Migraine Sufferers Appear to Have Reduced Risk of Breast Cancer

Posted by Madeline Ellis on 13 July 2009
From: healthnews

Almost everyone gets headaches at one time or another, but for millions of Americans who have migraines, they are more than just an occasional annoyance; they are often disruptive and debilitating. The pain is a severe throbbing on one or both sides of the head that can last for hours, or even days, and is often accompanied by nausea, dizziness, and sensitivity to light, sound or smells. But scientists say there is a bright spot for women who suffer these disabling headaches, and it’s not an aura.

A new study, led by Dr. Christopher I. Li of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, comparing data on more than 9,000 women revealed that women with a history of migraines have a 26 percent reduced risk of breast cancer. This held true regardless of the woman’s menopausal status, age when she was first diagnosed with migraines, whether she used prescription medications for her headaches, or what triggers she might have been avoiding. These findings confirm a previous study reported last November, also by Li and his team, which found a 33 percent lower breast cancer risk among women with migraines. “This research suggests that women with migraine may have a lower risk of breast cancer,” said Li, adding that it could lead to a new way of understanding how breast cancer works. “If we can better understand what the biological mechanisms are, that could open new avenues for research into breast cancer prevention.”

While the researchers aren’t sure exactly why women who get migraines appear to have a reduced breast cancer risk, they suspect that hormones, estrogen in particular, are a likely explanation. “It’s pretty clear that migraine, like breast cancer, is a hormonally related disease,” Li said. “Many triggers for migraine are also things that reduce estrogen levels.” On the other hand, increased levels of estrogen are known to boost the risk for breast cancer, therefore it’s “biologically plausible” that migraine sufferers would be less prone to breast cancer.

The researchers say increased use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), such aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen, by migraine sufferers could also explain some, but probably not all, of the reduction in breast cancer risk. A recent analysis of several studies showed a link between NSAID use and a 12 percent lower breast cancer risk. “Further work is needed to resolve what accounts for this relationship,” the researchers concluded.

Li added that women with migraines should “still have the same breast cancer screenings and follow-up,” and recommendation echoed by Dr. Michael Kraut, director of oncology at Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan. “The reduction in breast cancer risk in this study was about one-quarter, but it doesn’t eliminate the risk, so women still need to be on the lookout.”

Kraut also agrees that the link between migraines and breast cancer risk is likely a hormonal one. “The theory they propose here is that women who have migraines may have drops in estrogen levels that trigger migraines. And women who have sustained, increased levels of estrogen have a higher risk of breast cancer,” he said “This looks like one more piece of evidence that prolonged high levels of estrogen are dangerous.”

Li and team are now onto the next step—they are contacting women from the previous studies in hopes of learning more about the effects of different kinds of migraines. “We’re trying to understand what are the types of migraine that are most related to reduction in breast cancer risk,” Li says.

Lower Your Blood Pressure with Vegetable Proteins

Posted by Lara Endreszl on 11 July 2009
From: healthnews

As if you need one more reason to jam that grocery cart full of fresh produce, another study produces results that just reinforce what mama always told us: veggies are good for you. Not only are those vegetables cold and crispy and perfect for a summer day, indulging in what is known as “vegetable proteins” can help to stave off heart disease and lower your blood pressure.

Researchers at Northwestern University in Chicago along with a team from the U.K. reviewed data from 4,680 patients living in the U.K., U.S., China, and Japan between the ages of 40 and 59. By finding and isolating an amino acid found in vegetable proteins, they found that a diet rich in this amino acid translates to lowered blood pressure.

This amino acid, called glutamic acid, is found in foods like whole grain rice, pasta, tofu and beans. As of now, the researchers could not indicate whether or not supplements made of glutamic acid would perform in the same way as eating foods that provide this amino acid to the body.

The study, which was published in the recent edition of a journal called Circulation, concluded that a small decrease in blood pressure can be aided by consuming 5 percent more glutamic acid in your diet. This diet recommendation is approved by the American Heart Association, as well as the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

While a 5 percent drop may seem small in other facets of life, according to your blood pressure, the overall percentage can reap a large benefit. According to the American Heart Association—who helped publish the findings—an average drop of 1 to 3 units may seem insignificant but if every American lowered their blood pressure (both systolic and diastolic) by this amount, over 26,000 lives could be saved from death caused by heart disease or stroke.

