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Health and medicine in brief
Compiled from Times wires Study: Dirt may help kids battle asthmaA team of European researchers has discovered that one reason farm children have puzzlingly low rates of asthma may be their exposure to dirt. In particular, contact with microbes found in the excrement of pigs, cows and horses seems to have salutary effect on the immune system. Children who had relatively large amounts of microbial dust in their bed linens were only half as likely to be asthmatic as children whose sheets contained little of the residue. Furthermore, those who had spent their first year of life on a farm -- which presumably would have given them early contact with the bacterial substances -- appeared to be especially protected. The findings are the latest evidence supporting the theory that modern man's obsession with cleanliness may be leading to a rise in disorders of the immune system, including asthma. This "hygiene hypothesis" holds that our well-armed and hair-trigger immunity needs to be turned down and fine tuned soon after birth. Early exposure to pathogens and other contaminants may be the best way for that to happen -- and it may not be happening enough in our overly fastidious world. Previous research had hinted that exposure to bacteria might be playing a role in the experience of farm children. The new study, which examined about 800 Swiss, German and Austrian children, strengthened the observation. While the new research has no immediate implications for either medicine or child-rearing, it raises the possibility one or more "protective exposures" could be identified and provided to children. "It's important to narrow down the factors," said Fernando Martinez, a pediatrician and asthma expert at the University of Arizona who was not involved in the study, which is published in today's New England Journal of Medicine. "It could be there's a specific substance we could administer at the right time to children anywhere that would decrease their risk of developing asthma and allergy." HMO patient's access improvingWASHINGTON -- Patients in HMOs are continuing to receive better access to lifesaving treatments, according to an annual study by an accrediting group. But the study also estimates that thousands of deaths could have been prevented last year if all health care providers offered the top medical care. The National Committee for Quality Assurance, a Washington-based HMO accrediting group, describes "a slow but steady improvement in the quality of care being delivered to Americans" enrolled in participating managed care plans. The study, released Wednesday, found HMOs and point-of-service plans improved for the third straight year, despite rising health care costs.
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From the Times wire desk
From the AP |
