Notebook

The Notebook: a potpourri of items of interest gathered from FDA news releases, other news sources, and the Federal Register (designated FR, with date of publication). The Federal Register is available in many public libraries. It is also available electronically through GPO Access at the Government Printing Office.

Women with bladder control problems should know that these disorders are treatable, says a new campaign from the National Institutes of Health. The campaign emphasizes that many women may not be aware that treatments ranging from pelvic floor exercises to surgery can improve the condition.

About 11 million of the 13 million Americans with urinary incontinence are women. The condition can have a major effect on the social and economic well-being of people trying to cope without treatment. Some elderly people become reclusive or are institutionalized unnecessarily because of incontinence.

The "Let's Talk About Bladder Control for Women" campaign offers consumer kits designed to encourage communication between women and their health-care providers. The materials are available free by calling (1-800) 891-5388. They are also available at http://www.niddk.nih.gov/ on the World Wide Web.

Survival rates for organ transplant recipients are increasing. But the number of people waiting for a transplant--a record 50,000--is triple that of just seven years ago, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS).

In its annual report, UNOS states that survival rates for some types of transplants are rising dramatically. For example, the one-year survival rate for a lung transplant patient in 1994 was 76 percent, up from 47 percent in 1988. Five-year survival rates ranged from 81 percent for kidney recipients to 41 percent for heart-and-lung recipients.

The bad news is that the number of patients waiting for organs is rising much faster than organs can be made available. As a result, transplant candidates now wait longer. Some die while waiting, which underscores the need for more donors, says the report.

A free booklet summarizing transplant trends and statistics is available by calling (804) 327-1432.

Preventing out-of-wedlock teen pregnancies and encouraging adolescents to remain abstinent are new goals of the Health and Human Services Department's teen pregnancy prevention programs.

These programs already reach at least 30 percent of U.S. communities. HHS now aims to ensure that all communities work to prevent out-of-wedlock pregnancies. The new goals emphasize parental and adult involvement and personal responsibility. They place special emphasis on encouraging abstinence, especially among 9- to 14-year-old girls, through a campaign called "Girl Power!" Information about the campaign can be found at http://www.health.org/gpower/index.htm on the World Wide Web.

Endodontic dry heat sterilizers for sanitizing dental instruments may no longer be marketed unless the manufacturer or importer files with FDA a premarket approval application or notice of product development protocol completion, according to an FDA final rule. An FDA advisory panel had earlier recommended that FDA take this action after it concluded that the devices fail to sterilize instruments adequately. The devices present "an unreasonable risk of illness or injury," the panel warned. (FR Jan. 21)

Cobalt-60 radiation to control Salmonella bacteria in poultry feed"is safe" in specified doses, says FDA, reiterating an earlier ruling. In a final rule, the agency denied four requests for a hearing on objections to FDA's original approval of the cobalt treatment in 1992. The agency said the objections "do not raise issues of material fact ... ." (FR Jan. 6)

FDA Consumer magazine (April 1997)