To help raise awareness on World Prematurity Day on November 17, the March of Dimes released its 2012 Report Card. The Report Card measures each state’s progress towards the organization’s pre-term birth rate goal of 9.6 percent. This year, Ohio is barely passing and is slightly worse than the rest
Our last post introduced a two-part series on recent research that pointed to five ways to reduce the rate of premature births in rich countries. By targeting these five items, the United States could reduce as much as eight percent of its more than 500,000 annual premature births. While many
In another development in the tragic case of Ohio cerebral palsy caretakers, a third nurse has pleaded guilty to charges that she neglected her patient. The patient died of severe consequences of medical and nutritional neglect – she essentially starved to death at the age of 14. This case underscores
Emergency room negligence resulted in two unnecessary amputations after hospital staff failed to properly diagnose a patient’s condition. The patient won a $5 million award in the case but she will remain severely impaired for the rest of her life. The missed diagnosis cost the patient both of her legs.
The fungal meningitis outbreak continued this week as the number of reported cases rose to more than 300, including some here in Ohio. At least 24 people have died in 17 states. Health authorities are now reporting the first findings from an inspection of the compounding pharmacy that is apparently
Hypertension is a leading contributing factor for many pregnancy complications and birthing injuries, including preeclampsia. A new study points to yet another potential result of hypertension by concluding that the children of hypertensive mothers are likely to have lower IQ levels later in life. Maternal hypertension is caused by high
C-sections have become increasingly common for American mothers. While c-sections accounted for only 5.5 percent of all births in 1970, that figure rose to 32.8 percent by 2010. Much of this increase could reflect advances better in technology that shows when a c-section is necessary. But some doctors might order
“Where is the kidney?” According to new information from the University of Toledo Medical Center, this is what the operating surgeon said when he turned away from the kidney donor to take the kidney to another room to continue the transplant procedure. The kidney had mysteriously disappeared from a designated
For one family, a worst case scenario became a tragic reality in 2010. After giving birth to a healthy baby boy, the mother rapidly sickened and died just two weeks later. An autopsy reported that the mother died because her C-section incision became infected with bacteria. Now, the mother’s infant
Last week we discussed how medical staff sometimes rely on a drug to delay contractions-despite concerns regarding unknown side effects and a lack of clear benefits. This week, the sad story of a very different birthing injury is in the news. A mother alleges that her doctor’s aggressive use of