Care home move 'breached rights'

17 May 2014 Last updated at 12:11

The human rights of a woman with dementia were breached when she was moved from her house to a care home, a court has ruled.

Milton Keynes Council failed to get proper authorisation, a judge ruled.

The Court of Protection, which deals with cases where people cannot make decisions for themselves, said handling of the case was "woefully inadequate".

The council said it has apologised to the 81-year-old former magistrate and her son.

A council spokesman said it would work to ensure vulnerable citizens are protected.

Limited access

The council alleged that the woman's son had been neglecting her - allegations which were never pursued.

In his judgement, District Judge Paul Mort said the council behaved unlawfully when they moved the woman from her own house to a care home because they failed to get authorisation from its own specialist panel and had not applied to the Court of Protection.

The local authority also failed to tell her son of where she was for 19 days and he was then only allowed limited contact whilst the council investigated neglect claims.

Judge Mort's findings have just emerged after the case was heard in April.

The judge concluded the woman had been "unlawfully deprived of her" liberty when removed from her home by the council and her son was "devoted to his mother".

He also said her human right to family life had been breached.

'Flabbergasted'

The son, who has not been identified, told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme he was "flabbergasted" to find his mother had been taken into care.

He said: "I returned from a short trip to the local town, to pick up a valve radio I'd bought for mum at auction.

"On my return mum's carer told me two social services people had been and taken her to 'a place of safety'.

"I was flabbergasted. Everyone was."

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Big brand suncreams fail tests

16 May 2014 Last updated at 15:14 By Pippa Stephens Health reporter, BBC News

Three suncreams, which include some of the most expensive on the market, do not give the protection they claim in tests, a consumer watchdog says.

Which? said the creams - by Piz Buin, Malibu and Hawaiian Tropic - all offered lower factor protection than the SPF 30 written on the bottle.

Calypso sun lotion, at £1.20 per 100ml, was cheapest on the market and passed the watchdog's tests.

The brands said they stood by their testing techniques.

A selection of creams were tested using British Standard tests for SPF and UVA protection, using 10 volunteers.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

It is vital you can trust a suncream to provide the protection it claims"

End Quote Richard Lloyd Which?

Price unimportant?

The sunscreens protect against UVA and UVB ultraviolet radiation, which can cause an increased risk of skin cancer in high exposures.

Which? has reported that Malibu Protective Lotion SPF30, at £3 per 100ml, did not have the SPF stated on the bottle in both UVA and and SPF tests.

The watchdog said Hawaiian Tropic Satin Protection Ultra Radiance Sun Lotion SPF 30, at £7 per 200ml, offered lower SPF protection than stated on the bottle, along with Piz Buin Ultra Light Dry Touch Sun Fluid SPF30, at £11 per 100ml, which was the most expensive product tested.

The report said: "We have found that spending more doesn't guarantee better protection."

Richard Lloyd, executive director at Which?, said: "With thousands of cases of skin cancer diagnosed every year, it is vital you can trust a suncream to provide the protection it claims."

He said he wanted to see manufacturers doing "much more" to make sure their suncreams "live up to the claims on the packaging".

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

It is important that people can trust the information provided on the bottle, so they know what they are buying"

End Quote Sarah Williams Cancer Research UK

'Nothing to hide'

A spokesman for Malibu said: "We stand by our testing and are willing to have our formula tested again by any reputable UK testing house.

"We have nothing to hide. Our files are open for any legitimate person to come and examine."

A spokeswoman for Johnson & Johnson, which owns Piz Buin, said: "Our products are subject to rigorous safety and efficacy testing; in the case of sun care products, this includes SPF testing in line with the EU sun care recommendation."

She said consumers could be "confident" using the cream as their own testing showed SPF 30 protection.

Tests could show variability as they were on humans and in different labs, she said, so Piz Buin based its SPF on "several" other sources aside from the human tests when they were making the cream.

Hawaiian Tropic said its testing of the cream showed a higher SPF than 30, and that all its products were "rigorously tested".

The company said it was "confident" in the SPF claim on its suncreams.

Sarah Williams, health information officer at Cancer Research UK, said: "The good news from this report is that price and whether the sunscreen was a fashionable brand did not matter.

"But it is important that people can trust the information provided on the bottle, so they know what they are buying."

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Brazil 2014 dengue risk predicted

17 May 2014 Last updated at 00:37

Scientists have developed an "early warning system" to alert authorities to the risk of dengue fever outbreaks in Brazil during the World Cup.

The analysis, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, estimates the chances of an outbreaks of the mosquito-borne infection disease.

