Bacteria played a role in 1918 pandemic flu deaths, scientists say

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September 2, 2008 - Tuesday

Voiceover World Loses Don LaFontaine
Current mood:

sad
Category: Movies, TV, Celebrities

DONALD LAFONTAINE
August 26, 1940 – September 1, 2008

You may not recognize Don LaFontaine but you've heard his voice thousands of times. He has done voice over work for over five thousand movies. LaFontaine was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California with a blood clot in his lungs on August 22, 2008, and was reported as being in critical condition the following Tuesday. His family made a public appeal on the Mediabistro.com site. LaFontaine died September 1, 2008 following complications from "Collapsed lung" (Pneumothorax).

Don LaFontaine: The Voice
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QPMvj_xejg

Don LaFontaine GEICO Spot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJMGS7l0wT8

Official Website
http://www.donlafontaine.com

Internet Movie Database
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0480963/

Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_LaFontaine

3:00 PM

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September 1, 2008 - Monday

Dear Friends, Please VOTE for My Cats!
Current mood:

curious
Category: Pets and Animals

I'd really appreciate it if you'd check out my cat's profiles and vote for them (a "VOTE" button is at the top of each page). You'll have to create an account, but aren't my babies worth it? And then you can also create a profile for your cat(s)! Be sure to tell me and I'll vote for yours, too! THANKS! Have a Happy Labor Day!

Trixie's Page
http://www.catchannel.com/blog/viewbio.aspx?apid=99613

Harley's Page
http://www.catchannel.com/blog/viewbio.aspx?apid=99614

Gracie's Page
http://www.catchannel.com/blog/viewbio.aspx?apid=99615

Stormy's Page
http://www.catchannel.com/blog/viewbio.aspx?apid=99616

12:48 PM

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August 31, 2008 - Sunday

Are You a Victim of a Medical Error?
Current mood:

blessed
Category: Life

ARE YOU A PATIENT VICTIM OF AN ERROR AND COMPLICATION?

DO YOU WANT TO TELL YOUR STORY?

Dr. Evelyn Li, cardiologist in San Francisco and the producer of "Life for Sale" documentary, has been contacted by NBC who would like to nationally air our concerns regarding the Healthcare Quality Improvement Act ("HCQIA"). If you are a patient victim of an error and complication, for example: (i) a victim of a premature discharge by a hospital, (ii) a victim of an unnecessary procedure by a hospital, or (iii) a victim who is unable to launch a malpractice lawsuit, because no doctor will testify due to the hospital placing threats to any doctor who will come forward and testify, please come forward and contact:

Dr. Li at: (510) 449-2929, or e-mail at: dr.evelynli@gmail.com

Please help reform the "HCQIA" by adding your name and comment to the "Improvement in Quality of Patient Care Petition."

www.LeapforPatientSafety.org

6:11 AM

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http://ktla.trb.com/news/local/ktla-hospital-fines,0,6213436.story

August 20, 2008 - Wednesday

7 SoCal Hospitals Fined For Medical Errors
Current mood:

disgusted
Category: Life

7 SoCal Hospitals Fined For Medical Errors

KTLA News

August 18, 2008, 8:58 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES -- Seven hospitals in L.A. and Orange counties were fined today by the state for mistakes that included leaving surgical tools in patients and over-medicating a patient.

"Ensuring all Californians receive quality patient care is our top priority," said Kathleen Billingsley, deputy director of the Center for Health Care Quality with the California Department of Public Health.

Statewide, fines were levied against a total of 18 hospitals -- some of which had multiple violations -- for "incidents that caused, or were likely to cause, serious injury or death to patients."

Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance was fined $25,000 for failing to accurately label tissue specimens, which led to unnecessary surgery for one patient and delayed treatment for another, according to DPH.

The hospital received a second $25,000 penalty for failing to provide screening examinations and stabilizing medical care in a timely manner for two patients, according to the state healthcare agency.

Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center was fined $25,000 for not providing adequate nursing staff for a suicide watch to meet the needs of a patient, DPH found.

Five hospitals in Orange County were fined $25,000 per violation cited by the state.

Anaheim General Hospital received two violations for failing to ensure medical devices were electronically safe and for failing to maintain the pharmacy's refrigerated temperatures.

Coastal Communities Hospital in Santa Ana was fined for over-medicating a patient, resulting in death.

At Fountain Valley Regional Hospital, doctors left a sponge in a patient following surgery.

At Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, hospital staff left a surgical instrument in a patient.

At Los Alamitos Medical Center, a patient died after falling out of a wheelchair. State regulators found hospital staff failed to buckle the person into the chair.

The hospitals may appeal the penalties by requesting a hearing within 10 days of notification.

VIDEO AND STORY CAN BE FOUND AT:

1:37 PM

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http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-flu18-2008aug18,0,2160309.story

August 18, 2008 - Monday

Bacteria played a role in 1918 pandemic flu deaths
Current mood:

tired
Category: Life

Bacteria played a role in 1918 pandemic flu deaths, scientists say

The 1918 pandemic flu swept the globe, killing an estimated 50 million people. Even healthy adults were felled by bacterial infections after their immune system had been weakened.

The virus triggered a violent immune response that injured the lungs, making them a target for bacterial infection, two studies say. The findings may guide preparations for future outbreaks.

By Mary Engel, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
August 18, 2008

Most deaths in the 1918 influenza pandemic were due not to the virus alone but to common bacterial infections that took advantage of victims' weakened immune systems, according to two new studies that could change the nation's strategy against the next pandemic.

"We have to realize that it isn't just antivirals that we need," said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and coauthor of one study. "We need to make sure that we're prepared to treat people with antibiotics," said Fauci, whose study will be released online this month by the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

In both studies, scientists analyzed a trove of historical documents from around the world, examining firsthand accounts, medical records and autopsy reports.

Writing about the 1918 influenza outbreak in the August issue of the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases, researchers reported that few deaths were swift, which is what scientists believed characterized a viral pandemic. Instead, they found most deaths occurred a week to two weeks later -- indicating the deaths were the result of opportunistic bacterial infections.

Most of the bacteria recovered from patients, dead or alive, are common colonizers of the noses and throats of healthy people, according to coauthors Dr. John F. Brundage, a medical epidemiologist at the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center in Silver Spring, Md., and Dr. G. Dennis Shanks, director of the Australian Army Malaria Institute in Queensland.

Both groups of researchers were trying to understand why the 1918 virus -- a novel strain of influenza for which few people had natural immunity -- was so lethal. The virus swept the globe, killing an estimated 50 million people, striking down young, healthy adults even though influenza usually kills the very young, the elderly and the chronically ill.

It has long been recognized that most flu deaths are due to pneumonia caused by secondary bacterial infections.

But to explain the 1918 pandemic's unusual virulence, many scientists had come to believe the virus killed by provoking an overzealous, destroy-the-village-to-save-it immune response, especially in young adults with robust immune systems.

In a previous experiment, scientists reconstructed the 1918 virus -- using a genetic blueprint pieced together in 2005 from scraps of frozen DNA -- and injected it in mice and monkeys. The animals' immune systems responded violently, inflaming and flooding their lungs with blood and fluids, essentially drowning them.

A similar overkill response has been seen in deaths from the ongoing avian flu outbreak that began in Asia. Capable of jumping the species barrier, the H5N1 virus has infected 385 people, killing 243 of them, and scientists fear that it could mutate easily from human to human instead of bird to human.

The two new studies suggest the 1918 virus did induce severe immune reactions, particularly among young adults. But what made the reaction so deadly was that it destroyed the lining of the respiratory system, making it easier for bacteria to infect the lungs.

