Latest science news in Health & Medicine
Well: Leaving the Hospital Early
More patients are making early exits from the hospital, against doctors' advice, new government data show.
Pinpointing air pollution's effects on the heart
Scientists are untangling how the tiniest pollution particles - which we take in with every breath we breathe - affect our health, making people more vulnerable to cardiovascular and respiratory...
Tongue Cancer Increasing in Young, White Females
After ruling out tobacco use and HPV, researchers aren't sure why these women have a higher risk of the cancer than men and women of other ages and races.
Making viruses pass for 'safe'
Viruses can penetrate every part of the body, making them potentially good tools for gene therapy or drug delivery. But with our immune system primed to seek and destroy these...
New bowel cancer evidence calls for routine DNA repair test
Bowel cancer patients whose tumours contain defects in specific DNA repair systems are much less likely to experience tumour recurrence post surgery, results from a major clinical study have demonstrated...
Roundworm could provide new treatment for sepsis
Research by the University of Liverpool has found that systemic inflammation caused by sepsis can be suppressed by a protein which occurs naturally in a type of roundworm...
Text messaging helps smokers break the habit
A pair of related studies on smoking cessation by researchers at the University of Oregon and other institutions have isolated the brain regions most active in controlling urges to smoke...
Rituximab combined with a TNF inhibitor and methotrexate shows no safety signal in RA treatment
A recent trial of rituximab in combination with a tumour necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor and methotrexate (MTX) in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) found the safety profile to be...
Sildenafil reduces Raynaud's frequency in patients with systemic sclerosis
Researchers in Europe reported that treatment with modified-release sildenafil significantly reduced the frequency of attacks of Raynaud's phenomenon in patients with limited cutaneous systemic sclerosis (lcSSc), also known as scleroderma....
HBV infection decreases risk of liver metastasis in colorectal cancer patients
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Western countries. Metastatic liver disease more frequently develops metachronous metastasis following treatment of CRC. It was reported that...
Blood-brain barrier damaged by Sanfilippo syndrome type B disease, mouse study suggests
When modeled in mice, Sanfilippo syndrome type B (MS III B), has been found to damage the blood-brain barrier, the structure responsible for protecting the brain from the entry of...
Laughter really is the best medicine (for leg ulcers)
Forget technology. The best prescription for patients with venous leg ulcers is good quality nursing care -- and the occasional belly laugh!
The safety of daily magnesium oxide treatment for children with chronic constipation
A research team from Japan determined serum magnesium concentration in children with functional constipation treated with daily magnesium oxide. The results showed that serum magnesium concentration increased significantly, but not...
Aging with grace: In-home assessments lead to better care, lower health costs
The March 2011 issue of the journal Heath Affairs highlights an evidence-based model of geriatric care management developed, implemented and tested by researchers and clinicians from Indiana University, the Regenstrief...
Senate bill aims to combat pharmaceutical theft
(AP) -- Law enforcement officials would have more leeway to pursue and punish criminals who steal prescription pharmaceuticals under a proposal introduced Tuesday by Senate lawmakers.
Cleansing the soul by hurting the flesh: The guilt-reducing effect of pain
Lent in the Christian tradition is a time of sacrifice and penance. It also is a period of purification and enlightenment. Pain purifies. It atones for sin and cleanses the...
E.P.A. Steps Up Scrutiny of Pollution in Pennsylvania Rivers
Radioactivity levels are safe, state regulators say, but the Environmental Protection Agency wants more tests.
Research study explores gene therapy treatment to reduce symptoms of Parkinson's disease
Physicians at Rush University Medical Center are testing a unique gene therapy product called CERE-120 to evaluate if its use can improve the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Rush is...
Insecticide-Treated Mosquito Nets (ITMNs) Highly Effective in Preventing Japanese Encephalitis
A new study revealed that using treated mosquito nets could drastically reduce the transmission of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) to humans. The study, conducted by the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC),...
Spanish tourists criticize other Mediterranean countries’ lack of hospitality
People visiting Spain have a high opinion of the price-quality ratio of Spanish hotels. Spanish tourists, on the contrary, complain about the quality of hotels, cleanliness and hospitality in...
Urinary metabolomic profile and gastric cancer
A research team from China investigated urinary metabolites expression changes among three mice groups using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Ten metabolites have differences between the normal group and the cancer group...
Cancer in HIV-positive patients
Most HIV-positive patients die of cancer. In the latest issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2011; 108[8]: 117
Well: The Doctor's Wife in the Chemo Chair
In treatment for breast cancer, each new day, each new test and each new treatment carry new worries, writes Dr. Peter Bach.
Catching vision’s ‘silent thief’
Researchers urge the public to get regular eye tests to detect glaucoma, a condition that can be lethal if undiagnosed.
Reduce energy bill with stair climbing
A team of researchers from the University of Birminghams School of Sport and Exercise Sciences is embarking on a stair climbing challenge to decrease the energy expenditure of businesses and...
1 in 5 children in Sweden overweight
University of Gothenburg, Sweden - and Karolinska Institutet have carried out the first ever national study of the prevalence of overweight and obesity in schoolchildren. It reveals that one in...
Prescriptions: A Team Approach to Patient Care Falters
A new study reveals a series of challenges raised by trying to convert traditional practices into patient-center medical homes.
Women commit shaken baby violence as often as men
Women are just as likely as men to violently shake a small child in their care, though men cause more severe injuries and death, according to a new University of...