Monday, May 30, 2016

Collateral Damage

Narcotic painkillers prolong pain in rats, says CU-Boulder study
The dark side of painkillers - their dramatic increase in use and ability to trigger abuse, addiction and thousands of fatal overdoses annually in the United States is in the news virtually every day.
Brace for another shot across the bow: Opioids like morphine have now been shown to paradoxically cause an increase in chronic pain in lab rats, findings that could have far-reaching implications for humans, says a new study led by the University of Colorado Boulder.
Led by CU-Boulder Assistant Research Professor Peter Grace and Distinguished Professor Linda Watkins, the study showed that just a few days of morphine treatment caused chronic pain that went on for several months by exacerbating the release of pain signals from specific immune cells in the spinal cord. The results suggest that the recent escalation of opioid prescriptions in humans may be a contributor to chronic pain, said Grace.
Pain medication that creates more pain. 
I'm shocked, just shocked...

Saturday, May 28, 2016

This and That

FDA approves anti-addiction implant to prevent opioid dependence 
Hmmmm.   Sounds like the long way home to me. 

Zika crisis: WHO seeks to allay fears over Rio Olympics 
Why isn't there an athlete driven boycott?  If I had a young strong body there's no way I would put it at risk.   Why would anyone?

Workaholism tied to psychiatric disorders
Workaholism frequently co-occurs with ADHD, OCD, anxiety, and depression, a large national Norwegian study shows. The study showed that workaholics scored higher on all the psychiatric symptoms than non-workaholics.

Mental disorders were most costly in U.S. in 2013
Roehrig notes that in 1996, the most costly medical conditions were heart conditions ($105 billion), followed by mental disorders ($79 billion). In 2004, these conditions had equal spending ($131 billion each), while in 2013, spending on mental disorders had exceeded that of heart conditions, with spending of $201 billion, compared with $147 billion on heart conditions. The average annual growth rate in spending on mental disorders was 5.6 percent, compared with 2 percent for spending on heart conditions. Most of the fastest-growing medical conditions in terms of spending were medical conditions associated with obesity; most of the spending growth rates were too high to be explained by obesity-induced increased disease prevalence, and were likely due to the introduction of expensive new treatments.

 Metagenomics pathogen detection tool could change how infectious diseases are diagnosed
Schlaberg explains that Taxonomer can identify an infection without the physician having to decide what to test for, something a PCR-based test cannot do. In other words, a doctor doesn't have to suspect the cause of a patient's infection, but can instead simply ask, "What does my patient have?" and Taxonomer will identify the pathogens.
In the new study, Taxonomer was put to the test with real-world cases using data published by others and samples provided by ARUP Laboratories and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Taxonomer determined that some patients who exhibited Ebola-like symptoms in the recent African outbreak did not have Ebola but severe bacterial infections that likely caused their symptoms. "This technology can be applied whenever we don't know the cause of the disease, including the detection of sudden outbreaks of disease. It is very clear we urgently need more accurate diagnostics to greatly enhance the ability of public health response and clinical care," says Seema Jain, MD, medical epidemiologist at the CDC.

Fasting-like diet reduces multiple sclerosis symptoms

A Collection Of Comics That Introverts Will Totally Relate To

My kind of Fun.

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Brain Clencher

Human amyloid-beta acts as natural antibiotic in the brains of animal models
A new study from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators provides additional evidence that amyloid-beta protein - which is deposited in the form of beta-amyloid plaques in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease - is a normal part of the innate immune system, the body's first-line defense against infection. Their study published in Science Translational Medicine finds that expression of human amyloid-beta (A-beta) was protective against potentially lethal infections in mice, in roundworms and in cultured human brain cells. The findings may lead to potential new therapeutic strategies and suggest limitations to therapies designed to eliminate amyloid plaques from patient's brains.

