Health Highlights: Feb. 10, 2009
Feb. 11 -- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:
Salmonella Suspected at Second Peanut Plant
A peanut processing plant in Texas owned by the company blamed for the salmonella outbreak was closed Tuesday after state health officials reported that products there might be tainted with salmonella, according to a CNN report.
The plant, in Plainview, is owned by the Peanut Corporation of America, which has been the focus of a nationwide recall of more than 1,000 peanut products. Its plant in Blakely, Ga., also is closed after its products were linked to eight deaths and the sickening of 600 people nationwide, the news network reported.
According to CNN, Texas officials said, "It is not yet known if the salmonella possibly found in the product testing is the same strain of the bacterium implicated in a 43-state outbreak of salmonellosis." Peanut products such as peanut meal and granulated peanuts had not left the facility, authorities said, and dry roasted peanuts that were shipped to a distributor were stopped from being sent further.
The plant was closed after product samples tested by a private lab came back Monday night, indicating the possible presence of salmonella, CNN reported. Results from testing by a state lab were expected to be returned Tuesday.
-----
Postpartum Psychosis Risk Increases With Age: Study
Women who have their first baby after age 35 are 2.4 times more likely than mothers younger than 19 to develop postpartum psychosis that could put their newborn at risk, say Swedish researchers who analyzed data from nearly 750,000 first-time mothers.
"The risk of developing psychosis during the first 90 days (after childbirth) increased with age," wrote the researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Agence France Presse reported.
Postpartum psychosis is a serious mental disorder that involves delusions, hallucinations, severe eating or sleeping disturbances, and suicidal tendencies. Immediate medical attention is required, including anti-psychotic drugs and hospitalization, the researchers said.
Related Stories
ABC News Live