Study questions Viagra warning When Viagra...

Study questions Viagra warning

When Viagra was introduced in 1999, the drug’s manufacturer warned

of a number of visual side effects, including possible nerve damage

to the eyes. But a UC Irvine College of Medicine study rules out some

of these risks -- even when the drug is taken in high doses.

According to Dr. Tim McCulley, assistant professor of

ophthalmology, blood flow in the eye does not seem to be reduced by

even high doses of the popular erectile dysfunction drug. Since

Viagra lowers blood pressure overall, there was persistent suspicion

that the drug might cause decreased optical blood flow, which can

cause nerve damage. McCulley’s study appears in the January 2003

issue of Ophthalmologica.

Students join fight against leukemia

Newport-Mesa students are reaching into their piggy banks to help

raise money for the Olive Garden Pasta for Pennies program, a

national fund-raising campaign benefiting The Leukemia and Lymphoma

Society.

Last year, more than 235,000 students in 115 schools in Orange,

Riverside and San Bernardino counties raised $134,000. This year,

Clark County, Nev., will participate.

The class in each school collecting the most money receives a

pasta party courtesy of Olive Garden. The fund-raising campaign is a

grassroots’ effort that raised more than $2 million for the society

last year across the U.S. Since 1994, Pasta for Pennies has raised

more than $15 million to fight leukemia and lymphoma and to provide a

wide range of services to patients and their families.

Nearly 300 Americans a day are diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma

or myeloma. Leukemia is the number one disease killer of children

ages 1 to 14 and strikes 10 times as many adults.

Leukemia and lymphomas are the leading fatal cancers in young men

and women under the age of 35.

For additional information, contact the Leukemia and Lymphoma

Society at (714) 881-0610 or visit www.leukemia-lym phoma.org