Patients who suffer from chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) also tend to suffer from other chronic illnesses, like asthma, hypertension, and arthritis.

In a paper presented at the 2009 American Academy of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAOHNSF) Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO in San Diego, researchers studied the electronic records of 1,970,695 patients to determine whether there was a relationship between CRS and other chronic conditions. Chronic rhinosinusitis is an inflammatory condition involving one or more of the paranasal sinuses. The condition usually follows an allergic reaction or viral upper respiratory infection.

The analysis showed a higher incidence of CRS in trustedtablets.com patients with other chronic diseases, especially asthma patients, who are more likely to also have nasal polyps. Patients with other chronic diseases such as high blood pressure and arthritis also have higher incidence of chronic sinusitis but not nasal polyps.

The results of the study suggest that some of these chronic diseases may share common mechanisms of how they arise or progress.

Title CRS in the setting of other chronic illnesses
Presenters Rakesh Chandra, MD; David Conley, MD; Robert Kern, MD; Robert Schleimer, PhD; Sana Sweis, MD; David Lin

Source
Jessica Mikulski

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is warning people of the dangers of taking unlicensed herbal medicines containing aconite.

Aconite has recently been portrayed in the media as herbal valium, however, it is actually an extremely poisonous plant that is toxic to the heart.

It is also known as monkshood and herbal products containing this ingredient could be fatal or cause serious illness if consumed.

The MHRA has received two reports of suspected adverse reactions to aconite, one where a patient suffered kidney problems and another where the person was hospitalised after suffering dizziness and paresthesia.

MHRA Head of Herbal Policy, Richard Woodfield, said it was vital people did not confuse herbal medicines and homeopathic ones.

“Registered homeopathic products that contain aconite are considered acceptably safe as the active ingredient, aconite, is sufficiently diluted,” he said.

“Herbal medicines are made from plants and so can have a very significant effect on the body. In certain cases, such as with aconite, the medicine can be extremely potent.

“This is a classic case where natural does not mean safe.”

Mr Woodfield said recent media attention focused on a celebrity who allegedly took a product containing aconite to calm wedding day nerves.

“With unlicensed herbal medicines, people need to be aware that the standards vary widely and can be poor.

“However, an increasing range of herbal medicines made to assured standards are available on the UK market.”

Registered and licensed herbal medicines can be identified by the traditional herbal registration (THR) or the product licence (PL) number on the label.

Registered homeopathic products can also be identified by checking the label which should say Homeopathic medicinal product without approved therapeutic indications, as well as a homeopathic registration number prefixed with the letters HR.

Any side effects to herbal and homeopathic products can be reported to the MHRA via the Yellow Card Scheme yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk/

Both household food insecurity (HFInsec) and childhood overweight are significant problems in the United States. Paradoxically, being foodinsecure may be an underlying contributor to being overweight. A study of almost 8,500 lowincome children ages 1 month to 5 years, published in the October 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, suggests an association between household food insecurity and overweight prevalence in this lowincome population. However, sex and age appear to modify both the magnitude and direction of the association.

Food insecurity is defined as the lack of access to enough food for an active, healthy life, which results from limited or uncertain access to nutritionally adequate and safe foods in socially acceptable ways. In 2004, 11% of households in the United States reported household food insecurity, and households with children younger than 6 years old and black and Hispanic households experienced higher rates of household food insecurity and hunger. Prevalence of household food insecurity and overweight has increased over time and are more prevalent in lowincome families.

This crosssectional study is based on demographic, anthropometric, food security and other healthrelated data collected from November 1998 through December 1999, on a sample of children and mothers from low income families participating in the Massachusetts Department of Public Healths WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for the Women, Infants, and Children) Program. Data on the childrens age, sex, parental/caretaker report of child race/ethnicity and maternal education were also collected.

Of the 8,493 children with complete data, 31% of the children were from foodinsecure households (8.3% with hunger), and 18.4% of the sample was overweight. Prevalence of HFInsec did not differ significantly by age, sex or maternal education.

Because significant interactions were found between HFInsec and agegroup and sex, the researchers separated the subjects into four groups, boys < 2 years old, girls < 2 years old, boys 25 years old and girls 25 years old. In girls < 2 years old, HFInsec was associated with a lower likelihood of being overweight. No correlation was found for boys < 2 years. In contrast, 2 to 5year old girls from households reporting HFInsec with hunger had a 47% higher odds of overweight than those from food secure households. No association was found for HFInsec without hunger among 25 year old girls, and again, no association was found among 25 year old boys.

