Health News from Medical News Today

Heparin - Possible Cancer Treatment

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:00:00 PST

Although the blood thinner heparin has been used for several decades to prevent and treat blood clots, researchers are now questioning whether the drug could be effective in treating cancer. Even though results from large studies have been promising, a study by investigators from McMaster University and the University at Buffalo, suggests that these studies still fail to provide precise answers to key questions, with regard to the benefits of low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) for cancer patients. The study is published today in the New England Journal of Medicine...

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - Effective In Treating Menopause Symptoms

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:00:00 PST

Two new studies state that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been proven to help treat menopause symptoms, including night sweats and hot flushes. Cognitive behavioral therapy is a method using a psychotherapeutic approach - a talking approach. Both studies, which were conducted by Professor Myra Hunter from the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, and team, determined that CBT works as a safe substitute for the more the commonly used treatment: hormone replacement therapy (HRT)...

What Is Female Genital Mutilation?

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 13:00:00 PST

Female genital mutilation, also known as FGM refers to all procedures which partially or completely remove the external female genitalia. FGM also includes any other injury to a woman's or girl's genitalia for reasons other than medical ones. In most parts of the world, FGM is done by non-medical practitioners who also attend childbirths and carry out male circumcisions. According to WHO (World Health Organization), over 18% of all female genital mutilation procedures are carried out by health care professionals in clinical setting, a trend which appears to be growing...

Gut Bacteria May Have Role In Obesity

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 12:00:00 PST

A new animal study published in this month's issue of the Journal of Proteome Research suggests that bacteria living in the large intestine may play a role in obesity by slowing down the activity of energy-burning brown fat. The researchers said their findings could spur new ways to prevent obesity and promote weight loss, for example by pointing to new drug targets and microbial treatments. There are two types of fat or adipose tissue in the body: brown fat and white fat...

Half A Billion Children At Risk From Malnutrition

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 11:00:00 PST

Save the Children released a report today, claiming that childhood malnutrition over the next fifteen years, puts nearly five hundred million youngsters at risk of permanent health problems. Carolyn Miles, President & CEO of Save the Children said in a statement : "Malnutrition is a largely hidden crisis, but it afflicts one in four children around the world ... It wreaks lifelong damage and is a major killer of children. Every hour of every day, 300 children die because of malnutrition...

Omega-3 Slows Down Retinitis Pigmentosa Progression

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 09:00:00 PST

A report published Online First by Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, reveals that adults with retinitis pigmentosa who took vitamin A supplements over a period of four to six years, showed slower decline in annual rates of distance and retinal visual acuities by consuming a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Retinitis pigmentosa is an eye disease in which there is damage to the retina. Approximately 2 million individuals (about 1 in 4,000) worldwide are affected by the condition, which typically results in night blindness...

Prostaglandin Analogs And Laser Trabeculoplasty Prove Cost Effective For Treating Glaucoma

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 09:00:00 PST

A study published Online First by Archives of Ophthalmology, reveals that glaucoma medication known as prostaglandin analogs (PGAs) and laser trabeculoplasty (LTP), a small invasive procedure both seem cost-effective options for patients with newly diagnosed mild open-angle glaucoma. However, in light of the current prices for PGAs, LTP could prove more cost effective in cases where medication adherence is not optimal. The researchers conclude that assuming optimal medication adherence, generic PAGs confer greater value than with LTP...

Food Marketing Targeted At Kids Still Not Ideal

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 08:00:00 PST

New research shows that the US government and schools have only achieved a mixed progress in its extensive quest to address food and beverage marketing practices that are harmful to young people's health. According to a thorough review in the March issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, public sector stakeholders have failed to fully implement recommendations from the Institute of Medicine (IOM,) to support a healthful diet to children and adolescents...

