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Discovery of new way to prevent cardiac fibrosis

In a study that points to a new strategy for preventing or possibly reversing fibrosis - the scarring that can lead to organ and tissue damage - researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have determined that a molecule called Epac (Exchange protein activated by cAMP1), plays a key role in integrating the body’s pro- and anti-fibrotic response.

22 Apr 2008

300,000 soldiers who served in Iraq or Afghanistan have post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression

Nearly one in five, or about 300,000, soldiers who has served in Iraq or Afghanistan has post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression -- illnesses that could cost the U.S. as much as $6.2 billion over two years in care, lost productivity and lost lives through suicide, according to a RAND report released on Thursday, the Washington Post reports (Scott Tyson, Washington Post, 4/18).

18 Apr 2008

NEJM article examines U.S. physician shortage

In this week's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, national correspondent John Iglehart examines efforts by medical schools to enroll and train more physicians, as well as the lack of action by the federal government and private health insurance industry to address concerns about physician shortages in the U.S.

18 Apr 2008

Biomoda granted 'notice of allowance' for U.S. patent protection for additional IP

Biomoda, Inc., a development stage medical diagnostics company, announced it has been granted a notice of allowance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its invention directed to the "Method for Prognosing Response to Cancer Therapy with 5,10,15,20-Tetrakis (Carboxyphenyl) Porphine."

18 Apr 2008

Five-alpha-reductase Inhibitors for prostate cancer prevention

Compared to placebo treatment, taking 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs) can reduce a man's risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer from around 5-9% to around 4-6% during up to 7 years of treatment, according to a new Cochrane Review.

17 Apr 2008

20 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans suffer from PTSD or major depression

Nearly 20 percent of military service members who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan - 300,000 in all - report symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder or major depression, yet only slight more than half have sought treatment, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

17 Apr 2008

Plastic surgeons to develop groundbreaking therapies for war injury research

Members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) will play a pivotal role over the next five years developing groundbreaking therapies to better treat U.S. soldiers critically injured in Iraq and Afghanistan.

17 Apr 2008

Young macho men with serious injuries often abuse alcohol

Men with serious injuries, such as traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury, must deal with a range of emotions.

11 Apr 2008

Cholesterol in Parkinson's disease

In 2006, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers published a study that found people with low levels of LDL cholesterol are more likely to have Parkinson's disease than people with high LDL levels.

7 Apr 2008

Genetic mutations tied to immune comeback during therapy for HIV-1

Researchers with the Infectious Disease Clinical Research Program (IDCRP) at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) here and the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio have published a patient outcome study in the March 30 online edition of Nature Medicine that may signal a need for a change of thought in the management of HIV.

3 Apr 2008

Gene mutations tied to immune comeback during therapy for HIV-1

A new study by U.S. scientists provides compelling evidence that two genes are linchpins in defining the course of immune restoration in HIV-positive individuals undergoing virus-suppressing therapy.

31 Mar 2008

Post-traumatic stress disorder associated with more, longer hospitalizations

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have found post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with more hospitalizations, longer hospitalizations and greater mental healthcare utilization in urban primary care patients.

31 Mar 2008

Near-infrared light used to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease

A team of researchers in Bedford, Mass. has developed a way of examining brain tissue with near-infrared light to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease.

20 Mar 2008

Past child abuse plus variations in gene result in potent PTSD risk for adults

A traumatic event is much more likely to result in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adults who experienced trauma in childhood - but certain gene variations raise the risk considerably if the childhood trauma involved physical or sexual abuse, scientists have found.

19 Mar 2008

Psychological stress resulting from the traumatic stress may damage this brain

Individuals who experience military combat obviously endure extreme stress, and this exposure leaves many diagnosed with the psychiatric condition of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.

19 Mar 2008

Study examines changes in quality of life after head and neck cancer treatment

In the year following their first treatment, patients with head and neck cancer report declines in their physical quality of life but improvements in their mental health quality of life, according to a report in the March issue of Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

18 Mar 2008

Near-infrared light used to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease

A team of researchers in Bedford, Mass. has developed a way of examining brain tissue with near-infrared light to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease.

17 Mar 2008

Weight-loss more effective than intensive insulin therapy for type 2 diabetics, according to expert

Weight-loss and major lifestyle changes may be more effective than intensive insulin therapy for overweight patients with poorly controlled, insulin-resistant type 2 diabetes, according to a diabetes researcher at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

11 Mar 2008

Cell therapy for rejuvenating aged brain by injection of human umbilical cord blood

When human umbilical cord blood cells (UCBC) were injected into aged laboratory animals, researchers at the University of South Florida (USF) found improvements in the microenvironment of the hippocampus region of the animals' brains and a subsequent rejuvenation of neural stem/progenitor cells.

11 Mar 2008

Pesticides and nerve agents explain health problems in Persian Gulf war veterans

A study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine shows there is increasing evidence that high rates of illness in Persian Gulf War Veterans can be explained, in part, by exposure to certain chemicals, including pesticides and nerve agents.

11 Mar 2008