Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Penicillin Allergy Testing Can Now Be Done As Part Of Routine Hospital Care
Most patients who have been labelled allergic to penicillin probably aren't, according to a new study from Australian researchers. The study, led by Austin Health in collaboration with the University of Melbourne, drew results from more than 5,000 patients internationally. (Westerholm, 4/6)
Results from a multinational study indicate that direct oral challenge (DOC) is a safe and effective strategy for identifying hospital patients who truly have a penicillin allergy, researchers reported last week in Clinical Infectious Diseases. (Dall, 4/6)
In other health and wellness news —
A quarter of older adults on hypothyroidism medication were able to wean off of it while maintaining adequate thyroid function, an open-label prospective study showed. (Monaco, 4/6)
Christos Soteriou was 29 when he needed a quadruple bypass surgery. Four arteries in his heart had become so clogged with plaque that blood could no longer flow through them. It’s a surprisingly young age to need such a surgery, but extremely high levels of cholesterol run in Soteriou’s family — a genetic condition called familial hypercholesterolemia. His father died of heart disease at 46; his son was diagnosed with elevated cholesterol at 14; and Soteriou himself, now 51, has had two heart attacks since his operation. (Cox, 4/6)
Do you get dizzy while looking at your phone while riding as a passenger in a car? That could be a sign of motion sickness, a common, yet complex, condition that can have varying severities of symptoms to go along with it. Managing the symptoms can involve sitting in certain seats in moving vehicles, hydration, avoiding empty or too full of a stomach, or even avoiding triggering events like amusement parks, large movie theater screens or even just putting your phone down while in a car. (Cisneros, 4/4)
A growing number of teenage boys are chasing dramatic body transformations online — building massive muscles, shedding fat and documenting it all for millions to see. But behind some of the viral physiques lies a troubling trend: the use of a powerful drug never approved for humans. (Yamaguchi and Baek, 4/6)
