The Korea Herald

As more autism reported, doctors say check early

Apr 5, 2012

CHICAGO (AP) ― At 18 months, Cristina Astacio spoke only a few words, wouldn’t respond to her name and shunned other kids in her day care group. Last October, her worried parents found out why.She has a mild form of autism, a diagnosis being given to more U.S. children than ever before, largely because of more awareness and better diagnosis.According to new government statistics, the rate is about 1 in 88. That means autism is nearly twice as common as it appeared in data the government gathered
Keeping the aging voice spry

Apr 5, 2012

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. ― Aging baby boomers have long used exercise, surgery and collagen as they try to slow the natural bodily processes of aging.Now, some are flocking to do the same with something that’s usually a dead giveaway: a voice that sounds “old.”Research shows that older peoples’ voices often develop breathiness, weakness and loss or range or quality from causes that include disease, changed use of their voices, and the condition called presbylaryngis, also known as “aging of the larynx.
Acute epiglottitis

Apr 5, 2012

The epiglottis is located above the larynx, and plays a key role in keeping food out of the airway by covering the larynx when we swallow. Acute epiglottitis is an acute inflammation of the epiglottis, which mainly occurs due to infection with Haemophilus influenzae. Patients risk having their breathing obstructed if they are faced with severe edema or swelling of the larynx. Because of this, acute epiglottitis is often considered an emergency condition. Time and age of onset Epiglottitis occurs
Essential tips on yellow dust

Apr 5, 2012

April is a cruel month for many Koreans since yellow dust fills the air, causing illnesses. The Korea Meteorological Administration said two or three intense dust storms originating from Chinese deserts generally hit Korea every year. “In spring, always be aware of weather forecasts,” a KMA spokesman said. According to scientists, the density of dust in the air during the season is 29 times greater than usual. Particles, including heavy metals, can cause numerous ailments. Here are some guideli
Kissing on the ear can cause hearing loss

Apr 1, 2012

A New York professor of audiology identified more than 30 people who lost hearing after being kissed on the ear and he's searching for more.Dr. Levi Reiter of Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., said a woman came to him five years ago because she had lost hearing immediately after her 5-year-old child kissed her on the ear, MSNBC.com reported.Reiter said he thought at the time the woman's case
Panic disorder on the rise

Mar 29, 2012

Jeon Jin, a TV celebrity and member of boy band “Shinhwa,” recently made a stunning confession. He said he suffered from panic disorder, which made it almost impossible to live a normal life. “I was always anxious. I was seized by thoughts about things that would not happen to me. I carried a baseball bat or a bamboo stick to protect myself from imaginary attackers. I relied on alcohol for months, rarely going outdoors,” he told a television talk show.Jeon is among an increasing number of panic
Drug-resistant TB blamed on Indian treatment flaws

Mar 29, 2012

NEW DELHI (AP) ― India’s inadequate government-run tuberculosis treatment programs and a lack of regulation of the sale of drugs that fight the disease are responsible for the spiraling number of drug-resistant cases that are difficult to treat, health activists said Friday.India adds an estimated 99,000 cases of drug-resistant TB every year, but only a tiny fraction of those infected receive the proper drugs to treat the stubborn disease through the government-funded program. Saturday marks Wor
More people take longer-lasting options to replace missing teeth

Mar 29, 2012

DETROIT ― She wasn’t even wearing heels. But on the sidewalk near the Southfield, Mich., law firm where she works, Arlene Bordman’s loafer got stuck in a crack and “I went right over and landed on my mouth.” A few weeks later, she felt something rattling and loose in her upper jaw. Her dentist ended up pulling out her upper four front teeth, just six weeks before her son’s May 30 wedding.Bordman, 68, of West Bloomfield, Mich., got through the wedding wearing a flipper: fake front teeth attached
Functional dyspepsia

Mar 29, 2012

Most people have experienced gastrointestinal symptoms such as digestive disturbances, abdominal pain, vomiting and heart burn. When these symptoms come up, it’s best to take clinical laboratory tests. This is because Korean people are particularly vulnerable to stomach cancer and gastric ulcers. If you visit our outpatient clinic with these complaints, we will provide clinical laboratory tests as hepatic function tests, blood tests, urinalysis, stool examination, upper gastrointestinal endoscop
Court orders FDA action on use of antibiotics on farms

Mar 29, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) ― A federal court judge has ordered the Food and Drug Administration to take action on its own 35-year-old rule that would stop farmers from mixing popular antibiotics into animal feed, a practice which is widely believed to have led to a surge in dangerous, drug-resistant bacteria.In 1977, the FDA concluded that the overuse of antibiotics in livestock, poultry and other animals weakened the treatment’s effectiveness in humans. The agency issued an order that would have banned no
Seasonal veggies boost immune system

Mar 29, 2012

As the temperature lingers below the annual average, more people are getting the flu. According to the Korea Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention, 4.66 of every 1,000 patients visiting the doctor recently were diagnosed with influenza. The authorities blame the cold weather, saying it likely brought down overall immunity.According to experts, one way to restore or boost immunity is an extra intake of fruit and vegetables. The effect is much more powerful when coupled with exercise. Sti
Weight loss in a pill contains coffee bean

Mar 29, 2012

Green -- unroasted -- coffee beans might be the weight-loss pill that has been sought for so long, a U.S. researchers suggested. Joe Vinson of the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania and colleagues said the study involved 16 overweight or obese people ages 22-26, who took capsules of the ex
Twins seek sex change in China first: report

Mar 28, 2012

Two young Chinese women undergoing sex-change surgery at a Shanghai hospital are hoping to be the first twins in the country to change their gender, a state-backed newspaper said Wednesday.The 25-year-old sisters from the southwestern province of Yunnan have already undergone preliminary surgery at
U.S. man injured in gun accident gets new face

Mar 28, 2012

After 15 years of wearing a mask and living as a recluse, a 37-year-old Virginia man disfigured in a gun accident got a new face, nose, teeth and jaw in what University of Maryland physicians say is the most extensive face transplant ever performed. From left to right: face of Richard Norris b
Too much, too little sleep linked to heart woes: study

Mar 27, 2012

People who sleep less than six hours per night or more than eight are more likely to suffer heart problems than people who sleep between six and eight hours, said a US study on Sunday.The findings confirm those in previous, smaller studies, but are based on what researchers described as a nationally