Ga. High School Teens Suspended for Getting Piercings in Locker Room

Creatas(ATLANTA) -- Four teenage girls at an Atlanta high school were suspended after they snuck away to the gym locker room to endure amateur tongue, navel, and lip piercings during school hours.

Reon Grinage, 14, told ABC Atlanta affiliate WSB-TV that a friend of hers came to Cross Keys High School with a piercing kit she ordered off the Internet.

One day after gym class, the two teenagers, as well as two other girls, waited in the locker room. But instead of changing from their gym clothes to their school clothes to go to lunch, the four hung back to get pierced.

"She was like, 'Do you want to do it?' I was like, 'Sure.' And she had the whole kit and everything," Grinage told WSB-TV.

Grinage got a stud through her tongue, as well as her belly button. The friend with the piercing kit charged each of the girls $5 per piercing, WSB-TV reported.

"She used the same needle on that one girl that she did on the other girl," Grinage said.

One of the teens even suffered a lip infection following the unsafe piercing practices, Grinage said.

Once one of the girls' mothers found out about the "piercing party," she alerted school administrators. The girls were suspended for 10 days, WSB-TV reported.

Grinage's aunt, Lena Harrison, told WSB-TV that she was surprised none of her niece's teachers noticed her piercing.

"She saw four other teachers after this. Not one of them said, 'Is something going on with you that you can't talk?' Harrison told WSB-TV. "How did nobody hear girls in the bathroom getting pierced? Because I know it was quite an adventure."

School officials told WSB-TV that the locker room was unsupervised at the time of the piercing incident, and their policy for such supervision was under review.

According to the Cross Keys High School website, the school has a dress code, under which students are expected to "observe high standards of neatness and cleanliness."

"A student's appearance can positively or negatively impact the climate of a school," the dress code states.

While the school's code does not address piercings, it does say "male and female students may wear conservative jewelry in a reasonable amount."

ABC News' attempts to reach Harrison were not successful.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Heightened Estrogen Levels Associated with Sudden Cardiac Death

Comstock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Heightened estrogen level may be associated with an increased risk of cardiac death in both men and woman, according a new study.

The study was presented on Friday at an annual meeting of the Heart Rhythm Society in Denver. More than 350,000 Americans die each year from cardiac death, which can occur when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating, says HealthDay News.

Researchers analyzed data from people who had either suffered sudden cardiac death or had coronary artery disease. According to HealthDay News, testing on the blood samples of those patients found that both group had similar cardiac risk factors.

While diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol were found in similar rates in both groups, researchers were interested to find that both men and women who suffered sudden cardiac death had greatly increased estrogen levels. Additionally, the ratio of testosterone to estrogen was lower in those who suffered sudden cardiac death.

While the findings do not prove that high estrogen levels cause cardiac problems, the findings could help identify patients at greater risk.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Colon Cancer Among 'Least Prevented'

Ingram Publishing/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Karen Witkus took the prescription, folded it up and tucked it in her wallet. She didn't want to think about the colonoscopy it would procure.

"I heard horror stories about it," said Witkus, 55, imagining the probing test and the gut-cleansing preparation it required. "I kept delaying and before you know it, it had been in my wallet for three years."

A colonoscopy is a procedure in which doctors view the inside of the colon with a small camera to spot and remove pre-cancerous growths called polyps before they turn into deadly tumors. It's the most sensitive of three colon cancer screening tests recommended for men and women over the age of 50, but nearly half of all eligible adults skip the tests altogether, according to a 2009 study.

As a result, colorectal cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States, killing more than 50,000 Americans annually, according to the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Up to 60 percent of those deaths are preventable through screening, the agency says.

Dr. David Johnson, chief of gastroenterology at Eastern Virginia Medical School and past president of the American College of Gastroenterology says reasons for the low screening rates vary.

"One reason is that the test may not be covered by the patient's insurance," he said, alluding to insurance plans that are unaffected by the Affordable Care Act, which mandates coverage of colorectal cancer screening. Only 29 states and the District of Columbia have mandated that insurance plans cover colorectal cancer screening tests. "Another reason is that patients simply never have the conversation with their doctor."

Then there are people like Witkus, who despite having a referral and insurance coverage forgo the test out of fear. A colonoscopy requires that patients drink a gallon of bad-tasting laxative to cleanse the bowel, making polyps more visible. Patients miss up to two days of work – one for the pre-procedure doctor's visit and bowel prep and another for the procedure itself.

Although the benefits of a colonoscopy far outweigh the inconvenience and discomfort, doctors and researchers have nonetheless been searching for easier and more acceptable alternatives. One such test is currently under review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Developed by Exact Sciences, the stool-based screen detects changes in DNA as well as traces of blood that signal the presence of pre-cancerous polyps or cancers of the colon.

