Fast-Growing HIV Epidemic Linked To Trend Of Injecting Drug-Laced Blood
The practice of "bluetoothing" or "flashblooding" has alarmed global public health experts who note that injecting a drug user's blood for a quick high is risky on many levels. Plus, surgeons perform groundbreaking liver transplants, one in China and another in Atlanta.
The New York Times:
‘Bluetoothing’: Blood-Sharing Drug Trend Fuels Alarming Global H.I.V. Surge
A dangerous drug trend called “bluetoothing,” in which people inject themselves with the blood of other drug users to get a cheap high, is contributing to spikes in H.I.V. rates in infection hot spots around the world. The blood-sharing practice, which is many times riskier than sharing needles, has helped fuel one of the fastest-growing H.I.V. epidemics in Fiji and grown widespread in South Africa, another infection capital, according to public health authorities and researchers. (Baskar, 10/8)
More on substance abuse —
Stat:
More People With Psychosis Are Using Cannabis. Physicians Are Worried
Cannabis use rates among people with psychosis have surged in states that have legalized the drug, according to a new study. Medical professionals say the trend — especially when combined with more potent variants of the drug available on the market — could worsen existing mental illnesses and endanger people with a genetic predisposition for psychosis. (Broderick, 10/8)
The Wall Street Journal:
Drug Rehabs Lure In Patients For Insurance Money—Then Leave Them On The Street
Penny Lamb and Jeffery Lichtenberg were 1,500 miles from their home in Oklahoma with no money and no prospects when they were kicked out of their drug rehab program. None of it had gone as expected. Months earlier, Lichtenberg said, a man he knew from a past prison stay had promised to help if they ever wanted to kick their meth habits. The man texted photos of rehabs that looked like Hollywood mansions for movie stars, with swimming pools and hot tubs. They wouldn’t have to pay a cent, he said, including for their flight to California—and he would help them sign up for a health insurance policy that would cover the rehab costs. (Elinson and Wernau, 10/8)
The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer:
DeWine Declares Public Health Emergency, Orders Intoxicating Hemp Products Off Shelves
Gov. Mike DeWine on Wednesday declared a public health emergency over intoxicating hemp products in Ohio, essentially banning sale of the products, at least temporarily. (McGowan and Pelzer, 10/8)
In news about organ transplantation —
The New York Times:
Chinese Surgeons Perform First Pig-To-Human Liver Transplant
Surgeons in China have for the first time transplanted a section of liver extracted from a genetically modified pig into a human cancer patient, they reported on Thursday. The surgeons, who described the procedure in a paper in The Journal of Hepatology, grafted the portion of pig liver onto the left lobe of a 71-year-old patient’s liver after removing the larger right lobe, where a tumor the size of a grapefruit had grown. (Caryn Rabin, 10/9)
Becker's Hospital Review:
Children’s Atlanta Performs World’s Youngest Domino Liver Transplant
Surgeons at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta performed the world’s youngest domino liver transplant. Domino liver transplants involve one patient with a metabolic disease receiving a donor liver while their native liver is transplanted into another patient with end-stage liver disease, but without metabolic disease. The liver in the non-metabolic disease donor functions normally due to the lack of genetic defect which causes the metabolic disorder. (Taylor, 10/6)
Word In Black:
The Call That Saves A Life
Not everybody survives the wait for an organ transplant. We spoke to eight Black Americans who received a transplant. Here’s what they said. (Durham, 10/8)
