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Pain diaries may affect recovery of patients suffering from chronic pain

For some people suffering from chronic pain, part of their daily routine is recording the extent of it in a pain diary. Often done at the request of their physician or therapist, patients may be asked to record how severe the pain is, how it affects daily activities and which treatments ease it or make it worse.

24 Mar 2015

New research shows spinal surgery improves sexual function, reduces low back pain

Chronic low back pain can limit everyday activities, including sex. New research presented today at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), found that 70 percent of patients consider sexual activity "relevant" to their life quality, and patients who receive surgical treatment for spinal spondylolisthesis (DS) and spinal stenosis (SS)--common degenerative conditions most often occurring in older adults--were twice as likely to report no pain during sex.

24 Mar 2015

ItpkB enzyme regulates stem cells function to prevent cancer, anemia

Stem cells can generate any type of cell in the body, but they are inactive most of the time--and for good reason. When stem cells become too active and divide too often, they risk acquiring cell damage and mutations.

24 Mar 2015

Exercise and chronic fatigue syndrome: an interview with Professor Trudie Chalder

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is characterised primarily by fatigue but people often report muscle pain and sleep problems as well as concentration and memory problems. The symptoms affect people’s ability to carry out normal activities that healthy people take for granted. CFS can affect relationships, work and leisure activities.

24 Mar 2015

Birmingham academics educate Chinese grandparents to tackle childhood obesity

Academics from the University of Birmingham, UK are engaging with grandparents in China, to help tackle the increasing problem of obesity amongst Chinese children in a trailblazing public health programme.

24 Mar 2015

Publicly insured Americans who undergo lung transplantation fare worse than their UK counterparts

Publicly insured Americans who undergo lung transplantation for cystic fibrosis fare markedly worse in the long run than both publicly insured patients in the United Kingdom and privately insured Americans, according to the results of a study conducted by researchers from Johns Hopkins in Baltimore and U.K. colleagues working in that nation's government-funded National Health Service.

24 Mar 2015

Discontinuation of statin therapy may benefit patients with terminal illness

Discontinuing statin use in patients with late-stage cancer and other terminal illnesses may help improve patients' quality of life without causing other adverse health effects, according to a new study by led by researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and Duke University and funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR).

24 Mar 2015

Study highlights the treatable causes of cerebellar ataxias

No cures are possible for most patients who suffer debilitating movement disorders called cerebellar ataxias. But in a few of these disorders, patients can be effectively treated with regimens such as prescription drugs, high doses of vitamin E and gluten-free diets, according to a study in the journal Movement Disorders.

24 Mar 2015

Home-exercise plan for HIV patients

In addition to antiretroviral medications, people with HIV may soon begin receiving a home exercise plan from their doctors, according to a researcher at Case Western Reserve University's Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing.

24 Mar 2015

Funding helps researchers to kiss Multiple Sclerosis (MS) goodbye

Murdoch University researchers have received funding to investigate the link between the Epstein-Barr virus infection, more commonly known as glandular fever or the ‘kissing disease’, and the debilitating disease Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

24 Mar 2015

Low zinc levels in older adults correspond with increased chronic inflammation

Zinc, an important mineral in human health, appears to affect how the immune system responds to stimulation, especially inflammation, new research from Oregon State University shows.

23 Mar 2015

Mast plans to develop vepoloxamer for chronic heart failure treatment

Mast Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company leveraging its molecular adhesion and sealant technology (MAST) platform to develop novel therapies for sickle cell disease, arterial disease and heart failure, today announced its plans to develop vepoloxamer (MST-188) for the treatment of patients with chronic heart failure.

23 Mar 2015

EHT expert paper raises important and unanswered questions about safety of wearable tech

Wearable technology is raising health concerns worldwide. A recent New York Times article by Nick Bilton is raising important and unanswered questions about the safety of wearable tech, according to the non-profit research group, Environmental Health Trust.

23 Mar 2015

Acne patients not getting medications prescribed by their dermatologists

Medicine obviously can't do much good if it sits on a pharmacy shelf. Yet more than one-quarter of the acne patients surveyed by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center researchers didn't get medications prescribed by their dermatologists.

23 Mar 2015

Bloomberg Philanthropies introduces $100 million initiative to improve public health data collection

Bloomberg Philanthropies, in partnership with the Australian government, is launching Data for Health, a $100 million initiative that will enable 20 low- and middle-income countries to vastly improve public health data collection.

23 Mar 2015

New study pinpoints major increase in subdural hematoma surgery by 2030

By 2030, chronic subdural hemorrhage (SDH) will be the most common adult brain condition requiring neurosurgical intervention in the U.S., according to a new study conducted by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center.

23 Mar 2015

AAPM announces recipients of 2015 Pain Medicine Fellowship Excellence Award

The American Academy of Pain Medicine is pleased to announce its 2015 Pain Medicine Fellowship Excellence Award Recipients in recognition of a Pain Medicine Fellowship Program that provides an exceptional learning experience to its fellows, preparing them to deliver the highest standard of care to patients with pain.

22 Mar 2015

MED15 may serve as prognostic marker for HNSCC recurrence

A new study provides the first evidence that the mediator complex subunit 15 (MED15) may play a crucial role in the pathophysiology of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). MED15 overexpression was found to be associated with higher mortality rates in HNSCC patients with cancer recurrence, particularly in oral cavity/oropharyngeal tumors, according to the study published in The American Journal of Pathology.

21 Mar 2015

Cosentyx (secukinumab) safe, effective for treating psoriasis patients

Novartis today announced new two-year results demonstrating sustained efficacy with Cosentyx (secukinumab) with an acceptable safety profile for the treatment of psoriasis patients. The data comes from the extension study of the pivotal Phase III FIXTURE and ERASURE trials.

21 Mar 2015

New strategies to improve screening rates for colorectal cancer in low-income populations

Since the colonoscopy was developed more than four decades ago, the screening procedure for colorectal cancer has undoubtedly saved millions of lives.

20 Mar 2015