View this email in your browser<http://us11.campaign-archive1.com/?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=057d04cea8&e=4aad33fd68> [STAT]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=58a5435ae1&e=4aad33fd68> Wednesday, March 22, 2017 [Morning Rounds by Megan Thielking] Sponsored by [https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f8609630ae206654824f897b6/images/f58a7ea9-3fe9-41ab-abf3-4bc9254e9db4.png]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=9d393d5a0b&e=4aad33fd68> Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Morning Rounds. Here's what you need to know about health and medicine today. Brazil seeks vaccines from emergency stockpile Amid an unusually large yellow fever outbreak, Brazil is asking international health officials for 3.5 million doses of vaccine from an emergency stockpile. The International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision — which manages the stash of immunizations — has approved the request. Those vaccines should arrive in Brazil in the coming days. Since last December, Brazil has seen a higher number of yellow fever cases than in prior year, and those cases are creeping closer to two of the country's largest cities. That's sparked concern that the disease could start to spread<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=7d93f86f6a&e=4aad33fd68> to cities, and then, to other parts of the Americas. STAT's Helen Branswell has the scoop here<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=6b499125a0&e=4aad33fd68>. Lawmakers in Maryland take on antibiotic resistance Maryland may soon follow in Californoa's footsteps and become the second state to ban routine antibiotic use in livestock. Antibiotic use can cause gut bacteria to become resistant to the drugs, and those resistant bacteria run the risk of then going on to infect people. And while public health advocates consider it a victory, some in the state are also disappointed that tweaks made to gain more votes have weakened the data-reporting requirements they’d like to see mandated for farms. The billion-dollar toll of gun violence in the US Gun violence in the US led to a whopping $6.6 billion in initial hospitalization costs in the past decade — and experts say that doesn’t even scratch the surface of the health care cost of gun violence. Researchers at Stanford analyzed data<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=9eb357c4d3&e=4aad33fd68> from more than 267,000 patients who were admitted to the hospital for a firearm-related injury between 2006 and 2014. Costs for those hospitalized patients totaled $6.6 billion during that decade. The government takes on about 40 percent of that cost through Medicare and Medicaid. That total doesn’t include the cost of ER visits, readmissions, treatment for more minor gun injuries that don’t require hospital admission, or treatment for patients who die before they are admitted to the hospital. Sponsor content by Partners Healthcare World Medical Innovation Forum: Cardiovascular Top entrepreneurs, CEOs, Harvard clinicians, and scientists will gather May 1-3 in Boston for a provocative discussion on the development and accessibility of new cardiovascular treatment innovations in a rapidly-evolving health care environment. The World Medical Innovation Forum <http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=d452afe9fa&e=4aad33fd68> is a global gathering of more than 1,000 international innovation decision-makers. Featured speakers<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=626966cf61&e=4aad33fd68> include CEOs of global companies, innovators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, as well as senior investors, and high-profile journalists. Register today<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=4d13b6aa7c&e=4aad33fd68>. Inside STAT<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=91626db07e&e=4aad33fd68>: An insect detective eyes nonexistent bugs [https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f8609630ae206654824f897b6/images/ea66c4b7-c214-4366-b82a-201d1e1d4121.jpg]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=5d1a354dd1&e=4aad33fd68> Gale ridge with madagascar hissing cockroaches on her sleeve. (KAYANA SZYMCZAK for STAT) Entomologist Gale Ridge works at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, where she helps gardeners identify the pests perturbing their crops and aids homeowners in bedbug control. But her most difficult cases haven’t involved spiders or bedbugs or mites — they’re when she has to deal with the bugs that aren’t really there. She labels those cases as delusional parasitosis, defined as an unshakeable belief that one is being attacked by bugs or parasites even when there is no evidence of infestation. Many of her patients believe that the proper medication is not an antipsychotic but an anti-parasitic — and that the correct expert is not a psychiatrist but an insect specialist. STAT’s Eric Boodman