Health Highlights

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

1.2 Million Patients May Be Infected With Resistant Staph

As many as 1.2 million U.S. hospital patients may be infected each year with a virulent staph infection that is resistant to antibiotics, a rate almost 10 times greater than previous estimates, a new study finds.

The research, conducted by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, also found that as many as 119,000 hospital patients each year may die from methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), the Chicago Tribune reported.

"We're hoping this survey is a wake-up call to health-care workers across America," Kathy Warye, the association's executive officer, told the newspaper.

The findings were based on surveys sent to 10,000 nurses, doctors, and other infection-control practitioners. About 34 of every 1,000 patients had active MRSA infections and another 12 had the germ in their bodies. A previous study, released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2005, estimated the infection rate at about 3.9 per 1,000 patients, the Tribune reported.

People who carry the germ but aren't yet considered infected -- a term experts call "colonized" -- often harbor the bug in the nose without being symptomatic. At that point, they can unwittingly wipe their nose and spread the germ to other patients or doctors who touch a contaminated surface. MRSA can live on certain surfaces for days or weeks, the Tribune reported.

Steps needed to control MRSA include rigorous hand-washing among health-care workers, and the implementation of strict programs to disinfect medical equipment and patient rooms, experts told the newspaper.

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Millions of Americans Still Lack Health Insurance

Some 43.6 million Americans lacked health insurance coverage in 2006, which amounts to 14.8 percent of the population, a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds.

Among working-age Americans between ages 18 and 64, 19.8 percent didn't have insurance in 2006, a slight rise from 18.9 percent in 2005, the CDC report found.

On a positive note, fewer children under age 18 were uninsured last year (9.3 percent) than in 1997 (13.9 percent), the agency said.

In 2006, the percentage of uninsured in the 20 largest states ranged from a high of 23.8 percent in Texas to 7.7 percent in Michigan.

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Echinacea May Be Beneficial, After All

The latest in series of conflicting studies of the herbal supplement echinacea finds that it may actually help reduce a person's chances of catching a cold by up to 58 percent, University of Connecticut researchers said Monday.

In a study published in the online version of The Lancet Infectious Diseases medical journal, the scientists wrote that echinacea might cut down on the length of the average cold by about 1.4 days, the Baltimore Sun reported.

Other studies of the herbal supplement have yielded conflicting results. In 2005, research on more than 400 people published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that echinacea had no effect on colds, the newspaper said.

In the most recent study, Dr. Craig Coleman's team at the University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy analyzed the results of 14 independent research projects involving a combined 1,600 patients.

However, critics of the UConn study noted that some study participants were taking other vitamins and herbs -- including vitamin C, rosemary, and thyme -- so that it wasn't clear which of any of these supplements was actually providing a health benefit, the newspaper reported.

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Blood Sugar Levels in Pregnant Women Affect Baby's Health: Study

New research has established a strong link between a pregnant woman's blood sugar level and health risks to her newborn.

This risk is evident whether or not the woman has gestational diabetes, the Associated Press reports. The risks to the baby include the possibility of high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity as the child grows.

The study, described by Northwestern university scientists as the largest ever done on the subject, was presented Friday at the annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association's scientific session in Chicago. The conclusion was a confirmation of earlier research: the higher the level of blood sugar a pregnant woman has, the greater the health risk to her baby.

The study was conducted in nine counties and involved more than 23,000 pregnant women, A.P. reports. Another finding indicated an association between Caesarian sections, big babies and high blood sugar levels in their mothers, the wire service says.

The study indicated that pregnant women should maintain strictly controlled diets and/or medication to reduce their blood sugar.

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Mental Problems Among College Students Continue to Rise, Survey Says

Results from a study of almost 3,000 students at the University of Michigan show that the incidence of mental illness on campus is rising, and one reason may be that many students aren't seeking the help they need.

An Internet-based survey conducted by Daniel Eisenberg, an assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and his colleagues, found that even thought most of the professional help available to students with anxiety or depression was free, more than half of the poll's respondees didn't seek treatment.

According to a university news release, the large number of those who answered negatively has prompted a wider, similar survey of between 12 and 15 colleges and universities in the fall.

While 72 percent of those with a positive screen for major depression acknowledged in the survey they needed help, more than half said they weren't getting it, Eisenberg's study found.

So, even though help is free, "We can't assume that reducing financial barriers is enough," Eisenberg said in the news release. Other factors may include socioeconomic background -- students who came from poor families were almost twice as likely not to seek help, the survey found.

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Oregon Surgeon Performs Gall Bladder Removal Through the Mouth

Recovery time from surgery to remove a gall bladder can be long and often painful. And over the years, surgeons have developed techniques to reduce the problem, using a laparoscope to make a much smaller incision.

But now, reports the Associated Press, comes ball bladder removal with no abdominal incision, because the organ is removed through the patient's mouth.

Using a technique he perfected in Brazil, Oregon surgeon Dr. Lee Swanstrom has performed at least three gall bladder removals in which the surgical instrument is sent into the stomach through the mouth, the wire service reports.

Swanstrom then cuts a small hole in the patient's stomach, locates the gall bladder and removes it through the mouth. The recovery time is much faster, the A.P. quotes Swanstrom as saying. And while the procedure is still in its experimental stage, he plans 22 more surgeries to measure outcomes.

Gall bladder surgery is the most common major surgery done in the United States each year, with an estimated 500,000 surgeries annually
source:www.forbes.com