Sex Education Efforts Lagging in Schools, CDC Says

HealthDay – Thu, Apr 5, 2012 THURSDAY, April 5 (HealthDay News) -- There's been little progress in recent years in boosting the number of American secondary schools that teach students how to prevent pregnancy and protect themselves against HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

That's the finding from researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who analyzed 2008 and 2010 data from 45 states taking part in biennial surveys of school health practices.

The surveys assessed the percentage of schools in each state that teach specific topics related to HIV, STD and pregnancy prevention. The topics differ in middle schools and high schools, but generally include basic information on the transmission and diagnosis of HIV and other STDs, as well as pregnancy risk reduction. Condom use is one of the topics that's covered only in high schools, the CDC said.

The surveys revealed few indications of progress between 2008 and 2010. For example, the percentage of middle schools that taught all essential topics to grades 6, 7 and 8 declined in 11 states and did not rise in any of the other 33 states.

In high schools, the percentage that taught all eight essential topics to grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 declined in one state and increased in two states. And the percentage of high schools that taught three condom-related topics fell in eight states while increasing in only three.

Broken out by states in 2010, the report showed that the percentage of middle schools that taught all topics ranged from 12.6 percent in Arizona to 66.3 percent in New York. The percentage of high schools that taught all topics ranged from 45.3 percent in Alaska to 96.4 percent in New Jersey. And the percentage of high schools that taught all three condom-related topics ranged from 11.3 percent in Utah to 93.1 percent in Delaware.

Education on avoiding infection with HIV and other STDs is critical, especially for children in middle schools who most likely have not begun sexual activity, experts said in an editorial accompanying the new study.

"HIV prevention can also address misperceptions about how HIV is transmitted," they noted. For example, they say, one poll conducted in 2011 found that "20 percent of persons aged 18-29 believe incorrectly that a person can become infected with HIV by sharing a drinking glass, or are unsure of whether this statement is true or false."

Schools remain integral to educating young people about ways they can keep themselves and others safe, the experts added.

"Families, the media, and community organizations, including faith-based organizations, can play a role in providing HIV, other STD, and pregnancy prevention education," the editorialists pointed out. "However, schools are in a unique position to provide

View the Original article

Watch: Colombian Girl, 10, Gives Birth to Daughter

Lauren Scruggs Update: 'She's Got Her Spunk Back'Model resumes recovery after accidentally walking into spinning plane propeller. 0Comment on this videoMost Popular News Videos

View the Original article

Muscular Dystrophy Association show leaving Vegas

A year after the Muscular Dystrophy Association telethon split with comedian and longtime host Jerry Lewis, the Labor Day weekend show is leaving Las Vegas.

An official at the South Point Hotel Casino & Spa, where the event was held last year without Lewis, said Friday that association executives had decided to move it to the Los Angeles area.

"Last year the MDA made us aware they were looking to make a change, so the recent news comes as no surprise," resort marketing chief Tom Mikovits told The Associated Press. "We are proud to have hosted the Labor Day Telethon for the last six years and we wish the MDA all the best in the future."

Hotel owner Michael Gaughan told a Las Vegas Review-Journal columnist that the show would be shortened to three hours and broadcast from CBS studios in Culver City, Calif. Gaughan was traveling and unavailable Friday.

"The show is being put together," said Roxan Olivas, a Muscular Dystrophy Association spokeswoman in Tucson, Ariz. She declined to provide details.

A spokeswoman for Lewis said the entertainer and host of the telethon for more than four decades was traveling, and probably wouldn't comment about the MDA move.

"He has not discussed the telethon since last year, when he had no comment," spokeswoman Candi Cazau said.

Lewis turned 86 on March 16 and lives in Las Vegas. He was MDA national chairman from the early 1950s to 2011. He started the Labor Day Muscular Dystrophy Association telethon in 1966 with a nearly 22-hour show at a single TV station in New York.

The event moved to Las Vegas in 1973, and had stints in Los Angeles before moving to Gaughan's hotel.

