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State program focused on protecting children
By KRISTIN BUEHNER, Of The Globe Gazette
MASON CITY - January 31, 2005 — The Iowa Drug Endangered Children (DEC) initiative was established in 2004 to effectively address the needs of children, said program coordinator and Assistant Iowa Attorney General Mary Chavez.
It is administered by Marvin VanHaaften of the Governor's Office of Drug Control Policy in collaboration with the Iowa Attorney General's office.
The program was funded by a federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grant awarded to Iowa in fall 2003. It recognizes that children are often the innocent victims when their parents are involved in drug manufacturing and use, and that intervention is needed to assure their safety and health.
"Pilot sites were formed in Centerville, Polk County and Dubuque," she said, all of which were the sites of numerous meth labs. "Since then, we've seen other communities (Sioux City, Linn County, Wapello County) come online to develop programs."
The program is designed to help local communities address the growing problem of vulnerable children and their exposure to toxic chemicals and illicit substances.
The program emphasizes strong multidisciplinary response teams to address the safety, medical and psychological needs of children.
"Sometimes, young children are found crawling around in the stuff, inhaling it," Chavez said. "Anhydrous ammonia labs have very toxic vapors. Narcotics agents have to wear haz-mat gear when they go into these homes."
One Iowa child has been diagnosed with aplastic anemia (the failure of bone marrow to manufacture blood cells), believed to be caused by methamphetamine chemicals, Chavez said.
Children of meth parents typically live in squalor, are not being fed, not being cared for, Chavez said.
"A lot of these homes are unbelievably dirty. Users don't feel the need to eat so the children don't eat either. (Users) sleep off the drug three days at a time."
In a recent case before the Iowa Judicial Court of Appeals, two young girls who were present when their father was arrested had been neglected to the point that they were not toilet-trained, could not talk in sentences, had not been weaned from the bottle and had decayed teeth, Chavez said. Both girls were aggressive and had thin scars on their chest, head and back.
Methamphetamine use stimulates the libido, Chavez said. These children are often subjected to sexual abuse. It is not unusual for pornography and dangerous weapons to be found at the scene.
The DEC Program is intended to ensure children exposed to methamphetamine get help to reverse the negative trends in their lives, Chavez said.
"We want to prevent them from being the drug users of tomorrow."
Reach Kristin Buehner at 421-0533 or kristin.buehner@globegazette.com.
Medico Frontiers - Diagnostics
Stem Cell Transplantation: past, present and future
Dr Maheboob M Basade is currently consultant medical oncologist and stem cell transplantation specialist at Jaslok hospital and Breach Candy hospital, Mumbai. A doctorate in medicine from Dr V M Medical College, Solapur, he joined the department of medical oncology at Tata Memorial Hospital in 1992 and learnt various aspects of management of cancers like chemotherapy and bone marrow transplantation for three years. He went to St. Jude Research Centre, Memphis (US) as visiting scientist to do research on Neuroblastoma gene.
After completing his training abroad, he came to India and set up Nargis Dutt Memorial Cancer Centre at Barshi in Maharashtra. He also established the department of Medical Oncology, including a centre for stem cell transplantation. It is here that he performed the first successful peripheral blood stem cell transplantation centre in rural India. After two years, he joined Jaslok Hospital in 1997 and established the stem cell transplantation department in the hospital.
Synopsis:
Stem cells obtained from bone marrow sustain long term sustainable growth of hematopoietic cells once infused in body. Patients with defective blood formation like thalassemia, sickle cell disease or aplastic anemia; like blood cancer (leukaemia's, lymphomas) require stem cell transplantation as the only cure.
There are two types of transplantation : autologous where stem cells from patients own bone marrow are used while second is allogenic transplantation in which stem cells from real siblings are used. Transplant programmes can be run in a centre, who can provide sterile rooms, trained man power, who has got well equipped blood banking facilities including irradiators.
Teen diver fights serious blood disorder
CFCN.ca
April 05, 2005 - An Olympic diving hopeful is facing a big challenge out of the pool. Tori Kennedy was heading to the University of Arkansas on a diving scholarship.
The Calgary teenager has also been diving for Canada at international competitions. But now instead of practicing, Kennedy is seeing doctors and getting platelet and red cell transfusions several times a month.
She has a blood disorder called Aplastic Anemia. It causes her immune system to attack the stem cells of her bone marrow. The diving community has rallied around her and joined forces with Canadian Blood Services to raise awareness about the importance of blood donation.
Kennedy's family and other teammates and their families are all donating to help. The ideal treatment is a bone marrow transplant, but Kennedy's brother isn't a match. She is undergoing drug therapy and is hoping to begin training again next fall.
There are 12-million Canadians eligible to donate blood but just 3.5 per cent take the time to do it. For more information on blood donation, call 1-888-236-6283 or click on the link above.
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