Health Briefs: Avian flu is topic

By: North County Times - | Saturday, July 29, 2006 6:15 PM PDT ∞

OCEANSIDE ---- Carrie Moriority, a public health nurse, will speak about the bird flu at 7 p.m. Aug. 8 at a meeting of the Oceanside Community Emergency Response Team, whose primary function is to assist with the survival of the team's neighbors and co-workers in the event a disaster strikes. The public is invited to attend.

Moriority will talk about detection, prevention and steps to take in the event of an epidemic.

The meeting will be held at the Fire Training Center, 110 Jones Road. For information, call (760) 754-9232, or e-mail info@oceansidecert.org.

Cancer cooking course


LA JOLLA ---- The Cancer Project, a national nonprofit group dedicated to advancing cancer prevention through education and research, is offering a free, eight-session cooking course designed to help San Diego County residents prevent and survive cancer through proper diet and nutrition.

The course will be held from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesdays, starting Aug. 2 and continuing through Sept. 6 at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla, 9894 Genesee Ave.

For information about Cancer Prevention and Survival Cooking Classes, visit www.CancerProject.org, or call (202) 244-5038.

Program provides affordable meds


VISTA ---- Vista Community Clinic's Patient Assistance Program is designed to assist low-income patients receive medications they otherwise could not afford. The program requires that a patient be assessed by a Vista Community Clinic provider and referred into the program. Nearly every medication on the market today is available. The main qualifications for the program are that patients are uninsured, are low income and can provide valid proof of income with a 1040 tax form and/or current month pay stubs (depending on the program).

After the patient is enrolled, the medications are shipped to the provider at Vista Community Clinic and dispensed from the clinic office. Most applications are good for one year; some require renewal every 3 months.

If you are interested in being evaluated for the program you must first see a provider. For your convenience, Vista Community Clinic has locations throughout Oceanside and Vista. To make an appointment, call (760) 631-5000.

UCSD researchers to study antibiotics


Researchers at the UC San Diego Medical Center will enroll patients in a new national study to ascertain if a prolonged antibiotic treatment will ease asthma symptoms. Previous research has shown that nearly 60 percent of patients who experience uncontrolled asthma symptoms are not aware they have a chronic airway infection. This finding has initiated a nationwide study sponsored by the Asthma Clinical Research Network of the National Institutes of Health/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to determine if clarithromycin (trade name Biaxin), an antibiotic, will help relieve asthma and its symptoms.

Enrollment for the new study will begin mid-July, and will continue until the spring of 2007. Participants will be randomly selected to receive either clarithromycin or an inactive tablet for 16 weeks and also will receive an inhaled corticosteroid (Flovent). All study-related medical evaluations and medications will be provided at no cost, and volunteers will be financially compensated for their time and effort. To participate, call (888) 827-3247 or visit http://medicine.ucsd.edu/dgim/ctchome.htm

Trigeminal Neuralgia Support Group to meet


SAN DIEGO ---- The Trigeminal Neuralgia Association of San Diego County Support Group will meet from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday in the Coral Room at Thornton Hospital, 9300 Campus Point Drive. Psychologist Dr. Ann Damsbo will speak. Call Cherie Sato at (760) 729-8987.

Interstitial Cystitis Support Group to meet


SAN DIEGO ---- The Interstitial Cystitis Support Group will meet from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Aug. 6 in the Coral Room at Thornton Hospital, 9300 Campus Point Drive. Call (858) 279-2178.

UCSD clinical trial looks at depressionÝ


SAN DIEGO ---- Researchers at the UC San Diego School of Medicine are testing whether an EEG-based technology that monitors brain activity can successfully predict an individual's likelihood of responding to a specific anti-depressant medication.

UCSD is among nine leading academic facilities across the country to initiate the BRITE (Biomarkers for Rapid Identification of Treatment Efficacy in Major Depression) clinical trial. The trial, currently in progress at UCSD Outpatient Psychiatric Services located at 140 Arbor Drive in San Diego, is designed to assess the association between drug treatment outcome and brain function in patients with major depression.Ý

UCSD is recruiting individuals ages 18-75, with symptoms of depression. A clinic psychiatrist will perform an initial screening and diagnosis. Individual participation will last 13 weeks,Ýand all participants will receive antidepressant medications,Ýcompensation for time and travel, close monitoring, and free doctor's visits.ÝFor information, call (619) 725-3583.Ý

Annual regatta to support local hospice patients


SAN DIEGO ---- Sharp HospiceCare, Coronado Yacht Club and Cortez Racing Association will host the 4th annual Sharp HospiceCare Benefit Regatta on Aug. 25 and 26. Competitors will race for a chance to compete in the 2007 Hospice Regattas National Championship in Annapolis, Md.

Proceeds from the event support Sharp HospiceCare, an organization that provides comprehensive care and compassionate support for terminally ill patients and their families throughout San Diego County.

The money raised at the regatta will benefit Sharp HospiceCare's Homes for Hospice campaign, which is helping to build three new hospice homes, similar to the furnished, four-bedroom LakeView Home, in San Diego by 2010.

The two-day event launches Friday, Aug. 25, at the Coronado Island Marriott Resort with events for spectators and yachtsmen alike. The festivities include a full-course dinner, silent auction and dancing to the music of Rockola. Tickets for the dinner are $125 each.

On Saturday, Aug. 26, spectators can head to the Coronado Yacht Club to enjoy lunch, snacks and beverages and watch the regatta up close from spectator yachts. Boarding is at 11:30 a.m. Tickets are $65 each and include one ticket to the Post-Race Party.

The main event starts at 1 p.m. for both experienced racers and leisure sailors. The regatta race course is newly designed, starting in North Bay, sailing past downtown San Diego and ending in the South Bay near the Coronado Yacht Club. Entry is $40 for the regatta.

The weekend concludes with the post-regatta party and awards reception from 4 to 7 p.m.

For information and registration, call (619) 740-4200.

Support group to meet


OCEANSIDE ---- Sharp Memorial Hospital will sponsor a Surgical Weight-Loss Support Group in Oceanside that will meet from 6 to 7 p.m. Aug. 10 at the Best Western, Marty's Valley Inn, 3240 Mission Ave., Oceanside. For information and to register, call (800) 82-SHARP or visit www.sharp.com.