Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles

Canada And China Renew Plan Of Action For Cooperation In Health For 2009-2011
The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Health, and Dr. Chen Zhu, Minister of Health for the People"s Republic of China, today signed a Plan of Action for continued cooperation between the two countries on health priorities of mutual concern. The signing ceremony followed discussions among senior Canadian and Chinese health officials and experts on a range of health issues, including strengthening and reform of health-care systems, primary health care and food safety.

Tennessee General Assembly Advances Bill To Restrict Abortion Access
The Tennessee House on Monday voted 76-22 to approve a resolution (S.J.R. 127) to amend the state constitution to allow the Legislature to impose stricter limits on abortion, the AP/Memphis Commercial Appeal reports. The resolution, which aims to void a 2000 Tennessee Supreme Court ruling, was passed by the state Senate in March, but it still has hurdles to overcome. In order to change the state constitution, the measure will have to be approved by a two-thirds majority of both houses in the next General Assembly, either in 2011 or 2012, before it could go to voters in 2014.The 2000 court decision declared that the state constitution provides stronger protections than the U.S. Constitution for abortion rights. The decision nullified a number restrictions the Tennessee Legislature previously had adopted, including requirements that clinics provide women with specific information about abortion procedures, a 48-hour waiting period and a requirement that all but first trimester abortions take place in hospitals.The measure would add a provision to the state constitution declaring that, "Nothing in this constitution secures or protects a right to abortion, or requires the funding of an abortion. The people retain the right through their elected state representatives and state senators to enact, amend or repeal statutes regarding abortion, including but not limited to circumstances of pregnancy resulting from rape or incest or when necessary to save the life of the mother." An amendment to the resolution failed on Monday that would have allowed abortions in "cases involving rape or incest or in cases where the procedure is medically necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman." Rep. Debra Maggart (R), sponsor of the resolution, said that it "just returns the constitution of the state of Tennessee to neutral on the subject of abortion."Rep. Henry Fincher (D) said, "Assuming there"s no change in the makeup of the General Assembly, there"s a good chance that it will pass then and go to the ballot." Rep. Jeanne Richardson (D) said, "I have a feeling that in this country if a majority of women tried to tell men what to do in their sex lives and what to do with their own bodies, it would fail utterly and miserably" (Johnson, AP/Memphis Commercial Appeal, 5/19).
News of the day
Summit To Shape Future Dementia Research
An initiative from the Government"s National Dementia Strategy, the summit will examine research into cause, cure and care, highlighting gaps in knowledge and new opportunities for the future. A report will then be produced to help shape the future dementia research agenda.
Diagnostics

Adhering To Healthy Lifestyle Habits Associated With Reduced Lifetime Risk Of Heart Failure

Men who exercised regularly, drank moderately, did not smoke, who were not overweight and had a diet that included cereal and fruits and vegetables had a lower lifetime risk of heart failure, according to a study in the July 22/29 issue of JAMA. With an annual incidence of 550,000, heart failure remains a major public health issue and is the leading cause of hospitalization among older adults in the United States. Despite improved medical and surgical management, death after onset of heart failure remains high, ranging from 20 percent to 50 percent. The lifetime risk of heart failure at age 40 years is approximately 1 in 5 in the general population; however, it has been unclear whether adherence to healthy lifestyle factors, such as regular exercise and not smoking, could lead to a reduction in lifetime risk of heart failure, according to background information in the article. "A demonstration of beneficial influence of healthy lifestyle habits on the lifetime risk has potential clinical and public health implications." Luc Djoussç©, M.D., Sc.D., M.P.H., of Brigham and Women"s Hospital, Harvard Medical School and Boston Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, Boston, and colleagues assessed the association between modifiable lifestyle factors and the remaining lifetime risk of heart failure in a large group of men. The study included data from 20,900 men (average age at the start of the study, 53.6 years) from the Physicians" Health Study I (1982-2008) who were apparently healthy at baseline. Six modifiable lifestyle factors were assessed: body weight, smoking, exercise, alcohol intake, consumption of breakfast cereals and consumption of fruits and vegetables. During an average follow-up of 22.4 years, 1,200 new cases of heart failure (5.7 percent) and 4,999 confirmed deaths (23.9 percent) occurred in the study. Compared with participants adhering to no healthy lifestyle factors, those adhering to 4 or more factors tended to be older and had a lower prevalence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus. Analysis indicated that overall, the lifetime risk of heart failure was 13.8 percent at age 40 years and remained constant through age 70; at age 80 years, the lifetime risk for heart failure was 10.6 percent. The remaining lifetime risk of heart failure was approximately 2 percent to 4 percent higher in men with hypertension than in those without hypertension. The researchers found that normal body weight, never smoking, regular exercise, moderate alcohol intake, and consumption of breakfast cereal and fruits and vegetables were individually associated with a lower lifetime risk of heart failure compared to a corresponding undesirable behavior. There was an inverse and graded association between the number of healthy lifestyle factors and lifetime risk of heart failure. "For example, the lifetime risk for heart failure was approximately 1 in 5 (21.2 percent) in men adhering to none of the desirable lifestyle factors, compared to 1 in 10 (10.1 percent) in those adhering to 4 or more healthy lifestyle factors," the authors write. When restricted to body weight, smoking, and exercise, the association between lifestyle factors and lifetime risk of heart failure persisted in the overall population as well as in men with and without hypertension. "Our estimate of lifetime risk of heart failure could help public health officials allocate res for the prevention and management of this condition. Our findings of a low lifetime risk in men who adhere to modifiable lifestyle factors emphasize the need for incorporation of these behaviors in prevention strategies against heart failure at both the individual and the population level," the authors write. JAMA 2009;302[4]:385-393. Journal of the American Medical Association


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009