Arkansas Health

Families affected by peanut allergies— which are often severe, especially for children— now have the opportunity to receive treatment from a drug recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 

The drug, Palforzia, stems from an 18-year research effort from the Arkansas Children’s Research Institute on the campus of Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock.

Arkansans for whom holiday stress and winter blues turn to more serious symptoms of depression have somewhere to turn as a result of legislation passed in 2017 that created a state-funded suicide prevention call center run by the Arkansas Department of Health.

Tyler West, who works with the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention on both a state and national level, says the strategy is unique.

Babies in Arkansas are more likely to be born prematurely than in most other states, according to a report released Monday by the March of Dimes. It gives Arkansas a grade of F based on measurements of maternal and children's health.

Data from 2018 shows 11.6% of Arkansas babies were born three or more weeks before their due date, an increase of 0.2% over the previous year. The national rate is 10% and only four other states have a higher preterm birth rate.

Faith Sharp, with March of Dimes, said many Arkansas mothers lack access to pre-natal care.

The Arkansas Attorney General's office is hosting summit meetings to discuss the rise in vaping by the state's young people. On Monday, over 100 educators, lawmakers, and health professionals met at Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock, to hear the latest news on vaping.

Paragould School Superintendent Debbie Smith said having current facts from some of the state's leading medical professionals will help when talking to teens and parents.

An Arkansas teenager who began vaping last year is suing a leading e-cigarette maker, accusing the company of deceptive marketing and fraudulently concealing the addictive nature of its products.

The unnamed teenager and his mother filed the lawsuit against Juul Labs, Inc. last week in federal court in Little Rock and are seeking class action status on behalf of all Arkansas residents who bought or used Juul's products. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages.

With the 2019- 2020 flu season about to begin, state public health officials are urging Arkansans to get vaccinated. The Arkansas Department of Health briefed reporters Monday on the importance of being vaccinated in time for the flu season's start in October.

Dr. Nate Smith, the department's director, said people getting a vaccination is important despite the difficulty in accurately tracking the number of flu cases in the state.

In partnership with Arkansas Women’s Outreach, the Central Arkansas Library System will begin providing women’s hygiene products from its main branch on Monday, Oct. 7.

Crystal Edwards is overseeing the pilot program and says the idea was started by staff at the downtown library.

The infrastructure of Arkansas’s medical marijuana program could grow by early next year, according to the state Department of Finance and Administration.

So far, eight of the state's 32 licensed dispensaries are open, and three of five cultivators are producing product. DFA spokesman Scott Hardin said the two licensed cultivation facilities that have yet to open, Delta Medical Cannabis Co. and Natural State Wellness Enterprises, both in Newport, should be operating by the end of the year.

While no cases of measles have been recorded in Arkansas so far, residents can expect the illness to reach the state eventually. In a telebriefing yesterday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a total of 704 cases of measles in 22 different states. According to the CDC, three bordering states: Missouri, Tennessee and Texas have reported cases.

Dr. Gary Wheeler, Chief Medical Officer for the Arkansas Department of Health, says the upcoming travel season could put some Arkansans at risk.

TV reporter, press spokesman, PR professional, film enthusiast, comedian. Not necessarily in that order. Matt DeCample wore a lot of hats in his too-short life.

A former KATV reporter and longtime spokesman for Gov. Mike Beebe, DeCample died Sunday evening after a nearly three-year battle with cancer.

He came to Arkansas in the 1990’s to work for KATV Ch. 7 in Little Rock as a general assignment reporter. Bob Steel, the former news director who hired him, said DeCample was one-of-a-kind.

More teenagers are using e-cigarette products nationwide than in years prior, and Arkansas is no different.

A recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report shows that the use of e-cigarettes by high school students has increased by 78 percent this year. The number of users also rose. In 2011, 220, 000 students used e-cigarettes.

This year, the CDC predicts that number will reach over three million or 20.8 percent of all students.

The 25th Annual Race for the Cure takes place Saturday morning in downtown Little Rock. People will participate in a 5k run to raise money for breast cancer research and treatment.

Amy Treadway, development director of Susan G. Komen’s Arkansas affiliate, says most of the money taken in will benefit people in the state.

Amidst more revelations of problems tied to Arkansas’s nascent medical marijuana program, the architect of the state’s voter-approved amendment is calling for commissioners to abandon their process of scoring cultivation applications.

Attorney David Couch says the merit-based scoring system has been plagued with allegations that have rocked public confidence in the process.

A recent study published by Child Trends found that 56 percent of children in Arkansas have had at least one adverse childhood experience, or ACE, compared to the national average of 45 percent. That's the highest of any state in the nation. An ACE is defined as a "potentially traumatic event, ranging from abuse and neglect to living with an adult with a mental illness. They can have negative, lasting effects on health and well-being in childhood or later in life."