December 16th, 2010 by Berci in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News
Tags: Berci, Dr. Bertalan Mesko, Dutch UMC Ultrecht, Infant Incubators, mHealth, Mobile Health, Neonatal Health, Neonatal Intensive Care, New Parents, Newborn Care, Parents Of Newborns, Premature Birth, Science Roll, Telebaby, Telemedicine, Video Cameras
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There are more and more premature babies, and the situation for their parents is dramatic. They would love to be with their newborn 24 hours a day, but in most cases they obviously can’t.
At the Dutch UMC Ultrecht, they’ve launched a project under the name Telebaby, in which cameras were installed at the incubators and parents can watch their child live 24 hours a day — even through a mobile device.
The system is password protected, of course, so only the parents can access the specific video channels. Isn’t it great? A very human but not that expensive idea — a really Dutch approach.
*This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll*
December 16th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Research
Tags: Athlete's Health, Bluetooth, Cambridge Consultants, Drinking Frequency, Drinking Quantity, External Temperature, Health and Smartphones, Health Apps, Hydration Levels, i-dration, Medgadget, Real-Time Hydration, Sports Medicine, Water Bottle
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Imagine a water bottle that knows how hard and how far you are running, how much you’re drinking, what’s the outside temperature, and, based on all these variables, the device calculates when you need to have a drink. Cambridge Consultants have developed the i-dration bottle that does just that.
From the press release:
Intelligent sensors in the i-dration bottle can be used to monitor the external temperature, drinking frequency and quantity, and this data is then sent via Bluetooth to its user’s smartphone. The phone’s inbuilt accelerometer and gyroscope can measure exercise levels, and by “fusing” the data from a heart rate chest-band and information pre-entered using the smartphone interface (such as height, age and weight), the application can perform an assessment of a user’s hydration levels. The i-dration bottle then responds accordingly by flashing a blue light if the athlete needs to drink more. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
December 15th, 2010 by Linda Burke-Galloway, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Research
Tags: Associated Professional Sleep Societies, Dr. Linda Burke-Galloway, Dr. Louise O'Brien, Fetal Health, Gestational Diabetes, Glucose Screening, Habitual Snorers, Healthy Pregnancy, Heart Attack Risk, High Blood Pressure, High Risk Pregnancy, Hypertension, Maternal-Fetal Specialist, Neurology, Nonsnorers, OB/GYN, Obesity, Obstetrics And Gynecology, Patient Education, Pregnancy and Childbirth, Pregnant Women, Sleep Apnea, Snoring, Stroke Risk, TAPSS, University of Michigan
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A recent medical study reported a fairly unique finding: Pregnant women who snore frequently are at an increased risk for developing gestational diabetes.
The Associated Professional Sleep Societies (TAPSS) reported that 24 percent of habitual snorers had an official diagnosis of gestational diabetes as opposed to 17 percent of nonsnorers. As gestational diabetes affects 4 to 6 percent of all pregnant women, this study is significant according to Louise O’Brien, Ph.D. who is associated with the department of neurology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Snoring is nothing new among women but it becomes more pronounced with the onset of menopause or weight gain. Approximately one-third of all women in the U.S. are obese and at risk for snoring and sleep apnea. Being overweight can cause bulky throat tissue which then physically blocks air flow.
Up until the publication of the University of Michigan study, the health risks associated with snoring included greater than ten seconds of interruptions of breathing, frequent waking from sleep, potential strain on the heart which then results in hypertension, increased risk of heart attacks, and stroke. Now the tide has changed. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Dr. Linda Burke-Galloway*
December 15th, 2010 by Glenn Laffel, M.D., Ph.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Research
Tags: ACE, Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme, Cardiology, Cardiovascular Health, Cardiovascular Pharmacology, Chocolate, Dietetics, Dr. Glenn Laffel, European Heart Journal, Fluid Regulation, Food and Nutrition, Heart Attack Risk, Heart Health, In Moderation, Ingrid Persson, Linkoping University, Lowers Blood Pressure, Pizaazz, Reduces Hypertension, Salt Metabolism, Stroke Risk
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It’s beginning to look like chocolate, especially dark chocolate, really and truly is a heart healthy snack, though only if it’s consumed in small quantities.
