Tuesday, October 2, 2012

AMERICAN AIRLINES SEATS COME LOOSE
The next time you're about to sit down on a plane, this story is going to make you want to give your seat a little jiggle. Your airplane seat!
American Airlines officials are inspecting eight planes in their fleet after seats started coming loose mid-flight. At least three incidents have been reported, with the seats coming loose and the planes they were on having to make emergency landings. The loose seats could have gone flying through the cabin if the flight had stayed in the air and hit any turbulence. An airline representative said the airline does not believe the incidents are related to American's ongoing labor issues.

PEANUT BUTTER RECALL EXPANDED
That peanut butter recall that you'd heard about at Trader Joe's is spreading. Now it's affecting peanut butter products sold at Whole foods, Target, and Safeway, who all got their supplies from a New Mexico company.  30 people have gotten sick in 19 states from the salmonella-tainted foods. You can get the specifics and find out whether you have something that's been recalled HERE.
 
MENINGITIS REPORTED AT FRANKLIN SCHOOL, PARENTS CONCERNED
Among recent outbreaks of three different forms of meningitis, parents in Williamson County are concerned after reports of seven viral cases of the disease.
Four families reported to Oak View Elementary School officials in Franklin that seven children have a viral form of meningitis.  Further details of the children's conditions were not immediately released.
According to The Tennessean, extra cleaning crews were called in to disinfect the school.
Though it's less likely to be deadly, viral meningitis can be contagious.
Physicians are not obliged to report cases of viral meningitis to the state, as they must for bacterial meningitis. Recently, there have been two fatal cases of bacterial meningitis reported in Tennessee.
In September, Middle Tennessee State University student Jacob Nunley died of the illness and last week, an elementary student in Wilson County also died.

THERE IS A VACCINE FOR MENINGITIS, but most parents don't get their kids immunized because it's not required by law.

WHAT IS MENINGITIS?
Meningitis is a rare but debilitating infection that affects the delicate membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.  The meningococcal bacteria can cause a variety of illnesses, including bacterial meningitis, blood infection and pneumonia. The disease is carried by humans and transmitted by close, face-to-face contact.  Each year, between 1,400 and 2,800 cases of invasive meningococcal disease occur in the United States, with the most cases reported in the months of December and January.
WHY IMMUNIZE?
Between 10 and 14 percent of all individuals who contract bacterial meningitis will die from the disease.  Of those who survive the disease, up to 20 percent will suffer serious health problems such as deafness, neurological problems or limb loss.
CHILREN AND ADOLESCENTS BENEFIT MOST
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices at the Centers for Disease Control recommends routine vaccination for young adolescents (11-12 years old) and those entering high school who have not been immunized (around 15 years old).  Experts also recommend that college freshman who live in dormitories receive immunization.

TWO PEOPLE DEAD FROM MENINGITIS, ST. THOMAS NEUROSURGERY CLINIC SHUTS DOWN
The Tennessee Department of Health is joining forces with the Center for Disease Control to investigate an unusual outbreak of meningitis that has hit 11 Tennesseans so far, killing two of them.
The 11 patients who contracted this strain of fungal meningitis in Tennessee received epidural steroid injections at St. Thomas Outpatient Neurosurgery Center between July 30 and Sept. 20. The injections are commonly administered to relieve pain.
Another patient was identified in another state who seems to have contracted meningitis after the same procedure.
Although the investigation has yet to reveal a definitive culprit behind the fungal meningitis cluster, said TDH Commissioner Dr. John Dreyzehner, the injections have been recalled and evidence suggests more than a dozen other states could be affected.
Fungal meningitis, different from bacterial and viral strains, is not contagious, said Dreyzehner.
“This type of meningitis is not spread from person to person,” he said.
About 737 patients who received the same injection at the center during that window have been alerted and examined, he added.
Symptoms of fungal meningitis, which could include headaches, fever, numbness or slurring speech, have manifested themselves between seven and 28 days after treatment, he said.
“The earlier people are identified and treatment begins the better outcome they’re likely to have,” he said. Treatments could include anti-fungals and steroids.

