Minum Mei

According to a study in the Archives of Neurology, limited alcohol, said to be good for heart, may shrink the brain. Researchers have found that alcohol consumption even in moderation may be less medicinal than earlier believed to be and people who drink alcohol have smaller brain volume than those who do not. Though there is natural shrinkage of up to 2 % in brain volume as people age, scientists felt that alcohol in moderation could slow this natural shrinkage by improving blood flow and heart function.

Carol Ann Paul, an instructor in the neuroscience program at Wellesley College conducted the study when she was at the Boston University School of Public Health, said she had hoped to find that alcohol might protect against such brain shrinkage. "Decline in brain volume -- estimated at 2 percent per decade -- is a natural part of aging. However, we did not find the protective effect," says Paul. "In fact, any level of alcohol consumption resulted in a decline in brain volume."

A study on 1839 adults with an average age of 61 years was conducted based on an analysis of drinking habits and brain volume. The patients underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain and the researchers found that the more alcohol was consumed the smaller was the brain volume. Non drinker’s brains occupied 78.6 % of the cranial space while in former drinker’s case it dropped to 78.2 % and went to 77.8 % for moderate drinkers and 77.2 for heavy drinkers.

Although men were more likely to be heavier drinkers than women, brain shrinkage in the women was more. The researchers feel it could be due to women's smaller stature and greater tendency to feel alcohol's effects. It's not clear why even modest amounts of alcohol may shrink the brain, although alcohol is "known to dehydrate tissues, and constant dehydration can have negative effects on any sensitive tissue," says Paul.

James Garbutt, M.D., professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill notes that the study did not show that the reduced brain volume impaired memory or mental function. "We're talking very small differences here," says Dr. Garbutt, who was not involved in the study. "We're not seeing 10 to 20 percent shrinkage." The reduction in brain mass is an interesting finding. "But we have a long way to go to figure out the implications of it."

"The public health effect of this study gives a clear message about the possible dangers of drinking alcohol. This study suggests that, unlike the associations with cardiovascular disease, alcohol consumption does not have any protective effect on brain volume." the authors concluded

Key Test often Skipped before Angioplasty by Doctors

U.S. researchers said on Tuesday that people on Medicare who elect for non-emergency artery-opening procedures for heart disease do not get the recommended cardiac stress test beforehand. The surgery, known as PCI or percutaneous coronary intervention, costs Medicare, the U.S. government's health insurance program $10,000 to $15,000 per procedure for people aged 65 and older.

Dr. Grace Lin of the University of California, San Francisco, whose study appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association said, "It's important to document that patients are receiving PCI for appropriate indications to ensure the optimal use of Medicare resources."

More than 800,000 PCI procedures are performed each year and each procedure has contributed significantly to increase in Medicare spending since the mid-1990s. The research showed the number that received the procedure to be just 44 %. "We didn't expect to find 100 percent, but we expected a much higher percentage than 44," said Dr. Rita F. Redberg, professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.

Typically done on a treadmill, stress tests, can show whether a person has ischemia, or inadequate supply of blood to the heart caused by a blocked artery. "What really matters is whether or not that blockage is affecting blood flow to the heart. That is why the stress test is important," Lin said.

Earlier studies have said that many stable patients with chest pain can get similar relief with standard drug therapy at far lower cost. Lin and colleagues studied insurance claims in 2004 from Medicare beneficiaries and found only 44 % took a stress test 90 days prior to elective surgery. "There was a tremendous amount of variation in the amount of stress testing that was done," Lin said. The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions said the results though important were not accurate as stress tests are not always appropriate, especially for patients who are too sick or immobile to take them.

Stress tests should be done regularly, not just when angioplasty is being considered, said Dr. Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Translational Science Institute in La Jolla, Calif. "Then you have a way to follow a patient," he said. "You can do a stress test every year to be sure things are normal. That is an important baseline that is being ignored all too frequently."

Study: Caffeine Intake Can Increase Breast Cancer Risk

According to a new study, more than four cups of coffee can increase the risk of breast cancer. The researchers found that caffeinated drinks are responsible for one third of the breast cancer cases. The study also highlights an increase in developing large tumours with high intake of caffeinated drinks.

The researchers, however, were unable to give a safe caffeine intake for women. But they did indicate that more than four cups of coffee a day can increase the breast cancer risk by 68%. The risk further aggravates with advancement ion age.

Dr Ken Ishitani, from Harvard University, who led the study with colleagues from Tokyo Women's Medical University, said:

"These findings indicate that caffeine consumption may affect breast cancer progression, and such an effect may be independent of the (sex hormone) oestrogen."

Further research would confirm reasons for the relationship between breast cancer and caffeine.

But according to another research published in Archives of Internal Medicine journal, caffeinated drinks did not seem to have any major impact on other diseases. At the same time, previous studies indicate palpitations and increase in miscarriages. These drinks also cause chest pain and headaches in school children.