In most infected populations, Brundage and Shanks found less than 5% of flu deaths occurred within three days of the illness' onset. The median time from the onset of symptoms until death was 7 to 10 days. A significant number died two weeks after their initial symptoms, which is typical of bacterial pneumonia.

Michael Katze, a University of Washington virologist who was a lead scientist in the mice and monkey experiments, said the animals' violent and rapid immune response made it "almost unreasonable" to expect victims of the 1918 virus to live long enough to develop secondary infections.

But he acknowledged the flu pandemic deaths could have been the result of a polymicrobial infection -- a co-infection by multiple microbes.

"Certainly the idea that resident bacteria flora already present could play a role in developing pneumonia is relatively reasonable," he said. "If the 1918 flu had any impact that compromised [immune] function, it could render a normal resident bacteria pathological."

So far, public health officials around the world have focused on stockpiling vast quantities of vaccines and antiviral drugs to combat future pandemic flu strains.

Fauci said scientists also needed to develop new antibiotics as well as vaccines against bacteria, especially against a virulent strain of Staphylococcus aureus that has been linked to seasonal flu deaths and is resistant to many antibiotics.

mary.engel@latimes.com

11:09 PM

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August 10, 2008 - Sunday

Anaheim Hospital Cited for Infection Violations +
Current mood:

angry
Category: Life

Anaheim General Hospital hit with dozens of citations over staffing, care

The findings put the hospital's funding at risk and come as its owner, Pacific Health, is named in a suit accusing it of defrauding the Medi-Cal and Medicare programs.

By Daniel Costello
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

August 7 2008

An Anaheim hospital that treats a large share of poor patients in the region has been slapped with dozens of citations by two independent sets of regulators for inadequate staffing and poor medical care.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-anaheim7-2008aug07,0,5690050.story

Visit latimes.com at http://www.latimes.com

5:11 AM

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From: http://news.awn.com/index.php?ltype=top&newsitem_no=24212

August 5, 2008 - Tuesday

Frank Welker Voices Scooby-Doo in Prequel
Current mood:

bored
Category: Movies, TV, Celebrities

Scooby-Doo Live-Action Prequel In 2009

August 01, 2008

Cartoon Network and Warner Premiere have announced the start of production on SCOOBY-DOO: IN THE BEGINNING, an all-new, live-action prequel that will be debut on the network fall 2009 to coincide with the DVD release. This original movie will commence principal photography on August 4, 2008 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

SCOOBY-DOO: IN THE BEGINNING is set prior to the 2002 and 2004 live-action Scooby-Doo films. The newest entry in the popular franchise finds the Mystery Inc. gang, a mismatched quartet of unlikely teenage pals, uniting for the first time to solve the haunting of their high school. The film is a co-production between Warner Premiere and Cartoon Network. Warner Home Video will be the home entertainment distributor.

Brian Levant (THE FLINTSTONES, BEETHOVEN) will direct, Brian Gilbert (THE DEATHS OF IAN STONE) will produce and the Altiere Brothers (DOCTOR DOLITTLE, GOIN' HOLLYWOOD) wrote the script.

The live-action cast is headed by Rob Amell (LIFE WITH DEREK, CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN 2) as Freddy along with relative newcomers Kaitlyn Melton as Daphne, Hayley Alcroft as Velma and Nick Palatas as Shaggy.

Scooby-Doo will appear via computer-generated animation (courtesy of Animation Picture Company), and his voice will be provided by Frank Welker. Welker was a core member of the original SCOOBY-DOO, WHERE ARE YOU? cast as the voice of Freddy. He has preformed voiceover work in more than 500 animated television series spanning thousands of episodes, and is regarded as the preeminent voiceover specialist for animals and obscure sounds in Hollywood.

An animated creation from the legendary Hanna-Barbara studios, SCOOBY-DOO represents one of the longest-running, most-beloved franchises in cartoon history. Starting with SCOOBY-DOO, WHERE ARE YOU? in 1969, the awkward, snack-craving Great Dane and his four unique pals have been solving mysteries through 10 televisions series (spanning nearly 300 episodes), seven TV specials/telefilms and 11 made-for-video films (with No. 12, SCOOBY-DOO AND THE GOBLIN KING, arriving in September 2008).

