Respiratory News and Research

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Bird flu coming round again - three cases in Cambodia cause for concern

The latest outbreak of bird flu in Cambodia which has seen the hospitalisation of three more suspected cases is causing concern.

26 Mar 2006

China reports 11th death from bird flu as virus sweeps across the world

The World Health Organization (WHO) and China's Health Ministry have confirmed that a 29-year-old Shanghai woman has died of bird flu.

26 Mar 2006

Researchers combat tuberculosis - help may come from protective protein

Most Americans think of tuberculosis as a disease of the past, but with HIV and drug-resistant strains fueling epidemics in India and Africa, TB kills someone every six seconds across the world.

23 Mar 2006

Average pregnancy in the U.S. is now 39 weeks

The most common length of pregnancy in the United States is now 39 weeks, a week shorter than the traditional definition of a full-term pregnancy. This shift occurred between 1992 and 2002, according to a new analysis by the March of Dimes published this month in a special supplement of the journal "Seminars in Perinatology."

23 Mar 2006

Newly identified human bocavirus may be associated with pneumonia

The newly identified human bocavirus was found in nearly 5 percent of pneumonia patients in rural Thailand, mostly in very young children. Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report their finding at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases.

22 Mar 2006

A newly recognized type of immune cell may play an important role in causing asthma

...perhaps explaining why current therapies sometimes fail, report researchers from Children's Hospital Boston in the New England Journal of Medicine.

21 Mar 2006

Emergence of a human-adapted H5 virus is a clear threat to public health worldwide

The H5N1 avian influenza virus, commonly known as "bird flu," is a highly contagious and deadly disease in poultry. So far, its spread to humans has been limited, with 177 documented severe infections, and nearly 100 deaths in Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, China, Iraq, and Turkey as of March 14, 2006, according to the World Health Organization.

21 Mar 2006

Vaccinated adults less likely to die from pneumonia

Adults hospitalized for pneumonia who have received the pneumococcal vaccine are at a lower risk of dying from the disease than those who haven't been vaccinated, according to an article in the April 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases.

19 Mar 2006

Cleaner air equates to a longer life

Researchers in the U.S. say reductions in fine particulate air pollution appears to have an affect on mortality.

16 Mar 2006

Use of high humidity does not improve symptoms of croup

For children with moderate to severe croup treated in the emergency department, use of high humidity did not improve symptoms more than low humidity or mist therapy, according to an article in the March 15 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

15 Mar 2006

Association between leptin and asthma in adults

Women with high levels of an inflammatory protein produced by fat tissue are at significantly increased risk of asthma, finds research in published ahead of print in Thorax.

15 Mar 2006

Association between levels of fine particulate matter pollution and mortality risk

Investigators who extended the Harvard Six Cities fine particulate air pollution study by eight years found that reduced levels of tiny particle pollution during this period lowered mortality risk for participants.

15 Mar 2006

Asthma risk increased by early use of antibiotics

Researchers suggest that when children are exposed to antibiotics in the first year of life it may increase the risk of them developing asthma later in childhood.

15 Mar 2006

Cells in mucus from lungs point to a unique screening method that could lead to earlier treatment of lung cancer

In a group of high-risk patients, a test that examined DNA from cells expelled in sputum for evidence of "silenced" genes correctly identified the majority of patients who were later diagnosed with lung cancer, say researchers in a study published in the March 15 issue of Cancer Research.

15 Mar 2006

Wearing a special mask to bed helps children with sleep apnea breathe and sleep better

Wearing a special mask to bed helps children with sleep apnea breathe and sleep better, but a small, six-month study at Johns Hopkins Children's Center and two other pediatric hospitals suggests children aren't always using them consistently enough to reap the maximum benefits.

15 Mar 2006

Hospitalized schizophrenics more likely to have complications

A Johns Hopkins study of more than 1,700 patients with schizophrenia hospitalized for medical or surgical care unrelated to their mental disorder shows they are at least twice as likely as similar patients without schizophrenia to suffer dangerous and expensive adverse events.

15 Mar 2006

Antibiotic use in infants may double asthma risk

Children exposed to at least one course of antibiotics in their first year of life may have an increased risk of developing childhood asthma.

14 Mar 2006

Researchers test system at Cleveland-area hospitals that address family decision-making

A growing population of chronically critically ill (CCI) patients use approximately half of all hospital intensive care unit (ICU) resources at a cost of an estimated $50 billion annually. In turn, health care providers pass those costs onto the consumer.

13 Mar 2006

Link between childhood exposure to tobacco smoke and Streptococcus pneumoniae

Many of the medical risks associated with smoking, such as cancer, emphysema and heart attacks, are well-known to physicians and the general public.

13 Mar 2006

Rundown neighborhoods triple risk for disabilities

A comparison of residential areas in the St. Louis region reveales that late middle-aged and older African-Americans who live in rundown neighborhoods with poor air and street quality are three times more likely to develop difficulties walking, standing, or lifting than those in cleaner, better-maintained areas.

13 Mar 2006