Lewis' absence last year ended a 45-year run in which officials credit him with raising $1.66 billion for research and aid for those living with of the degenerative inherited muscular disease.

Despite Lewis' absence, telethon officials reported raising $61.5 million last Sept. 4 in a six-hour show with several hosts. A silent montage of Lewis film clips was shown, but he didn't take part in person or tape his signature song, "You'll Never Walk Alone."

Lewis, who once teamed with comedian Dean Martin, grew into a film icon with antics and characters including the "Nutty Professor."

He was nominated in 1977 for a Nobel Peace Prize for his work with the telethon and muscular dystrophy relief.

View the Original article

Advocates for mentally ill erred in lawsuit: court

Reuters – 6 hrs ago WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A New York nonprofit that advocates for the mentally ill cannot sue on their behalf for better housing because of how the organization is structured, a court said on Friday.

The decision by a federal appeals court sweeps aside a trial judge's finding that the State of New York discriminated against thousands of people living in adult homes.

The case must now begin anew, possibly with the Justice Department taking the lead, the court said.

Disability Advocates Inc brought the case on behalf of people with mental illness, following a model that is common in U.S. courts for an association to file suit on behalf of its members or people who are closely related to its mission.

The appeals court said Disability Advocates could not do so here because it is not a traditional, member-based organization, nor does its "constituency" have the "indicia of membership."

For example, it is not clear that the mentally ill have the power to elect the directors of Disability Advocates, make budget decisions or direct litigation strategies, wrote Judge José Cabranes of the Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit.

The nonprofit does not have standing to sue, Cabranes wrote.

Disability Advocates called the ruling a setback and said it would continue pressing New York state officials.

"I am hopeful that the state will want to find a solution here that avoids future litigation and recognizes the rights of the residents to live in the community," said Cliff Zucker, executive director of Disability Advocates.

Zucker said he disagrees with the court's interpretation of how Disability Advocates operates. Adult-home residents with mental illness are capable of participating in the organization and the lawsuit and they have done so, he said.

No decision has been made about appealing the appellate court's ruling, either to the full 2nd Circuit or to the Supreme Court, Zucker said. His organization filed its initial complaint against the state in 2003.

The offices of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, both Democrats, did not respond to requests for comment late on Friday.

The Justice Department, which joined the lawsuit in 2009 on the side of the mentally ill, declined to comment.

Cabranes wrote that federal government may "re-file the action and submit the same evidence at a subsequent trial," as could individual plaintiffs with standing.

"We are not unsympathetic to the concern that our disposition will delay the resolution of this controversy and impose substantial burdens and transaction costs on the parties, their counsel, and the courts," Cabranes wrote, adding that the appeals court has confidence in the trial judge to "facilitate an appropriate, efficient resolution."

District Judge Nicholas Garaufis found in 2009 that New York State violated federal disability law and discriminated against Disability Advocates' 4,300 constituents by failing to provide them with adequate housing.

The case is Disability Advocates Inc, et al, v. New York Coalition for Quality Assisted, et al, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, 10-235(L)

(Reporting by David Ingram; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

View the Original article

Physicians Change Recommendations for Many Medical Tests

This story comes from the Yahoo! Contributor Network, where individuals publish their unique perspectives on some of the world’s most popular websites.Do you have a story to tell? Become a Yahoo! contributor

Several physician specialty groups have provided lists of medical tests or treatments they have deemed unnecessary or used too frequently, as part of the ABIM Foundation's Choosing Wisely project. There's a range in recommendations, from refraining from imaging tests for uncomplicated headaches via the American College of Radiology to refraining from routine antibiotic treatment of acute sinusitis that has lasted less than 5 to 7 days via the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Forty-Five Tests Make List of Recommended Changes in Use

The lists were made available on Wednesday as part of a joint effort between the ABIM Foundation and Consumer Reports to lower overall health care costs that is due to medical testing of questionable value. Each of nine physician specialty groups provided a list of five medical tests or procedures in their field of expertise that require closer consideration by practicing physicians before using.

