Policies On Organ Donation After Cardiac Death Vary Considerably Among Children’s Hospitals

Although a large number of children’s hospitals have developed or are developing policies regarding organ donation after cardiac death, there is considerable variation among policies, including the criteria for declaring death, according to a study in the May 13 issue of JAMA.

Donation after cardiac death (DCD) potentially permits patients who do not meet the neurological criteria for death to donate solid organs. “Controlled DCD occurs following planned withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment, and uncontrolled DCD occurs after unanticipated cardiac arrest. Potential controlled DCD donors include patients with irreversible catastrophic brain injury or end-stage neuromuscular diseases,” the authors write. Although the Joint Commission requires all hospitals to address DCD, little is known about actual hospital policies.

Woman Had Heart Surgery Minutes After Having Twins And Survives

Nina Whear, 38, of Lamas, Norfolk, England, has survived heart surgery just minutes after giving birth to twins. Her husband was told to say goodbye when doctors had given her a 7% chance of survival. A hospital chaplain was brought in to comfort her during her last moments.

When Mrs. Whear was found to have a tear in the wall of the aorta – an aortic dissection – at the ninth month of her pregnancy, doctors carried out an emergency c-section (cesarean). An aortic dissection affects the blood flow and can lead to death.

FDA Committee Finds Favorable Profile For Rivaroxaban For DVT And Pulmonary Embolism After Hip/Knee Surgery

Ortho-McNeil announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee has determined that rivaroxaban, a novel, investigational, oral anticoagulant, has a favorable risk-benefit profile for the prophylaxis of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) in patients undergoing hip replacement or knee replacement surgery.

The advisory committee agreed by a 15-2 vote that the available clinical data demonstrate a favorable risk-benefit profile.

Health Benefits Of Green Tea May Decrease After Long Storage

Green tea leaves produce antioxidative organic compounds, called catechins, that are reported to have beneficial health effects such as fighting bacteria, viruses and cancer. But consumers need to be aware of possible adverse consequences of long-term storage of commercial tea brands, say researchers Mendel Friedman and Carol E. Levin of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Western Regional Research Center in Albany, California, and S.U. Lee and N. Kozukue of Uiduk University in Korea, in an article in the

Health Benefits Of Green Tea May Decrease After Long Storage

Green tea leaves produce antioxidative organic compounds, called catechins, that are reported to have beneficial health effects such as fighting bacteria, viruses and cancer. But consumers need to be aware of possible adverse consequences of long-term storage of commercial tea brands, say researchers Mendel Friedman and Carol E. Levin of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Western Regional Research Center in Albany, California, and S.U. Lee and N. Kozukue of Uiduk University in Korea, in an article in the

Breast Cancer Risk Rapidly Declined After Women Stopped Taking Postmenopausal Combined Hormone Therapy

Women who stopped taking the postmenopausal hormone combination of estrogen plus progestin experienced a marked decline in breast cancer risk which was unrelated to mammography utilization change, according to a study from the Women’s Health Initiative led by a Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) investigator.

The study, based on data from the Women’s Health Initiative, will be published Wednesday in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Seventeen Months After Cord Blood Transplant – Child Is Free Of Signs Of Cancer

A two year old child from Florida is free of signs of juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML), a very rare form of pediatric leukemia, seventeen months after receiving a transplant with cord blood from the National Cord Blood Program (NCBP) of the New York Blood Center’s Howard P. Milstein National Cord Blood Center.

Juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia generally affects children under the age of five and comprises less than one percent of infant leukemias. The prognosis for JMML is generally poor and most children with JMML die before reaching the age of three.

Over 80,000 Chickens To Be Killed In Hong Kong After Bird Flu Found

Authorities in Hong Kong say over 80,000 chickens will be culled after a poultry farm was found to have chickens infected with avian influenza (bird flu). The last time bird flu was detected in Hong Kong was in 2002.

About 60 dead chickens were found in the farm, according to York Chow, Health Secretary. Tests have confirmed the birds died from the H5N1 virus – the most virulent strain. He added that all chickens within a 2-mile (3-km) radius of the infected farm will be culled. Just one other farm is within that area.

Chinese HIV/AIDS Advocate Forced Home After Attending World AIDS Day Ceremonies In Beijing

An HIV-positive Chinese advocate on Tuesday was forced back to her home in central Henan province after participating in ceremonies in Beijing marking World AIDS Day, Reuters India reports. Li Xige, who had previously been under house arrest for more than two years because of her search for compensation and judicial action, contracted HIV from a blood transfusion in 1995 and transmitted it to her daughters, one of whom died from AIDS-related illnesses. Henan province was the center of numerous HIV/AIDS cases in the 1990s, when unhygienic blood-buying schemes and a lack of testing allowed the virus to spread to recipients of blood transfusions. The Henan government often has sought to block media coverage of the issue to avoid embarrassment from discontentment of people there living with HIV/AIDS, Reuters India reports (Hornby, Reuters India, 12/3).

Secure Fixation After EVAR In Patients With Wide Aortic Necks: A Safe And Effective Alternative To Open Surgery In Many Patients, Trial Shows

Recanalization of infrapopliteal arteries is important in patients with chronic limb ischemia to decrease limb-loss.

Dr. Konstantinos Katsanos, of the Department of Radiology, Patras University Hospital School of Medicine, Patras, Greece, reviewed published data that highlighted the promising long-term limb salvage rates of below-the-knee angioplasty. But, he noted re-occlusion following infrapopliteal angioplasty and stenting is identified in more than 50% of cases by 1 year thereby resulting in a high frequency of repeat procedures. Drug-eluting stents (DES) have emerged as a potential solution to prevent restenosis from occurring.