimer’s disease.

It was noted that 69% of people with Alzheimer’s are not diagnosed by their primary care physician which suggests that there are many missed opportunities to make this diagnosis in the early stages of the disease. This is important due to the advances in medications which can now make a big difference in functioning if started early in the disease process.

The investigators admit that the tool needs further validation but state that it appears to be very promising. A web site is provided in the article for physicians that would like further information.  bjmdjd

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Alzheimer's disease · cognitive imparment · health · Journal of Alzheimer's Disease · wellness