'Flu Gets Not Enough Respect': What We Heard This Week

— Quotable quotes from MedPage Today's sources

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"Many studies have examined [physical activity] among either children or adults, but not many studies have assessed ... emerging adults who are through the transitional period from adolescence to adulthood." -- Kaigang Li, PhD, MEd, of Colorado State University in Fort Collins, on a longitudinal study of exercise patterns in teenagers.

"Flu is serious; and often gets not enough respect." -- CDC director Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, discussing the upcoming flu season and the need for vaccinations.

"Any intervention that can decrease complication from C-sections will have major impact on pregnancy outcomes and the health of women." -- Uma Reddy, MD, of the NICHD, on an additional antibiotic halving the rates of infection after C-sections.

"There are better options available for the treatment of hypothyroidism." -- Danielle Weiler, MD, a Brea, Calif. family physician, on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton being prescribed Armour Thyroid to treat her hypothyroidism.

"It would be tragic if we were unable to give this treatment to a lot of patients who need it." -- Brian Kavanagh, MD, of the University of Colorado in Denver, commenting on a study of stereotactic body radiation therapy for older patients with early-stage lung cancer.

"Most of us who treat breast cancer have been giving a radiation boost, but we really have been extrapolating from findings in invasive breast cancer. Until now, evidence for this practice, specific to DCIS, has been lacking." -- Geraldine Jacobson, MD, of West Virginia University in Morgantown, commenting on a study confirming the benefits of a radiation boost to the tumor bed for patients with ductal carcinoma in situ.

"The chemical industry insists that the chemicals they use in these products' manufacture are safe. If that's the case, what is the harm of publishing that list so that consumers can make decisions about which products to purchase?" -- Andrea C. Gore, PhD, of the University of Texas at Austin, on the growing concern over endocrine disrupting chemicals in consumer products.

"Studies suggest that interleukin-6 is critically involved in the B cell hyperactivity of systemic lupus erythematosus, and may also mediate tissue damage." -- Daniel J. Wallace, MD, of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, and colleagues, regarding their new study suggesting that IL-6 may be a new target for lupus.