4:25 AM

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July 28, 2008 - Monday

Designing New Hospitals to Stem Infections
Current mood:

exhausted
Category: Life

Please check out: http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-architecture28-2008jul28,0,5907587.story for this and other related stories. Thank you!

Hospitals, using single-bed rooms and improved ventilation, work to get healthier

FROM ROOM TO ROOF: At Kaiser Permanente's new Panorama City hospital, air is exhausted directly so infections aren't circulated.

Architects are designing new facilities with stemming the spread of infection in mind.

By Lisa Zamosky, Special to The Times
July 28, 2008

WITH hospital-acquired infections claiming more American lives each year than AIDS, breast cancer or automobile accidents, it seems the very facilities built to heal us have themselves become dangerous places.

Two million patients each year suffer from a hospital-acquired infection, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say, and nearly 100,000 of them die as a result. Architects believe that doesn't have to be the case.

The right physical environment -- single-patient rooms; well-designed ventilation systems and air filters; easy-to-clean, nonporous surface materials; and plenty of sinks for washing hands -- could reduce the spread of infection, they say. They even have research supporting the concept, known as evidence-based design. Now hospitals across the country, including many in California, are using this information to reduce infections from the ground up. The Center for Health Design, a research and advocacy organization based in Concord, Calif., is currently working with 50 hospitals to design safer facilities. And some of Southern California's largest medical center replacement projects, including Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center and UCLA Medical Center, have incorporated elements of evidence-based designs. These include private patient rooms, ubiquitous hand-washing sinks and alcohol hand-sanitizing dispensers, isolation rooms for highly infectious patients and emergency departments with negative air pressure, which pulls infectious air away from other parts of the hospital.

"Private rooms are the most important design element that reduces the spread of infection between patients," says Richard Van Enk, director of infection control and epidemiology for Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo, Mich. Bronson is a pioneer of evidence-based design and was among the first hospitals in the United States to build a facility with all private patient rooms.

The hospital's new design also incorporates two sinks in each patient room, one of which is dedicated for the exclusive use of the healthcare worker. Many easily cleaned surface materials such as water-based low VOC (volatile organic chemical) paint, plastic counter coverings and linoleum floorings with antimicrobial properties were also used throughout the hospital.

Bronson measured the difference in infection rates between its old, multi-bed-room facility and new, private-room facility, which opened in December 2000, and discovered that the infection rate had dropped by approximately 11%. "The major change in that facility was the use of private rooms," Van Enk says.

Requiring patients to share space increases the risk of airborne infections. One of the most striking examples was the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome -- SARS -- in Toronto in 2003. About 75% of those SARS cases were acquired in the hospital, according to a 2003 study published in the Journal of Emergency Nursing.

Multi-bed spaces in emergency rooms and ICUs, combined with few available isolation rooms with negative airflow pressure, hindered hospital workers' ability to treat and control the syndrome, which is spread by tiny atomized droplets from coughing individuals, much like influenza and chickenpox, said Roger Ulrich, a member of the board of directors for the Center for Health Design. "This underscored dramatically the need for single rooms, not only in intensive care units, not only in traditional wards, but in emergency departments. And the need for not only single spaces for each bed, but for appropriate ventilation and air filtration."

Shared rooms also increase the spread of disease through contact, Ulrich said. For example, a patient in a shared room with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, can, within hours, contaminate surfaces such as bed rails, tables and bathroom fixtures. In fact, a 2004 study published in the Journal of Hospital Infection showed that the contamination rates of surfaces with MRSA in surgical wards of a London teaching hospital were as high as 74% in spaces occupied by a patient with MRSA.