Moir adds, "Our findings raise the intriguing possibility that Alzheimer's pathology may arise when the brain perceives itself to be under attack from invading pathogens, although further study will be required to determine whether or not a bona fide infection is involved. It does appear likely that the inflammatory pathways of the innate immune system could be potential treatment targets. If validated, our data also warrant the need for caution with therapies aimed at totally removing beta-amyloid plaques. Amyloid-based therapies aimed at dialing down but not wiping out beta-amyloid in the brain might be a better strategy."

Says Tanzi, "While our data all involve experimental models, the important next step is to search for microbes in the brains of Alzheimer's patients that may have triggered amyloid deposition as a protective response, later leading to nerve cell death and dementia. If we can identify the culprits - be they bacteria, viruses, or yeast - we may be able to therapeutically target them for primary prevention of the disease."
Here's a couple infectious culprits for ya.

Herpes Virus 1.   Already well documented-  found in Alzheimer's plaques.   Effective drugs have existed for decades.

ENDOTOXIN is very common bacterial product that raises beta amyloid production.
AND THE INFECTION DOES NOT NEED TO BE IN THE BRAIN. Just the presence of endotoxin in the bloodstream activates the response.
And a Gluten Free Diet reduces this problem dramatically.

And yes, targeting those two works wonders for dementia.
Been there, done that.

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Correlation Games

Why Do Older Fathers Carry Higher Autism Risk?
The mutations in sperm that increase with age are calculated to only cause less than 20% of autism.
They give some scenarios that increase that a little, but they all show this is not primarily a genetic problem.

All the data indicates autism is an infectious/immune problem.
And older people are more likely to have acquired chronic infections.
And infections are contagious FFS!

If subclinically sick old men have transferred certain microbes like flu or strep to their baby-mommies, that would  easily explain this outcome.

Friday, May 20, 2016

And Around We Go

Mouse study finds link between gut bacteria and neurogenesis
Antibiotics strong enough to kill off gut bacteria can also stop the growth of new brain cells in the hippocampus, a section of the brain associated with memory, reports a study in mice published May 19 in Cell Reports. Researchers also uncovered a clue to why— a type of white blood cell seems to act as a communicator between the brain, the immune system, and the gut.
... Luckily, the adverse side effects of the antibiotics could be reversed. Mice who received probiotics or who exercised on a wheel after receiving antibiotics regained memory and neurogenesis. "The magnitude of the action of probiotics on Ly6Chi cells, neurogenesis, and cognition impressed me," she says.
Yeah, now ya tell me.
Time to get back on my wheel. And see if I can relearn the steps.

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

But of Course

Biofilm formation or internalization into epithelial cells enable Streptococcus pyogenes to evade antibiotic eradication in patients with pharyngitis.
Streptococcus pyogenes is the bacterium most frequently isolated from patients with pharyngitis. Although various antibiotics including penicillin are effective, antibiotic treatment failure in cases of streptococcal pharyngitis have been reported. Herein, we investigated mechanisms associated with recurrent streptococcal pharyngitis. Clinically isolated S. pyogenes strains showed strain-specific features, with emm12 strains most frequently detected and emm6 strains more likely to produce biofilm. ... After treatments with high concentrations of antibiotics, S. pyogenes survived in biofilm even when dead bacterial cells covered the surface.  ... Additionally, more than half of the strains temporarily escaped killing by penicillin alone by internalization into epithelial cells, even when the antibiotic concentration used was greater than the 10-fold minimum inhibitory concentration.  Also, combined administrations of multiple antibiotics were more effective to eradicate strains more likely to be internalized.
These findings suggest that S. pyogenes isolated from patients with recurrent streptococcal pharyngitis have emm type-specific features that allow escape from eradication by antibiotics.
Oh bloody hell.    Frikking Frakking Frankenfck.
You'd think they might have thought of that a couple decades ago.