has a fascinating look at the disorder and the bug detective taking on the cases. Read here<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=2621d55aeb&e=4aad33fd68>. Science march plagued by internal turmoil The March for Science, slated for April 22, is shaping up to be the largest rally in support of science ever. But for all the hype, plans for the march have been plagued from the get-go. There's been infighting among organizers, attacks from other scientists who feel their interests haven't been included, and operational disputes. Some organizers tell STAT they've quit, and others have pledged to abstain from the rally. It was billed as an event for science advocates to speak with a unified voice — but it has dragged up longtime tensions within the field. More here<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=98d0e9b9ef&e=4aad33fd68>. CDC warns shoppers to beware of nut butter Seven more people have been sickened<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=123f3b05e0&e=4aad33fd68> by E. coli in soynut butter, a nut-free substitute for spreadable peanut butter. The CDC reports that 23 individuals in nine states have fallen ill after consuming the product, 10 of whom were hospitalized. At least two of those patients went into kidney failure after being exposed to the bacteria. Health officials are warning people to toss any containers they have of the I.M. Healthy brand SoyNut Butter, along with I.M. Healthy brand granola and Dixie Diner's Club brand Carb Not Beanit Butter. House leaders meet ahead of the big replacement vote The House Rules Committee meets this morning to go over the American Health Care Act ahead of tomorrow’s big vote. Conservatives aren’t happy that the amended measure doesn’t end Medicaid expansion any earlier than the initial proposal, and Democrats aren’t happy with a whole host of other issues. Yesterday, President Trump warned Republican representatives that they'd be at risk of losing their seats in the 2018 election if they didn't vote in favor of the measure. Meanwhile, in letters shared with STAT, Republican lawmakers are taking aim at the ACA's Medicare cuts. Legislators are responding to concerns from constituents about the new plan by doubling down on the idea that a replacement plan will strengthen Medicare for future generations. But the AHCA doesn't actually reverse those Obamacare cuts<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=e89a3164d0&e=4aad33fd68> — more here<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=a5bcd154fc&e=4aad33fd68>. Supplements don't stave off dementia in men as hoped Antioxidant supplements — long considered a potential way to stave off cognitive decline — don’t prevent dementia in older men as hoped, according to new research published in JAMA Neurology<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=b784f595ae&e=4aad33fd68>. Researchers thought vitamin E or selenium supplements, both antioxidants, might help prevent the disease because oxidative stress has been tied to the development of dementia. The trial included more than 7,500 men who took either vitamin E, selenium, both supplements, or a placebo for at least five years. Dementia prevalence didn’t differ significantly between any of those four groups. Researchers still haven’t looked at use of the supplements in women. I keep track of negative trial results, which often go underreported, in this newsletter. See one? Send it my way at [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>. What to read around the web today § As the health care law vote approaches, find out where members of Congress stand. NPR<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=dd9badb02f&e=4aad33fd68> § Researchers seek guidelines for embryo-like entities created in labs. Wall Street Journal<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=3335d0bde2&e=4aad33fd68> § Utah company's breast milk exports halted by Cambodian government. AP<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=0ef03d61da&e=4aad33fd68> More reads from STAT § Birth spacing, and the information and tools to do it, can save women’s and children’s lives<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=51badb4ce0&e=4aad33fd68>. § Here’s one drug safety rule<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=ff9ab6c36a&e=4aad33fd68> the FDA should enact — quickly. § Maryland moves closer to penalizing generic drug makers <http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=653fae7504&e=4aad33fd68> for price gouging. STAT Plus Thanks for reading! More tomorrow, [Megan] Have a news tip or comment you want to send me? [Facebook]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=afc9bfdac3&e=4aad33fd68> [Twitter]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=7bae75f1d1&e=4aad33fd68> [STAT]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=b45c4a2116&e=4aad33fd68> Copyright © 2017, All Rights Reserved, STAT. 135 William T. Morrissey Blvd | Boston, MA 02125