Baby Joseph death puts rare disease in spotlight
In this April 21, 2011, file photo provided by Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center, Moe Maraachli, center, with his son Joseph, reviews discharge plans with Dr. Robert Wilmott in St. Louis before leaving the hospital to return home to Ontario.
/ AP Photo(CBS/AP) Little Joseph Maraachli has died four months shy of his second birthday, a family spokesman said Wednesday.
The Canadian boy had been fighting a fatal neurological disorder known as Leigh Syndrome, a.k.a. Leigh's disease, and his parents' controversial bid to keep him alive against desperate odds had triggered an international debate on end-of-life care.
Widely known as Baby Joseph, the boy died at home Tuesday afternoon, according to Brother Paul O'Donnell of St. Paul, Minn., the family's spokesman and spiritual adviser. He said it was likely that the boy died of complications related to Leigh's disease but that the cause of death hadn't been announced.
FDA approves Solaris for deadly blood disease
Red blood cells
/ APThere are no other FDA-approved treatments for aHUS, in which the formation of clots within blood vessels can "shatter" blood cells, leading to kidney failure or stroke. Children are at greatest risk for the disease, according to website of the Foundation for Children with Atypical HUS.
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Do hospital privacy curtains spread illness?
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(CBS) Privacy may not be the only thing hospital curtains give patients.
Pictures: Deadly skin infection? 12 graphic photos that could save your life
A new study suggests privacy curtains may be a source of infectious bacteria, including potentially deadly staph.
Continue »Asthma inhalers being phased out by FDA: Why?
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(CBS/AP) Use an asthma inhaler? The FDA is asking you to go green.
As part of its continuing efforts to protect the Earth's atmosphere, asthma patients who rely on over-the-counter inhalers will be required to switch to prescription-only alternatives.
PICTURES - Asthma dangers: 8 things that trigger deadly attacks
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Polio in Pakistan, China alarms health officials
Polio virus.
/ istockphoto(CBS) Health officials are warning about the spread of polio in Pakistan and China.
The World Health Organization said there have been 84 cases in Pakistan as of September 13, up from 48 cases during the same period in 2010. And the same strain of polio in Pakistan has now spread to China.
PICTURES - Polio: 15 photos spotlight crippling disease
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Polio strain hits China: How about U.S. risk?
Poliomyelitis remains threat in many countries. This undated photo shows polio patients are in Sierra Leone.
/ World Health Organization(CBS/AP) Think poliomyelitis is a thing of the past? Polio is still a threat in several countries, including Afghanistan, India, Nigeria, and Pakistan - and the World Health Organization is warning that a "dangerous" strain of polio has spread from Pakistan to China.
PICTURES - Poliomyelitis: 15 photos spotlight crippling disease
Continue »Chronic diseases will cost $47 trillion by 2030
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(CBS) More and more people around the world are suffering from heart disease, chronic respiratory disease, cancer, diabetes and mental health woes. Now a new study from the World Economic Forum puts a price tag on the burden of these non-communicable diseases.
The study - called The Global Economic Burden of Non-communicable Diseases - found these five common, chronic diseases will cost the world $47 trillion by 2030. Mental health illnesses alone will account for $16 trillion in costs and lost wages. The findings were released before a United Nations summit on non-communicable diseases.
Drug-resistant TB worries health officials
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(CBS/AP) Health officials are sounding the alarm over the spread of dangerous forms of tuberculosis in Europe. The forms are worrisome because they exhibit drug resistance, meaning they are hard to kill with the drugs commonly used to treat TB.
"Nobody in Europe is 100 percent protected from drug-resistant tuberculosis," said Ogtay Gozalov, a medical officer at the World Health Organization. He characterized the disease's spread as "alarming," saying previous measures to contain the outbreak were inadequate.
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Listeria outbreak kills four - blame cantaloupe?
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(CBS/AP) An outbreak of Listeria illness has prompted local officials to send a strong message: If you live in Colorado, and have a weakened immune system, stay away from cantaloupe.
Pictures: Listeria: 7 key questions answered
Health officials from Colorado's Rocky Ford region issued the warning after reports that Listeria infection (listeriosis) killed four people in Colorado and New Mexico.
Continue »Alzheimer's linked to high cholesterol: Study
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(CBS) Add Alzheimer's to the list of diseases linked to unhealthy eating. A new study links high cholesterol to the degenerative neurological disorder, which affects 5.4 million Americans.
Pictures: Alzheimer's disease: 7 things that raise your risk
"We found that high cholesterol levels were significantly related to brain plaques associated with Alzheimer's disease," study author Dr. Kensuke Sasaki, researcher at Kyushu University in Fukuoka, Japan, said in a written statement.
Continue »More ground turkey recalled over salmonella fear
Ground turkey recall involves products sold under Kroger, Fresh HEB and Honeysuckle White brands
/ AP(CBS/AP) Cargill has issued a recall of about 185,000 pounds of ground turkey over fears the meat may be tainted with salmonella.
The recall, which was announced on Sunday, came after a test revealed salmonella bacteria in a sample from the same Arkansas plant tied to a recall issued last month.
PICTURES: 10 ways to catch salmonella
Continue » Cantaloupe blamed for deadly listeria outbreak
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PICTURES: 10 foods most likely to make you sick
Two people died after being infected by the bacteria in Colorado, but only one of the deaths has been tied to a multistate investigation focused on cantaloupe. Officials said two potentially related cases are in Texas and one in Nebraska.
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Black child with progeria is one of a kind
Progeria affects only two children in Africa, including 12-year-old Ontlametse Phalatse
(CBS/AP) Ontlametse Phalatse calls herself a "first lady" because she's the first black child diagnosed with progeria, the rare and fatal genetic disease that causes accelerated aging.
PICTURES - Progeria: First black child with rare aging disease
The 12-year-old South African girl with the elfin appearance has a big personality and a bright smile even though doctors say she may have only a couple of years left to live.
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Daily drink tied to successful aging in women
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(CBS) Alcoholic beverages seem to be the toast of longevity researchers.
A new study suggests that middle-aged women who drink alcohol regularly are more likely than occasional drinkers or nondrinkers to enjoy "successful aging." That's the researchers' term for being free of heart disease and other major chronic diseases and having no major mental or physical impairment.
Continue »Tick-borne parasite infecting blood supply: CDC
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(CBS) Little ticks are causing big trouble for the U.S. blood supply. A new study shows that people have contracted an infection known as babesiosis after receiving transfusions of blood contaminated with the tick-borne parasite that causes the potentially deadly disease.
There have been 159 cases of transfusion-related babesiosis between 1979 and 2009, according to the study, which was published online in the Annals of Internal Medicine. So far, transfusion-related babesiosis has been identified in 19 states.
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