Medical News http://www.altruistahealth.com/home.aspx Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:00:00 GMT http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ A recent study published in The Lancet Oncology shows how exemestane (Aromasin), a drug that prevents the development of breast cancer in postmenopausal women, may significantly worsen age-related bone loss. As an aromatase inhibitor, exemestane works by blocking the synthesis of estrogen, slowing down the growth of cancers that have estrogen receptors. Whilst the drug is effective at preventing the development of cancer, there has been an increasing concern about its effects on bone density and fracture risk...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mcCHohtrd9M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mcCHohtrd9M/241240.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:00:00 GMT A study published in BMJ Open reveals that infants tend to eat healthier and be a healthy weight as they get older if they are allowed to feed themselves with finger foods from the start of weaning (baby led weaning), compared to infants who are spoon fed. According to the researchers, findings from the study indicate that baby led weaning may help prevent childhood obesity. Findings from the study were based on 155 children aged between 20 months and 6.5 years, whose parents filled out a survey regarding their children's food preferences and weaning style...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/2xnOHqyDMQY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/2xnOHqyDMQY/241232.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:00:00 GMT A study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health suggests that, moving house frequently during childhood appears to raise the risk of poor health in later life. The health of 850 individuals participating in the West of Scotland Twenty-07 study, which was based on postcodes, tracked the long term health of individuals aged 15, 35 and 55 in 1987-1988 over a period of two decades, was evaluated by the researchers...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xGRiHmZUItE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xGRiHmZUItE/241234.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:00:00 GMT A study published online in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health reveals that adolescents are nearly three times more likely to be on benefits in the future if they drop out of school than those who complete their education. The researchers examined the self-rated health of nearly 9,000 Norwegian adolescents between the ages of 13 to 19, who were already participating in the Young-HUNT study between 1995 and 1997...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ZBB33ksAjKU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ZBB33ksAjKU/241233.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:00:00 GMT New evidence has been discovered by biologists at the University of Utah as to why people, mice and other vertebrate animals carry thousands of different genes to create major histocompatibility complex (MHCs) proteins, despite the fact that some of those genes make humans vulnerable to autoimmune diseases and infections. Findings from the study will be published online the week of February 6, 2012, in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. MHC proteins are found on the surface of most cells in vertebrates and define an individual's tissue type...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qB_QvHvAxwA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qB_QvHvAxwA/241236.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:00:00 GMT Regular green tea drinkers have a lower risk of developing functional disability, researchers from Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan, reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Functional disability refers to problems with daily chores and activities, such as bathing or dressing. As background information, the authors explained that prior studies had found that consuming green tea reduced the risk of diseases associated with functional disability, such as osteoporosis, cognitive impairment and stroke...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/I6APwxuMFXI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/I6APwxuMFXI/241239.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:00:00 GMT Merck has announced positive results in a phase 3 trial of its insomnia drug. It's a key player in the companies up and coming products, especially considering the loss of patent protection on its top drugs for asthma and allergys. The experimental drug known as suvorexant, uses a new mechanism created to help people sleep, but at the same time aiming to mitigate side effects associated with popular sleep aids. Analysts think that annual sales of the drug could top $500 million within several years. Peter S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gwxLxN9H5Rk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gwxLxN9H5Rk/241238.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:00:00 GMT Child abuse injuries resulted in 4,500 hospitalizations and 300 fatalities in just one year in the USA, researchers from Yale School of Medicine reported in the journal Pediatrics. This is the first study that has quantified abuse severity and how many children ended up in hospital, the authors added. Child Protective Services had only tracked occurrence of child abuse at a national level. Dr. John M. Leventhal and team set out to find out what the incidence of hospitalizations due to child abuse among children under 18 years of age might be...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/1thxTaYpFIY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/1thxTaYpFIY/241237.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT A study by researchers in Switzerland and the UK reveals that breastfeeding is linked to enhanced lung function at school age, especially in children born to asthmatic mothers. The study is published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Claudia E. Kuehni, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XmkizAyUIbY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XmkizAyUIbY/241235.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT It is common knowledge that it takes a while for the hearing to become 'normal' again after listening to music that is too loud. The American Tinnitus Association estimates that there are almost 50 million people in the U.S. and millions more worldwide who suffer from tinnitus, which can range from being intermittent and mildly annoying to chronic, severe and debilitating. There is no cure for tinnitus...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Vi6kx1zlemw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Vi6kx1zlemw/241230.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT Stryker has just announced the results of the TREVO Study at the International Stroke Conference in New Orleans. TREVO, (Thrombectomy REvascularization of large Vessel Occlusions in acute ischemic stroke) was designed to evaluate Trevo® System's ability to remove the blood clots that cause strokes, restoring the blood flow to the brain, and was one of the first prospective multi-center clinical studies of clot-removing stent retriever technology. The study involved sixty patients at seven leading European stroke centers. An independent core lab measured revascularization...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pxPCLvPNWqk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pxPCLvPNWqk/241229.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT Secondhand Smoke (SHS) exposure among middle and high school students in the USA has dropped over the last ten years, researchers from the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion and the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) reported in the March edition of Pediatrics. The authors explained that passengers in cars who accompany smokers run significant health risks, especially if they are children and teenagers. Even though exposure has gone down over the last decade, 22...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/zLZrBC88U9c" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/zLZrBC88U9c/241228.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT In one year alone, over 4,500 children in the United States were hospitalized due to child abuse, and 300 of them died of their injuries, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in a new study. The findings are published in the March 2012 issue of Pediatrics (published online Feb. 6). Several measures have been used to track the national occurrence of child abuse, including data from Child Protective Services. But until now none quantified the severity of the abuse or whether the child was hospitalized as a result. Led by John M. Leventhal, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YnohtwEteko" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YnohtwEteko/241226.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT Small RNA-based nucleic acid drugs represent a promising new class of therapeutic agents for silencing abnormal or overactive disease-causing genes, and researchers have discovered new mechanisms by which RNA drugs can control gene activity. A comprehensive review article in Nucleic Acid Therapeutics, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., details these advances. Short strands of nucleic acids, called small RNAs, can be used for targeted gene silencing, making them attractive drug candidates...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4KZ5Nqiiw40" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4KZ5Nqiiw40/241193.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A new drug that showed promise in animal studies and an early clinical trial didn't improve disability among stroke patients, according to late-breaking research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012. After a stroke and other types of brain damage, the brain naturally produces more granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF). The protein can prevent further cell injury by protecting nerve cells and boosting blood vessel growth. The new drug, AX200, is a manufactured form of G-CSF...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xZvJu3kZcAo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xZvJu3kZcAo/241209.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT People who suffer a traumatic experience often don't talk about it, and many forget it over time. But not talking about something doesn't always mean you'll forget it; if you try to force yourself not to think about white bears, soon you'll be imagining polar bears doing the polka. A group of psychological scientists explore the relationship between silence and memories in a new paper published in Perspectives on Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/TerKr2w_HNM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/TerKr2w_HNM/241205.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT As a brand new year gets underway, people all over America are resolving to better manage their weight and have a more healthy 2012. According to a new study, those starting new weight loss programs may be surprised to find out that both location and level of experience may influence their success...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tUXrprtaYCY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tUXrprtaYCY/241198.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT One of the big mysteries in biology is why cells age. Now scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies report that they have discovered a weakness in a component of brain cells that may explain how the aging process occurs in the brain. The scientists discovered that certain proteins, called extremely long-lived proteins (ELLPs), which are found on the surface of the nucleus of neurons, have a remarkably long lifespan...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0FJjqueiubI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0FJjqueiubI/241197.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A two-year study of high school football players suggests that concussions are likely caused by many hits over time and not from a single blow to the head, as commonly believed. Purdue University researchers have studied football players for two seasons at Jefferson High School in Lafayette, Ind., where 21 players completed the study the first season and 24 the second season, including 16 repeating players. Helmet-sensor impact data from each player were compared with brain-imaging scans and cognitive tests performed before, during and after each season...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/frjwyDNTXvI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/frjwyDNTXvI/241194.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT In the largest and longest head-to-head comparison of two anti-clotting medications, warfarin and aspirin were similar in preventing deaths and strokes in heart failure patients with normal heart rhythm, according to late-breaking research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012. "Although there was a warfarin benefit for patients treated for four or more years, overall, warfarin and aspirin were similar," said Shunichi Homma, M.D., lead author of the study and the Margaret Milliken Hatch Professor of Medicine at Columbia University in New York...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jZ3GHrmuz60" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jZ3GHrmuz60/241206.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Tocagen Inc. has announced the publication of data showing the company's investigational treatment for high grade glioma eradicates brain tumors and provides a dramatic survival benefit in mouse models of glioblastoma. Almost all mice receiving the top dose of Toca 511 followed by 5-FC were still alive at 180 days, which was the termination date for the experiment, whereas all control mice died by day 43. The article was published in the February issue of the Neuro-Oncology journal...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DwrGSk7kkik" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DwrGSk7kkik/241199.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Placebos reduce pain by creating an expectation of relief. Distraction - say, doing a puzzle - relieves it by keeping the brain busy. But do they use the same brain processes? Neuromaging suggests they do. When applying a placebo, scientists see activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. That's the part of the brain that controls high-level cognitive functions like working memory and attention - which is what you use to do that distracting puzzle. Now a new study challenges the theory that the placebo effect is a high-level cognitive function. The authors - Jason T. Buhle, Bradford L...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/edhtTjipAfM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/edhtTjipAfM/241204.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT The anti-blood clot regimen that adds the drug clopidogrel (Plavix) to aspirin treatment is unlikely to prevent recurrent strokes and may increase the risk of bleeding and death in patients with subcortical stroke according to late-breaking research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012. Because of these preliminary results, researchers ended the anti-clotting part of the Secondary Prevention of Small Subcortical Strokes Trial (SPS3) in August 2011. The part of the study that examines the effect of high blood pressure treatments will continue...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/FrbkBFVGilQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/FrbkBFVGilQ/241210.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT An innovative approach to genome screening has provided clues about rare mutations that may make people susceptible to brain aneurysms, predisposing them to brain bleeds, according to preliminary late-breaking research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012. For the first time, scientists applied a process called whole exome sequencing to seek gene mutations in families in which multiple relatives have intracranial aneurysms, a condition in which weakened, ballooned-out areas in arteries of the brain can rupture and cause a stroke...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/QT_3HyaGHko" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/QT_3HyaGHko/241207.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Could the use of vitamin and mineral supplements in a regular diet help to reduce the risk of colon cancer and protect against carcinogens? A study published in the Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology (CJPP) found that rats given regular multivitamin and mineral supplements showed a significantly lower risk of developing colon cancer when they were exposed to carcinogens. "It has been unclear whether multivitamin supplementation to cancer patients is helpful, has no effect, or is even detrimental during therapy," commented Dr. Grant Pierce, Editor of CJPP...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/uMrix7DVORw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/uMrix7DVORw/241200.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT If the proven long-term benefits of smoking cessation are not enough to motivate young adults to stop smoking, a new study shows that 18- to 24-year olds who stop smoking for at least two weeks report substantially fewer respiratory symptoms, especially coughing. The study findings are detailed in Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. The article is available online...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/C63-ySu1IBQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/C63-ySu1IBQ/241201.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT The great majority of geriatric patients in a German rehabilitation hospital were found to have vitamin D deficiency. Stefan Schilling presents his study results in Deutsches Arzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2012; 109[3]: 33-8). In order to establish the vitamin D status in geriatric patients in Germany, the researchers measured 25-OH vitamin D in 1578 patients in the geriatric rehabilitation hospital in Trier after they had been examined on admission. Insufficiently high concentrations were found in 89% of patients, and 67% had severe vitamin D deficiency...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6d4cYY4RP98" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6d4cYY4RP98/241208.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Sequencing a patient's entire genome to discover the source of his or her disease is not routine - yet. But geneticists are getting close. A case report, published this week in the American Journal of Human Genetics, shows how researchers can combine a simple blood test with an "executive summary" scan of the genome to diagnose a type of severe metabolic disease. Researchers at Emory University School of Medicine and Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute used "whole-exome sequencing" to find the mutations causing a glycosylation disorder in a boy born in 2004...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vBvZ9XM7Io0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vBvZ9XM7Io0/241195.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A new way of opening blocked arteries in the brain using a removable stent system in people suffering strokes brought remarkably positive results in how those patients recovered from the strokes, according to a study presented at the American Stroke Association's annual conference in New Orleans. The interventional procedure was performed on more than 140 stroke patients at 18 medical centers throughout the United States...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/im_Z26KmITM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/im_Z26KmITM/241196.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT An experimental device for removing blood clots in stroke patients dramatically outperformed the standard mechanical treatment, according to research presented by UCLA Stroke Center director Dr. Jeffrey L. Saver at the American Stroke Association's 2012 international conference in New Orleans. The SOLITAIRE Flow Restoration Device is among an entirely new generation of devices designed to remove blood clots from blocked brain arteries in patients experiencing stroke...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/kxtwZMf7Edo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/kxtwZMf7Edo/241202.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Older people feel that their health problems pose a challenge to their sense of independence, dignity and identity and sometimes the health care they are given makes things worse. According to research funded by UK Research Councils' New Dynamics of Ageing programme (NDA), healthcare providers must avoid taking a 'blanket view' of how to help older people cope with the ageing process. The study carried out by Dr Liz Lloyd and her colleagues found that people were often surprised by the impact that illness and growing old had on their lives...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lmAHRQ4er3w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lmAHRQ4er3w/241213.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Over a full two day programme, including a Cocktail Soirée in a private, historical venue, Doctors 2.0 & You will highlight: how doctors and other healthcare professionals, patients, hospitals, government, pharma, and payers use Social Media, mobile apps, and Web 2.0 tools to connect and the best practices that emerge for each. Ask our prestigious Advisory Board! Below are 4 reasons why you should not miss Doctors 2.0 & You in 2012. Doctors 2.0 & You attracts top thought-leaders and best examples from around the world, sharing their success stories and knowledge on health 2...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/hcpoW4N3RPE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/hcpoW4N3RPE/241042.php Mon, 06 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a breast cancer charity which until recently had an enviable reputation as being totally impartial and focused purely on saving women's lives, may have caused itself irreparable damage. By announcing a few days ago that it would stop awarding funds to Planned Parenthood, a sexual health organization; it found itself in the middle of an enormous public outcry. Many say this single act might well have been a self-inflicted kiss of death. Planned Parenthood Federation of America Inc...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fp7iAxRQusA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fp7iAxRQusA/241219.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 17:00:00 GMT Baby boomers in the leading three English-speaking economies, the USA, UK and Canada, are being diagnosed at progressively higher rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), according to a report written by researchers from King's College London, and Thomas' Hospital London, in the Student British Medical Journal. The authors Dr. Ranjababu Kulasegaram, and final year medical student Rachel von Simson, explain that a significant number of older adults appear not to be practicing safe sex...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iFgwLkLyBAU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iFgwLkLyBAU/241218.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT Approximately 1.2 million humans die each year from malaria, a much higher figure than the previously estimated 600,000, researchers from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, USA, reported in The Lancet this week. The authors added that the majority of deaths occur in children under the age of 5 years, while 42% occur in adults and older children. However, the huge international anti-malaria effort that has taken place over the last ten years is paying off. Malaria mortality has significantly dropped...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/HeOvSHvpTgI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/HeOvSHvpTgI/241217.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT Heart failure is associated with a 30 percent increase in major fractures and also identifies a high-risk population that may benefit from increased screening and treatment for osteoporosis, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM). Osteoporosis and heart failure are common, chronic and costly conditions that share common etiologic factors like older age, post-menopausal status and diabetes...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DadXLw8Qz9I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DadXLw8Qz9I/241136.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT National Institutes of Health researchers and their colleagues have identified how resveratrol, a naturally occurring chemical found in red wine and other plant products, may confer its health benefits. The authors present evidence that resveratrol does not directly activate sirtuin 1, a protein associated with aging. Rather, the authors found that resveratrol inhibits certain types of proteins known as phosphodiesterases (PDEs), enzymes that help regulate cell energy...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/X3xzBP3g-yc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/X3xzBP3g-yc/241134.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT It can be difficult to distinguish between people with normal age-associated memory loss and those with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). However people with aMCI are at a greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD), and identification of these people would mean that they could begin treatment as early as possible. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Geriatrics shows that specific questions, included as part of a questionnaire designed to help diagnose AD, are also able to discriminate between normal memory loss and aMCI...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pbF1v4IVTpE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pbF1v4IVTpE/241131.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT 'Tuberculosis patients may receive treatments in the future according to what version they have of a single 'Goldilocks' gene, says an international research team from Oxford University, King's College London, Vietnam and the USA. This is one of the first examples in infectious disease of where an individual's genetic profile can determine which drug will work best for them - the idea of personalised medicine that is gradually becoming familiar in cancer medicine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0SZy2RIyXoU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0SZy2RIyXoU/241130.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study published in the journal Pharmacoepidemiology & Drug Safety reveals that internet sites selling prescription statins directly to consumers are widespread, and that most websites advertising statins for sale to the general public contain very poor levels of information relevant to safe use of the medicine and side effects. Researchers led by Professor David Brown, School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Portsmouth, simulated a customer search and evaluation of 184 retrieved sites using evaluation tools focusing on quality and safe medicine use...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/olBF2bJ0LdE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/olBF2bJ0LdE/241138.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Intermittent exercise with and without low oxygen concentrations (or hypoxia) can improve insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetics, however exercise while under hypoxic conditions provides greater improvements in glycemic control than intermittent exercise alone, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM). Exercise improves glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes. Previous studies have focused on continuous aerobic exercise with more recent work assessing resistance exercise...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/oqTN1bv7gso" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/oqTN1bv7gso/241135.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT For the first time, scientists have tracked the activity, across the lifespan, of an environmentally responsive regulatory mechanism that turns genes on and off in the brain's executive hub. Among key findings of the study by National Institutes of Health scientists: genes implicated in schizophrenia and autism turn out to be members of a select club of genes in which regulatory activity peaks during an environmentally-sensitive critical period in development...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/zJsXZ2LlHis" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/zJsXZ2LlHis/241129.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Stroke experts from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center presented research updates at the International Stroke Conference of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Feb. 1 through Feb. 3 in New Orleans. Highlights included: Thrombin Activity Associated with Neuronal Damage during Acute Stage of Ischemic Stroke After ischemic stroke - the type caused by a clogged artery but with no bleeding into the brain - a normal protein that plays a positive role in blood clotting escapes intact arteries and seriously damages healthy brain cells...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/BxrtxDulGyc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/BxrtxDulGyc/241132.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Unpredictable, ever-changing and with potentially far-reaching effects on the fates of nations, infectious diseases are compelling actors in the drama of human history, note scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. In an essay marking 200 years of publication of the New England Journal of Medicine, NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., and coauthor David M. Morens, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/07WvEDfAMDA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/07WvEDfAMDA/241128.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Combination drug therapy may be needed to combat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to a study by the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and Van Andel Research Institute (VARI). The study, "STAT3 is Activated by JAK2 Independent of Key Oncogenic Driver Mutation in Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma," was published online by the Public Library of Science (PLoS) ONE. The study found that in NSCLC - the most common form of lung cancer - that the STAT3 gene is activated in some NSCLC cell lines by the JAK2 protein...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Q0x3RDbg7EU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Q0x3RDbg7EU/241137.php Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new series of studies is being launched by the University of Wisconsin-Madison, exploring insight knowledge on how laboratory measures of moral qualities, such as compassion, relate to real-life behavior. Founder of the UW's Center for Investigating Healthy Minds (CIHM), Dr. Richard J. Davidson at the Waisman Center, was awarded a three-year, $1.7 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation for developing laboratory and real life measures of moral qualities, such as compassion and selflessness...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9yQaCebhSTo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9yQaCebhSTo/241161.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT Drinking decaffeinated coffee may improve brain energy metabolism associated with diabetes type 2, according to a study published in Nutritional Neuroscience and carried out by researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Brain energy metabolism is a dysfunction with a known risk factor for dementia and other neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gEkUgLV_nhc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gEkUgLV_nhc/241216.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT The February edition of Neurosurgery reports that animal experiments in brain-injured rats have shown that stem cells injected via the carotid artery travel directly to the brain, greatly enhancing functional recovery...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/AXDXfProO6U" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/AXDXfProO6U/241215.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT A Missouri State Medical Association, led by two Saint Louis University pediatricians, aims to raise awareness about the importance of getting children vaccinated and change the way in which doctors respond to parents' fears of vaccines. The campaign is the focus point of Ken Haller, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, and Anthony Scalzo, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3z1J6M2YKh4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3z1J6M2YKh4/241214.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT In five years the NHS will require another reform, caution the editors of three leading healthcare publications. In addition, they request a public debate regarding the NHS's future to "salvage some good" from the government's "damaging" reforms. According to a second BMJ report discarding the Health and Social Care Bill, now would save more than £1 billion in 2013. Editors from the BMJ, Nursing Times, and Health Service Journal, explain that: "(the NHS) is far too important to be left at the mercy of ideological and incompetent intervention...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/JyXBN1y55jI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/JyXBN1y55jI/241163.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT According to an investigation of GPs (general practitioners) in one region of South East England, burnout levels in UK general practice are high. The study is published in BMJ Open. The article reveals that primary care physicians (GPs, general practitioners, family doctors) who work in group practices, those who always see the same patient, and male doctors appear to be at considerably higher risk. This finding urged the researchers to reveal that "a significant group of doctors is in trouble...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/n38vaGxFuag" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/n38vaGxFuag/241165.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT A research team led by investigators at Mayo Clinic in Florida has found that a small device worn on a patient's brow can be useful in monitoring stroke patients in the hospital. The device measures blood oxygen, similar to a pulse oximeter, which is clipped onto a finger. Their study, published in Neurosurgical Focus, suggests this tool, known as frontal near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), could offer hospital physicians a safe and cost-effective way to monitor patients who are being treated for a stroke, in real time...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/LX8awH4XARo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/LX8awH4XARo/241109.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Rutgers scientists have uncovered genetic clues as to why some mice no longer in danger are still fearful while others are resilient to traumatic experiences - knowledge that could help those suffering with crippling anxiety and PTSD. "Our work with mice demonstrates how genes play a role in developing and extinguishing pathological fear like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," says Gleb Shumyatsky, an associate professor in the Department of Genetics in the School of Arts and Sciences...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WEPYs8YGt0o" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WEPYs8YGt0o/241108.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT An upward revision of the blood pressure numbers used to identify risk of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) might actually help doctors provide better care for their patients, said the authors of a study in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The researchers found that systolic blood pressure - the "upper number" in a blood pressure reading - was the key variable. Current guidelines call for CKD patients to maintain a systolic pressure of 130/80 or lower in order to prevent ESRD, which is complete or almost complete kidney failure, leading to dialysis, kidney transplant, or death...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NtTFsNqQAuk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NtTFsNqQAuk/241125.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Occasional erratic heart rhythms appear to cause about one-fifth of strokes for which a cause is not readily established, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012. About one-third of survivors leave the hospital with the cause of their stroke still undetermined. "Identifying and treating these patients for irregular rhythm could reduce the recurrence of stroke by 40 percent compared to reducing the risk by treating them with aspirin," said Daniel J. Miller, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/306lQPlRxak" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/306lQPlRxak/241112.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Join SMi at their Adaptive Designs in Clinical Drug Development conference to be held on the 26th & 27th March at the Grange Holborn in London. This event is the premier event of its kind in Europe and the only event to focus exclusively on how adaptive designs in clinical drug development. With more flexibility, faster development timelines and significant monetary savings, an adaptive design trial is the way forward. Jürgen Hummel, Associate Statistical Science Director, PPD has joined the speaker line-up...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lkJK8F21y2s" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lkJK8F21y2s/241156.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT The same gene mutations linked to inherited, early-onset Alzheimer's disease have been found in people with the more common late-onset form of the illness. The discovery by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis may lead doctors and researchers to change the way Alzheimer's disease is classified. They reported their findings in the online journal PLoS One (Public Library of Science)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/l9lCrI6sQrk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/l9lCrI6sQrk/241107.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Despite advances in the diagnosis and treatment of unruptured brain aneurysms, outcomes have remained stagnant over the last 10 years. This can be explained by the dramatic proliferation of minimally invasive endoscopic coiling procedures at lower-volume community hospitals, where outcomes are inferior. These findings are reported in a study by neurologists, neurosurgeons and neuro-anesthesiologists at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and published in the journal Stroke...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/D9xKxlHMCJs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/D9xKxlHMCJs/241124.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Though pacemakers require only small amounts of energy (about 1 millionth of a Watt), their batteries have to be replaced periodically, which means multiple surgeries for patients. Researchers have searched for ways to prolong battery life - trying to generate energy to power a pacemaker using blood sugar, or the motion of the hands and legs - but these methods either interfere with metabolism or require a more drastic surgery, such as passing a wire from the limbs to the chest area...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3nXC__5CdeU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3nXC__5CdeU/241105.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Nighttime visits to the bathroom are generally associated with being pregnant or having an enlarged prostate, but the problem can affect youngsters, too. A new study sheds light on why some children may need to urinate more often during the rest cycle. Danish researchers have found that sleep deprivation causes healthy children, between the ages of eight and twelve, to urinate significantly more frequently, excrete more sodium in their urine, have altered regulation of the hormones important for excretion, and have higher blood pressure and heart rates...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DexL6gUmG-U" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DexL6gUmG-U/241110.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study recently published in the Journal of Integrated Pest Management (JIPM) shows that from 2003 to 2008, the use of insecticide active ingredients was reduced by about 90% in University of Florida housing buildings after an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program was implemented. IPM is a systematic approach to managing pests based on long-term prevention or suppression by a variety of methods that are cost effective and minimize risks to human health and the environment...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/g6KN5AwtcZY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/g6KN5AwtcZY/241106.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT Two Saint Louis University pediatricians are leading a Missouri State Medical Association statewide effort to change the way doctors respond to parents' fears of vaccines, and to raise awareness about the importance of getting children vaccinated. Ken Haller, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, and Anthony Scalzo, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/uZpQBpV3GL8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/uZpQBpV3GL8/241127.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT The recently reported study on bone density testing in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) may have inadvertently resulted in confusion about the use and recommended frequency of an important diagnostic tool used for osteoporosis, a very serious condition that affects many women...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/A8_DMGGC0Zk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/A8_DMGGC0Zk/241160.php Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:00:00 GMT As part of a revised standard published this week, the American Academy of Pediatrics says boys should be routinely vaccinated against the human papillomavirus (HPV), a common virus that is spread through sexual contact. Although there are dozens of types of HPV, vaccines can protect both male and females against some of the more common types that can lead to disease and cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/5sDRgniGW3k" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/5sDRgniGW3k/241168.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:00:00 GMT After announcing that it was going to cut funding for Planned Parenthood's breast screenings, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a breast cancer foundation, today announced that it is changing its funding criteria, meaning it will probably resume funding to Planned Parenthood, a sexual health organization. The public outcry regarding alleged reasons for Planned Parenthood being dropped as a grantee by Komen appears to have taken the breast cancer charity by surprise...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/GX4DsqJyuqc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/GX4DsqJyuqc/241167.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT A report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that was published in Child Abuse and Neglect - The International Journal, reveals that the total lifetime estimated financial costs that is associated with just one year of confirmed cases of child maltreatment, including physical and sexual abuse, psychological abuse and neglect, is about 124 billion U.S. dollars. The researchers examined confirmed incidents of child maltreatment over the period of one year and found 1,740 fatal and 579,000 non-fatal cases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tfppG1JlrtA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tfppG1JlrtA/241162.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT According to an analysis of complaints in the latest edition of inpractice, the Medical Defense Union's journal that appears twice a year and is aimed at GP practice manager members covering topics like complaints, RCN indemnity changes and dealing with estranged parents, over 90% of 2,410 complaints made by GP members in the year April 2009/2010 seem to have been resolved locally. According to the MDU, this quota represents a great achievement made by practice managers who frequently take a lead in managing complaints...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/_X9QYqT-aoo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/_X9QYqT-aoo/241158.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT Preparations are underway at the European Medicines Agency together with European Member States and the European Commission, for the introduction of the new pharmacovigilance legislation in July this year. The new legislation will represent the biggest change to the legal framework since The Agency was founded in 1995. The Agency is finalizing their preparations for the inaugural meeting of the new Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC), which is scheduled for 19 July 2012...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/UJtYH0GKyNo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/UJtYH0GKyNo/241159.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT After 100 days in hospital and undergoing a complicated 6-organ transplant, 9-year-old Alannah Shevenell, from Maine, leaves Boston Children's Hospital today and goes home. Alannah has been treated for a rare form of cancer; an inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor continued to grow after all possible treatments failed, and was compromising her internal organs. A team of surgeons, led by Dr. Heung Bae Kim, the hospital's Pediatric Transplant Center director, performed the transplant procedure of Alannah's liver, spleen, pancreas, stomach, small intestine and esophagus...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/hd8wPXoQIUg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/hd8wPXoQIUg/241157.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT The World Health Organization (WHO) has ongoing programs to improve and monitor tuberculosis (TB). The WHO's 2011 report on global TB control provides the most comprehensive information ever collected on the problems and issues of disease, as well as deaths caused by TB and multidrug-resistant TB (i.e. disease marked by in vitro resistance to at least isoniazid and rifampicin). They also look at treatment outcomes, financing mechanisms and new TB diagnostics, drugs and vaccines...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/SgbYdEsX_KE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/SgbYdEsX_KE/241155.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT According to new research published by The Lancet, there has been a substantial decrease in suicide rates among health authorities across England and Wales that adopted a new range of suicide recommendations. The recommendations were made by the National Confidential Inquiry (NCI) into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness in the 1990s, a project that is striving to monitor suicide and enhance health-care quality in the UK...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/d4dQNgLNqLk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/d4dQNgLNqLk/241154.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT As one of the most common, unrecognized and untreated health problems among young people, tackling depression is a serious priority for countries worldwide. The psychiatric disorder causes serious social and educational problems for patients, as well as leading to increased risk of suicide and substance abuse. A review of a published article in The Lancet urges that more measures are needed to prevent depression in non-specialist settings, such as schools and communities...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/OtMtplmhYjI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/OtMtplmhYjI/241153.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:00:00 GMT A new analysis of malaria mortality published in The Lancet this week suggests deaths to the parasitic disease worldwide have been grossly underestimated, especially in adults. If confirmed, the study has huge implications for how large amounts of charity money are spent in controlling the disease. However, the study also finds that thanks to improved prevention and treatment, such as anti-malaria drugs and insecticide-treated bed nets, deaths to malaria are falling rapidly...