The American Podiatric Medical Association says risk factors for ingrown toenails include:
Trimming a toenail unevenly, rather than straight across.Wearing shoes that are too tight or crowd the toes.Having feet that are frequently subjected to injury during everyday activities.Salmonella Outbreak Affects 100 People in 19 States: CDC
A outbreak of salmonella has now affected 100 people across 19 states, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported Friday.
According to the agency, between Jan. 28 and March 25 salmonella infections linked to the outbreak have been reported in Alabama (2 cases), Arkansas (1), Connecticut (5), District of Columbia (2), Georgia (4), Illinois (9), Louisiana (2), Maryland (10), Massachusetts (4), Mississippi (1), Missouri (1), New Jersey (7), New York (23), North Carolina (2), Pennsylvania (3), Rhode Island (4), South Carolina (3), Texas (3), Virginia (5) and Wisconsin (9).
So far 10 people have been hospitalized, and no deaths have been reported, the CDC said.
All of the infections have been from a strain of salmonella called Salmonella Bareilly. The CDC had previously tied the outbreak to sushi/sashimi, but no one food source has yet been conclusively pinpointed as the source of illness.
Symptoms of salmonella infection include diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. Most people recover within 4 to 7 days without treatment, but some cases are deadly if not treated with antibiotics. The elderly, the very young and people with compromised immune systems are most at risk of a severe illness from salmonella infection.
If you suspect you have eaten contaminated food, the CDC recommends contacting your doctor. "CDC will update the public on the progress of this investigation as information becomes available," the agency said.
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Allergic Reactions Spur Recall of Odwalla Chocolate Drink
Odwalla Chocolate Protein Monster beverages are being recalled after four people with peanut allergies suffered severe allergic reactions after drinking the product.
The recall covers 12-ounce and 32-ounce bottles with "enjoy by" dates to and including May 23, 2012. The bottles were distributed nationwide, the Associated Press reported.
People with peanut and/or tree nut allergies may be at risk for a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if the consume the drink, Odwalla Inc. said.
The Coca-Cola-owned company said the drink contains no peanut or tree nut ingredients and the company is working with the Food and Drug Administration to investigate the cause of these allergic reactions, the AP reported.
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Turtle-Linked Salmonella Sickens 72 in 17 States: CDC
Salmonella outbreaks linked to small pet turtles have sickened 72 people in 17 states, according to an investigation update released Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Fifty-nine percent of the cases involve children 10 or younger. Twelve people have been hospitalized but no deaths have been reported.
The number of cases in the affected states are: Arizona (2), California (12), Georgia (1), Indiana (1), Kentucky (1), Massachusetts (3), Maryland (6), Michigan (1), Minnesota (1), North Carolina (1), New Jersey (6), New Mexico (3), New York (21), Pennsylvania (7), Texas (4), Virginia (1), and Vermont (1).
The CDC investigation found that the outbreaks involving three strains of salmonella were caused by exposure to small pet turtles (shell length less than 4 inches) or their environments, such as water from turtle habitats.
Ninety-two percent of the people with salmonella illness had small turtles and 43 percent of them said they bought the turtles from street vendors.
The CDC said turtles with a shell length of less than 4 inches should not be bought or given as gifts.
Women -- especially those who played field hockey, soccer, softball and volleyball -- accounted for the majority of the overuse injuries (62 percent).
For this study, researchers analyzed three years of data from male and female collegiate athletes participating in 16 team sports at the University of Iowa.
During the study period, 319 male athletes sustained 705 injuries and 254 female athletes suffered 612 injuries. Overall, 288 athletes reported more than one injury. Of all the injuries suffered by the athletes, 29 percent were overuse injuries and 71 percent were acute injuries.
Overuse injuries tend to occur gradually and are caused by repeated small injuries, without a single, identifiable event. Acute injuries -- typically suffered by athletes playing high-speed and full-contact sports such as football or hockey -- have specific and identifiable causes.
The most common overuse injuries were general stress (27 percent), inflammation (21 percent) and tendinitis (16 percent).
Overuse injuries were most common among athletes in low-contact sports that involve long training sessions or in which athletes repeat the same movement numerous times, such as long-distance running, rowing and swimming. Four women's sports in particular -- field hockey, soccer, softball and volleyball -- had the highest rates of overuse injuries.
The study appears in the April issue of the Journal of Athletic Training.
"Overuse injuries may present not only physical challenges, but also psychological ones that could significantly affect an athlete's recovery and performance," study co-author Tracey Covassin said in a journal news release.
"Understanding the frequency, rate and severity of overuse injuries is an important first step for designing effective injury-prevention programs, intervention strategies and treatment protocols to prevent and rehabilitate athletes with these types of injuries," Covassin said.
More information
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons has more about common sports injuries and conditions.
Smell is essential to animals in order to detect, locate and identify predators. Odors also trigger powerful emotional responses in humans, the study authors pointed out.
Researchers Elizabeth Krusemark and Wen Li of the University of Wisconsin-Madison exposed 14 young adults to different types of odors while they underwent MRI brain scans. The participants' anxiety levels and breathing patterns were also recorded.
As the volunteers' anxiety levels rose, so did their ability to detect negative odors. The investigators also found that communication between the sensory and emotional areas of the brain increased in response to negative odors, particularly when people were anxious.
This heightened communication between these brain areas could be an important mechanism to boost awareness of potential threats, the researchers said.
The study was published in a recent online issue of the journal Chemosensory Perception.