One of the traits of glutamic acid is that it enhances the flavor of whole grains, pastas, and vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage. The recommended “5-a-day” rule is supposed to protect against heart disease and the researchers think glutamic acid is the reason.

Northwestern University Professor, Jeremiah Stamler, a preventative medicine specialist hopes his study will stress the importance of a regular, healthy diet. Dr. Ian Brown, an epidemiologist and co-author of the study from Imperial College in London, says that while the link may be there, the next step is to finding out how the link between glutamic acid affects blood pressure and overall health in order to proceed positively, “Our new research suggests glutamic acid may partly explain the link between vegetable protein and lower blood pressure. The next steps will be to reproduce this finding in other studies, and investigate how glutamic acid might exert an effect on blood pressure.”

As with most emerging research, follow up studies are necessary to prove the efficacy of the findings and new dietary rules could follow suit. Keep in mind that the “5-a-day” rule with vegetables is a recommendation and although vegetable proteins are important and helpful for slightly lowering at-risk blood pressures, an excess of whole grains and pastas in pursuit of this goal could be unhealthy and all diets should be nutritionally balanced.

Shriners Hospitals to Remain Open with Changes Reflecting Financial Squeeze

Posted by Drucilla Dyess on July 11, 2009
From: healthnews

The Shriners have decided that they will keep the doors of all their hospitals open to children for treatment in 20 cities across America, as well as one in both Canada and Mexico. These include Springfield's orthopedic hospital on Carew Street, as well as a burn unit located in Galveston, Texas, that was seriously damaged by Hurricane Ike. However, some of the locations could be forced to downgrade to outpatient surgical centers. In addition, the possible sale or lease of real estate will be considered. The news comes from the Shriners Hospitals For Children’s newly elected Chief Executive Officer, Douglas Maxwell.A proposal to permanently close six of the Shriner’s facilities was rejected by the 1,300 member governing body this week. These included hospitals located in Springfield, Massachusetts; Greenville, South Carolina; Spokane, Washington; Shreveport, Louisiana; Erie, Pennsylvania: and Galveston, Texas. Instead the decision was made during the Shriners annual convention in San Antonio, Texas, to investigate downsizing hospital operations as well as to begin to accept insurance payments.

According to Maxwell, “We've not changed who we are. We will always take care of children the best we can.” He then acknowledged that the Shriners hospital system will need to be "right-sized," and mentioned the possibility of turning some of the nonprofit organization’s orthopedic facilities into outpatient surgical centers.

Maxwell also noted that Shriners International, based in Florida, would look into selling or leasing some of the hospital real estate in order to trim down its current operating budget of $856,000,000. He explained that eventually the system could have only eight regional inpatient hospitals, with the other 14 becoming outpatient centers. In addition, some centers could be moved to smaller facilities, allowing for the sale of the old buildings to nearby hospitals that are in need of additional space.

Throughout their 87-year history, the Shriner’s hospitals have offered free care for children, without the need for insurance billing. However, with mounting financial pressures, reimbursements provided by insurance companies could help to ease the financial crisis faced by the fraternity. Although Maxwell hopes that insurance billing will begin within the year, the fraternity has just begun the task of examining how operations will need to change and how quickly hospitals can establish systems to bill insurance providers.

It remains unclear as to the amount of revenues insurance reimbursements would provide and it is unlikely that the hospitals will charge families insurance company co-payments. Children of families with no insurance will continue to be treated for free. For now, Maxwell held that all children suffering from orthopedic conditions, spinal cord injuries, burns and cleft palates would continue to be treated free of charge.

The Shriner Hospital system has treated hundreds of thousands of children since it opened back in 1922. Although the Shriner’s hospitals have primarily been funded through an endowment, the plummeting stock market of a sputtering economy diminished the bequest from $8 billion to $5 billion in less than a year.

Only a fraction of the operating budget comes from donations gathered by well-recognized Shriner members wearing their red fezzes. However, Maxwell said that the Shriners are confident the hospital system will be able to continue operations over the long term.