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Z6C0qB1aYMs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Z6C0qB1aYMs/241126.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT Scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), argue that added sweeteners pose dangers to public health, and the government should regulate sugar in the same way as it regulates alcohol and tobacco. They set out their reasons for viewing sugar as "toxic" in a comment article published in Nature this week. First author Robert H...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/z7R2QslRVYQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/z7R2QslRVYQ/241133.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT Researchers have developed a type of wearable, non-invasive electronic device that can monitor vital signs such as heart rate and respiration at the same time it records a person's activity level, opening new opportunities for biomedical research, diagnostics and patient care. The device is just two inches wide, comfortable, does not have to be in direct contact with the skin and can operate for a week without needing to be recharged. Data can then be downloaded and assessed for whatever medical or research need is being addressed...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jXT0nxVnf5U" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jXT0nxVnf5U/241088.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT For decades, researchers have debated whether Alzheimer's disease starts independently in vulnerable brain regions at different times, or if it begins in one region and then spreads to neuroanatomically connected areas. A new study by Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers strongly supports the latter, demonstrating that abnormal tau protein, a key feature of the neurofibrillary tangles seen in the brains of those with Alzheimer's, propagates along linked brain circuits, "jumping" from neuron to neuron...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/-0OtoSPE_4Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/-0OtoSPE_4Y/241085.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Attending a financially poor school may have more of an effect on unhealthy adolescent weight than family poverty, according to Penn State sociologists. Poor schools even influence how parental education protects kids from becoming overweight. "It was once thought that family income was the main factor when we talk about the research on adolescent weight," said Molly Martin, assistant professor of sociology and demography. "That's not true. The environments the children live in play a key role in weight problems among adolescents...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0_Y-KHXOxng" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0_Y-KHXOxng/241099.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT New research from Uppsala University shows that reduced insulin sensitivity is linked to smaller brain size and deteriorated language skills in seniors. The findings are now published in the scientific journal Diabetes Care. The main hormonal function of insulin is to support the uptake and use of glucose in muscles and fat tissues. However, in an earlier article recently published in Molecular Neurobiology, Christian Benedict from the Department of Neuroscience at Uppsala University has reported that when insulin reaches the brain, it enhances memory function in humans...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/D1L08KnU_c0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/D1L08KnU_c0/241082.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Hepatitis C, an infectious disease that can cause inflammation and organ failure, has different effects on different people. But no one is sure why some people are very susceptible to the infection, while others are resistant. Scientists believe that if they could study liver cells from different people in the lab, they could determine how genetic differences produce these varying responses. However, liver cells are difficult to obtain and notoriously difficult to grow in a lab dish because they tend to lose their normal structure and function when removed from the body...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/SWug8iagwxg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/SWug8iagwxg/241102.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A team of German researchers, with the help of a lecturer at the University of Alcala (UAH, Spain), has developed a system that locates pedestrians in front of the vehicle using artificial vision. Soon to be integrated into the top-of-the-range Mercedes vehicles, the device includes two cameras and a unit that process information supplied in real time by all image points. "The new system can detect pedestrians from within vehicles using visible spectrum cameras and can do so even at night", tells SINC David Fernández Llorca, lecturer at the University of Alcalá (UAH)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/cviU-oVlwBQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/cviU-oVlwBQ/241090.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Can mentoring relationships help female students who survive childhood abuse or domestic violence? Absolutely, according to new research from Concordia University, published in the Journal of College Student Development. "Studies have shown that childhood abuse unleashes a chain of negative emotions that can impact an individual's future, producing feelings of shame, isolation, self-loathing and educational underachievement," says first author Rosemary C. Reilly, an associate professor in the Concordia Department of Applied Human Sciences...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Z4xfSX8ikGk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Z4xfSX8ikGk/241092.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is growing exponentially, contributing to an estimated 99,000 deaths from hospital-associated infections in the U.S. annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One reason that this is happening is that drug resistant proteins are transporting "good" antibiotics, or inhibitors, out of the cells, leaving them to mutate. In a paper recently published in the journal Nature, Professor of Biochemistry Dorothee Kern and collaborators including former postdoctoral student Katherine A...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/PQED-Qe7YEM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/PQED-Qe7YEM/241083.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT The initial assessment of a blood test to help diagnose major depressive disorder indicates it may become a useful clinical tool. In a paper published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, a team including Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers reports that a test analyzing levels of nine biomarkers accurately distinguished patients diagnosed with depression from control participants without significant false-positive results...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gV-vOuiEP5U" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gV-vOuiEP5U/241100.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT In 2008, roughly 14.3 million Americans were taking antipsychotics - typically prescribed for bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or a number of other behavioral disorders - making them among the most prescribed drugs in the U.S. Almost all of these medications are known to cause the metabolic side effects of obesity and diabetes, leaving patients with a difficult choice between improving their mental health and damaging their physical health...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8SiVGyXgSDw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8SiVGyXgSDw/241084.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A photograph of a polar bear in captivity, no matter how sharp the resolution, can never reveal as much about behavior as footage of that polar bear in its natural habitat. The behavior of cells and molecules can prove even more elusive. Limitations in biomedical imaging technologies have hampered attempts to understand cellular and molecular behavior, with biologists trying to envision dynamic processes through static snapshots...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tCCnaQOaJPo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tCCnaQOaJPo/241086.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Genome Institute of Singapore's (GIS) Associate Director of Genomic Technologies, Dr Yijun RUAN, led a continuing study on the human genome spatial/structural configuration, revealing how genes interact/communicate and influence each other, even when they are located far away from each other. This discovery is crucial in understanding how human genes work together, and will re-write textbooks on how transcription regulation and coordination takes place in human cells. The discovery was published in Cell,...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/uZOMR0upI34" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/uZOMR0upI34/241081.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Using some of the most powerful nuclear magnetic resonance equipment available, researchers at the University of California, Davis, are making discoveries about the shape and structure of biological molecules - potentially leading to new ways to treat or prevent diseases such as breast cancer and Alzheimer's disease. The findings appear in the latest issues of the journals Nature and Journal of Biological Chemistry. "These are exquisite three-dimensional objects, and the structures really give insight into how they function in the cell," chemistry professor James Ames said...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/QIS-dM_yrkU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/QIS-dM_yrkU/241087.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT The value of routine body mass index (BMI) screening in schools has been a topic of ongoing controversy. An expert Roundtable Discussion in the current issue of Childhood Obesity, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., debates the pros and cons of routine BMI screening in the school setting, discusses the most recent data, and explores when and for what purpose BMI screening results should be shared with parents and the potential benefits. The Roundtable is available online*. Patricia B...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/TL3ksdX1ciM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/TL3ksdX1ciM/241098.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Genome Research publishes online and in print a special issue entitled, "Cancer Genomics," highlighting insights gained form cutting-edge genomic and epigenomic analyses of cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/d1KWy6phInE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/d1KWy6phInE/241089.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT People with severe sleep apnea may have an increased risk of silent strokes and small lesions in the brain, according to a small study presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012. "We found a surprisingly high frequency of sleep apnea in patients with stroke that underlines its clinical relevance as a stroke risk factor," said Jessica Kepplinger, M.D., the study's lead researcher and stroke fellow in the Dresden University Stroke Center's Department of Neurology at the University of Technology in Dresden, Germany...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/R0zgriUTMe8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/R0zgriUTMe8/241096.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT While genetically modified plants have already been introduced into the wild on a large scale in some parts of the world, the release of genetically modified animals is still at a relatively early stage. A team of scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology in Plon, Germany has now published a study examining the free release of genetically modified insects in Malaysia, USA, and Cayman Islands...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/InJT49qz11I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/InJT49qz11I/241091.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers have found a new biomarker for cyanide poisoning, which may extend its detection window in death investigations by weeks if not months. Unless cyanide is discovered at the time of death on the mouth or nose, elevated cyanide concentrations can only be found for up to two days under current toxicological testing. A team of researchers have found a substance that appears in the liver following cyanide poisoning that could serve as a stable biomarker for a longer period of time. The research, by Dr...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/aC_R3w5Id3M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/aC_R3w5Id3M/241097.php Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A study conducted by Dr. Karen Ersche, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, England, and published in Science, reveals that one sibling who is addicted to drugs, and the other who is not, have similar brain abnormalities. These abnormalities come from an area of the brain that is vital for aiding people in exhibiting self control. This research will help people understand why it is more likely, for people who have a history of drug abuse in their families, to actually develop the addiction, than those without any family history of drug addiction or abuse...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/BOyZXj_69do" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/BOyZXj_69do/241123.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:00:00 GMT A study by researchers at Mayo Clinic, Rochester Minn., and published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, reveals that children who have been under anesthesia many times when they are young have a greater risk of developing attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). According to David Warner, M.D, a Mayo Clinic pediatric anesthesiologist, and researchers of this study, kids who have been exposed to anesthesia more than twice before the age of 3 are twice as likely to have ADHD than children who have not been exposed...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6qPt8TgrVnw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6qPt8TgrVnw/241122.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:00:00 GMT NEW ORLEANS - Roughly 40% of patients who survive a stroke do not take aspirin on a daily basis, despite established guidelines that recommend its use for secondary prevention in this population, investigators announced at the 2012 International Stroke Conference. Dr. John G. Fort, Chief Medical Officer of POZEN Inc. in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, presented data from an Internet-based questionnaire that aimed to determine aspirin use in patients who had experienced a myocardial infarction (MI) or stroke...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mz7P3CzvYhc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mz7P3CzvYhc/241121.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:00:00 GMT Scientists have found out why resveratrol, a chemical naturally found in red wine, grapes, and some other fruit and vegetables, has health benefits, according to an article published in the journal Cell, February 3rd issue. The researchers, from the Laboratory of Obesity and Aging Research at the NIH's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, explain that resveratrol inhibits PDEs (phosphodiesterases), proteins (enzymes) that play a crucial role in cell energy regulation. Resveratrol's molecular formula is C14H12O3...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/m4fvZiXKunc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/m4fvZiXKunc/241120.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:00:00 GMT When two women are eating together, one is more likely to put food in her mouth when the other one is doing so too - while one's food-filled fork is coming towards her mouth, the other one is more likely to do the same within five seconds, researchers from Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands, reported in PLoS One (The Public Library of Science 1). Behavioral mimicry, the authors suggest, occurs unwittingly during a meal. Roel Hermans, PhD...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/1R5wQf88yOY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/1R5wQf88yOY/241118.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT The way in which Alzheimer's Disease spreads in the brain has been the subject of debate for many years. Two opposing theories have the disease starting independently in weakened brain regions over time, or it beginning in one region and then spreading neuroanatomically connected areas. A study published by Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers, in the online journal PloS One, strongly supports the second theory...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/QPDmpGXh7G8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/QPDmpGXh7G8/241119.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT According to an investigation published on bmj.com, hip fractures are 35% more likely to occur in post-menopausal women if they take indigestion medications, known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). This figure rises to 50% if the women are former or current smokers. Globally, PPIs are one of the most prevalent drugs used, and are often used to treat acid reflex and heartburn. However, PPIs can prevent calcium absorption, which leads to the increased risk of fractures...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/2qMuEpUVQXY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/2qMuEpUVQXY/241116.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to an investigation published on bmj.com, cancer patients who have completed their primary cancer-related treatment, who engage in physical activity, can enhance their health. Earlier studies discovered that individuals with cancer anticipate to return to normal daily activities after completing their primary cancer-related treatment. However, these patients often find they experience lower physical activity, increased fatigue and a decrease in quality of life (QOL)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8l7uHVJ0Y6Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8l7uHVJ0Y6Y/241117.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT A study by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center reveals that the cause for bedwetting is often constipation, and not always bladder problems. If left undiagnosed, bedwetting can be an unnecessarily long, expensive and difficult challenge to cure. The study is published online in the journal Urology. The association between excess stool in the rectum (the lower 5-6 inches of the intestine) and bedwetting was first reported in 1986. The study involved 30 children aged between 5 to 15 years, old who sought treatment for bedwetting...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/P6WXv77fTjc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/P6WXv77fTjc/241113.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to a study published in the online version of the journal The Oncologist, a genetic variation that increases the risk of individuals who take bisphosphonates, developing serious necrotic jaw bone lesions, has been identified by researchers at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine. Bisphosphonates are a common class of osteoclastic inhibitors that work by attaching to calcium in the bone and inhibiting osteoclasts, bone cells that disintegrate the bone's mineral structure...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/n2DZsmfY8YI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/n2DZsmfY8YI/241114.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT Henry Ford Hospital researchers have found that conducting CT scans in the emergency department (ED) for individuals experiencing dizziness may not be cost effective. The researchers discovered that less than 1% of CT scans carried out in the ED showed a more serious underlying cause for dizziness (stroke or intracranial bleeding), which required intervention. The finding comes at a time when hospitals across the nation seek ways to reduce costs without sacrificing patient care...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vBtSl57YrrM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vBtSl57YrrM/241115.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT Breast cancer charity, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, says that dropping Planned Parenthood from its granting process is not political, and says it is "dismayed and extremely disappointed" that its action has been mischaracterized. The charity says it has taken actions to make its granting process stronger and more effective, resulting in Planned Parenthood being dropped from its list of grantees. In a written communiqué today, Komen says it embarked on a new initiative in 2010 to assess the impact of its community grants...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XFEYYRcQc8M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XFEYYRcQc8M/241111.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT An agreement, in principle, regarding proposed recommendations for the new reauthorization of a medical device user fee program, has been agreed by the FDA and the Medical Device Industry. If the recommendations go through, the FDA would be authorized to collect $595 million from the medical device industry in user fees for a five-year period, with adjustments according to annual inflation rates. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) says the fee structure will soon be finalized...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ykwFC_iHj7Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ykwFC_iHj7Y/241095.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT According to a study in the February edition of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, preoperative cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is a specific predictor of 90-day survival after liver transplantation. The findings reveal that the CPET measurement, the anaerobic threshold or fitness level, is an important predictor of mortality in patients following transplantation...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/m1EHQnyAKVg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/m1EHQnyAKVg/241094.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:00:00 GMT The following is an addendum to a FDA Letter to the Juice Products Association dated January 9, 2012. This information will be updated, as appropriate, on Friday of every week. January 27, 2012 The FDA is currently testing samples of orange juice shipments from all countries and manufacturers that import their products to the U.S. as well as imported and finished products from domestic manufacturers as a precaution to ensure there are no safety concerns in terms of carbendazim residues in orange juice in the U.S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9ZxYT7QdDYA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9ZxYT7QdDYA/241093.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:00:00 GMT Share a meal with someone and you are both likely to mimic each other's behavior and take bites at the same time rather than eating at your own pace, says a study published in the Feb. 2 issue of the online journal PLoS ONE. This behavior was found to be more prominent at the beginning of an interaction than at the end. This study, led by Roel Hermans of Radboud University Nijmegen of the Netherlands, provides some insight into the previously established phenomenon that the overall amount of food people eat is correlated with the intake of their eating companion...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/rKduItCvXbM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/rKduItCvXbM/241062.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT Sugar should be controlled like alcohol and tobacco to protect public health, according to a team of UCSF researchers, who maintain in a new report that sugar is fueling a global obesity pandemic, contributing to 35 million deaths annually worldwide from non-communicable diseases like diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Non-communicable diseases now pose a greater health burden worldwide than infectious diseases, according to the United Nations. In the United States, 75 percent of health care dollars are spent treating these diseases and their associated disabilities. In the Feb...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pYNBCNNxW7g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pYNBCNNxW7g/241061.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT Just the mention of kidney stones can cause a person to cringe. They are often painful and sometimes difficult to remove, and 10 percent of the population will suffer from them. In space, the risk of developing kidney stones is exacerbated due to environmental conditions. The health risk is compounded by the fact that resource limitations and distance from Earth could restrict treatment options...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/PN4OYO49_Lg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/PN4OYO49_Lg/241027.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) now recommends routine HPV vaccination for males aged 11 to 12 years and catch-up vaccination for males aged 13 to 21. These are just two of the changes to the 2012 Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule published February 1 in Annals of Internal Medicine, the flagship journal of the American College of Physicians (ACP). In addition to the changes in the HPV vaccine, the ACIP now recommends vaccination against Hepatitis B for adults younger than age 60 who have diabetes, as soon as possible after diabetes is diagnosed...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lGkRQqpElZA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lGkRQqpElZA/241038.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A study of 64,659 women, recently published in the journal Academic Radiology, found that while 1,246 of these women were at high enough breast cancer risk to recommend additional screening with MRI, only 173 of these women returned to the clinic within a year for the additional screening. "It's hard to tell where, exactly, is the disconnect," says Deborah Glueck, PhD, investigator at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and associate professor of biostatistics and informatics at the Colorado School of Public Health, the paper's senior author...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/RDb114-uqPk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/RDb114-uqPk/241029.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Today, about one in five children in the United States are obese. That means that in just one generation alone the number of obese kids in this country has quadrupled. Doctors at Nationwide Children's Hospital who perform weight loss surgery (bariatric surgery) on adolescents took a look at their patient population in a retrospective study published in the January 2012 print edition of Pediatric Blood & Cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fz-PNVnpQJs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fz-PNVnpQJs/241035.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have discovered that decaffeinated coffee may improve brain energy metabolism associated with type 2 diabetes. This brain dysfunction is a known risk factor for dementia and other neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease. The research is published online in Nutritional Neuroscience...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VIKMW3J3ZQM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VIKMW3J3ZQM/241037.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT New research from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) might help explain how a gene mutation found in some autistic individuals leads to difficulties in processing auditory cues and paying spatial attention to sound. The study has found that when a suspected autism gene called PTEN is deleted from auditory cortical neurons - the main workhorses of the brain's sound-processing center - the signals that these neurons receive from local as well as long-distance sources are strengthened beyond normal levels...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/E4zNH9vzmfg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/E4zNH9vzmfg/241034.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Norovirus, a pathogen that often causes food poisoning and gastroenteritis, was responsible for 18.2 percent of all infection outbreaks and 65 percent of ward closures in U.S. hospitals during a two-year period, according to a new study published in the February issue of the American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC), the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qZ8LfscYQMU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qZ8LfscYQMU/241033.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Holding information within one's memory for a short while is a seemingly simple and everyday task. We use our short-term memory when remembering a new telephone number if there is nothing to write at hand, or to find the beautiful dress inside the store that we were just admiring in the shopping window. Yet, despite the apparent simplicity of these actions, short-term memory is a complex cognitive act that entails the participation of multiple brain regions. However, whether and how different brain regions cooperate during memory has remained elusive...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/IHCpPSNy6i8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/IHCpPSNy6i8/241032.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Results revealed that people who live in socially disadvantaged areas were 42 per cent more at risk of getting arthritis than people in more affluent areas. The study revealed more than 30 per cent of people living in socially disadvantaged areas reported having arthritis, as opposed to 18.5 per cent in the more affluent areas. Led by the University of Melbourne, Deakin University and Queensland University of Technology, the study was published in the international journal Arthritis Care & Research...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/aX-dlKoCfzg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/aX-dlKoCfzg/241054.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Back problems are a highly prevalent health issue, and people with the condition have a significantly greater chance of retiring early from the workforce, much more so than for any other health condition. A group of Australian researchers reports that not only does early retirement limit the immediate income available to these individuals, but it also reduces their long-term financial capacity, by reducing their ability to accumulate wealth to a significant degree. Their study is published in the January issue of Pain®...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YJqwAnm5My0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YJqwAnm5My0/241026.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT The pain suffered by older adults is the shared focus of the two newest entries in The Gerontological Society of America's (GSA) From Publication to Practice* series. Together they address both pain management and new labeling changes for one of the most popular pain medications, acetaminophen. Both issues aim to provide readers with information on how new advances in pain prevention, treatment, and management may improve care and quality of life for older adults...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/cG8r3GkrR1I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/cG8r3GkrR1I/241030.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT With the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recent approval of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) for patients with aortic valvular stenosis, the American College of Cardiology Foundation (ACCF), along with the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS), the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), today released an expert consensus document to provide important guidance on its use...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YNOKUtgxFek" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YNOKUtgxFek/241028.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Major blockbuster drugs are facing the end of their era and big pharma companies are bracing for the effect in hopes that they will find a solution for their dwindling pipelines. Thus new opportunities and challenges are rising in the practice of open innovation and Fleming Europe will be there to explore them. According to a December 2011 report by The Economist, the most important blockbuster drugs will fall over the patent cliff by 2015. It will probably cause the need of a different industry model as new pricing pressures and increased regulatory requirements may occur...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NoX376lgvGw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NoX376lgvGw/241040.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A report from investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center has defined the role of a recently identified gene abnormality in a deadly form of lung cancer. Tumors driven by rearrangements in the ROS1 gene represent 1 to 2 percent of non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLC), the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. The researchers show that ROS1-driven tumors can be treated with crizotinib, which also inhibits the growth of tumors driven by an oncogene called ALK, and describe the remarkable response of one patient to crizotinib treatment...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/UG4qBtI3W9Q" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/UG4qBtI3W9Q/241031.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Can pregnant women improve their progeny's intelligence by eating fish? A study recently submitted to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and coordinated by the University of Granada professor Cristina Campoy Folgoso revealed that infants born to mothers who consumed more fish during pregnancy score higher in verbal intelligence and fine motor skill tests, and present an increased prosocial behavior. This study was conducted within the framework of the NUTRIMENTHE project ("Effect of diet on offspring's cognitive development"), which received funding of 5...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/OGlD2ADo91M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/OGlD2ADo91M/241036.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT In an effort to reduce the inappropriate use of medical imaging and improve quality of care, a large, tertiary-care hospital has successfully implemented a computerized physician order entry (CPOE) system with clinical decision support for radiology, according to a study in the February issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. Significant increases in meaningful use (for electronically created studies, from 0.4 percent to 61.9 percent; for electronically signed studies, from 0.4 percent to 92.2 percent) and the adoption of CPOE (from 0.5 percent to 94...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/eOzeUwDARJU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/eOzeUwDARJU/241039.php Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Basal cell carcinoma is a form of skin cancer caused by regular sun exposure, or other ultraviolet radiation, which starts in the top layer of the skin (epidermis), is usually painless and grows slowly. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration just approved a new drug named Erivedge (vismodegib) for the treatment of adult patients with basal cell carcinoma, the most common type of skin cancer. The drug is designed for use in patients with locally advanced basal cell cancer, whose cancer has spread to other locations in the body, and who are unsuitable candidates for surgery or radiation...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/MSm98g1Vf4A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/MSm98g1Vf4A/241044.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT The current issue of PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases presents a new collection of articles on the use of genetically modified (GM) insects for controlling some of the most widespread infectious diseases. Articles from across the PLoS journals describe the technological advances these tools represent, the regulatory framework, and the societal dialogue that is necessary for their wide-scale application for disease control. Diseases transmitted by insects form a huge burden on human and animal populations...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lR0ZFSgDMtY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lR0ZFSgDMtY/240997.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT In this week's PLoS Medicine, Teun Bousema of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK and colleagues argue that targeting malaria "hotspots," small groups of households at a substantially increased risk of malaria transmission, is a highly efficient way to reduce malaria transmission at all levels of transmission intensity. The authors state: "Malaria hotspots appear to maintain malaria transmission in low transmission seasons and are the driving force for transmission in the high transmission season...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Hpj1_3iRz4w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Hpj1_3iRz4w/240996.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Could some cases of asthma actually be caused by an allergic reaction to a common environmental bacteria? New research findings published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests that this idea may not be as far-fetched as it seems. In a research report appearing in the February 2012 print issue, researchers show a link between common environmental bacteria and airway inflammation...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dna37EkTC5A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dna37EkTC5A/241004.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT In a cross-sectional analysis of WHO-AIMS data published in this week's PLoS Medicine, Ryan McBain of Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA and colleagues investigated the associations between health system components and access to psychotropic drugs in 63 low- and middle- income countries (LAMICs). The authors' findings indicate that access to psychotropic medicines in LAMICs is related to key components within the mental health systems of these countries but that availability and affordability are affected to different extents by these components...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/yv-NN8SdRcY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/yv-NN8SdRcY/240994.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Scientists from the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR) in Brussels identified a new target for cancer therapy, an enzyme which prevents the immune system from recognizing and destroying certain types of tumors. Called tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase or TDO, the enzyme works by depriving immune cells of tryptophan, an amino acid essential to their activity. TDO is produced by a significant number of human tumors. Scientists also show that blocking TDO activity with a novel TDO inhibitor promotes tumor rejection in mice...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/-UiSzqZCffU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/-UiSzqZCffU/241003.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT In response to recent actions of the U.S. National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB), which recommended that two scientific journals withhold crucial details in upcoming reports about experiments with a novel strain of the bird flu virus, H5N1, the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) will publish a special series of commentaries by prominent scientists, including the acting chair of the NSABB, weighing in on whether the recommendations were necessary and what role biosecurity considerations should play in the dissemination of research findings...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/MXn4EEA23X8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/MXn4EEA23X8/241001.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A national study of Medicaid data shows most young people who present to emergency departments with deliberate self-harm are discharged to the community, without receiving an emergency mental health assessment. Even more, a roughly comparable proportion of these patients receive no outpatient mental health care in the following month. These are the findings from a study conducted by researchers at Nationwide Children's Hospital that appears in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/nXPE3CTu6zs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/nXPE3CTu6zs/240976.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Australian researchers have found evidence that heart failure is associated with a decline in people's mental processes and a loss of grey matter in the brain. These changes can make it more difficult for heart failure (HF) patients to remember and carry out instructions such as taking the correct medication at the right times...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ZM3F6Ay3QNQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ZM3F6Ay3QNQ/241000.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT One of the largest studies to investigate lumbar spine disc degeneration found that adults who are overweight or obese were significantly more likely to have disc degeneration than those with a normal body mass index (BMI). Assessments using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) show elevated BMI is associated with an increased number of levels of degenerated disks and greater severity of disc degeneration, including narrowing of the disc space...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0Aujz0YGXtU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0Aujz0YGXtU/240971.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Neuroscientists may one day be able to eavesdrop on the constant, internal monologs that run through our minds, or hear the imagined speech of a stroke or a locked-in patient with inability to speak, according to researchers at the University of California, Berkeley. The work, conducted in the labs of Robert Knight at Berkeley and Edward Chang at UCSF, is reported in the open-access journal PLoS Biology. The report will be accompanied by an interview with the authors for the PLoS Biology Podcast...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Z-UwKn37TKQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Z-UwKn37TKQ/240998.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Repeated screening by flexible sigmoidoscopy (FSG) increased the detection of colorectal cancer or advanced adenoma in women by one-fourth and in men by one-third, according to a study published Jan. 31 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Endoscopic methods are known to have a higher sensitivity than fecal occult blood testing in detecting colorectal cancer and adenoma and repeated screening detects a higher number of colorectal adenomas and carcinomas when compared to a single screen...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/w2i_dNQmyqo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/w2i_dNQmyqo/240999.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Coroners are more likely to hold inquests for deaths involving younger people or people who died of fatal complications from medical care, according to a study published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). Australian researchers compared characteristics of deaths investigated through inquests with characteristics of the much larger number of investigations that take place behind closed doors. They looked at data on 20 379 deaths in five Australian states over seven and a half years; 1252 (6...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8l1NMQ2LWVU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8l1NMQ2LWVU/240973.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers from the U.K. determined that preoperative cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is a specific predictor of 90-day survival following liver transplantation. Study results available in the February issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, shows that the CPET measurement - the anaerobic threshold or fitness level - significantly predicts mortality in patients post-transplantation...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/grvfFQrrCNs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/grvfFQrrCNs/241002.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Most parents report that they typically require their child to use a life-saving booster seat, but more than 30 percent said they do not enforce this rule when their child is riding with another driver. The study, conducted by child health experts at University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, also revealed that 45 percent of parents do not require their kids to use a booster when driving other children who do not have one...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mlclpO4V3IM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mlclpO4V3IM/240972.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Scientists have long believed that human speech is processed towards the back of the brain's cerebral cortex, behind auditory cortex where all sounds are received - a place famously known as Wernicke's area after the German neurologist who proposed this site in the late 1800s based on his study of brain injuries and strokes. But, now, research that analyzed more than 100 imaging studies concludes that Wernicke's area is in the wrong location...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/FyNuoBPaQZs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/FyNuoBPaQZs/240970.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Imagine a contraceptive that could, with one or two painless 15-minute non-surgical treatments, provide months of protection from pregnancy. And imagine that the equipment needed were already in physical therapists' offices around the world. Sound too good to be true? For years, scientists thought so too. But new research headed by Dr. James Tsuruta in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, published Monday in the journal Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, is gaining the contraceptive method increased respect...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/duEXkOdotaw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/duEXkOdotaw/240974.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Comprehensive work studying the burden of ill-health and death resulting from specific conditions, injuries, and risk factors - the Global Burden of Disease project - has shown that the burden of ill-health around the world is highly inequitable. In this week's PLoS Medicine, the editors review progress towards the journal's goal of reflecting and addressing this inequity...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Ml6-DCkp4VI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Ml6-DCkp4VI/240995.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A study published in this week's PLoS Medicine shows that commercial electronic prescribing systems (commonly known as e-prescribing, in which prescribers use a computer to order medications for their patients through a system with the help of prompts, aids, and alerts) could substantially reduce prescribing error rates in hospital in-patients...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/t68sI79RTws" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/t68sI79RTws/240993.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT Divorce at a younger age hurts people's health more than divorce later in life, according to a new study by a Michigan State University sociologist. Hui Liu said the findings, which appear in the research journal Social Science & Medicine, suggest older people have more coping skills to deal with the stress of divorce. "It's clear to me that we need more social and family support for the younger divorced groups," said Liu, assistant professor of sociology...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8wskoEXnRtY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8wskoEXnRtY/240975.php Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:00:00 GMT A UK study revealed that the COPD Assessment TestÂ� (CAT) can accurately evaluate exacerbation severity in individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The study is published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Dr. Alex J Mackay, MBBS, MRCP, clinical research member at the Academic Unit of Respiratory Medicine, University College London, explained: "There is currently no widely accepted standardized method for assessing symptom severity at exacerbations in COPD patients...