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UK regulators want long-term monitoring of metal-on-metal hip implants

February 29, 2012 By

Health regulators in the U.K. are urging the nearly 50,000 people there with metal-on-metal hip implants like the DePuy Orthopaedics ASR and DePuy Pinnacle models to have annual safety checks to monitor any potential complications.

According to a Reuters report, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has ordered physicians to conduct annual blood tests looking for signs of toxic metal build-up, specifically of cobalt and chromium. This is a common side effect suffered by tens of thousands of people who’ve had an all-metal hip implant installed in recent years.  [Read more...]

Filed Under: Defective Medical Devices, DePuy Hip Implants

Infuse associated with male sterility, according to editor/surgeon’s research

February 28, 2012 By

A new study from a Stanford University surgeon suggests the bone growth product Infuse may cause sterility in males.

According to a New York Times report, Dr. Eugene J. Carragee discovered that men who received Infuse in a spinal fusion surgery were much more likely to develop temporary or permanent sterility than those who received a traditional bone graft.

Infuse aimed to revolutionize spinal fusion and other back surgeries, eliminating the need for bone grafts from the hip to spark new growth in the spine. The bone growth product has been a boon to Medtronic until recently, when growing evidence has surfaced suggesting it’s not revolutionary at all. Instead, it’s putting patient health and lives at risk. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Defective Medical Devices, Medtronic Infuse

Freedom of Information appeal seeks documents related to Brooklyn Orthodox Jewish sex abuse case

February 24, 2012 By

A Brooklyn attorney and investigative journalist is appealing a recent Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request that has again denied him access to key documents related to a child sexual abuse case in the 1980s.

According to LegislativeGazette.com, Michael Lesher is appealing a denial to his FOIL request because he believes a Kings County, N.Y., case involving sodomy charges against Avrohom Mondrowitz is closed because the indicted man fled to Israel in 1984 before an arrest warrant could be obtained for him. That country has since refused to extradite Mondrowitz, including a 2010 decision which essentially slammed the door on the case.

Lesher believes his desire to obtain documents related to the case will not impact the investigation any longer but his aim is on exposing the influence the Orthodox Jewish community has in Kings County. Lesher believes weak attempts to have Mondrowitz extradited from Israel have been the result of the religious community’s influence on local government. The journalist/lawyer believes the information he’s seeking with his FOIL request with the Kings County District Attorney’s office will shed light onto that fact. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Tiny Particles In Air Pollution May Pose Greater Danger Than Once Thought

February 24, 2012 By

While the negative health effects of air pollution are no secret, recent discoveries have shed light on some previously unknown facts about fine air particles. Now, new research findings are raising the question of whether or not current standards for air quality control are adequate. Researchers have found that a type of fine particles known as secondary organic aerosols are in greater quantities, and therefore pose a greater risk to health, than previously assumed.

Particulate matter, abbreviated PM, encompasses all particles in the air. This can include substances such as smoke, dirt and soot. Naturally, these particles can vary widely in size. Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is categorized as being less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter while course particles (PM10) range from 2.5 to 10 micrometers in diameter. Both fine and course particles pose potential health risks because they can become trapped in the respiratory system when inhaled. Fine particles, however, are known to be more dangerous because their small size allows them to become trapped deep within the lungs. Fine particles can originate from various sources of combustion. Secondary organic aerosol particles are formed through chemical interactions that occur after, rather than during, combustion. Because the secondary compounds have a greater total mass, they are a greater threat. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Toxic Substances

EPA removes barrels from LeRoy, N.Y., Superfund site

February 24, 2012 By

Barrels were removed from a Superfund site in LeRoy, N.Y., this week as federal and local public health investigators continue to search for clues into the cause of a mysterious illness affecting more than a dozen young girls there.

The barrels were being removed by officials with the Environmental Protection Agency this week at the site, where toxic chemicals spilled in 1970 at the site of a train derailment. There is no indication whether the removal of the barrels has anything to do with the ongoing investigation into unexplained tics demonstrated by at least 15 young girls attending LeRoy Junior/Senior High School since the fall.

U.S. Senator Charles Schumer issued a statement indicating the removal of the materials was a sign the federal government was concerned about the public’s health and was working to clean the Superfund site. Perhaps, though, this was purely a show for the increasingly skeptical public who’ve either picked this site or school athletic fields where other toxic fluids were spilled this summer as one of the likely causes of the ongoing “outbreak” of these mysterious symptoms that mirror those of Tourette’s syndrome.

The barrels reportedly contained a non-hazardous chemical, as determined by EPA testing. They were left behind after the train derailment just three miles from the school. The derailment spilled about 30,000 gallons of the toxic chemical trichloroethene (TCE), which was later determined to be contaminating groundwater near the site, ultimately leading to it being declared a Superfund site by the federal government.

Filed Under: Diseases, Toxic Substances
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