New York Considers Eyes New Rules For Hospitals To Prevent Rapid Spread Of Deadly Drug-Resistant Fungus
Screening requirements for hospitals and nursing homes can be costly and time-consuming, but state officials say they are determined to stop Candida auris, a fungus of mysterious origin that has been quietly spreading around the world since it was first identified in 2009. In other public health news: cancer, autism, superbugs, genital cutting, black lung, stress fractures and more.
The New York Times:
To Fight Deadly Candida Auris, New York State Proposes New Tactics
New York State health officials are considering rigorous new requirements for hospitals and nursing homes to prevent the spread of a deadly drug-resistant fungus called Candida auris. The requirements could include mandatory pre-admission screening of patients believed to be at-risk and placing in isolation those patients who are infected, or even those just carrying the fungus on their skin. (Richtel, 5/23)
Stat:
'I Was A 31-Year-Old-Kid': How Cancer Changed A Health Reporter
[Alexandra] Glorioso is a reporter for Politico. She’s based in Tallahassee, Fla., and she writes about health care, insurance, and the state legislature. She covers stories like the push to expand Medicaid in Florida and legislative proposals to rein in drug costs. Last summer, at age 31, Glorioso was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. She underwent chemotherapy, participated in a clinical trial with an experimental drug, and had surgery. Then, in March, she announced she was in remission, with no evidence of disease. This week, Glorioso talked with STAT about what the whole experience has been like — and how it shaped her thinking as a health care reporter. (Robbins, Garde and Feuerstein, 5/24)
The Associated Press:
Virtual Reality Helps Police Learn To Interact With Autistic
An autistic man walks out of a store without paying for a toy he picked up. He's followed by a storekeeper demanding he come back inside. The situation quickly escalates, and police are called. Officers arrive, their patrol car's lights flashing and sirens blaring, to find the man in the parking lot, yelling and not responding to their commands. They have a choice: confront the man and risk having the situation turn violent or regroup to figure out a different approach. (Balsamo, 5/24)
Los Angeles Times:
Scientists Spy On Superbugs To See How They Outsmart Our Antibiotics
Scientists have discovered yet another way that single-celled organisms have outsmarted us. The tiny bacteria that live inside our guts have an ingenious way of withstanding the onslaught of antibiotics we throw at them, according to a report published Thursday in the journal Science. The two-part system allows bacterial cells to stay alive until another bacterium can deliver a lifeline, packaged in a snippet of DNA. (Baumgaertner, 5/23)
The New York Times:
4 Women With Lives Scarred By Genital Cutting: Could A Surgeon Heal Them?
She called it her “deepest, darkest secret,” one she had never even shared with her husband. When Saffiatu Sillah was growing up in the West African nation of Sierra Leone, her clitoris was cut off in a ritual circumcision. She was left with scar tissue that caused pain during sex and agony during childbirth. After her second child was born, Ms. Sillah, a pharmacist then living in Philadelphia, searched for medical help. Dr. Ivona Percec, a plastic surgeon at the University of Pennsylvania, said she thought an operation could ease the pain but might fail to uncover any remnant of the clitoris beneath the scarring. (Belluck, 5/24)
Wyoming Public Radio:
Coal Miners Eligible To Receive Free Screenings For Deadly Black Lung Disease
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is offering free and confidential screenings for black lung disease. NIOSH is traveling throughout the West and is in the Gillette area through Saturday as part of its Coal Workers' Health Surveillance Program. NIOSH is a part of the Centers for Disease Control. Black lung disease is an illness that affects a person's ability to breathe. Coal miners can develop the disease from breathing in dust in the coal mine environment. (Wheeler, 5/23)
The New York Times:
No, Night Owls Aren’t Doomed To Die Early
Last spring, a study set the internet ablaze with sensational headlines promising an early death for those with nontraditional sleep schedules. It wasn’t the conclusion of the study, or its researchers. But in the bombastic world of science reporting, it didn’t really matter. Originally published in the journal Chronobiology International, the study looked at the chronotypes — a means of classifying one’s predisposition for sleeping at certain hours — of more than 430,000 people over a six-and-a-half-year period. (Clark, 5/23)
Iowa Public Radio:
Sifting Through The Research On The Weed Killer, Glyphosate
Earlier this month, a California jury awarded a couple more than $2 million in a dispute against Monsanto, ruling that the plaintiffs contracted non-Hodgkin lymphoma because of their use of Roundup. This is the third such case to end this way in California in the last two years. Bayer continues to defend the safety of the product and it's hard to know what to believe. (Woodbury, Nebbe and Nobriga, 5/23)
The New York Times:
What Causes Stress Fractures In Runners? Can Diet Contribute?
With exercise and everyday activities, and even our normal body weight, we are constantly putting stress on our bones. But that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, since stress causes microdamage to our bones that our body naturally repairs, and that continual repair process helps to make the bones stronger. However, “if you don’t give bones long enough to catch up, instead of getting stronger they’ll break down, and you accumulate enough injury that the bones can break,” Dr. Terry said. (Miller, 5/24)
The Washington Post:
As ACL Tears Pile Up, Doctors And Coaches Worry That Kids Are Playing Too Much Basketball
Long before high school basketball star Anthony Harris tore his ACL in December, his father was doing his best to prevent his son from suffering the serious knee injury. Anthony Harris Sr. visited multiple doctors and trainers and asked what workouts were best for strengthening the knee. He had them run tests to see how vulnerable his son — a senior at Paul VI Catholic High in Fairfax City, Va., who is signed to play at the University of North Carolina next season — was to getting hurt. He built rest time into his training schedule. (Pell, 5/23)
The New York Times:
How To Pack A First Aid Kit For Extended International Travel
It’s a question that the two 52 Places Travelers have fielded from readers and colleagues alike: How do you stay healthy when crisscrossing the world for nearly 365 days? And what do you pack in case you get sick? Each location has its own set of challenges, recommended vaccines and access to pharmacies. (Minsberg, 5/23)
The New York Times:
Stay Healthy While Traveling
It's easy for healthy lifestyles to go to the wayside when you're traveling, especially if you're on vacation. But it really is possible to have a good time, enjoy local cuisine and get in some exercise without depriving yourself of a true vacation. We’ll show you how to combine pleasure with wellness when you're on the road, because isn’t living your best life the point of a vacation in the first place? (Vora, 5/23)
The Associated Press:
UN Health Agency Seeks To Halve Number Of Snakebite Deaths
The World Health Organization is publishing its first-ever global strategy to tackle the problem of snake bites, aiming to halve the number of people killed or disabled by snakes by 2030. Nearly 3 million people are bitten by potentially poisonous snakes every year, resulting in as many as 138,000 deaths. Last week, Britain's Wellcome Trust announced an 80 million-pound ($100 million) program to address the problem, saying there were new potential drugs that could be tested. (5/23)
