Study Reveals Smoking?s Effect on Nurses? Health, Death Rates

A new UCLA School of Nursing study is the first to reveal the devastating consequences of smoking on the nursing profession. Published in the November/December edition of Nursing Research, the findings describe smoking trends and death rates among U.S. nurses and emphasize the importance of supporting smoking cessation programs in the field. ?Nurses witness firsthand how smoking devastates the health of their patients with cancer and respiratory and cardiovascular diseases,? said principal investigator Linda Sarna, DNSc, a professor at the UCLA School of Nursing. ?Yet nurses struggle with nicotine addiction like the rest of the 45 million smokers in America. We are concerned that nurses who smoke may be less apt to support tobacco-control programs or encourage their patients to quit.? Sarna led a team of researchers who analyzed data from the Nurses? Health Study, a historic study on women?s health. Launched at Brigham and Women?s Hospital in the mid-1970s, the study relied upon surveys completed every two years by 237,648 female registered nurses about their health, including smoking habits.  More »


Lack of Children Receiving Dental Care Is Public Health Problem

A University of South Carolina study of children?s dental health has found that nearly one-fourth of the nation?s children have had no dental care in at least a year. Conducted by researchers at the S.C. Rural Health Research Center at the Arnold School of Public Health, the study found that nearly 32 percent of Hispanic children in rural areas had no dental care in the past year. Twenty-six percent of rural black children had no dental care, followed by 23 percent of ?other? children and 22 percent of white children. ?Our nation has a group of children suffering dental disease severe enough to constitute a public health problem,? said Dr. Amy Brock Martin, the lead author of ?Dental Health and Access to Care among Rural Children: A National and State Report.? Data for the report came from the 2003 National Survey of Children?s Health, which used parents? reports to measure the health and well-being of children from birth to age 17. The survey asked parents in urban and rural areas about the condition of their children?s teeth, utilization of dental care and dental insurance coverage. The University of South Carolina report looks at dental health from a national perspective and also provides state and regional analyses. More »


Estrogen, Testosterone May Affect Atherosclerosis

Naturally produced sex hormones may influence the risk and progression of atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, Johns Hopkins researchers report in a recent study. The findings may help explain the increased risk men have of developing heart disease, which runs about twofold higher than women?s heart disease risk worldwide. The study suggests that older women who produce a relatively high amount of estrogen are more likely to develop coronary artery calcium (CAC), a component of the fatty plaque that builds up in blood vessels and hardens arteries. Older men with relatively high amounts of testosterone are also more likely to develop CAC. However, once CAC is present, higher testosterone appears to help prevent CAC from progressing too quickly in men?s arteries. These findings will be presented Nov. 11 at the American Heart Association?s annual Scientific Sessions in New Orleans. ?We know many things that increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol and diabetes,? says Erin D. Michos, M.D., M.H.S., assistant professor of medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and its Heart and Vascular Institute. ?But 10 percent to 20 percent of people who get heart disease don?t have these risk factors, so we need to understand other factors that might be involved. Our results suggest that someday, in addition to testing your cholesterol and blood sugar levels to assess your heart disease risk, your doctor may want to measure your sex hormone levels as well.? More »


Breakfast Improves Overall Diet Quality

A groundbreaking new study shows that eaters of lower energy dense breakfast have improved diet quality, and may have a better ability to maintain a healthy weight. The study, published in the November 2008 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that those who enjoy a less energy dense morning meal have diets that are richer in important vitamins and minerals and lower in saturated fat and cholesterol compared to those who consume a more energy dense meal. The study explored whether or not the energy density?the number of calories in relation to the grams of foods and beverages?consumed at breakfast predicted energy density and diet quality for the rest of the day, as well as weight among 12,000 US women and men (as assessed by BMI - body mass index). ?Our new findings carry several important implications concerning breakfast and overall health,? says study co-author, cardiologist Dr. James Rippe of the Rippe Lifestyle Institute. ?Our study confirms the findings of many previous studies that eating breakfast helps maintain a healthy weight and provides multiple health benefits. However, what?s unique is that we found lower energy density breakfast foods and beverages high in nutrients, such as whole grain oatmeal and 100 percent orange juice, appear to predict better food choices for the rest of the day and may help with better management of body weight.? More »


Hormone Shows Promise in Reversing Alzheimer?s and Stroke

Saint Louis University researchers have identified a novel way of getting a potential treatment for Alzheimer?s disease and stroke into the brain where it can do its work. ?We found a unique approach for delivering drugs to the brain,? says William A. Banks, M.D., professor of geriatrics and pharmacological and physiological science at Saint Louis University. ?We?re turning off the guardian that?s keeping the drugs out of the brain.? The brain is protected by the blood-brain barrier (BBB), a gate-keeping system of cells that lets in nutrients and keeps out foreign substances. The blood-brain barrier passes no judgment on which foreign substances are trying to get into the brain to treat diseases and which are trying to do harm, so it blocks them without discrimination.  More »












Research Findings in Allergic and Immunologic Diseases Unveiled

Researchers are presenting more than 450 abstracts on investigational findings in the diagnosis and treatment of allergic diseases at the ACAAI Annual Meeting in Seattle, Nov. 6-11. Following are highlights of some key studies in allergy-immunology. ?Prevalence of Oral Breathing and Associated Factors in Patients with Respiratory Allergy.? (Abstract #36: Nov. 10 at 1:45 p.m.) ? Marisol Traviño-Salinas, M.D., Monterrey, Mexico, et al ? Authors report allergic rhinitis and asthma have been associated with craniofacial abnormalities due to their high association with oral breathing. After conducting a complete history and physician examination of 107 patients between 6 and 15 years of age with allergic rhinitis and asthma, they had the parents answer a questionnaire inquiring about snoring, day-time sleepiness and academic performance of their child. Investigators found the prevalence of oral-breathing in patients with respiratory allergies was 29 percent. The children?s increased tendency to snore at night causes them to have day time sleepiness, which impacts their academic performance and quality of life. ?Prehospital Administration of Epinephrine for Anaphylaxis.? (Abstract #42: Nov. 10 at 1:15 p.m.) ? Robert J. Jyde, M.D., Rochester, Minn., et al ? Although there is no universal consensus on the diagnostic criteria for anaphylaxis, authors note that epinephrine is the treatment of choice. Objectives of this investigation are to study the frequency of epinephrine administration for anaphylaxis in patients entering the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system and to determine the outcomes of patients who received pre-hospital epinephrine. Of the 53 patients with anaphylaxis, 8 percent received epinephrine prior to EMS arrival, and paramedics administered epinephrine to 26 percent. Investigators conclude that epinephrine may be underutilized in the pre-hospital management of anaphylaxis.  More »