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General Health
Below are the latest entries in the General Health channel.
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Tuesday 18th of November 2008 11:25:00 AM
A Smarter Planet, our new "traditional" blog that will be complemented by a Tumblr site has launched this week.
Those interested in the smarter healthcare aspect of this bold new initiative to build a planet with more intelligent infrastructure may be interested in this post:
Plan Bee and the Psychology of Smarter Planet
For more on Smarter Planet, see this section of ibm.com
From healthnex.typepad.com by Jack Mason Research This Blog Entry
Tuesday 11th of November 2008 02:02:00 PM
From healthnex.typepad.com by Jack Mason Research This Blog Entry
Tuesday 11th of November 2008 12:15:00 PM
I've been busy working on the launch of IBM's Smarter Planet mega-strategy, which seeks to help the world build the next generation of intelligent infrastructure for everything from transportation and energy grids to supply chains and complex systems such as healthcare.
To that end I've set up A Smart Planet on Tumblr (which I like as a more spontaneous and multimedia approach to blogging) and just wanted to share a couple of examples of how this smarter planet meme, which intersects with fronts such as wireless sensor systems, ubiquitous and wearable computing, as well as the promise of marrying this new "Web Wide World" to powerful supercomputing, presumably delivered via cloud-based services.
I just added to examples of how the "Internet of Things" -- trillions of devices, sensors and smart objects -- relates to healthcare innovation.
For example, Bodymedia has developed different wearable products to help people manage their weight and overall health. Similarly, Intel just announced a laptop-style device for connecting patients and caregivers electronically.
Of course, these are only representative of the deeper meaning of how Smarter Planet can address healthcare challenges with new computing and innovation models across many different fronts, such as using social networks for biosurvelliance, or mobile phones for natural disaster alerting and response.
In fact,it's pretty clear that the future of healthcare is deeply connected to a blend of technological and intellectual innovation, and I will try to rededicate and refocus Healthnex to reflect this direction.
Towit, I'll leave you with this clip on Wireless Sensor Networks: Opportunities in Healthcare, by Kris Pister, found of "smart dust" startup Dust Networks.
From healthnex.typepad.com by Jack Mason Research This Blog Entry
Tuesday 11th of November 2008 12:00:00 PM
Google has launched a new service called Google Flu Trends that uses search activity to estimate flu activity in your state. They say it could act as an early warning system for a severe outbreak.
So why bother with estimates from aggregated search queries? It turns out that traditional flu surveillance systems take 1-2 weeks to collect and release surveillance data, but Google search queries can be automatically counted very quickly. By making our flu estimates available each day, Google Flu Trends may provide an early-warning system for outbreaks of influenza.Reuters has a story here about Google's new service.
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Thursday 06th of November 2008 03:00:00 PM
The BBC reports that a new study has found that women harbour more types of bacteria on their hands than men
Women have a greater range of different types of bacteria on the palms of their hands than men, US research suggests.The article says the research may eventually help scientists determine which bacteria species are linked to different diseases. One theory as to why women may carry more types of bacteria is that men tend to have more acidic skin. Here's CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta talking about the study.
The study also found that human hands harbour far higher numbers of bacteria species than previously thought.
Using powerful gene sequencing techniques, researchers found a typical hand had roughly 150 different species of bacteria living on it.
The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences study found bacteria types varied greatly between individuals.
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Wednesday 05th of November 2008 10:00:00 AM
This video from Fox News discusses some of the OTC drugs that help with eye itching and irritation caused by allergies. In the video Dr. Manny says he likes a recent drug called Pataday that treats your eyes. It's a one drop once-a-day treatment as opposed to other eye allergy drops that need to applied twice daily. Dr. Manny says Paraday works just as well as the twice-a-day OTC allergy medications. Dr. Manny also warns against rubbing your eyes which is very difficult not to do if your eyes are itching.
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Tuesday 28th of October 2008 08:00:00 PM
CNN says a new drug store in a Virginia strip mall is refusing to sell any contraceptives of any kind. They are doing this because of religious beliefs. You can also read an here about the Divine Mercy Care Pharmacy (DMC Pharmacy) in Virginia.
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Monday 20th of October 2008 07:00:00 PM
The American Optometric Association (AOA) is warning consumers about the risks of wearing decorative contact lenses without a prescription from an eye doctor. These non-corrective lenses are especially popular around Halloween. According to the AOA, only a proper medical evaluation from an eye doctor can determine whether or not patients are viable candidates to wear contact lenses, if they are capable of wearing lenses without problems, and that the lenses fit properly.
