Zebra-Type Diagnosis: When Hoofbeats Really Are A Sign That Something Is Unusual, Online Communities Offer Help

Stat: When Hoofbeats Really Are A Zebra’s, A Rare-Disease Community Helps Me
While hospitalized for pneumonia a few months ago, my daughter’s doctors detected some unusually low blood sugar that needed to be investigated. “Common things being common,” I asked her endocrinologists during a follow-up visit, “what do you think is the most likely diagnosis?” As a new parent I was trying to understand what was wrong with my baby, and how much I needed to worry. As a doctor I was relying on probability to guide how I conceptualized her care. (Adaeze Okwerekwu, 3/2)

The New York Times: Before Prostate Surgery, Consider ‘Active Surveillance’
Howard Wolinsky is a medical journalist in Flossmoor, Ill., who knows better than to go forward with potentially life-changing surgery without first seeking a second opinion. Nine years ago, at age 63, when a PSA blood test followed by a biopsy revealed cancer in his prostate gland, the diagnosing urologist said he could operate to remove the offending organ the following week. Not so fast, Mr. Wolinsky thought, knowing this was not a minor operation that often left men temporarily or permanently impotent, incontinent or both. (Brody, 3/2)

The New York Times: Fatal Car Crashes Rise With Spring Clock Reset
Losing an hour’s sleep at the spring change to daylight saving time is at best inconvenient. Now new research suggests that it may be dangerous. A study in Current Biology reports that the risk of having a fatal traffic accident increases significantly in the week following the spring clock reset. (Bakalar, 3/2)

The Washington Post: Rat Control Starts By Changing Behavior Of People
For centuries, rats have thrived in cities because of human behavior. In response, humans have blamed the rats and developed techniques for poisoning them. We research urban rat populations and recognize that rats spread disease. But they are fascinating creatures that think, feel and show a high level of intelligence. Public concerns about rat poison harming wildlife are growing — a trend that we believe could eventually lead to rodenticide bans in many parts of the world. Without poison as an option, humans will need other rat control methods. (Parsons and Munshi-South, 3/1)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Flu Vaccine A Better Match This Year Against Prevailing Viruses: CDC
This year’s flu shot delivers a bigger punch against the illness than last year’s vaccine, which likely was an ingredient in keeping a bad flu season from turning into a really bad season, the federal government says. The vaccine for this year’s strain of influenza prevented about 55% of flu in children and 45% in adults, a major improvement over the effectiveness of the 2018-2019 injection, which was 29%, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported this month. (Saker, 2/28)

NBC News: 30 Years After Americans With Disability Act, College Students With Disabilities Say Law Is Not Enough
Kyle Cox was on his way to class during an ice storm in January 2019 when an outdoor wheelchair elevator at Texas A&M University malfunctioned. For 30 minutes, Cox, a graduate student, was trapped outside with sleet pelting him on an unseasonably frigid day in College Station. Building staff draped him in blankets and coats while they worked to free him from the handicap accessible lift designed to help disabled students access the building with ease. By the time he had cleaned up and composed himself, class was over. (Samee Ali, 3/1)

ABC News: Teens ‘Especially Vulnerable’ To Junk Food Advertising, Experts Say 
The inundation of junk food advertising is contributing to the rising rate of teen obesity — a public health crisis among a population that is “especially vulnerable” to the messaging, experts say. In 2016 alone, the food industry spent almost $14 billion on overall advertising to influence Americans’ food choices. The U.S. food system is the second-largest advertiser in the American economy, and views adolescents as a major market force, aggressively targeting them to build brand awareness, preference and loyalty. (David, 2/28)

The Washington Post: Exercise Can Help Young Cancer Patients Endure Chemotherapy
The day before Matthew Simon was to begin crew practice in 2015 as a sophomore at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, he was diagnosed with leukemia. Simon was a rower who worked out daily. His initial stay for treatment at Children’s Hospital was three weeks long, and the sedentary routine of chemotherapy was tough. “I got stir crazy,” Simon said. “Patients in a pediatric oncology unit are immunocompromised, so we couldn’t leave the floor. There’s not much to do but walk around.” (Opipari, 3/1)

Kaiser Health News: HHS Removed Images Of Condoms From HIV/AIDS Awareness Fliers
The Department of Health and Human Services stripped from a government website HIV/AIDS educational material that featured condoms, calling the images “unapproved,” according to official correspondence obtained by Kaiser Health News. The images had been included in a 2017 fact sheet posted by HHS’ Office on Women’s Health to mark National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. A directive to remove it from HHS servers was contained in an Aug. 1, 2017, email from a junior department employee to Palladian Partners, a federal contractor that specializes in communications about health and science education. (Pradhan, 3/2)

The Washington Post: Hand Tremor Treated With Ultrasound Surgery
“I use a spoon instead of a fork, so I spill less,” the patient said. “I eat sandwiches and hamburgers so I can use both hands to hold my food.” He was 73 and had suffered from essential tremor for the past decade. His hands would shake uncontrollably, more on the right than on the left, which would worsen if he tried using them. “I could still do crowns, but giving injections became impossible,” he said. His disease, gradual and grasping, had forced the Baltimore-area dentist into early retirement. (Ahmed, 3/1)