Harvard Health Content API

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken a first step to limit use of antibiotics in some animals raised for food. The FDA said it would restrict use of cephalosporin antibiotics. They are injected into some cattle, pigs and poultry just before slaughter. These antibiotics are not used as often in animals as some others. But they are frequently needed to treat serious human infections. The number of infections that “resist” one or more antibiotics has been increasing rapidly. Many experts say one reason is the routine use of antibiotics in animals raised for food. The FDA said in 2010 that this use of antibiotics was “a serious health threat.” But this week’s action is the agency’s first to address the threat. The Associated Press wrote about it January 4.

A shorter treatment can prevent active infection in people who have tuberculosis (TB) bacteria in their bodies, a new study finds. Standard treatment is 9 months of taking a daily pill, isoniazid. The new study included 7,731 people. Some had tests that showed TB bacteria in their bodies. Some were in close contact with someone with an active infection. Half were randomly assigned to receive standard treatment. The other half received isoniazid plus a second drug, rifapentine (Priftin). But they took both drugs only once a week, for 3 months. Weekly doses were taken in a doctor’s office. Researchers kept track of people for nearly 3 years. Very few developed active TB. But the numbers were lower for those who got the shorter treatment with 2 drugs. They also were more likely to complete treatment. The New England Journal of Medicine published the study December 8.

Why do kids get little physical activity in child care and preschool? Researchers asked providers and got a long list of answers. Centers often lack play equipment because of cost or space problems. What they have may be safe but boring. And child care providers feel more pressure to stress ABCs than active play. Researchers found this out through focus groups that included 49 child care providers. They said state licensing rules limit the play equipment they can offer. And kids often lose interest in equipment that meets safety standards. Providers said parents also worry about injuries and don’t push for more physical activity. But they do push for more academic work. The journal Pediatrics published the study. HealthDay News and Reuters Health news service wrote about it January 4.

Spinal manipulation and home exercise may relieve neck pain better than medicines, new research suggests. The study included 272 people. They had felt neck pain for 2 to 12 weeks before the study began. They were randomly divided into 3 groups. One group received spinal manipulation treatments. The second group took over-the-counter pain medicines, or prescription drugs if needed. The third group was trained to do home exercises for the neck. The study lasted 12 weeks. By the end, 82% of the spinal manipulation group reported that their pain was reduced by at least half. This compares with 69% of those on medicines and 77% of those who did home exercises. At least 30% of the spinal manipulation and exercise groups said all of their pain was gone. About 13% of the medicine group reported no pain.

Only about 3% of cochlear implants in children fail and need to be replaced, a new study finds. But failure is more likely among children who had meningitis before their first implant. That’s what researchers concluded based on medical records for 738 children. All of them received a cochlear implant in the last 20 years. In all, 34 needed to have the implant replaced. Seven of the children with implant failure had meningitis before they got their first implant. On average, failure occurred about 5 years after the first implant. Most of the children heard and spoke at least as well with the second implant as with the first. The journal Archives of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery published the study. HealthDay News wrote about it December 22.

Parts of the brain’s outer layer, the cortex, may become thinner before people develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, a new study suggests. Researchers were able to see the difference on a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. The study included 159 people. Their average age was 76. They were given MRIs as the study began. They also took tests of brain functions such as memory and problem solving. About 12% of the people showed thinning of the cortex. This was seen in areas that also become thinner in people with Alzheimer’s disease. Most people had a cortex of average thickness. About 15% had a thicker cortex than average. People in these 3 groups did not differ in their results on brain function tests. But about 3 years later, 21% of the group with the thin cortex had lower scores on brain function tests.