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Implantation of new bioprosthetic-tissue valve in patients with severe aortic stenosis saves lives

Implantation of a new bioprosthetic-tissue valve into the hearts of patients who have severe aortic stenosis and are too sick or too old for open-heart surgery has been found to both save lives and improve the quality of those lives, according to a new multicenter study, to be published online at 2 p.m. Pacific time today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

23 Sep 2010

JHS conference focuses on future research directions to eliminate health disparities

The tenth anniversary of the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) will be observed on Sept. 23-24 in Jackson, Mississippi. The JHS is the largest study in history to investigate genetic factors that affect high blood pressure, heart and lung disease, stroke, diabetes, and other important diseases in African-Americans.

22 Sep 2010

Voice disorders are not benign nuisances that go away

Two-thirds of Americans with voice problems don't seek medical care either because they don't know treatment is available or because they think the problem will just go away, according to a new study conducted at the Duke Voice Care Center.

21 Sep 2010

Nonin Medical launches new pulse oximetry products at ERS 2010 Annual Congress

Nonin Medical, Inc., a leading innovator of noninvasive physiological monitoring solutions, today introduced new pulse oximetry products, a new clinical guidebook and a new European sales, distribution and customer service center at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) 2010 Annual Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

21 Sep 2010

Researchers identify new target for cystic fibrosis

The lab of Kevin Foskett, PhD, the Isaac Ott Professor of Physiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, has found a possible new target for fighting cystic fibrosis (CF) that could compensate for the lack of a functioning ion channel in affected CF-related cells. Their finding appears in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

18 Sep 2010

Inspire Pharmaceuticals to present denufosol tetrasodium therapy data at ERS Annual Congress

Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that data will be presented on denufosol tetrasodium, an investigational therapy for cystic fibrosis (CF), during oral and poster presentations at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) Annual Congress September 18 - 22, 2010 in Barcelona, Spain.

17 Sep 2010

Children with severe, therapy-resistant asthma more likely to have poorer lung function: SARP

A subset of children with asthma suffers from severe, treatment-resistant disease associated with more illness and greater allergic hypersensitivity, according to the results of the National Heart, Blood, and Lung Institute's Severe Asthma Research Program, presented in a recently published article in Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc..

10 Sep 2010

Innate immune processes sufficient for driving silicosis: Study

For the nearly 2 million U.S. workers exposed to silica dust each year, a new discovery may help prevent or treat the development of chronic lung diseases related to this exposure. In the September 2010 issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology scientists from Montana and Texas use mice to show for the first time that the part of our immune system responsible for keeping airways clean and free of contaminants (innate immunity) can cause inflammation and symptoms of disease.

2 Sep 2010

Infants born by early elective C-section likely to have health problems: Study

Medical experts point to a disturbing trend of expectant mothers who are choosing to deliver their babies for non-medical reasons before 39 weeks of pregnancy.

31 Aug 2010

Second-hand smoke triggers complex inflammatory response

Second-hand smoke is associated with a number of diseases and conditions, including cancer, heart disease, and emphysema. It is an irritant to lung tissue and blood vessels, but the processes through which the body reacts to second-hand smoke comprise a mystery scientists are only beginning to unravel. Researchers at the University of Colorado-Denver are currently studying how second-hand smoke affects the lungs of rats, and so far it appears that second-hand smoke triggers a complex inflammatory response.

27 Aug 2010

Vitamin D may be effective in preventing allergies in patients cystic fibrosis, asthma

Vitamin D may be an effective therapy to treat and even prevent allergy to a common mold that can cause severe complications for patients with cystic fibrosis and asthma.

26 Aug 2010

Even low-level exposure to cigarette smoke affects gene function in lungs

Casual smokers may think that smoking a few cigarettes a week is "no big deal." But according to new research from physician-scientists at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, having an infrequent smoke, or being exposed to secondhand smoke, may be doing more harm than people may think. The findings may further support public smoking bans, say the authors.

20 Aug 2010

Effects of illegal drugs on health

Illegal drugs are responsible for up to 1,600 deaths a year in the UK, and destroy thousands of relationships, families and careers. Find out about the most commonly used illegal drugs in England and Wales and the effects they can have on your health.

19 Aug 2010

Gene-regulating molecule plays key role in development of Th9 cells linked to chronic respiratory tract illness

Scientists at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany have taken a further step towards improving our understanding of how asthma develops. These new findings show that the gene-regulating molecule "IRF4" plays a key role in the development of T helper 9 lymphocytes (Th9 cells), which can play a major part in the development of this chronic, inflammatory illness of the respiratory tract.

18 Aug 2010

$Study finds link between osteoporosis, fracture$

Study finds link between osteoporosis, fracture

An international study of more than 60,000 women has drawn new light on the relationship between osteoporosis and fractures.Scientists call for more to be done to identify and treat patients at the highest risk of fractures.Osteoporosis is more common in women who have fractured bones when they were younger and they experience a similar loss in health-related quality of life as those with arthritis, lung disease, diabetes and other chronic diseases.

18 Aug 2010

CPF urges people to consider clinical trials for pulmonary fibrosis

The Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis (CPF) is urging the more than 128,000 people known to suffer from the deadly lung disease, pulmonary fibrosis (PF), to consider clinical trials, including two new ones funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Clinical trials of potential drug therapies are critical to the discovery of treatments for any disease and for a disease like PF that claims as many lives each year as breast cancer with virtually no survivors, they are the likely path to answers and saved lives.

13 Aug 2010

Penn. effort fades to override cuts to family planning; Ill. faces budget cuts to health care; Mich. focuses on high cost of chronic disease

The Philadelphia Inquirer: "As two Democratic state lawmakers initiated a campaign to override the governor's veto of $7.5 million for family-planning health centers, six Republican state senators who previously voted to restore the funding reversed course, most likely ending any hopes of restoring the money. Democrats would need at least four Republican votes for an override in the Senate, which now appears unlikely.

5 Aug 2010

$International study of more than 60,000 women highlights additional risk associated with fractures$

International study of more than 60,000 women highlights additional risk associated with fractures

Researchers seeking to understand the impact of osteoporosis and fractures on various aspects of health have found that women who had previous fractures experienced a significant reduction in health-related quality of life similar to or worse than that experienced by patients with diabetes, arthritis, lung disease and other chronic illnesses. This latest study from the Global Longitudinal Study of Osteoporosis in Women (GLOW), which is based at the Center for Outcomes Research at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, was published online.

3 Aug 2010

CPF announces nationwide advertising campaign to increase awareness about PF

The Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis announced today a nationwide advertising campaign to spread the word about Pulmonary Fibrosis is underway in an untraditional setting – on the nation's interstates. Together, a billboard ad and truck ads are part of a nationwide campaign to raise eyebrows and awareness of the deadly lung disease.

30 Jul 2010