Senators Question Cardiologists’ Ties to Stent Makers

Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, and Herb Kohl, Democrat of Wisconsin, have sent letters to Columbia University and the Cardiovascular Research Foundation to question financial ties between high profile doctors and device and drug institutions.

Dr. Martin B. Leon, founder and former chairman of CRF, a nonprofit group and Dr. Gregg W. Stone, its current chairman, both stent specialists affiliated with Columbia, are among the doctors listed by name in the letter. The letters have also questioned ties to a few companies which include Abbott, Medtronic, Boston Scientific and Johnson & Johnson, the four shops that sell stents in the U.S.

The foundation receives funding from device makers, among other sources, and conducts research and it’s most recent tax filing listed its revenue in 2005 to be $ 47.2 million. In a statement the foundation said “CRF welcomes the inquiry from Senators Kohl and Grassley and intends to comply fully with their request for information.” It went on to say, “C.R.F. is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity in all of its research and educational activities and ensuring independence, objectivity and scientific rigor in all of its programs.”

In a statement issued by Columbia University Medical Center it said it would respond to the request for information. “It is important to note that Columbia University and its Medical Center have conflict of interest policies and procedures in place, and we expect that they are followed by all members of the faculty," the statement said.

The letter to the CRF asked the group to disclose all financing it had received since 2003 from the five device manufacturers named in the letter and also to provide documentation of any payments and benefits the foundation had provided to 22 researchers including Dr. Stone, Dr. Leon and Dr. Moses. Kohl and Grassley have also written directly to drug and device makers asking them about their payments to doctors.

Grassley and Kohl back a bill that would require drug and device makers to report payments to doctors and earlier this month they sent a letter to Emory questioning payment of more than $500,000 to a high profile psychiatrist from GlaxoSmithKline over a few years when he reported receiving payments of less than $10,000 per year from the company.

Senators Question Cardiologists’ Ties to Stent Makers

Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, and Herb Kohl, Democrat of Wisconsin, have sent letters to Columbia University and the Cardiovascular Research Foundation to question financial ties between high profile doctors and device and drug institutions.

Dr. Martin B. Leon, founder and former chairman of CRF, a nonprofit group and Dr. Gregg W. Stone, its current chairman, both stent specialists affiliated with Columbia, are among the doctors listed by name in the letter. The letters have also questioned ties to a few companies which include Abbott, Medtronic, Boston Scientific and Johnson & Johnson, the four shops that sell stents in the U.S.

The foundation receives funding from device makers, among other sources, and conducts research and it’s most recent tax filing listed its revenue in 2005 to be $ 47.2 million. In a statement the foundation said “CRF welcomes the inquiry from Senators Kohl and Grassley and intends to comply fully with their request for information.” It went on to say, “C.R.F. is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity in all of its research and educational activities and ensuring independence, objectivity and scientific rigor in all of its programs.”

In a statement issued by Columbia University Medical Center it said it would respond to the request for information. “It is important to note that Columbia University and its Medical Center have conflict of interest policies and procedures in place, and we expect that they are followed by all members of the faculty," the statement said.

The letter to the CRF asked the group to disclose all financing it had received since 2003 from the five device manufacturers named in the letter and also to provide documentation of any payments and benefits the foundation had provided to 22 researchers including Dr. Stone, Dr. Leon and Dr. Moses. Kohl and Grassley have also written directly to drug and device makers asking them about their payments to doctors.

Grassley and Kohl back a bill that would require drug and device makers to report payments to doctors and earlier this month they sent a letter to Emory questioning payment of more than $500,000 to a high profile psychiatrist from GlaxoSmithKline over a few years when he reported receiving payments of less than $10,000 per year from the company.

Psoriasis Drug Raptiva gets FDA Warning

The Food and Drug Administration is giving a "black box" warning to Raptiva, the psoriasis drug, about the risk of life-threatening infections including a rare brain infection and meningitis.

Genentech Inc.'s drug Raptiva will now have a Boxed Warning highlighting the risk of bacterial sepsis, viral meningitis, invasive fungal disease, PML and other opportunistic infections. The label will also include data from juvenile animal studies in mice, which indicate a potential risk for the permanent suppression of the immune system with repeat administration of Raptiva juveniles.

The warning follows Genentech's announcement that the drug Raptiva may have resulted in a 70 year old chronic plaque psoriasis patient taking Raptiva for four years getting progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, or PML, which causes swelling of the brain and dying.

Janet Woodcock, MD, director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in a news release that the FDA ordered Raptiva's "black box" warning and other label changes after receiving reports of serious infections in some patients taking the drug. The FDA though is not stopping patients from taking Raptiva and acknowledges that one case of PML does not establish that the drug causes any illness. "Doctors and other prescribers should carefully evaluate and weigh the risk/benefit profile of Raptiva for patients who would be more susceptible to the risks," Woodcock says.