MRSA is resistant to many antibiotics and occurs most commonly in hospital patients or those in other healthcare facilities, such as nursing homes.

The evidence that shared hospital rooms contribute greatly to higher infection rates, as well as a host of medical errors, privacy violations and added patient stress, is so compelling that the American Institute of Architects -- in its 2006 guidelines for healthcare facilities -- called for single-patient rooms in medical/surgical and postpartum units as the standard for all newly constructed hospitals. The effect of such a change appears to be dramatic: Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, for example, saw a 67% drop in medication errors when it changed its coronary intensive care unit to single-bed rooms.

The American Institute of Architects guidelines have now been adopted by more than 43 states, said Peter Bardwell, president of the institute's Academy of Architecture for Health. "This was the first document to state without equivocation that unless there is some indicator of extraordinary hardship, all newly constructed patient rooms should be single occupancy."

health@latimes.com

BLOGGER'S NOTE: THE FACILITY PICTURED ABOVE IS THE VERY SAME HOSPITAL THAT SENT MY DAD HOME WITH MRSA, C. DIFF AND VRE INFECTIONS. HE SPREAD THE MRSA TO ME, MY ROOMIE AND MY SISTER-IN-LAW. I THEN GOT NECROTIZING FASCIITIS AND NEARLY DIED. SINCE THEY WERE ALREADY BUILDING THE NEW FACILITY, EVEN BACK IN 2003 WHEN MY NIGHTMARE BEGAN, I GUESS THEY DECIDED TO TRY TO ALSO REGAIN SOME CONTROL OVER INFECTION. GOOD FOR THEM. (BUT TOO LATE FOR DAD.)

4:28 PM

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3vkR7BzWl8

July 28, 2008 - Monday

VIDEO: How to Stop Hospital Infections
Current mood:

lonely
Category: Life

Important Video: How to stop Hospital Infections

Fox11 News in Los Angeles reports on the very disturbing trend of more and more patients picking up stubborn, dangerous infections while in the hospital. Such was the case with necrotizing fasciitis Survivor Alicia Cole. Now Dr. Alfonso Torres Cook is fighting back against infections using a common-sense plan of attack, and drugs have nothing to do with it. More hospitals should follow his lead.

6:45 AM

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July 25, 2008 - Friday

MRSA (staph) Kills SoCal High School Wrestler
Current mood:

bummed
Category: Life

The media tends to focus on the deaths caused by MRSA. I hope they will soon begin to recognize and turn their attention to the survivors (like me), as well. There are lifelong issues and problems that I will blog about in detail over time.

Meanwhile, this story, sadly, is exactly why I feel I must try so hard to raise MRSA awareness. Far too many people think MRSA can't happen to them. It can. No matter how clean you are or how much you wash your hands. MRSA can have very dire consequences. If you have a rash, boil or other suspicious wound, please see your doctor.

Staph infection kills Southern California high school wrestler:
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-me-wrestlerdeath25-2008jul25,0,1153232.story?track=rss

It also needs to be said that in addition to skin-to-skin contact, MRSA CAN be passed on via medical or athletic equipment, and via bodily secretions. On my local news, they confirmed that many doctors still dismiss the rash caused by MRSA as chicken pox or spider bites.

A friend of mine (Nora) was misdiagnosed that way. She had to insist she be tested for MRSA. Once MRSA was confirmed, the staff finally got serious, saving her affected toe and, possibly, her life.

7:34 AM

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http://www.myfoxla.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=6983808&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=3.2.1

July 15, 2008 - Tuesday

VIDEO/INFO: Finding New Ways to Prevent HAIs*
Current mood:

determined
Category: Life

My friend and fellow NF Survivor, Alicia Cole is featured online at:

MyFox Los Angeles | Local Doctor Finding New Ways to Prevent Hospital Infections

When people go to the hospital, they are not supposed to get more sick while there. But in a very disturbing trend, more and more patients are picking up stubborn, dangerous infections while in the hospital. Now one doctor is fighting back using a common-sense plan of attack, and drugs have nothing to do with it. Christine Devine has the story in this video report.

