F.D.A. May Tap Experts on Energy Drinks

By BARRY MEIER

The Food and Drug Administration will consult outside experts to help determine whether energy drinks pose particular risks to teenagers or people with underlying health problems.

Thinking Clearly About Personality Disorders

By BENEDICT CAREY

A new proposal to clarify diagnoses of recognized personality disorders and better integrate them into clinical practice, to extend and improve treatment, is meeting resistance.

Hospitals Face Pressure to Avert Readmissions

By JORDAN RAU

With nearly one in five Medicare patients returning to the hospital within a month, the government has begun fining hospitals it says have had too many readmissions.

Less Support for Hepatitis C Testing for Baby Boomers

By ANDREW POLLACK

The United States Preventive Services Task Force, an advisory body, said there was not enough evidence of the benefits to support a C.D.C. recommendation to screen all baby boomers for hepatitis C.

Douglas Kennedy Is Sued in Hospital Scuffle

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 10:35 PM ET

Two Westchester County, N.Y., nurses have filed a lawsuit seeking $200,000 from Mr. Kennedy after an episode involving his newborn son.

Imaging Shows Progressive Damage by Parkinson’s

By JAMES GORMAN

Imaging has been able to show in living patients the damage Parkinson’s disease causes to two structures deep in the brain, researchers report.

A Return to Bellevue After the Storm

By DANIELLE OFRI, M.D.

After Bellevue Hospital was evacuated during Hurricane Sandy, many doctors and staff members underwent the feelings of loss and confusion that are not dissimilar to the experience of being ill.

Beating the Odds, and a Storm, to Get a Transplant

By DENISE GRADY

A 4-year-old girl at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital got a new liver, flown in just in time as Hurricane Sandy hit the region.

Books

Woe Is Syphilis, and Other Afflictions of the Literati

By ABIGAIL ZUGER, M.D.

Dr. John J. Ross, a Harvard physician, has written a gripping and instructive collection of 10 medico-literary biographical sketches.

Global Update

Vision: Investing in Eyeglasses in Poor Nations Would Boost International Economy

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

Spending $28 billion in getting people eyeglasses would result in a boost of more than $200 billion, a study suggests.

Vital Signs

Risks: Job Loss Raises Threat of Heart Attack

By NICHOLAS BAKALAR

Losing a job raises the risk of heart attack, and repeated job losses increase the risks even more, a new study found.

Vital Signs

Hazards: Airport Smoking Areas Affect Nearby Sites

By NICHOLAS BAKALAR

According to a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, airports with smoking areas all have unhealthy air - even in places where no one smokes.

Vital Signs

Patterns: Low Vitamin D Level Tied to Type 1 Diabetes

By NICHOLAS BAKALAR

Researchers found that subjects with low blood levels of vitamin D were more likely to develop diabetes than those with higher levels.