Painkiller Abuse Continues to Increase

According to a new report, the use of prescription painkillers has increased dramatically particularly among men between the ages of 18 and 49.  

Among individuals taking prescription painkillers for nonmedical purposes on more than 200 days in the year, there was a 74 percent increase in the number of people taking them between 2002 and 2010. The use of these painkillers has increased by 105 percent just by the use of men. 



There were over 15,000 fatalities in 2009 due to overdosing on drugs such as oxycodone and hydrocodone according to an article from MedPage Today.  

As more adults are taking prescribed painkillers for nonmedical purposes, the study did reveal that those between the ages of 12 and 17 have shown a decrease in usage.  

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.

2200 E. Camelback Road

Suite 213

Phoenix, AZ 85016

602-224-0005 

Pill Bottle Warnings

Pill Bottle Warnings Often Go Unnoticed

Sometimes, especially among the elderly, the colorful warning labels on the sides of pill bottles and vials go unnoticed. 

According to MedPage Today, a study has found that the colorful labels oftentimes do not capture the attention of those taking the medications.  

Groups of both young and old participants were tested to see whether or not the labels were read, and it was discovered that only 54 percent of the older group looked at the warnings. About 92 percent of the younger participants looked at the labels.  

The ages of the group ranged from 20 to 29 and 51 to 77.

The findings help explain why older patients are at greater risks for adverse drug events and how they can easily forget the bottle’s contents.  

The participants were tested on their ability to notice specific information on the vials and how long they were able to remember it. Eye-tracking technology was used to see which parts of the vials they were examining most.  

Researchers from the study are now saying that labels need to be designed that will help attract attention. After that’s accomplished, wording and content will also need to be changed.  

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.

2200 E. Camelback Road
Suite 213
Phoenix, AZ 85016
602-224-0005

CT Scans May Increase Cancer Risk in Children

A new study has found that the chance of getting brain cancer or leukemia increases when computed tomography (CT) scans are done on children. 

According to an article from The New York Times, researchers say that CT scans should only be done when absolutely necessary and with the lowest possible dose of radiation, such as when diagnosing severe head injuries.  

CT Scan Machine
Photo from pengrin™, Flickr

The new study was published in The Lancet, a British medical journal, and found that when nearly 180,000 children had CT scans, 74 cases of leukemia and 135 cases of brain cancer appeared.  

It was also found that the more scans that were performed, the higher the risk of getting either disease increased.  

Children who had five to 10 CT scans tripled the risk of getting leukemia, while children under the age of 15 who had two or three scans of the head tripled the risk of brain cancer.

CT scans take X-rays from various angles to create cross-sectional images. These scans involve a lot of radiation, and researchers say that a third of the scans performed on children are considered unnecessary and can be replaced by a safer test like ultrasounds.  

When it comes to potential life-threatening conditions, such as pneumonia complications, spine injuries and chest infections, parents are urged to not refuse CT scans.  

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.

2200 E. Camelback Road

Suite 213

Phoenix, AZ 85016

602-224-0005

Drug Seen to Prolong Life and Delay Worsening of Breast Cancer

In a recent study, it was found that a drug that delivers a powerful poison to tumors can delay the worsening of breast cancer. The drug also has fewer side effects and was seen to prolong lives.

The drug is known as T-DM1, and if approved, could hit the market as early as next year, according to an article by The New York Times.

The new drug represents an advance in treating breast cancer, and the success in the clinical trials show that it’s possible to deliver the drug to cancerous cells while at the same time saving healthy ones.  

T-DM1 and other similar drugs being tested consist of antibodies, which are powerful toxins linked to proteins. The antibodies from the drugs grab on to cancer cells and directly deliver the toxins to it.  

Side effects of the drugs are reduced as the toxins are not active until it reaches the tumor.  

In the trials, it was seen that T-DM1 delayed the worsening of breast cancer by about three months. Also, approximately 85 percent of patients receiving the new drug were still alive after one year, compared to the control group which had a percentage of 77. 

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.

2200 E. Camelback Road

Suite 213

Phoenix, AZ 85016

602-224-0005

Medical Data Breaches Increase

As more medical records go digital, the size and frequency of data breaches are increasing.  

Public health officials and privacy advocates are becoming more alarmed; keeping records secure and safe is starting to become a real challenge. 

In an article from The Washington Post, two recent incidents at Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C. have shown how many people can be affected by inadequate data security.  

Earlier in May, federal prosecutors charged a hospital employee with violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The employee used her position to gain access to patient’s health information, including their names, Medicare numbers, and addresses. She then sold the information outside of work. 

Before that incident took place, the same hospital had to contact more than 34,000 patients that their medical information had been compromised.  

A contractor working for the hospital had put information on a personal laptop, which was later stolen out of the employee’s vehicle. Information stolen included names, Social Security numbers, addresses and in some cases, health and diagnosis related information.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than 40 percent of medical data breaches involved portable media devices, such as laptops, in the past two and a half years. 

Many incidents that lead to patients having their information compromised can be avoided. 

Protection measures, such as encryption, password security, and cloud storage could easily be used by health care officials to make information more secure.

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.

2200 E. Camelback Road

Suite 213

Phoenix, AZ 85016

602-224-0005

Chagas Disease

After being called “the new AIDS of the Americas,” Chagas, a tropical disease spread by insects, is beginning to cause some concern. 

The Public Library of Science’s Neglected Tropical Diseases is the medical journal that published the article on Chagas. The editorial said that the spread of the disease resembles the early years of HIV. 

The tropical disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis, has affected more than eight million people, where most of the infected live in Latin and Central America. However, 300,000 people have been infected in the United States. 

HIV is a sexually-transmitted disease, whereas Chagas is a disease caused by parasites transmitted to humans through blood-sucking insects.  

The insects that can infect you are called the “kissing bugs.” As it is ingest your blood, it is excreting the parasite at the same time. When you begin scratching the bug bite, you’re infected when the parasite moves into the wound. 

The two diseases are similar in some ways, however.  

Both diseases require expansive and expensive treatment and are prone to affect those living in poverty. Also, many patients affected do not have access to health care facilities.  

The disease kills up to 20,000 people each year, and is hard or impossible to cure, according to The New York Times. Approximately 20 percent of those affected by Chagas develop a serious and life-threatening form of the disease.  

Chagas can be transmitted from mother to child as well as by blood transfusions. Treatment of Chagas involves taking very harsh drugs for up to three months. Unfortunately, the drugs will only work if the disease is caught early.

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.

602-224-0005

Paralyzed Rats Walk Again

After a combination of chemical and electrical stimulation of the spinal cord together with robotic support, rats that were once paralyzed are now walking and running again.  

The five-year studies were done in Switzerland where scientists have restored full movement to the rats that had severe paralysis by spinal cord injuries.  

However, it is unknown whether a similar treatment would work for people with spinal cord damage. The rats in the study had a direct cut through their spinal cord, whereas few humans have the same thing happen. Most humans have spinal cord damage from bruising or compression, so it is unclear whether the techniques recently discovered could work.  

With a number of complications going with spinal cord damage, such as holes, scar tissue buildup and nerve cells and fibers that have died, it is not certain if the stimulation techniques could ultimately help a cord that has been damaged for a very long time.  

Although the study raises many questions regarding the use on humans, it still offers hope and encouragement that spinal cord injuries could be fixed in the future.

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.
602-224-0005