Latest news with #healthConcerns
RNZ News
27-05-2025
- RNZ News
Teen dies after suffering head injuries in 'tackle game' game with friends
Photo: 123rf A 19-year-old has died after being critically hurt while playing a 'tackle game' with friends. The teen suffered a serious head injury when tackled, and was taken to hospital, where he died on Monday, police say. "Run It" is an event is a social media-driven trend where participants compete in full-contact collisions without protective gear, raising serious health concerns over concussion and injury risks. More to come...
CTV News
23-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Concerns about health risks associated with viral 'mouth taping' sleeping TikTok trend
Toronto Watch Doctors in Canada and around the world are expressing concern about a practice being touted on social media as a way to eliminate snoring and sleep apnea. However, CTV's health reporter Pauline Chan unveils it may be harmful for some people.
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Alarming number of Lasik eye surgery patients who took their own lives revealed after police officer's suicide
The recent suicide of a young Pennsylvania police officer has reignited concerns over Lasik eye surgery, as dozens more were pushed to the brink of death over similar complications. Ryan Kingerski, a 26-year-old officer with the Penn Hills Police Department, took his own life after months of excruciating pain, double vision and persistent headaches. He claimed the Lasik eye surgery he underwent five months earlier was the source of his suffering. Now, as more horror stories of agonizing symptoms surface, it's becoming increasingly clear that Kingerski's case is not isolated. 'Everyone has different problems when it comes to Lasik,' Edward Boshnick, a Miami-based eye doctor, told The New York Post. 'It's the biggest scam ever put on the American public... and it's a multi-billion dollar business.' Lasik eye surgery, or laser vision correction, is marketed by providers as 95 to 99 percent safe. The so-called 'simple' procedure uses an ultraviolet laser to reshape the cornea, improving vision without glasses or contacts. Morris Waxler, 89, was the former head of the Food and Drug Administration branch responsible for reviewing data and approving the Lasik operation decades ago - a decision he now regrets. Ryan Kingerski (pictured), a 26-year-old officer with the Penn Hills Police Department, took his own life after months of excruciating pain, double vision and persistent headaches - claiming the Lasik surgery he underwent five months earlier was the source of his suffering 'It didn't matter what questions and concerns I had, because the surgeons were very powerful and still are,' he told The Post. He had petitioned the FDA to revoke its approval of the Lasik procedure after his own analysis revealed complication rates between 10 to 30 percent - a staggering contrast to the 'less than one percent' figure cited by providers. In 2018, Detroit TV meteorologist Jessica Starr hanged herself at just 35-years-old, leaving behind a 30-page suicide note and videos blaming her tragic decision on the elective surgery. She documented her struggles in video diary entries. In one recording, she spoke about feeling mad at herself for deciding to go through with the procedure. According to her family, Starr reached out to various eye doctors and even sought help with a therapist, but her emotional state continued deteriorating. The young mother ultimately took her own life after struggling with intense pain and vision problems in the two months since her surgery. 'Prior to the procedure, Jessica was completely normal, very healthy,' Dan Rose, Starr's widower, told The Post. 'There was no depression... no underlying issue.' Also in 2018, Paul Fitzpatrick, a Canadian father-of-two, killed himself and blamed 20 years of post-Lasik pain in his suicide note. In the years following his operation, Fitzpatrick suffered headaches and described feeling needles in his eyes as well as an unbearable dry and burning sensation. His family said in the months leading up to his death, the pain was so unbearable he would keep his eyes closed for most of the time, walking with a cane and planned to move in with his parents. He left a suicide note when he took his life in October of 2018, which described the pain he felt that pushed him to death. 'I cannot experience any type of pleasure anymore,' Fitzpatrick wrote. 