related post

As I Was Saying

New study evaluates nicotine's relationship to body weight and food intake
A study published today in Nicotine & Tobacco Research demonstrates in a carefully controlled series of studies that the self-administration of nicotine by rats suppresses body weight gain independent of food intake.
The authors of the study investigated the impact of reducing nicotine doses on body weight, and results revealed that reduction of nicotine dose from a large self-administered dose to very low doses resulted in substantial weight gain. In rats self-administering a maximally-reinforcing dose of nicotine, body weight gain during the 20-day study period was attenuated by ~40% despite no change in food intake.
As lead author Laura Rupprecht said, "The findings are important in the context of potential product standards requiring very low nicotine levels in cigarettes, as they indicate that low nicotine levels may still reduce body weight, possibly motivating continued use and maintaining exposure to harmful chemicals in cigarette smoke."
The results of the four experiments in the study also indicate that the weight-suppression properties of nicotine may act through processes that are separate from those that contribute to nicotine addiction. A better understanding of the separate neurobiological mechanisms responsible for nicotine addiction and body weight regulation may allow for new avenues in the development of obesity pharmacotherapies.
Like maybe Anti-inflammatory and Anti-Infective and Insulin Resistance Reducing Properties??????

Nicotine strengthens tight junctions in the intestine and prevents systemic bacterial infection.
It  also reduces the immune reactions that are commonly called "Inflammation"
AND it improves glucose sensitivity.

All the data shows that the reason we smoke is to benefit from those beneficial properties of nicotine rather than the "Reward System" reinforcement they call addiction.
It's self medication of various infectious and metabolic illnesses.
And the reason we can't quit is because we get sicker if we do.

The correct conclusion from all this is that VAPING IS A VERY VIABLE THERAPY POSSIBILITY as it delivers the nicotine without all the damaging tar and particulates.

And one more time:   I honestly believe Caffeine and Nicotine are the main reasons I am still alive.

Saturday, May 14, 2016

A Few for You

Probiotic supplements beneficial in rheumatoid arthritis

Doctors in US incorrectly prescribe antibiotics in nearly a third of cases 
And that number is merely from wrong diagnosis, drug choice and dosing- doesn't even take into account the adverse collateral biological and population effects of unnecessary antibiotics.

Junior Seau's Doctor Accused of Negligence
Two years subsequent to Seau’s death, it was disclosed that Ambien was prescribed to Seau by Chao prior to the former’s death. The drug maker writes down the warning that doctors must be careful with prescribing Ambien to patients who are experiencing depression. It was discovered by investigators that Ambien was prescribed 14 times during the last 18 months of Seau’s life, with no physical examinations or maintenance of accurate records

Genetic variants may put some soldiers at higher risk of PTSD
"We found two notable genetic variants," said co-principal investigator Murray B. Stein. "The first, in samples from African-American soldiers with PTSD, was in a gene on chromosome 5 (ANKRD55). In prior research, this gene has been found to be associated with various autoimmune and inflammatory disorders, including multiple sclerosis, type II diabetes, celiac disease, and rheumatoid arthritis. The other variant was found on chromosome 19 in European-American samples."

The White House Launches the National Microbiome Initiative


Working memory is better after a barefoot run
Fascinating.   I totally believe this.   I wish I could walk barefoot here in Arizona... the pavement is too hot, and the desert is too thorny...

Friday, May 13, 2016

This is Why

From Harvard Public Health Review:

Why Public Health Concerns for Global Spread of Zika Virus Means That Rio de Janeiro’s 2016 Olympic Games Must Not Proceed
Regrettably, instead of discussing the alternatives, both the International Olympic Committee and the World Health Organization seem to be in deep denial.  Asked about Zika, the most senior member of the IOC, Dick Pound, mocked it as “a manufactured crisis” for anyone but pregnant women (manufactured by whom?). With the most recent epidemiological evidence out of Rio, and new clinical studies all but proving that Zika causes microcephaly and, maybe, Guillain-BarrĂ© disease, the IOC’s sanguine, official statement on Zika and the Games from January 2016 is hopelessly obsolete—that organization must now break its months-long silence.

