WASHINGTON (AP) — More medical care won’t necessarily make you healthier – it may make you sicker. It’s an idea that technology-loving Americans find hard to believe. Anywhere from one-fifth to nearly one-third of the tests and treatments we get are estimated to be unnecessary, and avoidable care is costly in more ways than the bill: It may lead to dangerous side effects. It can start during birth, as some of the nation’s increasing C-sections are triggered by controversial fetal…

Smoke-free air laws have been shown to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke among adults, and a new study shows a similar association in children and adolescents who do not live with a smoker at home. The study, “Smoke-free Air Laws and Secondhand Smoke Exposure Among Nonsmoking Youth,” published in the July print issue of Pediatrics (published online June 7), examined data from the 1999-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. It found children who live in a county with extensive…

06-08-2010 – By TODD ACKERMAN – HOUSTON CHRONICLE Gleevec was the first big breakthrough drug in targeted cancer therapy, turning a fatal disease into a manageable chronic one, but Houston researchers are reporting that two second-generation leukemia smart drugs are actually far superior. University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center scientists released two studies Saturday showing that Tasigna and Sprycel provided chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients quicker, better and gentler results as first therapy than the highly touted Gleevec. The…

The growing number of obese pregnant women in the U.S. may be contributing to a record-high number of cesarean section births, as well as more birth defects and maternal and infant deaths, the New York Times reports. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about one in five women are considered obese — having a body mass index of at least 30 — at the start of their pregnancy. Women with a BMI of 35 of higher are…

Families from Pakistan to Argentina to Congo are being battered by surging food prices that are dragging more people into poverty, fueling political tensions and forcing some to give up eating meat, fruit and even tomatoes. Scraping to afford the next meal is still a grim daily reality in the developing world even though the global food crisis that dominated headlines in 2008 quickly faded in the U.S. and other rich countries. With food costing up to 70 percent of…

NEW ORLEANS – The cap on the blown-out well in the Gulf of Mexico is capturing a half-million gallons a day, or anywhere from one-third to three-quarters of the oil spewing from the bottom of the sea, officials said Monday. But the hopeful report was offset by a warning that the far-flung slick has broken up into hundreds and even thousands of patches of oil that may inflict damage that could persist for years. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the…

A study published in the American Journal of Public Health finds links between mining and the spread of tuberculosis in sub-Saharan Africa. The study analyzed data from 44 sub-Saharan African countries and found that the greater the mining production, the higher the country’s incidence of TB. The research concluded that as many as one-third of new TB cases – 750,000 cases annually – may be attributable to mining. “We have long known that the conditions on the mines – both…

Houston’s Riverside General Hospital will receive a $1 million grant from the Department of Defense to treat active-duty troops and veterans for post-traumatic stress disorder, officials announced Monday. The historically black facility will accept TRICARE, the health plan for military personnel and their families. “Our commitment will be ongoing and forever,” said Riverside President Earnest Gibson III, speaking to veterans who attended a ceremony in the hospital’s lobby Monday afternoon. “You are the true heroes. How do you treat your…

In 2004, a New Mexico Department of Health report urged “prompt action now” on the development of a stroke prevention and treatment program. Since then, more than 3,000 New Mexicans have died and 7,500 have been disabled because of stroke. Hundreds have been institutionalized. The report also recommended that a minimum of four hospitals in the state – including one in Las Cruces – become certified primary stroke centers Six years later, the state has one such center. The lack…

Only two years ago, San Antonio’s medical community was embarrassed and frustrated that the city had no hospital certified to provide emergency care for stroke patients — unlike other large Texas cities that had several and many small cities with at least one. That was then. As of last week, San Antonio was home to more stroke centers — eight — than any other Texas city except Houston, which also has eight. And with two more Methodist Healthcare System hospitals…