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Study highlights distress caused by bladder problems

More than three-quarters of people with overactive bladders (OAB) say that their condition makes it difficult to perform daily activities, yet only 43 per cent would consider consulting a doctor.

16 Jan 2006

Ontario challenges opening of private health clinics

The announcement by Copeman Healthcare Inc. that it intends to open private health clinics in some parts of Canada is being challenged by the Ontario Health Coalition.

16 Jan 2006

More nurses improves the quality of hospital care

A study in the January/February 2006 issue of the journal Health Affairsconcludes that increasing the number of registered nurses and hours of nursing care per patient would save 6,700 lives and 4 million days of patient care in hospitals each year.

10 Jan 2006

U.S. states fail the grade when it comes to dealing with a major emergency

According to a report by the American College of Emergency Physicians, the United States is ill prepared to tackle any kind of major emergency.

10 Jan 2006

Women live the longest, but the men are catching up

In latest figures released by NSW Health, the life expectancy for babies born in NSW is up to ten years longer than their parents born a generation ago. In NSW between 1973 and 2003, life expectancy at birth steadily increased from 68.6 to 78.6 for males, and from 75.6 to 83.4 for females.

10 Jan 2006

New combination treatment that could dramatically shorten the length of tuberculosis treatment

The clinical results of a new combination treatment that could dramatically shorten the length of tuberculosis treatment were presented at a recent scientific conference in the USA. This virulent disease of the lungs still infects millions every year, with a notable resurgence in Europe, especially in the East.

10 Jan 2006

Fish oil shown to reduce airway inflammation caused by exercise-induced asthma

People suffering from exercise-induced asthma were able to reduce their symptoms below the threshold used to diagnose the disease by eating a diet supplemented with fish oil, according to new research findings from Indiana University reported in the January issue of the journal Chest.

10 Jan 2006

More women need to know about folic acid's ability to prevent birth defects

Each year in Minnesota, more than 2,000 babies are born with birth defects. Many of those birth defects likely could have been prevented if the mother had taken enough folic acid.

10 Jan 2006

HHS awards $56.9 million to tackle health disparities

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt has announced the awarding of $56.9 million by the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD).

10 Jan 2006

Raising alcohol prices does not always reduce sales

Both research and policy initiatives tend to support increasing the prices of alcohol beverages as a way of reducing alcohol sales and related problems. However, a study in the January issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research has found that across-the-board price increases may not always have the intended effects on alcohol sales.

8 Jan 2006

Use of L-arginine following a heart attack provides no benefit

Use of the amino acid supplement L-arginine following a heart attack does not improve certain cardiac functions and measurements and may be associated with an increased risk of death, according to a study in the January 4 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

8 Jan 2006

Link between soft drinks and esophageal cancer debunked

Carbonated soft drink consumption was previously suggested to be linked to the 350 percent increase of adenocarcinoma of the esophagus since the mid-1970s, but researchers at Yale School of Medicine report that the link is unfounded and that there may, in fact, be a decreased risk of this cancer for diet soda drinkers.

6 Jan 2006

Risk factors for nongonococcal urethritis

The study, by Australian researchers Catriona Bradshaw, MD, and colleagues at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, is the first major case-control study to simultaneously address all currently hypothesized causes of NGU.

6 Jan 2006

Americans don't need to pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs!

A study of drug costs around the world revealed proven methods that could be used to reduce costs in the United States, according to a researcher from Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

6 Jan 2006

Risky sex, quality of children's medical care - Journal of Urban Health

The newest issue of the Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of The New York Academy of Medicine includes a host of compelling research findings regarding risky sexual behavior in the vacation hotspot of Miami, racial influences on the quality of children's medical care, and willingness of blacks to use the Internet to manage their diabetes. These studies are summarized below.

5 Jan 2006

Abstinence and Abstinence-Only Education: A Review of U.S. Policies and Programs

While few Americans remain abstinent until marriage and most initiate sexual intercourse as adolescents, abstinence from sexual intercourse is an important behavioral strategy for preventing human immunodeficiency virus, other sexually transmitted infections, and unintended pregnancy among adolescents

5 Jan 2006

Elevated homocysteine levels may be a biomarker for increased risk of AMD

People who have elevated homocysteine in their blood, an amino acid that is a known biomarker for cardiovascular disease, may also be at an increased risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD), according to a study in the January issue of the American Journal of Ophthalmology.

5 Jan 2006

Loud noise increases the risk of developing a non-cancerous tumor

New research suggests that years of repeated exposure to loud noise increases the risk of developing a non-cancerous tumor that could cause hearing loss.

5 Jan 2006

Magnesium for stronger bones

Intake of magnesium through diet and supplements is positively associated with bone density throughout the whole body, particularly in older white adults, according to research published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. Researchers say the effects are similar to that of calcium.

5 Jan 2006

Guidelines needed to help care for children during emergencies

Evidence-based guidelines for the care of children in emergency situations should be developed and distributed to international relief organizations, according to researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the World Health Organization (WHO).

4 Jan 2006