H1N1 Flu Vaccinations Could Begin in October

Posted by Madeline Ellis on July 10, 2009
From: healthnews

Since the H1N1 flu emerged in March in Mexico and Southern California, the virus has infected an estimated 1 million Americans, killing 170, and is still spreading, despite the summer’s heat and humidity, which influenza usually cannot tolerate. This persistence makes the virus’ resurgence in the fall all but certain and leaves little time to prepare. “We have a little bit more than a month ... to get our acts together,” Dr. Anne Schuchat of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said during a summit at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland on Thursday, where officials announced their game plan to deal with the threat, including the vaccination schedule and the target populations. About 500 state and local health officials were in attendance, as was President Barack Obama, who took time from his G-8 summit in Italy to join by teleconference.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said if all goes well, H1N1 vaccinations could begin by mid-October, and while officials have not yet decided exactly which age groups will be recommended to get the vaccine, school-age children, young adults with risky conditions such as asthma, pregnant women, and health workers are likely to be among the first in line. But the timetable is largely dependent on the outcome of studies with experimental vaccine batches that are set to begin the first week of August. Sebelius said that as soon as the vaccines were approved and available, the federal government would purchase them from the manufacturers and share them free among the states, which must then “try and get this in the arms of the targeted population as soon as possible.”

Sebelius acknowledged that this fall is likely to be a confusing season, with doctors’ offices, clinics, grocery stores and drug stores dispensing doses of regular seasonal flu vaccine as well as the H1N1 vaccine, which will probably have to be given in two separate inoculations. Schools and day care centers may also be utilized to mount a mass vaccination program against the H1N1 virus. “Since the population that seems to be most affected is younger folks, school-aged kids, kids in day care centers, we may well partner with the schools, looking at those as possible sites for a vaccination program,” said Sebelius.

Sebelius urged the summit attendees to go home and get schools, mayors and other community leaders to spread that message. “The last thing we want is millions of parents to be surprised” when the get-your-child-vaccinated-at-school note comes home. She also warned against complacency. “What we can’t do is wait until October and then suddenly decide that we have a very serious situation on our hands,” she said.

Sebelius said the federal government will provide $350 million by the end of July to help states develop specific plans for combating the pandemic and to help hospitals brace for a surge of demand. “We want to make sure we are not promoting panic but we are promoting vigilance and preparation,” Obama told the gathering. “We may end up averting a crisis. That’s our hope.”

Many other issues have yet to be hammered out, such as guidelines for closing schools where infected students are found, and how to keep students learning if schools are closed for extended periods. And an even bigger problem: When schools close and working parents must stay home, or when workers get sick and don’t get paid for time off. Usually, they go to work despite their illness, spreading infection to co-workers. “How are we going to assist people who don’t have benefits?” asked Paul Jarris of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said she is currently working with the Labor Department to address that question, and she urged employers to make other provisions, such as telecommuting, should H1N1invade their workplaces this fall.

States told to prepare for worst-case swine flu scenario

Posted :BETHESDA, Maryland (CNN)
From: CNN
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told government leaders at a swine flu preparedness summit Thursday that a vaccine to fight the H1N1 virus should be ready for distribution in mid-October.

But Sebelius also advised 500 government, health and education leaders to plan for the worst-case scenario of the virus reappearing with renewed strength this fall.

"What we need to assume is that it will come back in a much more severe form," she said at the conference at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, outside Washington.

Commonly called swine flu, the virus is also known as influenza A(H1N1). The World Health Organization declared the virus a global pandemic last month.

Sebelius said that extensive planning to combat the spread of the virus always could be scaled back later but that officials could not delay starting work on those preparations.

"We can step back from our planning. What we can't do is wait until October," she said.

The fight against H1N1 will be federally funded, the secretary said. She said the government will announce $350 million in preparedness grants on Friday, with $260 million for state health departments and $90 million for hospitals preparing for a possible surge of patients.

President Obama requested the summit, and he spoke to the group via video link from Italy, where he is attending the Group of Eight meeting of industrialized nations.

"We want to make sure we aren't promoting panic, but we are promoting vigilance and preparation," Obama said.

