AIDS rates per 100,000 residents by state in 1995, followed by the 1994 rate:
Alabama 15.1, 13.8
Alaska 11.4, 9.8
Arizona 16.1, 16.0
Arkansas 11.2, 11.6
California 35.2, 38.6
Colorado 18.0, 22.2
Connecticut 50.4, 27.9
Delaware 44.1, 36.0
District of Columbia 185.7, 246.9
Florida 56.9, 61.1
Georgia 31.8, 32.1
Hawaii 21.8, 18.3
Idaho 4.2, 5.4
Illinois 18.8, 26.0
Indiana 9.1, 10.7
Iowa 4.1, 4.6
Kansas 12.5, 9.1
Kentucky 7.7, 8.3
Louisiana 25.0, 26.5
Maine 10.5, 9.4
Maryland 51.1, 53.7
Massachusetts 23.8, 22.9
Michigan 12.6, 10.8
Minnesota 8.0, 9.2
Mississippi 16.4, 16.1
Missouri 14.9, 13.4
Montana 2.9, 3.6
Nebraska 7.0, 5.4
Nevada 32.2, 26.3
New Hampshire 9.8, 8.1
New Jersey 55.5, 61.7
New Mexico 9.7, 12.9
New York 68.4, 81.1
North Carolina 13.9, 16.8
North Dakota 0.8, 3.3
Ohio 10.0, 10.7
Oklahoma 9.0, 8.2
Oregon 14.6, 19.6
Pennsylvania 19.7, 20.8
Rhode Island 22.5, 27.7
South Carolina 26.6, 31.6
South Dakota 2.6, 2.8
Tennessee 17.1, 14.5
Texas 23.9, 31.8
Utah 8.4, 8.0
Vermont 7.5, 6.5
Virginia 24.3, 17.5
Washington 16.4, 17.4
West Virginia 6.9, 5.0
Wisconsin 6.8, 7.3
Wyoming 3.5, 4.0
Territories
Guam did not report figures for 1995, 0.7 in 1994
Pacific Islands did not report figures for 1995 or 1994
Puerto Rico 70.3, 62.5
Virgin Islands 37.4, 50.1
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Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention AP 4/18/96
According to a new study from Harvard University, lead may be a significant cause of high blood pressure, even more important than sodium or age. The study was published in this week's The Journal of the American Medical Association.
Researchers determined that the three most significant factors in high blood pressure were body mass index, which is a ratio of height and weight, a family history of hypertension and shinbone lead level. Sodium intake and age ranked lower. The study did not compare the three top factors to each other. However, according to one doctor interviewed in this AP article, the study did not make clear whether lead has an independent effect on hypertension or combines with some other risk factors, such as age.
AP 4/16/96
A researcher reporting at this week's meeting of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology found that in mice, malnutrition can actually help viruses mutate to become dangerous enough to sicken the healthy, too. AP 4/16/96
Two studies appearing in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association found that the use of diagnostic tests for millions of Medicare patients surged during a seven-year period and was linked to a corresponding rise in costly invasive procedures.
Both studies "provide convincing evidence that increased use of a range of therapeutic procedures is strongly associated with prior use of related diagnostic tests." However, as one of the accompanying editorials pointed out, the studies were limited by being based solely on administrative data rather than detailed clinical information. AP 4/16/96
In a study in this week's journal Circulation, results found that people who were tested in the study, on treadmills, and couldn't approach a certain elevated heart rate, may be at a higher risk to developing heart disease. One of the doctors interviewed in this AP article stated that regular exercisers had no reason to be alarmed. Contact your cardiologist for more information about an individual case. AP 4/15/96
The Food and Drug Administration issued a warning today against "herbal ecstasy" which contains the stimulant ephedrine, or Ma Huang. "Herbal ecstasy" was developed and marketed as an alternative to the illegal drug ecstasy or MDMA. The FDA says herbal ecstasy and other dietary supplements containing ephedrin can cause heart attacks, seizures and other health threats. TIME 4/10/96
(ED NOTE: Please consult a health care professional before prescribing any vitamin dosage on your own, as improper levels may cause harm.)
Pregnant women can substantially lower their risk of high blood pressure and a sometimes deadly condition known as preeclampsia by getting more calcium in their diet, researchers say.
The incidence of high blood pressure was reduced by 70 percent among women who consumed the equivalent of four servings of dairy products -- 1,500 milligrams of calcium -- per day, according to a Canadian study published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The incidence of a serious medical condition known as preeclampsia, which can be fatal to a woman and the fetus, dropped by 62 percent. According to the article, two percent to 8 percent of the American women who give birth each year suffer from preeclampsia, a disorder that leads to extremely high blood pressure and kidney damage. AP 4/10/96
Obese mothers are at least twice as likely as thinner women to have babies with debilitating birth defects, two studies found.
Both studies, published in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association, involved so-called neural tube defects and women who were obese at conception, not those who gained a lot of weight during pregnancy. AP 4/9/96
ED NOTE: Before beginning a weight reduction program, it is important to contact a Health Professional who deals with obesity and weight reduction. Otherwise, improper "dieting" may also prove harmful.
A study in this week's JAMA found that alcoholics who smoke are more likely to be killed by the cigarettes than by the liquor. The findings indicate treatment for nicotine addiction should be a vital part of substance abuse programs, Mayo Clinic researchers said. AP 4/9/96
A new study suggests that pregnant women who smoke are 50 percent more likely to have mentally retarded children. Smoking during pregnancy previously was linked to low birth weight, infant mortality and lower intelligence in children. This study was the first to connect smoking with retardation. A related study in the same April issue of the journal Pediatrics concluded that secondhand smoke "places an enormous burden of illness on children, far greater than would be tolerated with any other product."