"I believe we have a significant opportunity to play a role in winning the battle against colon cancer," said Exact Sciences president and Chief Executive Officer Kevin Conroy, citing results from a recent clinical trial that suggest the stool-based test can detect 65 percent of polyps measuring 2 centimeters or more. "Colon cancer is the most preventable yet least prevented cancer. ... There is a significant need for something different."

Johnson, who was involved in the trial, agrees.

"Anything that brings more people into the screening pool, I'm all for," he said. He hopes the new test will play a "sizable role in increasing the options for screening," but cautions, "the best screening test is still the colonoscopy."

 When Witkus finally had her colonoscopy three years after getting the prescription. She was shocked to learn that she had colon cancer. Had she undergone the test at age 50, her cancer and subsequent surgery to remove 6 centimeters of bowel would have likely been avoided, her doctors told her.

Witkus did undergo screening with fecal occult blood testing two years before her colonoscopy and said she had no problem with the more convenient and less-invasive test. The test was negative but is known to miss the majority of polyps. She hopes that an accurate but minimally invasive test will one day be available, adding that the colonoscopy prep was the worst part.

While the new test is far from perfect, Johnson said he believes it could be refined to improve its sensitivity. But there are other unknowns, including the cost of the test and whether insurers will cover it. Approval by Medicare often triggers other insurance providers to cover the test, but if it's too expensive, the test might struggle to gain acceptance in an increasingly cost-conscious healthcare market. However, the potential to prevent cancer in more people and avoid costly treatment will certainly help its case. The cost of treating colon cancer exceeded $14 billion in 2010, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Thankfully doctors were able to remove Witkus' cancer before it was too late. But she knows that she was lucky.

"I talk to everybody I can now about colon cancer," she said. Her advice? "Definitely get the colonoscopy."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Potential Dangers of Baseball Injuries May Lead to Change

Zoonar/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- It took about a third of a second for a rocket of a line drive to blast Toronto Blue Jays pitcher J.A. Happ in the head. It was faster than the blink of an eye, leaving fans in stunned silence as Happ was taken off the field.

Less than 24 hours later, despite having a skull fracture, Happ left the hospital feeling very fortunate.

“It must have caught me in a better spot because I think it could have got me head on,” he said.

With the ball speeding toward him at about 120 mph, Happ didn’t have time to react. It’s a professional hazard for pitchers.

Fortunately, it only happens, on average, about two times a season. But when it happens, it’s serious.

Last season, three major league pitchers were beaned by batters’ line drives, each harder to watch and sometimes bloodier than the other. Major League Baseball is working on solutions, but nothing is imminent.

The league is considering new protection for pitchers, including cap liners produced out of bulletproof Kevlar. But that would protect only protects 40 percent of the head, leaving 60 percent of the face still exposed.

“I don’t think we’re going to see any headgear for pitchers. I don’t think they’re going to want to wear it,” concussion expert Dr. Gillian Hotz said. “So I think, right now, we can look at all these different types of equipment and maybe something will fit. But up ’til now, I don’t think we have anything that will work.”

This isn’t just a problem for the big leagues. Little League is also looking for a solution. Doctors worry especially about children under 16 whose brains are still developing and, therefore, the ramifications of being hit with a ball could be worse.

High school pitcher Gunnar Sandberg spent a month in a coma after being hit by a line drive.

“That’s what we worry about with kids that are younger than 16-years-old, still brain developing, and we are really concerned about multiple hits and the repeated, we call them, sub-concussive blows,” Hotz said.

Officials are so concerned, they are working with sports equipment companies to develop a pitcher’s helmet for kids and teens.

In the meantime, Little Leaguers are now coached to finish their pitch in a fielding position with a glove near the face. It’s the best method we have right now to prevent an injury that happens in the blink of an eye.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Woman Trying to Quit Smoking Slaps Cop in Attempt to get Arrested

Jupiterimages/Thinkstock(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) -- A California woman had a novel approach to quitting smoking – slapping a cop and getting arrested.

Etta Lopez, 31, is accused of slapping a Sacramento County Sheriff's Deputy. She reportedly told the deputy that she did it because she wanted to get arrested and be put in jail so she would be forced to go smoke-free.

“She told us she needed to quit smoking and that she knew the only discipline she would receive would be inside the county jail,” a deputy said.

 The deputy, Matt Compoy, had just come off duty on Tuesday when Lopez came out of nowhere and whacked him in the face.