Obama urged state and local officials, including school districts, to prepare for a vaccination campaign in the fall and to anticipate that the virus could significantly affect schools.

Health care workers hope to evaluate a candidate vaccine against H1N1 in August, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who also spoke at the meeting.

Sebelius said medical experts are testing virus strains, preparing the production lines and beginning clinical trials.

She said the initial target group for the vaccine will be pregnant women, children ages 5 to 17, health care workers, the elderly and anyone with chronic health conditions such as asthma.

A new Web site has been set up for H1N1, http://www.flu.gov/, which has information on the virus and helpful tips.

A school nurse was one of three education workers invited to talk about their experiences in the spring during the wave of swine flu cases.

Mary Pappas of St. Francis Prep High School in Fresh Meadows, New York, said she was called on to take charge when students began showing up in her office with fevers.

Pappas said that she told the kids to pull out their cell phones and call their parents to come get them. That Thursday, she sent 102 students home; on Friday, another 80 sick students left school.

At one point, she said, there were so many sick teens that she asked a security guard to take their temperatures, write the number on a Post-it note and attach it to their chests.

The private school was closed during the following week.

According to the New York City Health Department, at least 69 cases of the H1N1 virus were confirmed at the school, and the number likely increased after the agency stopped counting.

A health department survey showed that one-third of the students, or 659 teens, reported flulike symptoms during April.

Belinda Lee Pustka, a school superintendent in Schertz, Texas, a suburb of San Antonio, said parks and churches closed when the swine flu hit.

Parents wanted to know the impact of the virus on their family and community, said Pustka, who oversees the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District.

Good communication was the key, she said. The district held daily news conferences and opened a Twitter account that some people used to ask questions during briefings.

"It was a very positive experience, but it was a very hard experience for the community," Pustka added.

Swine flu continues to circulate in the United States and more than 120 other countries -- especially in the Southern Hemisphere, where flu season is under way. The virus could hit the U.S. as children return to school, which is only weeks away, Sebelius told CNN earlier Thursday.

Thursday's symposium offers an opportunity to look ahead and begin to put things in place, Sebelius said on CNN's "American Morning."

There are more than 33,900 confirmed and probable cases of the H1N1 virus in the United States, with 170 deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than 98,000 cases have been documented worldwide, with 440 deaths, according to the WHO.

The virus has bucked traditional flu outbreak patterns. Influenza is typically more active during winter and then slows when the weather turns hot.

"Now, in the UK, as in many of the North American countries -- Canada, Mexico and the United States -- there has been quite widespread activity, or a lot of activity of this pandemic influenza virus. And right now, it is at a typical point of the year where the activity should be pretty low, but the activity is quite high because it is a pandemic situation for these countries," Keiji Fukuda, WHO assistant director-general, said this week.

Regular seasonal flu kills about 36,000 Americans annually. Sebelius said the vaccine for seasonal flu is ready for use.

Green Tea: A New Weapon Against Prostate Cancer?

Posted on 22 June 2009 by Madeline Ellis
From: healthnews.com

Many medical “discoveries” have occurred quite by happenstance. For instance, consider the story of Green Tea which began some 5,000 years ago when, as Chinese legend has it, leaves from a nearby Camellia sinensis tree fell into an emperor’s boiling pot of water. The leaves turned the water a light-brown color and gave off a delightful aroma. The emperor, upon taking a sip, found it also had an excellent taste and proclaimed it as “heaven sent.” Since then, the delectable brew has been considered a health-promoting beverage in China; used to treat everything from headaches to depression.

Today, a wealth of studies has provided hard evidence for its positive effects on health. Drinking green tea is reputed to promote heart health, lower high cholesterol levels, lessen free radical damage to cells, fight obesity, inhibit the abnormal formation of blood clots, and slow the progression of age-related cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers now say that certain compounds in green tea may actually slow the progression of prostate cancer, a disease that kills more men each year in the United States than any cancer other than lung cancer.