FUTURE OF TENNESSEE STATE FAIRGROUNDS STILL UNDECIDED
We may be getting closer to figuring out what to do with the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. There was a public meeting last night, where officials discussed a possible mixed-use concept for the property, and gave the public a chance to vote on past proposals. This is Phase Two of the Fairgrounds Master Plan Study, that was commissioned to find the best use for the 117 acres, which includes the Music City Motorplex. The fairgrounds are off Wedgewood Avenue, just south of downtown. For most of the year, the site is a giant parking lot and developers are now saying it should be put to better use.

EVEN BACKGROUND TV CAN BE BAD FOR KIDS
Did you hear? We're not supposed to leave the TV on for background noise anymore if there are small children in the house. A new study from Cleveland Children's Hospital finds it can still hurt kids cognitive funtioning. I wasn't sure what that was, exactly, so I looked it up: "Cognitive functioning is the process by which one becomes aware of, perceives, or comprehends ideas. It involves all aspects of perception, thinking, reasoning, and remembering." That's what too much TV, even background TV can hurt for little kids. The average child gets four hours of background TV per day.

BABY MAY HAVE DIED FROM CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING
http://www.wkrn.com/story/19690353/baby-may-have-died-of-carbon-monoxide-poisoning
As we get closer to winter, people start trying to find ways to keep warm, and some of them are deadly. A little 9 month-old baby near Cumberland, Kentucky appears to have died from carbon monoxide poisoning from the gas-powered generator her family was using to provide electricity for their mobile home.

AUDIT FINDS PAROLE OFFICERS "MONITORING" DECEASED OFFENDERS
Like many government agencies, the Tennessee Board of Probation and Parole is stretched to the limit... not enough manpower to cover all the people they have to keep track of. But... an audit of the system found it may be worse than we thought: in the past year, some probation officers have reported that they've checked in on and are monitoring dozens of offenders  they couldn't POSSIBLY be checking on... because they're dead. at least 82 dead peole on the rolls. One guy died 19 years ago, but the officer reported he's been contacting the guy. The fear is that if it's being falsely reported that people are checked on, how many LIVING parolees are not really being monitored? The state’s Board of Probation and Parole keeps track of 60,000 offenders.

MURFREESBORO DAD ARRESTED FOR LEAVING KIDS HOME ALONE
A Murfreesboro man is in jail for leaving his four small children.. all under age 6...  home alone Saturday night. A repo agent was at the Northfield Lodge Apartments to repossess a car, and found one of the children outside, crying, looking for his father. (The 25 year old dad says he didn't think the kids could unlock the deadbolt. Children's Services officials say that means they wouldn't have been able to get out if there'd been a fire, and that's no excuse for the neglect. The kids are now in their mom's custody.)

"GANGNAM STYLE" GETS STAR TREK PARODY: "KLINGON STYLE"
And everybody wants to get in on the "Gangnam Style" craze. A comedy team has translated the lyrics from Korean to KLINGON STYLE. The Star Trek themed parody has gotten millions of hits since it went online a few days ago.
Korean rapper Psy says he's overwhelmed and thrilled by the attention his song has gotten. "Gangnam Style" has hit number one on the U.K. charts and is sitting at number two in the U.S.

MONDAY DEADLINE TO REGISTER TO VOTE, BUT IT'S A FEDERAL HOLIDAY
If you need to register to vote, or make changes, like a change of addressThat means you'll have to have your registration in the mail by SATURDAY, or take it to the election commission offices on Monday, to be eligible to vote next month.

HONDA TO RECALL HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF ACCORDS
 Honda is recalling more than 570-thousand Accords in the U.S. along with more than 30-thousand in Canada.  The recall affects the 2003-07 models with V-6 engines.  The issue involves the cars' power steering hose, which Honda says may degrade over time and leak.  This is in addition to a recall that involved the 2007 and '08 Acura TL.  No injuries or crashes have been reported.  Affected owners will be notified by mail.

‘INTERNET ADDICTION' TO BE CLASSIFIED AS MENTAL ILLNESS
http://rt.com/news/internet-use-mental-illness-389
Think twice the next time you play a videogame or surf the Net: ‘Internet-use disorder’ is set to be added to the list of mental illnesses in the worldwide psychiatric manual. Kids are identified as being especially at risk.  The international mental health encyclopedia known as the ‘Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ (DSM-IV) will include Internet-use disorder as a condition “recommended for further study” in its forthcoming May 2013 edition. Psychologists believe that Internet addiction should be categorized like other addiction disorders as it has similar symptoms, including emotional shutdown, lack of concentration and withdrawal.