Why a Change in Typical Medical Care Is Needed

Christine K. Cassel, M.D. and James A Guest, J.D. explain the need for these and additional changes in health care in an April 4 article published in The Journal of the American Medical Association. The current system of health care in the United States continues to demonstrate rising costs with "high rates of poor-quality care."

Physicians have been burdened with the fear that if some tests/procedures/treatments are not ordered for patients, even if the ratio of need to potential outcome is low, they would open themselves to increased chances of medical malpractice suits.

Realizing that changes need to be made to the health care delivery system, the ABIM Foundation, the European Foundation of Internal Medicine and the American College of Physicians Foundation together established a charter that would ultimately lead to "Choosing Wisely" in an effort to ensure quality patient care, as explained in an article published in a 2002 Annals of Internal Medicine article.

Suggested Changes that Affect Baby Boomers Health Care Decisions

Many of the changes suggested in the "Choosing Wisely" lists affect people of all age groups, while others will affect certain age groups more than others.

The suggested "Five Things Physicians and Patients Should Question" list provided by the American College of Cardiology is most relevant for baby boomers and their seniors that includes not performing annual stress cardiac imaging on patients without symptoms of heart problems and only perform an echocardiogram for mild, native valve disease when symptoms are present.

The American College of Gastroenterology in its list of suggested changes recommends that in average-risk individuals, no colorectal cancer screening needs to be performed in intervals briefer than 10 years for those who have already had a colonoscopy with negative results.

These and other suggested changes due in the fall of this year from eight additional medical specialty societies will likely impact the state of health care and its associated costs in the United States for years to come.

Smack dab in the middle of the baby boomer generation, L.L. Woodard is a proud resident of "The Red Man" state. With what he hopes is an everyman's view of life's concerns both in his state and throughout the nation, Woodard presents facts and opinions based on common-sense solutions.

View the Original article

Jet Blue meltdown pilot has detention hearing waived

"background-image:url('http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/l0JHFfuLr29V43YNLy84sg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Y2g9MzM3O2NyPTE7Y3c9NDUwO2R4PTA7ZHk9MDtmaT11bGNyb3A7aD0xNDM7cT04NTt3PTE5MA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2012-04-07T013029Z_1_CBRE836047300_RTROPTP_2_JETBLUE-PILOT-SUSPENDED.JPG');" width

View the Original article

Taking Multivitamins Won't Prevent Canker Sores, Study Says

'modId':'mediatabs_nmid_1_conv_prom','isPreLoad':0,'enableMediaTabEvent':0,'pageSize':12,'numFriends':null,'notificationCount':0,'property':'News','learnMorePath':'/activity-learn-more/','friendbarNotification':'0','moduleConf':YAHOO.Media.Facebook.ModuleConf,'friendIdList':

View the Original article

Planning Pregnancy May Cut Birth Defects

HealthDay – 1 hr 1 min ago FRIDAY, April 6 (HealthDay News) -- Women who'd like to become pregnant -- especially those who are taking medications for chronic conditions -- may need to add something to their to-do list: Plan, plan, plan.

That's because some medications are known to cause birth defects. Avoiding all medications during pregnancy is not always possible, however, and sometimes not taking a prescribed medication could be harmful, too.

"The best thing for women to do, all women, is to plan their pregnancy," said Dr. Diane Ashton, deputy medical director for the March of Dimes. "Women should speak with their physician about their plans to become pregnant. If they have a condition that requires medication, that's an ideal time to switch to medications that have less risk, if necessary. And, it gives time for the condition to be stabilized."

About 120,000 babies born each year in the United States -- or about one of every 33 -- are born with a birth defect, something abnormal that occurs in a baby's development, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some are more cosmetic than dangerous, such as an extra toe, but others are serious and include heart defects and spina bifida. Birth defects are the leading cause of death in babies younger than 1 year, according to the National Birth Defects Prevention Network.

Most birth defects happen in the early stages of pregnancy, often before a woman even knows she's pregnant, according to the CDC.

