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ByJoshFunk TheAssociatedPress OMAHA, NEB. A surgeon who contracted Ebola in his native Sierra Leone re- ceived aggressive treatment at a Nebraska hospital over the weekend but died Mon- day morning. Dr. Martin Salia's death is a reminder of how deadly the Ebola virus is and how important it is to receive treatment early, said Dr. Jeff Gold, chancellor of the Uni- versity of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. "In the very advanced stages, even the modern techniques we have at our disposal are not enough to help these patients once they reach a critical thresh- old," Gold said at a news conference. Salia, 44, was diagnosed with the virus Nov. 6. By the time he arrived at the Omaha hospital on Satur- day, he was in extremely critical condition with no kidney function and severe respiratory problems. He was placed on kid- ney dialysis and a ventila- tor, and was given several medications to support his organ systems, the hospital said in a statement. He was given the experimental Eb- ola drug ZMapp on Satur- day and received a plasma transfusion from an Ebola survivor — a treatment that is believed to provide antibodies to fight the vi- rus. "We used every possible treatment available to give Dr. Salia every possible op- portunity for survival," said Dr. Phil Smith, medi- cal director of the biocon- tainment unit. "As we have learned, early treatment with these patients is es- sential. In Dr. Salia's case, his disease was already ex- tremely advanced by the time he came here for treat- ment." The doctors and nurses treating Salia took addi- tional precautions to pro- tect themselves from the vi- rus because of the advanced state of his disease when he arrived, Smith said. Everyone who treated Sa- lia will be monitored for 21 days for Ebola symptoms, but they won't be quaran- tined. Salia's body will be cre- mated as a precaution, Smith said. Two other Ebola pa- tients have been success- fully treated at the Omaha hospital. Of 10 people to be treated for the disease in the United States, all but two have recovered. Thomas Eric Duncan, of Li- beria, died at a Dallas hos- pital in October. Salia was on day 13 of his illness when he arrived in Omaha, Smith said. The hospital's two surviving Eb- ola patients arrived on day six and day eight of their ill- nesses. Salia's wife, Isatu Salia, said Monday that she and her family were grateful for the efforts made by her hus- band's medical team. "We are so appreciative of the opportunity for my husband to be treated here and believe he was in the best place possible," Salia said. Ebola has killed more than 5,000 people in West Africa, mostly in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. Five other doctors in Sierra Leone have contracted Eb- ola, and all have died. Salia had been work- ing as a general surgeon at Kissy United Methodist Hospital in the Sierra Leone capital of Freetown. It's not clear whether he was involved in the care of Ebola patients. Kissy is not an Ebola treatment unit, but Salia worked in at least three other facilities, United Methodist News said, citing health ministry sources. Salia graduated from the Pan African Academy of Christian Surgeons training program in 2008. A fellow medical missionary, Rich- ard Toupin, of Auburn, In- diana, last week described his colleague as "one of the best-trained surgeons in his country." Bruce Steffes, executive director of PAACS, said Salia was free to practice anywhere he wanted, but that he elected to stay in Sierra Leone where the need for surgeons is im- mense. The White House also sent condolences in a state- ment, saying Salia's death "is another reminder of the human toll of this disease and of the continued imper- ative to tackle this epidemic on the front lines, where Dr. Salia was engaged in his calling." Salia's wife, who lives in New Carrollton, Maryland, said in a weekend telephone interview that when she spoke to her husband early Friday his voice sounded weak and shaky. But she said he told her "I love you" in a steady voice. They prayed together, she said, calling her husband "my everything." VIRUS Ne br as ka h os pi ta l: S ur ge on w it h Eb ol a ha s di ed ASSOCIATEDPRESS Dr. Phil Smith, medical director of the Nebraska Biocontainment Care Unit, answers a question during a news conference in Omaha, Neb., on Monday. Dr. Martin Salia, who contracted Ebola in his native Sierra Leone, died Monday at the Nebraska hospital. By Marilynn Marchione The Associated Press CHICAGO A major study lifts a cloud around Zetia and Vytorin, blockbuster drugs for lowering choles- terol. The study found that these pills modestly lower the risk of heart attacks and other problems in peo- ple at high risk for them — evidence that's been miss- ing for more than a decade as the drugs racked up bil- lions in sales. Doctors have long fo- cused on lowering LDL, or bad cholesterol, to prevent heart disease. Statins like Lipitor, Crestor and Zocor are the main medicines for this, and a lot of research shows they work. Merck & Co.'s ezetimibe, which went on sale in 2002, lowers cholesterol in a dif- ferent way. It's sold as Ze- tia and, as a combo pill with Zocor, as Vytorin. The drug won Food and Drug Admin- istration approval for lower- ing LDL, but some studies suggested that might not translate to fewer heart at- tacks and strokes. One study even questioned whether it raised the chance of