The five most-read stories on Scope this week were:
Study suggests early-childhood anesthesia exposure may affect the brain: Results from a Columbia University study suggest that even a single anesthesia exposure before age 3 could hurt children's language skills and abstract reasoning abilities.
Even low blood lead levels are associated with gout: A new study published in Annals of Internal Medicine features the work of Stanford rheumatologist Eswar Krishnan, MD, and his colleagues, who discovered that, contrary to current health standards, there is a increased risk of gout associated with low levels of lead in blood.
Should local residents be worried about West Nile virus?: Santa Clara County officials recently announced a project to spray pesticide in and around the Palo Alto Baylands park to control an unusually large hatch of summer salt marsh mosquitoes. This post examines whether local salt marsh mosquitoes are West Nile carriers and if they pose a health risk to residents.
Doctors: Please have “ears that hear”: Inspire contributor Judy Peterson writes about her story of being diagnosed with ovarian cancer and urges doctors to educate themselves and their patients about the signs and symptoms of this deadly cancer.
Grieving on Facebook: A personal story: Scope contributor Michelle Brandt shares her personal experience in coping with the recent death of a loved one and how Facebook influenced both grieving process.