"Purchasing contact lenses without a prescription can result in serious eye health and vision damage since consumers are not properly educated on cleaning and disinfecting, nor in proper removal and application of the contact lens," said Paul Klein, O.D., chair of the AOA's Contact Lens and Cornea Section. "Without a prescription and wearing instructions from an eye doctor, consumers who wear these contact lenses put themselves at risk of serious bacterial infection, or even significant damage to the eye's ability to function, with the potential for irreversible sight loss."
The AOA says other risks associated with the use of decorative contact lenses include conjunctivitis, swelling, allergic reaction and corneal abrasion due to poor lens fit. Additional medical problems may result in a reduction of visual acuity (sight), contrast sensitivity and other general eye and vision impairments.
"Even though they carry no prescription, and may be worn for short periods of time, decorative contact lenses carry the same risks as corrective contact lenses," said Dr. Klein. "Because of this, it's important for consumers utilizing these lenses to familiarize themselves with the information available from an eye doctor, so as to reduce the risk of infection."
Recommendations for Decorative Contact Lens Wearers from the American Optometric Association
- See an optometrist for a proper fitting and prescription
- Always wash your hands before handling contact lenses.
- Carefully and regularly clean contact lenses, as directed by your optometrist. Rub the contact lenses with fingers and rinse thoroughly before soaking lenses overnight in sufficient multi-purpose solution to completely cover the lens.
- Store lenses in the proper lens storage case and replace the case at a minimum of every three months. Clean the case after each use, and keep it open and dry between cleanings.
- Use only products recommended by your optometrist to clean and disinfect your lenses. Saline solution and rewetting drops are not designed to disinfect lenses.
- Only fresh solution should be used to clean and store contact lenses. Never re-use old solution. Contact lens solution must be changed according to the manufacturer's recommendations, even if the lenses are not used daily.
- Always follow the recommended contact lens replacement schedule prescribed by your optometrist.
- Remove contact lenses before swimming or entering a hot tub.
- See your optometrist for your regularly scheduled contact lens and eye examination.
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Sunday 12th of October 2008 05:13:00 PM
They're calling the new deal between Revolution Health and Waterfront Media a merger, but I think Web MD's CEO probably has it right in this Media Post article:
He described the deal as a "bailout" for Revolution Health--which he said had boosted traffic in part through alliances with sites such as Drugstore.com, which is principally an e-commerce rather than an ad-supported business."We're not interested in trying to bulk up our comScore metrics as benchmark of success," he said. Nevertheless, he said WebMD would continue to consider potential acquisitions that would help "grow our brand and business proposition."
Sounds about right, honestly.
I find his reference specifically to bulking up comScore metrics very interesting. Any web business knows that media buyers can treat those reach numbers like the bible. But they're also very revealing. Where is that reach coming from? Are sites really comprised of the kind of traffic they promise? Anyone who cares to can delve into those numbers for well-known web properties and be surprised
The bottom line questions that will determine the success of this newly merged property: 1) Do media buyers find the page views that come to a site like Drugstore.com as valuable as the ones that come to the information and community pages (and if they did wouldn't Revolution have been doing better?) and 2) how much of this supposed newly merged traffic is unduplicated? Because that too can be determined.
We'll see; we'll see.
From healthyconcerns.com by Elisa Camahort Research This Blog Entry
Friday 10th of October 2008 01:40:00 PM
Super lice are real. The nasty little critters have developed immunity and cannot be killed easily with today's commercial lice killers. MSNBC has an article about super lice.
Researchers have been warning for years that head lice in the U.S. and around the world are developing immunity to the strong insecticides used in over-the-counter and prescription shampoos. It takes just three to five years for the bugs to adapt to a new product, despite claims to the contrary by the manufacturers, noted Shirley C. Gordon, an associate professor at Florida Atlantic University who studies persistent head lice.Fox News and New York Daily News also have super lice stories.
Health officials have continued to recommend the products, however, because over-the-counter medications like the permethrin in Nix, the pyrethrin s in RID, the lindane in Kwell and the prescription malathion in Ovide still work in some people, some of the time.
But the nation's school nurses, often the first defense against the scourge, say it's clear to them that families confronted with the critters are increasingly frustrated by the product failures.
The super lice still look the same as regular lice - a louse is about the size of a sesame seed. In the video below lice expert Dr. Daniel Rauch recommends some smothering products including mayonnaise and olive oil. The regular lice-fighting shampoos are not as effective as killing super lice. These products have to stay on the head for two to four hours. It sounds gross putting this in your hair but it sure beats having super lice.
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