And although Bush supported a laudable program to provide AIDS treatment in Africa, he spent more money there promoting marital fidelity than condoms, and kept the funding flat for contraception that would have prevented AIDS transmission and unwanted pregnancies among women already ill from HIV infection. Meanwhile, any nonprofit that so much as suggested abortion to desperate women overseas, or that gave referrals to abortion providers, could receive Read the rest of this entry »

Text of the Food and Drug Administration record citing the September 2008 incident in which chopped peanuts from Peanut Corp. of America were caught at the U.S. border:
Section: 402(a)(3), 801(a)(3); ADULTERATION
Charge: The article appears to consist in whole or in part of a filthy, putrid, or decomposed substance, or is otherwise unfit for food in that it appears to contain foreign objects.
Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration Office Read the rest of this entry »

AUSTIN — Moving Galveston’s hospital off the island and onto the mainland is the best route for the University of Texas Medical Branch to take after Hurricane Ike, according to a report released Wednesday.
The recommendation, presented to the UT System Board of Regents by a health care consulting firm, said relocating UTMB hospital beds closer to Houston’s larger population base would be the hospital’s best chance for achieving Read the rest of this entry »

A timeline of the case involving Dr. Jayant Patel, who is facing trial on manslaughter charges in the deaths of three patients in Australia from 2003 to early2005:
April 10, 1950: Jayant Mukundray Patel born in Jamnagar, Gujarat,India.
1976: Patel graduates from the state-run M.P. Shah Medical College at Saurashtra University in Jamnagar,India.
1978: Patel enters surgical residency program in the U.S. at University of Rochester in New Yorkstate.
Read the rest of this entry »

Also called bariatric surgery, the procedure works by limiting the size of the stomach and thereby reducing the amount of food one can eat. In this study, researchers used the Roux-en-Y method, which involves placing an adjustable band to block off most of the stomach. The band limits how much food the body absorbs.
“Previous studies have shown frequent remission of type 2 diabetes in adults following bariatric surgery, but until now, no research Read the rest of this entry »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. health officials finalized guidelines that make it easier for pharmaceutical companies to tell doctors about unapproved uses of medicines, a practice opposed by critics of industry marketing.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines explain when manufacturers such as Pfizer Inc and Merck & Co may distribute copies of medical journal articles that describe unapproved uses. The action could help companies expand Read the rest of this entry »

Sunday — Al-Anon, 7:15 to 8:15 p.m., Bowen Room, Addison Gilbert Hospital. Use Washington Street entrance; AA open speakers, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., St. John’s Episcopal Church, 48 Middle St.
Monday — Alcoholics Anonymous 12 Steps to Freedom, 7 to 8:30 p.m., Veterans’ Center, 12 Emerson Ave., Gloucester.
Tuesday — AA for young people, 7 to 8 p.m., Trinity Congregational Church, 70 Middle St. Open speaker discussion.
Wednesday — Read the rest of this entry »

Thursday, February 19, 2009
Four Colorado children have died of complications from the flu since mid-January, making this the worst flu season for children in five years.
Colorado health officials said Thursday that two of the children had not been vaccinated, while the other two had received one of two recommended flu vaccinations.
Two of the children died in the Denver area and two died on the Western Slope. At least two had other serious Read the rest of this entry »

A man stabbed at a northwest Reno sports bar has died, according to Reno police.
He was stabbed outside Bully’s Sports Bar around 8:30 p.m., on Sierra Highlands Drive, according to a news release issued by Reno Police Department Sgt. Chuck Lovitt.
An ambulance brought the victim to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead, Lovitt said.
According to witnesses, two men were arguing inside the bar before they both went out to the parking Read the rest of this entry »

Long before there were personal trainers, gyms, and Pilates studios, there was the Charles Atlas Course. Begun in the 1920s, it was among the first modern mail-order businesses in the United States.
Who hasn’t seen the advertisement about the 97-pound weakling, getting sand kicked in his face? It still lives in publications like Popular Mechanics, Popular Science, and comic books, with Internet advertising a more recent addition. Today, requests Read the rest of this entry »