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UK's NHS selects Health Language for IT healthcare solution

Health Language, Inc., (HLI) the world's leading supplier of medical vocabulary and concept-based technology, announced an agreement with the National Health Service (NHS) of the United Kingdom

20 Apr 2004

Metabolic syndrome may make arteries thicker and stiffer

A cluster of cardiovascular disease risk factors, known as the metabolic syndrome, may “age” arteries, according to a new study in the April 21, 2004 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

20 Apr 2004

New method that will revolutionize the search for genes

Medical researchers know that most common human diseases, such as hypertension and diabetes, have a large genetic component. Many genes, interacting with the environment, contribute to these diseases. For researchers, a major challenge is finding all the genes involved with a particular disease.

18 Apr 2004

New information on genetic shuffling before egg or sperm formation rewrites genetic theory

Key decisions in the genetic shuffling that occurs before eggs or sperm are formed are made earlier than thought, rewriting textbook genetics, according to recent papers from researchers at UC Davis, Harvard University and UC San Diego.

16 Apr 2004

Microbiologists have characterised the DNA in bacteria responsible for vomiting

James Cook University microbiologists have characterised the DNA in bacteria responsible for one of the world's most common forms of food poisoning.

16 Apr 2004

Risks of animal-human cross infection from food consumption "wolf nipple chips anyone"

Hungry? How about some bull testicles, or maybe some chameleon or guinea pig? Not to your liking? Well, in the world of food, what constitutes fine cuisine is a cultural determination. The French have horsemeat and frogs' legs, the Australians kangaroo and alligator, and the Chinese have water snake and civet cat.

16 Apr 2004

Alzheimer fact sheet released

Dementia is a syndrome consisting of a number of symptoms that include loss of memory, judgment and reasoning, and changes in mood, behaviour and communication abilities. Alzheimer Disease, the most common form of dementia, accounts for 64 per cent of all dementias in Canada.

14 Apr 2004

21st century is shaping up to be the "century of vaccines"

The 21st century is shaping up to be the "century of vaccines," as vaccine developers make striking progress against both emerging and longstanding diseases, according to Vaccines: Preventing Diseases and Protecting Health, from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

14 Apr 2004

NZ Research helps difficult pregnancies

Before the 1960's knowledge of the intrauterine environment was like a black box, limiting clinical understanding, and monitoring of the fetus during pregnancy. Little was known about the fetus until after birth happened. Now that has changed dramatically, and there have been revolutionary advances, particularly in the last 20 years enabling clinicians to diagnose and treat problems which develop in the womb.

13 Apr 2004

CDC provides new guide to protect against Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) is a deadly disease transmitted by infected rodents through urine, droppings, or saliva.

12 Apr 2004

Birth of First Deadly Jellyfish In Captivity Could Lead To Anti-Venom

The first Irukandji jellyfish to be bred in captivity have been born in Townsville, Australia. ‘Irukandji syndrome' is a painful and debilitating set of symptoms that has caused the deaths of at least two people on the Great Barrier Reef. Up to seven species of jellyfish found in northern Australian waters are thought to be responsible for the syndrome, but only one, Carukia barnesi , is a proven culprit.

11 Apr 2004

Breast-feeding may protect against SIDS

Breast-fed babies arouse more readily from deep sleep, Monash researchers have found, in a discovery that could help reduce deaths due to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

7 Apr 2004

Alcohol screening can spot addiction

Have you ever felt like you needed a drink? If an occasional cocktail changes into a need, it could mean an alcohol problem. National Alcohol Screening Day is April 8. In cities and towns throughout the United States, screening programs will be offered to help people determine whether they exhibit drinking behaviors that could be signs of alcohol addiction.

7 Apr 2004

New research findings in study of Rett Syndrome

Rudolf Jaenisch of the Whitehead Institute of Biomedical Research in Cambridge, MA reports in the April 6, 2004 online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that introduction of the MeCP2 protein into post-mitotic nerve cells of MeCP2 mutant mice rescues the symptoms of Rett Syndrome. This raises the possibility that neurons are functionally normal in a newborn child and that neural dysfunction manifests itself only later due to prolonged MeCP2 deficiency. If correct, therapeutic strategies aimed at preventing the onset of Rett symptoms could be initiated at birth.

7 Apr 2004

Phase 3 study of drug teduglutide in patients with short bowel syndrome

Teduglutide is an analog of glucagon-like peptide 2 (GLP-2), a naturally occurring hormone that regulates the growth, proliferation and maintenance of cells lining the gastrointestinal tract. Teduglutide has been shown in animal studies and previous human clinical trials to increase the size and number of these cells, thereby increasing the absorptive surface area of the intestines.

6 Apr 2004

Research shows giving Tourette Syndrome patients the drug levodopa normalizes brain activity

Scientists have known for years that abnormal activity involving a brain chemical called dopamine is somehow connected to the movements and vocalizations, or tics, associated with Tourette syndrome. Now neuroscience researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found brain activity in these patients is abnormal during memory tasks, as well.

5 Apr 2004

New treatment for Tourette Syndrome, patients experience significant resolution of symptoms following brain surgery

A neurosurgical team at University Hospitals of Cleveland (UHC) has, for the first time in North America, applied a new surgical approach to the treatment of Tourette syndrome, resulting in the immediate and nearly complete resolution of symptoms for the patient, who has suffered from this neurologic disorder since he was a child.

1 Apr 2004

Gene of immune system linked to severe adverse drug reaction called Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS)

In a study of Han Chinese patients, researchers have for the first time directly linked a gene of the immune system to a severe adverse drug reaction called Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), according to a Duke University Medical Center medical geneticist and collaborators in Taiwan.

1 Apr 2004

FDA has approved Zyprexa, injectable anti-psychotic drug

Physicians have a new fast-acting option for controlling the potentially crippling effects of acute agitation in patients suffering with schizophrenia and bipolar mania. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Zyprexa® IntraMuscular (olanzapine for injection), an injectable form of Lilly's top-selling medication.

30 Mar 2004

Cardiac sympathetic denervation the heart’s control from the sympathetic nervous system

Surgery to cut part of the nerves to the heart can reduce the risk of fainting or sudden death in young people with a heart rhythm disorder called long QT syndrome (LQTS), researchers reported in today’s rapid access issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

29 Mar 2004