Raptiva is given by injection once a week and the drug is not approved for children under 18. The FDA recommends that patients taking Raptiva should be alert for signs of infection and seek immediate medical attention if they have any medical problems like confusion, dizziness, bleeding gums or numbness or weakness in arms and legs. Patients are also urged to get up to date on their vaccinations before starting the drug and not get vaccinated while on the drug as they may develop immunity to the vaccination virus.

Genentech spokeswoman Krysta Pellegrino said they will issue a letter to doctors and other health care providers detailing the label changes. "We feel it's important that patients and doctors are educated about the signs and symptoms of infections and the other information included in the boxed warning."

Former Director of UCLA Willed Body Program Pleads Guilty to Body Trafficking

Henry Reid, the former director of UCLA’s willed body program, pleaded guilty for his role in selling donated body parts to drug companies. The years long investigation into the body-for-parts profit scheme culminated when Reid pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit grand theft, said Nancy Greenstein, a university police spokeswoman.

Reid, 58, was hired in May 1997 as the director and from May 1999 to February 2004, he allegedly sold body parts to businessman Ernest Nelson, another defendant in the case, who resold them to “more than 20 private, medical, pharmaceutical and hospital research companies,” in a conspiracy to defraud UCLA of its donor bodies for financial gain in a scheme that netted up to $1 million, prosecutors said.

An Anaheim resident, Reid pleaded guilty in Los Angeles County Superior Court to one count of conspiracy to commit grand theft, a count shared by both individuals. In addition each received one count of grand theft of personal property allegedly worth more than $1 million, according to the statement.

There was a special allegation that he damaged or destroyed more than $1 million worth of school property, referring to the donated bodies.

Reid could be sentenced to four years and four months in a state prison and is to pay a restitution amount between $100,000 and $1 million to UCLA’s willed body program with a judge deciding on the final amount. Reid also agreed to cooperate in Nelson’s case. If he had been convicted at trial he could have faced up to 11 years in prison.

Melvyn Sacks, his attorney said after the hearing, "My client accepted responsibility for the mistake he made concerning his activities as director of the Willed Body Program at UCLA and is extremely remorseful about the situation. He deeply regrets the outcome of his actions."

UCLA police Chief Karl Ross said the investigation involved more than 100 search warrants and took three years in what he called "an extremely complicated case."

Nelson said he believed he was acting under the university’s authorization and he cut the donated torsos and kept the frozen parts in a rented warehouse until they were sold. In 2003 a state health investigator became concerned about a sale and contacted the university which unraveled the scheme.

Reid and Nelson were arrested in 2004 and then released while the investigation concluded. Nelson pleaded not guilty to the charges and no trial date has been set for him. Reid is scheduled for sentencing on Jan. 30, 2009.

UCLA suspended its cadaver program in 2004 for a year and has instituted new procedures to prevent future abuses, including new donor forms and security and tracking systems for the bodies.

Alcohol Increases Women’s Breast Cancer Risk

Government research has shown that eight out of ten women are unaware of the increased risk of breast cancer and alcohol consumption despite it being established years ago. A large glass of wine is equal to three units of alcohol at 12 % strength and two glasses raises the risk by more than a third. For those who drink more than nine units or three glasses a day the risk doubles compared to those who don’t drink.

The recommended limit is 250 ml or one large glass of wine and around four million women drink more than two to three units a day.

Dr Sarah Cant, Policy Manager at Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said, "Drinking moderate or high levels of any type of alcoholic drink has many health consequences, including an increased chance of developing breast cancer.

"Although many factors might affect our risk of getting breast cancer, limiting how much we drink is one thing we can do to try to reduce that risk - it's never too late to change your drinking habits."

Doctors feel the increase in breast cancer is due to the increase in drinking among women. It is unclear how alcohol and breast cancer are linked, but it may work by raising levels of the sex hormone estrogen in the body. 44,000 British women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and it claims 13,000 lives.

Most women believe family history is the commonest cause of breast cancer where as old age, obesity, having children late in life or not at all, not breastfeeding and alcohol are more common causes.

Dawn Primarolo, Public Health Minister said, "It's shocking, even for me, to see the potential risks of drinking over recommended guidelines in black and white. One large glass of 12 per cent wine takes a woman to her recommended daily limit in just one drink for regular drinking. Knowing the potential health consequences enables women to make choices that can reduce their risk of developing breast cancer."

Mandatory Flu Vaccine for Preschoolers in N.J. Causes Outrage

On a recommendation from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, New Jersey's Public Health Council has made it mandatory for all children to get the flu shot before they enroll in preschools and daycare centers.

New Jersey is the first state in the nation to take this step and many parents are unhappy with the mandate as they feel the decision should be the parent’s and not the states. Hundreds of parents and activists rallied outside the New Jersey Statehouse in Trenton on Thursday to demonstrate against the mandate and show support for a bill that would allow parents to opt out of the mandatory vaccines for their children.

Louise Habakus, one of the organizers said, "This is not an anti-vaccine rally — it's a freedom of choice rally. This one-size-fits-all approach is really very anti-American. I have a really big problem with mandatory flu shots in this country. We need to have a choice."