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qpAkBZdfv8M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qpAkBZdfv8M/240942.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:00:00 GMT Researchers at Geisinger Health System have found that genetic abnormalities may be the cause for the majority of cerebral palsy (CP) cases, a group of disorders that can involve the brain and nervous system functions, such as seeing, movement, hearing, thinking, and learning, rather than a difficult birth or other perinatal factors. CP is the most prevalent physical disability of childhood. The study is published in The Lancet Neurology...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Tihxcg73LZ4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Tihxcg73LZ4/240941.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to a study published in the American Journal of Public Health, between 2005 and 2007, suicide rates among individuals serving in U.S. military services increased, particularly among those in the regular Army and National Guard. The study, which included the entire active duty U.S. military population (2,064,183 individuals for 2005 and 1,981,810 for 2007), found that between 2005-2007 suicide rates for all services increased...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VCxZZH6RDic" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VCxZZH6RDic/240939.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A study published in JAMA reveals that among men and women between the ages 14 to 69 years in the U.S., the overall prevalence of oral human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is around 7%. In addition, the researchers found that the prevalence of HPV is higher among men than women. The study is being published early online in order to accompany its presentation at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium. The researchers explain: "Oral HPV infection is the cause of a subset of oropharyngeal [relating to the mouth and pharynx] squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0gRoRa4l3hg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0gRoRa4l3hg/240940.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to a new Australian study published online before he print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, the lung clearance index (LCI) is a sensitive, non-invasive marker of early lung disease in young children with cystic fibrosis (CF). Yvonne Belessis, MBBS, MPH, PhD, respiratory staff specialist at Sydney Children's Hospital declared: "We found that LCI is elevated early in children with CF, especially in the presence of airway inflammation and Pseudomonas aeruginosa...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/1H7LnzNAoPQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/1H7LnzNAoPQ/240935.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT After scientists have engineered a new strain of H5N1, commonly known as bird flu, which is readily transmitted between humans, the Annals of Internal Medicine , the principal journal of the American College of Physicians, has published two perspectives online in advance, in which concerns are raised as to whether or not this research should be continued, and how the data should be shared for the benefit of public health...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/BWIDDFOYuwA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/BWIDDFOYuwA/240934.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT According to research published in BMJ Open, official complaints regarding healthcare are potentially only the "tip of an iceberg". Many more people, especially those with bad experiences of services, feel they have a legitimate cause for complaint, but have not done so because of 'not having the energy', 'thinking it will make no difference', and 'not knowing where to turn to' as some of the main reasons given for not filing a complaint...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/GDBvSsACQAU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/GDBvSsACQAU/240937.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT A small study published online in the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery shows that a technique in which highly concentrated beams of radiation are used, known as Cyberknife, can relieve the stabbing pain of the facial nerve condition trigeminal neuralgia. About five in every 100,000 individuals is thought to suffer from trigeminal neuralgia, which is characterized as a sharp, stabbing/burning sensation in the jaw or cheek. The name originates from the trigeminal nerve, the source of the pain...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YvQDkWJtAcw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YvQDkWJtAcw/240938.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Findings from a regional survey published online in BMJ Quality and Safety show that junior doctors in the NHS are prepared and able to help improve health services, but they do not feel valued or heard. Based on the findings, the BMJ authors conclude that junior doctors are "an untapped NHS resource," at a time when the NHS needs all the help it can get...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vruH9sq0QKA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vruH9sq0QKA/240936.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Britons appear to be tightening their belts in more ways than one: 2011 audit figures from the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) revealed on Monday that the number of men undergoing tummy tucks (abdominoplasty) was 15% higher than in 2010. However, although the percentage rise is large, the numbers are relatively small compared to women: while male tummy tucks rose from 108 to 124, female ones rose from 3,039 in 2010 to 3,251 in 2011 (a rise of 7%)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/V5Aey1XmN8M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/V5Aey1XmN8M/240933.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 09:00:00 GMT A national cross-sectional survey of 500 primary care physicians in the US finds their weight may influence obesity diagnosis and care. Among the findings, published earlier this month in the journal Obesity, is the suggestion that doctors whose BMI is in the normal weight range are more likely to to discuss weight loss with patients than overweight or obese colleagues...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/7knjZCuOgDs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/7knjZCuOgDs/240932.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT A new study appears to support the idea that blood pressure checks should be done in both arms. Researchers at the University of Exeter Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry (PCMD) in the UK reviewed evidence covering differences in systolic blood pressure between arms and found it could be a useful way to spot elevated risk of vascular disease and even death in cases that might otherwise be "clinically silent". Findings of the systematic review and meta-analysis are published online in The Lancet on 30 January...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/aG4fPlm1lvc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/aG4fPlm1lvc/240931.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Attentiveness in kindergarten accurately predicts the development of "work-oriented" skills in school children, according to a new study published by Dr. Linda Pagani, a professor and researcher at the University of Montreal and CHU Sainte-Justine. Elementary school teachers made observations of attention skills in over a thousand kindergarten children. Then, from grades 1 to 6, homeroom teachers rated how well the children worked both autonomously and with fellow classmates, their levels of self-control and self-confidence, and their ability to follow directions and rules...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/cTPexA5Li2I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/cTPexA5Li2I/240929.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A team of UCLA scientists has found that the pathogen that causes leprosy has a remarkable ability to avoid the human immune system by inhibiting the antimicrobial responses important to our defenses. In one of the first laboratory studies of its kind, researchers discovered that the leprosy pathogen Mycobacterium leprae was able to reduce and evade immune activity that is dependent on vitamin D, a natural hormone that plays an essential role in the body's fight against infections...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DipT8pOSYWo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DipT8pOSYWo/240926.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT The ideal male contraceptive would be inexpensive, reliable, and reversible. It would need to be long acting but have few side effects. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology used commercially available therapeutic ultrasound equipment to reduce sperm counts of male rats to levels which would result in infertility in humans. Ultrasound's potential as a male contraceptive was first reported nearly 40 years ago. However the equipment used is now outdated and no longer available...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/PjRiL-IKBqI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/PjRiL-IKBqI/240925.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Scientists in Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, have developed a new vaccine to treat cancer at the pre-clinical level. The research team led by Professor Kingston Mills, Professor of Experimental Immunology at Trinity College Dublin discovered a new approach for treating the disease based on manipulating the immune response to malignant tumours. The discovery has been patented and there are plans to develop the vaccine for clinical use for cancer patients...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Ti-XtF67CLM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Ti-XtF67CLM/240922.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A study published in Nature Genetics has found new evidence for a link between the body clock hormone melatonin and type 2 diabetes. The study found that people who carry rare genetic mutations in the receptor for melatonin have a much higher risk of type 2 diabetes. The findings should help scientists to more accurately assess personal diabetes risk and could lead to the development of personalised treatments. Previous research has found that people who work night shifts have a higher risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/osY95Do683U" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/osY95Do683U/240928.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT In a study into the genetic variance of human metabolism, researchers have identified thirty one regions of the genome that were associated with levels of circulating metabolites, i.e., small molecules that take part in various chemical reactions of human body. Many of the studied metabolites are biomarkers for cardiovascular disease or related disorders, thus the loci uncovered may provide valuable insight into the biological processes leading to common diseases. Laboratory tests used in the clinic typically monitor one or few circulating metabolites...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/OeneFdiNFqU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/OeneFdiNFqU/240923.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers studying a rare, lethal childhood tumor of the brainstem discovered that nearly 80 percent of the tumors have mutations in genes not previously tied to cancer. Early evidence suggests the alterations play a unique role in other aggressive pediatric brain tumors as well. The findings from the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital - Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project (PCGP) offer important insight into a poorly understood tumor that kills more than 90 percent of patients within two years...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/RfSKR2wH62Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/RfSKR2wH62Y/240924.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Cells trying to keep pace with constantly changing environmental conditions need to strike a fine balance between maintaining their genomic integrity and allowing enough genetic flexibility to adapt to inhospitable conditions. In their latest study, researchers at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research were able to show that under stressful conditions yeast genomes become unstable, readily acquiring or losing whole chromosomes to enable rapid adaption...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qZ43VFEXCBE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qZ43VFEXCBE/240930.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Genetics has provided surprising insights into why vaccines used in both the UK and US to combat serious childhood infections can eventually fail. The study, published in Nature Genetics, which investigates how bacteria change their disguise to evade the vaccines, has implications for how future vaccines can be made more effective. Pneumococcus (Streptococcus pneumoniae) causes potentially life-threatening diseases including pneumonia and meningitis...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/M5fEqH9G4fo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/M5fEqH9G4fo/240927.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT University of Rochester Medical Center researchers have discovered new links between leukemia cells and cells involved in bone formation, offering a fresh perspective on how the blood cancer progresses and raising the possibility that therapies for bone disorders could help in the treatment of leukemia. The research, led by graduate student Benjamin J. Frisch in the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center laboratory of corresponding author Laura M. Calvi, M.D., is featured in the journal Blood...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/AHAXO9f52TA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/AHAXO9f52TA/240872.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The driving bass rhythm of rap music can be harnessed to power a new type of miniature medical sensor designed to be implanted in the body. Acoustic waves from music, particularly rap, were found to effectively recharge the pressure sensor. Such a device might ultimately help to treat people stricken with aneurisms or incontinence due to paralysis. The heart of the sensor is a vibrating cantilever, a thin beam attached at one end like a miniature diving board...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XCAGy5U0EE4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XCAGy5U0EE4/240869.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT This unique and timely event will highlight how different frameworks and initiatives have succeeded in developing an efficient, environmentally friendly manufacturing process in the pharmaceutical industry. Case studies will be presented to focus on the challenges faced by manufacturers, but through real experiences we will review examples of successful implementation that ultimately lead to cost effective rewards...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dmsXxFuHCRU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dmsXxFuHCRU/240867.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The American Society of Hematology (ASH), the world's largest professional society concerned with the causes and treatment of blood disorders, has issued a policy statement* opposing mandatory screening of athletes for sickle cell trait as a prerequisite to athletic participation and urging athletics programs to adopt universal preventive interventions in their training programs to protect athletes from exertion-related illness and death...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/uVQFp-uFtrI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/uVQFp-uFtrI/240862.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT If you want to change how teenagers view bullying, go to the straight to the source of most school trends: the most connected crowd. According to new intervention research, targeting the most influential students in a school could be a key factor in reducing harassment and bullying. These results are part of a group of studies that were presented at a social psychology conference in San Diego, CA, on new, sometimes small, ways to make meaningful impacts on people's lives...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/7tUfGduefoE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/7tUfGduefoE/240874.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new system for delivering a drug to organ transplant patients, which could avoid the risk of harmful side effects, is being developed by scientists at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. The drug, cyclosporine (CsA), is widely used in transplant operations and helps prevent the patient's body rejecting the organ but it can cause adverse drug reactions, of which the most serious problems are kidney and liver damage, in the doses which are currently administered in the long term...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Zt2PiCbi69c" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Zt2PiCbi69c/240864.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Like a magician employing sleight of hand, the protein mitoNEET - a mysterious but important player in diabetes, cancer and aging - draws the eye with a flurry of movement in one location while the subtle, more crucial action takes place somewhere else. Using a combination of laboratory experiments and computer modeling, scientists from Rice University and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) have deciphered part of mitoNEET's movements to get a better understanding of how it handles its potentially toxic payload of iron and sulfur...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gEMODctra8w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gEMODctra8w/240873.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Multiple sclerosis (MS), a neurodegenerative disease, causes periodic attacks of neurologic symptoms such as limb weakness and mobility defects. And while MS patients' walking abilities and muscle strength are examined on a regular basis, doctors have yet to determine when the lower limb muscles begin to deteriorate. That's important because with earlier identification of mobility problems, doctors would be able to implement early intervention programs that could make all the difference for those with MS. Now, Dr...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/X2W0Ed9praE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/X2W0Ed9praE/240863.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A multi-university research group which includes several University of Notre Dame faculty and graduate students, has recently published a paper detailing new work on the analysis and dating of human bruises. The research, which is funded by the Gerber Foundation, will have particular application to pediatric medicine, as bruise age is often key evidence in child abuse cases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VtrT6hArpOs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VtrT6hArpOs/240870.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Having diabetes may cause women to experience a greater degree of hearing loss as they age, especially if the metabolic disorder is not well controlled with medication, according to a new study from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. Women between the ages of 60 and 75 with well-controlled diabetes had better hearing than women with poorly controlled diabetes, with similar hearing levels to those of non-diabetic women of the same age. The study also shows significantly worse hearing in all women younger than 60 with diabetes, even if it is well controlled...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XiHrRPbErE0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XiHrRPbErE0/240865.php Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at Queen's University have identified a possible cause for the loss of a tumour suppressor gene (known as PTEN) that can lead to the development of more aggressive forms of prostate cancer. "This discovery gives us a greater understanding of how aggressive prostate cancer develops because we now have some insight into the mechanism by which the PTEN gene is destroyed," says Jeremy Squire, a professor in the Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine. PTEN is one of a small class of tumor suppressor genes that closely regulates the growth of cells...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DpSvQlqJkWY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DpSvQlqJkWY/240857.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT In a study that holds major implications for breast cancer research as well as basic cell biology, scientists with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have discovered a rotational motion that plays a critical role in the ability of breast cells to form the spherical structures in the mammary gland known as acini. This rotation, which the researchers call "CAMo," for coherent angular motion, is necessary for the cells to form spheres...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/a6FtmUKMDqM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/a6FtmUKMDqM/240853.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Lab scientists and international collaborators have created the shortest, purest X-ray laser pulses ever achieved, fulfilling a 45-year-old prediction and ultimately opening the door to new medicines, devices and materials. The researchers, reporting in Nature, aimed radiation from the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), located at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC), at a cell containing neon gas, setting off an avalanche of X-ray emissions to create a new "atomic X-ray laser...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Vv9cglMusJ4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Vv9cglMusJ4/240851.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Performing CT scans in the emergency department for patients experiencing dizziness may not be worth the expense - an important finding from Henry Ford Hospital researchers as hospitals across the country look for ways to cut costs without sacrificing patient care. According to the Henry Ford study, less than 1 percent of the CT scans performed in the emergency department revealed a more serious underlying cause for dizziness - intracranial bleeding or stroke - that required intervention...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xGfzJ9SSxRk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xGfzJ9SSxRk/240858.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Asian women who consumed an average of 200 milligrams or more of caffeine a day - the equivalent of roughly two cups of coffee - had elevated estrogen levels when compared to women who consumed less, according to a study of reproductive age women by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions. However, white women who consumed 200 milligrams or more of caffeine a day had slightly lower estrogen levels than women who consumed less...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jRzEw1BFgPc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jRzEw1BFgPc/240855.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT 'Stand by me' is a common refrain when it comes to friendship but new research from Concordia University proves that the concept goes beyond pop music: keeping friends close has real physiological and psychological benefits. The presence of a best friend directly affects children going through negative experiences, as reported in the recent Concordia-based study, which was published in the journal Developmental Psychology and conducted with the collaboration of researchers at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the University of Nebraska at Omaha...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/5cDN0DamUh8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/5cDN0DamUh8/240856.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A patient's body mass index (BMI) may not be the only factor at play when a physician diagnoses a patient as obese. According to a new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the diagnosis could also depend on the weight of your physician. Researchers examined the impact of physician BMI on obesity care and found that physicians with a normal BMI, as compared to overweight and obese physicians, were more likely to engage their obese patients in weight loss discussions (30 percent vs...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/_WJPJ5wijdY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/_WJPJ5wijdY/240859.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT People with disabilities trying to find employment in the U.S. hospitality industry face employers who are often reluctant to hire them because of preconceived notions that they cannot do the job and that they are more costly to employ that people without disabilities, according to new research from the University of New Hampshire...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/eFfoOiGnHDg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/eFfoOiGnHDg/240854.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Routine use of positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) scans in head and neck cancer patient follow-up can detect local recurrences before they become clinically apparent and may improve the outcome of subsequent salvage therapy, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, sponsored by AHNS, ASCO, ASTRO and SNM. PET scan is a relatively new test and its use as a routine follow up for head and neck cancer patients is controversial...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/RtKhcKZNTnQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/RtKhcKZNTnQ/240842.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A key feature of human and animal brains is that they are adaptive; they are able to change their structure and function based on input from the environment and on the potential associations, or consequences, of that input. For example, if a person puts his hand in a fire and gets burned, he learns to avoid flames; the simple sight of a flame has acquired a predictive value, which in this case, is repulsive...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3OaKwkVZLs8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3OaKwkVZLs8/240850.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Using a combination of evolutionary biology and virology, scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have traced the birth of the ability of some HIV-related viruses to defeat a newly discovered cellular-defense system in primates. The research, led by Michael Emerman, Ph.D., a member of the Hutchinson Center's Human Biology and Basic Sciences Division, and Harmit Malik, Ph.D., a member of the Center's Basic Sciences Division, was published online ahead of the Feb. 16 print issue of Cell Host & Microbe...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WOYPEgcC3EE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WOYPEgcC3EE/240841.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT New research sheds light on cycle of low socioeconomic status and depression Could depression in adulthood be tied to a parent's level of education? A new study led by Amélie Quesnel-Vallée, a medical sociologist from McGill University, suggests this is the case...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lLaxt2L11os" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lLaxt2L11os/240852.php Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A two-year study of nearly 190,000 girls and women, finds that Gardasil, the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine made by Merck & Co, does not trigger autoimmune disorders such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis. The results are published in the Journal of Internal Medicine. Study lead author Dr Chun Chao, a research scientist at the Kaiser Permanente Department of Research & Evaluation in Pasadena, California, said in a statement released on Friday, that: "This kind of safety information may help parents with vaccination decisions...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/LEdQChe4wRk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/LEdQChe4wRk/240897.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 19:00:00 GMT On Friday, the US Food and Drug Administration finally approved Amylin Pharmaceutical's diabetes drug Bydureon, which provides glycemic control for diabetes type 2 in a once-weekly injection. The approval follows two earlier rejections in 2010, when the FDA asked the company to go back and carry out a new trial of the drug's effect on heart rhythm. The company describes Bydureon (exenatide extended-release for injectable suspension) as the first of its kind. It is a once-a- week version of Byetta, the company's 7-year-old diabetes drug that has to be injected twice a day...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8LHsTGJZ1f4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8LHsTGJZ1f4/240896.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 18:00:00 GMT The percentage of people screened for cancer in the US remains below national targets for 2020, with rates lower among Asian and Hispanic Americans than other groups, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) released on Friday. The report shows that in 2010, the screening rate for breast cancer was 72.4%, compared to the 2020 national target of 81%, for cervical cancer it was 83%, compared to a target of 93%, and for colorectal it was 58.6% percent, compared to a target of 70.5%...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NZpD-iQcoRw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NZpD-iQcoRw/240895.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease where the body begins to attack the joints and organs of the body. Proteins within inflamed joints are often modified by citrullination, a process that converts the protein building block arginine into citrulline. These two amino acids have very different physical properties and consequently conversion can result in aberrant changes in the three-dimensional structure of an affected protein...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DfXPxAMQCmk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DfXPxAMQCmk/240839.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study unravels key signals that regulate protective and sometimes pathological inflammation of the skin. The research, published online in the journal Immunity by Cell Press, identifies a "gatekeeper" that, when lost, can cause inflammatory skin disease in the absence of injury or infection. The findings may eventually lead to new treatment strategies for the more than 10% of people in the western world that suffer from inflammatory skin diseases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/a8ipnMTRUWo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/a8ipnMTRUWo/240829.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Rapid discontinuation of the immunosuppressive steroid prednisone after a kidney transplant can help prevent serious side effects, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). Also, doing so does not appear to jeopardize the long-term survival of transplant patients and their new organs. Historically, most kidney transplant patients have taken large doses of the immunosuppressive steroid prednisone to help keep their bodies from rejecting their new organ...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9beWkpp9LfI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9beWkpp9LfI/240831.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT All living organisms are made up of cells, behind these intricate life forms lie complex cellular processes that allow our bodies to function. Researchers working on protein secretion - a fundamental process in biology - have revealed how protein channels in the membrane are activated by special signals contained in proteins destined for secretion. The results help explain the underlying mechanism responsible for the release of proteins such as hormones and antibodies into the blood stream...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xoZQ77HiLm8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xoZQ77HiLm8/240838.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study uses a mouse model of a human autoimmune disease to reveal how abnormal regulation of the intracellular sensors that detect invading viruses can lead to autoimmune pathology. The research, published online in the journal Immunity by Cell Press, provides key insight into mechanisms that underlie the development of autoimmune disease and may lead to more effective strategies for therapeutic intervention. There are multiple intracellular sensors that detect viral infection by binding to viral nucleic acids (RNA and DNA)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/UotobKSJMOk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/UotobKSJMOk/240830.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Scientists have connected two signature characteristics of pancreatic cancer, identifying a self-perpetuating "vicious cycle" of molecular activity and a new potential target for drugs to treat one of the most lethal forms of cancer. The research, reported in the journal Cancer Cell and led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, connected the molecular dots between: Mutated versions of Kras, a gene that acts as a molecular on-off switch but gets stuck in the "on" position when mutated...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Ownwd6pxslY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Ownwd6pxslY/240861.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Women who consumed a diet high in animal fat and cholesterol before pregnancy were at higher risk for gestational diabetes than women whose diets were lower in animal fat and cholesterol, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health and Harvard University. Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetes seen during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes increases the risk for certain pregnancy complications and health problems in the newborn. Women whose diets were high in total fat or other kinds of fats - but not in animal fat or cholesterol - did not have an increased risk...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/voDOTj-r8G0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/voDOTj-r8G0/240833.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Brachytherapy for high-risk prostate cancers patients has historically been considered a less effective modality, but a new study from radiation oncologists at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson suggests otherwise. A population-based analysis looking at almost 13,000 cases revealed that men who received brachytherapy alone or in combination with external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) had significantly reduced mortality rates. Their findings are reported online in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology,Biology,Physics...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/SBLULqi_vTM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/SBLULqi_vTM/240832.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A hallmark of the individual is the cultivation of personal interests, but for some people, their intellectual pursuits might actually be genetically predetermined. Survey results published by Princeton University researchers in the journal PLoS ONE suggest that a family history of psychiatric conditions such as autism and depression could influence the subjects a person finds engaging. Although preliminary, the findings provide a new look at the oft-studied link between psychiatric conditions and aptitude in the arts or sciences...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9KhQ_RvDW3E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9KhQ_RvDW3E/240860.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Your genes could be a strong predictor of whether you stray into a life of crime, according to a research paper co-written by UT Dallas criminologist Dr. J.C. Barnes. "Examining the Genetic Underpinnings to Moffitt's Developmental Taxonomy: A Behavior Genetic Analysis" detailed the study's findings in a recent issue of Criminology. The paper was written with Dr. Kevin M. Beaver from Florida State University and Dr. Brian B. Boutwell at Sam Houston State University...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iogdbGjqBB8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iogdbGjqBB8/240824.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Despite a decrease in home births between 1990 and 2004, the number of home births actually increased between 2004 and 2009 by 29%, an upturn of 0.56% in 2004, to 0.72% in 2009. In 2009, a total of 29,650 home births were reported in the United States. This is the most home births reported since researchers began analyzing data on this topic in 1989. The report, called "Home Births in the United States, 1990-2009", was issued by the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6NzZZb45gVY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6NzZZb45gVY/240890.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at the National Institute of Health, along with other institutions, have released a study online in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, stating that Asian women have higher estrogen levels when drinking 200 milligrams or more of caffeine a day. This is about 2 cups of coffee. On the other hand, white women who drank the same amount tended to have lower estrogen levels than those who did not drink this amount of caffeine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mfNNkqYh1_Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mfNNkqYh1_Y/240894.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A team led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine reports that newly discovered mutations in an evolved assembly of genes cause Joubert syndrome, a form of syndromic autism. The findings are published in the online issue of Science Express. Joubert syndrome is a rare, recessive brain condition characterized by malformation or underdevelopment of the cerebellum and brainstem. The disease is due specifically to alterations in cellular primary cilia - antenna-like structures found on most cells...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/oa-cuyL54B8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/oa-cuyL54B8/240827.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at CIC Biogune, the Cooperative Centre for Research into Biosciences and led by Dr. Maria Luz Martinez Chantar, have found a strong relationship between high levels of Hu antigen R (HuR) protein and the malignancy of Hepatocellular Carcinoma, through a novel molecular process in the investigation of this pathology and known as neddylation. The project provides new opportunities for making advances in the quest for personalised therapeutic applications in the treatment for Hepatocarcinoma...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/nMT0bubDfSo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/nMT0bubDfSo/240836.php Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A recent study that took place at the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, and was published in the January edition of Current Biology, states that detecting autism symptoms in babies as young as 6 months old can help to determine how the autism will develop later in the child's life. The researches found that babies show signs of autism in their first year of life. When the babies are looked at, or when someone looks away from them, their brain responds differently compared to other babies...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/1HgKyrqjb64" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/1HgKyrqjb64/240893.php Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:00:00 GMT The US FDA has approved Inlyta (axitinib) for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma, a type of kidney cancer, in patients with whom other drugs have not been effective, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) announced today. Inlyta is made and marketed by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. Renal cell carcinoma - also known as renal cell cancer or hypernephroma, is a type of kidney cancer that starts in the lining of the tiny renal tubes (proximal convoluted tubule). These tubes filter the blood and produce urine. This type represents 80% of all kidney cancers...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/1C1mGMwKUtI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/1C1mGMwKUtI/240892.php Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:00:00 GMT A three-dimensional study of how enzymes in the malaria parasite Plasmodium synthesize essential vitamins, could help develop new drugs to combat the disease. Using electron microscopy, a team of scientists from Germany and the UK studied how the enzymes synthesize Vitamin B6, which has already been proposed as a target for new drugs. Dr Ivo Tews, a Lecturer in Structural Biology at the University of Southampton, and colleagues, write about their findings in a paper published online in the journal Structure on 11 January...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/EwycDiZB4U4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/EwycDiZB4U4/240891.php Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT An assay which measures the activity of 14 genes in lung cancer tumors can accurately predict who will respond well to surgery and who will probably die within five years, researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, reported in The Lancet. 80% of lung cancer patients have NSCLC (non-small-cell lung cancer) - their long term prognosis is poor, even after surgical interventions at stages I and II of the disease (early stages), the authors wrote. An assay is an analysis that is carried out to determine something...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/PzxBGrip-wc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/PzxBGrip-wc/240889.php Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT Researchers at the Temple University's School of Medicine recently identified a protein in the brain that could have a major role in regulating the creation of amyloid beta, the major component of plaques implicated in the development of Alzheimer's disease. Three years ago, the presence of the protein, called 12/15-Lipoxygenase, was detected in the brain by leading researcher Domenico Pratico, professor of pharmacology and microbiology and immunology at Temple, who said: "We found this protein to be very active in the brains of people who have Alzheimer's disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/BNKXWZP-wBQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/BNKXWZP-wBQ/240888.php Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:00:00 GMT The scandal of the faulty, badly made breast implants from French company Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) continues with the arrest of Jean-Claude Mas, 72, who according to police has been held at his home in Six-Fours-les-Plages in the South of France. Up to 400,000 thousand women are believed to have been given the implants and the problem extends across some 65 countries, with England and France amongst others assuring those involved that the public health system will cover the cost of removing or replacing the implants...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pDeqFw_SMXs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pDeqFw_SMXs/240822.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:00:00 GMT The first national breast cancer tissue bank in the UK has opened its vaults of precious breast cancer tissue to all researchers in the UK and Ireland, providing a massive boost to breast cancer research. The bank is a unique collaboration of four leading research institutions and the NHS. Donor's breast tissue samples, blood samples, as well as data about the donor's breast cancer are all stored in this revolutionary new bank...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3BN_XOoodqQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3BN_XOoodqQ/240812.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 19:00:00 GMT Tea, the second most consumed drink after water, may help lower blood pressure. Scientists at The University Of Western Australia and Unilever, state in Archives of Internal Medicine, that drinking black tea three times a day may drastically lower a person's systolic and diastolic blood pressure...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jvdKvH5KnIE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jvdKvH5KnIE/240821.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:00:00 GMT A study published online in JAMA on Thursday suggests 7% of men and women in the US carry the Human papillomavirus (HPV), the virus that causes a distinct form of cancer that affects the part of the throat that sits at the back of the mouth. The study suggests oral HPV infection is predominantly sexually transmitted, and estimates that men are nearly three times more likely to have the virus than women. Maura L. Gillison, Professor in the College of Medicine at Ohio State University (OSU), and others carried out the study...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3OTt4p4oAiQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3OTt4p4oAiQ/240816.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Rebif® (interferon beta-1a), a disease-modifying medication used to treat relapsing forms of multiple Sclerosis (MS), is now available in the UK to treat individuals with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), a potential early indicator of MS, announced Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. The announcement comes after the recent positive opinion adopted by the Committee of Medicinal Products (CHMP), the scientific committee of the European Medicines Agency (EMA)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XCcLwYAAvK8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XCcLwYAAvK8/240817.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Although it is believed that rapid improvement in socio-economic conditions are responsible for the high prevalence of heart disease in the Gulf states, cultural factors are also to blame according to researchers. Professor Hani Najm, Vice-President of the Saudi Heart Association, whose yearly conference starts on Friday 27 January, explained: "We're sitting on a time bomb. We will see a lot of heart disease over the next 15 to 20 years. Already, services are saturated. We now have to direct our resources to the primary prevention of risk factors throughout the entire Middle East...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qGKe9WAOiLg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qGKe9WAOiLg/240813.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT A study published January 23 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute , has found that self-HPV (human papillomavirus) testing, in low-resource settings, may be a more effective way to screen for cervical cancer than liquid-based cytology (LBC) and visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA). Cervical cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers found in women. Each year, around 530,000 women are diagnosed with the disease, resulting in an estimated 275,000 deaths...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/zRxUkivV32c" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/zRxUkivV32c/240814.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT According to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and prostate expert Marc B. Garnick, MD, physicians who advise PSA tests for men being screened for prostate cancer must base their decision more on available evidence when recommending screening, biopsies and treatments, instead of holding on to long held beliefs that PSA-based testing benefits all...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NxPH_g0-_DE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NxPH_g0-_DE/240803.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 09:00:00 GMT According to a study published on bmj.com, heart disease or premature death is not associated with consuming food fried in sunflower or olive oil. The study was conducted in Spain, a country in the Mediterranean where sunflower or olive oil is used for frying. The researchers stress that their results would probably not be the same in countries which primarily use solid and re-used oils for frying. One of the move prevalent cooking methods in the Western Hemisphere is frying. Food absorbs the fat of the oils when fried, increasing the amount of calories in the food...