2010: A Year In Medical News
NEW YORK (CBS 2) -- News from the medical world led to some of 2010's biggest headlines, including an "illness" that threatened the globe, creepy crawlers and concern over head injuries. Dr. Max Gomez has takes a look back at the year in medicine.
The year started out with two medical groups contradicting last year's recommendations on mammography, saying that women should start routine screening at age 40.
While on the male side, prostate cancer screening guidelines also got muddled with conflicting opinions, as to whether PSA tests should be used routinely in older men.
Also to start off the year, the world battled a global pandemic. "The H1N1 virus is still circulating and it is causing disease, hospitalizations and deaths," said Dr. Anne Schuchat, CDC Chief Immunization Director back in January.
A new vaccine became widely available that same month, and by spring, H1N1 cases started to fade. That's when another health crisis started making headlines.
More than 1,800 people got sick after eating eggs contaminated with salmonella. The outbreak led to a massive recall of more than a half a billion eggs.
Concussions on the playing field made news all year as well, with new findings showing the number of kids with sports-related concussions doubled since 1997.
The NFL changed its rules after seeing a series of players suffer concussions.
The League now requires players with head injuries to undergo more rigorous medical testing before they are allowed back on the field.
And a new study found professional atheletes who suffer multiple concussions are at risk of developing symptoms that mirror ALS, also known Lou Gehrig's disease.
Guidelines changed for CPR in 2010. The American Heart Assciation announced the lifesaving technique is best without mouth to mouth in most cases.
And a tiny bug caused nightmares across the country. "One bed bug can grow to 30,000 in six months' time so you definitely want to catch it early," said Adam Greenberg of USBedbugs.com back in September.
Bed bugs invaded, biting people not only in the bedroom. The tiny insects shut down major retailers and offices and bed bug summits were held across the nation offering new ways to kill the blood suckers.
Experts predict the little criters will stick around in 2011.
Perhaps the medical stories of 2010 with the farthest-reaching impact were actually political and policy issues. Sweeping health care reform was signed into law.
Congress passed the 9/11 health bill for first responders and residents near Ground Zero, while New Jersey and Arizona brought to 15 the number of states that have legalized medical marijuana.