New Jersey’s policy was approved by the state's Public Health Council last December and was to take effect this fall. It recommends that children from 6 months to 5 years old who attend a child-care center or preschool have until Dec. 31 to receive the flu vaccine, along with a pneumococcal vaccine.

New Jersey's Health Department said in a statement, "Vaccines not only protect the child being vaccinated but also the general community and the most vulnerable individuals within the community.”

Assemblywoman Charlotte Vandervalk, one of the speakers at the rally said, "The right to informed consent is so basic. Parents have a right to decide for their own children what is injected in their bodies."

Parents are rallying for a "conscientious objectors" clause added to the bill which would allow parents who have moral objections exemptions from the vaccine. State policy allows medical and religious exemptions to all mandatory vaccinations though these have often been refused by health authorities. Vandervalk said 19 other states allow conscientious exemptions like those envisioned in her bill.

New Jersey is against the legislation saying, "Broad exemptions to mandatory vaccination weaken the entire compliance and enforcement structure." Dr. Tina Tan of the New Jersey State Department of Health said, "If we allow parents to pick and choose what vaccines to give kids, we will potentially run the risk of weakening the public health of the entire community.

"In light of New Jersey's special traits, the highest number of children possible must receive vaccines to protect them and others," the department said, referring to New Jersey’s high population density and many recently arrived immigrants making it particularly vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases.

Activists say vaccinations for certain highly dangerous diseases, such as polio were acceptable but feel the state went too far in requiring flu shots.

Mammography - the best to detect breast cancer

About 80 – 90% cases of breast cancer in women are detected by mammography. "Mammography remains the most effective screening test for the early detection of breast cancer available to women today," Dr. Otis W. Brawley, the ACS's chief medical officer, said in a society news release. "Women are strongly urged to schedule their mammograms yearly and to talk to their doctor regularly about their risk for breast cancer."

Early detection by mammography and the latest medical techniques have led to a decline in the breast cancer death rate in the United States since 1990. But a recent study suggests that many women are getting mammograms at a later age, not getting them done regularly every year, or are not following post mammography procedures.

According to the Illinois Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data, more than 10 percent of women in Knox County above the age of 40 had got a mammogram. 28% of those who had got mammography after forty did not follow it up regularly on yearly basis.

“Taking an hour out of your schedule to get a mammogram could possibly save your life,” said Gretchen Gonzalez, Community Health Educator. “Mammograms are probably the most important tool to detecting breast cancer.”

Health News

Cry your way to calm mind and healthy body

Latest research suggests that tears are not only a stress-buster; they also soothe the mind, and heal the body. But while almost all of us shed emotional tears at some time – at least 47 times a year for women, and seven for men – exactly why we cry, and much about what happens when we do, remains a mystery.

A clue to the purpose of crying may lie in the experimental finding that emotional tears contain different compounds from regular eye watering, such as that triggered by chopping onions.

In fact, emotional tears come from the same tear glands that produce the fluid that forms a protective film over the eyeballs to keep them free of irritants, and which also releases extra fluid when the eye becomes irritated, or is invaded by a foreign body.

Tears associated with emotion are not mere eye watering – they have higher levels of some proteins, and of manganese and potassium, and hormones, including prolactin.

Manganese is an essential nutrient, and inadequate quantities of it can lead to slowed blood clotting, skin problems, and lowered cholesterol levels. Potassium is involved in nerve working, muscle control and blood pressure. Prolactin is a hormone involved in stress and plays a role in the immune system and other body functions.

Even though crying is not a blockbuster drug, but the latest research suggests it’s highly effective at healing, and that it improves the mood of 88.8 per cent of weepers, with only 8.4 per cent feeling worse!

Risk of Breast Cancer Relapse Can Linger

According to a new study women who have completed five years of Risk of Breast Cancer Relapse Can Lingersystematic therapy for breast cancer could still run the risk of a relapse though the rate is low.

The study, published online in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, studied 2838 cancer patients whose disease varied from stage I to III had been treated with some form of therapy and had remained disease-free for the landmark five years.

All of them had a various treatments ranging from surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy to endocrine therapy. The findings showed that 89% of the patients remained disease free 10 years after diagnosis and 81% after 15 years.

The study's lead author, Dr. Abenaa Brewster, a medical oncologist at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, said "Patients often ask me, 'Now that I've survived my breast cancer, what is my future risk of a recurrence?' This is an answer we've had a hard time giving. They remain really terrified about their risk."

The risk or recurrence depended on the stage of the cancer and tumor type and women with stage I disease had a 7 % chance of relapse; stage II, 11% ; while stage III, 13%.

"I would like to think these numbers are smaller than women think they are." Dr. Brewster said many of the women “remain terrified they are going to relapse. I think the message for women is, the risk may not be as large as they think."

