Latest science news in Health & Medicine
Another attack downs Twitter, briefly this time
(AP) -- Twitter has suffered from another attack following one that left the site down for several hours last week.
Found: A gene that may play a role in type 1 diabetes
Scientists at Stanford University have identified a gene that may play a role in the development of type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the...
First Human Gets New Antibody Aimed At Hepatitis C Virus
A Phase 1 clinical trial of a human monoclonal antibody that neutralizes the hepatitis C virus (HCV) has begun. The trial will include 30 healthy volunteers and will test the...
New Cancer Drug Delivery System Is Effective And Reversible
Cancer drugs must be effective. But they must also target cancer cells and spare healthy cells. And -- ideally -- they'll come with an easy antidote. Researchers report that they...
From Fable To Fact: Rooks Use Stones And Water To Catch A Worm
In Aesop's fable, "the crow and the pitcher," a thirsty crow uses stones to raise the level of water in a pitcher to quench its thirst. A new study demonstrates...
Unstable Proteins Can Cause Premature Aging
The normal aging process has long been linked to problems with cell respiration, the process through which the cells extract energy from nutrients. Researchers have now shown how certain proteins...
Internists tackle key health reform issues
Monographs addressing individual mandates, tax exclusion and a public plan option were released today by the American College of Physicians (ACP)...
Wistar scientists find key to strengthening immune response to chronic infection
A team of researchers from The Wistar Institute has identified a protein that could serve as a target for reprogramming immune system cells exhausted by exposure to chronic viral infection...
Is bilateral liver resection safe for bilateral intrahepatic stones?
A research article to be published on 7 August in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. In the present study, 101 consecutive patients with bilateral intrahepatic stones who...
Got influenza? Blood genomic signature provides clues to aetiology of respiratory infections
Scientists have shown that they can identify and characterise an individual's response to a respiratory viral infection by examining the pattern of gene expression in their blood. The research, published...
Moving To The US Increases Cancer Risk For Hispanics
Results of a new study confirm trends that different Hispanic population groups have higher incidence rates of certain cancers and worse cancer outcomes if they live in the United States,...
Shocked by therapies: psychologists reject sexual reorientation
US psychologists are slamming therapies treating homosexuality as an illness, and warning mental health workers against promising patients their sexual orientations might be changed.
Rapid tests often wrong about swine flu
(AP) -- The government's first study of how well rapid tests diagnose swine flu finds they're wrong at least half the time.
UC design research points the way so you won't get lost at the hospital
Help is on the way for anyone who has ever gotten lost at a hospital or other health-care setting.
Genetic Risk, Not Anesthesia Exposure, Impacts Cognitive Performance, Study Shows
A recent study of more than 2,000 identical twins found that medical problems early in life, rather than the neurotoxic effects of anesthesia, are likely linked to an individual's risk...
Heart-Lung Machine May Not Be the Culprit in Post-Op "Pump Head" Syndrome
In the months after he had surgery to fix his defective heart valve, Bruce Stutz didn't feel quite the same. It wasn't his physical fitness that was subpar, although that did require...
Health reform proposals could help 13 million uninsured young adults gain coverage
Comprehensive health reform proposals now before Congress could help the more than 13 million uninsured young adults ages 19-29 gain coverage, and such reforms would also help ensure that those...
Man indicted in death of Hawaiian monk seal
(AP) -- A federal grand jury has indicted a 78-year-old Kauai man in the shooting death of an endangered Hawaiian monk seal in May.
More than half of Texas physicians do not always recommend HPV vaccine to girls
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends the human papillomavirus vaccination for all 11- and 12-year-old girls, but results of a recent survey showed that more than half of Texas...
Social class still affects infant mortality
Nearly 1 in 100 babies die in their first year of life in some parts of England, official figures show. A new study has found that babies are most at risk if...
Masks at home may slow swine flu spread
Wearing masks in the home, when someone in the household is infected with flu, may prevent others in the household from catching it, according to a new study. But the research isn't strong...
Los Angeles County-USC hospital reopens heliport
Rooftop landing area was closed six months ago after ongoing complaints from staff about fumes coming through the ventilation system when choppers landed. More-robust air filters have been installed. Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center...
Schering and Merck Are Settling Vytorin Suits
Merck and Schering-Plough said that they would pay $41.5 million to settle suits claiming they delayed study results on their cholesterol drug Vytorin because the data was unfavorable.
Quick Tests for the Flu Found Often Inaccurate
Widely used rapid checks for the H1N1 virus — or any flu, for that matter — fail more than 50 percent of the time.
Could ‘Intervention’ Have Helped a Star?
Michael Jackson's death reopens a debate on competing approaches to intervention for helping those who struggle with drug addiction.
Koala saved from Australian fires battling disease
ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) -- A koala made famous by a photograph of her drinking from a firefighter's water bottle as wildfires ravaged Australia was due to...
News briefs from the August issue of Chest
X-RAY MACHINES MAY SPREAD INFECTIONS IN THE ICU Poor infection control practices when using x-ray machines may lead to nosocomial infections in the ICU. In a new study, Israeli researchers observed...
Cardiovascular Risk After Ischemic Attack Predicted By Ultrasound
Ultrasound can be used to determine a patient's heart risk after a transient ischemic attack. An evaluation of transcranial and extracranial Doppler ultrasonography has shown that both future stroke and...