'Just the pain of burning eyes inside my head and throughout myself… Since 1996 Pain, pain and more pain, please forgive me for not being strong enough to cope. The past few months have been unbearable.' Gloria McConnell had two Lasik procedures to fix her short-sightedness in 2019. Serious complications arose a few weeks after the surgery, including eyes so dry they had a burning sensation, mites and ingrown hairs in her eyelashes. Four years later, she was barely able to leave her bed. Fitzpatrick's family said in the months leading up to his death, the pain was so unbearable he would keep his eyes closed for most of the time, walking with a cane and planned to move in with his parents (pictured) She died by suicide aged 60. Her son said she left a note to her family in which she explained that the pain from the bungled surgery formed part of her decision to end her life. McConnell even submitted a comment to the FDA's draft recommendations which said: '[LASIK] has destroyed my life.' In August of 2024, Kingerski took some time off his dream job as a police officer to get Lasik and improve his vision - a decision that seemed safe given the demands of his career. However, he would tragically never wear his uniform again, as what his parents described as a 'tragically unsuccessful surgery' transformed him from a smiling, vibrant person to someone unrecognizable. The operation left him with debilitating side effects - headaches, dark spots floating in his eye sight, double vision and extreme sensitivity. In January, still without relief or answers, Kingerski ended his life. In a heartbreaking suicide note, he wrote: 'I can't take this anymore. Lasik took everything from me'. Paula Cofer, one Lasik survivor, shared that she endured two years of suicidal thoughts following her 'disastrous' procedure back in 2000, The Post reported. In Lasik and similar surgeries, a small flap is cut into the cornea, which is then raised slightly. This reshaping changes the way that light is refracted to make up for nearsightedness or farsightedness that occur when light doesn't hit the proper spot on the retina. 'The Lasik lobby and the surgeons will tell you only one percent of patients have issues afterward,' the 66-year-old woman told the outlet. 'That's not true. There are multiple studies that indicate otherwise.' 'The percentage of those with poor outcomes are in the double digits, not one percent,' she added. 'And they know it.' In a shocking twist, Cofer claimed to have known at least 40 people who have taken their own lives after Lasik - unable to go on living with the constant pain and vision problems developed after the procedure, The Post reported. As a way to spread awareness, Cofer runs the Lasik Complications Support Group on Facebook - just one of many organizations on social media created in response to the unspoken dangers of Lasik. 'I really didn't want to stick around at times, but I decided I would to get the word out about how dangerous this surgery can be,' she told the outlet. 'If you understand Lasik and what it does to the eyes and cornea, you realize you can't do it on a healthy eye and not expect complications,' she added. In Lasik and similar surgeries, a small flap is cut into the cornea, which is then raised slightly. This reshaping changes the way that light is refracted to make up for nearsightedness or farsightedness that occur when light doesn't hit the proper spot on the retina. 'Not everyone has severe complications but a lot more people are suffering than you know,' Cofer said. 'I got floaters, severe dry eyes, induced astigmatism and severe night vision problems.' More than 10 million Americans have undergone the procedure since Lasik was FDA approved in 1999, according to the medical journal Clinical Ophthalmology, which reports that 700,000 to 800,000 opt for laser vision correction each year. Abraham Rutner, a 43-year-old Brooklyn electrician, was one of the lucky ones - miraculously finding a sliver of hope after his failed Lasik procedure five years ago. 'It's like you have a layer of oil on top of your eye - it was so hazy and terrible,' he told The Post. 'I couldn't work. I couldn't drive. I felt like I was still a young man and I lost my life.' However, he heard about Dr. Boshnick's work, whose optometric practice offers vision and comfort restoration due to a variety of eye conditions and surgeries - including Lasik. Rutner was eventually fitted with a scleral lens, a specialized contact that covers and protects corneas damaged by Lasik. Cofer said she was also fitted with the lens - and that it has provided significant relief. The FDA does warn on its website that the procedure carries risks, including vision loss, glare, halos, double vision and other 'debilitating visual symptoms'. According to The American Refractive Surgery Council's website, 'Lasik is safe and is one of the most studied elective surgical procedures available today... the rate of sight-threatening complications from Lasik eye surgery is estimated to be well below one percent.' However, for some experts like Boshnick, Lasik is nothing more than a 'BS procedure', according to The Post. 'People come in with healthy eyes and all they need is eyeglasses,' Waxler told the outlet. 'But when surgeons cut the cornea they are removing nerves and leaving the corneas with odd shapes and some patients will have intractable pain.'
