Texas University Student Severe Meningitis Partly Treated with Viagra and Oxygen Helps Foment Change in Texas Bacterial Meningitis Law

Story of Texas Student Who Had Meningitis Trauma Partly Treated with Viagra and Oxygen Pushes Texas to Join 12 Other American States in Mandating Bacterial Meningitis Vaccine

The heart breaking experience of a Texas sophomore, Jamie Schanbaum who contracted bacterial meningitis, helped push the Texas Legislature into enacting mandatory Meningitis vaccination for university students. Her experience was so severe that doctors tried using oxygen and Viagra to improve the circulation of oxygen to her limbs.




Bacterial Meningitis can fall upon it's victims with a sudden savage fury.It can be especially devastating when what seems like a sore throat morphs over night into deadly meningitis. The brain and the spinal cord, the nervous system, are sheathed in layers of tissue. When these layers get an "inflammation", mostly an infection..that's meningitis. The usual suspects in infection elsewhere are also the culprits here, i.e. viruses, bacteria and even fungus.

What are Some Symptoms of Meningitis and Meningococcemia

According to the National Meningitis Association (see below):

Meningitis starts out looking like the flu or a migraine and progresses quickly. Some, but not all of the symptoms may be present. Here is a list of symptoms:

Headache - May seem like the worst headache you have ever had.

Fever - Can get very high. Doesn't respond to tepid bath or aspirin.

Vomiting

Numbness / cold extremities / loss of feeling

Stiff neck

Avoiding light

Disoriented / confused

Seizures

Purple spots or rash - This means blood poisoning is underway. Pressing a clear glass on the spots does not cause them to turn white.

Why is Bacterial Meningitis Dangerous and Requires Prompt Medical Attention?

Why Are College Students More Susceptible to Meningitis?

The meningitis one generally reads about in college outbreaks is meningococcal meningitis. It is caused by a bacteria, Neisseria Meningitidis. (for you Biology majors,nicknamed the Meningiococcus, it's a gram negative diplococcus)..College students tend to live in dorms and cramped apartments with multiple students. Sanitation and hygeine are not always foremost on some students' agenda. The meninigitis microbe, Neisseria meningitidis, is spread via close contact such as sharing drinking cups, kissing and sharing cigarettes. Many people are natural carriers and can walk around with the bacteria with no ill effects.



Bacteria can be organized by subtypes into so called serogroups..by what is in the capsule that surrounds them. six serogroups of Meningococcus are mostly to blame for the meningitis caused by this particular bacteria. (remember meningitis is also caused by other bacteria as well as viruses and even fungi)...the serogroups X,Y,A,B,C and W-135 are the main culprits with the meningococcus. The vaccines available now don't work on serogroup B.

What Are the Types and Treatments of Meningitis







"Neisseria meningitidis are bacteria that can cause illness in people of any age. At any time, about 5-15% of people have these bacteria in their throats or noses without getting sick. The meningitis bacteria are spread through saliva (spit) during kissing, sharing of food, drinks or cigarettes, and by close contact with infected people who are sneezing or coughing. People who have come in close contact with the saliva of a person with meningitis from this type of bacteria may have to get antibiotics (medicine) for protection. Meningitis caused by these bacteria is called “meningococcal.” There are vaccines, which can be used to help prevent this kind of meningitis.


Haemophilus influenzae type b bacteria, called Hib, can also cause meningitis. There is a vaccine called “Hib vaccine” that prevents infants and young children from getting Hib disease. Most adults are resistant to this type of meningitis, and thanks to the vaccine, most children under 5 years of age are protected. Certain
people who have come in close contact with the saliva of a person with meningitis from this type of bacteria may have to get an antibiotic for protection.


Streptococcus pneumoniae are bacteria that cause lung and ear infections but can also cause “pneumococcal” meningitis. These bacteria are usually found in the throat. Most people who have these bacteria in their throats stay healthy. However, people with chronic medical problems or with weakened immune systems, and those who are very young or very old, are at higher risk for getting pneumococcal meningitis".

Jamie Schanbaum Support and Medical Update Blog

Freshmen Required to Get Vaccine

Viagra Used to Treat Rare Meningitis Attack, Student Fights for Her Life


You can read the transcript of a NOVA television program on meningitis at KILLER DISEASE ON CAMPUS.


Why doesn't everyone, especially college students get vaccinated? There is a vaccine that covers four of the five most common "serotypes" of meningococcal meningitis. Per the CDC, " Vaccination does not eliminate risk because:

the vaccine confers no protection against serogroup B disease and

although the vaccine is highly effective against serogroups C, Y, W-135, and A, efficacy is less than 100%."


Nevertheless, it still seems that getting vaccinated will lower the chances of this especially nasty form of bacterial meningitis. It's certainly worth discussing with your doctor.

Meningococcal Vaccination

WHO HAS LESS HEART PROBLEM RISK ? TEATOTALERS THOSE WHO DRINK MODERATE RED WINE OR DRUNKS

Which of these groups has the least cardiovascular risk? (other things being equal)

1. People who binge drink red wine

2. People who never drink red wine

3. People who drink moderate amounts of red wine?
According to some medical analysis the answer is people who drink MODERATE amounts of red wine

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Can 50 Million Frenchmen be wrong? Frenchmen allegedly have less heart disease, also allegedly due to their red wine consumption...(enough with the allegedly already, I'm starting to sound like a TV lawyer). Still, the link between MODERATE red wine drinking and less heart problems like heart attacks has been floating around for a while now.



An article in the July 2010 Journal of Family Practice says "moderate daily red wine consumption decreases cardiovascular risk compared with either abstinence or heavy and binge drinking". It also points out that HEAVY DRINKING IS ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED RISK OF STROKE.









healty medical Blog has previously examined the association between red wine and heart risk factors and maybe even slowing down aging. Other articles have pointed to the possibility that a compound in red wine called resveratrol may be implicated in a slowing down of the aging process.

RED WINE SHOULD YOU OR SHOULDN'T YOU LATEST REPORT IN THE SAGA OF RESVERATROL DOES A CHEMICAL IN RED WINE RED GRAPES SLOW DOWN AGING

Newest Old Idea a Long Time Coming MAYBE New IPHONE Will Finally Kick Start the Age of Video Phones

Videophones,the concept, has been around for a long time..People at the 1965 New York World's Fair saw an example of a videophone on which you could SEE and SPEAK to people at Disneyland.. It seems obvious to me that videophones are a great idea..Think about it. Your Aunt Tilly in Cedar Rapids and your Mom and Dad in Ohio want to see and watch the baby play at home in Chicago. Skype has already proven that many people want video phones but it's still not quite there for ease of use and image quality.



Videophones need to be a no brainer to use. As easy as making a phone call to anyone anywhere. When THAT happens you will see the concept take off like a rocket.. Personally I have always thought that Iphones while having a nice interface are over hyped but MAYBE the new Iphone may open the doors to the Videophone Era IF... The new Iphone has the ability to do videophone calls. BUT apparently you can only make the video calls over WI FI which is still a stumbling block..IF they fix it so that you can make video calls from anywhere to anywhere we may be on the CUSP of the VIDEOPHONE REVOLUTION.

Ticket to Trouble Dizziness Needs Immediate Medical Evaluation in Old and Young People New Study Implicates Heart Disease in More Than Half of Dizzy E

Ticket to Trouble Dizziness Needs Immediate Medical Evaluation in Old and Young People New Study Implicates Heart Disease in More Than Half of Dizzy Elderly

Sometimes people just take an anti-vertigo pill without a deep search for the cause of the dizziness. This turns out to be an even worse idea than it seems. According to a recent study OVER HALF of the elderly people who had DIZZINESS had it caused by HEART PROBLEMS.






The study which appeared in the Annals of Family Medicine, concluded "Contrary to most previous studies, cardiovascular disease was found to be the most common major cause of dizziness in elderly patients in primary care. In one-quarter of all patients an adverse drug effect was considered to be a contributory cause of dizziness, which is much higher than reported in previous studies". A number of heart related problem can make a person feel dizzy such as atrial fibrillation, other irregular heart beats and high or low blood pressure. Of course some other causes can be high or low blood sugar, inner ear problems and fluid loss.



No matter how you parse it, dizziness is NOT something to sneeze at and just taking a medication to cover up the symptom without a complete medical evaluation is a ticket to trouble.

Causes of Persistent Dizziness in Elderly Patients in Primary Care

EVEN PERRY MASON MIGHT HAVE TROUBLE DEFENDING HOT DOGS, BACON AS REPORT TAKES SWIPE AT PROCESSED MEATS AND HEART DISEASE AND A VIDEO ABOUT CANCER RED

Even Perry Mason might have a hard time now coming up with a defense against the mounting evidence that add cold cuts, hot dogs, bacon and sausage to the list of bad things that taste good. Why is it that things that taste like shoe leather tend to be good but not so much vice versa?



A study that appeared in the medical journal Circulation, according to the NY Times, "is an indictment of processed meats like bacon, sausage and deli meats. Eating one serving of those foods a day was associated with a 42 percent higher risk of heart disease and 19 percent increased risk of diabetes. But there was no increase in risk associated with eating unprocessed red meat".

EVEN PERRY MASON MIGHT HAVE TROUBLE DEFENDING HOT DOGS, BACON AS REPORT TAKES SWIPE AT PROCESSED MEATS AND HEART DISEASE AND A VIDEO ABOUT CANCER RED AND PROCESSED MEAT LINK

Many people will continue to eat whatever meat they want but this latest study of the perils of hot dogs,bacon,sausage and pastrami comes in the wake of a report in the Annals of Internal Medicine about red meats,processed meats and cancer.



