Hong Kong Department Of Health appealed to members of the public again not to consume various capsules claimed to treat male impotence, following Hospital Authority (HA)’s notification of a second cluster of six more non-diabetic men who were retrospectively found to have residues of the sugar-lowering drug glibenclamide in their clinical specimens (including urine).
This now brings the number of patients affected by such category of products to a total of 10.
A spokesman for DH said that the six men, aged between 53 and 86, had been admitted to hospitals with symptoms of low blood sugar like dizziness, sweating and collapse between December 2007 and January 2008. Five of them have been discharged after treatment while one is still in hospital.
DH’s investigation showed two of them had consumed yellow capsules labeled as ??? and red/pink capsules named as "Nangen" brought from a hawker in Yuen Long and a shop in Shenzhen respectively.
Of the first cluster of four cases reported to DH on February 1, one had passed away and the case has been submitted to Coroner’s Court for inquiry; one is still in intensive care unit; and the remaining two have been discharged.
Investigations into the sources of all cases are ongoing with Police involvement.
"DH had set up clinical case surveillance with HA and all 12 private hospitals and no new case has been detected since February 1," the spokesman said.
"DH had inspected more than 220 pharmacies and retail shops throughout the territory with an emphasis in North District, where one incriminated shop named Lung Sang Group Ginseng Antler and Sea Product Company in Sheung Shui is located," he added.
During the operation, some 130 red/yellow capsules similar to the one taken by a patient were seized from the Sheung Shui retail shop. Laboratory tests revealed the presence of impotent treatment drugs sildenafil and tadalafil and a high level of oral hypoglycaemic drug glibenclamide. If consumed, it could result in serious health consequences or even death.
Under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance, products containing glibenclamide must be registered before sale and can only be sold on a doctor’s prescription and under the supervision of a pharmacist.
"Currently, similar efforts in other districts are going," the spokesman said.
He said that letters have also been issued to all doctors and private hospitals to alert them of the incidents.
"Today, similar alert will be issued to medicines traders and Chinese medicines practitioners as well," he said.
DH also informed the State Food and Drug Administration of Mainland and Department of Health of Macau for follow-up, as the capsules seized in the Sheung Shui shop were allegedly purchased from a Mainland agent, the spokesman added. "We have also informed the drug administration of Shenzhen of the incidents."
The spokesman reiterated that members of the public and the trade who have in their possession similar products are urged to stop consuming or trading them immediately.
They should dispose of the products or submit it to the Department’s Pharmaceutical Service at 3/F, Public Health Laboratory Centre, 382 Nam Cheong Street, Kowloon during office hours. If they have any enquiry, there is a hotline no. 2572 2068 which operates during office hours.
The spokesman urged people who had problems of sexual dysfunction to consult healthcare professionals for appropriate advice.
He further urged all retailers not to buy drugs from unknown sources, as the efficacy, safety and quality of such could not be assured.
понедельник, 29 ноября 2010 г.
среда, 24 ноября 2010 г.
Therapy Lets Prostate Cancer Patients Avoid Erectile Dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction or impotence among men without prostate cancer is most commonly caused by a problem in the blood vessels.Erectile Dysfunction and Prostate Cancer
Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center are using innovative planning techniques to help men with prostate cancer avoid erectile dysfunction after radiation treatment.
By using MRI scans in addition to CT scans, radiation oncologists can identify the blood vessels that control erectile function and plan treatment to target the prostate more precisely, sparing those nearby vessels. Results from an initial study with 25 patients appear in the January issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics.
Some 230,000 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2004. While it's more common in older men, a growing number of men are being diagnosed in their 50s.
"As we treat younger men, erectile function is an important concern. We're often treating men in their 50s, and this is a very important issue for them. Most of the men I see are going to be cured. Once you start curing cancers at an extremely high rate, then the focus moves to quality of life," says Patrick W. McLaughlin, M.D., clinical professor of Radiation Oncology at the University of Michigan Medical School and director of Providence Hospital Radiation Oncology, with cancer centers in Southfield and Novi, both affiliated with the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Treatment for prostate cancer can involve surgery to remove the prostate or radiation therapy. During surgery, the nerves that control erectile function may be severed - which has led to new surgical techniques to avoid cutting those nerves.
But doctors are less sure what causes erectile dysfunction after radiation therapy. Erectile dysfunction among men without prostate cancer is most commonly caused by a problem in the blood vessels, and doctors do know that radiation causes obstruction of the vessels that fall within the treatment area. Using that as a starting point, the U-M team began investigating radiation-related erectile dysfunction as a blood vessel problem.
Typically, radiation oncologists rely on a CT scan to identify the prostate and plan treatment. But because of limitations in the CT scan, the images do not show the bottom of the prostate. Doctors instead estimate where the prostate ends, based on average distance from identifiable structures. The U-M study, using MRI in addition to CT scans to get a better picture of the whole prostate, found the distance between the prostate and the penile bulb ranged from 0.5 cm to 2.0 cm.
"We condemned one of the common tricks people try to use. By assuming an average distance of 1.5 cm between the prostate and the penile bulb, either you're going to treat way more than you need to or you're going to miss the prostate," McLaughlin says.
By taking the additional imaging, the U-M team was able to plan treatment to include the entire prostate but avoid the critical blood vessels below. Preliminary results suggest that avoiding the vessels prevents erectile dysfunction.
Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center are using innovative planning techniques to help men with prostate cancer avoid erectile dysfunction after radiation treatment.
By using MRI scans in addition to CT scans, radiation oncologists can identify the blood vessels that control erectile function and plan treatment to target the prostate more precisely, sparing those nearby vessels. Results from an initial study with 25 patients appear in the January issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics.
Some 230,000 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2004. While it's more common in older men, a growing number of men are being diagnosed in their 50s.
"As we treat younger men, erectile function is an important concern. We're often treating men in their 50s, and this is a very important issue for them. Most of the men I see are going to be cured. Once you start curing cancers at an extremely high rate, then the focus moves to quality of life," says Patrick W. McLaughlin, M.D., clinical professor of Radiation Oncology at the University of Michigan Medical School and director of Providence Hospital Radiation Oncology, with cancer centers in Southfield and Novi, both affiliated with the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Treatment for prostate cancer can involve surgery to remove the prostate or radiation therapy. During surgery, the nerves that control erectile function may be severed - which has led to new surgical techniques to avoid cutting those nerves.
But doctors are less sure what causes erectile dysfunction after radiation therapy. Erectile dysfunction among men without prostate cancer is most commonly caused by a problem in the blood vessels, and doctors do know that radiation causes obstruction of the vessels that fall within the treatment area. Using that as a starting point, the U-M team began investigating radiation-related erectile dysfunction as a blood vessel problem.
Typically, radiation oncologists rely on a CT scan to identify the prostate and plan treatment. But because of limitations in the CT scan, the images do not show the bottom of the prostate. Doctors instead estimate where the prostate ends, based on average distance from identifiable structures. The U-M study, using MRI in addition to CT scans to get a better picture of the whole prostate, found the distance between the prostate and the penile bulb ranged from 0.5 cm to 2.0 cm.
"We condemned one of the common tricks people try to use. By assuming an average distance of 1.5 cm between the prostate and the penile bulb, either you're going to treat way more than you need to or you're going to miss the prostate," McLaughlin says.
By taking the additional imaging, the U-M team was able to plan treatment to include the entire prostate but avoid the critical blood vessels below. Preliminary results suggest that avoiding the vessels prevents erectile dysfunction.
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