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Todays - HEALTH TIPS - 01/12/2000 WEB SITE DESCRIBES NEW CLINICAL STUDIES: Drugmonitor.com is a new web site that its creators say provides patients and physicians with "a quick and easy way" to enroll in clinical trials and medical research studies. Company president Rutherford says the web site conveys general information about study enrollment, lists studies and trials seeking participants and offers an online enrollment form. Rutherford, who co-founded the Bethesda, Md., Internet company, says drugmonitor.com is the first and only single resource for patients who do not respond to or cannot afford current treatments for their conditions. Trials are usually sponsored by pharmaceutical companies and government health agencies. The web site, located at www.drugmonitor.com, will tell prospective participants within 24 hours of a query whether they may be eligible for a clinical trial, says Rutherford. SAY IT ISN'T SO! ROLLER COASTERS BAD FOR YOUR BRAIN?: A 24- year-old Japanese woman developed blood clots on the surface of her brain after a day of roller-coaster rides at an amusement park. Dr. Toshio Fukutake of Japan's Chiba University School of Medicine says, "Although it is rare for people to develop subdural hematomas after riding roller coasters, it can happen. Giant roller coasters which are higher and faster than typical roller coasters may be more dangerous." Fukutake and colleagues report the case in the journal Neurology, adding they suspect many other cases may exist in addition to the total four recent reports. The woman developed a headache on the way home from the park, which persisted for months until diagnosis and surgical removal of the clots. Neurologists say other common symptoms of subdural hematomas are vomiting, difficulty walking and changes in mental abilities. Causes include head trauma, severe coughing and strain from heavy lifting. HOSPITALS: HAVE PLAN FOR CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL EMERGENCIES: Researchers report in the Journal of the American Medical Association that few U.S. hospitals are prepared to handle the sudden casualties of a chemical or biological emergency, such as a terrorist attack. The article, written by emergency- medicine professors of Washington University Hospital in Washington, outlines a plan of action hospitals can use. Co-author Dr. ph Barbera says, "Preparation for a chemical incident requires equipment, facilities and staff that can take immediate action to safely decontaminate or wash off a large numbers of patients without contaminating the facility. A biological attack would manifest differently, with a potential incubation period before a widespread illness occurs." MOVEMENT COMMON IN BRAIN-DEAD PATIENTS: Doctors conducting an 18-month study in Argentina say 39 percent of brain-dead patients still moved fingers, arms or legs after loss of brain activity. Dr. Bueri of J.M. Ramos Mejia Hospital in Buenos Aires says, "Family members and others need to understand that these movements originate in the spinal cord, not in the brain, and their presence does not mean that there is brain activity." The distinction is significant, he says, because misunderstanding can delay brain death diagnosis and reduce options for organ donation. Questions raised after the fact can raise legal implications, he adds. Bueri and his colleagues report their study in the journal Neurology. Of 38 patients showing no brain activity in electroencephalogram (EEG) tests, 15 exhibited movements spontaneously or triggered by touch during the next 24-hour period. All movements ceased within 72 hours. -- Copyright 2000 by United Press International. All rights reserved.

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