"Cutting back on steak, sausages and salami could help prolong your life, according to the most comprehensive study done on meat and mortality. Researchers tracked half a million Americans over a decade and found those who ate more red and processed meats appear to have a "modestly increased" risk of dying from all causes, and specifically from cancer or heart disease".



In contrast,those who ate more white meat have a decreased risk of dying, and in particular of dying from cancer. Diet is thought to influence the incidence of several cancers but it's hard to unravel which aspects of diet are important.A previous study in PLOS Medicine, for example, tried to shed light on cancer and what we eat. It indicated that a high red meat intake is associated with an increased risk of esophageal and liver cancer, and that one in ten colorectal and one in ten lung cancers could be avoided if people reduced their red and processed meat intake.

LESS FAT SMALLER CUTS CERTAIN MARINADES MAY HELP WHAT CAN YOU DO GRILLING BURGERS AND BARBECUE MEAT TO REDUCE CANCER CAUSING CHEMICALS

Studying Animals to See What Works Against Cancer in Humans



"The results of the study complement the recommendations by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund to reduce red and processed meat intake to decrease cancer incidence," said Rashmi Sinha, a specialist in nutritional epidemiology at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Md. The lead author of the study added that she is personally not a vegetarian". "There are various mechanisms by which meat may be related to mortality. In relation to cancer, meat is a source of several multisite carcinogens, including heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons,16-21 which are both formed during high-temperature cooking of meat, as well as N-nitroso compound".

Red and Processed Meat Consumption and Risk of Incident Coronary Heart Disease, Stroke, and Diabetes Mellitus. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Don't Bring Home the Bacon

Meat Intake and Mortality A Prospective Study of Over Half a Million People

Put Down the Bacon! Report Emphasizes Cancer-fat Links













The evidence that the intake of red meat (beef, pork, and lamb) and of processed meat (for example, bacon, ham, and sausages) is linked to cancer risk has been suspected and reported previously.The study released by the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) said that excess body fat as well as consumption of alcohol, red meat and processed meats like bacon, hot dogs and so on increase your risk of developing cancer.






The previous study which appeared in PLOS Medicine reported on a study of a link between processed and red meats and cancer. "Nearly half a million US men and women aged 50–71 years old joined the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study. The participants none of whom had had cancer previously, completed a questionnaire about their dietary habits over the previous year and provided other personal information such as their age, weight, and smoking history". The study used these data and information from state cancer registries to look for associations between the intake of red and processed meat and the incidence of various cancers".



The prospective study( i.e a study in which people are identified and then followed forward in time) provided "strong evidence that people who eat a lot of red and processed meats have greater risk of developing colorectal and lung cancer than do people who eat small quantities".





"Although the researchers allowed for factors such as smoking history that might have affected cancer incidences, some of the effects they ascribe to meat intake might be caused by other lifestyle factors. Furthermore, because the study's definitions of red meat and processed meat overlapped—bacon and ham, for example, were included in both categories—exactly which type of meat is related to cancer remains unclear".

healty medical Blog Ten Recommendations to Prevent Cancer

A Prospective Study of Red and Processed Meat Intake in Relation to Cancer Risk

PDF of Prospective Study of Red and Processed Meat Intake in Relation to cancer Risk


"Red meat refers to beef, pork and lamb, - foods like hamburgers, steak, pork chops and roast lamb. The term processed meat refers to meats preserved by smoking, curing or salting, or by the addition of preservatives. Examples include ham, bacon, pastrami and salami, as well as hot dogs and sausages.




"The evidence from the Expert Report that red meat is a cause of colorectal cancer is convincing. This evidence is much stronger now than it was in the mid-1990s. Red meat contains substances that are linked to colon cancer. For example, heme iron, the compound that gives red meat its color, has been shown to damage the lining of the colon.Studies also show that people who eat a lot of red meat tend to eat less plant-based foods, so they benefit less from their cancer-protective properties".



There is also convincing evidence that choosing processed meat increases the chances of colorectal cancer. The expert panel advises limiting red meat and avoiding processed meat. Studies show we can eat up to 18 ounces a week of red meat without raising cancer risk. Research on processed meat shows cancer risk starts to increase with any portion.



"When meat is preserved by smoking, curing or salting, or by the addition of preservatives, cancer-causing substances (carcinogens) can be formed. These substances can damage cells in the body, leading to the development of cancer".






"The Expert Panel found that salt and salt-preserved foods probably increase the chance of developing stomach cancer. Studies have shown that high salt intakes can damage the lining of the stomach. This is one way in which it might increase the risk of stomach cancer".