The study also found that two types of tumors are less likely to recur in the first five years, slow growing and estrogen fueled tumors and these recurred 10 -15 years after diagnosis. Medical experts are still trying to figure out how hormone receptor status affected the risk of relapse.

“Women who had ER-positive cancer were more likely to have late recurrences than those with ER-negative," Brewster said. This applied in the case for premenopausal and postmenopausal women. "Estrogen receptor status is a tumor marker we look at," Brewster said. "We know that those who have ER-positive tumors [have] cancers that are responsive to the effects of estrogen."

The American Cancer Society says about 183,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and about 40,000 die of it with an overall, 89% of breast cancer patients surviving at least five years.

Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, said "The major message is that even though women may have gone through five years of hormonal therapy, they are still at risk of relapse," he said. "Basically the jury is out on the potential value of additional treatment strategies once the five years is completed," Lichtenfeld said. "Based on this study, we need to be open to question whether other treatment programs may be appropriate in some of these women after the five-year period is completed."

Texas College Presidents Call On Lawmakers To Lower Drinking Age To 18

Colleges in Texas are deliberating over the minimum drinking age. According to news media, at least 123 college presidents as of this week have signed up to petition the government to lower the drinking age.

The college leaders are trying to justify their decision by saying that lowering of drinking age can reduce occurrence of binge drinking and make it easy for colleges to impose the drinking law.

At present, the federal drinking age is set at 21. The campaign, known as the Amethyst Initiative was initiated by former Middlebury College President John McCardell. It is composed of college presidents from more than 100 universities, including two Texas school inn support of lowering the drinking age. The presidents are calling on lawmakers to consider new policies, which could include lowering the drinking age to 18.

A health observer associated with foodconsumer.org opined that college presidents should know the fact that alcohol is a carcinogen - a cancer causing agent that can increase the risk of cancer. Although not all drinkers get cancer, drinking does increase the risk of encountering cancer.

Study: Non-Smokers & African Americans Are At High Risk Of Developing Lung Cancer/Lung Disease

A new study has found that African Americans, particularly, are at high risk of developing lung cancer due to emphysema and similar lung diseases, while another study has focused on non-smokers getting lung cancer.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which is a collection of lung diseases including emphysema and chronic bronchitis, is most often caused by smoking. Though smoking causes 85 – 90 % of the lung cancer cases, there are 10-15 % cases where people who never smoked get lung cancer. In the U.S. alone, this represents 16,000 to 24,000 cases a year. Non smokers develop lung cancer for reasons, such as genetic susceptibility, exposure to certain carcinogens, such as asbestos, radon, some solvents, and passive smoking, which is inhaling others’ cigarette smoke.

The study by researchers at the University of Texas, published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research, has found that African Americans who had a history of COPD were over six times as likely as those without the disease to develop lung cancer. This puts them on par in risk to that linked to smoking, and is twice as high as the risk linked to COPD in whites, said the researchers.

Lead researcher Dr. Carol Etzel, of the UT M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, said, "The one size fits all risk prediction clearly does not work." She was referring to previous studies which focused on white adults to predict an individual’s risk for lung cancer. However, the researchers feel that in all racial groups, various risk factors for lung cancer do not necessarily each carry the same weight.

Etzel and her colleagues studied 491 African Americans with lung cancer and 497 African Americans, who were matched to the patients for age and sex, but were free of cancer. In black adults similar to what has been seen in whites in previous studies, smoking, the major risk factor for lung cancer, was as strongly linked to the disease. Current smokers had a six times higher chance to develop lung cancer as non-smokers, while former smokers faced a more than three-fold increase in their risk.

In this study, the model they developed takes into consideration a person's history of smoking, COPD, hay fever -- which is linked to a lower lung cancer risk – as well as exposures to asbestos or wood dust, which raise the risk of the disease. The researchers found this to be a more accurate model in predicting black adults' lung cancer risk compared with a similar model that was previously developed from data on white patients.

"What we hope is that a doctor can use these models to encourage their patients to take steps to prevent lung cancer," she said. "Even if they are never smokers, they can be at risk."

In another study a group of researches led by Dr. Michael J. Thun, conducted a large-scale composite study. They used data from 13 other studies from North America, Europe, and Asia spanning 40 years and over 2 million people. They found that the death rate from lung cancer among non-smokers in general has been stable, with no marked increase detected. Non-smokers appear to have "different molecular profiles of, lung tumors and respond better to targeted therapies" than tumors in smokers' lungs.

Some other factors they found were that although men and women were equally likely to develop the disease at age 40 +, men were more likely to die of the disease regardless of age or racial group.

African Americans are more likely to die from the disease than are those of European descent as are Asians living in Korea and Japan, but not in the U.S., more likely to die of the disease than those of European descent. - The disease was not rising among non smoking women in the U.S. while it is more common in East Asian women than in other women.

Hurricane Ilk Affects Flights

Airlines prepared to curtail service Friday to Texas cities in the Hurricane Ilk Affects Flightspath of hurricane Ike and offered to waive ticket-changing fees for passengers whose flights were scrubbed.