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Forget the club, it's all about Gails! MOLLY CLAYTON tries out the astonishing new coffee shop rave trend and discovers why ravers are swapping vodka for matcha and lattes
As soon as I turned 18, the excitement of finally being allowed in a nightclub, ordering shots of vodka and dancing until the early hours of the morning was palpable. But times seem to be changing, and nightclubs are becoming less and less popular- and so is drinking. Stepping in as a replacement are coffee shop raves, where no dress code is required, no extortionate amount of money for entry is needed and instead of shots of vodka, shots of espresso and bites of banana bread are on offer. The new Gen-Z trend is coming at a time when nightlife culture is on decline with more than 3,000 nightclubs, bars and pubs closing in London in the last three years. Recent figures from the NTIA showed people in the UK aged between 18 and 30 are going out past 10pm less and less. A huge factor for this was shown to be financial pressures, with many finding themselves priced out of live events. Other factors that play a factor included safety concerns – with over a third sharing that they are prone to feel fear, anxiety, uneasiness or unsafe when going out at night. On the other hand, a recent report by GWI found that people aged between 16 and 34, are looking to connect with people when they go out and most importantly, remember it the next day. On top of all of this, more and more people are choosing not to drink with 43 per cent of 18 to 34-year-olds and 32 per cent of 35 to 54-year-olds giving up drinking entirely because of health concerns. One of the first viral coffee shop raves was hosted at How Matcha in Marylebone, London. Opening their first shop, they approached DJ Louis Bekk about hosting an opening event. Eager to change the narrative around live music, Bekk, 26, was already on his way in trying to make the change nightclubs and live music sets being seen as exclusive and hard to get into. 'There are these big Mayfair clubs where you have to dress a certain way and pay a certain amount to get in,' he told me. 'The nights are centred around alcohol and looking good rather than the music and the art itself.' Louis Bekk is a French DJ and music producer living in London who began his career in classical music and composing for other international artists. Making the switch into DJing, he found himself faced with the problem of building a fan base, having always been behind other people's success. It worked. How Matcha's rave garnered hundreds of thousands and views and likes on TikTok, setting the trend that many more coffee shops are now following. London based salad shop Farmer J followed suit and opened their Marylebone location with a Louis Bekk set. With their healthy food and message of 'farm to fork', the idea suited their brand perfectly promoting clean eating and sustainability, all whilst enjoying what you eat. Starting at 11am with iced coffee, cookies and marmite sandwiches, around 300 people gathered on a sunny Saturday morning to try and get a spot. I managed to get in with a couple of friends and found my perspective on 'going out' completely changed. Rather than feeling tired and full of brain fog the morning after, I felt rejuvenated and bright. We ended up socialising with a lot more people, didn't have a hangover and didn't swing by a fast-food takeaway on the way home. There was a complete mix of age groups, some people brought their children, some wore workout gear and others came dressed to the nines. But the main point was that the space felt safe, everyone felt accepted and most of all, we had the best time. 'There are these music gigs where they've become just somewhere to be seen and to post on Instagram,' Bekk said. 'I wanted to create somewhere anyone, who looked a certain way, dressed a certain way and didn't have a load of money, could come. London based salad shop Farmer J followed suit and opened their Marylebone location with a Louis Bekk set. With their healthy food and message of 'farm to fork', the idea suited their brand perfectly promoting clean eating and sustainability, all whilst enjoying what you eat Free of hangovers and late-night regrets, the new phenomenon supports the generation's penchant for health-conscious choices and making it home in time for their skincare routines. And with celebrities and influencers pushing the message that eight hours sleep, eating five a day and oat milk lattes are the key to a healthy and happy life, it looks like we will all be swapping Ibiza for Pret in the near future 'You just need to be interested in the music. 'If you bring the music somewhere new, you can redefine the standards. 'I never smoke, never taken drugs in my life and I barely drink. 'So just not having the pressure to be on a certain level as everybody and also removing that exclusivity by the price. 'I just wanted to change the music culture a little bit.' Gen-z trading late-night clubs for midday coffee shop raves is a trend no one is expecting to fade. Free of hangovers and late-night regrets, the new phenomenon supports the generation's penchant for health-conscious choices and making it home in time for their skincare routines. And with celebrities and influencers pushing the message that eight hours sleep, eating five a day and oat milk lattes are the key to a healthy and happy life, it looks like we will all be swapping Ibiza for Pret in the near future.
BreakingNews.ie
13-05-2025
- Health
- BreakingNews.ie
Nodule found in ex-president Joe Biden's prostate during routine physical exam
A small nodule has been found in Joe Biden's prostate during a routine physical exam, a spokesperson said. A short statement said the finding 'necessitated further evaluation' but it was not clear whether that had already taken place or the outcome of the examination. Advertisement The detection of nodules in the prostate generally requires a further exam by a urologist to rule out cancer. The former US president's age and concerns about his health were cited by Democratic leaders who pressed him to abandon his re-election bid last year after a disastrous debate performance in June. But as recently as last week, Mr Biden rejected concerns about his age, saying the broader party did not buy into that, instead blaming the Democratic leadership and 'significant contributors'. President Donald Trump repeatedly raised questions about Mr Biden's physical and mental capacity during the campaign. Advertisement In February 2023, Mr Biden had a skin lesion removed from his chest that was a basal cell carcinoma, a common form of skin cancer. In November 2021, he had a polyp removed from his colon that was a benign but potentially pre-cancerous lesion.
