Fires and explosions at a Kansas City chemical plant forced the evacuation of 500 local residents and 1,000 schoolchildren and have caused major health concerns in the area. Still facing new explosions on Thursday, local firefighters have not yet been able to get the blaze under control as clouds of thick black smoke continue to pour out of the facility.

On Wednesday, an explosion of several 55-gallon chemical drums rocked a ChemCentral plant in Kansas City’s East Bottoms neighborhood, igniting 100-foot-high flames that spewed black smoke and sticky residue and sent neighbors scurrying for shelter. Although no injuries were reported, local residents were asked to remain out of the area until the fire subsided. As of Thursday, it still wasn’t immediately clear what caused the initial explosion. The plant housed solvents and mineral spirits, but nothing that appears to pose a significant or unusual health risk.
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This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public health advisory regarding the use of topical anesthetics for cosmetic purposes, citing potentially life-threatening side effects. The FDA noted that two women in their 20s died after using topical anesthetics to numb their leg pain following laser hair removal.

“Both women had seizures, fell into comas, and subsequently died from the toxic effects of the anesthetic drugs,” the FDA noted in its alert. “The skin-numbing creams used in these two cases were made in pharmacies and contained high amounts of the anesthetic drugs lidocaine and tetracaine. FDA also has received reports of serious and life-threatening side effects such as irregular heart beat, seizures and coma, and slowed or stopped breathing following the use of these numbing products. These effects happened in both children and adults and when the anesthetic drug was used both for approved and unapproved conditions.”
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A new Northwestern University study has discovered that children who sleep less may face a greater risk of becoming overweight. The study examined 2,182 children ages 3 to 18 to learn about the connections between sleep, body mass index, and being overweight.

“Our study suggests that earlier bedtimes, later wake times, and later school start times could be an important and relatively low-cost strategy to help reduce childhood weight problems,” says Emily Snell, co-author of the study, which is published in the current issue of Child Development.
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Bayer’s controversial heart-surgery drug aprotinin, marketed as Trasylol, is under fire yet again thanks to a new study that found that the drug carries with it an increased risk of long-term mortality. Trasylol is a widely used drug intended to reduce bleeding during open-heart surgery. The study appears in the February 7 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Researchers, led by Dr. Dennis T. Mangano of the Ischemia Research and Education Foundation (IREF), concluded that “in addition to the previously reported acute renal and vascular safety concerns, aprotinin use is associated with an increased risk of long-term mortality following CABG [coronary artery bypass graft] surgery. Use of aprotinin among patients undergoing CABG surgery does not appear prudent because safer and less expensive alternatives (ie, aminocaproic acid and tranexamic acid) are available.”
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today that it is authorizing the marketing of a test to determine the probability of recurring breast cancer. The decision is significant because the breast-cancer test is the first molecular test approved by the FDA that profiles genetic activity.

According to the FDA, “The MammaPrint test uses the latest in molecular technology to predict whether existing cancer will metastasize (spread to other parts of a patient’s body). The test relies on microarray analysis, a powerful tool for simultaneously studying the patterns of behavior of large numbers of genes in biological specimens. The recurrence of cancer is partly dependent on the activation and suppression of certain genes located in the tumor. Prognostic tests like the MammaPrint can measure the activity of these genes, and thus help physicians understand their patients’ odds of the cancer spreading.”
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A federal appeals court in San Francisco allowed a landmark sexual-discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart to move ahead, ruling that the seven plaintiffs were eligible for class-action status. Plaintiffs are alleging that women employed in Wal-Mart stores are paid less than male employees in comparable positions (regardless of performance ratings and seniority) and that female workers receive fewer and wait longer for promotions to in-store management positions than men. As many as 1.5 million former Wal-Mart employees may join the legal action.

The 2-1 decision by a judicial panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals comes a year and a half after the case was initially argued and submitted, and it upholds the decision made by a District Court in 2004 in the case of Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. The plaintiffs also filed a motion on April 28, 2003, to certify a class of female Wal-Mart employees who may have been affected by the company’s allegedly discriminatory policies.
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Researchers believe they have established the first scientifically supported link between television watching and high blood pressure in adolescents. The study, led by Dr. Nicolas Stettler of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, examined the correlation between lifestyle choices (ie. engaging in “sedentary” activities) and blood pressure and found that sedentary activities such as watching TV may lead to an increase in systolic blood pressure levels.

According to Dr. Stettler, “This is the first research to show a direct and independent connection between TV watching and higher blood pressure among adolescents.” The study included 4,508 respondents of the 1999–2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, between the ages of 12 and 19. Doctors also discovered, not surprisingly, that an increased body mass index (BMI) leads to higher systolic blood pressure, but they found that a higher BMI may work to lower diastolic blood pressure in adolescents as well a much more unexpected result that may not be the same for adults.
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In a significant blow to the federal government, a U.S. District Court judge ruled on Friday that the Army Corps of Engineers may be sued for negligence with regard to the flood damage that ravaged New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. If the Corps is found liable in court, they may be responsible for billions of dollars in damages.

At the core of the issue is the controversial channel known as the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (or MRGO), a waterway through the city that connects the Gulf of Mexico with the Mississippi River. Many observers believe that the channel served to increase storm surge levels, which ultimately led to the levee breaches that devastated the city.
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A new study conducted at the Saint Louis University School of Medicine has found that time spent driving an automobile may increase the risk of getting skin cancer. The findings were presented today by Dr. Scott W. Fosko at the American Academy of Dermatology’s 2007 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

The new research examined the incidence of left-sided skin cancers in patients along with their driving trends. “Since previous scientific findings have shown an association between one-sided exposure to ultraviolet light (UV) and an asymmetric facial distribution of sun damage, we would expect that skin cancers also would be more prevalent on the left side of the body in drivers who spend a significant amount of time in their cars,” said Dr. Fosko. “Our initial findings confirm that there is a correlation between more time spent driving and a higher incidence of left-sided skin cancers, especially on sun-exposed areas in men.”
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Over the years, red wine has been celebrated for everything from staving off cancer and gum disease to promoting a healthy heart. Now, a new Spanish study is suggesting that red wine may be effective in slowing the human aging process.

Researchers led by Professor Dario Acuna Castroviejo of the University of Granada, Spain, believe that the high concentration of melatonin in grape skin is responsible for the benefits. Melatonin, a hormone that is naturally produced by the human body (and is available as a dietary supplement in the U.S.), is hailed as an antioxidant that can fight cell-damaging molecules, including those related to aging. Free radicals such as nitrogen and oxygen tend to increase in amount and become more dangerous as people reach the age of 30 and beyond in large part because the human body stops producing sufficient levels of melatonin to fight them.
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