Even worse is WHO, which has never issued an official statement on Zika and the Olympics.  When I pressed WHO about that in April, through a spokesperson it “agreed with” the IOC’s obsolete statement, but refused to answer the direct question of whether WHO has confidence in Rio’s Games being safe.  It is deplorable, incompetent and dangerous that WHO, which has both public health expertise and the duty of health protection, is speechlessly deferring to the IOC, which has neither.  WHO’s hesitancy is reminiscent of its mistakes with Ebola, all over again.
A very good article outlining the facts about Zika that now show we have no idea how freaking neurologically devastating it really is.
And that nobody who is going watch the games from skyboxes seems to give a shit if their Spectacles of Health and Fitness become seething cauldrons of the impending Zombie Plague.

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Tough Guys

Extreme consequences of Pain Insensitvity
 Michael Blevins, 37, was cleaning his .22-caliber pistol on Thursday when he fell, causing the gun to go off. He didn’t notice he had shot himself until three days later when he changed his shirt and only then noticed the bullet hole in his arm.
Sounds like the bullet hole is just a minor addition to his bacteremia problems.

Friday, May 6, 2016

Pitchforks Seem Appropriate

Big Pharma knowingly created prescription drug epidemic and raked in billions

An investigation by the Los Angeles Times has revealed that the pharmaceutical company that sells the opiate painkiller OxyContin knew the drug was highly addictive — and why- but pushed it anyway.   And Still Do.
Sue those dickheads into oblivion.     And force them to take their own drug.

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Go Figure

Everything ‘The Biggest Loser’ taught you about weight loss is wrong

Yep.   Everything your doctor told you too.
I hope this means their show will go away.

I used to get up and walk out of the room when their commercials came on.  It clenched my head so bad to see those critically ill people starving and running and crying.

That protocol should have burst someone's heart.   They are very lucky they didn't kill anyone. 

Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Consequences of Classification

I don't usually copy a whole article, but-

Medical Error is Third Biggest Cause of Death in US

Medical error is the third largest cause of death in the United States, according to an analysis published Wednesday in the medical journal BMJ.
In 2013, at least 250,000 people died not from the illnesses or injuries that prompted them to seek hospital care but from preventable mistakes, according to the study.
That number exceeds deaths from strokes and Alzheimer's combined, and is topped only by heart disease and cancer, which each claim about 600,000 lives per year.
The death toll from medical mishaps would be even higher if nursing homes and out-patient care were included, the researchers found.
"People don't just die from bacteria and heart plaque, they die from communication breakdowns, fragmented healthcare, diagnostic mistakes, and over-dosing," said Martin Makary, a professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore and lead author of the study.
"Collectively, these represent the third leading cause of death in the United States," he told AFP, adding that it is one of the most underreported endemics in global health.
A earlier study estimated the toll at between 250,000 and 440,000 per year.
Experts do not know the exact number of people who die from botched surgeries, faulty prescriptions, or a computer glitch simply because no one is keeping count.
Along with more than 100 other nations, the United States uses a system for collecting national health statistics—recommended by the World Health Organization—that does not keep track of medical errors.
"The absence of national data highlights the need for systematic measurement of the problem," said Makary.
"Our study took the best science on the incidence of medical mistakes killing people in the delivery of care, and extrapolated that to the amount of care that we administer."

The scope of the problem in the United States—which tops the world in per capita spending on health care—is probably about the same in other rich countries, he said.
As for the developing world, the situation is likely worse.
"I suspect that in Africa, poor quality medical care or preventable complications kill more people than HIV and malaria combined," Makary said.
While it is not realistic to expect that human error can be eliminated in health care, protocols and "safety nets" can be put in place to track medical errors and reduce their number, the study concluded.
Death certificates, for example, could ask whether a preventable problem stemming from the patient's medical care might have contributed to the death.
But asking hospitals and doctors to self-report their mistakes without offering a higher degree of protection from possible prosecution is a tall order, Makary acknowledged.
"It is difficult to create an open and honest conversation around the problem of people dying from the care that they have received," he said.
Yeah, and that's just the stuff they KNOW they're getting wrong....