Venezuela’s opposition demands “whole truth” about Chavez health

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela‘s opposition on Wednesday demanded the government tell “the whole truth” about the health of cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez, who has not been heard from in three weeks after undergoing a grueling operation in Cuba.Officials have acknowledged the usually garrulous former soldier’s health is delicate after his fourth cancer surgery in 18 months, but they have offered...

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Gambian leader says to build herbal AIDS-cure hospital

BANJUL (Reuters) – AIDS patients would be offered an herbal cure at a 1,111-bed hospital in Gambia that the president said on Tuesday he plans to build despite medical concerns the treatment is dangerous.President Yahya Jammeh said in 2007 he had found a remedy of boiled herbs to cure AIDS, stirring anger among Western medical experts who claimed he was giving false hope to the sick.“With this project...

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New Year’s Resolutions For Better Health

New Year’s resolutions are typically so singular, self-focused and private. How about making a resolution or two this year that has benefits beyond yourself? Here are some suggestions with lots of links to get you started.You can help stop the spread of disease. Resolve to get up-to-date on your vaccines. While children have a full slate of vaccines, many adults don’t realize they have regular immunization...

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State’s first flu death is Tulsa County resident

A Tulsa County resident between the ages of 19 and 64 is the first person in Oklahoma to die from the flu this season.Since Sept. 30 there have been 24 hospitalizations due to flu reported in Tulsa County, the most for any county in the state.Oklahoma County has reported 10, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Health.There have been 75 flu hospitalizations throughout the state. Twenty-one...

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Ex-U.S. President George H.W. Bush in intensive care

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) – Former President George H.W. Bush is in the intensive care unit of a Houston hospital and is in “guarded condition,” family spokesman Jim McGrath said Wednesday.“The president is alert and conversing with medical staff, and is surrounded by family,” McGrath said in a statement.“Following a series of setbacks including a persistent fever, President Bush was admitted to the...

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Catholic Church urges Irish to oppose abortion law

DUBLIN (Reuters) – The head of Ireland‘s Catholic Church urged followers in his Christmas Day message to lobby against government plans to legalize abortion.Ireland, the only EU member state that currently outlaws the procedure, is preparing legislation that would allow limited access to abortion after the European Court of Human Rights criticized the current regime.The death last month of an Indian...

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Few tests done at toxic sites after superstorm

OLD BRIDGE, N.J. (AP) — For more than a month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has said that the recent superstorm didn’t cause significant problems at any of the 247 Superfund toxic waste sites it’s monitoring in New York and New Jersey.But in many cases, no actual tests of soil or water are being conducted, just visual inspections.The EPA conducted a handful of tests right after the storm,...

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Colorado Woman Billed Medicaid for Dead Father

A Colorado woman was convicted this week for felony forgery for submitting fraudulent documents to Medicaid regarding personal health care services provided to her father after he died. It was the second announcement of Medicaid fraud-related convictions made by the Colorado Attorney General’s office in less than a week. Here are the details.* According to the office of Colorado Attorney General John...

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Lauded cancer researcher, Springfield native, dies

A Springfield High School and Wittenberg University graduate whose research transformed the treatment of breast cancer and saved and prolonged the lives of women afflicted by it died Sunday in Cincinnati.Elwood Jensen was 92.Known as the “Father of the Nuclear Receptor Field,” Jensen was one of three researchers to share the 2004 Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, what some call the American...

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New Laser Treatment at Cosmedics Skin Clinics Offers Fast, Efficient Results for Facial Thread Veins

Although thread veins are relatively common and medically harmless, they can look unpleasant and people can go to great lengths to hide them. Now laser technology is set to offer a fast, effective treatment on the high street and now Medical Director Dr Ross Perry of Cosmedics Skin Clinics offers laser thread vein removal in London and Bristol.London (PRWEB UK) 19 December 2012Thread veins are quite...

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NICE may reject Roche’s Avastin for advanced ovarian cancer

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s healthcare cost-effectiveness watchdog said it may reject Roche Holding AG‘s drug Avastin for treating advanced ovarian cancer in combination with two standard chemotherapy drugs.In the latest of a series of setbacks for the medicine, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) said Avastin used with chemotherapy drugs paclitaxel and carboplatin is...

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Daylight savings tied to bump in heart attack rates

(Reuters) – Setting the clock ahead for daylight savings time may set the scene for a small increase in heart attacks the next day, according to a U.S. study – which suggests that sleep deprivation may be to blame.Researchers at two hospitals in the U.S. state of Michigan, whose findings appeared in the American Journal of Cardiology, reviewed six years of records and found that they treated an average...

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California home for developmentally disabled faces abuse inquiry

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – California health officials have threatened to shut down part of the state’s oldest home for developmentally disabled adults due to evidence of physical abuse and neglect, in a move that could displace nearly 300 of its residents.The state-run Sonoma Developmental Center could lose its license to run one unit if it does not fix the problems, according to a letter the state...

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Vision insurance tied to better eye health

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Older adults’ eyesight may suffer irreversibly if they don’t have vision insurance, suggests a new study that argues eye health should be a mandatory part of regular health insurance policies.Researchers found that people between 40 and 65 years old with vision insurance were twice as likely to see an eye doctor in the past year, compared to those without coverage.And people...

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Mandela’s Infection May Be Pneumonia

Nelson Mandela is being treated for a lung infection, a term often used synonymously with pneumonia.Elderly people are at an increased risk for infections in general – more so if the person has many chronic medical problems, but as people age their immune systems are less capable of fighting off infections.South African officials say Mandela’s lung infection is “recurring.” The former president is...

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More “fiscal cliff” talks but neither side giving ground

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House and House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner’s office held more negotiations on Monday on ways to break the “fiscal cliff” stalemate, although neither side showed any public signs that they were ready to give ground.The talks gained urgency after Republican Boehner met at the White House with President Barack Obama on Sunday, raising hopes of progress in...

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Health workers march in Spain’s capital against cuts, reforms

MADRID (Reuters) – Thousands of health workers, on strike since last month, marched on Sunday in Madrid to protest against budget cuts and plans from the Spanish capital’s regional government to privatize the management of public hospitals and medical centers.It was the third time doctors, nurses and health workers have rallied since the local authorities put forward a plan in October to place six...

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Former South Africa president Mandela admitted to the hospital

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Former South African president Nelson Mandela was admitted to hospital on Saturday for medical tests, although the government said there was no cause for alarm.A statement from President Jacob Zuma‘s office gave no details of the condition of the 94-year-old anti-apartheid leader.“Former President Mandela will receive medical attention from time to time which is consistent...

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When drugs for depression fail, talking therapies help

LONDON (Reuters) – Patients with depression who fail to benefit from antidepressant drugs may do better if they are also treated with a type of “talking” psychotherapy called CBT, according to new research published on Friday.In the first large-scale trial to test the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, alongside medication for depression, scientists said they found that the combination...

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Fossil fuel subsidies in focus at climate talks

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Hassan al-Kubaisi considers it a gift from above that drivers in oil- and gas-rich Qatar only have to pay $ 1 per gallon at the pump.“Thank God that our country is an oil producer and the price of gasoline is one of the lowest,” al-Kubaisi said, filling up his Toyota Land Cruiser at a gas station in Doha. “God has given us a blessing.”To those looking for a global response to climate...

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