In a study of 36 sedentary adults (42 to 73 years of age) with mild to moderate hip or knee osteoarthritis, the combination of a home-based walking program—at least 3,000 steps per day, in bouts of at least 1,500 steps each, on at least 3 days per week—and glucosamine sulfate provided significant health-related benefits, including reduced pain and stiffness and increased physical function.
Data from the Nurses’ Health Study suggest that aspirin use after a breast cancer diagnosis may decrease a woman’s risk of both metastasis and death from the disease by as much as 50%.
Maalox Total Relief
The FDA has issued a warning about the potential for serious adverse effects from product mix-ups involving Maalox Total Relief and other Maalox products. Maalox Total Relief is a liquid formulation of bismuth subsalicylate (525 mg/15 mL); all other Maalox liquid products (Maalox Advanced Regular Strength and Maalox Advanced Maximum Strength) are antacids.
First Response Early Result Pregnancy Test
The First Response Early Result pregnancy test can now detect human chorionic gonadotropin in a woman’s urine 6 days before the first missed period. This is one day sooner than other currently marketed home pregnancy tests.
Possible cardiovascular adverse effects of common herbal remedies—including interactions with cardiovascular drugs—are addressed in a “State-of-the-Art Paper” in the February 9, 2010, issue of Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
In a study that compared caregivers’ dosing accuracy using a range of common dosing devices, medication cups were specifically associated with large overdosing errors, with caregivers who had low health literacy most likely to make errors.
According to a February 2010 report titled “Adult Immunization: Shots to Save Lives,” millions of American adults go without routine and recommended vaccinations each year, which leads to an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 preventable deaths, thousands of preventable illnesses, and $10 billion in preventable health care costs annually. The issue brief is a joint publication of the Trust for America's Health, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2010 Jan 14. [Epub ahead of print]
A study published ahead of print in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine found a significant and deleterious association between reduced serum vitamin D levels and lung function, airway hyperresponsiveness, and glucocorticoid sensitivity in 54 adults with persistent asthma. The findings suggest that vitamin D supplementation has the potential to improve multiple parameters of asthma severity and treatment response.
Quick Takes
• The February 6, 2010, issue of The Lancet includes a formal retraction of the 1998 paper by Wakefield and colleagues that suggested a link between the measles/mumps/rubella vaccine and autism in children. The retraction states that several claims in the original paper—notably, claims that children were “consecutively referred” and that investigations were “approved” by the local ethics committee—have been proven to be false. (Lancet. 2010;375[9713]:445.)
A new special report from the American Heart Association (AHA) defines “poor,” “intermediate,” and “ideal” cardiovascular health, using measures based on seven health factors and lifestyle behaviors. Adults are considered to be in ideal cardiovascular health if all of the measures—dubbed “Life’s Simple 7”— are present:
• Never smoked, or quit more than 1 year ago.
• Body mass index (BMI) less than 25.
• Physical activity of at least 150 minutes (moderate intensity) or 75 minutes (vigorous intensity) per week.