Experts Stumped Why Meningitis Outbreaks Disproportionately Affect Gay Men
California's outbreak is just the latest that has struck gay and bisexual men at high rates. In other public health news, a study finds that physical therapy may be an effective alternative to knee surgery, Olympic teams sign sponsorship deals with makers of dietary supplements, a look at how prisons are contributing to global epidemics and more stories.
Los Angeles Times:
Meningitis Outbreaks Among Gay Men Have Experts Puzzled
As cases of meningitis, a rare and potentially fatal disease, popped up in cities nationwide over the past several years, public health officials noticed a trend: many of those infected were gay men. There’s no known medical reason why meningitis, which is transmitted through saliva, would spread more among gay and bisexual men. Yet New York, Chicago and now Southern California have experienced outbreaks disproportionately affecting that population. “It is perplexing,” said Dr. Rachel Civen, a medical epidemiologist at L.A. County’s Department of Public Health. (Karlamangla, 7/30)
The Washington Post:
Maybe You Don’t Need That Knee Surgery After All
People with a torn meniscus — the C-shape cartilage that acts as a cushion between bones in the knee — generally choose between arthroscopic surgery and physical therapy to ease the pain and regain use of their knee. Is one option better than the other? (Searing, 7/29)
Stat:
Unproven Dietary Supplements Get A New Champion: Olympic Teams
At least 14 Olympic sports federations overseas and in the United States, including USA Gymnastics and USA Track & Field, have recently signed sponsorship deals with the makers of dietary supplements, putting their teams’ prestige and glamour behind powders and pills that promise to keep athletes in peak form — but that in many cases have not been validated by clinical trials. Several hundred Rio-bound athletes from around the world have also endorsed shakes, drinks, and vitamins that claim, with little scientific backing, to provide a nutritional or energy boost, or to ward off common problems like muscle cramps. (Robbins, 8/10)
The Baltimore Sun:
Johns Hopkins Study Links Prisons And Jails To HIV, Hepatitis And TB Epidemics
The cycling of inmates in and out of prisons and jails around the world contributes significantly to the global epidemics of HIV, viral hepatitis and tuberculosis, according to new research from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Inmates typically suffer from higher rates of those diseases, which spread more readily in crowded correctional facilities and then get passed to others on the outside when the inmates are released, the study found. (Wells, 7/29)
Minnesota Public Radio:
New Treatments For Peanut Allergies On The Horizon
There are about 3 million people in the United States living with peanut or tree nut allergies — and the prevalence of peanut allergies are on the rise, increasing threefold between 1997 and 2010. In 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that kids at high risk of peanut allergies (those with a family history, eczema or other food allergies) should not be exposed to peanut protein until they were three years old. However, this recommendation did not stem the tide and was given up in 2008. (Bloom, 7/29)
The Philadelphia Inquirer:
Hoping To Catch Missed Disorders At New Clinic For Plain People In Central Pa.
People with propionic acidemia lack an enzyme needed to fully digest protein, potentially leading to serious health issues and even death... "It was a disorder we thought was pretty benign, pretty easy to treat," said D. Holmes Morton, a pediatrician and researcher known around the world for his work with the Amish and Mennonite communities. These groups' insular ways make them especially vulnerable to this and other inherited disorders. ... Morton and his wife, Caroline, decided to open a clinic in Lancaster County to diagnose and treat Amish and Mennonite children with inherited disorders. He has discovered about 180 disorders in these groups. (Gilman, 7/30)
