a from 527 patients in the largest prospective clinical trial conducted to date designed to investigate antibiotic prophylaxis in critically ill patients. As contrasted to placebo, the total number of infections among the 256 treated patients was much lower (141 infections versus 274). The authors discovered that the treated patients had fewer: cases of pneumonia (6 versus 29); other lower respiratory tract disorders (39 versus 70); bloodstream infections (14 versus 36); and urinary tract infections (36 versus 70). Also, a significantly smaller number of treated patients suffered from severe organ dysfunction (63 patients versus 96). The study appears in the second issue for October 2002 of the American Thoracic Society's peer-reviewed American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

SECONDARY HEATING SOURCES CAUSE WHEEZE AND COUGH

Use of secondary heating sources during the winter, including wood stoves, gas space heaters, and kerosene heaters, is associated with wheeze and cough in infants during the first year of life. Biomedical scientists studied 890 infants born in 12 hospitals in Connecticut and Virginia. From their study, they found that use of gas space heaters was related to both new episodes of wheeze and total wheeze days in infants. Wood stove use was related to days of cough, and kerosene heater use was associated with episodes of cough. However, fireplace use was not related to cough or wheeze, which the researchers attribute to a limited duration of exposure for the infants. The study authors point out that heating sources such as gas, kerosene, or wood are important producers of particulate matter in the home. Unvented or poorly vented gas heaters produce high levels of nitric dioxide, which is released directly into the home. Wood stoves and fireplaces, even when vented to the outside, may emit a high concentration of pollutants into the indoor air, including inhalable particles, carbon monoxide, and nit
'"/>

Contact: Cathy Carlomagno
ccarlomagno@thoracic.org
212-315-6442
American Thoracic Society
17-Oct-2002

Page: 1 2 3
Related medicine news :

1. Consumers with disabilities empowered by American Disabilities Act
2. Definition of persistent vegetative state available from American Academy of Neurology
3. African-American women with endometrial cancer have more aggressive cancer than Caucasian women
4. New colorectal cancer screening recommendations for African Americans
5. American Thoracic Society Journal news tips for March 2005 (second issue)
6. Community care tops medical care at preventing heart disease in black Americans
7. Researchers say breast cancer in Africa may provide clues to the disease in African-Americans
8. Obesity among African-American stroke survivors increases risk factors for recurrent stroke
9. Awards & fellowships at the International & American Association for Dental Research General Session
10. American Academy of Neurology presents 57th Annual Meeting in Miami Beach
11. News tips from the 2005, 54th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology