September 11, 2015 (Santee)--The death of a 79-year-old San Diego woman on Sept. 8 and the recent hospitalization of an 80-year-old Santee woman are under investigation as probable West Nile virus cases, the County Health and Human Services Agency announced today. The 80-year-old woman is currently recovering.

September 9, 2015 (San Diego's East County)-- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Bill Giving Dying Patients Easier Access To Experimental Drugs Heads To Governor's Desk (KPBS)
• Check Out Life Spans Around The World — And Likely Years Of Ill Health (NPR)
• Test shows how old your body really is (BBC)
• Weight loss surgery 'cures diabetes' (BBC)
• An upstart in the certification of doctors (APM)

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

• DNA cracks puzzle of Basque origins (BBC)
• Why did 60,000 Antelopes die in 4 days? (CS Monitor)
• Restless nights? Smart devices may help ease you through the twilight hours (Reuters)
• In California's Protected Waters, Counting Fish Without Getting Wet (NPR)
• Why Are Women Less Likely To Become Entrepreneurs Than Men? (NPR)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

Event includes Hors d’oeuvres and Discussion on Flibanserin and Other Sexual Health/Relationship Topics for Women

September 7, 2015 (San Diego)-- With FDA approval of the new libido drug for women – flibanserin – women finally have options. This is the first FDA libido drug approved for women, despite the fact that Viagra was approved for men 17 years ago.

San Diego women are invited to attend “Sex in Our City” seminar to learn more about flibanserin (to be marketed as Addyi), as well as what else on the horizon for women in terms of dealing with low sex drives, sexual health in young women and pre- and post-menopause, bedroom secrets to enhance your relationship, hormone treatments and alternatives, and other topics.

San Diego import company Andrew and Williamson Fresh Produce (A&W) is likely source; consumers are advised to avoid cucumbers grown in Mexico

September 4, 2015 (San Diego)--A 99-year-old San Diego woman who died on Aug. 17 is part of a national outbreak of salmonella Poona that has been linked to imported cucumbers, the County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) announced today.  A San Diego-based importer of cucumbers from Mexico has been identified as the likely source.

The woman, 15 other San Diego residents and three visitors to the county are part of a multi-state outbreak of salmonella Poona, which has sickened 285 people in 27 states according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Most of the reported illnesses occurred in August. However the outbreak is ongoing and more cases are being reported. Approximately one-third of those who were ill have been hospitalized and the San Diego resident is the only reported death.

August 29, 2015 (San Diego)--Saturday, September 26 is Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. You can drop off your unused prescription drugs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at locations throughout the county.  For a full list of locations in San Diego County including numerous East County sites, view the flyer.

August 26, 2015 (La Mesa)--Hart Optical Co., 8685 La Mesa Blvd., La Mesa, is noting August as “Children’s Eye Health and Safety Awareness Month” with back-to-school tips about children’s vision. “Approximately one in four school age children have some type of vision problem which can affect their success in school,” said Michael Emerson, a Registered Ophthalmic Dispenser who has owned and operated Hart Optical Co. since 1987.

Nationally Recognized Sexual Medicine Expert, Dr. Irwin Goldstein of San Diego, Discusses Flibanserin and Lack of Libido Drugs for Women

East County News Service

August 24, 2015 (San Diego) – Although there are 26 drugs approved to treat male sexual dysfunction, there are no drugs specifically approved to increase women’s libido. On August 18,  the FDA approved the first drug, flibanserin—nicknamed “female Viagra.”

