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Study: About 50% of fibromyalgia patients have nerve damage

About half of a small group of patients with fibromyalgia - a common syndrome that causes chronic pain and other symptoms - was found to have damage to nerve fibers in their skin and other evidence of a disease called small-fiber polyneuropathy (SFPN). Unlike fibromyalgia, which has had no known causes and few effective treatments, SFPN has a clear pathology and is known to be caused by specific medical conditions, some of which can be treated and sometimes cured.

31 Jul 2013

Male and female rats show different patterns of kidney gene expression throughout their lives

Male and female rats show different patterns of kidney gene expression throughout their lives, a study in the open access journal Biology of Sex Differences reveals. The finding could help explain some of the gender differences observed in human renal disease, and lead to improved biomarkers of kidney function.

31 Jul 2013

Study reveals breast reduction surgery can improve health and quality of life

Breast reduction surgery produces measurable improvements in several important areas of health and quality of life, reports a study in the August issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery-, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

31 Jul 2013

FibroGen, Astellas initiate Phase 2 study of ASP1517/FG-4592 for treatment of anemia linked with CKD

Astellas Pharma Inc. (Tokyo:4503) (Astellas) and FibroGen, Inc. (FibroGen) announced today the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical study in Japan of ASP1517/FG-4592 for treatment of anemia associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD) in patients on dialysis.

31 Jul 2013

First Edition: July 30, 2013

Today's headlines include a USA Today story reporting that personal health care costs rose in the 12 months ending in May at the slowest rate in the last 50 years -- a finding that makes the White House happy.

30 Jul 2013

Stress exposure in early life increases anxiety and consumption of comfort foods in adulthood

Research to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior, suggests that exposure to stress in the first few days of life increases stress responses, anxiety and the consumption of palatable "comfort" foods in adulthood.

30 Jul 2013

FDA grants orphan-drug designation to Convergence's CNV1014802 for treatment of TN

Convergence Pharmaceuticals Limited, the company focused on the development of novel and high value analgesic medicines for the treatment of chronic pain, is pleased to announce that its novel sodium channel blocker, CNV1014802 ('802), has been granted orphan-drug designation by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia.

30 Jul 2013

Patient-reported outcomes may lead to new insights for improving cataract care

Cataract surgery can lead to good results from a clinical standpoint yet have poor outcomes from the patient's point of view, reports a study, "Analyzing Patient-Reported Outcomes to Improve Cataract Care", appearing in the August issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry.

30 Jul 2013

Hope for treatment of childhood infections may come straight from the gut: Therapeutic poop

Call it therapeutic poop, if you will, but the best hope yet for an effective treatment of childhood infections with the drug-resistant bacterium C. difficile may come straight from the gut, according to recent research.

30 Jul 2013

Different types of happiness have surprisingly different effects on human genome

A good state of mind - that is, your happiness - affects your genes, scientists say. In the first study of its kind, researchers from UCLA's Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology and the University of North Carolina examined how positive psychology impacts human gene expression.

30 Jul 2013

NIH expands CRIC study to identify risk factors for progression of early stage CKD

Researchers from the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort study are embarking on another five years of work to identify risk factors for progression of early stage chronic kidney disease, better understand the importance of reduced kidney function in older persons, and learn what role CKD may play in other illnesses that require hospitalization. CRIC is supported by the National Institutes of Health.

30 Jul 2013

Joints of children with chronic inflammatory arthritis contain premature aging of immune cells

The joints of children with the most common form of chronic inflammatory arthritis contain immune cells that resemble those of 90-year-olds, according to a new study led by researchers at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

30 Jul 2013

Hepatitis C (HCV) testing for baby boomers: an interview with Dr. Donald Jensen, Director, Center for Liver Diseases, University of Chicago

The USPSTF agreed with the CDC that since most patients (75%) who are currently infected with hepatitis C were born between 1945 - 1965, and since risk-based screening has not been successful in identifying these individuals, that a one time age-based hepatitis C blood test was necessary.

