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HealthBeat Wrap: Pain Drugs, Cancer, Online Seniors

POSTED: 2:10 pm EST January 13, 2005
UPDATED: 2:18 pm EST January 13, 2005

A new study suggests non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, like ibuprofen, aspirin, and naproxen can cause damage to the small intestines, as well as stomach bleeding.

Doctors at a Houston hospital used tiny cameras to detect damage in 70 percent of patients who used the painkillers for three months or longer -- damage that can go unnoticed.

It is especially bad news for people who are looking for alternatives to prescription pain drugs like Vioxx and Celebrex.

"You have to weigh the risk and benefits and some people may not be able to get out of bed because their arthritis is so bad. What these doctors need to do is be aware they can have symptoms they may not recognize," Dr. Waqar Qureshi said.

Cervical Cancer

There's a new push to eliminate cervical cancer.

Rates are way down, but experts say not enough women know a virus -- called HPV -- causes the disease, or that a simple PAP test can detect cervical cancer in its earliest stages.

They call it a national problem, but point out that Massachusetts scores the highest among all states. More than 80 percent of all eligible women here get screened.

Cervical Cancer Campaign

Seniors Online

The Internet can be a great tool for answering important questions about health, but a new survey finds few seniors are taking advantage of all that information.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, less than one-third of older Americans age 65 and above have ever gone online.

Only 15 percent of seniors earning less than $20,000 a year use the Internet.

The good news is that 70 percent of the next oldest generation, those aged 50 to 64, are online.

Read More About Study

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