- Talking to a Loved One Battling Substance Abuse: Staying Positive Is Key
- RSV Vaccine Given in Pregnancy to Help Shield Newborns Receives Full U.S. Approval
- Many Americans Frustrated in Search for Low-Cost COVID Boosters
- In 22 U.S. States, More Than a Third of Adults Are Now Obese
- Kraft Cheese Slices Recalled Due to Plastic Wrap Choking Hazard
- Kids’ ER Visits for Mental Health Crises Rise When School Term Begins
- Medicaid Reinstated for Nearly 500,000 Children and Families: CMS
- Newer Diabetes Meds Might Not Work as Well in Black Patients
- Vaping Raises a Teen’s Odds of Developing Asthma
- Scientists Spot Gene Mutation Linked to Esophageal Cancer
Health Highlights: Oct. 3, 2013
Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:
New Gene Scan Pinpoints Causes of Rare Diseases
A newer gene sequencing technique can reveal genetic flaws that cause unexplained health problems in some patients, researchers say.
Investigators at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston used the newer type of sequencing — just the DNA segments that contain the instructions for all the proteins required by the body — on 250 adults and children patients with mystery diseases and found that 62 of them had gene flaws, the Associated Press reported.
The findings were published online Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
The Baylor team has used the gene sequencing technique on 1,700 patients so far and found gene flaws in 1 out of 4, study leader Dr. Christine Eng told the AP.
That rate is much higher than the less comprehensive gene tests currently in use, according to Rebecca Nagy, a scientist at Ohio State University and president of the National Society of Genetic Counselors.
“For some of these conditions there could be treatments that are lifesaving,” she told the AP.
—–
FDA Bans Arsenic Drugs Used in Animal Feed
Three of four arsenic drugs used in animal feeds have been banned by the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration.
The drugs — roxarsone, carbarsone and arsanilic acid — were added to feed for chicken, turkeys and pigs to prevent disease and promote growth. However, recent studies showed levels of arsenic in chicken that exceeded amounts that occur naturally, The New York Times reported.
Nearly four years ago, the Center for Food Safety and several other advocacy groups filed a petition seeking to ban the four drugs in animal feed.
The fourth drug, nitarsone, is the only known treatment for blackhead (histomoniasis), a disease that can kill turkeys. The FDA said it will continue to study the effects of nitarsone, The Times reported.
Copyright © 2023 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Related
-
An OTC Contraceptive Pill Is Coming Soon, but Who Will Pay For It?The first over-the-counter birth control pill is slated to...
- September 19, 2023
-
Fertility Issues? Ovulation Tests Can Help, Study FindsA new review of clinical trials with an eye...
- September 19, 2023
-
Early-Life Removal of Ovaries Could Bring Faster AgingPremenopausal women who have surgery to remove the ovaries...
- September 14, 2023
-
Combo of Certain Birth Control Pills, Painkillers Could Raise Women’s Clot RiskIt’s well known that certain forms of birth control...
- September 8, 2023