29 Jul 2013

Saudi and UK scientists provide detailed picture of MERS coronavirus

Saudi and UK scientists provide the most detailed picture yet of the clinical and laboratory characteristics of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, revealing a wide range of clinical symptoms and an extremely high death rate among patients with co-existing medical conditions.

29 Jul 2013

CHMP gives positive opinion for approval of once-daily QVA149 for treatment of COPD

Sosei Group Corporation confirms the information released by Novartis that the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has adopted a positive opinion for approval of once-daily Ultibro® Breezhaler®, as a maintenance bronchodilator treatment to relieve symptoms in adult patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

29 Jul 2013

Many women die due to Cad, yet less likely to receive preventive recommendations

Despite coronary artery disease (CAD) killing at least as many women as men each year, women are still today less likely to receive preventive recommendations, such as lipid-lowering therapy, aspirin, and lifestyle advice, than are men at a similar risk level.

29 Jul 2013

Technique for developing more targeted drugs using molecular "robots"

Many drugs such as agents for cancer or autoimmune diseases have nasty side effects because while they kill disease-causing cells, they also affect healthy cells. Now a new study has demonstrated a technique for developing more targeted drugs, by using molecular "robots" to hone in on more specific populations of cells.

29 Jul 2013

GlaxoSmithKline receives CHMP positive opinion for REVOLADE

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated partner GlaxoSmithKline announced that today, the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use issued a positive opinion recommending marketing authorization for GSK's REVOLADE (eltrombopag) as a treatment for low platelet counts (thrombocytopenia) in adult patients with chronic hepatitis C infection, where the degree of thrombocytopenia is the main factor preventing the initiation or limiting the ability to maintain optimal interferon-based therapy

26 Jul 2013

Viewpoints: Doctors' sway over Medicare pay; hospital rankings not all they seem; legal immigrants' health needs overlooked

Reporters Peter Whoriskey and Dan Keating have opened Post readers' eyes to the fact that Medicare pays for physician services - a $69.6 billion item in 2012 - according to an arcane and little-known price list, over which doctors themselves exercise considerable and less-than-totally-transparent influence (7/24).

26 Jul 2013

Gout, uric acid levels and risk of death: an interview with Professor Austin Stack, Graduate Entry Medical School, University of Limerick

Gout is a relatively common arthritic disease that affects about 4% (I in 25) of the population. It results from the deposition of uric acid in joints due to elevated blood levels and a resulting inflammation ensues which is very painful.

26 Jul 2013

Chronic News and Research

Study: About 50% of fibromyalgia patients have nerve damage

Male and female rats show different patterns of kidney gene expression throughout their lives

Study reveals breast reduction surgery can improve health and quality of life

FibroGen, Astellas initiate Phase 2 study of ASP1517/FG-4592 for treatment of anemia linked with CKD

First Edition: July 30, 2013

Stress exposure in early life increases anxiety and consumption of comfort foods in adulthood

FDA grants orphan-drug designation to Convergence's CNV1014802 for treatment of TN

Patient-reported outcomes may lead to new insights for improving cataract care

Hope for treatment of childhood infections may come straight from the gut: Therapeutic poop

Different types of happiness have surprisingly different effects on human genome

NIH expands CRIC study to identify risk factors for progression of early stage CKD

Joints of children with chronic inflammatory arthritis contain premature aging of immune cells

Hepatitis C (HCV) testing for baby boomers: an interview with Dr. Donald Jensen, Director, Center for Liver Diseases, University of Chicago

Saudi and UK scientists provide detailed picture of MERS coronavirus

CHMP gives positive opinion for approval of once-daily QVA149 for treatment of COPD

Many women die due to Cad, yet less likely to receive preventive recommendations

Technique for developing more targeted drugs using molecular "robots"

GlaxoSmithKline receives CHMP positive opinion for REVOLADE

Viewpoints: Doctors' sway over Medicare pay; hospital rankings not all they seem; legal immigrants' health needs overlooked

Gout, uric acid levels and risk of death: an interview with Professor Austin Stack, Graduate Entry Medical School, University of Limerick

Improving healthcare sustainability through carbon data

A New Approach to Preventing Bladder Cancer Recurrence

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

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