Food Nutrition and the Prevention of Cancer The Full Report Online

In a 2007 survey, 3.1 million adults reported using acupuncture in the previous 12 months, up from 2.1 million in a 2002 survey, according to the Government’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, a unit of the National Institutes of Health.

According to a recent article in the New York Times " a growing number of people are turning to acupuncture for help with conditions including infertility, chronic pain, depression and menopause symptoms. And they are turning to it even though financially it remains a largely out-of-pocket form of health care". I have started to think more highly of acupuncture. At least I don't view it with the utter disdain I previously did.

CAN ACUPUNCTURE HELP YOU GET PREGNANT: FERTILITY TREATMENT AND ACUPUNCTURE
....New York Times Article Talks About Acupuncture

According to the story in the NY Times a woman who had been unsuccessful in getting pregnant and had seen a gynecologist to no avail "decided to try an alternative. She went to see an acupuncturist who said, “I can help; give me 12 weeks.” Because her insurer, like most, did not cover acupuncture, she had to pay for the $70 weekly treatments she hoped would put her cycle on a more normal schedule. After the first few treatments, that seemed to be working. Two months later, the woman was pregnant. There is no way of knowing for sure whether it was the acupuncture or the gynecologist’s keep-on-trying advice that helped her conceive".






In the previous note about acupuncture and migraine headaches, I wrote in healty medical Blog that" according to the medical review called Cochrane Review, available studies suggest that acupuncture is at least as effective as, or possibly more effective than, prophylactic drug treatment( for migraine headaches), and has fewer adverse effects. Acupuncture should be considered a treatment option for patients willing to undergo this treatment.





Unless you are in the medical profession it's not likely you have heard of Cohrane Reviews. What are they? "Cochrane Reviews investigate the effects of interventions for prevention, treatment and rehabilitation in a healthcare setting... Cochrane Reviews in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) answer clinical questions about the effectiveness of treatments.

'Each review addresses a clearly formulated question; for example: Can antibiotics help in alleviating the symptoms of a sore throat? The research is reviewed using stringent guidelines to establish whether or not there is conclusive evidence about a specific treatment...". yada yada yada



According to CD001218..."In the previous version of this review, evidence in support of acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis was considered promising but insufficient. Now, with 12 additional trials, there is consistent evidence that acupuncture provides additional benefit to treatment of acute migraine attacks only or to routine care. There is no evidence for an effect of 'true' acupuncture over sham interventions, though this is difficult to interpret, as exact point location could be of limited importance. Available studies suggest that acupuncture is at least as effective as, or possibly more effective than, prophylactic drug treatment, and has fewer adverse effects. Acupuncture should be considered a treatment option for patients willing to undergo this treatment.

Acupuncture Is Popular, but You’ll Need to Pay

healty medical Blog on Acupuncture and Migraine Headache

Acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis

Acupuncture Goes to War

A Review says Studies suggest that Acupuncture is At Least as Effective as prophylactic drug treatment and has fewer adverse effects

I get headaches from time to time...some people say I cause headaches..but that's another story...anyway here's a question Can acupuncture prevent migraine headaches? Is acupuncture (the Chinese system of inserting needles at certain points on the body) worth a hill of beans? The answer according to the medical review called Cochrane Review is amazingly Yes! According to the Cohrane Review Available studies suggest that acupuncture is at least as effective as, or possibly more effective than, prophylactic drug treatment, and has fewer adverse effects. Acupuncture should be considered a treatment option for patients willing to undergo this treatment.

DOES ACUPUNCTURE WORK TO PREVENT MIGRAINE HEADACHE
A Review Says Check It out

Unless you are in the medical profession it's not likely you have heard of Cohrane Reviews. What are they? "Cochrane Reviews investigate the effects of interventions for prevention, treatment and rehabilitation in a healthcare setting... Cochrane Reviews in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) answer clinical questions about the effectiveness of treatments.

'Each review addresses a clearly formulated question; for example: Can antibiotics help in alleviating the symptoms of a sore throat? The research is reviewed using stringent guidelines to establish whether or not there is conclusive evidence about a specific treatment...". yada yada yada



According to CD001218..."In the previous version of this review, evidence in support of acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis was considered promising but insufficient. Now, with 12 additional trials, there is consistent evidence that acupuncture provides additional benefit to treatment of acute migraine attacks only or to routine care. There is no evidence for an effect of 'true' acupuncture over sham interventions, though this is difficult to interpret, as exact point location could be of limited importance. Available studies suggest that acupuncture is at least as effective as, or possibly more effective than, prophylactic drug treatment, and has fewer adverse effects. Acupuncture should be considered a treatment option for patients willing to undergo this treatment.

Acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis

healty medical Blog on Acupuncture and Fertility and Getting Pregnant

Acupuncture Gos to War