Excessive Consumption Of Phosphate Is Harmful To Health

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 08:00:00 PST

The current issue of Deutsches Arzteblatt International reports that excessive consumption of phosphate is harmful to health, recommending that foods containing phosphate additives should be labeled. After a thorough review on phosphate related literature, Eberhard Ritz and his team, found that excessive phosphate consumption leads to a higher mortality in patients with renal disease...

Cognitive Difficulties Widespread Among "Healthy Elderly"

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 08:00:00 PST

A study published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease shows that 39% of non-demented elderly Swedish people suffer from subjective impairment, and 25% from objective cognitive impairment. The nation-wide study of twins conducted by researchers at the Aging Research Center of Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, also demonstrates that higher education is a major protective factor, emphasizing the significance of environmental aspects over genetics, in mild cognitive disorders in the elderly...

Patients' Safety - New Proposals Inadequate Say Lords, UK

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 08:00:00 PST

According to a letter from The House of Lords EU Committee to Norman Lamb MP, Minister for Employment Relations at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), a number of concerns have been raised regarding the European Commission's proposed revision of the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications Directive. The Directive was the subject of an inquiry made by the Social Policies and Consumer Protection Sub-Committee in October last year, concerning the mobility of healthcare professionals...

AL Amyloidosis - Bortezomib, Cyclophosphamide, And Dexamethasone Combo Shows Promise

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 08:00:00 PST

Two studies have registered a preliminary success of an effective multiple myeloma (MM) regimen in patients with AL amyloidosis. The studies have been published in Blood, the Journal of the American Society of Hematology (ASH). AL amyloidosis, a rare and destructive blood disease, leads to deposits of damaging abnormal protein in critical organs, such as kidneys, heart, liver, and intestines, and shares some characteristics with MM...

HIV Resistance Among Many Sex Workers In Africa

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 08:00:00 PST

According to a new study, HIV-resistant sex workers in Africa have a weak inflammatory response in their vaginas. The researchers, led by Dr. Michel Roger of the University of Montreal Hospital Centre and the university's Department of Microbiology and Immunology, were surprised by this finding, as they expected the opposite, due to the women's high exposure to the virus. Roger explained: "In this part of the world, women represent over 60% of HIV cases, and this proportion continues to increase...

Bone Repair Stem Cell Breakthrough Shows Promise

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 08:00:00 PST

According to a study published in the February issue of the STEM CELL Translational Medicine Journal , a world-first technique for generating adult stem cells (mesenchymal stem cells [MSCs]) has been developed by researchers at the University of Queensland. This new method can be used to repair bone and possibly other organs, and will considerably affect individuals suffering from a variety of serious diseases...

Antibiotic Amoxicillin No Better than Placebo for Most Sinus Infections

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 04:00:00 PST

If you have a sinus infection, taking a course of amoxicillin, an antibiotic medication, does not help you recover faster or reduce symptoms any more effectively than taking an inactive placebo, according to a new study by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, that is published in the 15 February issue of JAMA. First author Dr Jane M Garbutt is a research associate professor of medicine at the School of Medicine...

Bureaucracy May Be Putting Lives At Risk, Europe

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 04:00:00 PST

A European Parliament event to discuss how EU legislation has negatively affected the treatment received by children and adolescents has marked International Childhood Cancer Day - 15th February. The meeting was hosted in association with the European Society for Paediatric Oncology (SIOPE) to raise awareness of the many hurdles faced by patients and those who care for them as a result of the EU Clinical Trials Directive (CTD)...

Lead Levels In Lipstick Much Higher Than Previously Thought

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:00:00 PST

A recent study conducted by the U.S Food And Drug Administration (FDA) reveals that over 400 popular lipstick brands contain twice as much lead as previously believed - up to 7.19 parts per million (ppm). Mark Mitchell, M.D., MPH, policy advisor of the Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice and co-chair of the Environmental Health Task Force for the National Medical Association comments: "Lead builds up in the body over time and lead-containing lipstick applied several times a day, every day, can add up to significant exposure levels...

