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Higher ozone levels linked to greater heart risk associated with high temperatures

Ozone may prove the key to the link between high temperature and the increased risk of death from heart disease or stroke, suggests research published ahead of print in Occupational and Environmental Medicine .

22 Nov 2007

Lymphatic filariasis causes devastating social and economic losses

Sri Lankans infected with lymphatic filariasis (also known as elephantiasis) experience severe loss of income, social isolation, and devastating stigma resulting in emotional distress, delayed diagnosis, and avoidance of treatment.

22 Nov 2007

UK framework for responding to an influenza pandemic

The Health Protection Agency welcomes publication of the Government's National Framework for Responding to an Influenza Pandemic.

22 Nov 2007

Novel proposal to overcome the virus sharing impasse

In light of the importance of virus monitoring for pandemic influenza preparedness and response, Indonesia's refusal to share samples of avian flu (H5N1) virus with the WHO for most of 2007 is "distressing and potentially dangerous for global public health," say two leading global health experts in an essay in this week's PLoS Medicine.

21 Nov 2007

First genome sequence of XDR strain of the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis

An international collaboration led by researchers in the US and South Africa today announced the first genome sequence of an extensively drug resistant (XDR) strain of the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, one linked to more than 50 deaths in a recent tuberculosis (TB) outbreak in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

21 Nov 2007

New technique provides stem cells without ethical and legal constraints

In a paper to be published Nov. 22 in the online edition of the journal Science, a team of University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers reports the genetic reprogramming of human skin cells to create cells indistinguishable from embryonic stem cells.

21 Nov 2007

Most physicians are not adequately prepared to deal with obesity epidemic

The soaring obesity rates across the globe have been called the most critical challenge to public health of the 21st century.

21 Nov 2007

New human rhinovirus associated with pediatric respiratory tract infection in Germany

Using a rapid, sensitive, and inexpensive diagnostic tool called MassTag PCR, scientists at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health's Center for Infection and Immunity implicated a new human rhinovirus as the cause of severe pediatric respiratory tract infections in Europe.

21 Nov 2007

Many employers do not implement programs to improve quality and value of health benefits

A new survey indicates that among large employers, many have not examined data on physician quality or shared health plan or physician data with employees that could help improve the value and quality of health benefits, according to a study in the November 21 issue of JAMA.

21 Nov 2007

AIDS statistics revised by WHO in 2007

New data show global HIV prevalence - the percentage of people living with HIV - has levelled off and that the number of new infections has fallen, in part as a result of the impact of HIV programmes.

21 Nov 2007

Dyslexia expert Dr. Bruce McCandliss awarded Presidential honor

Dr. Bruce McCandliss, a psychologist at the Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology and associate professor of psychology in psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College, has received a commendation by the President of the United States in the form of a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE).

20 Nov 2007

Housing status and HIV risk

New studies show that there is a demonstrable correlation between a person's housing status and his or her likelihood of transmitting or getting HIV.

20 Nov 2007

Wake-up call for young adults regarding heart health

Before you plop in front of the television for a day of football, pizza and beer, you might consider this: New research shows that in young adults, decades of hard-won progress in reducing the risk of heart disease appears to be stalling, as recent death rates from coronary disease remain almost unchanged in young men and may even be increasing in women.

20 Nov 2007

Variant of CDC2 gene may be potential risk marker for Alzheimer's

A variant of the gene CDC2 could possibly be used as a risk marker for Alzheimer’s disease.

20 Nov 2007

Pedometers motivate diabetics to walk more

The use of a pedometer and a Web site that tracked physical activity levels proved to be powerful motivators for people with diabetes who participated in a recent walking study conducted by researchers from the University of Michigan Health System and VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System.

20 Nov 2007

Sitting may increase risk of disease

Most people spend most of their day sitting with relatively idle muscles. Health professionals advise that at least 30 minutes of activity at least 5 days a week will counteract health concerns, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity that may result from inactivity.

19 Nov 2007