While it is completely inappropriate I couldn't help but laugh when I read an article about Alexa Ray Joel's potential overdose on the herbal pain remedy Traumeel. The article, appeared in the Los Angelas Times and written by Amina Khan was entitled "What Doesn't Kill You... probably doesn't do much anyway". You don't have to read much more than the title to get the jest of it. Attempted overdose on herbal preparations in America is, according to some, almost impossible. So... if it's not strong enough to kill you is it strong enough to help you clinically? According to this article, no.

I've always had mixed feelings about alternative medicine. On the one hand I believe that herbal medications work. I believe this enough to become terrified when I care for a patient who comes in with a long list of herbs and vitamins on their medication regime. The reason I get worried? Well, there's just not a whole lot of research on these medications here in the U.S. and I'm afraid that when I administer a prescription strength medication to this patient there may be an adverse drug/drug interaction. Unlike prescription drugs, I don't have a credible manual or a computer data base where I can look up each of these herbs and see what their potential side effects and adverse reactions might be.

On the other hand I've never had any experience with supplemental herbs and vitamins actually working, so I also kind of think they're a waste of money. In Europe, one of the most common anti-depressants prescribed is St. John's Wart. There are studies proving that this herb is effective at treating depression. However, when I tried this herb for depression I found that it didn't do squat. According to Khan's article that's because herbs in the U.S. are sold at a very low potency.

To sum up my personal opinion I think that if we're going to take herbs seriously, as a form of medicine, we need to put our money where are mouths are. I want controlled credible studies and standardized dosing. Will it happen? Probably not. Many people feel like the government already has too much control over what we put in to our bodies and they don't want the FDA regulating anymore than they already are. What do you think?

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The disturbing answer to the question we've all been asking ourselves since April 2009, what if the virus mutates, is finally being answered as reports of mutated H1N1 viruses come in from around the world. Eight reports of a mutation have come in from China and similar cases have been reported in the United States, Brazil, Norway, Japan, Mexico, and Ukraine according to an AFP article 3 days ago. In general medical experts seem to be playing down the mutations and adding extra emphasis to the fact that H1N1 drugs, Tamiflu and Relenza are still effective against the mutated virus.

What I find particularly disturbing is a case I read about in the Wall Street Journal, I quote, "... Norway reported a mutation of the flu virus in two patients who died and one who became severely ill. The mutation, while seen before, appeared to make the H1N1 virus cause infection deeper in the respiratory system than the regular swine-flu virus, a possible explanation for the more-severe cases, Norwegian scientists said."

In all of my research and coverage of the virus I have learned a few things. One is that the way that the H1N1 virus works is deep within the lungs. This is also the same way the pandemic flu virus of 1918 killed millions. I find the cases in Norway very disturbing. According the same WSJ article officials are claiming that the current wave of swine flu is peaking. The pandemic of 1918 occurred in three waves one in the spring and two more much deadlier waves in the fall and winter.

On a more positive note officials are saying that the current mutation is covered by the H1N1 vaccine as of now. All the more reason to put aside any apprehension you have about the vaccine and protect yourself from getting the virus in the first place.

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According to ABC News an entire lot of H1N1 vaccinations was pulled from the Canadian Market due to an unusual amount of negative side effects. The vaccine, called Arepanrix, is not approved for use in the United States so Americans shouldn't worry that they may have been given this vaccine. Experts are still arguing over the cause of the adverse reactions to the medication. According to the article six patients were injured by the medication but have since recovered from their illness.

Medical experts are encouraging people to consider the big picture. "We're actually seeing lower than that [expected one per 100,000 rate] in our overall vaccination campaign," says Timothy Vail spokesman for the Canadian Health Minister. Overall the H1N1 vaccine has proven beneficial and the medical field in general seems to be worried that this incident will discourage people from becoming vaccinated. Whatever caused the unusual side effects in this particular lot of vaccine is still being investigated.

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A new study at UT Southwestern Medical Center, supported by the Dallas VA Medical Center and the National Institutes of Health and reported in the November issue of Gastroenterology shows that gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD) may actually be an autoimmune disorder. The study showed that damage to the esophagus that occurs as a result of GERD is not from stomach acid but chemicals called cytokines which are released by esophageal cells in response to GERD.

The study was performed on rats. Researchers conducted surgery on the rats where they connected the duodenum (part of the intestine) to the esophagus to create similar conditions of GERD where stomach acid and bile were frequently spilling into the esophagus. Instead of appearing immediately as you would expect if stomach acid was the culprit of esophageal damage, damage to the esophagus did not appear for a number of weeks. "That doesn't make sense if GERD is really the result of an acid burn, as we all were taught in medical school," said Dr. Stuart Spechler, professor of internal medicine at UT Southwestern and senior author of the study. "Chemical injuries develop immediately. If you spill battery acid on your hand, you don't have to wait a month to see the damage."

"In animal models of reflux esophagitis designed to mimic the human disease, researchers hadn't looked at the early events in the development of esophageal injury," Dr. Souza, staff physician at the Dallas Veterans Affairs Medical Center and part of the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center at UT Southwestern noted. "Most of those investigators have been interested in the long-term consequences of GERD, and we found virtually no published data about what happens later that induces gastroesophageal reflux."

Three days after the surgery researchers expected to see damage to the surface cells of the esophagus. Instead they found damage to cells deep within the tissue of the esophagus. GERD can cause sore throat, chest pain, and over time esophageal cancer. Similar studies will have to be preformed on humans to verify the results of this study. You can read more about this study on Newswise.

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