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Health Highlights: Feb. 11, 2013
Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay: Britain Identifies World's 10th Case of Virus Linked to SARS British health officials say they have identified the world's tenth known case of a viral infection that appears related to the SARS virus. All of the prior cases of this emerging coronavirus have been located in the Middle East, the Associated Press reported. However, the World Health Organization said in 2012 that the virus is probably more widespread. The latest case arose in a British resident who had been in the Middle East and Pakistan, the AP said. The patient is currently being treated in the intensive care unit of a Manchester hospital, according to a statement released Monday by Britain's Health Protection Agency. Coronaviruses include pathogens that can cause the common cold and SARS, an infection that emerged in 2003 and killed 800 people worldwide. So far, patients with the new virus have typically experienced acute breathing difficulties and kidney failure. There is no proof as of yet that the infection spreads easily between people, and experts suspect humans are catching it from animals such as camels or bats, the AP said. ----- Surgical Mesh Makers Sued by Thousands of Women Lawsuits filed by thousands of women allegedly harmed by surgical mesh implanted in their pelvic region will start being heard this year by a U.S. federal court in West Virginia. More than 6,000 federal lawsuits have been filed against vaginal-mesh manufacturers by women who claim the porous, plastic implants have caused them severe pain and suffering, the Associated Press reported. Most had the mesh inserted to treat weak pelvic muscles, which can cause a prolapsed uterus, meaning the uterus slips down into the vaginal canal. The mesh received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for pelvic organ prolapse in 2002. Similar mesh products had been used for decades in other surgeries, including hernia repair. Based on those earlier implants, the FDA approved the pelvic mesh without requiring the tests normally needed for new devices, according to the AP. In 2008, the FDA acknowledged problems with the pelvic mesh, and in 2011 it said as many as 10 percent of women were experiencing trouble within 12 months of implantation. In some cases, the mesh shifted, eroded or led to infections, the news agency reported. Besides the 6,000-plus cases consolidated in West Virginia, state courts have received thousands of similar lawsuits. Last July, a case against vaginal-mesh maker C.R. Bard resulted in a $5.5. million award to a California woman. -----
Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved. URL:http://consumer.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=673366
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