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Help Heal Heart Attack Damage

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:00:00 PST

A systematic review of the evidence so far suggests stem cells derived from bone marrow moderately improves heart function after a heart attack. But the authors say larger trials are needed before we can devise guidelines for therapy practice, or draw conclusions about the long-term benefit of the treatment, such as whether it extends life. The review, about to be published in the Cochrane Library, updates one done in 2008 that reviewed 13 trials; the new one takes into account another 20 more recent trials...

Premature Oxygen-Deprived Babies May Fare Worse If Kept Warm

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:00:00 PST

Premature infants' immature lungs and frequent dips in blood pressure make them especially vulnerable to a condition called hypoxia in which their tissues don't receive enough oxygen, sometimes leading to permanent brain damage. New animal research suggests that a common practice in caring for these babies might in fact exacerbate this condition, increasing the chances for long-term neurological deficits. A new study shows that rat pups exposed to low oxygen for up to three hours, but kept warm, have changes in insulin and glucose regulation that lead to hypoglycemia...

Tracking Down The Causes Of Loeys-Dietz Syndrome

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

A USC research team has pinpointed the source of a genetic disorder that causes life-threatening birth defects, which may allow doctors to quickly diagnose and better treat the disease. Babies born with the disorder, known as Loeys-Dietz syndrome or Marfan syndrome type II, have cleft palates and other facial characteristics similar to babies born with other diseases - but also happen to suffer potentially fatal heart defects, making it critical for them to receive an accurate diagnosis right away...

Tool Can Help Save Lives By Quickly Tracing Origins Of Foodborne Pathogens

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

2011 brought two of the deadliest bacterial outbreaks the world has seen during the last 25 years. The two epidemics accounted for more than 4,200 cases of infectious disease and 80 deaths. Software developed at Georgia Tech was used to help characterize the bacteria that caused each outbreak. This helps scientists to better understand the underlying microbiologic features of the disease-causing organisms and shows promise for supporting faster and more efficient outbreak investigations in the future...

Computational Algorithm Developed To Assist In Cancer Treatments

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

High-throughput DNA sequencing technologies are leading to a revolution in how clinicians diagnose and treat cancer. The molecular profiles of individual tumors are beginning to be used in the design of chemotherapeutic programs optimized for the treatment of individual patients. The real revolution, however, is coming with the emerging capability to inexpensively and accurately sequence the entire genome of cancers, allowing for the identification of specific mutations responsible for the disease in individual patients. There is only one downside...

New Research Into Immune Tolerance Studies The Sensing Of Self And Non-Self

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

At the most basic level, the immune system must distinguish self from non-self, that is, it must discriminate between the molecular signatures of invading pathogens (non-self antigens) and cellular constituents that usually pose no risk to health (self-antigens). The system is far from foolproof. Cancer cells can undergo unchecked proliferation, producing self-antigens that are tolerated by the immune system, rather than being targeted for destruction. At the opposite extreme, a range of so-called autoimmune disorders can result when healthy cells in the body are misidentified as hazards...

Offering New Hope To Heart Failure Patients

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

More than six million American adults suffer from heart failure. But, while the prevalence of this disease has increased over time, there are signs that deaths from it have not and hospitalization rates may be stabilizing as well. Healthcare professionals say this is good news and the future looks even more promising. "Despite the increasing number of people affected, the prognosis for patients with heart failure has steadily improved," said Gregg C. Fonarow, M...

First Prospective Analysis Links Breast And Pancreatic Cancer Risk With Lynch Syndrome

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

A new prospective study of patients with Lynch syndrome - an inherited disorder of cancer susceptibility caused by mutations in specific DNA repair genes - provides the first strong evidence that people with Lynch syndrome face significantly increased risks of breast and pancreatic cancers. The study also provided new, clearer estimates of the risks of cancers already recognized to be associated with Lynch syndrome, including those of the colon, uterus, ovary, kidney, stomach and bladder...