She got her wish. Lopez is in jail awaiting arraignment on a charge of assaulting an officer.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Shakira Dishes on Sexiness After Childbirth

Noel Vasquez/Getty Images for Extra(LOS ANGELES) -- Shakira is known for her sexy dance moves, but the "Hips Don't Lie" singer and The Voice coach admits she was insecure about her body after giving birth to her first son, Milan, in January.

"It's hard to deal with a lot of the things that you have to deal with. You know, looking at your new image in the mirror. I looked like a Shar-Pei when I first delivered," Shakira admitted on a special Mother's Day edition of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which aired Friday. "I was like, 'Oh my God. Am I ever going to be sexy again? Is my man ever going to feel attracted to me again the way he used to be?'"

Shakira's boyfriend is soccer star Gerard Pique. The two welcomed their first child in Barcelona, Spain.

Spanish media reports had suggested that Shakira, who's 36, had scheduled a Caesarean section, but that didn't make childbirth any easier for her.

"Delivering a baby is not as idyllic as people make it seem," she told Ellen. "Don't expect that he is going to be rosy cheeks, cherub when he is born. Actually, when I saw mine, I was like, 'Oh my God, he's purple and wrinkled!'"

Ellen also gave Shakira a special gift for Milan: his own mini-Voice revolving red chair, complete with his own little button to push.  Demonstrating how the chair spins around, Ellen said, "If he wants to have dinner and playtime, he turns around. If not, he doesn't!"  Shakira said the gift was "the cutest thing ever!"

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

High School Seniors May Miss Prom, Graduation Without Chicken Pox Vaccine

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WESTMORELAND COUNTY, Pa.) -- For most high school seniors, the prom is the event that sets off the countdown to graduation. Students winding down to end of their high school career finally get the chance to celebrate the close of one chapter and the prospect of new adventures after high school.

But just a day before the big dance at one Pennsylvania high school, dozens of students were told to stay home because they had not had the chicken pox vaccine.

"Twenty hours before the biggest dance ever, and it just so happened they told me I was no longer allowed to go," Norwin High School senior Kayla Boscia told ABC News affiliate WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh.

In a letter from the school district, Boscia and 32 other students were told one student had the disease and that they were part of a 21-day incubation period because they had not been vaccinated. This means no classes, no prom and no graduation for the students lacking vaccinations.

The district says its hands are tied, with the regulations coming down from state health officials. However, students can attend the prom if they can prove immunity via blood testing, or by getting a shot by Sunday.

Norwin senior Marissa Huss made sure to get her shot right away, given her responsibilities at several senior activities, including her graduation speech.

"The six of us planned the entire prom, and we also planned graduation. And I was speaking at graduation," Huss told WTAE-TV.

But some students may still miss out on the dance, losing hundreds of dollars with prom tickets costing $125. Blood test results can often take 48 hours to four days to come back.

Parents of the unvaccinated students complained that the order to stay home isn't fair.  The district policy exempts students from vaccination requirements for religious or medical reasons. But parents were told the state regulations trump district policy.

"Did you sign a waiver to not have your child vaccinated? Yes. So you were under the presumption of what?" Lisa Grudowski said. "That we were fine. We were assuming all responsibility if our child comes home with the disease."

"This is it. She's a senior. She can't go next year. She can't make it up. This is it," she said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Tiny Wire from BBQ Brush Lands Teen in Surgery

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(MOUNTLAKE TERRACE, Wash.) -- A Washington state teen is recovering after a “violent” stomach ache landed him in a hospital where doctors performed exploratory surgery only to discover his problems stemmed from a BBQ brush wire that he unknowingly swallowed.

Tristin Beck, 16, of Mountlake Terrace, Wash., was admitted to Seattle Children’s hospital late last week when his symptoms went from stomach pains to vomiting. Tristin told his parents it felt like he was being stabbed from the inside out.

On Sunday night, doctors performed exploratory surgery on his small intestine and found a problem no one expected.

“We saw the glisten of metal off the light. Another doctor said that looks like a wire from a BBQ brush,” said Dr. Kimberly Riechle, a surgeon at the hospital. “It turns out Tristin unknowingly ate one of these, a wire -- the size of a hair -- from a common grill brush. It apparently came off and stuck to the chicken he was eating at a family BBQ.”

As strange as it sounds, this is not the first time a wire from a grill brush has landed someone in the hospital. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control has issued a warning in the past about old BBQ brushes and the threat of tiny metal bristles rubbing off.

Doctors from Rhode Island Hospital reported in July 2012 that six people came to the emergency department from 2011 to 2012 with wire bristles from grill brushes lodged in their throats, stomachs, intestines or other organs after eating meat cooked on an outdoor grill.