Aviation officials in Houston said flights at George Bush Intercontinental Airport would be suspended at 2 p.m. CT on Friday and 3:30 p.m. CT at the smaller Hobby Airport.

Houston-based Continental Airlines Inc., whose largest hub is at Bush Intercontinental, said it might also stop flights early Friday afternoon at other airports along the Gulf. It said service in Houston and any other affected cities was likely to resume Sunday.

The airline said its Continental Express and Continental Connection regional flights, which use smaller aircraft, would stop Houston flights even earlier on Friday - between midmorning and midday.

Other airlines that operate flights in and out of Bush Intercontinental include AMR Corp.'s American Airlines, the largest carrier in the United States; Delta Air Lines Inc.; UAL Corp.'s United Airlines; US Airways Group Inc.; Northwest Airlines Corp. and many foreign carriers.

Southwest Airlines Co., which operates 144 daily flights from Hobby Airport, one of its busiest operations, cancelled flights there and at Corpus Christi and Harlingen for Friday and Saturday.

JetBlue Airways Corp., AirTran Airways' parent AirTran Holdings Inc., Delta and AMR also operate at Hobby.

Airport spokeswoman Marlene McClinton said JetBlue and AirTran would operate until 3:30 p.m. but other carriers at Hobby would stop flying at 9 a.m.

Most airlines said that travellers with itineraries including cities in the storm's path could change plans without penalty, although exact terms could differ by carrier.

Study: Pros & Cons Of Losing Weight With Gastric Surgery

Do you think you should lose weight? Take hope from Sara Sloan, a 58-year old retired teacher from Brooklyn, and in her own words ‘the heaviest kid in kindergarten, heavy my whole life’. May 2004, she underwent gastric bypass surgery, losing 128-lbs in less than a year, the star of an advertisement for weight-reduction surgery. Before surgery, she had tried just about everything from Weight Watchers, Overeaters Anonymous to speed, when it was being prescribed by doctors in the ’60s to help lose weight. She did lose weight, only to gain it back, carrying 258-lbs on her 5-foot 1-inch frame by the winter of 2003 – 2004. But, over the two and a half years since her bariatric surgery, she has maintained and kept to her new weight of 130-lbs.

With two surgeries option most commonly resorted to by obese, over-weight patients to lose weight. Dr. Nancy Puzziferri and colleagues at The University of Texas, South-western Medical Centre, Dallas report that gastric bypass surgery wins over gastric banding, both in the short and long term. Evidence shows patients undergoing gastric bypass not only lose more weight, they consistently do so over a period of time, however, three years down the road, they show the same results.

However, before opting for either, it is imperative to weigh the pros and cons, and while, bypass may be the riskier and more complicated surgery of the two, yet, a more intensive follow-up is required for gastric banding. What counts when deciding between the two, is the risk-benefit ratio and patient’s ability to return to the clinic.

Between 1997 and 2006, 1,102 gastric bypass patients against 631 who underwent gastric banding, were evaluated by Puzziferri’s team in order to compare the results of these two weight loss procedures. They found results of bypass surgery to be consistent across patients, who lost weight faster and kept it off longer, than those who went in for banding.

While, 53.2 gastric bypass patients lost 75% of their excess body weight at the end of the study, only 9.8% of banding patients had comparable weight loss. Bypass patients were 18-times more likely, than banding patients, to successfully lose weight within 6-months of the surgery, showing a success rate more than 9-times, two years down the line.

Researchers found gradual weight loss in banding patients rather akin to what one sees in those on low-calorie diets, which indicates behavioural practices are critical for losing weight in gastric banding, more so than in gastric bypass. However, the higher operative risk of the latter makes it a better choice for only a selected group of patients. A larger study with at least 5-years of follow-up is recommended for comparing the risks, benefits and costs of the two procedures.

But, even gastric bypass surgery does not mean that you do not have to monitor your food intake or give up exercise completely. Ms. Sloan, despite having gastric bypass surgery still disciplines her eating habits, keeping a food diary for each day to be scrutinized by the nutritionist she sees once a month. While, eating a wide variety of foods, she avoids high-sugar foods like ice cream and candy, having them only occasionally. And, exercises regularly by walking, swimming and lifting weights in order to keep lean and maintain muscle health.

With over 15-million morbidly obese Americans, 205,000 of which underwent surgery last year, going on to lose 100 or more pounds according to American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery estimates. Gastric surgeries help create a smaller stomach, bypassing a part of the small intestine to help lose weight, which means the amount people can consume at a given time is reduced, including the amount of digested food they can absorb.

While, weight-loss surgery is a major operation and carries a risk of complications, it does help to lose weight, thereby improving overall health, reducing the risk of premature death and heart disease by lowering blood lipids and blood pressure. Type 2 diabetes and obstructive sleep apnea also disappear with weight loss, while the risk of some cancers is also reduced.

But, surgery is not an instant cure for obesity; one also has to maintain weight loss through diet and exercise. Gastric bypass surgery makes you throw up if you eat too much, while eating sugary foods results in diarrohea. However, it does cure underlying psychological factors that prompt overweight people to overeat or eat fattening foods. Before going in for gastric surgery, it is best to find out first why one is overeating. It could be more of a psychological problem that needs psychiatric help than anything else.

J&J’s ‘ustekinumab’ may oust ‘Enbrel’ for psoriasis

On the basis of a patient study with regard to treating the skin disease – psoriasis - Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) said its experimental drug ‘ustekinumab’ was more effective than Amgen Inc.’s and Wyeth’s best-seller drug ‘Enbrel’. The latest data for ustekinumab was recently presented at a meeting of dermatologists in Paris.

In the trial study on 903 patients with moderate to severe psoriasis, these patients were given one of two dose levels of ustekinumab or Enbrel. The main aim was to track the proportion of patients in each group who achieved a minimum of 75% reduction in psoriasis in a 12-week period, measured according to an index assessing the surface area and severity of the disease, which causes skin lesions.

At the conclusion of the study analysis, J&J reported that while only 57% of patients given Enbrel doses achieved the targeted 75% reduction of psoriasis, 68% of the patients given the lower dose of ustekinumab and 74% of those given the higher dose registered similar results of 75% reduction.

It needs to be mentioned that Enbrel was introduced in 1998 as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. After its regulatory approval for additional uses including psoriasis, the drug is now one of the blockbuster drugs in the world. According to IMS Health, last year Enbrel racked up $5.3 billion in global sales. Analysts opine that if ‘ustekinumab’ gets approval from FDA, it will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in sales within first few years.

Dr. Alan Menter, a Baylor University dermatologist who led the study said: “I would anticipate, because of its robust clinical data and ease of administration, that once released, (ustekinumab) will certainly be a first-line drug for psoriasis.”

Expressing similar opinion, Matthew Dodds, Citigroup analyst, said that previous, separate trials had suggested ustekinumab was superior to Enbrel, “but this is the first time it has been demonstrated in a single study.” Dodds believes the new study, together with previous studies, “provides a compelling argument for FDA approval.”

However, it actually appears that the new study is unlikely to play a key role in the FDA’s impending decision concerning the approval to J&J to market ‘ustekinumab’, because of its alleged risk of cancer. Though an FDA advisory committee recommended in June that the drug be approved, the agency is in no way bound by the panel’s advice. In fact, in August, the FDA extended its review to allow more time to examine amendments to J&J’s application for approval, and it is now expected to decide on ‘ustekinumab’ by December.

Study: Low Salt Diets Can Help Control High Blood Pressure

Middle aged men with high blood pressure don’t get treatment started in time said a recent study, while another said that by adopting a low salt diet, high blood pressure could be controlled. The first study, on timely treatment of high blood pressure, was conducted by Dr. Joseph Ravenell, who did the study at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas; he is now an assistant professor of medicine at New York University.

The study findings were presented Friday at the American Heart Association's Council for High Blood Pressure Research annual meeting, in Atlanta and were based on 891 black men in Dallas County, most of them being treated by primary-care physicians. 22 community doctors were also interviewed and only 36 % of them said they would start treatment for a 45-year-old black man with an office blood pressure of 145/92 and an out-of-office pressure of 154/95, both well above the recommended 120/80 level. None of the 22 doctors were familiar with the national guidelines calling for treatment of blood pressure at such levels.

Ravenell said the results though surprising were in tune with other earlier results which said that the guidelines aren't adhered to by physicians nearly as well as the guideline creators would like them to be. As all the men in the study were black Ravenell is not sure if the results would have been any different if they were white, though evidence does suggest that often blacks suffer more from poor guideline adherence by physicians.

As black men were at a high risk of death from hypertension, Ravenell felt physicians ought to be particularly careful handling them and should ensure that they are appropriately applying the guidelines to all patients.

Dr. Daniel Jones, vice chancellor for health affairs at the University of Mississippi, and a past president of the American Heart Association said that people who are seen by doctors need to be aware of the guidelines. They should know their blood pressure readings and initiate a discussion with the doctor if the reading point to high blood pressure. Jones said patients can influence doctors' choices by initiating discussions. He further added that national health surveys have shown that Americans are clued in about the dangers of high blood pressure and it being a major risk factor for heart attacks as well as strokes and that drug therapy can control the problem.

Another study conducted on high blood pressure was presented at the American Heart Association's 62nd Annual Fall Conference of the Council for High Blood Pressure Research in Atlanta. Dr. Eduardo Pimenta from the Dante Pazzanese Institute of Cardiology, Sao Paulo, Brazil, told Reuters Health that regulating your salt intake could help control high blood pressure that was not getting controlled despite medication.

"A high-salt diet contributes importantly to treatment-resistant hypertension (high blood pressure)," said Dr. Pimenta. The study measured the impact of a low salt diet on 13 adults with treatment-resistant hypertension who wore a 24 hour blood pressure reader continuously for 24 hours. Low- and high-salt diets were tested for seven days separated by a two-week "washout" period, after which the subjects switched groups.