cancer. The new study found that people at high risk of heart problems who took Vytorin for seven years cut their risk of suffering one by 6 per- cent — by 8 percent if they took the drug most faith- fully — compared to others taking just Zocor. Vytorin also proved safe. "We've answered all the questions. Now we know that with this different way of lowering cholesterol, you can in fact prevent heart at- tacks and strokes," said one study leader, Dr. Christo- pher Cannon of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. "This is the first time that something added to statins has been shown to be ben- eficial," he added. Results were revealed Monday at an American Heart Association confer- ence in Chicago. "I'm impressed" that a non-statin can help, said Dr. Sidney C. Smith Jr., a former Heart Association president from the Univer- sity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "It expands the options," especially for the many people who can't tolerate a statin or get their choles- terol low enough on one, said Dr. Neil Stone, a North- western University cardiol- ogist. Even a longtime Vytorin critic, the Cleveland Clinic's Dr. Steven Nissen, said the study gave "a solid result" and evidence that very low cholesterol cuts heart risks. To be clear: The study doesn't mean that Zetia and Vytorin can help people who have not yet suffered a heart problem. The 18,000 study participants either had a recent heart attack or worsening chest pain from a severely clogged ar- tery. About 1.1 million peo- ple face this situation in the United States alone each year. Half were given Vytorin and the rest were given Zo- cor alone. Average LDL levels went from 95 at the start of the study to 70 with Zocor and 54 with the combo pill Vyto- rin. About 15 percent of Zo- cor users had a heart attack versus 13 percent of those on Vytorin. Other heart-re- lated problems also were less common with Vytorin. For every 56 people tak- ing Vytorin for seven years, one additional heart at- tack, stroke or heart-related death would be prevented. The study was sponsored by Merck and many doctors involved in it consult for the company or other heart drug makers. Zetia and Vytorin had global sales of $4.25 billion in 2013. They cost about $6.50 per pill, and generic versions will be available in about two years. High-dose statins may be a cheaper way to get LDL very low, but studies haven't compared that option to adding Zetia or Vytorin. MEDICINE Major study li s cloud over heart drugs Zetia, Vytorin ASSOCIATED PRESS A major study gives a long-awaited answer on whether the blockbuster drugs Vytorin and Zetia lower the risk of heart problems. The Associated Press WASHINGTON Recovery of feeling can gradually improve for years after a hand transplant, suggests a small study that points to changes in the brain, not just the new hand, as a rea- son. Research presented Sun- day at a meeting of the Soci- ety for Neuroscience sheds light on how the brain pro- cesses the sense of touch, and adapts when it goes awry. The work could offer clues to rehabilitation after stroke, brain injury, maybe one day even spinal cord in- jury. "It holds open the hope that we may be able to fa- cilitate that recovery pro- cess," said Dr. Scott Frey, a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of Missouri in Columbia. When surgeons attach a new hand, nerves from the stump must regenerate into the transplanted limb to begin restoring different sensations, hot or cold, soft or hard, pressure or pain. While patients can move a new hand fairly soon, how quickly they regain feeling and what sensations they experience vary widely. After all, the sense of touch isn't just about stim- ulating nerves in the skin. Those nerves fire signals to a specific brain region to de- cipher what you're touch- ing and how to react. Lose a limb and the brain quickly rewires, giving those neu- rons new jobs. Frey's work shows the area that once operated a right hand can start giving the left hand a boost. Brain scans suggest those changes are at least par- tially reversible if someone gets a hand transplant years later. But little is known about how the brain's reor- ganization affects recovery. Telling where on the palms or fingers they're be- ing touched without look- ing is a persistent problem for hand transplant recipi- ents, and a function of the brain's main sensory area. Frey's team compared four transplant recipients, four patients whose own hands were reattached immedi- ately after injury, and 14 uninjured people. The longer the time since their surgeries, the more ac- curately patients located a light touch, Frey reported. Two who've had trans- planted hands for eight and 10 years, respectively, were almost as accurate as unin- jured people. So were two patients whose own hands were reattached 1½ and three years earlier. Nerve regeneration is thought to take about two years, Frey said. "Yet their sensory abil- ities and motor abilities continue to improve, albeit gradually, as long as we've been measuring," he said. THE BRAIN Hand transplant recovery sheds new light on touch 1795WalnutStreet•RedBluff (530) 527-2046 www.brentwoodsnf.com BRENTWOOD Skilled Care Rehabilitation Services employee ofthe month Billi truly loves our residents and always has a positive attitude. The compassion and work ethic she shows is what all care givers should strive to achieve." 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