Some of the findings from the study included:
-- Women who smoked while pregnant were 50 percent more likely to have mentally retarded children.
-- About 35 percent of women who gave birth to retarded children reported smoking as few as five cigarettes a week during pregnancy.
-- Women who smoked during the last six months of pregnancy, when a fetus develops many organs, were 60 percent more likely to have retarded children than women who did not smoke in that period.
-- Pregnant women who smoked at least a pack of cigarettes a day were 85 percent more likely to give birth to a retarded child. AP 4/9/96
Medical Foods are those foods which are available under a doctor's prescription. For years, medical foods were considered the special mixes hospitals tube-fed the seriously ill, or those for people who physically can't digest regular foods. Some newborns, for example, are allergic to proteins and need special formula to survive.
The Food and Drug Administration is writing new regulations, due out by October, that define a medical food as something vital for a patient to eat to mitigate disease. A recent entry into this market is Cardia Salt Alternative, a new salt substitute. AP 4/7/96
According to a study in the March issue of the American Journal of Public Health, a worker who feels like a cog in a machine has a 162% higher risk of dying from a heart attack than one who has a lot of input and works in a team. This sense of belonging may also produce other benefits, such as higher worker productivity and less absenteeism. Elevated blood pressure could be the culprit for this higher risk. Business Week 4/8/96
Let's put this one in the "questionable" catagory for the time being. A two year Defense Department study found "no clinical evidence for a previously unknown serious illness or 'syndrome' among Persian Gulf veterans". The study examined 18,929 veterans who registered medical complaints. Hmm.
USA Today 4/3/96
According to the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, 1 million children are abused or neglected, with parents responsible for 80 percent of the damage. (ED NOTE: All health care professionals have an inherent duty to maintain educational requirements for identifying and reporting suspected cases of child abuse.) AP 4/2/96
Here's one for everyone to keep their eye on: Aetna Life and Casualty Co. said Monday it will acquire U.S. Healthcare in an $8.9 billion deal that would create the nation's biggest medical benefits company.
Combined, the companies provide health care services to 23 million people, or one in every 12 Americans. Can anyone say Monopoly? AP 4/1/96
Kidney disease patients can slow progression of their illness, and perhaps extend the time before they are forced to go on dialysis, by reducing protein in their diet, researchers report, so says a new study, published in the April 1 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
More than 20 million Americans suffer diseases of the kidney and urinary tract and more than 90,000 die each year. About 200,000 suffer from chronic kidney failure and need an artificial kidney machine to live.
The authors warned patients and physicians to take precautions against malnutrition, but Wang said the amount of protein suggested is fairly safe for people with kidney disease. They also recommended consultation with skilled dietitians and careful follow-up care.
However, the president of the American Diabetes Association and an official at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, called the report important for people with existing kidney disease, but said there's no clinical evidence that cutting protein will help prevent kidney failure. AP 3/31/96
Low levels of thyroid hormones in newborns, a condition long thought to be harmless, may actually retard mental development and contribute to cerebral palsy, a study concludes. The study, directed by Dr. Mary Lynn Reuss of Columbia University, was conducted on 463 premature newborns. It was published in Thursday's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. AP 3/27/96
In a finding that conjures up images of the Marlboro Man eating dainty tea sandwiches, a new study suggests that a substance in watercress may lower the risk of lung cancer in smokers.
The study -- one of several food-related papers presented Tuesday at a seminar held by the American Cancer Society -- found evidence that the substance blocks a chemical pathway from tobacco smoke to lung cancer.
So does that mean smokers could lower their cancer risk by eating watercress itself?
Maybe, if they ate it for the rest of their lives, but there's no data on that question, said researcher Stephen Hecht of the American Health Foundation in Valhalla, N.Y. "The right message is not to smoke," he said. AP 3/28/96
A researcher says he has developed a scoring system for small and very early breast tumors that might help doctors decide whether to recommend mastectomies or less drastic treatment.
The tumors -- called ductal carcinoma in situ, or DCIS -- are contained in the milk ducts of the breast. Most are too tiny to be felt and show up only on breast X-rays. AP 3/27/96
Forgetting politics for a moment, Kudos to President Clinton for urging States to vigorously enforce laws barring tobacco sales to minors to combat the notion "that glamor and grit can be found in a package of cigarettes." The rule, part of the Public Health Service Act of 1992, requires states to restrict the sale and distribution of tobacco products to minors in order to get federal block grants for substance abuse and treatment. According to the American Journal of Public Health, an estimated 255 million packs of cigarettes were sold to minors in 1991. President Clinton called smoking, "the most serious public health problem our young people face." AP 3/25/96
The FDA has approved a new nicotine nasal spray for smokers wanting to "kick the habit". Nicotrol NS will only be sold by prescription, with some serious instructions:
The spray should be used for just three months -- and never more than six months -- so that smokers don't find themselves as dependent on nicotine from a bottle as they do nicotine from a cigarette.
-- 40 milligrams of nicotine taken at once can be lethal.
No one who experiences nasal or sinus problems, allergies or asthma should use it. AP 3/25/96
Universal Care, an HMO in California, was barred by the State Department of Health Services from signing up new patients while under investigation for paying doctors to enroll patients. Universal, however, is fighting this ruling. (Hmmm, does anybody else wonder what other HMOs are doing???? Ed. Note.) AP 3/23/96
According to the April 23rd issue of PC Magazine, The Boza Virus (the computer variety of virus's) is attacking the Windows 95 environment. Surf Here for an Update!
The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, GA, recently marked its 50th Anniversary. Surf Here for a brief report!