FDA Launches BeSafeRx to Raise Awareness of Unsafe Internet Pharmacies

The FDA has launched BeSafeRx: Know Your Online Pharmacy, a national campaign aimed at raising awareness of Internet pharmacies and their potential risks to consumer health.

According to the FDA, some Internet pharmacies may sell fake, expired, contaminated, non-FDA-approved or otherwise unsafe products.

According to BeSafeRx, the following should raise red flags about online pharmacies:

• Allow you to buy drugs without a prescription from your doctor
• Offer deep discounts or cheap prices that seem too good to be true
• Send spam or unsolicited email offering cheap drugs
• Are located outside the United States 
• Are not licensed in the United States 

The BeSafeRx site also contains a state-by-state directory of safe online pharmacies. 

To learn more about BeSafeRx, click here. 

Knee Replacement Surgery Rate Soars

The number of first-time knee replacement surgeries among Medicare recipients has jumped 162 percent in the past 20 years, according to a new study out of the University of Iowa. The surge in surgeries has cost Medicare roughly $9 billion annually.

The researchers also found increases in the number of hospital readmissions and infection rates, which they attributed to shorter hospital stays after surgery.

The jump in knee replacement surgeries was attributed to an increase in obesity rates and a rapidly aging baby boomer population.

To learn more, click here.

AHRQ Develops Pilot Program to Allow Patients, Families to Report Medical Mistakes

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has developed a pilot program that would allow patients and their families to report medical mistakes directly to the federal government. The agency is hoping to gain approval for the project from the Obama administration.

The AHRQ hopes that issues such as medication errors, uncommunicative doctors and nurses, poor collaboration between providers, infections, failure of clinicians to disclose a mistake and unsanitary conditions would be reported. The claims would then be researched by the RAND Corporation and ECRI Institute.

The concerns could be reported through online or phone questionnaires.

To learn more, click here.

COPD Linked to Low Blood Oxygen Levels, Poor Sleep

Researchers have found that people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, are more likely to have low arterial blood oxygen levels as well as fatigue, sleepiness and an impaired quality of life.

The research team also found that individuals with COPD have a more difficult time getting to sleep and have more interrupted sleep. These sleeping troubles are likely tied to the low arterial blood oxygen levels (also known as daytime hypoxemia).

To learn more, click here.

High Normal Blood-Sugar Levels Can Lead to Brain Shrinkage

A new study has found that blood-sugar levels that are at the upper end of the normal range can still be detrimental to the brain.

Being on the high end of the normal range - in other words, not high enough to be classified as diabetes or prediabetes - can make somebody more likely to have brain shrinkage in certain areas than people with lower blood-sugar levels. Previous studies had linked Type 2 diabetes to brain shrinkage.

The researchers noted that their findings could lead to the reevaluation of normal blood-sugar levels and the definition of diabetes.

The study involved 249 people, aged 60 to 64, whose blood-sugar levels were in the normal range as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO).

To learn more, click here.

Scientists Link Second-Hand Smoke to Memory Problems

The results of a small study have linked exposure to second-hand smoke to memory problems. This could lead to embarrassment as well as more serious complications, such as forgetting to take medication. 

The researchers added that while the study doesn't prove that smoke damages memory, it is nonetheless cause for concern. 

According to Tom Heffernan, the study's lead author, "This research extends what is already known about the effects of smoking and second-hand smoke, suggesting there is not only health effects from it, but cognitive consequences too." He added that the researchers are looking to confirm their findings using other methods as well. 

To learn more, click here. 

Study: UTIs More Common in Type 2 Diabetics

According to a new study published in the Journal of Diabetic Complications, individuals with Type 2 diabetes are more likely to develop urinary tract infections (UTIs) than non-diabetics.

The researchers found that the incidence of UTIs was 46.9 per 1,000 person-years for diabetics and 29.9 per 1,000 person-years for non-diabetics. Both groups were tracked for two years.

To learn more, click here.