Health Headlines
Possible measles exposure at Indiana children’s museum during total eclipse event, officials say
Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images(INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.) -- People who attended a total solar eclipse event at a children's museum in Indiana may have been exposed to measles, according to museum and health officials.An infected individual traveled to the event at the Children's Museum of Indianapolis on April 8 from out of state, the Marion County Public Health Department (MCPHD) said in a news release late Friday afternoon. Melissa McMasters, administrator of infectious disease and immunizations at the MCPHD, told ABC News the local county department was informed about the infected patient from the state Department of Health."Measles is one of those reportable diseases that's required to be reported by law because of the public health significance of it," she said.No ... Read More
Ground beef potentially contaminated with E. coli, USDA warns
USDA, Food Safety and Inspection Service(NEW YORK) -- A public health alert has been issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service for ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli bacteria.Raw ground beef produced by Greater Omaha Packing Co., Inc. on March 28, 2024, is no longer available for purchase so "a recall was not requested." Still, the government agency issued an alert last week to warn consumers and food service institutions who may have the product in their freezers."Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them and food service institutions are urged not to serve these products," the USDA alert stated. "These products should be thrown away or ... Read More
Mom of three survives stroke after giving birth, followed by car crash
Christina Aleksanian(GRANADA HILLS, Calif.) -- A mom-of-three in California is speaking out after surviving two near-death experiences in a span of six weeks.Christina Aleksanian, 36, of Granada Hills, was recovering in the hospital after giving birth to her third child, a daughter named Stephanie, when she said she felt her hand start to go numb.Aleksanian said she thought she was getting a migraine, but as she was talking to her daughter's pediatrician, who happened to be in the room at the moment, she became unresponsive."My pediatrician came in and was trying to talk to me and I don’t remember after that," Aleksanian told "Good Morning America." "My husband describes me as laying there with a very blank face."Aleksanian's husband, Gary ... Read More
New race-neutral kidney evaluation moves thousands of Black patients up transplant waitlist
Thir Sakdi Phu Cxm / EyeEm/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Jazmin Evans is one of more than 14,000 Black kidney transplant candidates who found out that an outdated medical test may have inappropriately calculated their need for a transplant.Evans, 29, was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease in January 2012. She started dialysis and was put on the kidney transplant waitlist in 2019."I just remember feeling, like, this is never gonna happen for me," she said, speaking with ABC News.The U.S. faces a dire kidney organ shortage, meaning patients with kidney failure must meet certain criteria to be considered good candidates for a transplant.One of those considerations is a test called the "eGFR" calculation, which is a measure of a person's kidney ... Read More
ParkRx aims to provide ‘prescription for wellness’ by getting more people outside
ABC News Medical Correspondent Dr. Darien Sutton walks through Rock Creek National Park in Washington, D.C. with Walk with a Doc board member Chaun Hightower. (Paul Dougherty/ABC News)(NEW YORK) -- A community health initiative that partnered with the National Park Service has doctors writing a "prescription" for wellness by getting more people outdoors."When I look across our medical system and the ability of doctors to use all the tools that they can — our parks prescription program is probably a key to that," National Park Service Director Chuck Sams told ABC News. "Getting [people] outside into the national parks, or any park for that matter, so that they can enjoy and get through recovery, so that they can reduce their ... Read More
4-year-old who received new heart after waiting 1,025 days goes home from hospital
Texas Children's Hospital(NEW YORK) -- A 4-year-old girl was discharged from Texas Children's Hospital on Thursday after waiting on the organ transplant waiting list for 1,025 days, or nearly 3 years.The staff at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston lined the halls on April 18 to give 4-year-old Arctura, who received a donor heart on March 29, a celebratory send-off parade."I like my new heart," Arctura said ahead of her discharge, adding that she was looking forward to seeing "the ducks and the turtles" at the local park.Arctura's journey has been a long one. According to her parents and doctor, the 4-year-old was born with a congenital heart defect, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes is the most ... Read More
Trans care restrictions force some families to travel hours, spend hundreds for treatment
Flavio Coelho/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Misty Stamm was working tirelessly to figure out the details: waking up early, the hourslong drives, booking hotels and finding doctors who could legally administer gender-affirming hormone therapy to her 16-year-old transgender daughter.Stamm is living in one of the 24 states where legislation is restricting gender-affirming health care for transgender youth, so she and parents like her must make long, expensive trips out of their home states to find the care their children need, according to a new report from the Southern Equality Research and Policy Center.“If we didn't have the care, I don't think she'd be alive,” said Stamm.Stamm, who lives in Tennessee, drove five hours to get her daughter to a gender clinic ... Read More
Couples allege IVF provider destroyed their embryos in toxic solution: Lawsuit
Carlos Duarte/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) -- Two couples have filed lawsuits against in vitro fertilization provider Ovation Fertility alleging its clinic destroyed their embryos when a lab employee wrongly used hydrogen peroxide instead of a sterile solution in an incubator.The couples allege that the clinic still used the embryos despite knowing they were nonviable. Neither woman got pregnant.In two nearly identical lawsuits filed on Thursday against Ovation Fertility in Newport Beach, California, two unnamed couples are asserting multiple claims, including negligent misrepresentation, fraud, negligence and medical battery. The couples are not revealing their names in the lawsuits to protect their privacy, according to the suits.Embryos belonging to likely dozens of patients were destroyed by hydrogen peroxide in the latter half of ... Read More