Writing in the article, Elizabeth MetallinosKatsaras, Associate Professor, Department of Nutrition, School for Health Sciences, Simmons College, Boston, states, “The findings of this study suggest that HFInsec is associated with overweight prevalence in low income ethnically and racially diverse girls. Age and sex, however, appear to modify both the magnitude and the directionality of the association. Future research should examine these associations using a longitudinal research design. Moreover, qualitative research is needed to establish the underlying behaviors that may affect the development of childhood overweight among families with uncertain and limited food availability and how these behaviors may vary by sex.”

The article is “Food Insecurity Is Associated with Overweight in Children < 5 Years" by Elizabeth MetallinosKatsaras, PhD, RD, Bettylou Sherry, PhD, RD, Jan Kallio, MS, RD, LDN. It appears in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Volume 109 Issue 10 (October 2009), published by Elsevier.

Source
Lynelle Korte

Dr. Worophong Manuskiatti has been invited to present results of his study “Treatment of striae distensae in skin phototypes IVV with a TriPollar radiofrequency device” in the upcoming meeting of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (EADV) Conference held on October 710, 2009 in Berlin, Germany.

The oral presentation will take place on Thursday, October 8, 2009 at 10151145 in session FC 2 Lasertherapy, room 43.

In the clinical study, seventeen females with stretch marks underwent six weekly treatments with the apollo(TM) device Pollogens latest aesthetic solution based on TriPollar(TM) technology. Results showed that at one week after the final (sixth) treatment, 38.2% and 11.8% of the patients were assessed to have 2550% and 5175% improvement in the appearance of their stretch marks, respectively. The long term effect of the treatment was confirmed during the 6 weeks follow up which showed that a higher percentage of the patients were rated to have improvement of their stretch marks, including 26.5% and 5.9% showing 5175% and >75% improvement, respectively None of the participants were rated as having no improvement in their clinical appearance of stretch marks. Patient satisfaction was also measured and 65% of patients reported that they were very satisfied with the treatment, 23% were satisfied and 12% were slightly satisfied.

Full study results have recently been published in the online edition of the Journal of Dermatological Treatment.

Dr. Manuskiatti commented “Stretch marks are a skin condition that has been traditionally very challenging to treat. The study confirms that collagen remodeling induced by RF heating is an effective mechanism for improving the surface appearance of stretch marks. I am delighted that TriPollar(R) technology delivered significant measurable results that were maintained during the long term followup examination and that patients reported a pain free and pleasant experience”.

Company Founder and CEO, Dr. Zion Azar stated “Pollogen is delighted to have results of its study presented at the upcoming EADV congress. TriPollar offers a proven alternative to invasive treatments and it is important that dermatologists are exposed to leading technologies and solutions that they can offer their patients. A primary audience for this treatment is postpregnancy women who would like to eliminate abdominal stretch marks safely, effectively and in a completely painless and fast procedure.

About Pollogen

Pollogen Ltd. develops, manufactures and markets professional medical aesthetic devices, powered by the TriPollar(TM) 3rd generation Radio Frequency (RF) technology. Invented and perfected by Pollogen, proprietary TriPollar(TM) technology powers a full line of clinicallyproven, noninvasive and nonsurgical treatment platforms for wrinkles, cellulite, circumference reduction and skin tightening. The flagship aesthetic devices, apollo(TM) and regen(TM) offer customers clinicallyproven, safe and effective antiaging beauty treatments that deliver immediate and longlasting results

Source Pollogen Ltd

VeriChip Corporation (”VeriChip”) (NASDAQ CHIP) and its development partner RECEPTORS LLC, a technology company whose AFFINITY by DESIGN™ chemistry platform can be applied to the development of selective binding products, announced that VeriChip plans to fund its existing development partnership with RECEPTORS to launch Phase II development of an in vivo glucosesensing RFID microchip. In Phase II of this program, which is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2010, the critical binding environment and competitor agent components of the glucose sensor will be optimized for system stability, sensitivity and specificity.

VeriChip previously announced in November 2008 that RECEPTORS completed Phase I of the project and successfully prepared prototype examples for both the glucoseselective binding environment and the glucosecompetitive signaling component. These critical components were used to demonstrate the benchtop format application of the glucosesensing system to the detection of glucose levels. This demonstration is the proofofconcept foundation of the glucosesensing system.

