Health Buzz: Musty Odor Sparks Tylenol Recall

October 19, 2010 RSS Feed Print

Tylenol Products Recalled After Consumers Complain of Musty Odor

Nearly 128,000 bottles of Tylenol eight-hour caplets were recalled on Monday, after consumers complained of a musty, moldy odor associated with the painkillers. Though medical complications from the odor are unlikely, people are urged to stop using the involved Tylenol as a precaution, said Tylenol maker Johnson & Johnson in a statement released to the press. The current recall involves 50-count bottles with the lot number BCM155. The company believes the odor is caused by trace amounts of the chemical 2,4,6-tribromoanisole, often used in fungicides. Johnson & Johnson also pulled batches of Tylenol and other medications following consumer complaints of a moldy smell in January, June, and July of this year. At the time, the company said chemical contamination had caused the odor, The New York Times reports.

Surgery Complications Decline After Hospitals Share Data

Hospital collaboration may improve surgical patients' safety, new research suggests. Sixteen Michigan hospitals cut surgery complications by 10 percent, saving millions in medical costs, by sharing information about the methods they used to keep patients safe, according to a study published Monday in the Archives of Surgery. The hospitals could save $13 million a year on cases of ventilator-associated pneumonia alone, Bloomberg reports. More than 315,000 patients were involved in the study, which focused on general and vascular surgeries from April 2005 through December 2007. As part of the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative, the competing hospitals pooled information to determine which practices were most effective at preventing surgical complications and then put those best practices into effect. The hospitals saw the greatest reduction in the following complications: blood infections, septic shock, prolonged ventilator use, and cardiac arrest. "If the system was adopted nationally, not just in Michigan, I think you would find a greatly accelerated pace of surgical quality improvement," lead author Darrell Campbell, a surgeon, said in a statement. "Surgical complications are very expensive. Once something bad happens following surgery, it takes a lot of resources for the patient to recover."

Breast Cancer Warning Signs

You've probably heard the statistics: A woman's chances of getting breast cancer over her entire lifetime are one in seven. From birth to age 39, she has a 1 in 231 chance; ages 40-59, a 1 in 25 chance, and a 1 in 15 chance between the ages of 60 -79. Here is another very important fact to keep in mind: "Most people diagnosed have early stage disease," says physician Marissa Weiss, president and founder of BreastCancer.org. That's why it's important for women to be proactive: They should perform regular self-examinations and know the warning signs, writes AOL Health's Judi Ketteler. Here are eight key warning signs of breast cancer.

Breast Lump. The most common warning sign is a lump or thickened area that a woman or her doctor feels. "It will feel hard and irregular, like a stone. It feels different from the rest of the breast tissue," Weiss says. Women need to keep in mind that eight out of 10 lumps turn out to be benign, she adds, so they shouldn't immediately go into panic mode. But they should get any abnormalities checked out by their doctor right away.

Breast Appearance Changes. A woman's breasts are hormonally active and constantly changing, Weiss says. She should get to know her breasts, so she can spot the difference between changes that occur relating to hormones and changes out of the ordinary. If a woman notices that the contour of her breast has changed, becoming dimpled, twisted, or retracted, she should see her doctor. Look also for bulges or concavities. [Read more: Breast Cancer Warning Signs.]

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