New Weight-Gain Findings for Severely Obese Pregnant Women

According to a recent study, women who are extremely obese may not need to gain as much weight as current guidelines recommend for a healthy pregnancy and newborn.

The study, which was conducted by researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York, found that severely obese women who gained a lesser amount weight than recommended by the Institute of Medicine during their last two trimesters had no added risks.

Researchers also found, however, that pregnant women who were obese, overweight, normal weight or underweight did suffer problems when less weight was gained than guidelines advise. One risk of gaining less than the recommended amount of weight for women in these groups included giving birth to newborn that are undersized for their gestational age.

Alternatively, the study found that women in all categories who gained an excessive amount of weight in their second and third trimesters had a higher incidence of babies that were big for gestational age. Overweight women who gained more weight than recommended were also more likely to develop gestational diabetes, as well as deliver via induced labor and/or cesarean section.

Researchers included almost 74,000 women who gave birth to a single baby to arrive at their findings, which were presented at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine’s annual meeting. Of the women, 5 percent were morbidly obese, 6 percent were severely obese, 13 percent were obese, 24 percent were overweight, 48 percent were normal weight and 4 percent were underweight.

The findings imply that recommendations for necessary weight gain for obese pregnant women should be lowered to prevent possible complications.

Some complications during labor and delivery can cause serious harm or death. If your child has suffered a birth injury that may have been preventable, please call or e-mail the medical malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. today for your free consultation. One of our experienced birth injury lawyers will evaluate your case and answer your questions.

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Study: Stroke patients rarely receive tPA within 60-minute recommendation

Tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, is an FDA-approved drug which is administered to certain stroke patients to dissolve blood clots. It is recommended that stroke patients receive tPA within 60 minutes of arriving to the hospital to increase their chances of survival and recovery. However, a new study has found that only a small amount of patients receive the drug in the recommended window.

For the study, cardiovascular medicine professor Dr. Gregg C. Fonarow analyzed more than 25,000 ischemic stroke patients treated with tPA within three hours at 1,083 hospitals. All of these hospitals were participating in the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get with the Guidelines-Stroke program, which urges timely tPA treatment.

Dr. Fonarow found in his study that only about 26.6 percent of eligible stroke patients (6,790 patients) received tPA within the 60-minute window. Of the patients who did receive the drug within the recommended period, only about 8.5 percent died as a result of their stroke, while 10.4 percent of patients who experienced a delay in receiving tPA died.

In an effort to save more lives, Dr. Fonarow also warned family members against driving someone with stroke symptoms to the hospital themselves. Calling 911 for an ambulance allows for more immediate treatment and a better chance of recovery.

The failure to properly diagnose a stroke and treat it in time is a leading medical malpractice mistake in the country. If you or a loved one has been the victim of stroke malpractice, call the medical malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. today for your free consultation. We have helped clients with Brooklyn stroke malpractice, Queens stroke malpractice, Bronx stroke malpractice, Manhattan stroke malpractice and Long Island stroke malpractice matters.

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Increased Risk of Breast Cancer for Smokers

It is well known that smoking can greatly increase a person’s risk of developing many cancers, including lung, oral, esophageal, stomach, bladder and cervical cancer, among others. However, a recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine has found that for female smokers, the risk of developing breast cancer is also greater.

Lead researcher Karin Michels, Ph.D., along with her colleagues, analyzed roughly 30 years of records from the Nurses’ Health Study. The researchers used data on over 110,000 women who were included in this government-sponsored study.

Although the additional risk of developing breast cancer for female smokers was only about 6 percent compared to non-smokers, heavy smokers faced a 28 percent higher risk of developing the cancer. Researchers considered a heavy smoker someone who smoked one pack a day for no less than 30 years.

Of the 110,000 women involved in the study, a reported 8,772 women developed invasive breast cancer during the 30 year period. Michels and her colleagues also found that the risk of developing breast cancer was even higher for women who began smoking at a younger age. However, the risk for women who smoked following menopause was lower than that of non-smokers due to lower estrogen levels caused by both menopause and smoking.

According to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure website, screening tests are the best way for women to lower their risk of dying from breast cancer. If a doctor or medical professional failed to diagnose or treat you or a loved one’s breast cancer, contact the cancer malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos. We have helped clients with Queens cancer malpractice, Bronx cancer malpractice, Brooklyn cancer malpractice, Manhattan cancer malpractice and Long Island cancer malpractice matters. Call today for your free evaluation. 1-877-ASK4SAM

Study: Many painkiller prescription errors caused by similar drug names

Each year, pharmaceutical errors harm numerous patients because the incorrect dosage or drug is given. Many prescription drugs have similar sounding or similar looking names, which can lead to errors when those prescriptions are being filled.