August 22, 2015 (San Diego's East County)-- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• No ordinary Patient: How Jimmy Carter’s Stage IV melanoma will be treated (CNN)
• Engineers Make Narcotics With Yeast. Is Home-Brewed Heroin Next? (NPR)
• New Study Suggests Link Between Pot Shops, Marijuana-Related Hospitalizations (KPBS)
• San Diego couple trying to stop time with Novocure (ABC 10 News)
• 'Drinkable book' could give millions access to clean water (CS Monitor)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• What’s the Problem with Urban Agriculture? (Landscape Architects Network)
• We’ve Consumed More Than the Earth Can Produce This Year (National Geographic)
• NASA finds super-Earth just 21 light years away (+video)
• SoCal To Alaska - Likely Largest On Record
• Global 'food shocks' risk increasing (BBC)
• Suez Canal Expansion Opened With Pomp And Ceremony (NPR)
• When a man shoots his neighbor's drone, whose rights are violated? (CS Monitor)
• Hacked Jeep Cherokee exposes weak underbelly of high-tech cars (Automotive News)
• Experts see long-term calamity from Colorado mine spill (CS Monitor)
• Angry eagle attacks UAV: How do drones affect wildlife? (CS Monitor)
• NASA to Begin Testing Air-Traffic-Control System for Drones (Reason)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Mark and Miriam Raftery at SDG&E community partners event

August 10, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – East County Magazine, a publication of the nonprofit Heartland Coalition, and Grossmont Hospital will each receive a $500 Energy Solutions Partner Award from San Diego Gas & Electric Company.

August 4, 2015 (La Mesa)--The Grossmont Healthcare District’s Dr. William C. Herrick Community Health Care Library, 9001 Wakarusa St. in La Mesa, will host a free program on “Help Save a Life from Sudden Cardiac Arrest” from 10 to 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 26. The program is part of the library’s Wellness Wednesday series, normally held on the fourth Wednesday of the month.

The speaker on Aug. 26 will be Maureen O’Connor, program manager, San Diego Project Heart Beat, the city of San Diego’s Public Access Defibrillation/CPR program managed by the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.

Update August 4, 2015: County health officials have confirmed at least four norovirus cases among the stricken diners. 

East County News Service

August 3, 2015 (San Diego) – More than 60 people have fallen ill after dining at the Bali Hai restaurant on Shelter Island during the Society of Professional Journalists annual awards banquet on Thursday, July 30^th, according to Matt Hall, president of SPJ’s San Diego chapter. Several individuals were hospitalized with food poisoning symptoms, though most have recovered.

Hear our interview with Dr. Richard O. Butcher on KNSJ radio:

https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

 

July  29, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – The National Medical Association has awarded long-time local physician Dr. Richard O. Butcher, an El Cajon resident, its prestigious Practitioner of the Year Award.

Dr. Butcher, 76, is an institution in San Diego’s medical, philanthropic and sports communities. He’s been in private practice in Southeastern San Diego for decades. He is president of the Care View Medical Group and past Chief of Staff at Alvarado Hospital. He’s also past president of the San Diego Medical Association and has served on many boards.

East County News Service

July 28, 2015 (Washington D.C.) – A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) shows dramatic improvements in the care and safety of Medicare patients.  Across the nation, the death rate among Medicare patients fell 16% from 1999 to 2013. In addition, hospitalizations dropped sharply – and costs also fell sharply.

July 22, 2015 (San Diego)--Seeing summer rain in San Diego County is more than a shock — it’s also a good time to remind people to protect themselves against West Nile virus by making sure to mosquito-proof or dump out standing water around their homes.

While no one has been diagnosed with West Nile virus in the county this year, the disease has been more apparent than it has in many years. Midway through 2015, the County’s Department of Environmental Health has already collected more infected dead birds, 61, and mosquito batches, nine, than it did all last year when 11 San Diego County residents were diagnosed with the disease and two people died.

East County News Service

July 19, 2015 (La Mesa)—Hospitals must release their rates of readmission and serioscomplications, due to a new Medicare requirement in the Affordable Care Act—and pay penalties for poor results.  That’s producing positive results, pushing hospitals  to work to improve those numbers and patient wellbeing.

For example, a study by BetterDoctors.com found that from mid-2010 to mid-2013, Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa ranked fourth worst in the nation for readmissions and complications. The good news is that since then, Grossmont's numbers have improved dramatically, according to Better Doctors and Grossmont, and penalty fees have dropped sharply as a result. Th hospital has also won several awards and honors for its patient care.