Previous studies have shown that green tea may be linked to a reduced incidence of prostate cancer, and its polyphenols have been regarded as a potential cancer therapy. But last year, the FDA announced that the evidence for green tea benefits was inconclusive, because people consume relatively small quantities. So, Dr. James Cardelli, and his colleagues at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in Shreveport, carried out a clinical trial to determine the effects of short-term supplementation with increased amounts of the active compounds in green tea on the progression of prostate cancer.

The small study consisted of 26 men between 41 and 68 years of age who had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and were scheduled for radical prostatectomy. The men were put on a daily dose of four capsules containing a total of 1.3 grams of polyphenon E, equivalent to about 12 cups of normally brewed concentrated green tea, for 12 to 73 days (with an average time of 34.5 days), until the day before surgery. Blood tests showed a significant reduction in serum levels of three biomarkers associated with the growth and spread of prostate cancer: hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and prostate specific antigen (PSA).

On an average, HGF decreased 18.9 percent, VEGF decreased by 9.9 percent and PSA dropped by 10.4 percent. Some patients demonstrated reductions of more than 30 percent. The researchers said that in vitro, EGCG (the main catechin in polyphenon E) swiftly blocked the production of HGF, and the block “seems to be at the level of transcription.” EGCG also blocked the production of VEGF, which plays a critical role in the angiogenic process in cancer-associated fibroblasts, they noted. Age, race, and time on the drug did not have a significant effect on the changes in serum biomarkers.

Previous studies have suggested that high levels of EGCG may have adverse effects on liver function, but in this study the liver function of the patients remained normal. “Our results show a significant reduction in serum levels of PSA, HGF, and VEGF in men with prostate cancer after brief treatment with EGCG (Polyphenon E), with no elevation of liver enzymes. These findings support a potential role for Polyphenon E in the treatment or prevention of prostate cancer,” the researchers concluded.

Dr. Cardelli admits that the study is still in an early stage and that the findings need to be verified by larger, placebo-controlled trials. “Green tea can keep cancer from growing very fast, but it may not be able to shrink tumors,” he said. “But it can be a good addition to traditional therapies, like chemotherapy or radiation.”

“We think that the use of tea polyphenols alone or in combination with other compounds currently used for cancer therapy should be explored as an approach to prevent cancer progression and recurrence," Dr. Cardelli said. “There is reasonably good evidence that many cancers are preventable, and our studies using plant-derived substances support the idea that plant compounds found in a healthy diet can play a role in preventing cancer development and progression.”

John Neate, chief executive of the Prostate Cancer Charity, says though there have been a number of studies into the potential benefits of green tea, there is no conclusive evidence. “The results of this study do suggest that there is merit in further research into the effects of extracts of green tea, both in relation to its impact on the prevention of prostate cancer and in controlling progression in men already diagnosed with the disease, as was investigated in this instance,” he said. “These initial positive findings could indicate that green tea could have a place in ‘active surveillance’, where a slow-growing, low risk tumor is monitored for changes and men want to take something which could help keep progression at bay.”

“Potentially, this could mean completely avoiding, in some cases, any of the more usual medical interventions and their associated side effects,” Neate said.

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among American men. According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer will be diagnosed in 192,280 men and will kill 27,360 in 2009. Men over 50 are urged to get tested for the disease annually, however very few do, putting them at risk of being diagnosed at a later stage rather than earlier in the cancer process.

The study is published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research.

How to combat the latest supergerms

Publish date of Article:7 July

When the swine flu burst onto the scene in April, the bug arrived with a few particularly ominous signs: The flu was resistant to a class of drugs often used to fight flu in the past, and experts were surprised that a nonhuman virus could have such rapid human-to-human transmission. Why was swine flu resistant to current medicines, and was this strain a new supergerm?

Flu bugs develop drug resistance when a virus mutates in a way that makes medications ineffective. Overusing and misusing antiviral meds can cause the problem. But mutations can also crop up spontaneously, even when the drugs aren't overprescribed, said Dr. Anne Moscona, a flu expert and an infectious-diseases physician at Weill Medical College of Cornell University and New York Presbyterian Hospital.

"Swine flu seems to respond to Tamiflu, but we weren't sure at first. And we're seeing more strains of other types of flu, including some bird flu, that are resistant to it. That's been sobering for lots of people in public health because Tamiflu is the drug the country has been stockpiling for a possible pandemic," she said. "The issue we're facing now is 'What do we do if the drugs we're counting on don't work?'"

