Health Highlights: Dec. 23, 2007
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Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors ofHealthDay:
Certain Brain Injuries Lessen PTSD Incidence: Study
People who have certain brain injuries are less likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a new study of combat-exposed Vietnam War veterans shows.
The findings indicate that certain drugs or pacemaker-like devices that suppress activity in these areas of the brain could be effective treatments for PTSD, according to the study authors from the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Naval Medical Center.
PTSD is characterized by the frequent reliving of traumatic events through nightmares and flashbacks. Up to 30 percent of Vietnam veterans, which could mean more than 1 million of them, have been diagnosed with the disorder, the NIH said in a statement. A similar rate has been reported among Hurricane Katrina survivors.
Millions more Americans may have PTSD from more personal experiences including assault, rape, child abuse, and car accidents, the statement said.
"If we could show that lesions in a specific brain region eliminated PTSD, we knew we could say that the region is critical to developing the disorder," said study lead author Jordan Grafman, a senior investigator at the NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
Grafman and his colleagues examined 193 veterans with brain injuries and 52 who had combat exposure but no brain injury. Those with injuries to two parts of the brain -- the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the amygdala -- were significantly less likely to be diagnosed with PTSD than veterans who didn't have brain injuries.
Results of the findings appear in the current online issue of the journalNature Neuroscience.
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Canned Green Beans Recalled for Possible Botulism
Cans labeled "GFS Fancy Blue Lake Cut Green Beans" are being recalled because they may be contaminated with the deadly bacterium that causes botulism, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says.
