From Sharon Kramer

Johns Hopkins Says Crazy Po’ Black Mothers Worsen Child Asthma (As Opposed To Their Substandard Housing ????)  Psychologists & “Non-profit” Medical Assoc Strike Again!

We know that sickbuildings are a leading cause of asthma in children.  We know that contaminants in sickbuildings can cause neurocognitive symptoms that mimic depression.
 
So why are America’s medical schools still choosing to ignore this fact and label the physically ill, who are living in low income housing, as experiencing psychological problems that cause the worsening their children’s asthma? It is an insult to the intelligence of the American public and to mothers everywhere.
 
The latest “science study” blaming depression in mothers as a cause of worsening asthma in children comes out of Johns Hopkins. Their suggested solution to treat the child’s asthma appears to advise America’s physicians to give the mother “chill out” drugs. Huh?
 
Wouldn’t it make more sense to teach the physicians to determine if there is a contaminant in the family’s living environment that could cause both symptoms of asthma in the child and symptoms of depression in the mother before writing a prescription for mother’s little helper?
 
I am certain that depression in care givers does impact the care they give.  So why promote to physicians that this would particularly hold true with poor, black mothers whose children have asthma? Who benefits from the promotion of this concept?
 
And why are America’s medical associations still rewarding those who profit by promoting this psychological babble that deflects liability for those responsible for chemical and microbial exposures in the indoor environment?

On November 8, 2009, at the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI), Dr. Emil Bardana was awarded the 2009 Gold Headed Cane Award for his contributions and integrity as a leading allergist in the United States. According to ACAAI, the prestigious award is “designed to serve as an inspiration to younger doctors and encourage them in their family, social, civil, religious and professional lives.” 

According to the teachings of Dr. Bardana, “Toxic mold syndrome represents the furtive evolution of aeroirritation from a transient to permanent symptom complex in patients with a psychogenic predisposition.  In this respect, the core symptoms of toxic mold syndrome and their gradual transition to chronic symptoms related to nonspecific environmental fragrances and irritants appear to mimic what has been observed with other pseudodiagnostic categories, such as sick building syndrome and idiopathic chemical intolerance. “Inhalational mold toxicity: fact or fiction? A clinical review of 50 cases” Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2005 Sep;95(3):239-46.
 
Concluding the symptoms to be psychological or idiopathic in origin and not caused by the buildings, the patients were not advised to leave the sick buildings to lessen or eliminate their symptoms by the IME physicians.

With continued exposure to a potential location of causation of illness, continued medications for control of the resultant symptoms are required.

Sponsorship for Dr. Bardana’s Gold Headed Cane award was provided by Merck Company, manufacturer of Singulair allergy and asthma medication.  Singulair is Merck’s top-selling product for the ever increasing incidence of “idiopathic” asthma and allergy in the United States. In 2008, Merck’s gross sales for Singulair was $4.3 billion. Sales expected to be reported in 2009 are in the $4.4 billion to $4.7 billion range.

Not disclosed by ACAAI when describing Dr. Bardana’s 20 year history as a leader among the “non-profits” that influence the practices and protocols of allergists is Dr. Bardana’s long and prosperous career as an expert witness on behalf of insurers and employers who deny their sick buildings are a cause of illness.

In 2005, Eric Mason of KATU News in Salem, Oregon reported on an extensive investigation of Dr. Bardana’s work as an expert witness for the state’s workers compensation fund, SAIF. The expose’ was titled “Dealing with SAIF and feeling like a criminal” and detailed the trials and tribulations of three teachers who were claiming injury from mold in their school. With permission of KATU News, the video of Dr. Bardana’s work on behalf of the school district and SAIF, used to deny the teachers’ workers compensation claims, may now be view on the Internet.   

Sharon Kramer
 
Mother’s Depression a Risk Factor in Childhood Asthma Symptoms, Study Suggests (added: Never Mind That Science Holds Sickbuildings Are A Cause Depression and Asthma)

MEDIA CONTACT: Katerina Pesheva
EMAIL: epeshev1@jhmi.edu
PHONE: (410) 516-4996

November 19, 2009

Results may be tied to fatigue and forgetfulness in managing children’s disease

Asthma symptoms can worsen in children with depressed mothers, according to research from Johns Hopkins Children’s Center published online in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology.

Analyzing data from interviews with 262 mothers of African-American children with asthma — a population disproportionately affected by this inflammatory airway disorder — the Hopkins investigators found that children whose mothers had more depressive symptoms had more frequent asthma symptoms during the six-months of the study. Conversely, children whose mothers reported fewer depressive symptoms had less frequent asthma symptoms.