This question is being asked with increasing urgency these days, as more and more bugs, including some truly nasty bacteria, become impervious to the effects of our best drugs. Acne and some STDs aren't clearing up the way they once did.

More worrisome, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) -- bacteria that are resistant to methicillin, a common antibiotic -- now kills more people in U.S. hospitals than HIV, AIDS, and tuberculosis combined. And, scarier still, the bug is becoming increasingly common outside of hospitals, affecting everyone from infants with ear infections to young, healthy athletes. And MRSA, experts warn, is just the tip of the drug-resistance iceberg.

"Drug-resistant bacteria have developed in large part because of our overuse and misuse of antibiotics -- and it has led us to a crisis point," said Dr. Helen W. Boucher, a specialist in the division of infectious diseases at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. "We're even seeing bugs today that are resistant to all antibiotics."

But while some germs may be outpacing our ability to kill them, we're not completely defenseless. In fact, there are plenty of things we can do to slow their spread. Here, five of the scariest threats right now, and what you can do to keep yourself and future generations safe.

Scary strains of flu

In 2005, two teenage girls in Vietnam died of avian (bird) flu. The news was alarming because both had been treated with Tamiflu, the drug governments stockpile to fight the avian virus. In fact, lab tests showed both girls had developed Tamiflu-resistant viruses. More bad news came in January of this year when researchers at the University of Colorado announced that more than 30 percent of the bird flu samples they analyzed were resistant to adamantanes, older antivirals doctors might use if Tamiflu doesn't work.

As of May this year, bird flu had killed 261 of the 424 people who have been diagnosed with it worldwide since 2003, according to the World Health Organization. "It's incredibly deadly," Boucher said. "It doesn't spread efficiently from person to person -- at least not yet -- but a pandemic flu still tops the list of scary health nightmares, even in the United States, because there's the potential for a highly contagious flu to sweep through the population before we can contain it."

Such a flu could kill thousands --if not hundreds of thousands-- of people, especially if the strain is resistant to Tamiflu. "It makes sense for countries to start adding Relenza, another newer antiviral, to their stockpiles, just in case we see a Tamiflu-resistant strain that's highly contagious," Moscona said.

Even if there are drugs that work against a virulent flu, they can't necessarily be relied on to contain an epidemic. "Antivirals only work if you take them within two days of the first symptoms, and they're much more effective if you take them in the first 6 to 12 hours," Moscona said.

Some good news: Researchers recently identified human antibodies that seem to neutralize some flu viruses, including the bird flu strain -- a finding that could lead to more-effective treatments. In the meantime, not getting the flu in the first place is a far better bet than trying to treat it. (In the United States, about 36,000 people die from the flu every year.) Health.com: 8 causes of chronic cough

To avoid it:

• Get an annual flu vaccination. The viruses in the vaccine (based on the type or strain of flu researchers think is most likely to hit) change every year, so get vaccinated each year -- and early. It takes about two weeks for flu-fighting antibodies to develop, so get vaccinated in September or early October to protect yourself from early-arriving bugs.

• Wash your hands. The flu virus can live for up to 72 hours on surfaces like doorknobs, light switches, and TV remote controls and if you get it on your hands and touch your eyes or nose, you could get sick. That makes hand-washing the most effective daily defense. Wash briskly with plain old soap and water for 30 seconds.

• Fight the flu with vitamin D. "One study found that people who took vitamin D supplements were less likely to have cold and flu symptoms," said Dr. Michael F. Holick, professor of medicine, physiology, and biophysics and director of the Vitamin D, Skin and Bone Research Laboratory at Boston University School of Medicine. Holick says 1,500 to 2,000 I.U. of vitamin D not only bolsters the immune system but also may help prevent infection.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

In December 2005, when 14-month-old Bryce Smith came down with a cold -- his first ever -- the pediatrician told his mom he'd feel better in a few days. He didn't feel better, and by New Year's Day Bryce was in the emergency room. An X-ray showed that he had pneumonia, and a CT scan revealed something even scarier: His right lung was filled with a thick, gelatinous fluid.