A delectable taste of this news came last spring, in the form of a study by German scientists which appeared in the European Heart Journal. It was a retrospective study of nearly 20,000 people, and it showed that folks in the highest quartile for chocolate consumption (meaning they consumed 7.5 grams of chocolate per day — the equivalent of 2 to 3 small squares of a Hershey bar), had lower blood pressure, a 27 percent lower risk of heart attack, and a 48 percent lower risk of stroke than those in the lowest quartile (about 1.7 grams per day).
Now, a new study in the journal Cardiovascular Pharmacology has lent credence to those findings by suggesting a mechanism through which chocolate reduces blood pressure. In the study, Ingrid Persson and colleagues at Linkoping University showed that dark chocolate inhibits the activity of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE). This enzyme helps regulate fluids and salt metabolism in the body. It is the target of many well-known antihypertensive drugs including captopril, lisinopril and enalopril. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Pizaazz*
December 15th, 2010 by admin in Health Tips
Tags: Acetaminophen, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Appropriate Dosage, Aspirin, Cardiac Risk Factors, Cardiology, Darvocet, Darvon, Dr. Mary Lynn McPherson, Drug Effectiveness, Drug Experts, Drug Prescribing By Doctors, Drug Side Effects, Fatal Cardiac Rhythmic Disturbances, FDA, Food and Drug Administration, Heart Health, Ibuprofen, Improper Drug Prescribing, Inappropriate Drug Selection, Irregular Heartbeat, Medical Team, Nonprescription Medication, Opioid Analgesics, Opioid Pain Relievers, Opioid Propoxyphene, Pain Killers, Pain Medication, Patient Safety, Pharmacology, Pharmacotherapy, Physician Drug Prescribing Habits, Prescribing Guidelines, Prescription Drugs, Safe Treatments, Team-Based Patient Care, Teamwork In Medicine, University of Maryland, Unwise Prescribing Of Drugs, Your Pharmacist
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This is a guest post from Dr. Mary Lynn McPherson.
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Rescuing Patients On Darvon Or Darvocet With Zero Tolerance For Pain
On November 19, 2010 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) called for a halt in the use of the popular opioid pain relievers Darvocet and Darvon. These products contain the opioid propoxyphene, and it has been used to treat mild to moderate pain for over 50 years. However, concerns have long been raised about the effectiveness of this drug, and the risk of death (accidental and suicide). Darvon and Darvocet were banned in Britain in 2005, followed by the European Union in 2009. Over the past 30 years, the FDA has received numerous petitions to take these drugs off the U.S. market.
Research has shown that Darvon and Darvocet are no more effective for treating moderate pain than over the counter drugs like acetaminophen, aspirin or ibuprofen. Unfortunately, Darvon and Darvocet cause a lot more side effects such as dizziness, drowsiness, nausea and vomiting, hallucinations and constipation (all pretty typical of opioids used to treat pain). But, the side effects don’t stop there. The data is in, and it’s not a pretty picture. A recent study requested by the FDA showed that when used at the recommended doses, Darvon and Darvocet cause significant changes in the electrical activity of the heart, which can lead to a fatal irregularity in your heartbeat, even after only short-term use.
Among those advocating for the removal of these drugs from the market were pharmacists. The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists approved a policy in 2007 advocating for the withdrawal of Darvon and Darvocet from the U.S. market, and recently testified at the FDA Advisory Committee to this effect. As an often overlooked member of the medical team, pharmacists have a vital role to play in providing safe and effective treatments. We serve as the last line of defense against improper or unwise prescribing of drugs — especially those for pain. We are drug experts, and we can help patients and doctors switch from Darvon or Darvocet to safer and more effective treatments. Read more »
