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Atrial fibrillation may be hereditary

Having a parent with atrial fibrillation (AF) strongly increased an offspring’s risk of developing this heart rhythm disorder, according to a study of participants in the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) Framingham Heart Study.

15 Jun 2004

High resolution imaging greatly aids physicians treating irregular heart beats

The findings of a new study published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology demonstrate that the use of high resolution imaging can greatly aid physicians who are treating patients suffering from a particular type of irregular heart beat.

15 Jun 2004

New operating room with 3-dimensional technology that takes modern robotic surgery to new levels

Surgical teams are now performing robotic surgery for prostate cancer with enhanced efficiency, comfort and communication using this unique technology.

15 Jun 2004

Pain after surgery worse with age

Pain after surgery to repair hernia was less intense for younger patients undergoing the procedure, according to an article in the June issue of The Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

15 Jun 2004

Wireless patient monitoring system using mobile phone technology

Your doctor may soon be able to check on your recovery after a hospital stay by texting your mobile phone. Researchers, writing in BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making today, have developed and tested a wireless patient monitoring system that could help detect patient suffering at a distance.

14 Jun 2004

Virginia Health urges women of childbearing age to take folic acid

According to data from a report released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in January 2004, only 35 percent of Virginia women of childbearing age take a vitamin pill that contains folic acid.

11 Jun 2004

Second opinion from another obstetrician could reduce the frequency of caesarean births in Latin America

Latin America has the highest rate of caesarian sections-around a quarter of all deliveries-than any other part of the world. Fernando Althabe from the Centro Latinoamericano de Perinatologia, Montevideo, Uruguay, and colleagues assessed whether a compulsory second opinion from another obstetrician could reduce the frequency of caesarean births.

11 Jun 2004

First robotic heart operations in the southern hemisphere

Monash University Department of Surgery staff have made history by performing the first robotic heart operations in the southern hemisphere.

11 Jun 2004

Blood test that can detect amplification of a certain gene found in cells associated with breast cancer

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have developed a blood test that can detect amplification of a certain gene found in circulating cells associated with breast cancer.

10 Jun 2004

Magnetic resonance imaging better than traditional mammography for detecting the presence of breast cancer

Researchers from the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania today presented the first comprehensive study results which show that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is significantly better than traditional mammography for detecting the presence and extent of disease in patients with a diagnosis of breast cancer.

10 Jun 2004

The once youngest person in the world to survive a heart by-pass operation is expecting her 2nd child

Lorraine Stone was born with heart disease. When just three days old she was the youngest person in the world at that time to survive a heart by-pass operation. Since then she has had five major heart operations. Miraculously, at the age 29, she is expecting to give birth to her second child in July.

10 Jun 2004

Early hormone therapy for metastatic prostate cancer increases life expectancy

Men with aggressive, metastatic prostate cancer who receive immediate early hormone therapy live on average three to four years longer than others who delay similar treatment, according to researchers at the University of Rochester.

10 Jun 2004

Non-aspirin pain drugs may help men with recurrent prostate cancer

Early results from a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine study may determine if drugs called Cox-2 inhibitors, a newer type of non-aspirin pain medicine now widely prescribed for arthritis symptoms, may benefit men with recurrent prostate cancer.

10 Jun 2004

FDA approval for miniature robot for spinal procedures

A miniature robot for fail-proof spinal procedures has received FDA approval. Named SpineAssist, the robot is the brainchild of Technion-Israel Institute of Technology Mechanical Engineering Professor Moshe Shoham.

10 Jun 2004

Knee replacement operations have more than doubled in a decade

The findings are based on an analysis of hospital treatment statistics in England between 1991 and 2000. The number of first time hip replacements increased by 18% during this period, while the need to revise the procedure more than doubled.

10 Jun 2004

Russian doctors appreciate benefits of natural remedies

"It would appear that American doctors have a long way to go compared to Russian doctors who are, after recognizing the limited results with traditional drugs, are now successfully testing natural remedies," according to nutritional researcher Peter Gillham.

10 Jun 2004

Patients play computer games using only the signals from their brains

For the first time in humans, a team headed by researchers at Washington University in St. Louis has placed an electronic grid atop patients' brains to gather motor signals that enable patients to play a computer game using only the signals from their brains.

10 Jun 2004