Study questions Viagra warning
When Viagra was introduced in 1999, the drug's manufacturer warned
of a number of visual side effects, including possible nerve damage
to the eyes. But a UC Irvine College of Medicine study rules out some
of these risks -- even when the drug is taken in high doses.
According to Dr. Tim McCulley, assistant professor of
ophthalmology, blood flow in the eye does not seem to be reduced by
even high doses of the popular erectile dysfunction drug. Since
Viagra lowers blood pressure overall, there was persistent suspicion
that the drug might cause decreased optical blood flow, which can
cause nerve damage. McCulley's study appears in the January 2003
issue of Ophthalmologica.
Students join fight against leukemia
Newport-Mesa students are reaching into their piggy banks to help
raise money for the Olive Garden Pasta for Pennies program, a
national fund-raising campaign benefiting The Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society.
Last year, more than 235,000 students in 115 schools in Orange,
Riverside and San Bernardino counties raised $134,000. This year,
Clark County, Nev., will participate.
The class in each school collecting the most money receives a
pasta party courtesy of Olive Garden. The fund-raising campaign is a
grassroots' effort that raised more than $2 million for the society
last year across the U.S. Since 1994, Pasta for Pennies has raised
more than $15 million to fight leukemia and lymphoma and to provide a
wide range of services to patients and their families.
Nearly 300 Americans a day are diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma
or myeloma. Leukemia is the number one disease killer of children
ages 1 to 14 and strikes 10 times as many adults.
Leukemia and lymphomas are the leading fatal cancers in young men
and women under the age of 35.
For additional information, contact the Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society at (714) 881-0610 or visit www.leukemia-lym phoma.org