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/zR1UdM-EL98" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/zR1UdM-EL98/240753.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 09:00:00 GMT An article, which is part of the JAMA/Archives journals 'Less is More' series that is published in the January 23 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine reveals that in the U.S. overusing the health care services appears to be an understudied problem given that research literature is limited to only a few services and rates of overuse vary widely. Background information in the article states that overuse of medical services, as in those services that provide no benefit or where the benefits are outweighed by harm, tend to contribute to high health care costs...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Dy7YY8VnnYE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Dy7YY8VnnYE/240800.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT Findings published Online First by Archives of Neurology, a JAMA/Archives journal, show that people who keep their brain active throughout their lives with cognitively stimulating activities like reading, writing and playing games seem to have lower levels of the β-amyloid protein, which is the major part of the amyloid plaque in Alzheimer disease. The recently developed radiopharmaceutical carbon 11-labeled Pittsburgh Compound B ([ 11 C]PiB), has enabled researchers to image fibrillar (fiber) forms of the β-amyloid (Aβ) protein. Susan M. Landau, Ph.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4BG3gyJso9w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4BG3gyJso9w/240801.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT Following the AHVLA's confirmation of the discovery of Schmallenberg virus (SBV) on four sheep farms in Norfolk, Suffolk and East Sussex, the British Veterinary Association (BVA) has renewed its call for heightened vigilance. Scientists believe that the virus is vector-borne, even though they have not ruled out other routes of transmission. At the present moment, the clinical signs observed together with meteorological risk models, indicate that the four farms were affected either in summer or autumn 2011. Hereditary defects are now being seen at lambing time...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/73G7Bso-rlg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/73G7Bso-rlg/240802.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT African-American patients with high blood pressure follow their medication regimen more effectively with a combination of positive affirmations and patient education, concludes a study published Online First in the Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. In comparison to white people, African-Americans are disproportionately affected by hypertension. The authors state in the background information of the article, that a poorly adhered to medication regimen tends to explain poor blood pressure control, which can lead to cardiovascular problems and death...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/x5OwQi7JH5o" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/x5OwQi7JH5o/240799.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT Avastin and Sutent, two cancer drugs, do not lead to longer survival in breast cancer patients, probably because they encourage an increase in the number cancer stem cells in breast tumors, according to a study carried out on mice by researchers from the Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (early edition)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dEfE4ozNoCs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dEfE4ozNoCs/240791.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT There has been a large drop in the rate of leg and foot amputations among Americans aged 40 and over with diagnosed diabetes, according to a new study by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published in the February issue of Diabetes Care. The study reports that between 1996 and 2008 the rate of such amputations fell by 65%. The authors suggest the most likely reason for this large drop in leg and foot amputations among people with diagnosed diabetes is improvements in blood sugar control, foot care and management of diabetes...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/y4CEg-a3V9k" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/y4CEg-a3V9k/240789.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT Led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, scientists have, for the first time, created stem cell-derived, in vitro models of sporadic and hereditary Alzheimer's disease (AD), using induced pluripotent stem cells from patients with the much-dreaded neurodegenerative disorder...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/b8yS0fFZDL8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/b8yS0fFZDL8/240779.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT The Mayo Clinic released its study of aging report today and announced that more than six percent of Americans, aged seventy to eighty-nine years, suffered from mild cognitive impairment (MCI). They also state that the data show more men are affected than women, and those with only high school education seem more affected than those with some level of higher education. MCI is an intermediary stage between a 'normal' level of forgetfulness associated with old age, and more developed dementia caused by conditions such as Alzheimer's disease. Lead author Rosebud O. Roberts, M.B., Ch.B...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/b4hYRu2SLYI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/b4hYRu2SLYI/240782.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Scientists studying ocean microorganisms have encountered something they have never seen before. A marine virus that cons certain photosynthetic bacteria into letting it come inside because it appears to offer a "helping hand" by bringing resources very like their own to help them acquire phosphorus, a nutrient they are desperately short of. Once inside, the virus uses the host's cellular resources to replicate itself. About ten hours later, the host cells explode and release the viral progeny back into the ocean. Qinglu Zeng and Sallie "Penny" W...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/bX_oVFLcwcg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/bX_oVFLcwcg/240781.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT The odds of a major depressive episode are more than double for those working 11 or more hours a day compared to those working seven to eight hours a day, according to a report is published in the Jan. 25 issue of the online journal PLoS ONE. The authors, led by Marianna Virtanen of the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and University College London, followed about 2000 middle aged British civil servants and found a robust association between overtime work and depression...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/TDhVoSSYtTs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/TDhVoSSYtTs/240778.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Limiting certain essential nutrients for several days before surgery - either protein or amino acids - may reduce the risk of serious surgical complications such as heart attack or stroke, according to a new Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) study. The study appears in the January 25, 2012 issue of Science Translational Medicine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/sNf5jD0ScGc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/sNf5jD0ScGc/240775.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Scientists at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) have identified a potential target for the development of anti-craving medications for people with addictions to stimulants such as methamphetamine. The discovery centres on a brain receptor related to the chemical dopamine, which has a complex role in addictive behaviours...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Wa7bfdzG2M0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Wa7bfdzG2M0/240770.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT The total cost of asthma due to traffic-related air pollution is much higher than previous estimates, according to new research. The study, published online ahead of print in the European Respiratory Journal, has revealed the true extent of the healthcare costs associated with living close to a busy road. The researchers studied Long Beach and Riverside; two communities in Southern California that have high levels of regional air pollution and where there are large roads close to residential neighbourhoods...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3vp4QkK9iqw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3vp4QkK9iqw/240773.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Tumor-targeted bioluminescent bacteria have been shown for the first time to provide accurate 3D images of tumors in mice, further advancing the potential for targeted cancer drug delivery, according to a study published in the Jan. 25 issue of the online journal PLoS ONE. The specially engineered probiotic bacteria, like those found in many yoghurts, were intravenously injected into mice with tumors, after which the researchers took full body bioluminescent images...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ymhHDuoL8Uo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ymhHDuoL8Uo/240777.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Research led by scientists at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has exploited a revolutionary genetic technique to discover how human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) drugs target the parasite which causes the disease. The new knowledge could help lead to the development of better treatments for the tens of thousands of people in sub-Saharan Africa who are affected each year. The findings, published in Nature, are based on the simultaneous analysis of thousands of genes and the action of the five drugs effective against HAT, also known as sleeping sickness...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iJdWH1SDuyc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iJdWH1SDuyc/240774.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A new study in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that while an individual's risk of heart disease may be low in the next five or 10 years, the lifetime risk could still be very high, findings that could have implications for both clinical practice and public health policy. "The current approach to heart disease prevention focuses on only short-term risks, which can give a false sense of security, particularly to individuals in their 40s and 50s," said Dr. Jarett Berry, assistant professor of internal medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center who was lead author of the study...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/-PXLupxTXnw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/-PXLupxTXnw/240771.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Ovarian cancer is a major cause of death worldwide. Approximately 25,000 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer this year and 15,000 women will die from it in the United States alone. The novel anti-cancer drug diindolylmethane (DIM) has been shown in laboratory to inhibit the growth of ovarian cancer cells. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Medicine has looked in detail at the action of DIM and showed that it works by blocking the activation and production of the transcription factor STAT3...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dV5HvcaW12A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dV5HvcaW12A/240772.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has completed a comprehensive study of an unexplained skin condition commonly referred to as Morgellons and found no infectious agent and no evidence to suggest an environmental link. The full results are reported in the Jan. 25 issue of the online journal PLoS ONE. In this study, investigators took an in-depth look at a skin condition characterized by unexplained lesions that contain fibers, threads, or other foreign material, accompanied by sensations of crawling, biting, or stinging...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/CuwTrPfD858" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/CuwTrPfD858/240776.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT According to BMJ Careers, In April 2012, 94.2% of the emerging clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) in England will be able to take on primary care trust commissioning budgets as they passed the strategic health authority (SHA) risk assessment of their configuration. Just 5.8% of groups were rated as "red" in a risk rating system that measures 4 areas relating to the size of the commissioning group, practice engagement, and shape, while 94.2% of groups were rated as "amber" or "green...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4W1gFo8QINc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4W1gFo8QINc/240754.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes, an independent and nonprofit biomedical-research organization, have identified a protein that exacerbates symptoms of Parkinson's disease - a discovery that could one day lead to new treatments for people who suffer from this devastating neurodegenerative illness...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/KvYHIp7L-OE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/KvYHIp7L-OE/240768.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT While it may appear that infants are helpless creatures that only blink, eat, cry and sleep, one University of Missouri researcher says that studies indicate infant brains come equipped with knowledge of "intuitive physics." "In the MU Developmental Cognition Lab, we study infant knowledge of the world by measuring a child's gaze when presented with different scenarios," said Kristy vanMarle, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychological Sciences in the College of Arts and Science...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NJg604ZEe7E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NJg604ZEe7E/240750.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Prejudice against people from groups different than their own is linked to aggression for men and fear for women, suggests new research led by Michigan State University scholars. The researchers report that, throughout history, men have been the primary aggressors against different groups as well as the primary victims of group-based aggression and discrimination...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ejlNooUqAIc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ejlNooUqAIc/240749.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT New research reveals a fascinating and unexpected molecular partnership within the brain neurons that regulate appetite. The study, published by Cell Press in the January 26 issue of the journal Neuron, resolves a paradox regarding a receptor without its hormone and may lead to more specific therapeutic interventions for obesity and disorders of dopamine signaling. Ghrelin is an appetite-stimulating hormone produced by the stomach. Although the ghrelin receptor (GHSR1a) is broadly distributed in the brain, ghrelin itself is nearly undetectable there...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VHrenyiow5g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VHrenyiow5g/240766.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Telephone counseling services (also known as quitlines) are an effective intervention for Chinese-, Korean-, and Vietnamese-speaking smokers living in the U.S., and should be incorporated into current smoking cessation services, according to a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Quitlines have played an essential role in helping people quit smoking in the U.S. These services, however, had never been tested with Asian immigrants who may have limited proficiency in English. Dr...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XUnQuGF1tuQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XUnQuGF1tuQ/240765.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Human skin is the body's first line of defense and often mirrors the health, nutritional status and age of a person. Over time, skin shows signs of aging due to the gradual breakdown of collagen and elastin. However, skin can be rebuilt and made healthier no matter one's age. Natural supplement Pycnogenol® (pic-noj-en-all), an antioxidant plant extract from the bark of the French maritime pine tree, was found to improve skin hydration and elasticity in women in a clinical trial published this month in Skin Pharmacology and Physiology...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/LpYQZtzMsh8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/LpYQZtzMsh8/240751.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Scientists with the new Children's Research Institute at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified the environment in which blood-forming stem cells survive and thrive within the body, an important step toward increasing the safety and effectiveness of bone-marrow transplantation. Institute investigators led by Dr. Sean Morrison asked which cells are responsible for the microenvironment that nurtures haematopoietic stem cells, which produce billions of new blood cells every day. The answer: endothelial and perivascular cells, which line blood vessels...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/U4Ft98bAEEY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/U4Ft98bAEEY/240769.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Scientists now have a better understanding of the way that stress impacts the brain. New research, published by Cell Press in the January 26 issue of the journal Neuron, reveals pioneering evidence for a new mechanism of stress adaptation and may eventually lead to a better understanding of why prolonged and repeated exposure to stress can lead to anxiety disorders and depression. Most stressful stimuli cause the release of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) from neurons in the brain. This is typically followed by rapid changes in CRH gene expression...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/IjPfe4UJpbg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/IjPfe4UJpbg/240767.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a new method for creating elastic conductors made of carbon nanotubes, which will contribute to large-scale production of the material for use in a new generation of elastic electronic devices. "We're optimistic that this new approach could lead to large-scale production of stretchable conductors, which would then expedite research and development of elastic electronic devices," says Dr. Yong Zhu, an assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at NC State, and lead author of a paper describing the new technique...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/y2WG99uQRyA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/y2WG99uQRyA/240729.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The skeletal structure of the foot and ankle differs significantly between human sprinters and non-sprinters, according to Penn State researchers. Their findings not only help explain why some people are faster runners than others, but also may be useful in helping people who have difficulty walking, such as older adults and children with cerebral palsy...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/2ExfyuP7vCY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/2ExfyuP7vCY/240727.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT To fully understand the causes of the obesity epidemic in Aboriginal children requires an understanding of the unique social and historical factors that shape the Aboriginal community. A review article published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism emphasizes that early childhood obesity prevention efforts should begin focusing with the parents before and during pregnancy and on breastfeeding initiatives and nutrition in the early childhood development stages...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Y5t0zTBrTsg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Y5t0zTBrTsg/240730.php Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The US Department of Agriculture has announced new standards for the country's school meals, which it claims will result in healthier eating for children nationwide. The new standards were unveiled by Michelle Obama, First Lady, and Tom Vilsack, Agriculture Secretary. They explained that the USDA's move will affect the health and wellbeing of approximately 32 million school kids. According to a news release issued today by the USDA, this is the first improvement in school meal standards in over 15 years...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wCRTsnmsqYM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wCRTsnmsqYM/240763.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:00:00 GMT The risk of a person living in the UK becoming infected with Lyme disease is much greater than previously thought, according to a study from Bristol University that surveyed pet dogs to find out how many of them harboured the ticks that transmit the disease. The researchers, from Bristol University, reported their findings earlier this month in the journal Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4qw1mYG_mso" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4qw1mYG_mso/240762.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT Using iodinated contrast media in imaging scans has been linked to alterations in thyroid function, which in turn raises the risk of developing hyperthyroidism, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, reported in Archives of Internal Medicine. The authors explained that iodinated contrast media are utilized in imaging procedures and scans, such as CT scans and cardiac catheterization. The authors wrote, as background information: "Iodinated contrast media (ICM) are commonly administered pharmaceutical agents...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/eUCrnVuM2k0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/eUCrnVuM2k0/240760.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT Although there have been some controversies in recent years, the routine childhood vaccination programs remain at the forefront of disease prevention in the community. Now, it appears that chemicals may affect the immune response to the vaccines, and reduce the immunity they provide...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/rORaXVI8F0Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/rORaXVI8F0Y/240761.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT People with more brown fat seem better able to stay warm when it is cold, Canadian researchers reported in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. They added that the findings of their study could eventually be used to find ways of fighting obesity. Not much has been known about brown fat, a type of good fat, until recently. Brown fat, also known as brown adipose tissue (BAT) is one of two types of fats found in humans, the other two being white or yellow fat. Hibernating mammals and newborns have especially high levels of brown fat...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fzpa1tysPgI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fzpa1tysPgI/240759.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT According to survey by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), individuals aged 55+ are more active than the younger generation. Results from the survey revealed that people over the age of 55 do around 28 minutes more physical activity per week than their 18 to 25 year-old counterparts. Although there is clear evidence of the health benefits associated with physical activity, 30% of survey respondents over the age of 55 cite the British weather as the most restricting factor for engaging in physical activity, followed by long term health conditions (29%). In order to motivate the 7...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WPK-X8t0VCM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WPK-X8t0VCM/240755.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Glioblastoma is the most prevalent and most aggressive malignant brain tumor in humans, and is one of the most resistant to current treatments. Individuals with the disease typically survive around 15 months. Earlier research concentrated on activating the (apoptosis) cell death pathway through therapeutic agents like tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL). Most of these experiments were however impeded by resistance. Chunhai "Charlie" Hao, M.D., Ph.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Cw4SqHQIv3w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Cw4SqHQIv3w/240756.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT There were no reported cases of whooping cough deaths in the State of California in 2011, says the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) - the first time this has occurred in two decades. Californian health officials say this is due to three factors: 1. Higher vaccination rates. 2. Greater awareness of the disease, and 3. Faster diagnoses of sick patients. 48.5 million people are thought to become ill with Bordetella pertussis (whooping cough) each year globally, of which approximately 295,000 die from the diseases, according to WHO (World Health Organization)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/kiLRaS81-VM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/kiLRaS81-VM/240758.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT An investigation published Jan. 20 in The Journal of the National Cancer Institute reveals that individuals in the general population with stage III colon cancer showed improved survival rates when they were administered with 5-fluorouracil (5FU), a commonly used cancer treatment, in combination with oxaliplatin. Colon cancer is one of the leading causes for illness and death worldwide. In 2011, an estimated 101,340 individuals in the U.S. were affected by the disease. Approximately one-third of individuals are diagnosed with stage III or node-positive colon cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VYPXDx4n52k" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VYPXDx4n52k/240757.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT A study published Online First in The Lancet has found that a common medication (dutasteride) used to treat enlargement of the prostate, may also reduce the need for treatments that pose risks of incontinence and impotence and delay growth of early-stage prostate cancer. Neil Fleshner, lead researcher of the investigation from Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, Canada, said: "Our trial is the first study to show the benefits of use of a 5α-reductase inhibitor to reduce the need for aggressive treatment in men undergoing active surveillance for low-risk prostate cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/QLblxGySyl0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/QLblxGySyl0/240752.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 09:00:00 GMT Older adults who don't do much exercise, and whose blood pressure is getting to the point where they may need treatment, should perhaps consider swimming as a way to help bring it back down, at least that is what a small US study of sedentary over-50-year-olds might suggest. The study was published early online in The American Journal of Cardiology earlier this month. Swimming is an ideal form of exercise for older, sedentary people because it puts little weight-bearing stress on the body and is not likely to lead to overheating...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/C-dTX_fbalk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/C-dTX_fbalk/240743.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT MIT postdoc Emile Bruneau has long been drawn to conflict - not as a participant, but an observer. In 1994, while doing volunteer work in South Africa, he witnessed firsthand the turmoil surrounding the fall of apartheid; during a 2001 trip to visit friends in Sri Lanka, he found himself in the midst of the violent conflict between the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan military. Those chance experiences got Bruneau, who taught high school science for several years, interested in the psychology of human conflict...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/sELx7xkx_Ng" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/sELx7xkx_Ng/240723.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT In a new study published in BMJ on Tuesday, researchers find that consuming fried food is not linked to heart disease or earlier death, as long as the frying is done in in olive or sunflower oil. But they also note that the people they studied live in Spain, where like other Mediterranean countries they use olive or sunflower oil for frying, so this result would most likely be different in countries where people fry with solid and re-used oils...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vFY_hvXE-QI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vFY_hvXE-QI/240728.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Thinking about religion gives people more self-control on later, unrelated tasks; according to results from a series of recent Queen's University study. "After unscrambling sentences containing religiously oriented words, participants in our studies exercised significantly more self-control," says psychology graduate student and lead researcher on the study, Kevin Rounding. Study participants were given a sentence containing five words to unscramble. Some contained religious themes and others did not...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3ICajLp7ADA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3ICajLp7ADA/240724.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) are a promising avenue for cell replacement therapy in neurologic diseases. For example, mouse and human iPSCs have been used to generate dopaminergic (DA) neurons that improve symptoms in rat Parkinson's disease models. Reporting in the current issue of the Journal of Parkinson's Disease, a group of scientists from Japan evaluated the growth, differentiation, and function of human-derived iPSC-derived neural progenitor cells (NPCs) in a primate model, elucidating their therapeutic potential...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/TZd0We_ylJo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/TZd0We_ylJo/240726.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT If your boss is giving you a hard time - lying, making fun of you in public and generally putting you down, he or she may benefit from some exercise, according to a new study by James Burton from Northern Illinois University in the US and his team. Their work shows that stressed supervisors, struggling with time pressures, vent their frustrations on their employees less when they get regular, moderate exercise. The research is published online in Springer's Journal of Business and Psychology. In the current economic climate, it is not unusual to come across stressed supervisors...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/eUFGmSHmw08" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/eUFGmSHmw08/240725.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Only about one in five young adults in their late 30s received a flu shot during the 2009-2010 swine flu epidemic, according to a University of Michigan report that details the behavior and attitudes of Generation X. But about 65 percent were at least moderately concerned about the flu, and nearly 60 percent said they were following the issue very or moderately closely...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VXWZxNC80ys" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VXWZxNC80ys/240722.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Family companions who routinely accompany older adults to physician office visits could be helpful to health care quality improvement efforts, according to a new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The authors found that three-quarters of older adults who attend physician visits with a family companion are consistently accompanied over time, nearly always by the same companion. The results are featured in the January 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wtGe_EvL8eM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wtGe_EvL8eM/240712.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A new gene therapy method developed by University of Florida researchers has the potential to treat a common form of blindness that strikes both youngsters and adults. The technique works by replacing a malfunctioning gene in the eye with a normal working copy that supplies a protein necessary for light-sensitive cells in the eye to function. The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences online. Several complex and costly steps remain before the gene therapy technique can be used in humans, but once at that stage, it has great potential to change lives...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/aJ7ONzGx3t0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/aJ7ONzGx3t0/240709.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers at the University of Michigan analyzed the tremendous cost of diagnosing peripheral neuropathy and found that less expensive, more effective tests are less likely to be used. Almost one-quarter of patients receiving neuropathy diagnoses undergo high-cost, low-yield MRIs while very few receive low-cost, high-yield glucose tolerance tests, according to the study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. The research was led by Brian Callaghan, M.D., assistant professor of neurology at the University of Michigan Medical School...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wCnhcxLUqQE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wCnhcxLUqQE/240696.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Quantifying how sore a person is after a long workout is a challenge for doctors and researchers, but scientists from Loma Linda and Asuza Pacific Universities think they may have figured it out. Their research article describing a new technique to measure muscle soreness will be published in the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE). Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) or exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) is one of the most common sports injuries, but without a reliable method of quantifying muscle soreness, assessing treatments is difficult...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xQHIL-CrFWQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xQHIL-CrFWQ/240699.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Exposure to iodinated contrast media during imaging procedures is associated with changes in thyroid function, and increased risk of developing hyperthyroidism, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "Iodinated contrast media (ICM) are commonly administered pharmaceutical agents," the authors write as background information. ICM are frequently used in scans and imaging procedures such as cardiac catheterization and computed tomography (CT scans). "Although certain complications of ICM (e.g...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fNdyrCROkSE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fNdyrCROkSE/240705.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Human stem cells capable of giving rise to any fetal or adult cell type are known as pluripotent stem cells. It is hoped that such cells, the most well known being human embryonic stem cells (hESCs), can be used to generate cell populations with therapeutic utility. In this context, neural derivatives of hESCs are being tested in clinical trials...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WtNzEtmANPM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WtNzEtmANPM/240716.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Want to think outside the box? Try actually thinking outside of a box. In a study to be published in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, researchers had students think up solutions to problems while acting out various metaphors about creative thinking and found that the instructions actually worked. The authors of the new paper were inspired by metaphors about creativity found in boardrooms to movie studios to scientific laboratories around the world and previous linkages established between mind and body...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/b5UQZW5Utto" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/b5UQZW5Utto/240694.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A recent Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) study published in the journal Science investigating the molecular structure and function of an essential plant hormone could profoundly change our understanding of a key cell process, and might ultimately lead to the development of new drugs for a variety of diseases. The study builds on earlier work by the same team of investigators at VARI that was published in the journal Nature in 2009...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/5YanrAaKpsE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/5YanrAaKpsE/240698.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT The experience of daily positive affect -- a mild, happy feeling -- and self-affirmation helps some patients with chronic diseases, including coronary artery disease, high blood pressure and asthma, make better decisions about their health. These findings are detailed in three studies of 756 patients published online in the Archives of Internal Medicine -- the first large, randomized controlled trials to show that people can use positive affect and self-affirmation to help them make and sustain behavior change. The research was funded by a $9...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/AVKMWtskiEo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/AVKMWtskiEo/240714.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT NEPHROLOGY: Understanding acute kidney injury to identify potential therapeutics Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a life-threatening condition that frequently complicates the care of hospitalized patients. There are no specific therapies to treat AKI other than kidney replacement therapies such as dialysis. Better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying AKI is needed if effective new therapies are to be developed...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/g4YVFKPY6Zw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/g4YVFKPY6Zw/240717.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT With growing concern that excessive levels of fructose may pose a great health risk - causing high blood pressure, kidney disease and diabetes - researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, along with their colleagues at the University of Florida, set out to see if two common sweeteners in western diets differ in their effects on the body in the first few hours after ingestion...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/c0Qg8YT-KFY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/c0Qg8YT-KFY/240697.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Simon Fraser University associate professor James Wakeling is adding to the arsenal of increasingly sophisticated medical imaging tools with a new signal-processing method for viewing muscle activation details that have never been seen before. Fascinated with the mechanics of muscle movement in people and animals, Wakeling has developed a novel method using ultrasound imaging, 3D motion-capture technology and proprietary data-processing software to scan and capture 3D maps of the muscle structure - in just 90 seconds...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/BHxLyg0CR3o" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/BHxLyg0CR3o/240695.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Physician referral rates in the United States doubled between 1999 and 2009, a new study finds, an increase that likely contributes to the rising costs of health care. The increase in referral rates coincides with an increase in chronic conditions such as Type 2 diabetes. The results are staggering: over the same time period, the estimated absolute number of visits resulting in a referral increased 159 per cent, from 40.6 million to 105 million...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/7kBmgviZjN8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/7kBmgviZjN8/240711.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Brown adipose tissue (often known as brown fat) is a specialized tissue that burns calories to generate body heat in rodents and newborn humans, neither of which shiver. Recently, adult humans have also been found to possess brown fat. This fact piqued the interest of researchers seeking to combat the obesity epidemic, the thought being that if they could develop ways to increase the amount of brown fat a person has, that person will become slimmer. One hitch to this idea is it has never actually been shown definitively that brown fat in adult humans can burn energy...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VAr-IbpDxMI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VAr-IbpDxMI/240715.php Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT It seems the tide of opinion against illegal drugs is turning once again with scientists proclaiming that the Psilocybin Mushroom, popular with party goers and better known as Shrooms or Magic Mushrooms, should be successful for treating people with depression. Mushrooms have been popular for a long time, with cave paintings dating back to mesolithic era (14,000 to 5000 BC) showing pictures of the fungus. Now research is starting to show that they have an anti-depressive effect similar to drugs like Prozac, but with additional mind opening benefits...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/O4WXoy2sHww" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/O4WXoy2sHww/240713.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT Reports are coming in that England's doctors are seeing more cases of Vitamin D deficiency, with at least one expert describing the issue as a major problem. I remember my father telling me how when he was a child in London in the 1930s he developed rickets, a softening of the bones due to lack of vitamin D. He was not alone. Rickets was widespread in England at the time, but by the 1950s the disease began to disappear because of supplements like cod-liver oil and the Clean Air Act of 1956, which got rid of the smog, allowing sunlight to fall on children's skin...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/G0zxfXDYcbo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/G0zxfXDYcbo/240710.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:00:00 GMT A Challenge to find new research methods for hyperphagia, or unregulated appetite, a condition prevalent in children with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) - a genetic disorder of chromosome 15, has been announced by InnoCentive. Inc., and the Foundation for Prader-Willi Research. Around 6,500 children are born with the genetic disorder each year. Although children with Prader-Willi suffer from a variety of physical, behavioral and neurological symptoms, hyperphagia (the feeling of constant hunger) poses the greatest risk for health...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/FSqrIWWE-lk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/FSqrIWWE-lk/240708.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:00:00 GMT According to a study published January 23 online in Cancer, many smokers do not drop the habit after being diagnosed with colorectal or lung cancer. The study by Elyse R. Ph.D., M.P.H.and her team at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston involved 3,063 patients with colorectal cancer and 2,456 with lung cancer. The patients were seen at the time of diagnosis, and also five months later. The researchers set out to determine what was driving them to continue smoking...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YsuSEG8l6GU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YsuSEG8l6GU/240702.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A medical physical examination of a patient is first and foremost performed through touch, yet doctors can only learn a limited amount of information from what they feel. Temple University researchers have now developed a prototype device that will not only emulate human tactile sensation, but also quantify it. Chang-Hee Won, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at Temple, who developed the tactile imaging sensor explained: "The human hands have this amazing ability to touch something and tell if it's soft or hard, if it's wet, or even its temperature...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lvsbgBGRp0w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lvsbgBGRp0w/240706.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to a study by the University of Iowa College of Public Health and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, the prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria (MRSA) in retail pork products in the U.S. is higher than researchers originally thought. The study represents the largest sampling of raw meat products for MRSA contamination to date, and is published online in the journal PLoS ONE. It is estimated that MRSA - which can occur in raw meat products and in the environment - is responsible for approximately 185,000 cases of food poisoning each year...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/FDVVuxqEFTA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/FDVVuxqEFTA/240707.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Men with an inflated view of their importance, who are incapable of putting themselves in other people's shoes and who see themselves as "special" and superior to others, some of the traits of a narcissistic personality, may pay for this with their health. This is because a new study suggests even when such men are not under stress, they have high levels of cortisol in their bloodstream, increasing their risk for developing cardiovascular problems. The study was published online on 23 January in PLoS ONE...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/uxmcvJ4iZUs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/uxmcvJ4iZUs/240692.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT A new analysis has found that a substantial number of lung and colorectal cancer patients continue to smoke after being diagnosed. Published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study provides valuable information on which cancer patients might need help to quit smoking. When a patient receives a cancer diagnosis, the main focus is to treat the disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Gsg3_v_1CUE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Gsg3_v_1CUE/240672.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT The personality trait narcissism may have an especially negative effect on the health of men, according to a recent study published in PLoS ONE. "Narcissistic men may be paying a high price in terms of their physical health, in addition to the psychological cost to their relationships," says Sara Konrath, a University of Michigan psychologist who co-authored the study. Earlier studies by Konrath and others have shown that the level of narcissism is rising in American culture, and that narcissism tends to be more prevalent among males...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VCY1JWnrVE0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VCY1JWnrVE0/240671.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT Parents should be involved in treatment programs for their obese children, according to a new scientific statement published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. "In many cases, the adults in a family may be the most effective change agents to help obese children attain and maintain a healthier weight," said Myles S. Faith, Ph.D., chair of the American Heart Association's statement writing group and associate professor of Nutrition at the Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dx5Byq7AZvo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dx5Byq7AZvo/240668.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Crippling a protein that allows cancer cells to grow when oxygen is scarce causes tumors to regress, according to a study published online in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. An enzyme called PKM2 (M2 isoform of pyruvate kinase) is ramped up in cancer cells, allowing them to generate energy in the harsh, low-oxygen environment found within tumors. Michael Goldberg and Phillip Sharp at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology now find that inhibiting PKM2 kills cancer cells by starving them of energy but leaves normal cells unscathed...