That's why it's important for women who are using potentially dangerous medications -- such as retinoic acid treatments for acne -- to plan a pregnancy and, Ashton said, to use contraception while they're on those drugs.

Dr. Deborah Campbell, director of neonatology at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City, concurred.

"The most dangerous time is the first trimester, especially between weeks three and eight, because that's when all of the organs are forming," Campbell said. "And, half of all pregnancies in the U.S. are still unplanned so women may not even know they're pregnant at this crucial time. We can't overemphasize enough the importance of planning your pregnancy."

Women with diabetes, women at risk for diabetes and women who have high blood pressure, seizure disorders, depression or autoimmune diseases who are on medications need to review these medications with their obstetricians, Campbell said.

"Where at all possible, switch to medications that are the least likely to cause birth defects," she suggested. "If medications can't be stopped, the pregnancy can be more closely monitored. What's important is that the mother is in the best shape possible. For example, you can't just stop seizure medications. A woman who's having seizures poses a risk to her fetus. It's important to weigh the relative risks and benefits with your obstetric care provider."

What are the risks? As Ashton explained:

Drugs that affect women's hormones can cause their babies to be born with problems with their genitalia.Certain anti-seizure medications can cause heart defects, spina bifida and cleft lip.Retinoic acid has been associated with a host of birth defects, including malformations of the face, heart and brain. Some antidepressants have been linked to heart defects.Cancer-fighting drugs, which target rapidly dividing cells, pose a significant risk for miscarriage as well as the potential for central nervous system and brain defects.

But, as scary as all that sounds, Ashton said, it's important to remember that even with exposure to drugs known to cause birth defects, most women will have a normal baby.

Still, medical experts agree that it's best to avoid medication exposure as much as possible during pregnancy.

"Anything you're going to take during pregnancy, you should check with your doctor," advised Campbell.

The warning applies to more than prescription drugs, too -- including all over-the-counter medications as well as herbs and dietary supplements.

"People assume because you can buy something over-the-counter that it's safe and you don't have to worry about it," Campbell said. "But there are some herbal preparations that can be a risk for infants, and there may be adulterants in the product. These may not cause birth defects, per se, but could cause neurologic changes that could cause irritability and behavior problems."

More information

The Nemours Foundation has more on birth defects.

For more on preventing birth defects, read about one woman's efforts to manage medications and pregnancy.

View the Original article

Bilingual Kids Are Better Multi-Taskers, Study Says

HealthDay – 59 mins ago FRIDAY, April 6 (HealthDay News) -- Children who grow up learning to speak two languages are better at multi-tasking than children who learn only one language, a new study finds.

But, the bilingual kids are slower to build their vocabulary.

The study of 104 children, age 6, compared those who spoke only English with those who were bilingual and spoke either Chinese and English, French and English, or Spanish and English.

The children were asked to press a computer key when they saw a series of computer images of either animals or depictions of colors. When their responses were limited to only one of the categories, all the children responded at the same speed.

However, when the children had to switch between categories and press different buttons for each category, the bilingual children were faster at making the change than the English-only children.

The U.S. National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development-funded study was conducted by researchers at the University of York in Toronto and appeared in the journal Child Development.

"In simplest terms, the switching task is an indicator of the ability to multi-task," Peggy McCardle, chief of the Child Development and Behavior Branch at the NICHD, said in a National Institutes of Health news release.

"Bilinguals have two sets of language rules in mind, and their brains apparently are wired to toggle back and forth between them depending on the circumstances," she explained.

The English-only speaking children had the highest scores on tests of English vocabulary and English grammar and word meaning. This is because they are able to focus on one language, while bilingual children have to divide their time learning two languages, the researchers said.

More information

The National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families has more about children's development of thinking skills.

View the Original article

Health Tip: Control Portion Sizes at Home

HealthDay – 1 hr 1 min ago (HealthDay News) -- Limiting the amount of food you eat is key to losing weight and maintaining weight loss.

