Reuters Health News Summary

09/04/2016 8:57

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Hospice care improves patient experience

A new study adds to evidence that hospice care during the last six months of life is associated with better overall experiences for patients and a lower likelihood of dying in a hospital. "Consistent with other studies demonstrating benefit, the use of hospice care is associated with better quality-of-care outcomes, including patient-centered care metrics," study leader Ruth Kleinpell and colleagues write in the journal BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care, online August 16.

For skiers and snowboarders, helmets still offer protection

Skiing helmets are not reducing head injuries as much as they used to, possibly because snow sports have become more dangerous, a Norwegian study suggests. Helmets still offer significant protection against serious head injuries, however, and all skiers and snowboarders should be wearing them, the researchers emphasize in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Laser pointers can cause irreversible vision loss for kids

Used incorrectly, laser pointers can damage the retina of the eye and may cause some irreversible vision loss, according to researchers who treated four boys for these injuries. Doctors, teachers and parents should be aware that this can happen, and limit children's use of laser pointers, the authors write.

Fewer U.S. hospitals breaking emergency treatment rules

The number of U.S. hospitals investigated or cited for breaking federal emergency treatment rules has declined over the past decade, a study suggests. The Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) requires that all patients who come to hospital emergency departments receive a medical screening and any care needed to stabilize their condition, regardless of their ability to pay. Nationwide, 7.2 percent of hospitals were investigated in 2014 for violating the law, down from 10.8 percent in 2005.

HIV-positive Ugandan women complain of forced sterilization in government hospitals

Ida, 29, was six months pregnant when she suddenly felt abdominal pains and went to a government hospital in Kampala. Like all pregnant women in Uganda, she was tested for HIV as part of routine screening for the virus. She lost her baby and was then given the news that she was HIV-positive.

U.S. lawmakers question Mylan's Medicaid EpiPen rebates

Two key U.S. congressional committee members on Friday called for an investigation into whether Mylan NV, under fire for raising the price of its EpiPen device, overcharged the government's low-income healthcare program for the allergy treatment. In a letter to the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Frank Pallone, both Democrats, seek clarification of whether EpiPen was classified as a generic, "non-innovator" drug, or a brand-name drug by the Medicaid program.

Singapore confirms 27 more locally transmitted Zika cases

Singapore authorities on Sunday confirmed 27 more cases of locally transmitted Zika virus infection, bringing the total to 242. Twenty-five new cases were linked to the initial outbreak area, one was linked to a potential new cluster and the remaining new case had no known links to any existing cluster, the Ministry of Health and National Environment Agency said in a joint statement.

Earlier diabetes diagnosis linked to worse mid-life heart health

When people develop diabetes early in life they may also be more likely to experience heart problems in middle age, a study suggests. Cardiovascular disease has long been linked to diabetes in older adults. The new study, however, offers fresh evidence that getting diabetes as a younger adult may exacerbate or accelerate the erosion of heart function as people age.

Clinton offers plan to curb 'unjustified' price hikes on life-saving drugs

Hillary Clinton said on Friday that if elected to the White House she would create an oversight panel to protect U.S. consumers from large price hikes on long-available, lifesaving drugs and to import alternative treatments if necessary, adding to her pledges to rein in overall drug prices. Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate, would seek to give the panel an "aggressive new set of enforcement tools," including the ability to levy fines and impose penalties on manufacturers when there has been an "unjustified, outlier price increase" on a long-available or generic drug, her campaign said.

Malaysia expects more Zika cases as virus spreads in Southeast Asia

Malaysia is bracing for more Zika cases, officials said on Sunday, after detecting the first locally infected patient, which could further stretch a health system struggling with dengue, another mosquito-borne virus that can be fatal. Both Zika, which is of particular risk to pregnant women, and the dengue virus are spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is common in tropical Malaysia, Southeast Asia's third largest economy, and across the region.

09/04/2016 8:57