News in brief - May 23/30, 2005

H2N2 flu virus update - Lowering cholesterol the plant way - Fire prevention, cigarettes in Mass. - Alarms better than meds in treating bedwetting - Soda, excess weight, sleeping pills associated with nighttime heartburn

H2N2 flu virus update

As of May 3, all samples of the potentially dangerous H2N2 influenza virus that in recent months were sent to thousands of laboratories in 18 countries have been accounted for and destroyed, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

No reports of illnesses were linked with possible exposure to the samples in the labs, the CDC said.

The virus, which was responsible for the pandemic flu outbreak of 1957, has not circulated since 1968, which means that most people would have little or no immunity to it.

The samples were sent by Meridian Bioscience of Cleveland on behalf of the College of American Pathologists as part of a kit used in lab proficiency testing.

Also on May 3, the CDC and the National Institutes of Health recommended that labs use stricter safety precautions when handling H2N2 virus samples, specifically, Biosafety Level 3 instead of Level 2 precautions.

A similar recommendation was made for avian influenza viruses and for research on the 1918 pandemic flu virus.

Lowering cholesterol the plant way

A low-fat diet rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans has twice the cholesterol-lowering power of a conventional low-fat diet, according to a new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine in California.

The finding, published in the May 3 Annals of Internal Medicine, comes from a comparison of two low-fat diets. One, the conventional diet, focused solely on avoiding harmful saturated fat and cholesterol. The second diet included the same proportions of fat and cholesterol, plus lots of plant-based foods in accordance with American Heart Assn. guidelines.

Both diets lowered total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The conventional diet produced, on average, a 4.6% LDL decrease; the plant-based diet, a 9.4% decrease.

Researchers found no significant differences in changes in triglycerides or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol from either diet.

Fire prevention, cigarettes in Mass.

The Massachusetts Medical Society is urging passage of a bill that would require that all cigarettes sold in the state be self-extinguishing.

"Physicians see the tragic results of preventable fires, including loss of life and the sometimes permanent scarring of burn victims," said Corinne Broderick, executive vice president of the medical society. "Most of these tragedies could have been prevented if cigarettes were self-extinguishing."

Identical bills have been introduced in the Massachusetts House and Senate to require the Dept. of Public Health, in consultation with the State Fire Marshall, to develop fire safety standards for cigarettes sold in the state. At present, no standards exist either on the federal or state level.

More than 800 Americans die and 2,200 are injured in fires from smoking each year, according to the National Fire Protection Assn., based in Quincy, Mass.

The smoking situation could get worse in Massachusetts, as the budget for tobacco control efforts was slashed from $48 million in fiscal year 2001 to $3.75 million in fiscal year 2005, Broderick said. The cut pushed the state from first place in the country to 40th in its efforts to protect children from the dangers of smoking, according to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

Alarms better than meds in treating bedwetting

Children who have problems with bedwetting and who take drugs that prevent urination achieve a dry night's sleep more quickly than those who use wake-up alarms, but the alarms are more effective over the long term, according to a review published in the Cochrane Library last month.

Researchers pooled data from 55 trials investigating either the use of sound or light to wake up children when they wet the bed or the use of medication. Without treatment, 15% of those who wet the bed stop on their own. For children who are treated with alarms, 67% remain dry in the weeks after therapy. Only 18% of those who took medication did so.

Evidence suggested that an immediate alarm was better than a delayed one or one that woke parents rather than children.

Authors also reviewed alternative treatments such as hypnosis, chiropractic and acupuncture. But those studies were too small and the quality insufficient to draw conclusions.

Soda, excess weight, sleeping pills associated with nighttime heartburn

Nighttime gastroesophageal reflux is more likely among people who have a high body mass index, consume carbonated drinks, snore, have insomnia and use benzodiazepines to sleep.

Hypertension and asthma also can be linked to this condition, although college education reduced the likelihood of nighttime heartburn, according to a study published in the May Chest.

Researchers analyzed questionnaires answered by more than 15,000 participants in the Sleep Heart Health Study, a multicenter longitudinal study looking at the cardiovascular consequence of sleep-disordered breathing.

Those with a BMI of more than 30 were 95% more likely to have this condition. Insomnia was associated with a 129% increased risk, and asthma resulted in a 57% increase. At least one soft drink a day produced a 30% increase.

Experts said this study suggests that there could be lifestyle changes that might impact the development of this condition.

"Reducing consumption of carbonated soft drinks, replacing benzodiazepines with other types of sleeping pills and losing weight can all help reduce nighttime heartburn," said Paul A. Kvale, MD, president of the American College of Chest Physicians.