: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11473248<![CDATA[Ontario hospital’s special room offers better pain relief for IUD, other gyno procedures]]>Fri, 10 Oct 2025 16:04:47 +0000
A hospital network in Ontario has established a specialized room that offers better pain relief for some gynecological procedures to prioritize women’s health and patient comfort.
London Health Sciences Centre said it has introduced the Women’s Minor Procedure Room, which offers a range of procedures such as IUD insertions and removals, biopsies, Pap smears and pelvic exams for those with a history of trauma.
The room is equipped with the same monitoring tools as a standard operating room, but is designed for smaller and less intensive procedures, where patients will receive “conscious sedation.”
LHSC said that previously these procedures were done in a clinic or operating room where options for pain management were limited to lidocaine cream, cervical blocks or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) if anesthesia wasn’t being used.
“We know the fear of pain and discomfort can cause patients to avoid care,” said Dr. Erin Lovett, ob-gyn at LHSC. “Now we’re able to tell them we have more choices to help keep them comfortable.”
The hospital network said this allows patients to benefit from a more flexible experience.
“They don’t need to arrive early, can eat and drink lightly before their appointment, and are typically ready to leave within 30 minutes of the procedure’s completion,” LHSC said.
“While most procedures only take five to 15 minutes, appointments are scheduled with enough time for patients to go at their own pace. The entire visit – from check-in to recovery – can take as little as an hour, which is significantly less time compared to the half- or full-day commitment required in a traditional operating room setting.”
LHSC also noted that the room has been designed to feel more personal and is staffed by just a physician and a nurse, which creates “a quieter, more relaxed environment” and ditches the full surgical team seen in other operating rooms.
“It’s a less daunting experience overall, and that helps put patients at ease while giving them a sense of control over their bodies and care,” Lovett said.
The hospital network said that with the room in place, the wait times for minor gynecological procedures range from one week to three months, depending on urgency.
Self-referrals are possible for people wanting sedation for IUD inserts or removals by booking through phone or email, although LHSC said most patients are referred to the specialized room by a gynecologist.
The Princess of Wales has a suggestion for parents: Please put down the phone.
Kate, as she is commonly known, collaborated with adult development researcher Robert Waldinger to warn that technology is contributing to an epidemic of disconnection that is hurting family relationships. Devices that promise to keep us connected often do the opposite, they say in an essay posted on the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood website.
“We sit together in the same room while our minds are scattered across dozens of apps, notifications, and feeds,’’ the authors wrote. “We’re physically present but mentally absent, unable to fully engage with the people right in front of us.’’
The princess has made early childhood development one of her primary causes. She has now teamed up with Waldinger, who is the director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a long-term study of adult life and happiness that concluded those with stronger relationships were more likely to live happy, satisfying and healthier lives.
“Look the people you care about in the eye and be fully there — because that is where love begins,” they said.
]]>: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11469587<![CDATA[Toronto hospital performs first Canadian heart transplant after circulatory death]]>Wed, 08 Oct 2025 21:00:22 +0000
In a groundbreaking first for Canada, surgeons at Toronto’s University Health Network (UHN) have successfully completed a heart transplant using a donor whose heart had stopped beating, a technique known as donation after circulatory death.
Unlike traditional heart transplants that use organs from brain-dead donors whose hearts continue to beat, this new approach recovers hearts after life support is withdrawn, and the heart has stopped beating.
In early September, a team at UHN’s Toronto General Hospital transplanted a heart that had stopped beating after life support was withdrawn.
Dr. Ali Rabi, the cardiac surgeon at UHN’s Peter Munk Cardiac Centre who led the surgery, said, “Before, we only used hearts from brain-dead donors whose hearts were still beating. Now, we can use hearts that have stopped beating after life support is withdrawn.”
This new method allows doctors to do the same surgery on more viable donors and increase the number of hearts available for use.
“These are donors who are not considered brain dead. They have a few basic reflexes but no prospect of recovery. That decision is made by the patient, their family, their treatment team, and a neurology team. The family then decides they do not want their loved one to continue like this.”
This innovative step in the world of organ transplants marks a turn for those waiting for a new heart.
Heart failure is one of the most common reasons people are admitted to hospital in Canada and is a leading cause of death.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says by the end of 2024, there were 155 adults and 29 children waiting for a heart transplant.
“Because of this surgery, we increase the number of heart transplants by 20 to 40 per cent. This will also reduce the number of people who never receive a heart transplant and die waiting for one,” Rabi said.
The technique has been used successfully in other countries, including Australia, the U.K., and the United States. In Canada, this method is expected to increase heart transplants by about 30 per cent.
“When the heart started beating again in the new patient, it’s amazing. The heart’s natural strength is incredible.”
Ontario’s Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, Sylvia Jones, praised the achievement in a release posted by UHN. “This breakthrough shows how innovation can save more lives. Congratulations to UHN for this historic milestone,” she said.
Rabi also acknowledged the generosity of donor families, noting, “It’s the hardest day of their lives, but many find comfort knowing their loved one helped save others.”
Recent data from Australia and the U.S. show no difference in long-term survival between recipients of DCC (donor after circulatory death) hearts and those from traditional brain-dead donors, according to Dr. Rabi.
“I encourage young people who are interested in heart failure and heart transplant to look at the field, and I guarantee you in the next five years, the field will be completely unrecognizable,” he added.
]]>: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11468780<![CDATA[U.S. warns some Hello Fresh meals may contain listeria-tainted spinach]]>Tue, 07 Oct 2025 22:20:09 +0000
Federal health officials late Monday warned people not to eat certain Hello Fresh subscription meals containing spinach that may be contaminated with listeria.
The U.S. Agriculture Department issued a public health alert for the meals, which were produced by FreshRealm, the San Clemente, California-based company linked to an expanding listeria outbreak tied to heat-and-eat pasta meals.