More information
The Social Issues Research Centre has more about the sense of smell.
Irish researchers analyzed data from 2,590 patients with gastrointestinal disorders between 1999 and 2009, and found that 57 percent of them had undergone diagnostic imaging tests such as computed tomography (CT) imaging.
Higher yearly and total levels of diagnostic radiation exposure were seen in patients with such conditions as inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, fatty liver disease and benign liver cysts, as well as in younger patients with irritable bowel syndrome and unexplained abdominal pain syndrome.
The study appears in the April 1 online edition of the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
"Our results show that significant increases in radiation exposure in the last decade have paralleled the increased use of computed tomography imaging," lead author Alan Desmond, of the Cork University Hospital, said in a news release from the American Gastroenterological Association. "While cumulative exposure is highest in patients with Crohn's disease, high exposure may also occur in patients with other gastrointestinal disorders."
Crohn's disease is a major form of inflammatory bowel disease, along with ulcerative colitis.
Diagnostic imaging with CT does benefit patients with gastrointestinal tract disorders, especially those with Crohn's disease, who often require abdominal imaging to assess the extent of their disease and detect complications, the researchers noted.
However, CT uses higher levels of radiation than other imaging technologies and more widespread use of CT has led to increased patient exposure to radiation. This has raised concerns because radiation exposure may increase a person's lifetime risk of cancer, especially in younger patients.
More information
The American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America has more about radiation exposure in X-ray and CT examinations.
Canadian researchers analyzed data from 406 children and found that those with moderate or severe asthma attacks who received systemic corticosteroids within 75 minutes of arriving at a hospital emergency department were 16 percent less likely to be admitted to the hospital.
Corticosteroids reduce inflammation.
The findings illustrate the importance of rapidly identifying and treating children with asthma when they arrive at an emergency department, the researchers said.
The study was recently published online in the journal Annals of Emergency Medicine.
"We knew that corticosteroids could help avoid hospital admissions and relapses. However, just how delays between emergency department admission and administration of the treatment impacted outcomes remained unclear," lead author Dr. Sanjit Bhogal said in a University of Montreal news release.
"Our study demonstrates that, to be effective in preventing hospital admission, treatment with corticosteroids should be administered within 75 minutes of triage, regardless of patient age," senior author Dr. Francine Ducharme said in the news release.
"In fact, the earlier the treatment is given within this time frame, the more effective it is, hence the advantage of starting treatment right after triage," she added. "Furthermore, beginning early treatment reduces emergency department stay by almost 45 minutes for patients who will be discharged from the emergency department."
More information
The American Academy of Pediatrics has more about asthma and children.
These children also may be more likely to inflict self-injury, researchers found.
Although the reasons their symptoms are more severe remain unknown, the study suggested it may have something to do with what caused the children to be born before 36 weeks' gestation or after 42 weeks.
"With preterm and post-term babies, there is something underlying that is altering the genetic expression of autism," Tammy Movsas, a postdoctoral epidemiology fellow at Michigan State University's College of Human Medicine, said in a university news release.
"The outside environment in which a preterm baby continues to mature is very different than the environment that the baby would have experienced in utero," she said. "This change in environment may be part of the reason why there is a difference in autistic severity in this set of infants."
The researchers examined an online database of 4,200 mothers with children with autism, ranging in age from 4 to 21 years. They grouped the children into one of four categories based on the timing of their birth: very preterm (fewer than 34 weeks' gestation), preterm (34 to 37 weeks), standard (37 to 42 weeks) and post-term (more than 42 weeks).
The mothers completed questionnaires about their child's symptoms. The study revealed very preterm, preterm and post-term children with autism had significantly more severe cases than children with autism who were born between 37 and 42 weeks gestation.
Although the study found a link between length of pregnancy and autism severity, it did not show a cause-and-effect relationship.
"Normal gestation age of birth seems to mitigate the severity of autism spectrum disorder symptoms, and the types of autistic traits tend to be different depending on age at birth," Movsas said.
For babies born late, the study's authors said prolonged exposure to hormones, higher rates of problems with the placenta and Cesarean section could play a role in the severity of a child's autism.
On the other hand, the study also revealed that very preterm babies show an increase in the mannerisms associated with autism.
Nigel Paneth, an epidemiologist at Michigan State, said that although autism has a strong genetic component, the findings indicate that something about pregnancy or the perinatal period may affect how autism manifests itself.
"This adds to our earlier finding that prematurity is a major risk factor for autism spectrum disorder and may help us understand if anything can be done during early life to prevent or alleviate autism spectrum disorder," he said in the news release.
The study was published online April 3 in the Journal of Autism and Development Disorders.
No one knows what causes autism. Other research published this week found that spontaneous genetic mutations and older fathers may influence a small number of autism cases.
According to recent figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in 88 U.S. children has some form of the neurological disorder.
More information
The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke provides more information on autism.
The study was a test in a lab dish so scientists aren't sure if the effects will be the same in people. But some experts say the results are intriguing enough that Olympic testing could be updated to include that possibility.
"It's interesting that something as common as tea could have a significant influence on the steroid profile," said Olivier Rabin, scientific director of the World Anti-Doping Agency, or WADA. He said other foods and beverages, such as alcohol, are also known to muddle test results.
"We may need to adjust our steroid (test) to allow us to exclude whether a test is modified by food or training or disease, before we can say that it's doping," Rabin said. He said they might have to raise their normal threshold for what is a considered a legal amount of testosterone to allow for any such interference.
In the study, researchers added green and white tea extracts
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