Pimenta and colleagues found that the amount of sodium excreted in the urine over a 24 hour time span reduced drastically when they were on a low salt diet as compared to readings from the high salt diet. They also found that the systolic blood pressure -- the top number in blood pressure readings that represent pressure while the heart contracts reduced by 22.6 mmHg and the diastolic blood pressure - the bottom number that gives the pressure when the heart relaxes between beats - was lower by 9.2 mmHg while on a low salt diet.

"We were expecting blood pressure reduction with low-salt diet but the reduction was larger than we expected," Pimenta said. He added that a high salt diet can impair blood vessel function and cause water retention "despite diuretic therapy," while healthy reductions in fluid volumes were seen during the low salt diet.

All in all the team concluded that a high salt diet causes a lot of harm to people with stubborn hypertension and the simple solution of lowering their salt intake could reduce many health problems related to high blood pressure.

Study On Obesity: Fat Cells Are Formed At Or Before Birth

A recent U.S. study has found ways to fight the obesity and diabetes epidemics. Researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have found that baby fat cells formed are at or before birth. These cells live inside the blood vessels that nourish fat deposits. These cells wait there to form new fat. Researchers articulated that eating excess calories may activate the cells, which leave their hiding places inside the walls of the blood vessels.

In this study, researchers genetically engineered mice so that cells that produced a large amount of a fat-regulating hormone called PPAR-gamma would glow green. This took researchers 5 years to figure out this method.

Researchers looked in fat deposits, inside the blood vessel walls, where some experts had guessed fat cells may originate. Some green-glowing cells were in there, and when taken out, they matured into fat cells. Researchers found out that these immature cells, called progenitor cells, appear to be formed at or before birth.

Lead researcher, Dr. Jonathan Graff said, "They're not just attached to the vessel wall, they're an integral part of it."

He added that the cells can react to compounds in the blood, including nutrients like glucose. Perhaps they drift out of the vessel walls when they sense enough glucose, which in turn signals that the body is taking in more calories than it needs and should store some as fat.

Graff said that it may be possible to remove immature cells from a patient's own fat and use them to grow natural grafts, for example, for a woman after breast cancer surgery. Cosmetic purposes might include plumping out lips or wrinkles. Such cells may be useful for the field of regenerative medicine.

Research team also tested the cells' response to diabetes drugs known as thiazolidinediones.

Researchers found that the progenitor cells matured into fat cells when treated with glitazone drugs. Researchers added that this could help in explaining how the drugs fight type-2 diabetes, which occurs when the body loses its ability to use insulin to convert food to fuel.

Graff said, "We know that skinnier fat cells send out good signals and fatter fat cells send out bad signals. TZDs alter them so that they are more insulin-sensitive."

Researchers believe that manipulation of these fat cells offers an important potential for obesity and diabetes. Researchers hoped that in future it might be possible to remove these fat cells and than use them as tissue grafts or transplants to cure disease or repair injuries.

Study Reveals Doctors Lack In Empathy To Patients

A study carried out to assess interactions between patients and doctors reveals that doctors need to show more empathy when patients mention health concerns. A man diagnosed with lung cancer, while in consultation with his doctor, dispiritedly talked about what cigarettes had done to him. Instead, of showing sympathy and empathising with his cancer patient, the doctor abruptly changed the subject, asking if the man had glaucoma.

In a small study conducted at Veterans Affairs Hospital, Houston, the appointments between doctors and 10-patients were audio-taped and analyzed for any empathy the concerned physicians might have shown those suffering from a deadly illness. However, the study findings reinforce other research that shows a majority of doctors fail to respond or acknowledge a patient’s emotional difficulties or predicament, providing little or no emotional support, despite the fact that their patients seemed to be looking for some.

Assessing interaction between a small group of people with lung cancer and their doctors, U.S. researchers found that the doctors showed empathy only 10% of the time when patients commented on the personal impact of cancer, their diagnosis, treatment and difficulties with the health care system.

Dr. Diane Morse of the University of Rochester Medical Centre in Rochester, New York whose findings appear in the Archives of Internal Medicine journal says, providing empathy doesn’t mean more time spent with the patient. Doctors should acknowledge what they hear, be succinct with their words of empathy and speak them early on during the appointment. If, a patient asks how long he has to live, they can simply respond by admitting it is a scary question and acknowledge the patient’s misfortune.

Other studies were also carried out and involved word-by-word analysis of doctor-patient meetings, in order to assess how the doctors responded to patients worried about death, mistrust of medical care and the emotions that wracked them after hearing they had an illness whose outcome was fatal. Unidentified by name, though both doctors and patients knew they were being recorded, researchers found there were 384 times during these appointments when patients expressed worry and seemed depressed over their plight. However, there were only 39-instances when doctors showed empathy.