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/nSeEnhP8kCg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/nSeEnhP8kCg/240670.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Targeting a single protein can help fight both breast cancers and leukemias, according to two reports published online in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. The single protein is HSP90, which acts as a chaperone to protect other proteins in the cell. A team led by Ute Moll at the University of Göttingen in Germany found that blocking HSP90 activity rendered normally protected proteins vulnerable to attack and destruction. One of these proteins - called migration inhibitory factor - drives the growth of breast tumors...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Bf5U5m5KfZM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Bf5U5m5KfZM/240669.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT The same mechanism that stabilises the DNA in the cell nucleus is also important for the structure and function of vertebrate muscle cells. This has been established by RUB-researchers led by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Linke (Institute of Physiology) in cooperation with American and German colleagues. An enzyme attaches a methyl group to the protein Hsp90, which then forms a complex with the muscle protein titin. When the researchers disrupted this protein network through genetic manipulation in zebrafish the muscle structure partly disintegrated...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pEazU27iA8E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pEazU27iA8E/240661.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT An international team of researchers has discovered 13 new regions of the genome associated with the timing of menopause. These genes shed light on the biological pathways involved in reproductive lifespan and will provide insights into conditions connected to menopause, such as breast cancer and heart disease. Menopause is a major hormonal change that affects most women when they are in their early 50s. The timing of menopause can have a huge impact on fertility, as well as influencing the risk of a range of common diseases such as breast cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/f7Px7dLkTJg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/f7Px7dLkTJg/240660.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Human papillomavirus (HPV) testing of self-collected specimens may be a more effective way to screen for cervical cancer in low-resource settings compared to visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) and liquid-based cytology (LBC), according to a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Cervical cancer is the third most common cancer found in women with approximately 530,000 new cases each year resulting in an estimated 275,000 deaths...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/i3JxDaIjDoQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/i3JxDaIjDoQ/240667.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, provides even more reason for people to read a book or do a puzzle, and to make such activities a lifetime habit. Brain scans revealed that people with no symptoms of Alzheimer's who engaged in cognitively stimulating activities throughout their lives had fewer deposits of beta-amyloid, a destructive protein that is the hallmark of the disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mAUJpDyyAuU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mAUJpDyyAuU/240666.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A new suite of malaria maps has revealed in unprecedented detail the current global pattern of the disease, allowing researchers to see how malaria has changed over a number of years. In a study published in the Malaria Journal, a multinational team of researchers from the Malaria Atlas Project (MAP), funded mainly by the Wellcome Trust, present the results of a two-year effort to assemble all available data worldwide on the risk of Plasmodium falciparum malaria, the most deadly form of the disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gRRWilsUldk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gRRWilsUldk/240659.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Quality of life in younger patients treated for breast cancer is seriously compromised and these women suffer from severe psychological distress, infertility, premature menopause, a decrease in physical activity and weight gain, according to a study by researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9v9IsjA29n0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9v9IsjA29n0/240662.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Children at risk for dyslexia show differences in brain activity on MRI scans even before they begin learning to read, finds a study at Children's Hospital Boston. Since developmental dyslexia responds to early intervention, diagnosing children at risk before or during kindergarten could head off difficulties and frustration in school, the researchers say. Findings appear this week in the online Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/e85L_OQ8KAk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/e85L_OQ8KAk/240664.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A new study using PET scans to to examine the brains of healthy older people finds those who have been mentally stimulated all their lives, doing things like reading, writing, and playing games and puzzles, have fewer deposits of beta-amyloid, a destructive protein that is a hallmark of Alzheimer's Disease. The researchers suggest their findings will encourage scientists to think differently about how mental stimulation affects the biology of the brain...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/5Kq-5n8lJco" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/5Kq-5n8lJco/240656.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Members of a University of Pennsylvania research team have shown that they can prevent, or even reverse, a blinding retinal disease, X-linked Retinitis Pigmentosa, or XLRP, in dogs. The disease in humans and dogs is caused by defects in the RPGR gene and results in early, severe and progressive vision loss. It is one of the most common inherited forms of retinal degeneration in man...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/o0A22pJZf20" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/o0A22pJZf20/240665.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Scientists from the University of Bristol have developed a soap, composed of iron rich salts dissolved in water, that responds to a magnetic field when placed in solution. The soap's magnetic properties were proved with neutrons at the Institut Laue-Langevin to result from tiny iron-rich clumps that sit within the watery solution. The generation of this property in a fully functional soap could calm concerns over the use of soaps in oil-spill clean ups and revolutionise industrial cleaning products...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tF8-GfT8b7k" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tF8-GfT8b7k/240663.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Although significant progress has been made in treating chronic myeloid leukemia, the disease cannot yet be eliminated in all patients, and that challenge must be addressed, states a commentary in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).). Likening the journey to find a cure for chronic myeloid leukemia as a marathon, cancer expert Dr. Jorge Cortes, University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, writes, "The past half century has been an extraordinary run that has us on an excellent pace to not only complete the race to a cure, but to do so in record time...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/sMpFbmLRHTs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/sMpFbmLRHTs/240653.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Brain scans of people under the influence of the psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, have given scientists the most detailed picture to date of how psychedelic drugs work. The findings of two studies being published in scientific journals this week identify areas of the brain where activity is suppressed by psilocybin and suggest that it helps people to experience memories more vividly...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3xP0Ae0kw0o" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3xP0Ae0kw0o/240658.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A visit to the emergency department during nonsummer months was associated with a three-fold risk of acute respiratory or gastrointestinal infection in elderly residents of long-term care facilities, according to a study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). The study involved 1269 elderly residents of 22 long-term care facilities in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, and Montréal and Rivière-du-Loup, Quebec...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vj-R9mHZvWE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vj-R9mHZvWE/240654.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Metastasizing cancer cells often express integrins that provide better traction. A new study in The Journal of Cell Biology reveals how a lipid-converting enzyme helps the cells mobilize these integrins. Adhesive integrin proteins continually cycle to and from the cell surface. Invasive cancer cells that carry mutant forms of the tumor suppressor p53 often bias the process, increasing the recycling of a particular integrin that offers a better grip on the fibronectin fibers found in tumors...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Rlf6QpSFIbo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Rlf6QpSFIbo/240655.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT High blood pressure (hypertension) is a principal risk factor for heart disease and affects 1 billion people. At least half of them are estimated to be salt-sensitive; their blood pressure rises with sodium intake. New research shows important aspects of how sodium and potassium are regulated in the kidney. The work, posted online by Nature, also offers insight on how one form of familial high blood pressure disease is inherited. Nephrology researchers in the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio are co-authors...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WLw29s8Trdg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WLw29s8Trdg/240657.php Tue, 24 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT The first published results of trials using cells derived from human embryonic stem cells appear to show they have passed an initial safety hurdle. In The Lancet this week, researchers report that two nearly blind patients, one with Stargardt's macular dystrophy and the other with dry age-related macular degeneration (the leading cause of blindness in developed countries), showed measurable improvements in vision that lasted for more than four months after receiving injections of retinal pigment epithelium cells derived from human embryonic stem cells...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/A6ock1TRXg0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/A6ock1TRXg0/240650.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) come with several neurodevelopmental signs and symptoms which overlap other conditions - it is possible that some early ASD diagnoses are wrong, especially among children who no longer meet the criteria for ASD as they get older, researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health wrote in the journal Pediatrics. The authors add that it is not easy for doctors to diagnose between several possibilities early in life. Andrew W. Zimmerman, MD...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8MvRtu2QHfs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8MvRtu2QHfs/240649.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:00:00 GMT According to a study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, shortages of anti-infective medications used to fight infections represent a public health emergency and can put patients at risk. Frequent shortages of these medications can considerably change clinical care and could result in worse outcomes for patients. Furthermore, the prevalence of multidrug-resistant pathogens is increasing while the development of new anti-infectives has decreased...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XQHZdFOQSe4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XQHZdFOQSe4/240643.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to a study published online in the journal Environmental Research, a connection has been found between obesity in young children - including waist circumference and increased body mass index (BMI) - and exposure to the chemical group known as phthalates, by investigators from the Children's Environmental Health Center at The Mount Sinai Medical Center. The National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences, The National Cancer Institute, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency funded the study...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mBrmMpQa4Ek" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mBrmMpQa4Ek/240639.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT In 2011, about 101,340 Americans have been diagnosed with colon cancer, a leading worldwide cause of both illness and death, with around one third of cancers being diagnosed as stage III, or node-positive disease. A study published in the January issue of The Journal of the National Cancer Institute reveals that patients with Stage III colon cancer have an improved rate of survival if they receive an adjuvant treatment of oxaliplatin added to 5-fluorouracil (5FU)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/KMdcwrYCkNo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/KMdcwrYCkNo/240647.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Even though insomnia is the most common sleep disorder, it is often left unrecognized and untreated, despite advances in diagnosis and management. The risk of developing other illnesses, such as diabetes, depression, hypertension, and possibly even death in older adults increases if insomnia is left untreated...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/EncTvqoQisQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/EncTvqoQisQ/240645.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT In the past year, 45.9 million Americans above the age of 18 years, or 20% of 18 year-olds, experienced mental illness, according to a new national report. Mental illness amongst those aged between 18 and 25 years (29.9%) was more than double as high, compared with people aged 50 years or older (14.3%). The report also demonstrated that in the past year, adult women (23%) were more likely to have experienced mental illness, compared with 16.8% of men...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/cJA3XqDzjvA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/cJA3XqDzjvA/240648.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT The risks and benefits of Gilenya, a medication for multiple-sclerosis, is currently under review by the European Medicines Agency, after one patient in the U.S. died less than 24 hours after the first dose (the exact cause of death is still unknown), and other reports of heart problems in patients taking the medication...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/UOmkMzIzHOs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/UOmkMzIzHOs/240640.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A German Study published online in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine reveals that, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support in awake, non-intubated patients may be an effective approach for bridging patients to lung transplantation. Marius M. Hoeper, MD, professor of medicine at the Hannover Medical School in Hannover, Germany, explained: "As waiting times for donor organs continue to increase, so does the need for bridging strategies for patients with end-stage lung disease awaiting transplantation...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Y-bBo0CPxeI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Y-bBo0CPxeI/240641.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT The most effective long-term treatment for bipolar disorder is lithium. It offers protection against depression and mania and reduces the risk of suicide and short-term mortality. However, according to a study in The Lancet ,safety concerns have made the use of lithium controversial. The authors examined about 400 articles to research the possible adverse effects of lithium and found abnormalities in the thyroid and parathyroid in about 25% of patients who receive lithium therapy, compared with 3% and 0â�¢1% in the general population...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/HotElX5z16I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/HotElX5z16I/240644.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reveals that health-related quality of life (QOL) is lower in younger women with breast cancer. This decrease is linked to weight gain, increased psychological distress, less physical activity and early onset menopause, as well as infertility. In the U.S., breast cancer is the leading cause of death in women under the age of 50, and the most prevalent cancer in women...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/GyvGkO6DwgI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/GyvGkO6DwgI/240642.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Around 7.5 million Americans, which is about 2.2% of the population, suffer from psoriaris, an autoimmune disease causing red, flaky skin. A new review in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (JAAOS) reveals that patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), a type of arthritis that affects nearly 48% of patients with the skin disease psoriasis, gain substantial benefits from medications or biologic agents that target T-cells, white blood cells involved in the body's immune system. Lead study author Michael S. Day, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/A9kjZ3d9pTE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/A9kjZ3d9pTE/240646.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Women who took pomegranate seed oil pills to relieve symptoms of the menopause, such as hot flashes, were found to receive no significantly better benefits than those who were given a placebo pill which contained sunflower oil, researchers from the Medical University of Vienna wrote in the journal Menopause. The authors added that theirs is the first (albeit small) proper clinical trial to test pomegranate seed oil for the symptoms of menopause. The researchers explained that more than four in every five females experience hot flashes during the menopause...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tDipS4gblJA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tDipS4gblJA/240638.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) is calling on the UK government to ban cosmetic surgery advertising and tighten up industry regulations, including carrying annual checks on surgeons. The association has long voiced its objection to the use of "marketing gimmicks" to promote cosmetic surgery and what it sees as the lax regulation of the industry. It says people acquire unrealistic expectations from exposure to reality shows and competitions that feature cosmetic surgery "makeovers" and "body overhauls"...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jkAnF4EakkQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jkAnF4EakkQ/240637.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT Statins are commonly prescribed to lower cholesterol, but a recent study suggest certain types of breast cancer may respond to treatment with statins. Led by Carol Prives of New York's Columbia University, the international team found when they treated breast cancer cells carrying a mutant p53 gene with statins, they stopped growing in the disorganized manner characteristic of tumors, and in some cases even died. However a lot more work needs to be done before the lab results translate into clinical success...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Z092CxmavAE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Z092CxmavAE/240636.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A new class of nanoparticles, synthesized by a UC Davis research team to prevent premature drug release, holds promise for greater accuracy and effectiveness in delivering cancer drugs to tumors. The work is published in the current issue of Angewandte Chemie, a leading international chemistry journal...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/FzLGCtA5OW4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/FzLGCtA5OW4/240590.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Doctors and researchers of Hospital del Mar and its research institute, the IMIM, have lead a study describing a new pharmacological resistance to cancer. This new mechanism is a mutation in an oncogene called EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor) causing resistance to treatment using a drug called cetuximab, a monoclonal antibody which specifically attacks the EGFR. The study proves that, both in lab models and in patients with colon cancer, this mutation appears during the disease and that, when this happens, it stops the drug from being effective and the tumor grows...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/IkQY2o8wwgA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/IkQY2o8wwgA/240632.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT In the classic film "12 Angry Men," Henry Fonda's character sways a jury with his quiet, persistent intelligence. But would he have succeeded if he had allowed himself to fall sway to the social dynamics of that jury? Research led by scientists at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute found that small-group dynamics - such as jury deliberations, collective bargaining sessions, and cocktail parties - can alter the expression of IQ in some susceptible people...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/cECVD4AoqJE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/cECVD4AoqJE/240626.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Stage III colon cancer patients in the general population who receive adjuvant treatment for the disease have an improved rate of survival when oxaliplatin is added to 5-fluorouracil (5FU), according to a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Colon cancer is a leading global cause of both illness and death; with an estimated 101,340 cases among Americans in 2011. Roughly one third of diagnoses are stage III or node-positive disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/T_PVZsXlwlE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/T_PVZsXlwlE/240625.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes have identified a finely tuned mechanism by which fetal heart muscle develops into a healthy and fully formed beating heart - offering new insight into the genetic causes of congenital heart disease and opening the door to one day developing therapies to fight this chronic and potentially fatal disorder...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VzgyTtcglcI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VzgyTtcglcI/240635.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Shortages of key drugs used to fight infections represent a public health emergency and can put patients at risk, according to a review published in Clinical Infectious Diseases and available online*. Frequent anti-infective shortages can substantially alter clinical care and may lead to worse outcomes for patients, particularly as the development of new anti-infectives has slowed and the prevalence of multidrug-resistant pathogens is increasing. Of the 193 medications unavailable in the U.S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/FCrlZfMRNpM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/FCrlZfMRNpM/240624.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Expanding on previous work with engines traveling on straight tracks, a team of researchers at Kyoto University and the University of Oxford have successfully used DNA building blocks to construct a motor capable of navigating a programmable network of tracks with multiple switches. The findings, published in the January 22 online edition of the journal Nature Nanotechnology, are expected to lead to further developments in the field of nanoengineering...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6wJ3fzA12GM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6wJ3fzA12GM/240629.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have created synthetic nanoparticles that target lymph nodes and greatly boost vaccine responses, said lead author Ashley St. John, Ph.D., a researcher at Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School. The paper was published online in the journal Nature Materials on Jan. 22. Currently all other adjuvants (substances added to vaccines to help to boost the immune response) are thought to enhance immunity at the skin site where the vaccine is injected rather than going to the lymph nodes, where the most effective immune reactions occur...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6hR0k45ptpM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6hR0k45ptpM/240633.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT An Emory University neuro-imaging study shows that personal values that people refuse to disavow, even when offered cash to do so, are processed differently in the brain than those values that are willingly sold. "Our experiment found that the realm of the sacred - whether it's a strong religious belief, a national identity or a code of ethics - is a distinct cognitive process," says Gregory Berns, director of the Center for Neuropolicy at Emory University and lead author of the study. The results were published in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/R85GpQY65l4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/R85GpQY65l4/240630.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Millions of people worldwide suffer from a type of chronic pain called neuropathic pain, which is triggered by nerve damage. Precisely how this pain persists has been a mystery, and current treatments are largely ineffective. But a team led by scientists from The Scripps Research Institute, using a new approach known as metabolomics, has now discovered a major clue: dimethylsphingosine (DMS), a small-molecule byproduct of cellular membranes in the nervous system...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/LZj3kUf8YDk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/LZj3kUf8YDk/240634.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT While global attention to HIV/AIDS remains strong, a lack of focus on prevention strategies is stonewalling health experts in many developing nations, specifically in the Caribbean. By adopting a new approach to HIV prevention, Michigan State University's Institute of International Health is hoping to turn the tide on new infections on the island of Hispaniola, which accounts for nearly 75 percent of the Caribbean's AIDS cases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/n_ESDpyQeU8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/n_ESDpyQeU8/240589.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Analyzing all the genes of dozens of people suffering from a rare form of hypertension, Yale University researchers have discovered a new mechanism that regulates the blood pressure of all humans. The findings by an international research team headed by Yale scientists, published online Jan. 22 in the journal Nature, may help explain what goes wrong in the one billion people who suffer from high blood pressure. The study also demonstrates the power of new DNA sequencing methods to find previously unknown disease-causing genes...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/swmrFEOMSwE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/swmrFEOMSwE/240627.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A disease-fighting protein in our teardrops has been tethered to a tiny transistor, enabling UC Irvine scientists to discover exactly how it destroys dangerous bacteria. The research could prove critical to long-term work aimed at diagnosing cancers and other illnesses in their very early stages. Ever since Nobel laureate Alexander Fleming found that human tears contain antiseptic proteins called lysozymes about a century ago, scientists have tried to solve the mystery of how they could relentlessly wipe out far larger bacteria...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/UvrtYKjBbDQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/UvrtYKjBbDQ/240564.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The impact of efforts by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to notify the general public and health care providers about unanticipated risks from approved medications has been "varied and unpredictable," according to a systematic review of published studies about FDA warnings and alerts over the last 20 years. Although some communication efforts had a strong and immediate effect, many had little or no impact on drug use or health behaviors and several had unintended consequences, researchers report in the journal Medical Care...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/1RGNZ8HntH8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/1RGNZ8HntH8/240566.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Carnegie Mellon University researchers have discovered that an element commonly found in nature might provide a way to neutralize the potentially lethal effects of a compound known as Shiga toxin. New results published in Science by Carnegie Mellon biologists Adam Linstedt and Somshuvra Mukhopadhyay show that manganese completely protects against Shiga toxicosis in animal models. Produced by certain bacteria, including Shigella and some strains of /iE. coli, Shiga toxin can cause symptoms ranging from mild intestinal disease to kidney failure...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/veGAR7li8Ws" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/veGAR7li8Ws/240567.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Specialty canines were on a mission to sniff out trouble and display their explosive-detecting abilities as part of an Office of Naval Research (ONR)-hosted "Top Dog Demo 2012." "These dogs have kept Marines alive by helping them move through the battle space," said Lisa Albuquerque, program manager for ONR's Naval Expeditionary Dog Program, part of ONR's Expeditionary Warfare and Combating Terrorism Department. "Marines can focus on their mission because they've got these four-legged sensors helping to keep them safe...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/upAhnZDh-DY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/upAhnZDh-DY/240568.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A simple program involving color-coded food labeling and adjusting the way food items are positioned in display cases was successful in encouraging more healthful food choices in a large hospital cafeteria. The report from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers will appear in the March American Journal of Public Health and has received early online release...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9cERh0RE9MI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9cERh0RE9MI/240565.php Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Grandmothers and other senior female family members should play a key role in nutrition and health programmes for children and women in non-Western societies. However, they are often overlooked by health organisations that don't understand the importance of their role or see them as an obstacle to promoting good nutrition and health practices. Those are the key finding of an extensive literature review published in the January issue of Maternal and Child Nutrition...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/W3m7bNAn52M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/W3m7bNAn52M/240558.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) prevent the conversion of androgens to estrogens, and could play a role in the development of breast cancer. This study of 36 pre-menopausal women consisted of a cross-over intervention trial to determine if there were differences between red wine and white wine in their effects on AIs. Subjects sequentially consumed eight ounces of red wine, followed by white wine (or vice versa), each beverage for a one-month period...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/by9IPbbKcUk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/by9IPbbKcUk/240553.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Cell & Bioscience is the first to show that left-handed Z-DNA, normally only found at sites where DNA is being copied, can also form on nucleosomes. The structure of DNA which provides the blueprint for life has famously been described as a double helix. To save space inside the nucleus, DNA is tightly wound around proteins to form nucleosomes which are then further wound and compacted into chromatin, which is further compacted into chromosomes...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Ihh9Rsn5Xcg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Ihh9Rsn5Xcg/240561.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT PCE in drinking water linked to an increased risk of mental illness The solvent tetrachloroethylene (PCE) widely used in industry and to dry clean clothes is a neurotoxin known to cause mood changes, anxiety, and depression in people who work with it. To date the long-term effect of this chemical on children exposed to PCE has been less clear, although there is some evidence that children of people who work in the dry cleaning industry have an increased risk of schizophrenia...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WWDTBDzFixU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WWDTBDzFixU/240562.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Adults who participated in a high quality early childhood education program in the 1970s are still benefitting from their early experiences in a variety of ways, according to a new study. The study provides new data from the long-running, highly regarded Abecedarian Project, which is led by the FPG Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Researchers have followed participants from early childhood through adolescence and young adulthood, generating a comprehensive and rare set of longitudinal data...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/JCl1buTiEds" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/JCl1buTiEds/240555.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Max Planck researchers have proven something scientifically for the first time that laypeople have always known: the mere sight of delicious food stimulates the appetite. A study on healthy young men has documented that the amount of the neurosecretory protein hormone ghrelin in the blood increases as a result of visual stimulation through images of food. As a main regulator, ghrelin controls both eating behaviour and the physical processes involved in food metabolism...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/R31VtB21hkg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/R31VtB21hkg/240557.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Delirium develops in about 30 percent of patients hospitalized shortly after a stroke and is linked to poorer outcomes, according to a new meta-analysis published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association. In the first systematic analysis of the four common outcomes in acute stroke patients with delirium - inpatient and 12-month death rates, length of hospital stay and care arrangements after discharge - Canadian researchers analyzed 10 studies. The research included more than 2,000 patients hospitalized after suffering a stroke due to a vessel blockage or bleeding...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Q54VUXIaprc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Q54VUXIaprc/240552.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A Jackson Laboratory research team led by Professor and Howard Hughes Medical Investigator Susan Ackerman, Ph.D., has discovered a defect in the RNA splicing process in neurons that may contribute to neurological disease. The researchers found that a mutation in just one of the many copies of a gene known as U2 snRNAs, which is involved in the intricate processing of protein-encoding RNAs, causes neurodegeneration. Many so-called non-coding RNAs - those that don't directly encode proteins - are found in multiple copies in the genome, Ackerman says...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ZsqIVHOOQJ8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ZsqIVHOOQJ8/240560.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A recently published study investigating hepatitis B vaccination rates in the United States found that more than half of adults at risk for hepatitis B virus remain unvaccinated. With many of these individuals making contact with the healthcare system, including HIV testing, this statistic reflects many missed opportunities to vaccinate this population...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iDx8HuTLEm4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iDx8HuTLEm4/240556.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Youngsters in Norway today are not as fit as earlier generations, and even the best perform less well. Researchers now warn that a wave of inactivity could have a major long-term health impact. The conclusions about the physical condition of young people build on a survey of Norwegian schoolchildren's performance in the 3 000-metre race from 1969 to 2009. Associate professors Leif Inge Tjelta and Sindre Dyrstad at the University of Stavanger (UiS) have drawn on notes kept by a number of physical education teachers...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mJx31kQoorc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mJx31kQoorc/240554.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A recent analysis of clinical trial results performed by the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) demonstrate that a chromosomal abnormality - specifically, the absence (co-deletion) of chromosomes 1p and 19q - have definitive prognostic and predictive value for managing the treatment of adult patients with pure and mixed anaplastic oligodendrogliomas...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/V8vp8GA2c9k" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/V8vp8GA2c9k/240559.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT New research from Queen Mary, University of London has uncovered a gene which plays a key role in the development of oesophageal cancer (cancer of the gullet). The researchers studied families who suffer a rare inherited condition making them highly susceptible to the disease and found that a fault in a single gene was responsible. Initial studies suggest that the gene could play a role in the more common, non-inherited form of the disease, revealing a new target for treating this aggressive type of cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xGJ8yeMkUKs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xGJ8yeMkUKs/240563.php Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently recommended that clinicians be more conservative when they prescribe chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients with drugs that treat red blood cell deficiencies. But the drug label's recommendations fall short, according to two commentaries appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). The new federal recommendations apply to erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/j_VrlAzr_cs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/j_VrlAzr_cs/240548.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Ben Stanger, MD, PhD, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and Andrew Rhim, MD, a Gastroenterology Fellow in the Stanger lab, discovered that pancreatic cancer cells in an animal model begin to spread before clinically obvious tumor tissue is detected. What's more, they showed that inflammation enhances cancer progression in part by facilitating a cellular transformation that leads to entry of cancer cells into the circulation. They report their findings in Cell...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/I9tY2rcnA_8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/I9tY2rcnA_8/240545.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Cholesterol-lowering statins seem to keep breast cancer at bay in some patients. Now researchers reporting in the January 20th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, provide clues about how statins might yield those unexpected benefits. The findings also suggest that mutations in a single gene could be used to identify tumors likely to respond to statin therapy. "The data raises the possibility that we might identify subsets of patients whose tumors may respond to statins," said Carol Prives of Columbia University...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YYbT8ouz4Fw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YYbT8ouz4Fw/240546.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Levels of certain blood proteins indicate which diabetes patients will likely develop life-threatening kidney problems in the future, according to two studies appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). The results could help physicians protect the kidney health of patients with diabetes years before any visible signs of trouble arise. Kidney failure is one of the most life-threatening complications of diabetes, and almost half of patients who receive dialysis treatments need them because their kidneys have become damaged from diabetes...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4lmQknw8h4M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4lmQknw8h4M/240549.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT An inherited mutation in a gene known as the guardian of the genome is likely the link between exploding chromosomes and some particularly aggressive types of cancer, scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), the German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ) and the University Hospital, all in Heidelberg, Germany, have discovered...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/JQgOgUrTjdA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/JQgOgUrTjdA/240547.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT If you have stable cardiovascular disease, it is more than likely that you can safely engage in sexual activity, according to an American Heart Association scientific statement. The statement, published online in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, contains recommendations by experts from various fields, including heart disease, exercise physiology and sexual counseling. "Sexual activity is a major quality of life issue for men and women with cardiovascular disease and their partners," said Glenn N. Levine, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tIj5xJlbgZg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tIj5xJlbgZg/240551.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A collaboration between a cancer biologist from the University of Milano and 2 physicists has shown that cell senescence occurs spontaneously in melanoma cells, but does not stop their growth Since cancer cells grow indefinitely, it is commonly believed that senescence could act as a barrier against tumor growth and potentially be used as a way to treat cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VBZkZ6xtOjU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VBZkZ6xtOjU/240542.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Men are four times more likely to develop liver cancer compared to women, a difference attributed to the sex hormones androgen and estrogen. Although this gender difference has been known for a long time, the molecular mechanisms by which estrogens prevent - and androgens promote - liver cancer remain unclear. Now, new research, published in Cell from the lab of Klaus Kaestner, PhD, professor of Genetics in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has found that the difference depends on which proteins the sex hormones bind next to...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/CXpeAZxGFZs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/CXpeAZxGFZs/240544.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A study of a controversial housing project that allows chronically homeless people with severe alcohol problems to drink in their apartments found that during their first two years in the building residents cut their heavy drinking by 35 percent. For every three months during the study, participants drank an average of 8 percent fewer drinks on their heaviest drinking days. They also had fewer instances of delirium tremens, a life-threatening form of alcohol withdrawal. The findings were published in the American Journal of Public Health...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fD4Xpqt04Is" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fD4Xpqt04Is/240543.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center have identified a new genetic signature associated with bile duct cancer, a usually deadly tumor for which effective treatment currently is limited. Their report, which has been published online in The Oncologist, finds that growth-enhancing mutations in two related genes may account for nearly a quarter of bile duct tumors arising within the liver, presenting the possibility that drugs targeting this mutation could represent a new strategy to control tumor growth...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/H5alQHwp8_k" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/H5alQHwp8_k/240540.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The accumulation of α-synuclein, a small, negatively charged protein, in neural cells, is one of the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease. It has been suggested that oligomeric α-synuclein causes membranes to become permeable, or to form channels on the outer cell membrane. Now, a group of scientists from Sweden has found a way to reliably replicate α-synuclein aggregation on cell membranes to investigate how different forms of α-synuclein interact with membranes under different conditions and to learn if any of the α-synuclein species can penetrate these membranes...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xntzCtR22_E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xntzCtR22_E/240541.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract causes serious health problems - and even early deaths - for many patients with kidney failure, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). The findings indicate that greater efforts are needed to prevent and treat upper GI bleeding in these patients. Poor kidney function puts people at risk for upper GI bleeding, which occurs in the esophagus, stomach, or first part of the intestine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/_k4rfw9PLrw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/_k4rfw9PLrw/240550.php Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The latest results on Bayer HealthCare's investigational compound regorafenib (BAY 73-4506) from the international, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase III CORRECT (Colorectal cancer treated with regorafenib or place after failure of standard therapy) trial have been announced by Bayer HealthCare...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vIPZlx2csUc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vIPZlx2csUc/240536.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:00:00 GMT US Health Authorities have set 2025 as the deadline for coming up with an effective Alzheimer's disease treatment. Some would say this is over-ambitious, because there is no current cure for the disease; and none in the pipeline either. The Alzheimer's Association informs that during the second meeting of the Advisory Council on Alzheimer's Research, Care and Services, ". . . in-depth discussions took place about goals and strategies to change the trajectory of Alzheimer's disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ykGa6ywaTVM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ykGa6ywaTVM/240602.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT On January 18, 2010, the British Medical Association (BMA) urged the government to reconsider their plans to make changes to the NHS Pension Scheme after the BMA received an overwhelming call from doctors to reject the proposed changes, with a willingness to take some form of industrial action. After taking into account results of a major survey of 130,000 medical students and doctors, the decision was made at a meeting of BMA Council, the association's governing body. More than 46,000 doctors and medical students responded to the UK-wide survey - a response rate of 36%...