The Journal of Pain recently published a study in which researchers at Albany Medical Center in New York reviewed 714,290 orders for prescription painkillers in hospitals. They found that of those prescription orders, 2,044 errors were made, which included 449 potentially serious errors.

In addition, the research team found that errors occurred more often when pain medication was being prescribed for children, with 243 errors occurring in roughly 41,000 orders.

To reduce prescription errors, the researchers suggest computerizing order entries in hospitals, having pharmacists and hospital staff review each order, and reducing the number of similar prescription drugs.

Although many prescription errors do not result in long-term harm, some mistakes can cause serious injury or death. If you or a loved one has been harmed as a result of a pharmaceutical error, please contact our medical malpractice lawyers to discuss your legal rights. Our medical malpractice attorneys have been helping clients with Queens prescription error, Bronx prescription error, Brooklyn prescription error, Manhattan prescription error and Long Island prescription error matters for 30 years. Call us today do discuss your possibly case and have all of your questions answered.

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Risk of Heart Disease Lowered along with Blood Pressure in Women

According to a report published in Hypertension, a journal of the American Heart Association, lowering blood pressure can significantly cut the risk of heart disease in middle-aged women.

For the study, researchers tracked roughly 9,400 men and women with an average age of 53 for about 11 years. The research team found that smoking, high cholesterol and high systolic blood pressure were to blame for 85 percent of reversible heart disease, with high systolic pressure being the main risk factor.

Systolic pressure is the pressure of the blood when the heart contracts. This is the first number in a blood pressure reading. High systolic pressure is risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including heart attack, stroke and heart failure.

By lowering systolic blood pressure by 15 mm Hg in women with hypertension, or high blood pressure, about 40 percent can prevent cardiovascular disease, compared with only about 20 percent of men.

Researchers recommend that middle-aged women, and their doctors, treat high systolic blood pressure more vigorously to prevent the health risks that it causes. Failing to diagnose and treat high blood pressure can cause serious health problems and even death.

Heart disease is the number one killer in the nation, and failure to diagnose a heart attack is the number one medical malpractice mistake in our country. If you or a loved one has been the victim of medical malpractice in New York City or Long Island, contact the medical malpractice attorneys at SILBERSTEIN, AWAD & MIKLOS today to schedule your free consultation. We have helped clients with Queens medical malpractice, Bronx medical malpractice, Brooklyn medical malpractice, Manhattan medical malpractice and Long Island medical malpractice cases for 30 years.

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Risk of Heart Disease Death Higher for Pre-1984 Breast Cancer Radiation Patients

A new study published in next week’s issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology has found that surviving breast cancer patients who had been treated with radiotherapy prior to 1984 have a greater incidence of death caused by heart disease.

The study’s researchers determined this after analyzing data on almost 4,500 breast cancer patients who were treated for their cancer between 1954 and 1984 at a treatment center in France. Each woman included in the study was each evaluated for 28 years, on average.

Researchers looked at these women’s medical records and national registry information and determined that about two-thirds had received radiation treatment for their cancer. The team found that of the 2,637 women who survived their breast cancer, 421 died as a result of cardiovascular disease.

It was determined that for women who received radiation therapy in the specified time frame before 1984, the risk of dying from disease was 1.76 times higher than those women who were not treated with radiation.

A delay in diagnosing and treating breast cancer can allow the cancer to grow and spreads over time. If you or a loved one has experienced a delay in the diagnosis or treatment of breast cancer and have questions about the quality of the medical care received, please call or email Silberstein, Awad & Miklos’ cancer malpractice lawyers for answers. We have helped clients with Queens breast cancer, Bronx breast cancer, Brooklyn breast cancer, Manhattan breast cancer and Long Island breast cancer malpractice for thirty years.

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SE HABLA ESPANOL

Prevention of Falls Extremely Important for Elderly

A recent article published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society recommends several new guidelines to help prevent falls by older adults. The publication suggests that doctors of elderly patients provide regular screening for fall risk factors in order to help prevent these accidents.

For the elderly, one of the most common medical issues is falling and the problems that result from a fall. For this reason, it is important that older adults follow an exercise regimen to prevent imbalance and weakness, which are the cause of many falls.

In addition, physicians should speak with their elderly patients about any history of falls and problems with their balance, as well as examine these patients for muscle weakness, which can contribute to falls.

Elderly patients should also be evaluated for orthostatic (postural) hypotension, which is an excessive drop in blood pressure upon standing. Common symptoms of this condition include dizziness, blurred vision, light headedness and loss of consciousness, all of which can lead to a fall.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are the most common cause of nonfatal injuries in the U.S. If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a trip or slip and fall accident, call or e-mail the personal injury attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. today. Our premises liability attorneys will evaluate your case free of charge. We have helped clients with Queens slip and fall, Manhattan slip and fall, Bronx slip and fall, Brooklyn slip and fall or Long Island slip and fall accident, call us today.

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