The Cleveland Clinic suggests how to control portion sizes at home:

Serve your food on smaller dishes.Serve smaller portion sizes, and skip second helpings.Pack leftovers in single-serving containers. Freeze any leftovers.Always dish out a serving, rather than eating right out of a carton.Keep food not yet served away from where you're eating.

View the Original article

Study Finds Antibiotics Best for Appendicitis

HealthDay – 1 hr 1 min ago THURSDAY, April 5 (HealthDay News) -- For people suffering from uncomplicated appendicitis, a course of antibiotics may be just as good as having the appendix removed, British researchers report.

The researchers reviewed studies involving hundreds of patients to determine that treatment with antibiotics could be a safe alternative to surgery, which has been the so-called "gold standard" of care for an inflamed appendix since 1889.

"Starting antibiotics when the diagnosis of uncomplicated acute appendicitis is made, with reassessment of the patient, will prevent the need for most appendectomies, reducing patient morbidity," said lead researcher Dr. Dileep Lobo, professor of gastrointestinal surgery at the University of Nottingham and Queen's Medical Centre.

Antibiotics also can shorten a patient's hospital stay, he added.

Since better diagnostic tools are now available to diagnose appendicitis, it is safe to adopt a careful "wait, watch and treat" policy for those who have uncomplicated appendicitis or when the diagnosis is uncertain, Lobo said.

"In these patients, correct diagnosis rather than an early appendectomy is the key," he said. But, he added, "for patients with clear signs of perforation or peritonitis (an inflammation of the abdominal wall), early appendectomy still remains the gold standard."

For the report, which is published in the April 5 online edition of BMJ, Lobo's team did a meta-analysis of four studies in which at total of 900 patients with appendicitis were randomly assigned to surgery or antibiotics.

Among patients treated with antibiotics, 63 percent did not need any further treatment after a year. In addition, antibiotic use resulted in 31 percent fewer complications than surgery, the researchers found.

Among the more than 400 patients treated with antibiotics, 68 had recurrent symptoms. Of those, 13 had serious appendicitis, four had a normal appendix and three were successfully treated with more antibiotics, the researchers noted.

The researchers also found no real differences in the length of hospital stays or the risk of complicated appendicitis between people treated with antibiotics and those who underwent surgery.

Dr. Rodney Mason, an associate professor of surgery at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles, reported similar findings in his own study in the February issue of the journal Surgical Infections. "Antibiotic therapy offers a risk of complications that is significantly less than that of appendectomy," he said.

But patients must be willing to accept the idea that they may have to return for surgery if symptoms recur, he said.

"Patients must be willing to accept an initial failure and subsequent recurrence rate of about 40 percent in exchange for the possibility of foregoing surgery and its associated risks," Mason said. "Having said that, 60 percent of patients will get by without surgery."

"Conservative treatment with antibiotics seems to do better than appendectomy," said Dr. Olaf Bakker, from the University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands and the author of an accompanying journal editorial.

He noted in his editorial, however, that appendectomy does not have a lot of complications, while the researchers found that antibiotic treatment resulted in a 20 percent chance of recurrence within a year.

"Of these recurrences, 20 percent of patients presented with a perforated

View the Original article

Resolutions Revisited

HealthDay – 1 hr 1 min ago FRIDAY, April 6 (HealthDay News) -- Three months into 2012, chances are good that those grand plans for self-improvement hatched at the start of the new year have become more of a dead weight.

Many people vow to eat less and exercise more; stop smoking, drinking or spending too much; and better organize our wayward lives.

Research in the Journal of Clinical Psychology has found that only 64 percent of New Year's resolutions are maintained after one month and, six months later, less than half still stand.

Why the swift breakdown?

"People make resolutions that are not necessarily well-coordinated to either their ability or to reality," said Peter Herman, a psychology professor at the University of Toronto. "We know that when people make resolutions in the first place, merely making the resolution energizes them. That emotional positivity is really hard to sustain when you get in the hard slog.

View the Original article