Screening For Diabetes Using Blood From Periodontal Disease

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

Oral blood samples drawn from deep pockets of periodontal inflammation can be used to measure hemoglobin A1c, an important gauge of a patient's diabetes status, an NYU nursing-dental research team has found. Hemoglobin A1c blood glucose measures from oral blood compare well to those from finger-stick blood, the researchers say. The findings are from a study funded by an NYU CTSI (Clinical and Translational Science Institute) grant awarded to the research team last year. Hemoglobin A1c is widely used to test for diabetes...

Medical Researchers Discover 'Very Promising' Treatment For Huntington Disease

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

Medical researchers at the University of Alberta have discovered a promising new therapy for Huntington disease that restores lost motor skills and may delay or stop the progression of the disease based on lab model tests, says the lead researcher. Because the new therapy uses a molecule already being used in clinical trials for other diseases, it could be used in a clinical trial for Huntington disease within the next one to two years...

Scientist Works To Detach Protein That HIV Uses As Protective Shield

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

One of the frustrations for scientists working on HIV/AIDS treatments has been the human immunodeficiency virus' ability to evade the body's immune system. Now an Indiana University researcher has discovered a compound that could help put the immune system back in the hunt. It's not that the human immune system doesn't recognize HIV. Indeed, an infection causes the body to unleash antibodies that attack the virus, and initially some HIV is destroyed...

Evaluating The Factors Underlying Medicare Decisions On Coverage Of Medical Technology

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

A new study by researchers at Tufts Medical Center provides unique insight into factors that affect Medicare decisions on whether to pay for medical technologies. The study, published online by the journal Medical Care, underscores that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has incorporated evidence-based medicine into its decision making, highlighting the importance of the strength and quality of the supporting clinical evidence...

Hepatitis Viruses Activated By Stress In Cells

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

People who have received a donor organ need lifelong immunosuppressant drugs to keep their immune system from attacking the foreign tissue. However, with a suppressed immune system, many infectious agents turn into a threat. Infections such as with human cytomegalovirus and a certain type of human polyomavirus frequently cause complications in transplant recipients. For these patients it would therefore be particularly beneficial to have substances that suppress the immune system and exert an antiviral activity at the same time - thus killing two birds with one stone...

Switching To Water, Diet Beverages Can Tip The Scales

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

Making a simple substitution of water or diet soft drinks for drinks with calories can help people lose 4 to 5 pounds, a new University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study shows...

Neurobiologists Identify New Animal Model To Better Understand A Human Metabolic Disorder

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

In medical research, finding a reliable and cost-effective animal model can greatly enhance success in identifying disease mechanisms and genetic pathways, potentially cutting years off drug testing regimes and development of new treatment strategies. Now, University of Massachusetts Amherst neuroscientist Gerald Downes and colleagues have developed just such a model, a mutant zebrafish, to study Maple Syrup Urine Disease (MSUD). It is an inherited metabolic disorder that causes affected individuals to smell like maple syrup...

Patients With AL Amyloidosis May Benefit From Powerful Myeloma Treatment Regimen

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

Two studies published in Blood, the Journal of the American Society of Hematology (ASH), demonstrate preliminary success of an effective multiple myeloma (MM) regimen in patients with AL amyloidosis, a rare and devastating blood disease that results in deposition of damaging abnormal protein in critical organs of the body, including the kidneys, heart, liver, and intestines, and shares some characteristics with MM...

More Than Just Packaging, The Genome Affects The Way Our Genes Change And Develop

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

In the Proceedings of the 23rd Annual Workshop on the History and Philosophy of Science, Dr. Lamm has introduced a critical new paradigm that redefines the genome as a dynamic structure that can impact genes themselves. "When you try to explain human society by reducing it to individuals, you neglect the fact that people are also shaped by their social environment. The picture is bidirectional," he says, explaining that the relationship between genes and genomes is comparable. "Genomes have a physiology - and genes are a manifestation of this...