ER visits for heat illness rose in 2023 amid record-breaking temperatures: CDC
SimpleImages/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Heat-related emergency room visits increased in 2023 in the U.S. compared to previous years, according to new federal data.Between Jan. 1, 2023 and Dec. 31, 2023, there were a total of 119,605 ER visits for heat-related illnesses, with 92% of those visits occurring between May and September, according to a report published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.July and August had higher than average ER visits due to heat than other warm-season months, including May, June and September, according to the report, which looked at data of ER visits caused by heat in 2023 and compared it t visits between 2018 and 2022. These findings are "consistent with record-breaking temperatures observed … in ... Read More
Evidence of racial disparities in health care reported in every US state: New report
ATU Images/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Racial and ethnic disparities in health care are evident in every state, even those with robust health systems, according to a new analysis from the Commonwealth Fund.In the analysis from the organization, which is aimed at promoting equitable health care, researchers found health system performance is markedly worse for many people of color compared to white people."Even among high performing states, we see significant disparities," Joseph Betancourt, M.D., president of the Commonwealth Fund, said in a report on the organization’s updated findings.Six states were found to have better-than-average health system performance among all racial or ethnic groups, including Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Hampshire and New York. However, even among these high-scoring health systems, ... Read More
Consequences of aging, why we die explained by Nobel biologist
ABC(NEW YORK) -- Nobel Prize-winning molecular biologist Venki Ramakrishnan sat down with ABC News Live to discuss the science and ethics of extending the human lifespan.In his new book, "Why We Die: The New Science of Aging and the Quest for Immortality," Ramakrishnan explains why we may not want to lengthen our lives much longer.Ramakrishnan's thought-provoking argument is that a society where people lived for hundreds of years could potentially become stagnant, as it would consist of the same group of people living longer, raising important questions about societal dynamics and progress.He discussed the cycle of life and why we die.ABC NEWS LIVE: If you think it might be wonderful to live forever, you may want to hear what a ... Read More
Human infections from rat urine on the rise in New York City
Thir Sakdi Phu Cxm / EyeEm/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The New York Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has released a health advisory after multiple cases of human leptospirosis -- an infection that is associated to exposure to rat urine -- have been reported so far this year in New York City.There were 24 cases of leptospirosis in the city in 2023, higher than in any prior year, according to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.However, in the first quarter of this year alone, there have already been six to date.“For comparison, the average number of locally acquired cases during 2021 to 2023 was 15 per year, and 3 cases per year during 2001 to 2020,” health officials ... Read More
Melatonin makers urged to follow new packaging, labeling guidelines to protect kids
Grace Cary/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- A trade association is calling on melatonin makers to follow new guidelines on labeling and packaging for their products amid a rise in emergency room visits and calls to poison centers for accidental ingestion of melatonin by children.The new guidelines, announced Monday by the Council for Responsible Nutrition, which represents the dietary supplement and functional food industry, call for melatonin-containing products to be sold in child-deterrent packaging and to caution consumers on the label that the products are for intermittent use only, may cause drowsiness and should not be taken with alcohol.The guidelines also focus specifically on melatonin products that are sold in the shape of gummies, which can be more appealing to kids.The guidelines ... Read More
What to know about the counterfeit, mishandled Botox injections causing harmful effects across US
CDC.gov(NEW YORK) -- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- alongside the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and local and state health departments -- is continuing to investigate after 19 people across nine states have experienced harmful reactions after being given botulinum toxin injections.The injections were either counterfeit or administered by unlicensed or untrained individuals and/or in non-health care settings, including homes or spas, according to the CDC.On Tuesday, the FDA issued an alert to health care professionals and consumers that "unsafe counterfeit versions of Botox" were found in multiple states, warning that bogus or mishandled Botox products can lead to serious complications.What is Botox?Botulinum toxin is a neurotoxic protein made from a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium ... Read More
Kansas governor vetoes gender-affirming trans care ban
Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images(TOPEKA, Ks.) -- Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat, vetoed a ban on gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth in the state."This divisive legislation targets a small group of Kansans by placing government mandates on them and dictating to parents how to best raise and care for their children," said Kelly in a veto message on Friday. "I do not believe that is a conservative value, and it's certainly not a Kansas value."She vetoed a similar bill almost one year ago, saying, "Companies have made it clear that they are not interested in doing business with states that discriminate against workers and their families."She continued, "By stripping away rights from Kansans and opening the state up to ... Read More
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