Health Highlights: March 20, 2008

The study findings were published Thursday in the CDC'sMorbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

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Allergy Symptoms Affect Mood, Self-Image: Survey

In addition to physical symptoms such as sneezing, sniffling and watery eyes, allergies can have a major impact on a person's mood and self-perception, according to a survey of 1,000 allergy sufferers, 1,000 consumers, and 300 physicians.

The Harris Interactive phone survey, released Thursday, found that 62 percent of allergy sufferers said allergies affected their mood, 51 percent of sufferers said they felt annoyed, 48 percent felt irritable, 42 frustrated, 22 percent said allergies made them feel less attractive, and 19 percent felt self-conscious.

Among the other findings:

About 48 percent of allergy suffers felt their spouse or significant other didn't consider their allergies to be a serious health condition, and that relatives (81 percent), friends (86 percent), and coworkers (78 percent) viewed their allergies as somewhat serious or not serious.About 34 percent of allergy sufferers said they see a doctor when symptoms are bothering them.Most physicians considered insomnia (83 percent) and osteoarthritis (69 percent) to be less serious or equally serious as allergies. They viewed diabetes (90 percent) and hypertension (84 percent) as more serious than allergies.Many consumers viewed diabetes (81 percent), hypertension (76 percent) and arthritis (57 percent), as more serious than allergies. About 29 percent said insomnia was more serious than allergies.While 78 percent of consumers felt sorry for allergy sufferers, 36 percent believed sufferers overstated the severity of their symptoms.

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FDA Approves Artiss Medical Adhesive for Burn Treatment

The medical adhesive Artiss has been approved for use in attaching skin grafts to treat burn patients, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said.

Artiss is a fibrin sealant, which is a tissue adhesive that contains the proteins fibrinogen and thrombin, which are essential to the clotting of blood. Artiss is different from other fibrin sealants in that it contains a lower concentration of thrombin, which gives surgeons more time to position skin grafts over burns before the graft starts to adhere to the skin. In addition, Artiss contains aprotinin, a synthetic protein that delays the breakdown of blood clots, the FDA said.

A study of 138 patients concluded that Artiss was as good as surgical staples in attaching skin grafts on wound sites. Artiss is made by Baxter Healthcare Corp. of Deerfield, Ill.