Industry funded studies don't find sweet drinks linked to obesity, diabetes

By Andrew M. Seaman (Reuters Health) - Do sugar-sweetened beverages like soda and fruit drinks cause obesity and diabetes? An analysis of 60 studies found 26 out of 26 papers that failed to find a link between sugar-sweetened beverages and obesity or diabetes were funded by industry sources, compared to one industry-funded study out of the 34 that did find a connection. Regulations, taxes and nutrition guidance hinge on whether these drinks cause health problems, but opponents of those initiatives continue to question whether the drinks are to blame, the study team writes in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Ultrasound Helps Diagnose Gout, Rule Out Pseudogout (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Specificity was more than 90% for some individual gout features

1st Zika Microcephaly Baby Born in Puerto Rico

1st Zika Microcephaly Baby Born in Puerto Rico

Surge in prescription opioid poisoning among U.S. youth

By Lisa Rapaport (Reuters Health) - The number of children and teens hospitalized for prescription opioid poisonings has more than doubled in recent years, with both accidental overdoses and suicide attempts on the rise, a U.S. study suggests. Annually, the rate of these opioid poisonings among youth up to 19 years old surged from 1.4 per 100,000 children in 1997 to 3.71 per 100,000 kids by 2012, the study found. “I believe that the two-fold increase in hospitalization rates over time for opioid poisonings in children are a direct consequence of the increasing reliance in the U.S. on opioid analgesics to treat acute and chronic pain,” said lead study author Dr. Julie Gaither, a public health researcher at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.

White House condemns Syrian government forces use of toxic gas

The White House on Saturday condemned the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government after an international inquiry found its forces responsible for a third toxic gas attack in Syria's civil war. The fourth report from the 13-month-long inquiry by the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the global chemical weapons watchdog, blamed Syrian government forces for a toxic gas attack in Qmenas in Idlib governorate on March 16, 2015, according to a text of the report seen by Reuters. In August, the third report by the inquiry blamed the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for two chlorine attacks - in Talmenes on April 21, 2014 and Sarmin on March 16, 2015 - and said Islamic State fighters had used sulfur mustard gas.

ANA: Brain Features Tied to Personality in Chronic Daily Headache (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Is personality a modifiable risk factor for CDH?

Burning sulfur near Mosul sends hundreds to hospital, U.S. troops don masks

By Babak Dehghanpisheh QAYYARA, Iraq (Reuters) - Up to 1,000 people have been treated for breathing problems linked to fumes from a sulfur plant set ablaze during fighting with Islamic State in northern Iraq and U.S. officials say U.S. forces at a nearby airfield are wearing protective masks. A cloud of white smoke blanketed the area around the Mishraq sulfur plant, near Mosul, mingling with black fumes from oil wells that the militants torched to cover their moves. Local residents and the U.S. military said Islamic State militants deliberately set the sulfur plant ablaze as they strive to repel an offensive by Iraqi government forces to drive them from Mosul, their last major stronghold in the country.

Judge sides with Planned Parenthood over Mississippi abortion law

The decision by U.S. District Judge Daniel Jordan III is the latest in a string of rulings striking down similar laws elsewhere in the country against the women's health provider. Jordan's two page order noted a ruling from the 5th U.S. District Court of Appeals that rejected a similar law in Louisiana, saying "essentially every court to consider similar laws has found that they violate" federal law. Medicaid is a health insurance program for the poor run jointly by the federal government and individual states.

Trump supporters tricked into buying beers at Mexico City booze-up

By Lizbeth Diaz MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Supporters of U.S. Republican candidate Donald Trump unwittingly helped pick up the tab for a booze-up in Mexico City on Thursday, after they were duped into buying cleverly concealed anti-Trump t-shirts designed by a local brewery. Trump, who has labeled Mexicans rapists and drug runners, has caused outrage south of the border with his vow to build a border wall that Mexico will pay for - a pledge that inspired brewer Cerveza Cucapa's ingenious scheme to get Trump supporters to cough up for Mexicans' brews. "It's amazing that we can have a party paid for by Donald Trump!" said 54-year-old Leticia Villanueva, cradling her free beer at the event which had attracted a few hundred people.

In last debate, Trump suggests he may reject election result

By Steve Holland and Amanda Becker LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Republican candidate Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested he might reject the outcome of the Nov. 8 U.S. presidential election if he loses, a possibility his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton called "horrifying." In their third and final presidential debate, Trump said he would wait to decide whether the outcome was legitimate. "I will tell you at the time, I will keep you in suspense," Trump said. Clinton said she was "appalled" by Trump's stance.

Eye doctors warn of e-cigarette liquid hazard

Since the bottles looked similar at a glance, and the nicotine-laced liquid carried no warnings about the harm of contact with the eyes, the authors of a case report in JAMA Ophthalmology say e-cigarette users should be aware of this risk. The researchers describe a patient in her 50s who presented to the Tennent Institute of Ophthalmology at Gartnavel General Hospital in Glasgow with eye irritation. When she mistakenly dripped e-cig liquid in her eye she immediately experienced pain, redness and blurred vision.

U.N. chief Ban arrives in Haiti after looting near U.N. base

By Makini Brice LES CAYES (Reuters) - Desperate Haitians pummeled by Hurricane Matthew looted United Nations trucks on Saturday shortly before U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived for a visit. The Category 4 hurricane tore through Haiti on Oct. 4, killing about 1,000 people and leaving more than 1.4 million in need of humanitarian aid, including 175,000 made homeless. "We will mobilize all the resources to help you," Ban told a handful of residents gathered at a local school being used as a shelter for hurricane victims.

Philippines set to roll out tough no-smoking law

MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is set to sign a regulation this month banning smoking in public across Southeast Asia's second-most populous country, rolling out among the toughest anti-tobacco laws in the region.

Thai king's medical condition has 'overall not yet stabilized': palace

By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and and Aukkarapon Niyomyat BANGKOK (Reuters) - The health of Thailand's 88-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest reigning monarch, has "overall not yet stabilized", the palace said in a statement on Wednesday. Earlier, the government, in a clear reference to the king's health, urged people not to listen to rumors on social media about "situations", saying they should await official announcements. The statement from the palace follows one on Sunday in which it said the king was in an unstable condition after receiving haemodialysis treatment, which is used to cleanse the blood of toxins, extra salts and fluids.

Battery Problems in St. Jude Medical Defibrillators

Battery Problems in St. Jude Medical Defibrillators

Mylan to pay $465 million over EpiPen Medicaid rebate dispute

(Reuters) - Mylan NV on Friday said it will pay $465 million to settle the question of whether it underpaid U.S. government healthcare programs by misclassifying its EpiPen emergency allergy treatment.

Fitful Sleep May Take Toll on Older Women's Hearts

Before and after menopause, less sleep linked to plaque buildup in blood vessels, study found

Alnylam ends development of drug due to patient deaths in trial

(Reuters) - Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Wednesday it would halt development of an experimental therapy for a rare genetic condition that can cause heart failure, after a late-stage study showed that patients given the drug were more likely to die than patients treated with a placebo.