They say the risk is high enough to warrant a high-alert warning in three venues - Natal, Fortaleza and Recife.

If they come top of their group, England will play in Recife on 29 June.

About a million fans are expected to travel to the 12 different cities hosting matches during the World Cup, which runs from 12 June to 13 July.

Brazil recorded more cases of dengue fever than anywhere else in the world between 2000 and 2013, with more than seven million cases reported.

Dengue is a viral infection that is transmitted between humans by mosquitoes.

It can cause life-threatening illness and there are currently no licensed vaccines or treatments.

Screens, air-conditioning and using insecticides can all reduce the risk of being bitten,

Dengue spread

The early-warning system covers 553 "microregions" across Brazil.

The team looked at rain and temperature data from 1981 to 2013 as well as population density data and altitude

The risk of dengue fever is low in Brasilia, Cuiaba, Curitiba, Porto Alegre, and Sao Paulo.

However, they predict that there is some chance of dengue risk exceeding medium levels in Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, Salvador and Manaus.

Continue reading the main story

Travellers, particularly those attending matches in high-risk cities might return home with dengue"

End Quote David Harley and Elvina Viennet, Australian National University in Canberra

The three cities with the greatest chance of high dengue risk are Natal, Fortaleza, and Recife.

Dr Rachel Lowe from the Catalan Institute of Climate Sciences in Barcelona, Spain, who led the research, said: "Recent concerns about dengue fever in Brazil during the World Cup have made dramatic headlines, but these estimates have been based solely on averages of past dengue cases.

"The possibility of a large dengue fever outbreak during the World Cup, capable of infecting visitors and spreading dengue back to their country of origin, depends on a combination of many factors, including large numbers of mosquitoes, a susceptible population, and a high rate of mosquito-human contact."

The researchers say being able to plan in advance can give local authorities the time to implement measures to reduce or contain epidemics in their areas and to deal with the mosquito populations there.

Writing in the same journal, David Harley and Elvina Viennet from the Australian National University in Canberra say: "Travellers, particularly those attending matches in high-risk cities, might return home with dengue.

"Those who return home unwell will seek treatment. Doctors must be aware of causes for febrile illness in World Cup spectators."

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Brazil 2014 dengue risk predicted

17 May 2014 Last updated at 00:37

Scientists have developed an "early warning system" to alert authorities to the risk of dengue fever outbreaks in Brazil during the World Cup.

The analysis, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, estimates the chances of an outbreaks of the mosquito-borne infection disease.

They say the risk is high enough to warrant a high-alert warning in three venues - Natal, Fortaleza and Recife.

If they come top of their group, England will play in Recife on 29 June.

About a million fans are expected to travel to the 12 different cities hosting matches during the World Cup, which runs from 12 June to 13 July.

Brazil recorded more cases of dengue fever than anywhere else in the world between 2000 and 2013, with more than seven million cases reported.

Dengue is a viral infection that is transmitted between humans by mosquitoes.

It can cause life-threatening illness and there are currently no licensed vaccines or treatments.

Screens, air-conditioning and using insecticides can all reduce the risk of being bitten,

Dengue spread

The early-warning system covers 553 "microregions" across Brazil.

The team looked at rain and temperature data from 1981 to 2013 as well as population density data and altitude

The risk of dengue fever is low in Brasilia, Cuiaba, Curitiba, Porto Alegre, and Sao Paulo.

However, they predict that there is some chance of dengue risk exceeding medium levels in Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, Salvador and Manaus.

Continue reading the main story

Travellers, particularly those attending matches in high-risk cities might return home with dengue"

End Quote David Harley and Elvina Viennet, Australian National University in Canberra

The three cities with the greatest chance of high dengue risk are Natal, Fortaleza, and Recife.

Dr Rachel Lowe from the Catalan Institute of Climate Sciences in Barcelona, Spain, who led the research, said: "Recent concerns about dengue fever in Brazil during the World Cup have made dramatic headlines, but these estimates have been based solely on averages of past dengue cases.

"The possibility of a large dengue fever outbreak during the World Cup, capable of infecting visitors and spreading dengue back to their country of origin, depends on a combination of many factors, including large numbers of mosquitoes, a susceptible population, and a high rate of mosquito-human contact."

The researchers say being able to plan in advance can give local authorities the time to implement measures to reduce or contain epidemics in their areas and to deal with the mosquito populations there.

Writing in the same journal, David Harley and Elvina Viennet from the Australian National University in Canberra say: "Travellers, particularly those attending matches in high-risk cities, might return home with dengue.

"Those who return home unwell will seek treatment. Doctors must be aware of causes for febrile illness in World Cup spectators."

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Big brand suncreams fail tests

16 May 2014 Last updated at 15:14 By Pippa Stephens Health reporter, BBC News

Three suncreams, which include some of the most expensive on the market, do not give the protection they claim in tests, a consumer watchdog says.

Which? said the creams - by Piz Buin, Malibu and Hawaiian Tropic - all offered lower factor protection than the SPF 30 written on the bottle.

Calypso sun lotion, at £1.20 per 100ml, was cheapest on the market and passed the watchdog's tests.

The brands said they stood by their testing techniques.

A selection of creams were tested using British Standard tests for SPF and UVA protection, using 10 volunteers.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

It is vital you can trust a suncream to provide the protection it claims"

End Quote Richard Lloyd Which?

Price unimportant?

The sunscreens protect against UVA and UVB ultraviolet radiation, which can cause an increased risk of skin cancer in high exposures.

Which? has reported that Malibu Protective Lotion SPF30, at £3 per 100ml, did not have the SPF stated on the bottle in both UVA and and SPF tests.

The watchdog said Hawaiian Tropic Satin Protection Ultra Radiance Sun Lotion SPF 30, at £7 per 200ml, offered lower SPF protection than stated on the bottle, along with Piz Buin Ultra Light Dry Touch Sun Fluid SPF30, at £11 per 100ml, which was the most expensive product tested.

The report said: "We have found that spending more doesn't guarantee better protection."

Richard Lloyd, executive director at Which?, said: "With thousands of cases of skin cancer diagnosed every year, it is vital you can trust a suncream to provide the protection it claims."

He said he wanted to see manufacturers doing "much more" to make sure their suncreams "live up to the claims on the packaging".

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

It is important that people can trust the information provided on the bottle, so they know what they are buying"

End Quote Sarah Williams Cancer Research UK

'Nothing to hide'

A spokesman for Malibu said: "We stand by our testing and are willing to have our formula tested again by any reputable UK testing house.

"We have nothing to hide. Our files are open for any legitimate person to come and examine."

A spokeswoman for Johnson & Johnson, which owns Piz Buin, said: "Our products are subject to rigorous safety and efficacy testing; in the case of sun care products, this includes SPF testing in line with the EU sun care recommendation."

She said consumers could be "confident" using the cream as their own testing showed SPF 30 protection.

Tests could show variability as they were on humans and in different labs, she said, so Piz Buin based its SPF on "several" other sources aside from the human tests when they were making the cream.

Hawaiian Tropic said its testing of the cream showed a higher SPF than 30, and that all its products were "rigorously tested".

The company said it was "confident" in the SPF claim on its suncreams.

Sarah Williams, health information officer at Cancer Research UK, said: "The good news from this report is that price and whether the sunscreen was a fashionable brand did not matter.

"But it is important that people can trust the information provided on the bottle, so they know what they are buying."

21.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Care home move 'breached rights'

17 May 2014 Last updated at 12:11

The human rights of a woman with dementia were breached when she was moved from her house to a care home, a court has ruled.

Milton Keynes Council failed to get proper authorisation, a judge ruled.

The Court of Protection, which deals with cases where people cannot make decisions for themselves, said handling of the case was "woefully inadequate".

The council said it has apologised to the 81-year-old former magistrate and her son.

A council spokesman said it would work to ensure vulnerable citizens are protected.

Limited access

The council alleged that the woman's son had been neglecting her - allegations which were never pursued.

In his judgement, District Judge Paul Mort said the council behaved unlawfully when they moved the woman from her own house to a care home because they failed to get authorisation from its own specialist panel and had not applied to the Court of Protection.

The local authority also failed to tell her son of where she was for 19 days and he was then only allowed limited contact whilst the council investigated neglect claims.

Judge Mort's findings have just emerged after the case was heard in April.

The judge concluded the woman had been "unlawfully deprived of her" liberty when removed from her home by the council and her son was "devoted to his mother".

He also said her human right to family life had been breached.

'Flabbergasted'

The son, who has not been identified, told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme he was "flabbergasted" to find his mother had been taken into care.

He said: "I returned from a short trip to the local town, to pick up a valve radio I'd bought for mum at auction.

"On my return mum's carer told me two social services people had been and taken her to 'a place of safety'.

"I was flabbergasted. Everyone was."

