Safety Of Shingles Vaccine Confirmed
A new study of 193, 083 adults, published in the Journal of Internal Medicine, reveals that the herpes zoster vaccine, also called the shingles vaccine, is safe for preventing shingles, a chickenpox virus rash which affects more than 1 million people annually in the United States. Shingles is extremely painful and infectious, and the virus can return to a person's body multiple times, causing damage to the nervous system. It is common in older people and dangerous to their health, because their immune systems are weaker than younger people's, and immunity to the virus lessens the older a person gets.
Autism Linked To Immune System Problems, Further Evidence Found
According to a study in the April 2012 International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience, the plasma of children with autism disorder (AD) had significantly lower levels of various cytokines, compared with that of unrelated healthy siblings from other families, who had family members with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Cytokines are small proteins released by cells of the immune system that act as intercellular mediators and communicators between cells. Researchers of the University of Kansas Medical Center analyzed 29 cytokine levels and discovered abnormal cytokine levels in five cells related to the T-helper cell immune system.
Contraceptives Containing Drospirenone Have Higher Blood Clot Risk
Birth control pills containing drospirenone are linked to a higher risk of stroke, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has announced today. The Agency explains that it has completed its review of recent epidemiologic studies. Drospirenone, a synthetic version of progesterone, a female hormone, is often referred to as progestin. The FDA concluded that birth control pills that contain drospirenone are linked to a higher blood clot risk, compared to other pills which contain progestin. Drospirenone-containing contraceptive pills will have details regarding this risk added to their labels.