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/GF7aZ_HW7lc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/GF7aZ_HW7lc/240601.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT Dr. John Fletcher has been named the new editor-in-chief of the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), Dr. John Haggie, President of the Canadian Medical Association announced today. Dr. Fletcher, from England, holds a master's degree in public health from Harvard University and a medical degree from the University of Cambridge. Fletcher was a research fellow at the University of Oxford, and is an accredited specialist in public health in the United Kingdom. Prior to moving to the British Medical Journal (BMJ), where he spent 7 years, Dr...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/eHKA40VYDZQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/eHKA40VYDZQ/240600.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT According to a report in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal), pregnant women should not be told the sex of their unborn child until after 30 weeks of pregnancy, in order to combat female feticide, which some individuals in certain ethnic groups in Canada and the U.S. practice. Female feticide is the decision to terminate a pregnancy based on the grounds that the sex is female...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/oAN4lLt3S5o" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/oAN4lLt3S5o/240599.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT On Wednesday, US researchers announced they are testing a new drug in dogs that has already proven effective in mice. The drug is designed to substantially reduce the hind limb paralysis that follows certain spinal cord injuries. There are currently no therapies that can do this. The researchers suggest if the drug succeeds in dogs, it could also work in humans...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/AYHFp_WeHI8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/AYHFp_WeHI8/240598.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT A scientific statement from The American Heart Association clarifies that sexual activity for those with heart conditions is ok. They caution that women should be counseled on use of contraceptive methods and possible adverse effects of pregnancy, while men should be wary of certain erectile dysfunction medications that are unsafe for all cardiovascular diseases. The statement was published online 19th Jan...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/yQjWJBQIjpU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/yQjWJBQIjpU/240597.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 14:00:00 GMT The Lancet Infectious Diseases Series' sixth and final paper on mass gatherings (MGs) calls for action to set out and accomplish the public health benefits that can be achieved by confronting the health security and other health risks at mass gatherings (MGs). Several research priorities are highlighted in this paper to ensure that effective policies are developed for the planning of such events...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Sdhj1ZazLsg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Sdhj1ZazLsg/240595.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Hosts of mass gatherings (MGs) could benefit from new opportunities that would assist in the preparation and response to threats of infectious diseases, as revealed by the fifth paper on MGs health in The Lancet Infectious Diseases Series. One of these opportunities would be to couple surveillance systems that use the Internet to identify outbreaks of infectious diseases around the globe in near real-time with a novel technology, which can track and predict global population movements through commercial air travel...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Rk2qR39cROA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Rk2qR39cROA/240594.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to an investigation by researchers from the University of British Columbia, University of Toronto and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal), the cost of prescription medication affects 1 in 10 Canadians, and 1 in 4 individuals without medication insurance cannot afford to have their prescriptions filled. The researchers examined data from 5,732 individuals who took part in the Canada Community Health Survey in 2007...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VHsFkisIvHg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VHsFkisIvHg/240596.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT The second of the six papers on mass gathering health in The Lancet Infectious Disease Series , states that instead of potentially amplifying and accelerating the spread of infectious disease all over the world, mass gatherings (MGs) can also offer unique opportunities to promote public health campaigns, like vaccinations. These can not only lower the risks for the host countries or communities, but also be of benefit to the countries to which participants return...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/5JQR0B5TsBM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/5JQR0B5TsBM/240591.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT One of the leading causes of mortality and illness at mass gatherings (MGs), which also represent a major public health problem, are non-communicable diseases and injuries. Heatstroke and human stampedes are the most prevalent cause of death at these events. The third paper on MGs in the The Lancet Infectious Diseases Series draws attention to large areas of insufficient knowledge about many non-communicable health risks during MGs, as well as lacking evidence as to which public health interventions function best...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/M_h16ygbdeo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/M_h16ygbdeo/240592.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT The Na-GST-1 antigen, a candidate for the first human hookworm vaccine developed by the Sabin Vaccine Institute (Sabin), has entered a Phase 1 human trial in Brazil, according to Sabin. For the vaccine product development partnership (PDP) headquartered at Sabin, the clinical trial is a considerable achievement. Worldwide, almost 600 million individuals are infected by human hookworm. Sabin's aim is to create a safe, effective and inexpensive vaccine, in order to reduce the worldwide burden of this parasite...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/f_jcyttGQ94" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/f_jcyttGQ94/240586.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT According to a study published in the current issue of the journal Cancer Prevention Research, aspirin should be assessed for its ability to prevent cervical cancer developing in women infected with HIV. Aspirin has the potential to provide considerable benefit for women in Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America, regions where death rates from cervical cancer are extremely high. The study was conducted by global health investigators at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and cancer specialists in New York, Haiti and Qatar...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4bGUiNXvE3c" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4bGUiNXvE3c/240585.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT The pharmaceutical company Ferrer has received approval to start phase III human trials of ozenoxacin, formulated as a topical treatment for infectious skin conditions. In February 2012, participants are expected to enter the multicenter, randomized, placebo controlled, parallel, double-blinded superiority clinical study, which is scheduled to complete in 2013...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Wp3sRnmb_us" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Wp3sRnmb_us/240588.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT In the United States, 32 million individuals have autoantibodies, the most prevalent of which are antinuclear antibodies (ANA), according to an investigation carried out by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), an agency of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Although the investigation is the first to study the presence of autoantibodies in individuals in the United States, the results are far from unexpected, revealed the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA). AARDA's President and Executive Director Virginia T...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YFRzrJ9dDr8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YFRzrJ9dDr8/240587.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Orphan drug development has become more feasible than in previous years but we've barely scratched the surface: only 367 approved orphan drugs out of 6,800 rare diseases. We need to keep the momentum going. Come April 10-13, over 300 key decision makers from orphan drug manufacturers, patient groups, payers and regulators will gather in DC at the 2nd annual World Orphan Drug Congress USA. Key speakers include Mike Astrue, Commissioner of the US Social Security Administration; Angus Russell, CEO of Shire, Yi-Ou Wang, Founder & President of China-Dolls Care and Support Association and Dr...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ljkO8qhQAxQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ljkO8qhQAxQ/240570.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT Some 45.9 million, or around 1 in 5 American adults (age 18 and over) experienced a mental illness in the past year, according to the US government's latest National Survey on Drug Use and Health, released this month. The survey, published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), finds that the rate of mental illness among 18 to 25-year-olds was more than twice as high as among people aged 50 and over (29.9% versus 14.3% respectively)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/sG1QY_y1hKo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/sG1QY_y1hKo/240539.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT The amount of needless suffering caused by both acute and chronic pain in the United States is a major, overlooked medical problem that requires improved education at multiple levels, stretching from the implementation of new public health campaigns to better training of primary care physicians in pain management. "The magnitude of pain in the United States is astounding," write the authors of a perspective piece published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The article is co-authored by Philip Pizzo, MD, dean of the Stanford University School of Medicine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wDnkDNSQvzg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wDnkDNSQvzg/240516.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Research conducted by NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center global health investigators and cancer specialists in New York, Qatar and Haiti suggests that aspirin should be evaluated for its ability to prevent development of cervical cancer in HIV-infected women. The report, published in the current issue of journal Cancer Prevention Research, says this simple and inexpensive solution has the potential to provide enormous benefit for women in the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa, who suffer from a disproportionately high rate of cervical cancer death...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/biJsuufhXKs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/biJsuufhXKs/240519.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Even the tiniest microscopic organisms make waves when they swim. In fact, dealing with these waves is a fact of life for the ulcer-causing bacteria H. pylori. The bacteria are known to change their behavior in order to compensate for the waves created by other bacteria swimming around in the same aquatic neighborhood. From the relatively simple actions of these individual bacteria emerges a complex, coordinated group behavior...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gKCirzjRqdg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gKCirzjRqdg/240521.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A new combination of investigational drugs successfully suppressed hepatitis C genotype 1 infection in a high percent of patients who had not responded to previous treatment in a study led by a University of Michigan hepatologist. The study, which was published Jan. 19 in the New England Journal of Medicine, focused on hepatitis C genotype 1, which is predominant in the United States and the most difficult to treat. Hepatitis C is a virus that infects the liver and can cause liver cancer and liver cirrhosis. It is transmitted through direct contact with infected blood and blood products...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pC1WbRMfIlA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pC1WbRMfIlA/240528.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Results of two studies suggest that a new, investigational colorectal cancer screening test developed in a collaboration between Mayo Clinic and Exact Sciences Inc. of Madison, Wis., is highly accurate and significantly more sensitive than other noninvasive tests at detecting precancerous tumors (adenomas) and early-stage cancer. These findings have important implications for clinicians and tens of thousands of Americans. Early detection is a key driver of better outcomes for colorectal cancer - a disease that affects 1 in every 17 persons and is the second-leading cause of U.S. cancer deaths...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4esYoUUQQY4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4esYoUUQQY4/240526.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Scientists from the University of Colorado Cancer Center have once again advanced the treatment of a specific kind of lung cancer. The team has documented how anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) becomes resistant to a drug targeting the abnormal protein in the cancer. It's the first time scientists have analyzed the frequency and type of drug resistance in ALK positive patients taking crizotinib. Crizotinib, a tablet, shrinks tumors in the majority of ALK positive patients with dramatic responses in more than 60 percent of cases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6PxUhq9oSa0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6PxUhq9oSa0/240524.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Medications or biologic agents that target T-cells, white blood cells involved in the body's immune system, appear to offer significant benefit to patients suffering from psoriatic arthritis (PsA), a type of arthritis that affects up to 48 percent of patients with the skin disease psoriasis, according to a new review article in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS). About 7.5 million Americans - roughly 2.2 percent of the population - have psoriasis, an autoimmune disease that causes red, flaky skin...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/GNBAurBaMbE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/GNBAurBaMbE/240523.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT In 2005, news first broke that researchers in Scotland found unexpectedly low rates of cancer among diabetics taking metformin, a drug commonly prescribed to patients with Type II diabetes. Many follow-up studies reported similar findings, some suggesting as much as a 50-per-cent reduction in risk...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/-ZWoK8Om68A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/-ZWoK8Om68A/240517.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A novel technique has been developed and demonstrated at Penn State University to map the proteins that read and regulate chromosomes - the string-like structures inside cells that carry genes. The specific order in which these proteins attach DNA-containing nucleosomes along the chromosome determines whether a brain cell, a liver cell, or a cancer cell is formed. Until now, it has been exceedingly difficult to determine exactly where such proteins bind to the chromosome, and therefore how they work...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/v73mCu2lNzw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/v73mCu2lNzw/240508.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A new study shows pregnant women exposed to armed conflict have a higher risk of giving birth to underweight babies, a result that could change the way aid is delivered to developing countries. "From a development side we need to ask, `Who is the population we should be focusing on?'" said Hani Mansour, Ph.D., assistant professor of economics at the University of Colorado Denver who conducted the study with Daniel Rees, Ph.D., a CU Denver professor of economics. "Our results provide another reason why pregnant women deserve special attention when armed conflict breaks out...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/aVA2EmGJ7WI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/aVA2EmGJ7WI/240520.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT The discovery by researchers from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of a molecule that is key to malaria's 'invisibility cloak' will help to better understand how the parasite causes disease and escapes from the defenses mounted by the immune system. The research team, led by Professor Alan Cowman from the institute's Infection and Immunity division, has identified one of the crucial molecules that instructs the parasite to employ its invisibility cloak to hide from the immune system, and helps its offspring to remember how to 'make' the cloak...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vyAUKApiyYE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vyAUKApiyYE/240509.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A nurse's tender loving care really does ease the pain of a medical procedure, and grandma's cookies really do taste better, if we perceive them to be made with love - suggests newly published research by a University of Maryland psychologist. The findings have many real-world applications, including in medicine, relationships, parenting and business...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/q5U7lGFPvqg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/q5U7lGFPvqg/240530.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A study published this week in the journal Leukemia identifies a mechanism that acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells use to evade chemotherapy - and details how to close this escape route. "Introducing chemotherapy to cells is like putting a curve in front of a speeding car," says Christopher Porter, MD, investigator at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. "Cells that can put on the brakes make it around the corner and cells that can't speed off the track...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YcgP8DQ22vk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YcgP8DQ22vk/240529.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Patients with metastatic melanoma taking the recently approved drug vemurafenib (Zelboraf®) responded well to the twice daily pill, but some of them developed a different, secondary skin cancer. Now, researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, working with investigators from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, Roche and Plexxikon, have elucidated the mechanism by which vemurafenib excels at fighting melanoma but also allows for the development of skin squamous cell carcinomas...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ygbnuh9sy_0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ygbnuh9sy_0/240515.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT ComplianceOnline, the leading governance, risk and compliance advisory network with over 500 experts in various regulatory subjects, today announced a seminar on The A to Z's of Microbial Control, Monitoring and Validation of Pharmaceutical Water Systems. The two day long, in-person seminar, led by well known water systems expert T.C. Soli, will be held on February 22 and 23, 2012 in San Francisco, California. The seminar will provide a microbiology-focused education about all aspects of water systems and how biofilm manages to thrive there...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/IJcPk1hvLzk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/IJcPk1hvLzk/240531.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Although around two thirds of us would prefer to die at home, in the developed world the trend in recent years has been for the majority to spend their final days in an institutional setting. But according to new research available in the journal Palliative Medicine, published by SAGE and from King's College London, the tide has now turned and an increasing number of people in the UK are dying at home. In England and Wales, the number of deaths at home nearly halved from 1974 to 2003. If this trend continued, researchers projected that fewer than one in ten would die at home by 2030...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Q-czhmKTXj8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Q-czhmKTXj8/240511.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Eighty-five percent of children's learning is related to vision. Yet in the U.S., 80 percent of children have never had an eye exam or any vision screening before kindergarten, statistics say. When they do, the vision screenings they typically receive can detect only one or two conditions. Three researchers at the University of Tennessee Space Institute in Tullahoma are working to change that with an invention that makes children eye exams inexpensive, comprehensive, and simple to administer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/nZgu0q6XnoI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/nZgu0q6XnoI/240510.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT While environment and family history are factors in healthy aging, genetic variants play a critical and complex role in conferring exceptional longevity, according to researchers from the Boston University Schools of Public Health and Medicine, Boston Medical Center, IRCCS Multimedica in Milan, Italy, and Yale University. Published in PLoS ONE, after peer review, the research findings are the corrected version of work originally published in Science in July 2010...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/swchTYk83Vs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/swchTYk83Vs/240512.php Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Based on the knowledge that cancer cells grow indefinitely, the general belief is that senescence could act as a barrier against tumor growth and has the potential of being used as a cancer treatment...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DCU9UPWp8-Q" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DCU9UPWp8-Q/240525.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:00:00 GMT UK researchers have found a gene that plays an important part in the development of oesophageal cancer or cancer of the gullet. They announced their news to the press on Thursday. Every year, more than 8,000 people in the UK discover they have oesophageal cancer, and the rates are going up. The disease is more common in the UK than other European countries. The chances of surviving oesophageal cancer are very slim: only 8% of patients are alive more than 5 years after diagnosis...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dXKVyNvuhLM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dXKVyNvuhLM/240534.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:00:00 GMT Despite a tripling of obesity rates in US schools over the last forty years, and an increase in junk foods, candy and sugary drinks availability in schools, a new study claims to demonstrate that the two are not linked - put simply, the study researchers say that junk food at school does not appear to be associated with higher obesity and overweight rates. The study has been published in Sociology in Education, and was authored by Jennifer Van Hook, a Professor of Sociology and Demography, and doctoral student Claire Altman. Prof...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/OMozFBUMLKg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/OMozFBUMLKg/240532.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT New figures from the Guttmacher Institute and the World Health Organization (WHO) show that after a long period of decline, the global abortion rates have steadied. From 1995 to 2003, rates dropped from 35 per 1000 women of childbearing age to 29 per 1000, whereas the new study shows the 2008 rate is stable at 28 per 1000. The United Nations says the slow down coincides with a plateau in the uptake of contraceptive use in developing countries, where there has been a big contraceptive drive in the last couple of decades, partly because of HIV and partly because of over population issues...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/5nOcl2samus" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/5nOcl2samus/240533.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT As numbers of international large-scale events, such as music concerts, sports events, religious pilgrimage and state funerals increase in frequency and scale, they pose substantial risks to the general public...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WcqrMlpXt3g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WcqrMlpXt3g/240527.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Fed up with listening to your spouse or co-workers gossiping away? Leave be, says a new research from University of California Berkeley. Gossip helps to prevent bad behavior, prevent exploitation and reduces stress levels. Gossiping can also be therapeutic, the volunteers' heart rates appeared to increase when hearing gossip, but lowered again once they passed on the information to someone else. A problem shared is a problem halved indeed...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iTTPC28v2AY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iTTPC28v2AY/240488.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT In a study published Online First in The Lancet, researchers have examined the efficacy of a new vaccine against serogroups of Neisseria meningitides, which unlike the four out of six existing safe and efficacious vaccines, also includes protection against serotype B. Serogroups of Neisseria meningitides cause meningococcal diseases, including meningitis. Even though serotype B is the most prevalent strain across South America, it is also common in high-income countries causing much of the remaining meningococcal disease burden...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/n9rgjLGX8gA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/n9rgjLGX8gA/240522.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT In the United States, painful periods (Dysmenorrhoea) are estimated to cause 600 million lost working hours and cost two billion dollars in lost productivity. A large Scandinavian study published online in Europe's leading reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction, has finally provided compelling evidence, after running for 30 years, that the combined oral contraceptive pill does indeed relieve symptoms of painful menstrual periods, known as dysmenorrhoea...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xGrVgqBWqL4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xGrVgqBWqL4/240513.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Patients with HER2-positive breast cancer have been treated with Tykerb (lapatinib) both in combination with herceptin (trastuzumab), and as an alternative single-agent therapy for pre-surgery (neo-adjuvant) chemotherapy...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/uVojdWW6Tfc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/uVojdWW6Tfc/240518.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT On Thursday the Vietnamese authorities reported that a duck farmer has died of bird flu, coinciding with reports that a two-year-old boy in Cambodia has also died of the virus this week. The Vietnamese victim died on 11 January. According to the authorities this was the first human death from avian flu for nearly two years. The farmer kept ducks in the Mekong delta province of Hau Giang, but experts have yet to establish whether he caught the virus from his birds, according to an AFP report from Hanoi. The Cambodian toddler died early on Wednesday...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fE_uIf6r6cc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fE_uIf6r6cc/240503.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT Compared to similar people who don't take them, nursing home residents with dementia who take average doses of a class of drugs used to treat depression are three times more likely to have an injurious fall. These are the findings of a new study from The Netherlands published online in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology on Wednesday. Falls are a serious health problem for nursing home residents with dementia, particularly as one-third of all falls in such establishments result in injury...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/J2Prxuh5hYc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/J2Prxuh5hYc/240492.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Because of care advances, more infants and children with previously lethal health problems are surviving. Many, however, are left with lifelong neurologic impairment. A Children's Hospital Boston study of more than 25 million pediatric hospitalizations in the U.S. now shows that neurologically impaired children, though still a relatively small part of the overall population, account for increasing hospital resources, particularly within children's hospitals...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pdvRpotyS8M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pdvRpotyS8M/240468.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A program built around the concept that kids can and want to reduce violence and improve their neighborhoods led to lower crime rates, better upkeep on homes and more students who said they learned to resolve conflicts without violence. The afterschool and summer program, called Youth Empowerment Solutions for Peaceful Communities (YES), is a University of Michigan School of Public Health case study that included seventh and eighth grade students at select schools in Flint, Mich...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xgRoq8BEiFg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xgRoq8BEiFg/240460.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT New research into the treatment, prognosis and early detection of gastrointestinal cancers was released in advance of the ninth annual Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium being held January 19-21, 2012, at The Moscone West Building in San Francisco, Calif...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ximHGGCAncM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ximHGGCAncM/240463.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers studied three types of tennis serves, and identified one in particular, called a "kick" serve, which creates the highest potential for shoulder injury. The results, published in a recent issue of Annals of Biomedical Engineering, could aid sports training and rehab, said Alison Sheets, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Ohio State University. With further development, she added, doctors could use her "markerless motion capture" technique to diagnose patients...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/zxAtB3dlXbQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/zxAtB3dlXbQ/240465.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Research from the University of Michigan Health System shows the risk for kidney failure among liver transplant recipients is higher following the implementation of Model of End Stage Liver Disease (MELD), a policy change in 2002 that altered how liver transplant allocation is decided. The study, led by Pratima Sharma, M.D., M.S., an assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, examined the effect of MELD score-based allocation on post-liver transplant kidney failure...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ioLoLLTKqhY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ioLoLLTKqhY/240453.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT In the first comprehensive review of its kind since 1992, a UC Davis researcher has estimated the national annual price tag of occupational injuries and illnesses at $250 billion, much higher than generally assumed. That figure is $31 billion more than the direct and indirect costs of all cancer, $76 billion more than diabetes and $187 billion more than strokes. The study strongly suggests that the U.S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DOr5msmWL68" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DOr5msmWL68/240459.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Teenagers are more susceptible to developing disorders like addiction and depression, according to a paper published by Pitt researchers in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study was led by Bita Moghaddam, coauthor of the paper and a professor of neuroscience in Pitt's Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. She and coauthor David Sturman, a MD/PhD student in Pitt's Medical Scientist Training Program, compared the brain activity of adolescents and adults in rats involved in a task in which they anticipated a reward...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NMXvphYF3Ug" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NMXvphYF3Ug/240471.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Listen up, pedestrians wearing headphones. Can you hear the trains or cars around you? Many probably can't, especially young adult males. Serious injuries to pedestrians listening to headphones have more than tripled in six years, according to new research from the University of Maryland School of Medicine and the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. In many cases, the cars or trains are sounding horns that the pedestrians cannot hear, leading to fatalities in nearly three-quarters of cases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mInA5o83JEM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mInA5o83JEM/240469.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Tuberculosis (TB) has been suspected to increase a person's risk of lung cancer because the pulmonary inflammation and fibrosis can induce genetic damage. However, direct evidence of specific genetic changes and the disease have not been extensively reported. Research presented in the February 2012 issue of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer's Journal of Thoracic Oncology shows a link between TB and mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), a type of gene mutation found in non-small cell lung cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XJ8yLzx8F4g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XJ8yLzx8F4g/240458.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT For more than 100 years, the traditional treatment for the painful growths called gallstones has been removal of the gallbladder, or cholecystectomy. But a new device, patented in China, promises to make removing the entire organ unnecessary. A group of scientists from the Second People's Hospital of Panyu District and Central South University in China have developed an endoscope specially designed for locating and clearing out gallstones and other gallbladder lesions. The authors describe the device in a paper accepted to the AIP's Review of Scientific Instruments...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jB4F0Z5L-bc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jB4F0Z5L-bc/240467.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Incomplete availability of data has hampered a thorough assessment of the evidence for using the anti-influenza drug oseltamivir, a Cochrane Review has found. However, after piecing together information from over 16,000 pages of clinical trial data and documents used in the process of licensing oseltamivir (Tamiflu) by national authorities, a team of researchers has raised critical questions about how well the drug works and about its reported safety profile...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pX_ORdGZ_1w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pX_ORdGZ_1w/240454.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A research team led by St. Michael's Hospital's Dr. Kamran Khan is teaming up with British authorities to anticipate and track the risk for an infectious disease outbreak at the London Olympics this summer. For the first time, experts from around the world are working together to integrate technologies and disease surveillance at both local and global levels. "Systems that track infectious diseases at the global level are poorly connected to those at the local level," said Dr. Khan, lead author of a paper published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/SmktrdLeC44" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/SmktrdLeC44/240456.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Observational epidemiologic studies relating wine and alcohol to health all suffer from the fact that they, of necessity, compare people who prefer certain beverages, but not the beverages themselves. While there have been many intervention trials in animals, randomized trials in humans are less common. Randomized crossover trials, in which each subject receives all interventions in sequence, can be especially important as they tend to avoid baseline differences among subjects and can detect effects of different interventions with smaller numbers of subjects...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/c4Omt0ImQQg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/c4Omt0ImQQg/240452.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT The nitrogen cycle has been profoundly altered by human activities, and that in turn is affecting human health, air and water quality, and biodiversity in the U.S., according to a multi-disciplinary team of scientists writing in the 15th publication of the Ecological Society of America's Issues in Ecology. In "Excess Nitrogen in the U.S. Environment: Trends, Risks, and Solutions," lead author Eric Davidson (Woods Hole Research Center) and 15 colleagues from universities, government, and the private sector review the major sources of reactive nitrogen in the U.S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dHwheAuTQVU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dHwheAuTQVU/240461.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT An international team of microbiologists led by Indiana University researchers has identified a new bacterial growth process - one that occurs at a single end or pole of the cell instead of uniform, dispersed growth along the long axis of the cell - that could have implications in the development of new antibacterial strategies...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/QbsZWVB82l0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/QbsZWVB82l0/240462.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT UC Davis Health System dermatologists, using videoconferencing technology known as telemedicine, have determined that live interactive consultations can improve clinical outcomes for patients because they usually involve beneficial changes in medical diagnosis and disease management that otherwise might not occur. The findings appear in the current issue of the Archives of Dermatology*, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, which was published this week...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/_q3XLMgG2c0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/_q3XLMgG2c0/240457.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Brain cancer is hard to treat: it's not only strong enough to resist most chemotherapies, but also nimble enough to migrate away from radiation or surgery to regrow elsewhere. New research at the University of Colorado Cancer Center shows how to stop both. Specifically, cells signal themselves to survive, grow, reproduce, and migrate. Two years ago(1), researchers at the CU Cancer Center showed that turning off a family of signals made brain cancer cells less robust - it sensitized these previously resistant cells to chemotherapy...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9-z2xyQL2AU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9-z2xyQL2AU/240464.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers in Rhode Island Hospital's Cardiovascular Research Center have published two new studies focusing on the causes of arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death (SCD) when a genetic disorder is present. The studies use a first-ever genetic animal model the researchers developed in 2008 to further their understanding of a genetic disorder known as Long QT Syndrome (LQTS)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ejlVDxdNOeI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ejlVDxdNOeI/240470.php Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT According to an investigation published in the January 18 issue of JAMA, caffeine therapy, which has been demonstrated to lower the rate of cognitive delay and cerebral palsy at 18 months, did not considerably improve the rate of survival without disability at 5 years of age among very low birth weight infants with apnea. In infants born very prematurely with apnea, who are at increased risk of disability with apnea or death, caffeine therapy is the recommended treatment...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fFlKn7Au-z0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fFlKn7Au-z0/240487.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:00:00 GMT According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers at The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) have demonstrated how to prevent new cancers that can occur when malignant melanoma patients are treated with drugs known as BRAF inhibitors. In the past, doctors have observed that between 15 and 30% of patients who were treated with BRAF inhibitors, including the FDA-approved drug vemurafenib (Zelboraf), developed another type of skin cancer known as cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, which required surgical removal...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/EZIMZyUTLzk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/EZIMZyUTLzk/240480.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:00:00 GMT According to a study in the January 18 issue of JAMA, approximately 1 in every 100 patients undergoing knee replacement surgery, and 1 in every 200 patients undergoing hip replacement surgery who use current preventive medications for venous thromboembolism (VTE; a blood clot that develops within a vein that might become serious), will develop VTE before being discharged from hospital. In acute care hospitals, a crucial safety issue is postoperative VTE, which includes pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis (DVT)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/2Ge7ybuQXlo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/2Ge7ybuQXlo/240486.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:00:00 GMT Two investigations being published by JAMA reveal that the prevalence of obesity in the United States has not changed considerably. Approximately 1 in 3 adults and 1 in 6 children and adolescents are obese according to data from 2009-2010. The data also revealed that the prevalence of obesity in certain demographics has increased. In order to determine obesity rates in the U.S., Katherine M. Flegal, Ph.D., Cynthia L. Ogden, Ph.D., M.R.P., and colleagues with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hyattsville, Md...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Xug-xKf96-Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Xug-xKf96-Y/240484.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:00:00 GMT According to a study in the January 18 issue of JAMA, patients who stop using an antiplatelet agent, such as clopidogrel, before undergoing cardiac surgery to reduce their risk of bleeding and received intravenously the platelet inhibitor cangrelor, achieved a higher rate of maintenance of platelet inhibition than those who were given placebo. The researchers explained: "Thienopyridines (antiplatelet agents) are among the most widely prescribed medications, but their use can be complicated by the unanticipated need for surgery...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Vew09escXBk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Vew09escXBk/240485.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:00:00 GMT A study by investigators at the Methodist Research Institute at Indiana University confirms that an all-natural, doctor-designed formula is effective in suppressing prostate cancer tumors. The study conducted on mice, used a human prostate cancer xenograft model. Results from the live animal study were presented by lead researcher, Dr. Daniel Sliva at the 16th World Congress on Advances in Oncology in Rhodes, Greece and at the 14th International Symposium on Molecular Medicine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/rUTsm-tcGyI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/rUTsm-tcGyI/240483.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:00:00 GMT Gossip is often considered an undesirable, unattractive feature of society, amounting to idle chatter that undermines trust and damages reputations, but now a new study suggests it has an upside, it helps maintain social order by keeping bad behavior in check, and preventing exploitation. And it also lowers stress. You can read how researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, arrived at these findings in January's online issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/chzlyfuk2a8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/chzlyfuk2a8/240482.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT Symptoms of painful menstrual periods are alleviated by taking the combined oral contraceptive pill, according to compelling evidence from a Scandinavian 30-year study which was reported in the journal Human Reproduction this week. Although previous studies pointed towards some kind of link between oral contraception and period pain relief, a 2009 Cochrane Collaboration review concluded that most of them had inconclusive or anecdotal evidence...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Fu3KrR1H5jE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Fu3KrR1H5jE/240481.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT Two years ago, pharmaceutical giant, Roche, promised the BMJ to release key Tamiflu trial data for an independent investigation. However, Roche refuses to provide full access to all its data. According to a new report by the Cochrane Collaboration, Roche's refusal to provide access leaves critical concerns about how the drug works unresolved. A BMJ investigation, published at the same time as the report, also voices serious concerns regarding drug data access, the drug approval process and the use of ghostwriters in drug trials...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/P814Veo6WhM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/P814Veo6WhM/240477.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A study by researchers from the Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, reveals that despite the effectiveness of endocrine therapy for breast cancer, responsiveness to the treatment depends on expression of estrogen receptors in breast cancer cells. However, Dr. Laura Giacinti, lead investigator of the study reports on a new molecule, Scriptaid, which revives receptivity to the treatment in breast cancer cell lines that previously tested negative for the expression of estrogen receptors. The study appears in the Journal of Cellular Physiology. Dr...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fSXnwzwzPP8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fSXnwzwzPP8/240479.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A new study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine's February issue, reveals that virtual reality-enhanced exercise called "exergames," which combine physical exercise with computer-simulated environments and interactive videogame features, can achieve a greater cognitive benefit for older adults than traditional exercise alone. The two-year study wanted to explore how interactive digital gaming can improve the health behaviors and outcomes for people aged 50 years and older...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/kHgL9CWbd9E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/kHgL9CWbd9E/240476.