Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Unsure If You Should Routinely Take Aspirin? Here's The Latest On What To Know About Health Benefits
Aspirin, the original wonder drug, has long been a go-to medicine for millions, a Jack-of-all trades remedy that is readily available and cheap. Championed for its ability to relieve pain, fever and inflammation, aspirin has been a staple in home medicine cabinets and first-aid kits for more than a century. Yet in recent years its reputation has been sullied by recognition of potentially serious side effects, especially dangerous bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract or the brain. Given aspirin鈥檚 longevity and over-the-counter status, those risks are sometimes overlooked by consumers who take it with less care than is medically warranted. (Brody, 3/9)
The Food and Drug Administration announced this week boxes of montelukast will be required to have a prominent warning about the risk of neuropsychiatric events associated with the asthma and allergy medication montelukast. Montelukast is sold under the brand name Singulair and in generic form. The box warning 鈥渁dvises health care providers to avoid prescribing montelukast for patients with mild symptoms, particularly those with allergic rhinitis (hay fever),鈥 the FDA said. (Clanton, 3/6)
The commotion began just as the teenage boy was to pay for his apple juice. He flapped his hands wildly, tugged at the noise-canceling headphones atop his brown curls and then turned to his mother to deliver a head butt. The supermarket cashier stood quietly, her smile unwavering as she patiently waited for the boy鈥檚 mood to stabilize. (Nir, 3/9)
It was a blunt warning about the dangers of youth vaping: Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr announced late last month that his state had joined 38 others to investigate whether Juul Labs, the nation鈥檚 largest electronic cigarette company, promoted and sold its nicotine-heavy products to teens. It was a moment Juul had worked to avoid. (3/9)
Should you be terrified or exhilarated at the prospect of a gene-editing tool fueling a modern-day scientific revolution? 鈥淗uman Nature,鈥 a new film on the technology, braids the tool鈥檚 promise and potential perils into a riveting double helix. The Dan Rather-produced doc, which was directed by Adam Bolt, focuses on CRISPR-Cas9, a technique that 鈥減rograms鈥 an enzyme to seek and find a specific position on DNA, then cut the molecule at the preferred location. Scientists can then add, delete or edit the DNA. (Blakemore, 3/8)
Kaiser Health News: Around The Corner: 3D Housing Designed For The Homeless And Needy Seniors
Tim Shea is counting the days until he can move into a new, 3D-printed house. Shea, 69, will be the first to live in one of six such rentals created by what some in the housing industry call a futuristic approach that could revolutionize home construction. Shea is among a growing number of seniors in America who have struggled to keep affordable housing. He has, at times, been homeless. He has arthritis and manages to get around with the aid of a walker. He said he looks forward to giving up the steep ramp he鈥檚 had to negotiate when entering or exiting the RV he鈥檚 called home. (Jayson, 3/9)
An Iowa girl who lost her vision after almost dying from the flu has regained her eyesight, her mother said. Just weeks after leaving the hospital in January following her recovery from the flu, family members noticed that Jade DeLucia, 4, suddenly was walking by herself to the bathroom, without touching the walls. Testing it, family members asked her where her uncle was. Jade walked right to him."From there, it was almost an instant thing," Jade's mother, Amanda Phillips, told CNN. "She's doing really good." (Waldrop, 3/8)
CEO Brian Halligan admits it: He sleeps on the job. He typically takes naps in the afternoon after lunch, almost every day, for a half-hour. His naps even find a place on his calendar... But it may just be the most important half-hour of his day: "Some of my best ideas I've had are when I'm kind of falling in and falling out of sleep," he said. "And it's like that eureka! moment." (3/8)