MyFox Los Angeles | Hospital Infections: More Info Here

http://www.myfoxla.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=6983363&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1

For more on Dr. Alfonso Torres Cook and Pacific Hospital of Long Beach go to www.phlb.org.

The Alliance for Safety Awareness for Patients (ASAP) is a non-profit organization formed by Alicia Cole and her parents Ron & Betty Cole to educate and protect patients through awareness of hospital acquired infections. You can learn more at the official website at www.PatientSafetyASAP.org.

Alicia Cole has also been working in conjunction with some other organizations to council victims and to help end the spread of hospital acquired infections. A great survivor group for anyone with Necrotizing Fasciitis is The National Necrotizing Fasciitis Foundation. You can learn more at the official website at www.NNFF.org.

Alicia has also been working to get protective legislation passed. Other awareness campaigns have been working closely with Consumers Union (the publishers of Consumer Reports Magazine), and their website is www.StopHospitalInfections.org.

A great source of information on the impact of hospital acquired infections and the battle to reduce them is www.hospitalinfection.org.

Let me know what you thought about the video ... it doesn't load on my dial-up!

Thanks,

Doreen

*HAIs = HealthCare Associated Infections or Hospital Acquired Infections

Stage, Voice and Screen
SITES BY DOREEN
http://www.leftforever.com

6:31 PM

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July 13, 2008 - Sunday

Two MUST READ articles in Sunday’s L.A. Times
Current mood:

neglected
Category: Life

As an NF survivor, myself, I can not say this enough: Please educate yourself! Learn everything you can about infection BEFORE undergoing any surgical procedures! Know what the symptoms of infection are. Do not be naive enough to think that the medical staff will do this for you! You need to know the early warning signs to lessen any damage that may occur, if you are unfortunate enough to acquire any harmful bacteria in the hospital!

My friend and fellow NF survivor, Alicia Cole, is featured in not one, but two articles in today's L.A. Times. In fact, one of the stories is just about her illness! WTG, Alicia! I'm so glad you are getting so much press! Not only do I applaud your efforts to raise awareness, I just know you are going to change this god-awful health care system we all must rely upon!

Here are links to the L.A. Times articles:

She expected routine surgery -- but not flesh-eating bacteria

Two years later, Alicia Cole says she's still recovering from her experience at Providence Saint Joseph. The hospital says it ranks 'above average' in the state for surgical infection prevention.

By Rong-Gong Lin II
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

July 13 2008

On Aug. 15, 2006, Alicia Cole entered Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center for a routine surgery -- removing noncancerous growths from her uterus.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/medicine/la-me-infectionside13-2008jul13,0,4925732.story

=====

Report raises red flag on infection control at Burbank's Providence hospital

An inspection last fall found 'serious deficiencies' that could threaten the federal funding for the medical center, which says it's aggressively addressing the issues.

By Rong-Gong Lin II
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

July 13 2008

Something was amiss last fall at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/medicine/la-me-infection13-2008jul13,0,6379001.story

STAY INFORMED, STAY HEALTHY!

9:45 PM

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July 8, 2008 - Tuesday

My NF Ordeal is featured in CHAT Magazine
Current mood:

pleased
Category: Life

My ordeal with necrotizing fasciitis (NF) was featured in a recent issue of CHAT Magazine. A PDF file of the article is available on this page: http://doreen.mkbmemorial.com/NF/Summer2008/index.html

Or you can download the PDF file directly via this link: http://doreen.mkbmemorial.com/NF/Summer2008/Summer2008.pdf

While the facts are a little off (they needed to state that the organ failure was caused by the infection) and the piece seems a bit sensational at first, it drives home the seriousness of Necrotizing Fasciitis and gave me a chance to share my story with CHAT readers in the UK and hopefully elsewhere.

10:22 PM

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