Health Highlights: Sept. 21, 2009

Sept. 22 -- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

U.S. Issues Alert About Cocaine Laced With Veterinary Drug

Doctors, substance abuse treatment centers and other public health officials need to be aware that cocaine laced with the veterinary anti-parasitic drug levamisole is a widespread problem, the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration said in a nationwide public health alert issued Monday.

To date, there have been about 20 confirmed or probable cases of a serious blood disorder called agranulocytosis among people who've used cocaine that contains levamisole. Two people have died, the agency said.

The official number of cases of affected people is expected to increase as more health professionals become aware of this issue, SAMHSA said.

Ingestion of cocaine laced with levamisole can cause a serious decrease in white blood cell levels, leading to a weakened immune system that's unable to fight off even minor infections. This means that people who used levamisole-contaminated cocaine can suffer rapidly developing, life-threatening infections, the agency said.

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Model Predicts Postnatal Depression Risk

A model to predict postnatal depression is 80 percent accurate in the months after a woman gives birth, Spanish researchers say.

The researchers studied 1,397 women who gave birth and used a type of modeling they call artificial neuronal networks, United Press International reported.

The model includes a number of risk factors, including a mother's amount of social support, emotional changes during birth, neuroticism, mutations in the serotonin transport gene, and family history of psychiatric problems.

During the study, the researchers found that being older and working during pregnancy decreased a woman's risk of postnatal depression, UPI reported.