Increase In Injectable Treatment For Blood Clots In Advanced Cancer Patients

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

The use of an injectable, clot-preventing drug known as Low Molecular Weight Heparin to treat patients with advanced cancer complicated by blood clots increased steadily between 2000 and 2007, according to a new study published in The Oncologist, funded by the National Cancer Institute and led by Kaiser Permanente Colorado. However, despite previous research indicating LMWH is the preferred first-line treatment for cancer patients experiencing blood clots, use of LMWH is low compared to another commonly used anticoagulant, warfarin...

Discovery Of Critical Element That Improves Vascular Function In Postmenopausal Women

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

Researchers studying why arteries stiffen in postmenopausal women have found a specific chemical cofactor that dramatically improves vascular function. Kerrie Moreau, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, discovered that BH4 or tetrahydrobiopterin plays a key role in arterial health of women. BH4 is a critical cofactor of the enzyme endothelial nitric oxide synthase or eNOS. The two combine to create nitric oxide which is highly beneficial to arterial health...

Malaria Parasite Goes Bananas Before Sex: New Study

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

New research from the University of Melbourne shows how the malaria parasite (Plasmodium falciparum) changes into a banana shape before sexual reproduction, a finding that could provide targets for vaccine or drug development and may explain how the parasite evades the human immune system. The work was conducted by an Australian research team led by Dr Matthew Dixon and PhD student Megan Dearnley from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bio21 Institute at the University of Melbourne, and is published in the Journal of Cell Science...

Alzheimer Flies Benefit From Turmeric-Based Drug

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

Curcumin, a substance extracted from turmeric, prolongs life and enhances activity of fruit flies with a nervous disorder similar to Alzheimer's. The study conducted at Linkoping University, indicates that it is the initial stages of fibril formation and fragments of the amyloid fibrils that are most toxic to neurons. Ina Caesar, as the lead author, has published the results of the study in the prestigious journal PLoS One...

In Young Sri Lankans Diabetes Risk Factors Much Higher Than Previously Thought

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PST

Scientists at King's College London and the National Diabetes Centre (Sri Lanka) have found evidence of a high number of risk factors for type 2 diabetes among the young urban population in Sri Lanka. The study is the first large-scale investigation into diabetes risk among children and young people in South Asia, and provides further evidence that the region is rapidly becoming a hotspot in the growing international diabetes epidemic...

Targeting Leukemia Stem Cells

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

New research takes aim at stubborn cancer stem cells that are thought to be responsible for treatment resistance and relapse. The study, published by Cell Press in the February 14 issue of the journal Cancer Cell, provides insight into mechanisms associated with the survival of leukemia stem cells and identifies a potential therapeutic target that is specific for these dangerously persistent cells. Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is a cancer of the white blood cells for which tyrosine kinase inhibitors are currently the first line of therapy...

For Users Of Electronic Health Records,10 Rights And Responsibilities

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Providing clinicians ten rights and responsibilities regarding their electronic health record use could serve as the foundation on which to build a new approach to health care in the electronic age, states an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). Despite commitments to electronic health initiatives by governments in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, the United Kingdom and the United States over the past decade, clinicians experience challenges in adoption and use...

Palliative Sedation Approaches By Physicians

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Physicians take two types of approaches to palliative sedation, either mild sedation or deep sedation from the start, and it is important to understand the reasons behind each approach, states an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). Palliative sedation is used to relieve suffering in dying patients and can be administered in different levels. "Continuous deep sedation until death is considered the most far reaching and controversial type of palliative sedation," writes Dr. Siebe Swart, Department of Public Health, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, with coauthors...

The Power Of Games And Interactive Media For Childhood Obesity Prevention And Health Promotion

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Children are naturally drawn toward gaming and other types of technology, creating an ideal opportunity to design interactive media tools to encourage physical activity and promote healthy eating habits, according to an article in a special issue of the journal Childhood Obesity celebrating the second anniversary of First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! initiative. The issue includes a special Foreword by Mrs. Obama and is available free online...