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Two meals a day 'can treat diabetes'

16 May 2014 Last updated at 00:05 By Pippa Stephens Health reporter, BBC News

Only eating breakfast and lunch may be more effective at managing type 2 diabetes than eating smaller, more regular meals, scientists say.

Researchers in Prague fed two groups of 27 people the same calorie diet spread over two or six meals a day.

They found volunteers who ate two meals a day lost more weight than those who ate six, and their blood sugar dropped.

Experts said the study supported "existing evidence" that fewer, larger meals were the way forward.

Timing important?

Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body does not produce enough of the hormone insulin, which controls the amount of sugar in the blood, meaning blood sugar levels become too high.

Continue reading the main story

Larger studies over longer periods of time will be needed to back up these findings before we would change advice"

End Quote Dr Richard Elliott Diabetes UK

If untreated, it can lead to heart disease and stroke, nerve damage, light-sensitive eyes and kidney disease.

About 2.9 million people in the UK are affected by diabetes, 90% of whom have the type 2 form of the disease.

Current advice in the UK recommends three meals a day, with healthy snacks.

Scientists at the Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine in Prague divided a group of 54 volunteers aged 30 to 70 with type 2 diabetes into two groups of 27 people.

Volunteers were then given either a six-meal-a-day diet (A6) for 12 weeks followed by a two-meal day diet (B2), or vice versa.

The study compared two meals with six meals - as the latter accorded with current practice advice in the Czech Republic, researchers said.

Each diet contained on average 1,700 calories a day.

'Very pleasing' result

The B2 group ate between 06:00 and 10:00 and then between 12:00 and 16:00, and the A6 group ate their food throughout the day.

Weight loss for the B2 group averaged 1.4kg (3lb) more than A6, and they lost about 4cm (1.5in) more from their waistlines.

Lead scientist Dr Hana Kahleova, at the Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine, said the results were "very pleasing".

She said: "The patients were really afraid they would get hungry in the evening but feelings of hunger were lower as the patients ate until they were satisfied.

"But when they ate six times a day the meals were not leaving them feeling satisfied. It was quite surprising."

'Larger studies needed'

Dr Kahleova said the study could apply to people without diabetes who were trying to lose weight.

Dr Richard Elliott, research communications officer at Diabetes UK, said the study added to evidence that eating fewer, larger meals a day could be more effective than smaller, frequent meals at helping people manage their condition.

He added: "However, larger studies over longer periods of time will be needed to back up these findings before we would make changes to the dietary advice given to people with type 2 diabetes."

Dr Elliot said eating a healthy, balanced diet, being active and maintaining a healthy weight, alongside taking any medication was "vital" to effectively manage the condition.

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High BMI stem-cell donors 'safe'

16 May 2014 Last updated at 01:20

People with a high Body Mass Index can make equally good stem-cell donors as those who are a healthy weight, according to new research.

In the past it was thought very obese people were more likely to experience side-effects after donating, such as bone pain.

But a study of 19 people showed no evidence of side-effects.

The British Bone Marrow Registry and charity Anthony Nolan now say people with a BMI of up to 40 may donate.

Stem cell transplants are used in the treatment of blood cancers including disorders such as leukaemia.

Two-thirds of patients cannot find a matching donor in their family, so they rely on finding an unrelated donor through the UK bone marrow register, now called the 'Anthony Nolan and NHS Stem Cell Registry'.

Continue reading the main story

This knowledge will help us save more lives as it will help us widen the pool of potential donors on our registry"

End Quote Dr Annelies Billen Anthony Nolan

The small study, carried out by Dr Annelies Billen, medical officer at Anthony Nolan and Dr Rachel Pawson, consultant haematologist at the British Bone Marrow Registry, monitored 19 people with a BMI of over 35 for a year after they donated their stem cells.

Their stem cells were donated using a procedure called peripheral blood stem cell collection or PBSC, which is used in most stem cell donations.

The study found that the donors experienced no more side effects than people donating with a BMI of under 35.

They concluded that donating stem cell using this method, which is similar to giving blood, can be undertaken safely and successfully by people with a BMI of between 35 and 40 - who are classified as 'very obese'.

Anthony Nolan and the British Bone Marrow Registry changed their policies around 18 months ago to allow people with a BMI of up to 40 to donate via PBSC.

Previously, both registries had not accepted donors with a BMI of 35 or above.

Dr Rachel Pawson who is presenting the research at the International Donor Registry Conference in London this weekend, said, "This new research adds further backing for our recent policy change and indicates that it could have a positive impact on the lives of people with blood cancer in the future."