The doctors rushed the baby into surgery, where they discovered he was infected with MRSA -- and the infection was so severe that it had eaten a hole through his lung. After 40 days on vancomycin, a superpotent antibiotic that can affect kids' hearing, Bryce pulled through. "But we're still worried about his hearing and how much damage the bacteria did to his lungs," his mom said.

Bryce's story is scary because it reflects a trend. "It's most worrisome that MRSA can infect completely healthy people with healthy lifestyles, something that was almost unheard of 15 years ago," Boucher said. About 12 percent of infections strike people who aren't hospitalized, a percentage that is likely to increase as MRSA becomes more widespread. Health.com: The truth about staph

Currently, about 40 percent of us have staph bacteria on our skin-- and it rarely causes a problem. But about 60 to 70 percent of staph in U.S. hospitals has developed resistance to methicillin. Worse, a small percentage of the bugs are now resistant to vancomycin, the drug that saved Bryce's life.

Although MRSA can cause pneumonia and blood infections and has recently been linked to children's ear and sinus infections, it most often causes skin and soft-tissue abscesses. A MRSA infection looks like a pimple, boil, or spider bite, but it may quickly worsen into an abscess or pus-filled blister or sore.

To protect yourself:

Shun the staph. Wash your hands, especially after you've been in public places and touched handrails, grocery-cart handles, and other frequently handled objects. Experts estimate that staph is present on 2 to 3 percent of surfaces in public places-- more in hospitals. Regular soap and water will remove most germs. Alcohol gels or wipes and antibacterial soap work, too, but there's a chance that antibacterial soap contributes to antibiotic resistance, so it makes sense to avoid it.

• Cover up. Bandage all cuts, even paper cuts and blisters. Sterilize the stetho. Researchers recently found that one in three stethoscopes used by emergency-medical-service providers was contaminated with MRSA. Ask your doc to swab his scope with alcohol.

* De-germ the gym. Use a disinfectant wipe to swab the handlebars of equipment, and drape a clean towel over shared yoga mats and sauna and locker room benches. After each workout in a group environment, take a shower, soaping up thoroughly-- and be sure your kids who play sports do, too. Health.com: The germiest places in America

• Don't share. You're at increased risk of MRSA if you share razors, soap, towels, or other personal items. Schools, day-care centers, and gyms may harbor the germ -- one reason it's important to get children in the hand-washing habit.

Clostridium difficile (C. diff.)

Amy Warren, 41, thought she was dying when, several weeks after giving birth to her daughter, she began having severe abdominal cramps and dozens of daily bouts of diarrhea. After several medical tests, a doctor identified her infection as C. diff., a gut bug that, thanks to its virulence and prevalence in hospitals has earned it the distinction of being called "the new MRSA." (It sickens about a half-million people in the United States every year and contributes to between 15,000 and 30,000 deaths.)

Warren, who finally beat the infection after six months and three rounds of the potent vancomycin, said, "I had never even heard of C. diff. before. I've never been so sick in my life. I live in fear of getting this thing again."

C. diff. is one of the most aggressive killers of hospitalized patients. But it's increasingly affecting people in the community, and one of its most frightening qualities is that it can develop even after you've taken a single dose of antibiotics for a sinus infection, say, or a urinary-tract infection -- if the toxic bacteria is in your gut. "The drugs wipe out the healthy bacteria, which allows C. diff. to proliferate," Boucher said.

The bacteria can produce toxins that destroy the lining of the gut, causing everything from mild diarrhea to a deadly condition known as toxic megacolon, in which the colon walls become so thin they rupture. The type of C. diff. Warren had -- a mutated strain known as NAP 1, which has only appeared in the last decade -- is particularly dangerous, producing roughly 20 times the amount of toxin as older strains and responding less favorably to antibiotics.

