Latest science news in Health & Medicine
Provinces try to reduce H1N1 vaccine lineups
Provincial health officials are considering how to relieve the long lineups for H1N1 vaccines at mass immunization clinics across Canada.
IVF Insurance Coverage Yields Fewer Multiple Births, Researchers Find
The proportion of in vitro fertilization multiple births was lower in the eight states that provide insurance coverage for couples seeking IVF treatment, primarily due to fewer embryos transferred per...
Sheldon J. Segal dies at 83; scientist led development of long-lasting contraceptives
His team created Norplant, Jadelle, Mirena and other devices. Sheldon J. Segal, who led the team that developed Norplant, Jadelle, Mirena and other long-lasting contraceptive agents that are used by more than 120...
Low-Carb Diet Speeds Recovery From Spinal Cord Injury
A diet high in fat and low in carbohydrates, known as the "ketogenic" diet, quickens recovery in paralyzed rats after spinal cord injury, according to new research.
Growing Cartilage From Stem Cells
Damaged knee joints might one day be repaired with cartilage grown from stem cells in a laboratory.
Democrats Lose Big Test Vote on Health Legislation
The Senate blocked action on a bill to increase Medicare payments to doctors, legislation that had become a proxy for the larger partisan fight over health care policy.
Benefits and Risks of Cancer Screening Are Not Always Clear, Experts Say
The debate over cancer screening is confusing to many patients who have been told repeatedly to undergo screening for breast or prostate cancer.
Prolonged use of pacifier may harm baby's speech
Children who use a pacifier or suck their fingers for more than three years may be greater risk of developing speech impediments, a study from Chile suggests.
Exercise therapy best for knee pain
For patients with severe knee pain, supervised exercise therapy is more effective at reducing pain and improving function than usual care, finds a study published on BMJ.com today.
Sperm Donor Passes Heart Defect to 9 Kids
Without Medical Testing of Donors, Children Can Inherit Potentially Deadly Genetic Conditions
Use of omega-3 with treatment for depression in heart disease patients may not provide benefit
Contrary to the findings of some studies, new research indicates that augmenting antidepressant therapy with an omega-3 fatty acid supplement does not result in improvement in levels of depression in...
UF scientists discover new explanation for controversial old patient-care technique
You might not know what it's called, but if you've had general anaesthesia before surgery, especially after an accident, it is likely you have received Sellick's manoeuvre. That's when fingers...
Using relative utility curves for risk prediction
A relative utility curve is a simple method to evaluate risk prediction in a medical decision-making framework, according to a commentary published online 20 October in the Journal of the...
Classifying molar pregnancy
Researchers from The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions have used short tandem repeat (STR) genotyping and p57 immunohistochemistry to distinguish hydatidiform moles. The related report by Murphy et al "Molecular...
The bowels of infection
Current research suggests that latent cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection may exacerbate inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The related report by Onyeagocha et al, "Latent cytomegalovirus infection exacerbates experimental colitis," appears in the...
Comparison finds considerable differences on estimates of future physician workforce supply
Compared with a source of data often used regarding physician workforce supply and projected changes, data from the U.S. Census Bureau suggests that the future physician workforce may be younger...
Could some forms of mental retardation be treated with drugs?
Growth factors. They are the proteins that trigger a countless number of actions in cells. Drugs that increase or decrease certain growth factors have lead to treatments for cancer and...
Eating more dairy fights fat
Consuming more dairy while on a reduced calorie diet can boost weight loss and cut the risk of heart disease, new research has found.
Doctors Told to Give Flu Medicine Promptly
Federal health officials warned physicians not to rely on flu tests to make decisions about whether to treat sick patients.
Trazorel, Cesamet mislabelling warning issued
The mislabelling of a bottle of drugs has prompted Health Canada to issue an advisory warning patients to check their prescriptions of Trazorel and Cesamet.
Alcohol hinders IVF, couples warned
• Harvard study reveals impact of drinking • British guidelines advise stopping entirely
Could drugs for mood disorders, pain and epilepsy cause psychiatric disorders later in life?
Young animals treated with commonly-prescribed drugs develop behavioral abnormalities in adulthood say researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center. The drugs tested include those used to treat epilepsy, mood disorders...
Thyroid disease highest in Alberta
A new survey shows a far higher percentage of people in Alberta suffer from thyroid disease than in any other province.
Don't worry so much about limiting sodium, researchers say
University of California-Davis nutrition researchers are challenging the decades-old conventional wisdom that we should watch our salt.
Securing Biological Select Agents And Toxins Will Require Developing A Culture Of Trust
The most effective way to prevent the deliberate misuse of biological select agents and toxins -- agents housed in laboratories across the US considered to potentially pose a threat to...
Rice opens 'Cure for Needy' on the Web
Suppose you had a disease for which there's a proven cure, but nobody makes the drug. Where do you turn?
Gene is linked with kidney aging
STANFORD, Calif., Oct. 20 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say they have identified a gene that is associated with human kidney aging.
H1N1 in turkeys poses 'minimal' human risk: official
Ontario has confirmed a swine flu infection in a turkey operation, but the province's chief medical officer says this outbreak doesn't threaten humans.