Dr Annelies Billen, from Anthony Nolan said it was "encouraging" to see evidence that the method was safe for donors with higher BMIs.

"This knowledge will help us save more lives as it will help us widen the pool of potential donors on our registry.

"We would welcome further research to improve this evidence base and will continue to monitor this group of donors in the future."

Registries in USA, Canada and Germany have relaxed their policies to allow donors with BMIs of up to 40 in recent years, and have not reported any significant problems.

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Big brand suncreams fail tests

16 May 2014 Last updated at 15:14 By Pippa Stephens Health reporter, BBC News

Three suncreams, which include some of the most expensive on the market, do not give the protection they claim in tests, a consumer watchdog says.

Which? said the creams - by Piz Buin, Malibu and Hawaiian Tropic - all offered lower factor protection than the SPF 30 written on the bottle.

Calypso sun lotion, at £1.20 per 100ml, was cheapest on the market and passed the watchdog's tests.

The brands said they stood by their testing techniques.

A selection of creams were tested using British Standard tests for SPF and UVA protection, using 10 volunteers.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

It is vital you can trust a suncream to provide the protection it claims"

End Quote Richard Lloyd Which?

Price unimportant?

The sunscreens protect against UVA and UVB ultraviolet radiation, which can cause an increased risk of skin cancer in high exposures.

Which? has reported that Malibu Protective Lotion SPF30, at £3 per 100ml, did not have the SPF stated on the bottle in both UVA and and SPF tests.

The watchdog said Hawaiian Tropic Satin Protection Ultra Radiance Sun Lotion SPF 30, at £7 per 200ml, offered lower SPF protection than stated on the bottle, along with Piz Buin Ultra Light Dry Touch Sun Fluid SPF30, at £11 per 100ml, which was the most expensive product tested.

The report said: "We have found that spending more doesn't guarantee better protection."

Richard Lloyd, executive director at Which?, said: "With thousands of cases of skin cancer diagnosed every year, it is vital you can trust a suncream to provide the protection it claims."

He said he wanted to see manufacturers doing "much more" to make sure their suncreams "live up to the claims on the packaging".

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

It is important that people can trust the information provided on the bottle, so they know what they are buying"

End Quote Sarah Williams Cancer Research UK

'Nothing to hide'

A spokesman for Malibu said: "We stand by our testing and are willing to have our formula tested again by any reputable UK testing house.

"We have nothing to hide. Our files are open for any legitimate person to come and examine."

A spokeswoman for Johnson & Johnson, which owns Piz Buin, said: "Our products are subject to rigorous safety and efficacy testing; in the case of sun care products, this includes SPF testing in line with the EU sun care recommendation."

She said consumers could be "confident" using the cream as their own testing showed SPF 30 protection.

Tests could show variability as they were on humans and in different labs, she said, so Piz Buin based its SPF on "several" other sources aside from the human tests when they were making the cream.

Hawaiian Tropic said its testing of the cream showed a higher SPF than 30, and that all its products were "rigorously tested".

The company said it was "confident" in the SPF claim on its suncreams.

Sarah Williams, health information officer at Cancer Research UK, said: "The good news from this report is that price and whether the sunscreen was a fashionable brand did not matter.

"But it is important that people can trust the information provided on the bottle, so they know what they are buying."

21.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Screening hope for premature labour

15 May 2014 Last updated at 01:35 By Helen Briggs BBC News

Scientists have developed a blood test that can predict whether women having early contractions will go on to give birth too soon.

About 5% of women with signs of early labour give birth within 10 days, but there is no reliable way to tell false from true labour.

The blood test predicted premature birth in 70% of cases in a study at a hospital in Australia.

Premature birth is the main cause of death for newborns in the West.

Early labour can happen in any pregnancy, when contractions start before 37 weeks.

Currently, a woman having contractions too soon has no reliable way of knowing whether she will give birth early or if her contractions will stop.

Some women are offered a test based on a vaginal swab, but this has a high rate of false positives.

The research, published in the journal PLOS ONE, found the new blood test was able to distinguish between true and false labour in 70% of 150 pregnant women in a study at a hospital in Australia.

Prof Stephen Lye, from the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Canada, said the test was based on screening for genetic signatures linked with going into labour.

"The data indicates that markers in the blood of women in threatened pre-term labour are able to indicate whether those women will deliver," he said.

"This will have beneficial effects for the mother, the baby and the healthcare system."

The blood test would be tried out at a hospital in Toronto and might be available more widely within five years, he added.

The research was carried out in collaboration with the School of Women's and Infants' Health - the University of Western Australia.

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