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Study finds high cost of caring for aging parent

Caring for an aging parent or spouse is expensive -- averaging about $5,500 a year -- according to a new national study.

29 Nov 2007

Occupational therapy is effective in improving independence in stroke patients

Occupational therapy can improve the lives of patients who have suffered a stroke and lessen their chances of deteriorating or even dying, according to an international study published in the British Medical Journal Online.

29 Nov 2007

Eltrombopag studied in Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura

There are estimated to be between 50,000 -- 100,000 individuals in the U.S. diagnosed with chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), an autoimmune disease that dramatically reduces the number of platelets in their blood -- causing bruises, nosebleeds and, sometimes, life-threatening brain hemorrhages.

29 Nov 2007

Could stem cells be used to cure Crohn's Disease?

Scientists are investigating whether stem cells could be used to 're-boot' the immune system and provide a cure for Crohn's Disease.

29 Nov 2007

Study finds no real increase in obesity among adults; but levels still high

After a quarter century of increases, obesity prevalence has not measurably increased in the past few years but levels are still high - at 34 percent of U.S. adults aged 20 and over, according to a new study released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

29 Nov 2007

Depressed, older adults with diabetes live longer when they are treated for depression

The depression study, which followed primary care patients in the New York City, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh areas for five years, also showed that treating depression reduced mortality more for those who had diabetes than for those who did not.

27 Nov 2007

Discovery of gene responsible for statin-induced muscle pain

Statins, the popular class of drugs used to lower cholesterol, are among the most commonly prescribed medications in developed countries.

27 Nov 2007

Scientists adopt fresh approach in quest for new therapies

Scientists are to pool their expertise in human health to pioneer an innovative approach to treating common diseases.

27 Nov 2007

HHS launches childhood obesity prevention initiative

First Lady Laura Bush saluted the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' new Childhood Overweight and Obesity Prevention Initiative, announced today at the National Prevention Summit, which targets obesity prevention and the promotion of healthy weight for children.

27 Nov 2007

Alcohol may promote scarring and airway injury after transplantation

A recent study using an animal model of lung transplants shows that chronic alcohol consumption by the donor promotes scarring and airway injury after transplantation.

27 Nov 2007

Secondhand smoke does damage lungs

It's not a smoking gun, but it's smoking-related, and it's there in bright medical images: evidence of microscopic structural damage deep in the lungs, caused by secondhand cigarette smoke.

27 Nov 2007

Psychiatric advance directives enhance patient-doctor communication

In theory, psychiatric advance directives provide a way to improve medical decision making during a mental health crisis.

27 Nov 2007

HIV/AIDS in Serbia - stigma, loneliness and ostracism

Many people with HIV/AIDS in Serbia and Montenegro experience stigma, loneliness and ostracism, and can find it difficult to secure work and support themselves, according to new research findings.

27 Nov 2007

Acute renal failure after non-cardiac operations

Patients undergoing major, non-cardiac surgery have a one percent risk of developing kidney failure, and those who do have kidney damage are at increased risk of death within a month after their operation.

26 Nov 2007

FDA accepts Schering-Plough's new drug application for Asenapine

Schering-Plough Corporation has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently accepted the filing for review of the New Drug Application (NDA) for asenapine, a fast-dissolving, sublingual tablet.

26 Nov 2007

Non-Caucasians at higher risk for severe metastatic breast cancer pain

A new study finds significant racial differences in the risk of pain related to metastatic breast cancer.

26 Nov 2007

Discovery of new signaling molecule could lead to the development of new treatments for cancer

Investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have discovered a new signaling molecule that prevents immune responses from running amok and damaging the body.

21 Nov 2007

New discoveries about nitric oxide can provide drugs for schizophrenia

Problems with memory and social function in patients with schizophrenia may result from an imbalance in the brain’s nitric oxide system.

21 Nov 2007

Measures that are needed to curb humanity's most fatal diseases

Several of the world's most eminent health scientists and organizations today publish a landmark global consensus on the 20 foremost measures needed to curb humanity's most fatal diseases, their study featured in Nature magazine.

21 Nov 2007

Pregabalin decreases pain, speeds movement in knee replacement patients

The drug pregabalin administered before and after knee replacement surgery, significantly decreased patient pain while increasing and expediting mobility after surgery, according to a study by Asokumar Buvanendran, MD, director of Orthopedic Anesthesia and associate professor of Anesthesiology at Rush University Medical Center, Chicago.

21 Nov 2007