Also in November 2008, VeriChips Chairman and CEO, Scott R. Silverman, purchased 5.4 million shares of VeriChip common stock from former controlling stockholder Digital Angel Corporation. Simultaneously, in a separate transaction, VeriChip purchased from Digital Angel all patents related to an embedded biosensor system for use in humans and the assignment of any rights of Digital Angel under a development agreement associated with the development of the implantable glucosesensing microchip. These two events positioned the Company to move forward with the development of the in vivo glucosesensing RFID microchip.

The goal of Phase II is to optimize the sensing system for its glucose response in the presence of blood and interstitial fluid matrix components and demonstrate the integration of the components into a stable and reproducible glucose sensor.

Robert E. Carlson, Ph.D., President and Chief Science Officer at RECEPTORS LLC, said, “The development of a viable in vivo glucosesensing device has been hampered by both the instability of the component reagents and the difficulty of integrating the diverse system requirements of longterm stability, simplicity, biocompatibility, etc. into a millimeter scale device. Phase II will build on the proofofconcept success of Phase I to produce the foundation upon which we will build the implantable glucose sensor.”

The partners published a white paper in December 2007 entitled, “Development of an Implantable Glucose Sensor,” which is available at verichipcorp.com.

About RECEPTORS LLC

RECEPTORS LLC develops SMART MATERIALS products for laboratory, clinical, industrial hygiene and healthcare use that selectively capture and measure chemical, biochemical and cellular targets from complex biological, environmental or industrial samples. The Companys patented AFFINITY by DESIGN™ platform has broad applicability, ranging from the isolation of disease pathway proteins for drug discovery and production of therapeutic antibodies, to the capture of bacteria and viruses for disinfection and diagnostic purposes. RECEPTORS LLC is a private company based in suburban Minneapolis, Minnesota. For further information please visit receptorsllc.com.

Source

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have resulted in a growing number of soldiers evacuated to the United States for comprehensive care for physical and psychological trauma. Given the number of physical injuries often experienced by soldiers, it is not surprising that chronic pain is a frequent problem among returning soldiers from Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom (OIF/OEF). Common sources of pain are in the head (traumaticbrain injury or postconcussion syndrome), legs (fractures, amputations, burns) and shoulders. Other physical injuries include spinalcord and eye injuries as well as auditory trauma. In addition, veterans are reporting high rates of mental health issues, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and alcohol use disorders.

Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researchers have developed an integrated treatment program for veterans with comorbid chronic pain and PTSD. This study appeared in the October issue of Pain Medicine.

BUSM researchers found in this pilot study that soldiers have shown great benefit from receiving the integrated treatment for pain and PTSD. BUSM researchers used components of cognitive processing therapy (CPT) for PTSD and cognitivebehavioral therapy (CBT) for chronic pain management. A 12session integrated treatment for veterans was developed including a therapist manual and patient workbook for weekly readings and homework assignments. Participants received pre and posttreatment evaluations using measures of pain, PTSD, physical disability and psychological distress.

The CBT approach has been shown to be highly effective in treating a range of disorders, from PTSD to chronic pain in children and adults. Using CBT for chronic pain involves challenging maladaptive beliefs and teaching patients ways of safely reintroducing enjoyable activities into their lives. BUSM researchers used different methods for treating chronic pain and PTSD, including teaching veterans cognitive restructuring, relaxation training, timebased activity pacing so that veterans become more active without overdoing it, and lastly graded homework assignments designed to decrease patients avoidance of activity and reintroduce a healthy active lifestyle.

“Several themes emerged over the course of implementing the treatment, including the importance of establishing participant trust, regular therapy attendance and addressing participant avoidance,” explained lead researcher John D. Otis, PhD an assistant professor of psychiatry and psychology at Boston University School of Medicine and clinical psychologist in the Research Services at the VA Boston Healthcare System. “Participants reported that they liked the format of treatment, appreciated learning about the ways that chronic pain and PTSD share common symptoms and how the two disorders interact with one another,” said Otis.

Upon completing the 12week integrated treatment, several participants no longer met diagnostic criteria for PTSD and reported reductions in symptoms of chronic pain, and disability.

This study was funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Rehabilitation, Research and Development Service, and supported by the Research Service of the VA Boston Healthcare System.

Source
Allison Rubin