Tristin’s mother, Beth Beck, had never heard of the problem and is now heeding the CDC’s warning and throwing out her BBQ brush. Beck is also urging other parents to check their brush right before the BBQ season heats up.

“I don’t want anybody else to go through this. It’s been horrible,” Beck said.

Tristin, who described the pain as “pretty violent,” is still in the hospital and expected to make a full recovery. He has gone from scared to overwhelmed about his strange close call.

“I have really bad luck because of this one in a million chance happened to me. But also really good luck because they found it so early and the doctors put me in the O.R. and got it out,” Tristin said.

Tristin hasn’t been able to eat solid food for days and is craving something delicious to chow down on, but he says, just don’t offer him anything off the grill for a while.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Study Raises Concerns that Pitocin May Harm Babies

Comstock/ThinkstockColumn by ABC News' Dr. Jennifer Ashton

(NEW YORK) -- After delivering over 1,000 babies as a Board-certified ob-gyn, many of these babies with the use of Pitocin, I have heard concerns about this drug from hundreds of pregnant moms-to-be.

Most women want to know if the medication is necessary.

This is really the most important question, and it speaks to the issue of appropriate obstetric indication for this, or any other, intervention.

Pitocin is the synthetic brand name of the labor hormone, Oxytocin. This is the hormone that causes the uterus to contract during labor, and to contract after delivery, preventing postpartum hemorrhage.

When Pitocin is used prior to delivery, it is used either to induce labor, or to augment (or strengthen) labor that has slowed down or stalled completely.

The medication is given through an IV, and is run through a pump that regulates the dose and the frequency with which the dose is increased. Nurses and obstetricians and other trained obstetric personnel monitor the well-being of the pregnant woman and the fetus closely whenever Pitocin is used.

This recent study is the first time that the effects of Pitocin on the fetus were studied. Though this was a relatively small, retrospective study, the results did reveal that women who were given Pitocin to induce or augment their labors did have an increased risk of having a baby with lower Apgar scores or who required admission to the NICU.

These findings suggest an association of Pitocin use with these outcomes but did NOT reveal a cause and effect between use of this drug and these fetal outcomes.

Folklore regarding Pitocin use extends equally amongst obstetricians and moms alike. Many women feel Pitocin causes worse pain during labor than labor without Pitocin. Many obstetricians feel a contraction caused by Pitocin is no different than a 'natural' contraction.

As an obstetrician AND a mom who has two babies (one with and one without Pitocin), I did not experience any difference in my two labor experiences. However, every woman is different, and every woman is entitled to her own subjective experience and opinions thereof.

What complicates the opinions of this mainstay drug in modern obstetrics is that there are many other factors that enter into a pregnant woman's labor and delivery experience, and one of the greatest is the reason or indication for Pitocin's use in the first place.

It is important to remember that when labor has stalled, intervention MUST occur or both the mother and the fetus could die of sepsis or severe infection that will occur if delivery does not occur. In this situation, use is indicated and appropriate.

If labor is being induced (for a medically valid reason), Pitocin use is indicated and appropriate. If a doctor is anxious to leave the hospital and starts Pitocin to accelerate the timeline of labor, that is inappropriate. These are extreme examples but there are plenty of times in L&D that Pitocin is used for "gray zone" indications.

Risks of Pitocin include contractions that are too close together and that don't give the uterus a chance to relax and recover, which can result in fetal distress.

Maternal risks of the medication are water intoxication, pulmonary edema and abnormal sodium levels. The bottom line is that if Pitocin is recommended, a pregnant woman has every right to ask why, what the indications are, and if there are any reasonable options.

Every single drug has risks and benefits. Aspirin can save a life if you are having a heart attack, but it can also cause severe internal bleeding. Pitocin is no different: it can and is a safe medication, but it can also cause problems if not administered properly.

There is an art to the practice of Obstetrics and the team involves the health care professional, the mom-to-be AND the fetus. The process of labor and delivery can be a straight-forward natural one, or it can be very complex and require extremely sophisticated intervention to achieve the ultimate goal: a healthy baby and a health mother.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Dogs May Lower Your Risk of Heart Disease

Goodshoot/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Owning a dog may be good for your heart, the American Heart Association says in a new statement published in its journal Circulation.

After convening a panel of experts to review years of data on the health benefits of owning a pet, the organization found that man's best friend may protect you from heart disease.

“Pet ownership, particularly dog ownership, is probably associated with a decreased risk of heart disease,” said Glenn N. Levine, M.D., a professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and chair of the committee that wrote the statement.

One reason could be that dog owners are more physically active because they walk their pets.  

Studies also show that owning pets could be tied to lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and they can help buffer the body’s reactions to stress.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio