Public Health Resources Lagging Behind Rising Tuberculosis Wave
Stateline reports on public health experts' warnings that awareness of rising TB is lagging and that state and local health services lack resources to keep up with prevention and control. Meanwhile, the CDC is checking protocols on a cruise ship where more than 100 people had gastrointestinal illnesses.
Stateline:
Tuberculosis Cases Rise, But Public Health Agencies Say They Lack The Resources To Keep Up
Even as the number of U.S. tuberculosis cases rises, public health experts say, awareness is lagging. And state and local health departments lack the resources to keep up with prevention and control efforts. ... A course of treatment for one tuberculosis case can cost around $20,000 in the U.S., and a drug-resistant tuberculosis case can cost at least $182,000. ... “People think tuberculosis is gone. … It’s here and growing,” said emergency medicine physician Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, which represents public health professionals. (Hassanein, 2/7)
San Francisco Chronicle:
CDC Reviews Cruise Ship In S.F. After Passengers, Crew Get Sick
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reviewing protocols on a luxury cruise ship stopped in San Francisco after more than 100 passengers and crew reported gastrointestinal illnesses. ... The CDC said 128 of the 1824 passengers onboard and 25 of 967 crew reported feeling ill during the cruise. The main symptoms were diarrhea and vomiting but the cause was not yet known, the CDC said. The health agency keeps track of illness outbreaks on cruise ships through its Vessel Sanitation Program and most of the gastrointestinal illnesses it tracks turn out to be caused by the norovirus. (Parker, 2/7)
CBS News:
Parasitic Infections In Westchester County Linked To Game Dinners At American Legion Post, Health Officials Say
There is a public health alert in Westchester County after several people fell ill with a parasitic infection after attending game dinners at an American Legion in January. Now, county health officials are trying to identify more people who were exposed.County officials have traced it back to the Moses Taylor Jr. American Legion Post in Mount Kisco. (Dhaliwal, 2/7)
In other health and wellness news —
Stat:
Vyjuvek, A Gene Therapy For Skin Wounds, Restored Vision In One Boy
In the clinical trial, the gene therapy seemed to be helping the boy’s skin wounds heal. But, his doctors wondered, could it also help his eyes? The boy, Antonio Vento Carvajal, had a genetic condition called epidermolysis bullosa, or EB, which causes the skin to be so fragile that even the slightest friction can cause blisters or tears. Antonio, like some patients, also had eye issues as a result of the disease. (Joseph, 2/7)
Stat:
Cause Of Some Allergies Is Traced To Rare Group Of 'Memory' Cells
Maria Curotto de Lafaille’s lab was trying to make human plasma cells in a dish. These weren’t just run-of-the-mill cells, though. The team was vying for something specific: plasma cells that churn out immunoglobulin E (IgE), the antibody that drives allergic reactions. (Cueto, 2/7)
CBS News:
Daily Cinnamon Supplement Could Help Lower Blood Sugar, Study Says
Cinnamon has been used for thousands of years, not only in cooking but also for medicinal purposes. The spice may have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Now a new study has found it may have antidiabetic effects. Researchers at UCLA ... found that when the participants took the cinnamon, they had significantly lower 24-hour glucose concentrations, lower peaks in blood sugar, and lower triglyceride levels, suggesting that people with obesity-related prediabetes could achieve better glucose control with cinnamon supplements. (Marshall, 2/7)
In international news —
AP:
Ecuador's High Court Decriminalizes Euthanasia, Following A Lawsuit By A Terminally Ill Patient
Ecuador’s high court on Wednesday decriminalized euthanasia and ordered lawmakers and health officials to draft rules and regulations for the procedure. The decision of Ecuador’s Constitutional Court came in response to a lawsuit from a terminally ill woman diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS, who had argued that she should be allowed to have death with dignity. (Solano and Cano, 2/7)
