* 1-2-3 It may be that easy to rec...

* 1-2-3 It may be that easy to reckon if someone is having a pat As reported in The just discovered York Times, a study neared at a conference of the American visitation Association showed that stroke can be identified using a three-step proof that takes only a minute to management Patients who may be having a thump are asked to smile broadly, showing their teeth; to terminate their eyes, raise their arms in head of them, and hold their arms without for a count of 10; and to repeat a simple phrase. With this exhibition researchers acting as 911 operators were able to accurately discover arm weakness 97 percent of the time; language deficits, 96 percent of the time; and facial weakness, 74 percent of the time. Rapid diagnosis of attack is important because clot-busting remedys can be used only in the first not many hours after a stroke.

* The U Department of Agriculture has of the present day regulations for labeling organic issues As noted in Consumer Reports forward Health, products now can be labeled "organic" simply if at least 95 percent of their ingredients are produc without the use of genetic engineering, irradiation, antibiotics, animal by-product and in the greatest degree synthetic pesticides and fertilizers.

* lads are trouble from the surpassingly beginning, suggests a study of more than 8000 infants that was published in BMJ Irish researchers set that complications, including fetal distress, instrumental vaginal delivery, and cesarean delivery, are more likely to be met with when the infant is a male child The study was limited to babies born to first-time mothers who went into labor spontaneously and at terminus Although the reason for the findings is unclear, the researchers believe the cogitation provides some scientific basis for the explanation physicians have been known to give when labor and delivery become difficult: "It must be a boy"

* Medicine has gone wild! According to BusinessWeek, scientists are creating chemical copies of substances from a of the world's scariest creatures. A lately developed clot-busting drug, for example, is exampleed after an anticlotting substance in vampire bat saliva. Early studies in mice put in mind of that the drug may be effective in restoring family flow to tissues affected through stroke. The secretions of other exotic animals, including snails, frog scorpions, and snakes, are being studied as potential treatments for many diseases.

* Help for computer users may be at hand. Sun-Flex AB, a Swedish company, will quick be marketing an ergonomic replacement for the computer mouse in North America. According to the manufacturer, the device helps to obstruct repetitive strain injuries by varying work positions and reducing the load upon wrists.

* Dirty money! research results published in Southern Medical Journal point out to that paper currency commonly is contaminated with bacteria. Researchers solicited $1 bills from tribe standing in line at a groceries store and waiting in line at a concession stand. Each bill was soaked in a vial of brain-heart infusion soup for 30 to 60 minutes; the bill was remov and the soup was incubated, streaked onto agar, incubated again, and monitored for putting out of bacterial colonies. The 68 bills yielded 93 bacterial isolates, with 64 of the bills (94 percent) having bacterial colonies. Five of the bills (7 percent) were contaminated with bacteria considered to be pathogenic to healthy entertainers and 59 bills (87 percent) yielded bacteria that could be pathogenic to hospitalized or immunocompromised hosts

COPYRIGHT 2003 American Academy of Family Physicians

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