Thursday, July 26, 2007

Environmental Data Solutions

EDSGRP.com is the website of Environmental Date Solutions Group, LLC a company that is a leader in using information technology to optimize environmental, health, and safety performance. Founded in 1998 they have the history behind them to back their work for those weary of new companies that are new to the scene they have a history that proves their solutions work.

Their services are broad and from an outsiders perspective, confusing. All of their services are dedicated to EHS and include:

* Risk Management Planning
* Air Permitting
* Spill Prevention Planning
* Emergency Response Planning
* Chemical Inventory Management
* Audit Program Development
* Waste Management

The most interesting services to me are their compliance services which help companies that need solutions to help the company comply with government regulations. The webinar series is also a good opportunity for individuals who are unfamiliar with their services to, well, learn more about them. I think these are the best way for companies who are unfamiliar with Environment Data Solutions and what they do to become familiar with the company and understand how their solutions can help your company.

Monday, July 16, 2007

Oasis Advanced Wellness

Oasis Advanced Wellness is committed to providing the best in natural medicine. They provide professional, high-tech solutions in natural medicine which are designed for health and well being.

Services include:

* customized health programs
* up-to-date health education
* organic supplementation
* private consulting
* wellness water purification
* ionic air purification
* natural health tools
* organic skincare
* detoxification and digestive tract cleansing
* natural hormone support
* natural allergy relief
* natural pain relief
* natural health e-books

The company offers products, articles, and advice on their website. For more on natural health solutions check out Oasis Advanced Wellness.

Monday, March 19, 2007

Anti Aging Cream

We are at it again with another sponsored review. Although I am always skeptical of what seem like promises that could never be kept, I do have some confidence that there is a basis of truth in anti aging treatments particularly creams.

Looking deeper at the subjects there is some medical backing for most anti aging creams making me have some confidence they have an ability to make you look younger. Today the site is Methods of Healing Anti Aging Cream.

Currently the web site is offering $50 and $100 promotions off of their products. Their creams offer a money back offer and contain a variety of contents including Shea Butter which is often used to relieve stretch marks and scars as well as Skin Tightener which as its name most surely implies aids in tightening the skin removing sags and renewing your youthful complexion.

For anti aging cream be sure to visit our sponsor.

PHLawFirm.com

We were served up another request for a site review and we were happy to do it. Up this week is PHLawFirm.com. The PH stands for Paglialunga & Harris (a mouthful I know) who are a law firm specializing in serious personal injury and civil rights law. Obviously the personal injury is more pertinent to this blog so we'll focus on that.

The company specializes in cases in Seattle and Washington state. While scanning the site I found they have embraced web 2.0 and run a blog covering some major cases. Some cases they have settled or that are pending include Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch cases, medical malpractice, benzene exposure in sunscreen, a case about dangerous defibrillators.

The site, although not official legal advice, has lots to offer listing what I surmise as nearly all of their major legal cases many of which are medical related and are a good read to learn about some pressing issues in the medical world today. I highly recomend checking the law firm out as a possible legal entity if you reside in the Seattle area but a good medical law encyclopedia for others. Visit PHLawFirm.com.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Cervical Cancer Vaccine Push To Be Stopped

Merck, the drug maker of the new cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil will stop pushing for mandatory vaccination of young girls. Mandatory vaccination programs have been widely criticized, particularly in Texas where such a plan was instituted.

Instead, the drugmaking giant will continue education on the drugs benefits but stop short of pushing it to be mandatory. Here is a blurb from the CNN on the drugs affects:
"The company reaffirmed it continues to expect combined revenue this
year of $2.8 billion to $3.2 billion from its array of vaccines,
including ones to prevent shingles and infections with rotavirus."

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Monday, February 19, 2007

Genetic Autism Links Uncovered

Autism, a still relatively unknown disorder in a world of medical knowledge, is known a little more known. In the biggest Autism and genetics study in history two new genetic links may have been uncovered that cause a child to be at greater risk for the disorder. The study postulated that many more minor factors all contributed to a child having or not having the disorder while it was previously thought that one or a few larger disorders were behind it.

It is the hopes of the entire medical community that by finding out what causes Autism that we will be able to effectively develop a form of treatment for it. A new project has been announced that will hope to map the genetics of the disorder to find what factors affect its presence and severity. This particular study focused on families with two or more children with Autism so gene comparison could determine similar characteristics between the two.

For those unfamiliar with Autism it is not a singular disorder but rather a series of disorders that range in severity from person to person and that are caused or at the very least influenced by genetics and the environment. It occurs in very young children (typically 2-3 years old) and affects 400% more boys than girls. As more research has become available most feel a majority of the causes of Autism-linked traits are indeed genetic, which in turn means they will likely be harder to treat than environmentally linked causes.

[via CNN]

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

New Study Indicates Video Games and Surgeons a Good Mix

In an interesting and quirky study, researchers have found that Surgeons who play video games are more skilled and dexterous at performing a specific type of surgery. The study will be published in the February issue of Archives of Surgery and confirms previous reports that playing video games helps hand eye coordination and precision skills. The study focused on the fine laparoscopic surgery.

Perhaps most surprising was that the scores on the test showed video games improved a surgeon's skills more than both training or experience. I think this has been thrown around a lot in recent years that video games do help but, despite the medical field being "cutting edge", gaps still exist, specifically in training and changing tactics. I think this shows that perhaps some sort of new curriculum should be added like a "virtual operation" of sorts where the surgeon must perform surgeries that are harder than real life ones in order to boost their skills.

Of course, researchers may be able to analyze this even further by looking at the types of games the surgeons have played and how that relates, if at all, to the increased scores. Detailed analysis may lead to a recommended set of games for surgeons to play to keep their skills sharp. Here are some raw numbers from the study:
"Out of 33 surgeons from Beth Israel Medical Center in New York that participated in the study, the nine doctors who had at some point played video games at least three hours per week made 37 percent fewer errors, performed 27 percent faster, and scored 42 percent better in the test of surgical skills than the 15 surgeons who had never played video games before."
This is one of the few studies that has actually focused on the good behaviors video games can influence and supports previous research on the topic.

[via CNN]

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Monday, January 08, 2007

Hoodia Diet Pills

Hoodia is a new diet supplement of the market that touts weight loss without dieting. The wikipedia page for hoodia has more about the supplement and its scientific backing and health benefits. Hoodia is the newest supplement to hit the market to suppress appetite but from everything I have read it may have some scientific backing.

Hoodia diet pills are an all natural and safe appetite suppressant with no side effects. Although hoodia pills are largely unproven the fact that they do not have side effects means they can be taken whether they benefit you or not. Overall hoodia appears to be a very promising drug although much more scientific testing and drug trials are needed to either confirm current drugs, make recommendations to improve drugs, or debunk its effects.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Post Traumatic Stress Linked to Heart Disease

A study of combat veterans living in Greater Boston, Massachusetts has found a link between post traumatic stress severity and increased risk of coronary heart disease in older men.

The study is published in the Archives of General Psychiatry and was conducted by scientists from the Harvard School of Public Health with the collaboration of colleagues from Boston and Harvard.

The researchers looked at a total of 1,996 records of men in the Veterans Affairs Normative Aging Study. The men had completed one of two well-known questionnaires for assessing Post Traumatic Test Disorder (PTSD); one group (944 men) in 1986 and the other (1,002 men) in 1990.

They correlated the results against the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD, fatal and non-fatal heart attack or stroke, and angina) in the two groups up to May 2001.

The two PTSD questionnaires were the Mississippi Scale for Combat-Related PTSD (35 questions) and the Keane PTSD scale (46 questions).

Overall, the two groups showed low to moderate symptoms of PTSD, but there was a significant association between symptom severity and later onset of CHD - the more severe the symptoms, the greater the risk of CHD later in life.

For every significant step up in symptoms (one standard deviation in the statistical spread of the data) there was a significant increase in CHD risk: 21 per cent if you include angina, 26 per cent if you don't. Also, the results were the same when depressive symptoms were taken into account.

The researchers believe this to be the first study to show a link between PTSD severity and later onset of CHD, regardless of whether the participants are depressed or not.

When we have PTS our body overreacts to things that other people just shrug off or find mildly irritating. For instance a sudden loud noise can provoke an exaggerated startle response with increased heart rate, sweaty palms, shortness of breath and feelings of panic and helplessness.

A person with PTS discharges more adrenalin in the course of a day than a "normal" person. It is thought this increases the wear and tear on the cardiovascular system.

Questionnaire-based tests of PTS assess symptoms such as nightmares, flashbacks, headaches and feelings of panic.

An emerging area of PTS is what is becoming known as STSD - or secondary traumatic stress disorder. Some of the helping professionals who provided support for the victims of 9/11, for example, have been diagnosed with this. They were not involved in the tragedy directly, but by being "vicariously" involved, listening to the stories of the victims and empathising with their feelings, they have developed a sort of PTS with some of the same symptoms - nightmares, intrusive thoughts, feelings of helplessness and hopelessness.

PTS affects us on a deeply psychological level too - it shakes our innermost beliefs and our sense of self. What we previously thought was a mostly safe world with a few bad things in it suddenly becomes a mostly bad world with very little good in it.

The spiritual impoverishment that comes from such a reversal causes a complete shift in personality. Lively, warm-hearted, charming people become frightened, depressed and moody through PTSD. Our natural inclination is to keep away, to shun and avoid them. But perhaps what they need most is for us to hang in there, not in a gushing do-gooder sense, but with a light touch, a smile and more than the usual degree of acceptance and tolerance.

Written by: Catharine Paddock
Writer: Medical News Today


Tags: , , , , , , ,