Expanded Guidance on Zika Virus Travel Alerts
Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Saint Martin, Guyana, Cape Verde, and Samoa have been added to the Zika virus travel alert by the US CDC. They previously issued a travel alert (Level 2-Practice Enhanced Precautions) for people traveling to regions and certain countries where Zika virus transmission is ongoing: the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory; Brazil; Colombia; El Salvador; French Guiana; Guatemala; Haiti; Honduras; Martinique; Mexico; Panama; Paraguay; Suriname; and Venezuela.
The virus that causes yellow fever is in the same family as hepatitis C. The disease was so prevalent and dangerous that it derailed the construction of the Panama Canal. In Brazil, babies with shrinking brains and undersized skulls have been linked to the virus. ACSH was early in warning about the concerns of the Zika virus and we continue to monitor the situation.
The New York Times can't resist a Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who would be on the loony anti-science fringe with Joe Mercola if he did not have a famous last name, has segued from his expertise in assuring us that vaccines cause autism to assuring Californians that natural gas does. Or something, it is hard to know what Kennedy believes, other than what Natural Resources Defense Council will tell him if it helps them build a fundraising campaign.
And the New York Times will continue to quote him, regardless of his lack of expertise or scientific knowledge, and promote the notion that natural gas in California is the same as lead in Flint, Michigan.
Because it's the New York Times. And he's a Kennedy.
Patients not prescribed opioids find more improvements in physical function
Opioids such as morphine, codeine and Tylenol 3 can be effective for treating pain, however, a new University of Alberta study finds that patients with neuropathic pain taking opioids report no improvements in physical functioning compared to those who were not prescribed opioids.