News in brief - June 13, 2011

Michigan targets bath salt drug use - Women smokers more likely to develop peripheral artery disease

Michigan targets bath salt drug use

Michigan authorities responded quickly to reports of the new "bath salts" drug after 35 cases of abuse were identified between Nov. 15, 2010, and March 31, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's May 20 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Health officials, poison control centers and law enforcement collaborated to notify agencies statewide and issue an emergency health order in Marquette County, where the drug first surfaced.

Patients displayed various symptoms from the synthetic stimulants, including hypertension, tachycardia, tremors, delusions and paranoia. Some patients were violent or suicidal. Of the 35 cases, 69% reported a drug abuse history, and 46% were mentally ill (www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6019a6.htm).

Seventeen patients were hospitalized, including nine admitted to intensive care. One patient died before arriving at the hospital.

Michigan was among 45 states and the District of Columbia where bath salt cases were reported to poison control centers before March 22.

Women smokers more likely to develop peripheral artery disease

Smoking could increase women's risk of developing symptomatic peripheral artery disease, according to a study published online June 6 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Women with the circulatory condition are more likely to develop coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction and stroke, said the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.

Researchers examined data on 39,825 women age 45 and older who participated in the Women's Health Study. Participants did not have cardiovascular disease, cancer or other major illnesses and were followed for a median of 12.7 years. Researchers found that smoking increased a woman's risk of developing PAD tenfold. Smoking cessation reduced the likelihood of getting the disease (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21646555).

But even women who abstained from smoking for 20 years were more likely to develop the condition than those who never started the habit.