To stay safe:

• Bust out the bleach. The bacteria's hardy spores can survive for months on most surfaces (even dry ones) and aren't killed with most cleaners. "You can only kill them with bleach," said Dr. Stuart Levy, president of the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics and a professor of microbiology and medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine. On your hands, alcohol sanitizers do little to get rid of spores, but the friction of soap and water may remove it from your hands. "The best you can do is try to wash it down the drain," said Dr. Louis Rice, an expert on resistant bugs and chief of medical service at Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center. Also, be particularly vigilant about hand hygiene if you visit a hospital or extended-care facility; both are places where the toxin-producing bacteria thrive. Health.com: Five ways to prevent more antibiotic resistance

• Be proactive. If you have to take an antibiotic, take a probiotic at the same time to build up the healthy bacteria in your gut. "It might help protect against C. diff.," Boucher said.

Drug-resistant gram-negative bacteria

Last year, Mariana Bridi da Costa, a 20-year-old Brazilian model, was diagnosed with a urinary-tract infection, and within weeks a bacterial infection had spread throughout her body. In an attempt to stem the infection, her hands and feet were amputated. But complications from the infection killed her.

In 2007, Ruth Burns, 67, of Columbus, Ohio, had surgery to relieve a pinched nerve. "She was supposed to be in and out in 24 hours, but she developed pneumonia and meningitis," her daughter, Kacia Warren, said. Although she was treated aggressively with antibiotics, Burns died 17 days after her surgery. The cause of both deaths: drug-resistant gram-negative bacteria.

"These are some of the most antibiotic-resistant bacteria out there, and they can cause all sorts of infections," said Dr. Barbara Murray, director of the division of infectious diseases at the University of Texas Medical School. Although most infections occur in hospitalized patients, such as Burns, the numbers are quietly escalating in people who are not hospitalized, elderly, or immunocompromised.

"It's a problem that's poised to spin out of control," Boucher said.

The germ that killed Burns, Acinetobacter baumannii, is nicknamed "Iraqibacter" because it has caused deadly infections in soldiers wounded in Iraq. Until a few years ago, most strains of Acinetobacter could be killed with a variety of drugs; for those that couldn't, doctors relied on broad-spectrum antibiotics known as carbapenems.

Now, more and more strains of this bug are showing resistance to carbapenems, as are other gram-negative bacteria, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which killed Bridi da Costa; some strains of E. coli, the bug responsible for most urinary-tract infections; and Klebsiella pneumoniae, a strain of bacteria that causes a particularly severe type of pneumonia.

"The carbapenems are the best drugs we have against these bacteria," Boucher says. "Without them, we're looking at something pretty scary because there's almost nothing in the pipeline -- and gram-negative bacteria can be killers. They actually chew up the antibiotics used against them."

To fight back:

• Practice infection-protection. If you're having surgery, ask the surgeon about infection rates. "Surgeons know their rate of infection for various procedures, and you have a right to know, too," said Betsy McCaughey, founder of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths.

• Stay clean at the hospital. If you're visiting a hospital, wash yourself and your clothes right after. Don't use bar soap in any hospital bathroom or set your purse on the floor.

• Be pushy. Ask medical personnel to wash their hands. Don't be falsely assured by gloves, McCaughey warned. "If caregivers have pulled on gloves over dirty hands, the gloves are contaminated, too."

Drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB)

TB seems like the last thing you need to worry about in this day and age, but people in the United States still get the disease. (There are about 13,000 new cases a year.) In March and April alone there were reports of high school students in Florida, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire being diagnosed with the illness.

"Two or three times a week there's news of an active TB outbreak somewhere in the United States," said Dr. Lee B. Reichman, executive director of the New Jersey Medical School Global Tuberculosis Institute. "For a disease that's supposed to have died out, that's a lot of sick people."

Although TB is treatable, new strains are cropping up that are resistant to antibiotics. Multidrug resistant TB (MDR TB) is impervious to at least two of the best first-line anti-TB drugs (isoniazid and rifampicin). Extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR TB), still relatively rare, is resistant to first- and second-line anti-TB medications, including injectable drugs. And both types are on the rise.

To keep it at bay:

• Get tested. If you've been around someone with active TB, ask your doctor to give you a blood or skin test.

• Take your meds. If you have TB that responds to drug treatment, taking the wrong dosage or stopping the drugs too soon (before the prescribed 6 to 9 months) may leave your body with lingering bacteria, and the germs that are still alive may mutate and develop resistance

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