The products include 10.1-ounce containers of Hello Fresh Ready Made Meals Cheesy Pulled Pork Pepper Pasta and 10-ounce containers of Hello Fresh Ready Made Meals Unstuffed Peppers with Ground Turkey. Both were shipped directly to consumers.
The pork pepper pasta is identified with establishment number Est. 47718 and lot code 49107 or Est. 2937 and lot code 48840. The unstuffed peppers with ground turkey is identified with Est. P-47718 and lot codes 50069, 50073 or 50698.
Global News has asked the Canadian Food Inspection Agency if it has also received listeria reports related to Hello Fresh meals distributed in Canada and if it will issue a similar warning.
The problem was discovered when FreshRealm notified the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service that the quick-frozen spinach used in the products tested positive for listeria. The spinach was provided by Sno Pac Foods of Caledonia, Minnesota, through their supplier, Del Mar Foods of Watsonville, California.
The strain of listeria detected did not match any known outbreak and no illnesses have been reported, FreshRealm officials said in a statement.
Last month, FreshRealm said that tests confirmed that pasta used in linguine dishes sold at Walmart contained the same strain of listeria linked to an outbreak in June. That outbreak, originally tied to chicken fettucine Alfredo, has killed at least four people and sickened 20, with the most recent illness reported Sept. 11.
FreshRealm officials said genetic testing found the outbreak strain of listeria in samples of pasta made and supplied by Nate’s Fine Foods of Roseville, California.
Several additional companies including Kroger, Giant Eagle and Albertson’s have recalled pasta salads and other dishes made with products from Nate’s Fine Foods for potential listeria contamination.
Listeria infections can cause serious illness, particularly in older adults, people with weakened immune systems and those who are pregnant or their newborns. Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions.
About 1,600 people get sick each year from listeria infections and about 260 die, the CDC says. Federal officials in December said they were revamping protocols to prevent listeria infections after several high-profile outbreaks, including one linked to Boar’s Head deli meats that led to 10 deaths and more than 60 illnesses last year.
Ask The Doctor: What is Listeria and how to avoid it
]]>: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11466835<![CDATA[Measles-free status in jeopardy in the Americas as outbreaks continue]]>Mon, 06 Oct 2025 20:46:37 +0000The Americas region is at risk of losing its measles-free status as the highly infectious disease continues to spread in Canada, Mexico and the United States, the head of the Pan American Health Organization told Reuters in an interview.
To be considered measles-free, a country where an outbreak takes place must get back to zero cases within 12 months.
That deadline expires at the end of this month for Canada, while the United States has until January and Mexico until February.
PAHO head Dr Jarbas Barbosa said all three countries were at risk of missing the deadlines, which would deprive the Americas of its measles-free status and set back the wider goal of a measles-free world by 2030.
Canada on track to lose measles elimination status, PHAC says
Falling vaccination rates were to blame for the spread of the disease, he said.
When asked if he was concerned about policy changes in the United States, where Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr, a longstanding vaccine sceptic, has overhauled the system of recommending vaccines, Barbosa avoided criticising any specific country.
But he emphasised the importance of accurate public information in ensuring vaccination rates do not fall.
“We need to stick to the science and the evidence,” he said.
For example, he said there was “no evidence that there is a relationship between vaccines and autism,” contradicting a theory promoted in the past by vaccine sceptics including Kennedy.
Alberta newborn dies of Measles, doctors push for vaccinations
PAHO, the Americas arm of the World Health Organization, says 95 per cent of a population needs to be vaccinated to prevent the spread of measles, a viral infection that causes fever and a characteristic rash, and can lead to dangerous complications.
According to WHO data, 92 per cent of the population in Canada has had the first dose of vaccine, and only 79 per cent the second dose, which is needed for full protection.
There have been more than 5,000 measles cases in Canada this year and two deaths, most recently that of a newborn baby in Alberta announced last week.
While cases are declining, Canada has just weeks to show that transmission has stopped completely.
The United States and Mexico have also had significant measles outbreaks this year, with thousands of cases and a handful of deaths.
The Americas region only regained its measles-free status in 2024, after an outbreak in Brazil was stopped.
While the U.S. is in the process of quitting the WHO, it is still a PAHO member.
Separately, the head of the vaccine group Gavi, which helps fund immunization campaigns in lower-income countries, told Reuters that the group planned to launch four major nationwide drives to protect children against measles before the end of this year, alongside the governments of Nigeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Democratic Republic of Congo.
“These are unprecedented, and I don’t think we will ever have the money to do them again,” said Sania Nishtar, chief executive of Gavi, which is facing budget cuts as global aid budgets fall.
The U.S. is set to cut its funding of Gavi entirely – around $300 million (U.S.) annually – after Kennedy said the organization ignores safety, without providing any evidence.
]]>: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/news/11464854/montrealers-honour-missing-indigenous-women/<![CDATA[Montrealers honour missing Indigenous women]]>Sat, 04 Oct 2025 22:09:27 +0000: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11463893<![CDATA[Alberta First Nation residents fight drug, alcohol abuse with push for dry community]]>Sat, 04 Oct 2025 00:49:19 +0000: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11462941<![CDATA[‘It costs nothing to dial 911’: Toronto man expresses gratitude to Good Samaritan]]>Fri, 03 Oct 2025 22:55:12 +0000: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11462734<![CDATA[FDA approves another abortion pill, sparks conservative backlash]]>Fri, 03 Oct 2025 14:21:09 +0000: Healthhttps://globalnews.ca/?p=11461613<![CDATA[Premature baby dies from measles in Alberta as cases throughout province near 2,000]]>Thu, 02 Oct 2025 19:31:51 +0000: Health