Human Testing Of New HIV-Vaccine

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Scientists from the Antwerp Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital and Antwerp University have tested a new 'therapeutic vaccine' against HIV on volunteers. The participants were 'so to say' vaccinated with their own cells. The researchers filtered certain white blood cells out of the volunteer's blood, 'loaded' them outside the body and then gave them back. The immune system of the testees was better than before in attacking and suppressing the virus, the scientists reported in the top journal AIDS. But they still cannot cure the disease...

Ingestion Of PAHs From Pavement Sealant May Put Children At Risk

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Children living near coal-tar-sealed pavement are likely to receive a far higher dose of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from incidental ingestion of house dust than do children living near unsealed pavement, and that dose is more than two times higher than the PAH dose children are estimated to receive from food. In a paper published in the journal Environmental Pollution, researchers at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and the U.S...

Fluctuating Sense Of Control Linked To Cognitive Ability In Older Adults

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Everyone has moments when they feel more in control of their lives than at other times. New research from North Carolina State University shows that this sense of control fluctuates more often, and more quickly, than previously thought - and that this sense of control may actively affect cognitive abilities. "This is the first time we've been able to see how the day-to-day changes in our sense of being in control may actually influence the way we think," says Dr. Shevaun Neupert, an associate professor of psychology at NC State and lead author of a paper on the research...

Motivation To Exercise Affects Behavior

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

For many people, the motivation to exercise fluctuates from week to week, and these fluctuations predict whether they will be physically active, according to researchers at Penn State. In an effort to understand how the motivation to exercise is linked to behavior, the researchers examined college students' intentions to be physically active as well as their actual activity levels. "Many of us set New Year's resolutions to be more physically active, and we expect these resolutions to be stable throughout the year," said David Conroy, professor of kinesiology...

Teen Victims Of Dating Violence Have Often Been Hurt By Others Too

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Teen victims of dating violence are overwhelmingly more likely to have been victims of other forms of violence, such as sexual violence and child abuse, according to new research from the University of New Hampshire Crimes Against Children Research Center. Researchers were surprised to discover that every teen victim of dating violence surveyed as part of a national sample of 1,680 youth ages 12 to 17 reported that this wasn't the first time that they had been victimized...

Norway Has New Legal Limits In Traffic For Drugs Other Than Alcohol

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Legal limits for twenty illegal drugs and medicines with an abuse potential have been introduced by the Norwegian government. Norway is the first country to define both impairment-based legislative limits and limits for graded sanctions for drugs other than alcohol. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health participated to provide the scientific basis for the new limits. It is a criminal offence to drive a car or other motorised vehicle (mopeds, motorcycles, tractors, etc.) under the influence of alcohol, illegal drugs and medicines in Norway...

Hospital Reviews Reflect Data On Hospital Outcomes

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Patients' ratings of hospitals tally with objective measures of the hospital's performance, according to an independent study published in Archives of Internal Medicine. Since 2008, patients have been able to post comments on and rate hospitals using the NHS Choices website, in the same way as they might rate a hotel on Tripadvisor...

Orgasms Often Unafffected Following Nerve Sparing In Prostate Cancer Surgery

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

The vast majority of men who have a prostate cancer operation can retain their ability to orgasm if the surgery is carried out without removing the nerves that surround the prostate gland like a hammock, according to a study in the February issue of the urology journal BJUI. American researchers from Cornell University, New York, studied 408 patients who received robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALP) from a single surgeon between January 2005 and June 2007. They focused on men who were able to achieve orgasm before surgery and the average follow-up was three years...