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A team of international health experts has made a call for the United Nations to hold a United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) to focus worldwide attention on neurological and mental disorders as well as substance use disorders as a central development issue, which need commitment to improve access to care, promote human rights, and reinforce evidence on effective prevention and treatment methods...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/nQSNczl9BuQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/nQSNczl9BuQ/240474.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Even though Professor Martin McKee, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, has 25 years of experience in researching health systems, including writing more than 30 books and 500 academic papers, he states in a personal view published on bmj.com today that he still does not understand the government's plan for the NHS, saying: "I have tried very hard, as have some of my cleverer colleagues, but no matter how hard we try, we always end up concluding that the bill means something quite different from what the secretary of state says it does...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/w8P-O5JbqEY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/w8P-O5JbqEY/240478.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is characterized by diseases such as Bronchitis and Emphysema, where breathing becomes more difficult as the airways are inflamed, blocked with mucus and ultimately permanently damaged. The problem is usually caused by cigarette smoking, although exposure to industrial chemicals, pollutants or smoke inhalation may also be involved...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Ri7dyIMFefE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Ri7dyIMFefE/240466.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Driving development through strategic outsourcingRegister NOW for the Clinical Outsourcing World conference to hear from the industry's BEST Outsourcing professionals including representatives from: GSK, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly, Novartis, Almirall, Merck Research Laboratories and many more! Pharma & Biotech delegates- register NOW for only £250+vat! Please note this offer is only available for Pharma & Biotech companies but we also have great prices for other delegates! Attend Clinical Outsourcing World Europe 2012 to learn about the right models to incorporate ...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DOxhSVzSB3E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DOxhSVzSB3E/240447.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 09:00:00 GMT Despite 25 years of experience researching health systems, including writing over 30 books and 500 academic papers, Professor Martin McKee from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine says he still can't understand the government's plan for the NHS. In a Personal View published on bmj.com, he writes: "I have tried very hard, as have some of my cleverer colleagues, but no matter how hard we try, we always end up concluding that the bill means something quite different from what the secretary of state says it does...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/r1R55Z-r6HM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/r1R55Z-r6HM/240434.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT Wheelchair basketball: It's a fast, skillful game, dazzling to watch, gruelling to play. It's also a sport that in Canada has become one of the most inclusive, welcoming athletes with disability and able-bodied athletes alike to its leagues and teams. And athletes like it that way...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/KxpaTXfnWL8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/KxpaTXfnWL8/240424.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT In the treatment of large tumors, how effective is adoptive T cell therapy in comparison to drug-based cancer treatment? To answer this question, Dr. Kathleen Anders and Professor Thomas Blankenstein of the Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch and researchers of the Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope Cancer Center in Duarte, California, USA designed and carried out a study comparing the two methods. Based on a mouse cancer model, the researchers elucidated the mechanisms of the two different treatments...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XNOtqaCyOWM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XNOtqaCyOWM/240425.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Empa engineers, together with the firm 'r going', have succeeded in developing an ergonomic seat for electric wheelchairs which encourages the user to move around frequently. True to the motto 'life is movement' the aim is to enhance the freedom of movement of wheelchair users with a range of disabilities. Today's office workplaces are designed to be as ergonomic as possible. Even so, after hours of hunching over a desk it does you good to stand up, stretch your legs and relax your back. Spending a whole day in practically the same cramped position is a very tiring proposition...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pHiXRdzifcs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pHiXRdzifcs/240427.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Research by a team in the University's Department of Biology found evidence that movement disorders, including tremor and slowness of movement (bradykinesia), associated with Parkinson's disease (PD) may be due to a defect in energy production in the nervous system. The advance may help to identify young adults who may be susceptible to the disease. Parkinson's, the second most common form of neurodegenerative disease, principally affects people aged over 60, but some forms - known as juvenile PD - usually start in the 30-40 age group...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tKqC2XzDVqo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tKqC2XzDVqo/240426.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT Whether it's investing in stocks, bungee jumping or public speaking, why do we often plan to take risks but then "chicken out" when the moment of truth arrives? In a new paper* in the Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, scientists from the University of Colorado Boulder and Carnegie Mellon University argue that this "illusion of courage" is one example of an "empathy gap" - that is, our inability to imagine how we will behave in future emotional situations...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ZjO-_Sk6vT0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ZjO-_Sk6vT0/240429.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT In this week's PLoS Medicine, Jay Berry of Harvard Medical School, USA and colleagues report findings from an analysis of hospitalization data in the United States, examining the proportion of inpatient resources attributable to care for children with neurological impairment (NI). Their results indicate that children with NI account for a substantial proportion of inpatient resources and that the impact of these children is growing within children's hospitals, necessitating adequate clinical care and a coordination of efforts to ensure that the needs of children with NI are met...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Ibw1R8KMw84" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Ibw1R8KMw84/240413.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Melbourne researchers have discovered that acute myeloid leukaemia (AML), an aggressive blood cancer with poor prognosis, may be susceptible to medications that target a protein called Mcl-1. The research team at the institute was led by Dr Stefan Glaser, from the institute's Cancer and Haematology division, and Professor Andreas Strasser, joint head of the institute's Molecular Genetics of Cancer division, working in collaboration with scientists from the Australian Centre for Blood Diseases and St...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/_SPodzZQOqA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/_SPodzZQOqA/240419.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT VIROLOGY: How to prevent hepatitis B virus reproducing Infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a major health problem worldwide, despite the fact that a highly effective preventative vaccine exists. A modified form of the immune molecule IFN-alpha is commonly used to treat individuals infected with HBV. The rationale behind this is that IFN-alpha inhibits HBV replication in vivo and in vitro, although the mechanisms by which it does this have not been clearly defined...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4qFMW2Oeycs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4qFMW2Oeycs/240415.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Some skin cancers, in particular basal cell carcinoma, can be successfully treated with a prescription cream containing the compound imiquimod. The antitumor effect of imiquimod is multifactorial. One of the more complex aspects of imiquimod's antitumor effects is its ability to modify the immune response. A team of researchers led by Maria Sibilia, at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, has now identified a new way in which imiquimod modifies the immune system to clear tumors in a mouse model of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VdOf3Yn2QbM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VdOf3Yn2QbM/240416.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A new study finds that a group of little-explored cells in the tumor microenvironment likely serve as important gatekeepers against cancer progression and metastasis. Published in the January 17 issue of Cancer Cell, these findings suggest that anti-angiogenic therapies - which shrink cancer by cutting off tumors' blood supply - may inadvertently be making tumors more aggressive and likely to spread. One approach to treating cancer targets angiogenesis, or blood vessel growth...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/1PNrC2mb4G4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/1PNrC2mb4G4/240417.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Benign familial infantile epilepsy (BFIE) has been recognised for some time as infantile seizures, without fever, that run in families but the cause has so far eluded researchers. However clinical researchers at the University of Melbourne and Florey Neurosciences Institute and molecular geneticists at the University of South Australia have discovered a gene. BFIE is a disorder that occurs in previously healthy infants who are developing normally. Seizures commence when a baby is about six months old and stop by the age of two years...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/b1Z4YKuLIUk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/b1Z4YKuLIUk/240420.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT The authors of a study published online on Tuesday that was designed to overcome the difficulties of obtaining accurate and reliable data in Fetal Alcohol Syndrome research, say their findings reinforce the warning that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. The lead author of the study is Haruna Sawada Feldman, a post-doctoral student in the University of California, San Diego pediatrics department, where senior author Christina Chambers, is a professor. The study is published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/3Sm7nUDfyFU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/3Sm7nUDfyFU/240412.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT In the event that a vaccine for the prevention of malaria is licensed and ready for use (such as the research malaria vaccine RTS,S, which currently looks promising), distributing and giving the vaccine to three-month old infants via the World Health Organization's Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) will be the most efficient mechanism in high transmission areas but for lower transmission areas, mass vaccination every 5 years might be a more efficient vaccination strategy, a new study has found...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VYv_utX2KeM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VYv_utX2KeM/240414.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A new study is providing clues that may answer a decades-old question about the cells that give rise to a particularly lethal form of esophageal cancer. The research, published by Cell Press in the January 17th issue of the journal Cancer Cell, links inflammation and bile acid reflux with migration of cancer-causing stomach cells into the esophagus and may help guide future strategies for early therapeutic intervention. Esophageal adenocarcinoma is a cancer of the esophagus that is associated with acid reflux disease and Barrett esophagus (BE)...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/teKN-wjRcYM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/teKN-wjRcYM/240418.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT With one simple experiment, University of Illinois chemists have debunked a widely held misconception about an often-prescribed drug. Led by chemistry professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute early career scientist Martin Burke, the researchers demonstrated that the top drug for treating systemic fungal infections works by simply binding to a lipid molecule essential to yeast's physiology, a finding that could change the direction of drug development endeavors and could lead to better treatment not only for microbial infections but also for diseases caused by ion channel deficiencies...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wZb0dJhBfQg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wZb0dJhBfQg/240371.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A "genetic accelerator" is responsible for the most severe cases of Lupus (systemic lupus erythemathosus), an autoimmune disease: the accelerator, called enhancer HS1.2, speeds up the activity of some critical genes of the immune system involved in the disease. A team of Italian researchers at the Catholic University of Sacred Heart in Rome found that the enhancer HS1...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/f1-NK0a3diE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/f1-NK0a3diE/240375.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study from the American Cancer Society finds recent declines in melanoma mortality rates in non-Hispanic Whites in the U.S. mainly reflect declines in those with the highest level of education, and reveals a widening disparity in melanoma mortality rates by education. The authors say the findings call for early detection strategies to effectively target high-risk, low-educated, non-Hispanic White individuals. The study is published Online First by Archives of Dermatology...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/VFotng-6Wg0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/VFotng-6Wg0/240373.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT â�¨'Buying in' to adaptive design trials: strategies and methods for implementing successful adaptive design studies â�¨SMi are proud to present the 6th AnnualÂ�Adaptive Designs in Clinical Drug Development conference, following on from SMi's previous highly successful Adaptive Designs events and offers the opportunity to keep up-to-date with the latest challenges and solutions essential for successful and cost-effective adaptive clinical trials. The conference will address adaptive clinical trials for rare disease medicine development...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mxD_qw4HfKI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mxD_qw4HfKI/240328.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A devastating neurodegenerative disease that first appears in toddlers just as they are beginning to walk has been traced to defects in mitochondria, the 'batteries' or energy-producing power plants of cells. This finding by researchers at Queen Mary, University of London and Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital - The Neuro - at McGill University, is published in this week's issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/67RwGBwbbyA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/67RwGBwbbyA/240388.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers know that adolescents with a family history of alcoholism (FHP) are at risk for developing alcohol use disorders. Some studies have shown that, compared to their peers, FHP adolescents have deficits in behavioral inhibition. A study of the neural substrates of risk-taking in both FHP adolescents and their peers with a negative family history of alcoholism (FHN) has shown that FHP youth demonstrated atypical brain activity while completing the same task as the FHN youth...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/QUxQnoCaync" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/QUxQnoCaync/240382.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Canada should prohibit disclosure of the sex of a fetus until after 30 weeks of pregnancy to combat female feticide which is practised by some ethnic groups in Canada and the United States, states an editorial in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).. Female feticide - that is, choosing to abort female fetuses because of a preference for sons - is an issue in several Asian countries including India, China, Korea and Vietnam. However, it is also practised by some immigrants in Canada, contributing to a small but repugnant problem...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/KttSYeQxgwk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/KttSYeQxgwk/240380.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Hazardous alcohol use and depression are among the 10 leading causes of disability and premature death worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. Many low- to middle-income countries have begun to see a steady increase in alcohol use and have entered the early stages of a tobacco epidemic...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/cFkLydWXMA4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/cFkLydWXMA4/240385.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Preparing to act in a particular way can improve the way we process information, and this has potential implications for those with learning disabilities. Researchers funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) have shown that using a grabbing action with our hands can help our processing of visual information. 'The research is still at an early stage,' cautions Dr Ed Symes of Plymouth University. 'But our next step is to see how these results might inform ways of helping children with severe learning difficulties...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/552spa90ZBs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/552spa90ZBs/240387.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Wood-burning stoves are a popular source of heating in many countries. However in recent years there has been much debate about the potential negative health effects associated with wood smoke. A Norwegian researcher has studied the influence of combustion conditions on the emissions and their health effects. Wood-burning is controversial in many countries, including the USA and Canada. Some groups wish to ban wood-burning whereas others are trying to convince opponents that clean-burning technology is environmentally friendly...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/51LsCOiqhY8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/51LsCOiqhY8/240401.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT How does a doctor determine whether or not an emergency-room patient has acute kidney injury? Using tests currently available in the hospital, this question is often difficult to answer. In many emergency cases, however, early diagnosis of the severity of the disease picture is crucial. A large multicenter study by clinicians of the Experimental and Clinical Research Center (ECRC), a joint cooperation between the Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch and the Charite - Universitatsmedizin Berlin, the Helios Hospital Berlin, and two hospitals in the U.S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/skuESUbLEvQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/skuESUbLEvQ/240389.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The U.S. Joint Commission recently approved new hospital accreditation measures related to alcohol screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for all hospitalized patients. Yet little is known about the effectiveness of brief interventions (BIs) or inpatient acceptability of SBIRT when performed by healthcare professionals other than physicians. A new study has found high hospital-patient acceptability of and comfort with nurse-delivered SBIRT...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/86cyluloKEs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/86cyluloKEs/240383.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Prenatal exposure to alcohol is associated with a spectrum of abnormalities, referred to as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. Physical features of the more serious Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) include smooth philtrum, thin vermillion border, short palpebral fissures, microcephaly, and growth deficiencies in weight and height. A new study has specified how specific quantities of alcohol exposure, patterns of drinking, and timing of exposure can have an impact on each of these features...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0Xii0r3tu7E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0Xii0r3tu7E/240384.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Fewer children required hospitalization following a drowning incident over the last two decades, according to a new study from the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy. According to the study, pediatric hospitalizations from drowning-related incidents declined 51 percent from 1993 to 2008. The rates declined significantly for all ages and for both genders, although drowning-related hospitalizations remained higher for boys at every age. Hospitalization rates also decreased significantly across the U.S., with the greatest decline in the South...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/plmE_VFdjLg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/plmE_VFdjLg/240379.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at the Centro de Gen0mica e Investigaci0n Oncologica (GENYO) - of which the University of Granada, Pfizer and the Andalusian Regional Government are members - have identified the genetic and phenotypic changes that cause tumor progression and metastasis. The process of metastasis - which is the main cause of cancer death - is caused by tumor cells invading distant organs with no direct anatomical relationship with the organ originally affected...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Q337eRIFBGk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Q337eRIFBGk/240392.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Cancers rarely are deadly unless they evolve the ability to grow beyond the tissues in which they first arise. Normally, cells - even early-stage tumor cells - are tethered to scaffolding that helps to restrain any destructive tendencies. But scientists from the University of Helsinki, Finland, and from UCSF have identified a cleaver-wielding protein that frees some tumor cells, allowing them to further misbehave. The protein, they discovered, often blankets the surface of breast tumor cells and can help untether the cells from the matrix of their native tissue...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/9NJsFjRU5Yk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/9NJsFjRU5Yk/240386.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A leading cancer researcher has identified very high levels of doctor-patient trust and confidence within the NHS. University of Leicester researcher Professor Paul Symonds also highlights the risk of jeopardizing this record of success if measures to become more cost effective are not carefully thought through and implemented. In two papers published this month in the journal Clinical Oncology, Professor Paul Symonds of the Department of Cancer Studies and Molecular Medicine, assesses attitudes and beliefs concerning cancer care in the UK...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8hzq6YkMTOY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8hzq6YkMTOY/240374.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Independent of other factors, such as smoking history and HPV status, matted lymph nodes appear to signal increased chance of oropharyngeal cancer spreading to other parts of the body Researchers at the University of Michigan Health System have found a new indicator that may predict which patients with a common type of throat cancer are most likely have the cancer spread to other parts of their bodies...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0q0T41cOWZ0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0q0T41cOWZ0/240372.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have used an innovative mathematical technique to find markers that effectively predict how deadly a cancer will be. The discovery, which in this case concerned bladder cancer, could lead to faster, less expensive and more accurate analysis of cancer risk and better treatment of the disease. The findings were published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qP_PQ1LgPbA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qP_PQ1LgPbA/240402.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) have found that vitamin D reduces the effects of ageing in mouse eyes and improves the vision of older mice significantly. The researchers hope that this might mean that vitamin D supplements could provide a simple and effective way to combat age-related eye diseases, such as macular degeneration (AMD), in people. The research was carried out by a team from the Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London and is published in the current issue of the journal Neurobiology of Ageing...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lcayOsM215Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lcayOsM215Y/240393.php Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT US scientists propose that flu pandemics follow La Niña weather conditions in the equatorial Pacific. The conditions alter bird migration patterns and this promotes new strains of flu (migrating birds are known to be primary pools of human influenza virus). However, since La Niña occurs more frequently than global flu pandemics, the researchers suggest other factors must also come into it, and their findings are just one piece of the puzzle...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/D3EfSHbr9EU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/D3EfSHbr9EU/240399.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Nurse Allison Batson donated one of her own kidneys to 23-year old patient, Clay Taber; somebody she barely knew, after working on the transplant department of Emory University Hospital for over two years. Allison was not even Clay's primary nurse, but says she felt an instant connection with him. Taber, from Columbus, Ga., became ill when he was 22, and eventually suffered from complete kidney failure. He started feeling sick and suffered occasional night sweats...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/dA-q4ZBxJws" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/dA-q4ZBxJws/240390.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT A revolutionary surgical technique for treating perforations of the tympanic membrane (eardrum) in children and adults has been developed at the Sainte-Justine University Hospital Centre, an affiliate of the Universite de Montreal, by Dr. Issam Saliba. The new technique, which is as effective as traditional surgery and far less expensive, can be performed in 20 minutes at an outpatient clinic during a routine visit to an ENT specialist...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/quC2F7VHzNc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/quC2F7VHzNc/240378.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT 1. High Doses of Vitamin D Provide No Benefit to Patients with Severe COPD Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the top 10 leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Vitamin D deficiency is present in 60 percent to 75 percent of patients with severe COPD. Researchers studied 182 patients with severe COPD to determine whether supplementation with high doses of vitamin D could reduce the incidence of COPD exacerbations. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either 100,000 IU of vitamin D or placebo every four weeks for one year...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/h9bDPYZFPbE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/h9bDPYZFPbE/240381.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMT TV crime shows like Bones and CSI are quick to explain each death by showing highly detailed scans and video images of victims' insides. Traditional autopsies, if shown at all, are at best in supporting roles to the high-tech equipment, and usually gloss over the sometimes physically grueling tasks of sawing through skin and bone. But according to two autopsy and body imaging experts at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, the notion that "virtopsy" could replace traditional autopsy - made popular by such TV dramas - is simply not ready for scientifically vigorous prime time...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/pCHa-fymmaA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/pCHa-fymmaA/240377.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Researchers at the University of British Columbia have found a new way to block infection from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the liver that could lead to new therapies for those affected by this and other infectious diseases. More than 170 million people worldwide suffer from hepatitis C, the disease caused by chronic HCV infection. The disease affects the liver and is one of the leading causes of liver cancer and liver transplant around the world. HCV is spread by blood-to-blood contact and there is no vaccine to prevent it...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ZPS8LYO2VTM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ZPS8LYO2VTM/240370.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT A review of pedestrian injuries and deaths from crashes with trains and motor vehicles in the United States where the victim was wearing headphones finds that incidents of serious injury have more than tripled in the last six years. The reviewers conclude that pedestrians who use headphones while walking about near traffic may be putting themselves at risk and they urge this be investigated further...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/aC29E4dU_Bk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/aC29E4dU_Bk/240368.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Using two drugs that inhibit the growth factor HER2 for preoperative treatment of early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer appears to have better results than treatment with a single agent. In a report in the January 17 issue of The Lancet, an international research team reports that a protocol adding lapatinib (Tykerb) to trastuzumab (Herceptin) was more effective than single-drug treatment with either drug in eliminating microscopic signs of cancer at the time the tumors were surgically removed...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/MS6GQzPUFx0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/MS6GQzPUFx0/240376.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT One in ten Canadians cannot afford to take their prescription drugs as directed, according to an analysis by researchers from the University of British Columbia and the University of Toronto. The study, published in the CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) is the first to examine the relationship between drug insurance and the use of prescription drugs in Canada. Researchers from UBC's Centre for Health Services and Policy Research reviewed data from 5,732 people who answered Statistics Canada's Canadian Community Health Survey. They found that 9...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/A2UCNAm8fa4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/A2UCNAm8fa4/240367.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT Worldwide pandemics of influenza caused widespread death and illness in 1918, 1957, 1968 and 2009. A new study examining weather patterns around the time of these pandemics finds that each of them was preceded by La Nina conditions in the equatorial Pacific. The study's authors - Jeffrey Shaman of Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and Marc Lipsitch of the Harvard School of Public Health - note that the La Nina pattern is known to alter the migratory patterns of birds, which are thought to be a primary reservoir of human influenza...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YkEVjPJY4xo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YkEVjPJY4xo/240369.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT While the percentage of obese children in the United States tripled between the early 1970s and the late 2000s, a new study suggests that - at least for middle school students - weight gain has nothing to do with the candy, soda, chips, and other junk food they can purchase at school...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/kW-4ntAeHKc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/kW-4ntAeHKc/240363.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Virtual reality-enhanced exercise, or "exergames," combining physical exercise with computer-simulated environments and interactive videogame features, can yield a greater cognitive benefit for older adults than traditional exercise alone, according to a new study published in the February issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/c94HKzqtLjw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/c94HKzqtLjw/240365.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers in Finland found that annual cumulative incidences of partial and total knee arthroplasty, commonly known as knee replacement surgery, rose rapidly over a 27-year period among 30 to 59 year-olds in that country, with the greatest increase occurring in patients aged 50 to 59 years. According to the study published in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), incidences were higher in women throughout the study period...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iu2WzHAeNBg" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iu2WzHAeNBg/240364.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Yale School of Medicine researchers have found that the likelihood of becoming disabled with age increases with the following factors: having a chronic condition or cognitive impairment; low physical activity; slower gross motor coordination; having poor lower-extremity function; and being hospitalized. Women are also more likely than men to become disabled in their later years. Based on 12 years of data, the findings are published in the Jan.17 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine by a research team led by Thomas Gill, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/sWQcqDbMUhc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/sWQcqDbMUhc/240366.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT The blood-brain barrier is essential for maintaining the brain's stable environment - preventing entry of harmful viruses and bacteria and isolating the brain's specific hormonal and neurotransmitter activity from that in the rest of the body. In addition to nerve cells, the brain contains glia cells that support and protect the neurons. In the fruit fly, the blood-brain boundary is made by glia joined into an envelope sealed around the nerve cells. As the brain rapidly expands during development, the glial envelope must grow correspondingly to remain intact...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/T2k8UhQuv18" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/T2k8UhQuv18/240337.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators have developed a novel strategy to protect the liver from drug-induced injury and improve associated drug safety. In their report receiving advance online publication in the journal Nature Biotechnology, the team reports that inhibition of a type of cell-to-cell communication can protect against the damage caused by liver-toxic drugs such as acetaminophen...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jqbH-0IZM0A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jqbH-0IZM0A/240342.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new technology developed by neuroscientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) transforms the way highly detailed anatomical images can be made of whole brains. Until now, means of obtaining such images - used in cutting-edge projects to map the mammalian brain - have been painstakingly slow and available only to a handful of highly specialized research teams. By automating and standardizing the process in which brain samples are divided into sections and then imaged sequentially at precise spatial orientations in two-photon microscopes, the team, led by Assoc. Prof...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/avSooBiW69I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/avSooBiW69I/240347.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT More than 32 million people in the United States have autoantibodies, which are proteins made by the immune system that target the body's tissues and define a condition known as autoimmunity, a study shows. The first nationally representative sample looking at the prevalence of the most common type of autoantibody, known as antinuclear antibodies (ANA), found that the frequency of ANA is highest among women, older individuals, and African-Americans. The study was conducted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/oHLOMJZAENA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/oHLOMJZAENA/240339.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Hundreds of times during a baseball game, the home plate umpire must instantaneously categorize a fast-moving pitch as a ball or a strike. In new research from the University of Chicago, scientists have pinpointed an area in the brain where these kinds of visual categories are encoded. While monkeys played a computer game in which they had to quickly determine the category of a moving visual stimulus, neural recordings revealed brain activity that encoded those categories...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/bEN0vNx2nuc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/bEN0vNx2nuc/240343.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Telomeres, the very ends of chromosomes, become shorter as we age. When a cell divides it first duplicates its DNA and, because the DNA replication machinery fails to get all the way to the end, with each successive cell division a little bit more is missed. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Arthritis Research & Therapy shows that cells from osteoarthritic knees have abnormally shortened telomeres and that the percentage of cells with ultra short telomeres increases the closer to the damaged region within the joint...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/XCVrc18vSfE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/XCVrc18vSfE/240348.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT When organizational crises occur, such as plane crashes or automobile recalls, public relations practitioners develop strategies for substantive action and effective communication. Now, University of Missouri researchers have found that the way in which news coverage of a crisis is framed affects the public's emotional response toward the company involved...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/a5oS8l_CD6Q" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/a5oS8l_CD6Q/240338.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The use of symptom indices to identify patients with symptoms associated with ovarian cancer who may need further screening is increasing in both the UK and the US in an attempt to promote earlier diagnosis, but they may need to be reassessed in order to help better detect cancer, according to a study published January 13 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Ovarian cancer is a disease which is perceived to rarely produce symptoms until the disease has spread to other organs of the body, allowing the disease to reach an advanced stage before it is caught...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/tZDc-MxJeXk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/tZDc-MxJeXk/240340.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Killer T-cells in the human body which help protect us from disease can inadvertently destroy cells that produce insulin, new research has uncovered. The study provides the first evidence of this mechanism in action and could offer new understanding of the cause of Type 1 diabetes. Professor Andy Sewell, an expert in human T-cells from Cardiff University's School of Medicine worked alongside diabetes experts from King's College London to better understand the role of T-cells in the development of Type 1 diabetes...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mco3p8V_6w8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mco3p8V_6w8/240344.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT An international team of scientists led by University of Hawaii at Manoa Professor Ralf I. Kaiser, Alexander M. Mebel of Florida International University, and Alexander Tielens of Leiden Observatory in the Netherlands, discovered a novel chemical route to form polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) - complex organic molecules such as naphthalene carrying fused benzene rings - in ultra-cold regions of interstellar space. The team announced their findings in the January 3 issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Funding for the study was provided by the U.S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/v0gXY5cq230" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/v0gXY5cq230/240341.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Scientists working at the Medical Research Council have identified changes in the patterns of sugar molecules that line pre-cancerous cells in the esophagus, a condition called Barrett's dysplasia, making it much easier to detect and remove these cells before they develop into esophageal cancer. These findings, reported in the journal Nature Medicine, have important implications for patients and may help to monitor their condition and prevent the development of cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Mb0XJkxj5HM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Mb0XJkxj5HM/240345.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT From tracking activities within bacteria to creating images of molecules that make up human hair, several experiments have already demonstrated the unique abilities of the revolutionary imaging technique called multi-isotope imaging mass spectometry, or MIMS, developed by researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH). MIMS can produce high-resolution, quantitative three-dimensional images of stable isotope tags within subcellular compartments in tissue sections or cells...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/klOqHwTf1ns" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/klOqHwTf1ns/240346.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT â�¨SMi present Europe's leading antibacterial event; Superbugs & Superdrugs. This well established event, now in its 14th year, will consist of a variety of different case study focused presentations featuring real life success stories and lessons learnt from project failures enabling attendees to learn from and discuss with key industry professional on challenges facing this rapidly-evolving field...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4eXvOixMf-g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4eXvOixMf-g/240327.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT SMi present Europe's leading antibacterial event; Superbugs & Superdrugs. This well established event, now in its 14th year, will consist of a variety of different case study focused presentations featuring real life success stories and lessons learnt from project failures enabling attendees to learn from and discuss with key industry professional on challenges facing this rapidly-evolving field...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4eXvOixMf-g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4eXvOixMf-g/240327.php Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute say they have isolated a previously unknown hormone they found in muscle cells. They sat that the protein serves as a chemical messenger triggering many of the key health benefits of exercising. Bruce Spiegelman, PhD, a cell biologist at Dana-Farber, and senior author of the report, published in Nature worked alongside Pontus Bostroöm, MD, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the Spiegelman lab. Bostroöm said : "It's exciting to find a natural substance connected to exercise that has such clear therapeutic potential...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gkaHfszveUU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gkaHfszveUU/240362.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 18:00:00 GMT A study published Online First by Archives of Surgery compared the effectiveness of two common forms of treatment for excessive weight gain: Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGBP) and gastric banding (GB). The researchers found that for more sustainable and rapid weight loss, RYGBP is the better form of treatment. Sebastien Romy, M.D...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ptKrxN9uwXQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ptKrxN9uwXQ/240358.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT A study published in the January issue of the Archives of Surgery suggests that using appendicitis perforations rates as an indicator of access to healthcare is misleading and inappropriate. The research finds that only a small percentage of the disparity in rates of perforation between minority and white children can be explained by their socioeconomic or health insurance status. Previous analysis indicated that higher perforation rates are found among poor and minority patients, or those who have an insufficient amount of access to health care. The study, led by Edward H...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qNkrvI2GKrU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qNkrvI2GKrU/240360.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT Experts have long feared the eventual arrival of a completely drug-resistant TB (tuberculosis) - a hospital in India has reported the nation's first cases of a type of tuberculosis for which there are no effective drugs, making the TB virtually untreatable. Other untreatable TBs have emerged over the last nine years; there have been reported cases in Iran and Italy. Most likely, there are many more cases that have never been documented, experts believe. TB, unlike the flu, does not spread so easily from person-to-person...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/KT98_DZfk1I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/KT98_DZfk1I/240357.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT Using imaging technology that reveals whether brain tumors have a particular genetic mutation known as IDH, a team of academic and pharmaceutical company researchers has developed a way to help doctors select the right treatment, and developers to make new drugs that target the mutation. The researchers, from MIT, Harvard University, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Agios Pharmaceuticals, write about their findings in the 11 January online issue of Science Translational Medicine. Some of the deadliest cancers are those that affect the brain...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/z4H2W7WiGiw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/z4H2W7WiGiw/240359.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT Research published online in Injury Prevention demonstrates that even moderate levels of parental monitoring together with good coping skills, potentially assists in reducing the appeal of gangs for young people at high risk of joining a gang. Between 2002 and 2006, gangs were responsible for one in five murders in 88 of the United States' largest cities...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/SRVtPcET2lY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/SRVtPcET2lY/240354.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A long-term U.S. study published online in GUT has shown that living in sunnier climates may lower the chances of developing inflammatory bowel disease, especially in those aged 30 years or over. The researchers' findings, which support earlier European research, could potentially lead to new therapies and preventive measures. Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are both inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) that can be extremely painful, need extensive surgery, and often severely affect the individual's quality of life...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4SzlOfHszQU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4SzlOfHszQU/240352.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A BMJ survey revealed that over one in ten (13%) UK based scientists or doctors have witnessed that colleagues intentionally changed or fabricated data during their research in order to get published, whilst 6% of respondents reported they are aware of possible research misconduct at their institution, that has not been accurately investigated. The survey has already attracted more than 2,700 responses in one day. According to the findings, research misconduct is thriving in the UK...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/uNyZtVvp4yw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/uNyZtVvp4yw/240355.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A comprehensive review of herbal medicine products in the latest issue of the Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin (DTB) shows that there is little conclusive evidence to justify the widespread use of herbal medicines to relieve the symptoms of the painful joint condition osteoarthritis. The products involved contain devil's claw and recently, the UK drug regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), has approved several of these products under the Traditional Herbal Registrations scheme. According to the DTB, the trial results for devil's claw "are equivocal...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/eUuWxb2ljAY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/eUuWxb2ljAY/240353.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A new study by Johns Hopkins researchers published in the January issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, has revealed that thousands of U.S. senior citizens with kidney disease are good candidates for transplants and would be able to receive them if physicians would overcome past outdated medical biases and put these patients on transplant waiting lists...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wj_YQ3Qjt5g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wj_YQ3Qjt5g/240356.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT Drowning is one of the leading causes of child mortality nearly 1,100 deaths per year of children aged 1 to 19 years in the United States. For that reason, it has been a target of local and state governments for some time. Public information campaigns and drives for fencing around private swimming pools, use of proper life vests as well as other provisions, such as "safe" swim areas in beaches and parks that are patrolled and monitored by life guards, have been part of their efforts...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Xjp8oUzmMOU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Xjp8oUzmMOU/240351.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT India, which was once a major polio hotspot, has reported no new cases of the disease in just over 12 months, ever since a two-year old female case on 13th January, 2011, in the state of West Bengal. According to WHO (World Health Organization), India used to be known as the planet's "epicenter" of polio...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YBQyrJ6x9c0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YBQyrJ6x9c0/240350.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 10:00:00 GMT A new study that analyzes 10 years of data finds that contrary to what many people may believe, taking part in marathons and half-marathons is not linked to higher risk of cardiac arrest compared to other forms of athletics. The study, published online on 12 January in the New England Journal of Medicine, reveals that most of the participants who did experience cardiac arrest during such long-distance races had undiagnosed, pre-existing heart problems...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/sWNDtfGP2G0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/sWNDtfGP2G0/240349.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT A special group of proteins, the so-called chaperons, helps other proteins to obtain their correct conformation. Until now scientists supposed that hydrolyzing ATP provides the energy for the large conformational changes of chaperon Hsp90. Now a research team from the Nanosystems Initiative Munich could prove that Hsp90 utilizes thermal fluctuations as the driving force for its conformational changes. The renowned journal PNAS reports on their findings...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/nfkikAXheZk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/nfkikAXheZk/240336.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A study by Italian researchers shows that the more people are informed by newspapers, television and the Internet, the more they stick to the Mediterranean diet, the healthiest eating pattern in the world It is time to leave behind the belief that mass media are always a source of bad habits. Television, newspaper and the Internet, when used to get information, may turn out to be of help for health...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/FxVveEZZ2BM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/FxVveEZZ2BM/240290.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Racial discrimination may be harmful to your health, according to new research from Rice University sociologists Jenifer Bratter and Bridget Gorman. In the study, "Is Discrimination an Equal Opportunity Risk? Racial Experiences, Socio-economic Status and Health Status Among Black and White Adults," the authors examined data containing measures of social class, race and perceived discriminatory behavior and found that approximately 18 percent of blacks and 4 percent of whites reported higher levels of emotional upset and/or physical symptoms due to race-based treatment...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0W7UXRBtToI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0W7UXRBtToI/240307.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT "The overactive bladder syndrome has become an accepted way to simplify a complex array of symptoms and leads people to believe that an overactive bladder is an independent disease in itself. However, the truth is not as simple as this, as there are usually several factors at work explaining the symptoms. This is also one of the reasons why so called overactive bladder medications often do not bring the hoped result," says Kari Tikkinen, MD, PhD, from the HUCS Department of Urology...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/4oPOI59eA08" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/4oPOI59eA08/240334.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Since the discovery of the microscope, scientists have tried to visualize smaller and smaller structures to provide insights into the inner workings of human cells, bacteria and viruses. Now, researchers at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), part of the National Institutes of Health, have developed a new way to see structures within viruses that were not clearly seen before. Their findings are reported in Science...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/YKuoPXoYOAI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/YKuoPXoYOAI/240301.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Are you someone who easily recognises everyone you've ever met? Or maybe you struggle, even with familiar faces? It is already known that we are better at recognising faces from our own race but researchers have only recently questioned how we assimilate the information we use to recognise people. New research by the University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus has shown that when it comes to recognising people the Malaysian Chinese have adapted their facial recognition techniques to cope with living in a multicultural environment...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/rg_jh6Sq2nc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/rg_jh6Sq2nc/240333.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The number of pharmaceutical products entering the market has declined in the last decade. With the economic downturn and increasing threat from generic companies, pharmaceutical companies have never been under greater pressure to develop new innovative drugs. Many pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are now searching for effective strategies to improve hit-to-lead conversion and to identify unsuccessful compounds early in the development process. SMi's Drug Design Conference will aim to address many of the challenging issues faced by the pharmaceutical industry in drug design...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/o6R-0w8AGkY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/o6R-0w8AGkY/240315.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Continuing a series of groundbreaking discoveries begun in 2010 about the genetic causes of the third most common form of inherited muscular dystrophy, an international team of researchers led by a scientist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center has identified the genes and proteins that damage muscle cells, as well as the mechanisms that can cause the disease. The findings are online and will be reported in the Jan. 17 print edition of the journal Developmental Cell...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/J-0WfYjITMM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/J-0WfYjITMM/240305.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A research collaboration between the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Children's Hospital Boston has developed "smart" injectable nanotherapeutics that can be programmed to selectively deliver drugs to the cells of the pancreas. Although this nanotechnology will need significant additional testing and development before being ready for clinical use, it could potentially improve treatment for Type I diabetes by increasing therapeutic efficacy and reducing side effects...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8ua3EFnFaUw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8ua3EFnFaUw/240309.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Deaf people who use sign language are quicker at recognizing and interpreting body language than hearing non-signers, according to new research from investigators at UC Davis and UC Irvine. The work suggests that deaf people may be especially adept at picking up on subtle visual traits in the actions of others, an ability that could be useful for some sensitive jobs, such as airport screening...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/c0O_4x7Fsyc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/c0O_4x7Fsyc/240304.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Why do we like fatty foods so much? We can blame our taste buds. Our tongues apparently recognize and have an affinity for fat, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. They have found that variations in a gene can make people more or less sensitive to the taste of fat. The study is the first to identify a human receptor that can taste fat and suggests that some people may be more sensitive to the presence of fat in foods. The study is available online in the Journal of Lipid Research...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wx3GiblZhL8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wx3GiblZhL8/240306.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A study about how wearing contact lenses affects glaucoma measurements has been named the top presentation at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine's annual St. Albert's Day research symposium. First author of the study is Marie Brenner, a fourth-year student at Stritch School of Medicine. Brenner and colleagues studied the effects of contact lens wear on retinal nerve fiber layer measurements, which ophthalmologists use to diagnose and manage glaucoma...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/8EpHRuTfsT4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/8EpHRuTfsT4/240332.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Robotics experts at the University of California, Santa Cruz and the University of Washington (UW) have completed a set of seven advanced robotic surgery systems for use by major medical research laboratories throughout the United States. After a round of final tests, five of the systems will be shipped to medical robotics researchers at Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Nebraska, UC Berkeley, and UCLA, while the other two systems will remain at UC Santa Cruz and UW...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iW9M9DwhB8M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iW9M9DwhB8M/240308.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Just like people, some proteins have characteristic ways of "walking," which (also like human gaits) are not so easy to describe. But now scientists have discovered the unique "drunken sailor" gait of dynein, a protein that is critical for the function of every cell in the body and whose malfunction has been associated with neurodegenerative disorders such as Lou Gehrig's disease and Parkinson's disease...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Es4tSoiu480" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Es4tSoiu480/240329.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A recent study at Oregon State University found that the chlorophyll in green vegetables offers protection against cancer when tested against the modest carcinogen exposure levels most likely to be found in the environment. However, chlorophyll actually increases the number of tumors at very high carcinogen exposure levels...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/DTO7wJ5oR8g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/DTO7wJ5oR8g/240302.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The research, led by Drew Shindell of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York City, finds that focusing on these measures could slow mean global warming 0.9 ºF (0.5ºC) by 2050, increase global crop yields by up to 135 million metric tons per season and prevent hundreds of thousands of premature deaths each year. While all regions of the world would benefit, countries in Asia and the Middle East would see the biggest health and agricultural gains from emissions reductions...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ZGGvL-nDLns" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ZGGvL-nDLns/240299.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A key protein potentially involved in regulating breast cancer progression has been identified by researchers at Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y. Led by professor Costel Darie, the team worked to identify the binding partner of Tumor Differentiating Factor (TDF), a pituitary hormone that had previously been shown to reduce cancer progression in breast cancer cells. Earlier studies had shown that breast cancer cells treated with TDF lost their cancerous characteristics and began acting like normal mammary cells, suggesting that TDF had tumor-suppressing capabilities...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/iOFDA2KYb_E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/iOFDA2KYb_E/240331.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT OHSU Knight Cancer Institute study results suggest that more patients than initially thought could potentially be treated with a new class of drugs, PARP inhibitors A constellation of defective proteins suspected in causing a malfunction in the body's ability to repair its own DNA could be the link scientists need to prove a new class of drugs will be effective in treating a broad range of ovarian cancer patients, an Oregon Health & Science University Knight Cancer Institute study found...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/56WonA9CT-g" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/56WonA9CT-g/240330.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT New research published online in the FASEB Journal suggests that the types and levels of bacteria in the intestines may be used to predict a person's likelihood of having a heart attack, and that manipulating these organisms may help reduce heart attack risk. This discovery may lead to new diagnostic tests and therapies that physicians use to prevent and treat heart attacks. In addition, this research suggests that probiotics may be able to protect the heart in patients undergoing heart surgery and angioplasty...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/SnGlU3WTvpQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/SnGlU3WTvpQ/240300.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine study includes some unexpected findings about the immune systems of smoke-inhalation patients. Contrary to expectations, patients who died from their injuries had lower inflammatory responses in their lungs than patients who survived. "Perhaps a better understanding of this early pulmonary immune dysfunction will allow for therapies that further improve outcomes in burn care," researchers reported. The study is published in the January/February issue of the Journal of Burn Care & Research...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/fLiaU7v5mFQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/fLiaU7v5mFQ/240335.php Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed a new laboratory test that can rapidly identify the bacterium responsible for staph infections. This new test takes advantage of unique isotopic labeling combined with specific bacteriophage amplification to rapidly identify Staphylococcus aureus. Quickly and accurately detecting infections caused by S...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/TB-X7vxi-Tw" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/TB-X7vxi-Tw/240288.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Fungi may be unexpected allies in our efforts to keep hazardous lead under control. That's based on the unexpected discovery that fungi can transform lead into its most stable mineral form. The findings reported online in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, suggest that this interaction between fungi and lead may be occurring in nature anywhere the two are found together. It also suggests that the introduction or encouragement of fungi may be a useful treatment strategy for lead-polluted sites...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6e1dB3u1O-A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6e1dB3u1O-A/240281.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study published in the journal Nature Medicine by NYU Cancer Institute researchers, shows how the cancer causing gene Notch, in combination with a mutated Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) protein complex, work together to cause T- cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL). T-ALL is an aggressive blood cancer, predominately diagnosed in children. It occurs when one lymphoblast, an immature white blood cell, turns malignant, multiplying uncontrollably and spreading rapidly throughout the body. If left untreated, the disease can be fatal in a few weeks...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ejWQiHZm31A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ejWQiHZm31A/240284.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT SMi is proud to present their 6th annual Pharmaceutical Parallel Trade Conference, taking place on 6th & 7th February 2012 at the Copthorne Tara Hotel in London. This year's event will bring together expert speakers from different sectors within the industry, each with differing opinions and perspectives to offer. In such a rapidly developing field of parallel trade, it is essential that companies are kept up to date with the latest developments, regulations and strategies...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/jWy_r3IF2rc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/jWy_r3IF2rc/240313.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at St. Michael's Hospital have published the first detailed figures showing the risk of using the prescription drug Rasilez in combination with certain other blood pressure-lowering medications. The pharmaceutical company Novartis terminated a large, international clinical trial of the drug last month after finding an increased incidence after 18-24 months of non-fatal strokes, renal complications, high levels of potassium in the blood and low blood pressure. As a result, Health Canada said on Dec. 22 that it would review the safety of Rasilez, the brand name for aliskiren...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/bB3D6qJYw-4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/bB3D6qJYw-4/240285.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Thousands more American senior citizens with kidney disease are good candidates for transplants and could get them if physicians would get past outdated medical biases and put them on transplant waiting lists, according to a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers. The Hopkins investigators estimate that between 1999 and 2006, roughly 9,000 adults over 65 would have been "excellent" transplant candidates and approximately 40,000 more older adults would have been "good" candidates for new kidneys. None, however, were given the chance...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/F9G76fXa7WE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/F9G76fXa7WE/240287.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have proven - for the first time in human tissues - the specific immune system T cells which trigger the destruction of type 1 diabetes in the pancreas. The finding is an important advance that verifies in humans several important disease characteristics shown in mouse studies and provides a key focal point for interrupting the disease process. "This study marks the first time that the presence of beta cell-reactive T cells has been directly proven in pancreas tissues from type 1 diabetes patients," explained Ken Coppieters, Ph...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/84aVplJGdbA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/84aVplJGdbA/240291.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Using two cell surface markers found to be highly expressed in breast cancer lymph node metastases, researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center, working with colleagues at other institutions, have developed targeted, fluorescent molecular imaging probes that can non-invasively detect breast cancer lymph node metastases. The new procedure could spare breast cancer patients invasive and unreliable sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsies and surgery-associated negative side effects...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/r57lyvSkFX0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/r57lyvSkFX0/240283.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A study led by Russell R. Russo, MD, a third-year Orthopaedic Surgery resident at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine, has identified a new source of life-threatening necrotizing fasciitis - "bath salts." The study, describing the first known case of necrotizing fasciitis from an intramuscular injection of the street drug known as "bath salts," is published in the January 2012 issue of Orthopedics, now available online. Necrotizing fasciitis is an orthopedic emergency...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/C5WpBJu6fXU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/C5WpBJu6fXU/240286.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT For years, researchers seeking new therapies for traumatic brain injury have been tantalized by the results of animal experiments with stem cells. In numerous studies, stem cell implantation has substantially improved brain function in experimental animals with brain trauma. But just how these improvements occur has remained a mystery. Now, an important part of this puzzle has been pieced together by researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NuKo7TYQR0w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NuKo7TYQR0w/240282.php Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT An international team of scientists has isolated a natural hormone or chemical messenger in muscle cells that triggers some of the important health benefits of exercise. They have named it "irisin", after the Greek messenger goddess, and believe it is a promising candidate for developing drugs to treat diabetes, obesity and maybe even cancer. Senior author Dr Bruce Spiegelman, from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, in Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues, write about their findings in the 11 January online issue of Nature...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/TaeaAXOECtU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/TaeaAXOECtU/240325.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT As tissue slides are more routinely digitized to aid interpretation, a software program whose design was led by the University of Michigan Health System is proving its utility. In a new study, a program known as Spatially Invariant Vector Quantization (SIVQ) was able to separate malignancy from background tissue in digital slides of micropapillary urothelial carcinoma, a type of bladder cancer whose features can vary widely from case to case and that presents diagnostic challenges even for experts...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/NgrzgBt1NsY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/NgrzgBt1NsY/240314.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Quick, come up with an imaginary co-worker. Did you imagine someone who is positive, confident, and resourceful? Who rises to the occasion in times of trouble? If so, then chances are that you also display those traits in your own life, a new study finds. University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers have found that study participants who conjured positive imaginary co-workers contributed more in the actual workplace, both in job performance and going above and beyond their job descriptions to help others...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/2Qpq05QmTZI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/2Qpq05QmTZI/240298.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT An investigation published on bmj.com reveals that children are more likely to be born with persistent pulmonary hypertension (high blood pressure in the lungs) if the mother took anti-depressants during pregnancy. Persistent pulmonary hypertension is a rare, but severe disease associated to heart failure. The disease increases blood pressure in the lungs causing: shortness of breath dizziness fainting and difficulty breathing Investigators at the Centre for Pharmacoepidemiology at Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm Sweden, examined a total of 1...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qXH5Z4-Qeyc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qXH5Z4-Qeyc/240322.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Investigators in the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Systems Biology have discovered a previously unknown type of immune cell, a B cell that can produce the important growth factor GM-CSF, which stimulates many other immune cells. They also found that these novel cells may help protect against the overwhelming, life-threatening immune reaction known as sepsis...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/_a_eaQ8VFvU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/_a_eaQ8VFvU/240294.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study on African bats provides a vital clue for unravelling the mysteries in Australia's battle with the deadly Hendra virus. The study focused on an isolated colony of straw-coloured fruit bats on islands off the west coast of central Africa. By capturing the bats and collecting blood samples, scientists discovered these animals have antibodies that can neutralise deadly viruses known in Australia and Asia...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/vPkBG_r0rFo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/vPkBG_r0rFo/240310.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A team of researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has devised a new method for making complex molecules. The reaction they have come up with should enable chemists to synthesize new varieties of a whole subclass of organic compounds called nitrogen-containing heterocycles, thus opening up new avenues for the development of novel pharmaceuticals and natural products ranging from chemotherapeutic compounds to bioactive plant materials such as morphine...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/Ctpc-_fh_9I" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/Ctpc-_fh_9I/240292.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Researchers at the University of Oviedo (Spain) have come up with a way of tagging gunpowder which allows its illegal use to be detected even after it has been detonated. Based on the addition of isotopes, the technique can also be used to track and differentiate between wild fish and those from a fish farm, such as trout and salmon. A new method for tagging and identifying objects, substances and living beings has just been presented in this month's issue of the Analytical Chemistry journal...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/_y14FNCBc2Q" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/_y14FNCBc2Q/240311.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Furring of the arteries, atherosclerosis, is a leading cause of death across the world. Atherosclerosis leads to peripheral arterial disease, coronary heart disease, stroke and heart attacks. However, atherosclerosis is a sneaky killer - most people do not realize they have it until they have cardiovascular disease (CV). New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Medical Genomics has identified a set of biomarkers which can be used to test for early stage atherosclerosis...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/6GL1JlWKTKE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/6GL1JlWKTKE/240295.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT The world population is estimated to be seven billion and all these mouths need feeding. With fears about overfishing and the sustainability of fish stocks in our seas fish farming is becoming big business. As with all farming there are issues about maintaining the health of stock and how to prevent bacterial infection...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/AxQgLidBE6E" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/AxQgLidBE6E/240296.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT More than half of all cases of dementia in the elderly can be attributed to Alzheimer's disease. Despite vast research efforts, an effective therapy has not been developed, and treatment consists of dealing with the symptoms. Changes in brain tissues are a hallmark of Alzheimer's. In affected individuals, small protein fragments known as amyloid beta peptides accumulate and are deposited in the gray brain matter...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/q4G-LMkYkSo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/q4G-LMkYkSo/240293.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT Heart attacks in women go largely unrecognized 30 to 55 percent of the time and those who miss the warning signs and fail or delay getting help, run the risk of death or grave disability. But researchers at Binghamton University and SUNY Upstate Medical University have developed an educational program they believe will shorten the time to treatment and ultimately, save lives. Women often don't have the same kind of chest pains that men generally experience during a heart attack...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/hgqvjPWQWaI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/hgqvjPWQWaI/240297.php Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:00:00 GMT A new study led by the University of Reading in the UK that examined breast tissue samples from 40 women who underwent mastectomies for breast cancer, found they contained widespread traces of parabens, preservatives commonly used in deodorants, make-up, body lotions, moisturisers and many other cosmetic products. Although the study does not prove that parabens cause or even contribute to the development of breast cancer, it raises questions about their use...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wnc7u9WS_t4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wnc7u9WS_t4/240324.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:00:00 GMT University of California, which includes campuses in Berkely, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz, has announced its intention to implement a total blanket ban on any kind of smoking or tobacco related product anywhere on its grounds, including all outdoor spaces. The Chancellor of each campus is being asked to form a committee and is giving 24 months to make the necessary policy changes, to ensure that any university property, including leased buildings, are free from smoking...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/hCnJI-Inizs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/hCnJI-Inizs/240323.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:00:00 GMT A study published January 13 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reveals that in the UK and the U.S., symptom indices used to identify individuals with symptoms connected with ovarian cancer who may need additional screening is on the rise, however, in order to help better detect cancer they may need to be reevaluated. Often symptoms of ovarian cancer go undetected until the disease has reached an advanced stage and has spread to other areas of the body...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WnEikU6ng8c" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WnEikU6ng8c/240321.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:00:00 GMT According to a study conducted by the University of Warwick and the University of the West of England, Bristol (UWE), a new electronic medication management system developed in the UK for nursing and residential homes, has been demonstrated to considerably lower the number of drug administration errors. In the study, the researchers recorded all medication administrations day and night for 345 older residents in 13 (9 residential and 4 nursing) homes rated as good or higher by national regulator inspection in the South, West, Midlands, and North West of England...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/sOEj_iY3khE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/sOEj_iY3khE/240318.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT An innovative article-based navigation iPad app created by the world's leading independent general medical journal - The Lancet App is now available on the App Store. The Lancet App is designed to help healthcare professionals (HCPs) find information they need quickly and efficiently on their iPad. Scott Virkler, SVP e-Products Global Medical Research, Elsevier Health Sciences said: "In this new mobile and tablet age, you have to think about how a doctor seeks and uses the information they need...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/X0ynO5E1oRs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/X0ynO5E1oRs/240320.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to a study published in the British Journal of Cancer, individuals who consume too much processed or red meat may have an increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Researchers discovered that compared to individuals who ate no meat, for every 50 grams of processed meat consumed each day - equivalent to two rashers (streaks) of bacon or a sausage - the risk of pancreatic cancer increased by 19%. The team found that red or processed meat increased the risk for men, although evidence was inconclusive for women...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/nVUNjR0O49M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/nVUNjR0O49M/240319.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A study led by Kristen Copeland, MD, division of General and Community Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Faculty Scholar reveals that, many of the three quarters of preschool-age children in the U.S. who attend child care get insufficient outdoor physical activity. According to the study, this may partially be due to societal and parental values regarding kindergarten readiness and injury prevention...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/IBQSk_ICXtE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/IBQSk_ICXtE/240274.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT According to a new study published online in the early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, drugs that fight infectious diseases could be designed to block a pathogen's entry into cells rather than to kill the bug itself. Traditionally, drugs for infectious diseases were developed to kill the antagonizing pathogen, but according to researchers, this new strategy is important as many parasites and bacteria have the ability to change and circumvent a way around the drugs that target them, resulting in resistance to these drugs...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/hMjI4Rq3-Es" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/hMjI4Rq3-Es/240317.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT A study published in the BMJ shows that pregnant women taking certain kinds of anti-depressants have a much higher risk of delivering babies that suffer from pulmonary hypertension. According to The American Academy of Pediatrics, around one in every 1000 babies suffer from the problem - high blood pressure in their lung arteries. The babies have difficulty breathing of their own accord and can suffer brain damage and organ failure. More than 10% of babies with the condition die from it...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/eFoWOfleWJU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/eFoWOfleWJU/240316.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT According to the Department of Health, their main concern is the wellbeing of women who have had PiP breast implants. For this reason, an expert group led by Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, NHS Medical Director, has been asked to examine all available data and evidence on PiP breast implants. The experts concluded that: There is no association with PiP breast implants and cancer Advice given by the MHRA still stands That there is insufficient evidence to recommend routine extraction of PiP breast implants...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/OGkIj1VdbwM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/OGkIj1VdbwM/240270.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT Now in its 4th year it promises to be bigger and better! Building on the continual success of both our European and Asia Pacific events, this year's agenda will provide an unparalled opportunity for debate and problem solving of key challenges currently facing the parenteral market...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/gfjJBJ2d854" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/gfjJBJ2d854/240312.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT A new UC Davis study shows how the brain reconfigures its connections to minimize distractions and take best advantage of our knowledge of situations. "In order to behave efficiently, you want to process relevant sensory information as fast as possible, but relevance is determined by your current situation," said Joy Geng, assistant professor of psychology at the UC Davis Center for Mind and Brain. For example, a flashing road sign alerts us to traffic merging ahead; or a startled animal might cue you to look out for a hidden predator...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/0QA2Himh4W0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0QA2Himh4W0/240303.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT Researchers in China who compared the brain scans of 18 teenagers diagnosed with Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD) with those of 18 non-addicted teenagers found differences in white matter density in over 20 brain regions. A report on their findings was published online in the 11 January issue of PLoS ONE. All the participants had a brain scan from which the researchers assessed the density and structure of the white matter. White matter contains fibers that carry the signals various parts of the brain use to communicate with each another...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/KNDSO3kYBgA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/KNDSO3kYBgA/240289.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 07:00:00 GMT Interferon-stimulated gene 15 (ISG15), a ubiquitin like protein, is highly elevated in a variety of cancers including breast cancer. How the elevated ISG15 pathway contributes to tumorigenic phenotypes remains unclear and is the subject of a study published in the January 2012 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine. Dr...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/CR7NOxAxm9Q" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/CR7NOxAxm9Q/240256.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Imagine the following scenarios: a co-worker is spoken to condescendingly, excluded from a meeting, or ignored by a supervisor. How does it make you feel? Do you feel differently depending on whether your co-worker is a man or a woman? According to a new study, workers who witness incivility towards colleagues feel negative emotions - especially when the incivility is aimed at workers of the same sex...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/xbij9K3ONuY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/xbij9K3ONuY/240261.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A review article by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) debunks the widely-believed concept that hypertension, or high blood pressure, is the result of excess salt causing an increased blood volume, exerting extra pressure on the arteries. Published online in the Journal of Hypertension, the study demonstrates that excess salt stimulates the sympathetic nervous system to produce adrenalin, causing artery constriction and hypertension. The research was led by Irene Gavras, MD, and Haralambos Gavras, MD, both professors of medicine at BUSM...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/zRi7YvzrJY0" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/zRi7YvzrJY0/240245.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT A new study from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) has found that employees with depression who receive treatment while still working are significantly more likely to be highly productive than those who do not. This is the first study of its kind to look into a possible correlation between treatment and productivity. The study is particularly significant at a time when the Canadian economy continues to face uncertainty. Mental illness costs the Canadian economy an estimated $51 billion annually, with a third of that attributed to productivity losses...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/e1NISIoRYFM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/e1NISIoRYFM/240246.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT New research demonstrates that previous models used to examine cancer may not be complex enough to accurately mimic the true cancer environment. Using oral cancer cells in a three-dimensional model of lab-made tissue that mimics the lining of the oral cavity, the researchers found that the tissue surrounding cancer cells can epigenetically mediate, or temporarily trigger, the expression or suppression of a cell adhesion protein associated with the progression of cancer...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/qR3nhNr8uo8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/qR3nhNr8uo8/240253.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Humans are considered the hosts for spreading epidemics. The speed at which an epidemic spreads is now better understood thanks to a new model accounting for the provincial nature of human mobility, according to a study published in EPJ B. The research was conducted by a team lead by Vitaly Belik from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, who is also affiliated with the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Germany. The authors modelled human mobility as recurrent trips centred around a home base...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/mLucV3PkqFU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/mLucV3PkqFU/240254.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Brain cancer cells are particularly resistant to chemotherapy - toxins enter the cells, but before the toxins can kill, cancer cells quickly pump them back outside. In fact, brain cancer cells are even better than healthy cells at cleaning themselves. This means that when hit with chemotherapy, healthy cells tend to die before brain cancer cells. Especially in the brain, killing healthy cells is bad. Researchers at the University of Colorado Cancer Center have discovered a way to turn off the pumps - only in brain cancer cells and not in their healthy neighbors...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/ZopHpCdiNKo" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/ZopHpCdiNKo/240266.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Important new information on one of the most critical protein machines in living cells has been reported by a team of researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California (UC) Berkeley. The researchers have provided the most detailed look ever at the "regulatory particle" used by the protein machines known as proteasomes to identify and degrade proteins that have been marked for destruction...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/cRIHnYgLuPY" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/cRIHnYgLuPY/240258.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT It's easy to pick up on the movements that other people make - scratching your head, crossing your legs. But a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, finds that people only feel the urge to mimic each other when they have the same goal. It's common for people to pick up on each other's movements...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/wlxPO0JWXDc" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/wlxPO0JWXDc/240260.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT The level of HIV-1 in the blood of an HIV-infected partner is the single most important factor influencing risk of sexual transmission to an uninfected partner, according to a multinational study of heterosexual couples in sub-Saharan Africa. The study, published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, calculated the risk of HIV-1 transmission per act of sexual intercourse and found the average rate of infection to be about 1 per 900 coital acts. The findings also confirmed that condoms are highly protective and reduce HIV infectivity by 78 percent. James P...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/lSUmeWBq5yM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/lSUmeWBq5yM/240278.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Exposure to light appears to have therapeutic effects on Alzheimer's disease patients, a Wayne State University researcher has found. In a study published recently in the Western Journal of Nursing Research, LuAnn Nowak Etcher, Ph.D., assistant professor of nursing, reported that patients treated with blue-green light were perceived by their caregivers as having improved global functioning. Caregivers said patients receiving the treatment seemed more awake and alert, were more verbally competent and showed improved recognition, recollection and motor coordination...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/WPRP2K5nJLA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/WPRP2K5nJLA/240257.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Researchers from Boston College have discovered a protein that plays a pivotal role in the progression of the deadly diseases toxoplasmosis and malaria and shown that its function could be genetically blocked in order to halt the progress of the parasite-borne illnesses, the team reports in the current edition of the journal Science. The protein, identified as DOC2...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~4/I_eeXE3Ix3s" height="1" width="1"/> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/I_eeXE3Ix3s/240280.php Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:00:00 GMT Updated guidelines on nutrition and physical activity for cancer prevention from the American Cancer Society stress the importance of creating social and physical environments tha