Mental Floss gives historical view of Baseball Litigation

July 28th, 2009. By AbiK

I was just over at mentalfloss.com—land where anyone with both a brain and a healthy sense of humor will feel right at home—and read a recent post by Ethan Trex called “The Ump Who Sued Lou Piniella (And Other Baseball-Related Legal Disputes)”.

Given I had recently posted about the summer’s hottest baseball lawsuits (hello, Alfred “floppy hat” Rava—and yes, he’s a lawyer himself, CA bar…San Diego…), I naturally had to take a look. And if you’re a baseball fan, it’s worth a read.

Lest you think this baseball and litigation connection is fleeting, the Washington Times reports today that “seven former and current major league baseball players and others who made money from R. Allen Stanford’s purported Ponzi scheme” are now worrying that their own money is at risk of being taken—and they’ve hooked up with an “unlikely ally: the Securities and Exchange Commission.” Seems the SEC has asked the judge in the case to stop the lawyer charged with taking control of assets related to the alleged scam from suing investors for their proceeds in the Stanford investment. Needless to say, the SEC request has ruffled some feathers and we’ll have to watch this one play out (no pun intended). For the record, the Washington Post reports players involved are: retired Atlanta Braves pitcher Greg Maddux, retired New York Yankees’ player Bernie Williams, current Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon, Boston Red Sox outfielder J.D. Drew, Texas Rangers outfielder Andruw Jones, Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Carlos Pena and Jay Bell, a shortstop who played for several teams prior to retiring in ’03.

Children & Acetaminophen Dosing—did Google go to Med school?

July 28th, 2009. By AbiK

Here’s something scary. Type this into Google search: How much Tylenol do I give?—just for the heck of it. I just did. I figured with all the news lately on acetaminophen and the FDA Advisory Panel recommending more stringent warnings on OTC acetaminophen, there must be some worthy sites getting the word out on safe dosing, right?

Here are the 9 links listed on the first page of my search results: 

pediatrics.about.com (they have a dosing “calculator”, then tell you to check the answer with your doctor)

plateaupediatrics.com (a local pediatrician’s office in TN)

wiki.answers.com (yes, those pages where anyone can contribute info)

abcnews.go.com (ok, it has a video of a doctor answering the question)

thelaboroflove.com (a having babies site—and I’m having to work too hard for an “about us” page)

fda.gov (it doesn’t give the answer to my question, but at least it’s from the FDA)

answers.yahoo.com (to date, the “best answer” by voters is from a user named “Courage”; No, I’m not kidding.) Read the rest of this entry »

5 (Other) Times You Shouldn’t Use Denture Cream

July 28th, 2009. By AbiK

There are certainly reasons why a denture-wearer would want to use a denture cream, such as Fixodent or PoliGrip—and undoubtedly self-assuredness is the biggest reason of all, particularly with younger denture wearers who may be even more self-conscious about wearing them. There are, however, times when it’s probably best to put that tube of denture cream down. The biggest of these reasons is, of course, the recent reports connecting longer-term use of denture cream with zinc build-up (ie, zinc poisoning) that leads to neurological damage.

In case you hadn’t been aware of the above risk, the symptoms of zinc poisoning include weakness in the hands, arms and legs, poor balance, lack of coordination, numbness, tingling, pain and a burning sensation.

But, webmd.com points out 5 other instances when you shouldn’t use denture cream: Read the rest of this entry »

Clock ticking to join Avandia lawsuits…check your state

July 27th, 2009. By LucyC

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) ran an interesting story recently on the type 2 diabetes medication, Avandia, and the latest study evaluating its safety.

Also known as rosiglitazone, Avandia has come under scrutiny as a result of a study published in 2007 by Dr. Steven Nissen, which found an increased the risk for heart attack in patients taking the drug. In the recent WSJ article, Nissen commented on the new RECORD trial, saying that it is “seriously flawed.” 

Researchers being researchers, they will likely argue the results till the cows come home, which really isn’t very helpful if you’re taking Avandia and looking for some definitive answers. 

One thing’s for certain, though, the lawyers aren’t waiting for the holy grail of scientific consensus. In fact, they’re trying to make people aware that the statute of limitations may be coming up in some states for people who are considering a lawsuit against the makers of Avandia, GlaxoSmithKline.

In a recent interview with a LAS, Jeff Lowe, with The Lowe Law Firm, said that the statute of limitations varies depending on where you live, so if you’ve suffered an adverse event while taking Avandia you’d better contact a lawyer sooner rather than later.  

Just in case you’re wondering, as I was, what a statute of limitations is—a short definition is: a statute within a legal system that sets a maximum period of time in which legal proceedings based on events within that time period can be instigated. In other words, cases have expiration dates. 

Better ask a lawyer…

Reglan, Tardive Dyskinesia and Marijuana

July 27th, 2009. By AbiK

A number of years ago, these three—Reglan, Tardive Dyskinesia and Marijuana—probably would not have been sitting in a headline together. But with the recent FDA-imposed black box warning for Reglan—the one that states the drug can bring on potentially chronic and debilitating neurological side effects (translation: tardive dyskinesia), Reglan’s been sitting side-by-side more often in text than GERD or “acid-reflux” patients would like.

The disturbing thing about Tardive Dyskinesia—aside from the fact that it’s a potential side effect of something used to treat a condition that’s seemingly rather commonplace—is that any resource you go to will tell you there is no treatment for it. That’s right: no treatment. And it can be completely debilitating—there are no shortage of videos on youtube.com to give you an impression of how challenging the condition must be to live with. Read the rest of this entry »