Turning Chitin In Crab Shells Into Pharmaceuticals

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Usually, mould fungi are nothing to cheer about - but now they can be used as "chemical factories". Scientists at the Vienna University of Technology have succeeded in introducing bacterial genes into the fungus Trichoderma, so that the fungus can now produce important chemicals for the pharmaceutical industry. The raw material used by the fungus is abundant - it is chitin, which makes up the shells of crustaceans. Fifty Times More Expensive than Gold Viral Infections are usually treated with antiviral drugs, which are often derived from N-Acetylneuraminic acid (or NANA, for short)...

Experts Estimate Nearly 23 Million Have Untreated Hearing Loss

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Though an estimated 26.7 million Americans age 50 and older have hearing loss, only about one in seven uses a hearing aid, according to a new study led by Johns Hopkins researchers. The finding adds clarity to less rigorous estimates by device manufacturers and demonstrates how widespread undertreatment of hearing loss is in the United States, the study investigators say...

The Meaning Of Many Spoken Words Understood By 6- To 9-Month-olds

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

At an age when "ba-ba" and "da-da" may be their only utterances, infants nevertheless comprehend words for many common objects, according to a new study. In research focused on 6-to-9-month-old babies, University of Pennsylvania psychologists Elika Bergelson and Daniel Swingley demonstrated that the infants learned the meanings of words for foods and body parts through their daily experience with language. Bergelson is a doctoral student and Swingley an associate professor in Penn's Department of Psychology...

Increased Risk Of Testicular Cancer When Fetus Exposed To Radiation

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Male fetuses of mothers that are exposed to radiation during early pregnancy may have an increased chance of developing testicular cancer, according to a study in mice at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The article was published today in PLoS ONE. The study is the first to find an environmental cause for testicular germ cell tumors, the most common cancer in young Caucasian men...

New Operation For Complex Strabismus Or Cross Eyes Offers Faster Recovery, More Precise Results

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

People with strabismus (misalignment and limited movement of one or more eyes) are often teased about their crossed-eye appearance; those with more complex, disfiguring strabismus can become socially isolated and develop neck and back problems from having to turn their head to see properly. While surgery can correct eye position, it may require operation on several muscles, causing lengthy recovery, and sometimes overcompensates for the problem, requiring repeat operations...

Compound May Help In Fight Against Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

North Carolina State University chemists have created a compound that makes existing antibiotics 16 times more effective against recently discovered antibiotic-resistant "superbugs." These so-called superbugs are actually bacterial strains that produce an enzyme known as New Delhi metallo-Î²-lactamase (NDM-1). Bacteria that produce this enzyme are practically impervious to antibiotics because NDM-1renders certain antibiotics unable to bind with their bacterial targets. Since NDM-1 is found in Gram-negative bacteria like K...

Quest For Cancer Treatments Strengthened By Cell Discovery

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Fresh insights into how our cells multiply could help scientists develop drugs to treat cancer. Researchers have gained better understanding of the workings of two key proteins that control cell division. This process must be carried out accurately to keep cells healthy, and when it goes out of control, it can lead to cancer. The study, led by the University of Edinburgh, could contribute to the development of new drugs that stop cancerous cells multiplying and so prevent the spread of the disease...

Air Pollution Tied To Cognitive Decline, Stroke

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

Two studies published in the Archives of Internal Medicine on Monday suggest that air pollution at levels experienced by most Americans or considered safe by the Environmental Protection Agency is linked to higher risk of cognitive decline and stroke. Cognitive decline is a normal process of aging and is characterized by difficulties with memory, information processing, language, and other thinking skills. An ischemic stroke is a stroke that occurs when an artery to the brain is blocked as a result of build-up of fatty deposits lining the vessel walls (atherosclerosis)...

Mediterranean Diet Reduces Small Vessel Damage In The Brain

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST

The February issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, carries a report this month on the Mediterranean diet. It appears that a Mediterranean-style diet reduces the burden of white matter hyperintesity volume. White matter hyperintesity volume is a marker of small vessel damage in the brain. White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) visible on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are markers of chronic small vessel damage, according to background information in the article. Hannah Gardener, Sc.D...