Researchers tracked ups and downs in maternal depression as related to the frequency of symptoms among children.

“Even though our research was not set up to measure just how much a mom’s depression increased the frequency of her child’s symptoms, a clear pattern emerged in which the latter followed the earlier,” says senior investigator Kristin Riekert, Ph.D., a pediatric psychologist and co-director of the Johns Hopkins Adherence Research Center.

But while maternal depression appeared to aggravate a child’s asthma, the opposite was not true: How often a child had symptoms did not seem to affect the mother’s depressive symptoms, an important finding that suggests maternal depression is an independent risk factor that can portend a child’s symptoms, researchers say.

Past studies have shown that children with chronic health conditions fare worse if their primary caregiver is depressed, but none have teased out the exact interplay between the two.

“Intuitively, it may seem that we’re dealing with a chicken-egg situation, but our study suggests otherwise,” Riekert says. “The fact that mom’s depression was not affected by how often her child had symptoms really caught us off guard, but it also suggested which factor comes first.”

Researchers did not study why and how a mother’s depression affects a child’s asthma status, but because depression often involves fatigue, memory lapses and difficulty concentrating,  it can affect a parent’s ability to manage the child’s chronic condition, which can involve daily, and sometimes complex, drug regimens and frequent visits to the doctor.

“Mom is the one who must implement the doctor’s recommendations for treatment and follow-up, and if she is depressed she can’t do it well, so the child will suffer,” says lead investigator Michiko Otsuki, Ph.D., a behavioral medicine fellow at Johns Hopkins at the time of the study, now at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg.

Investigators say their findings should prompt pediatricians who treat children with asthma to pay close attention to the child’s primary caregiver — whether or not it is the mother — and screen and refer them for treatment if needed.

“We ask these parents if they are smokers all the time, so maybe it’s time to start asking them if they are coping well emotionally,” said co-investigator Arlene Butz, Sc.D., a pediatric asthma specialist at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. “Doctors are trained to pick up on subtle clues, so if they see a red flag in mom, they should follow-up with a depression screener and referral if needed.”

Treating depressed mothers whose children are at high-risk for asthma complications will likely benefit both mother and child, researchers say, while providing a clear treatment target to help reduce the burden of asthma in the United States. Asthma is the country’s leading pediatric chronic illness, affecting 6.5 million children under the age of 18, according to the CDC.

The Hopkins study included only mothers but investigators believe a similar pattern would emerge regardless of who the primary caregiver is.

Researchers caution that the mothers in their study were screened for depression with a standard questionnaire, which is a reliable detector of symptoms but not a firm diagnosis.

The Hopkins findings came from a high-risk, inner-city population and thus cannot be statistically extended to other ethnic and socioeconomic groups, but researchers say the effect of caregiver depression on a child’s asthma likely transcends demographics.

The research was funded by the National Heart Lung Blood Institute.

Other Hopkins researchers involved in the study included Michelle Eakin, Ph.D., Lisa Arceneaux, Psy.D., Cynthia Rand, Ph.D.

A letter to the NAA regarding an email they deleted without reading – please retract your amicus in the Abad case in Arizona – it is fraud by a political action committee, the National Apartment Association, that is furthering another fraud by another political action committee, the US Chamber of Commerce

Political Action Committee – NAA – files Amicus Brief in mold case (two infant deaths in mold filled apt – Wasatch Prop Mgmt) citing US Chamber/ACOEM ‘litigation defense report’ to disclaim health effects of indoor mold & limit financial risk for industry

“Changes in construction methods have caused US buildings to become perfect petri dishes for mold and bacteria to flourish when water is added. Instead of warning the public and teaching physicians that the buildings were causing illness; in 2003 the US Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform, a think-tank, and a workers comp physician trade organization mass marketed an unscientific nonsequitor to the courts to disclaim the adverse health effects to stave off liability for financial stakeholders of moldy buildings. Although publicly exposed many times over the years, the deceit lingers in US courts to this very day.” Sharon Noonan Kramer

Information on Riverstone Residential knowingly exposing tenants to extreme amounts of mold toxins at Toxic Mold Infested Jefferson Lakes Apartments in Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Toxic Mold Infested Jefferson Lakes Apartments managed by Riverstone Residential

Riverstone Residential Litigation

Mold Inspection Reports

Photos of Mold in Apartment

Attorney Malpractice