Therapy News and Research

RSS

Gene could be cause of early bird disorder

A sleep disorder which makes people nod off early and wake fully alert before dawn is now thought to be caused by a mutant gene.

4 Apr 2005

Withdrawal smokers feel when trying to quit may not all be due to nicotine

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have found that smoking nicotine-free cigarettes may be sufficient for suppressing some tobacco withdrawal symptoms such as a desire for sweets, hunger and the urge to smoke, suggesting that the withdrawal smokers feel when trying to quit may not all be due to nicotine.

3 Apr 2005

Tumour Necrosis Factor alpha (TNF-alpha) blocking agents cause skin disease

Members of the second most important family of drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis can cause serious dermatological conditions in a quarter of patients under treatment, reveals a study published in the journal Arthritis Research and Therapy.

3 Apr 2005

Inexpensive treatment stops multi-drug resistant TB in its tracks

A standard and inexpensive tuberculosis treatment regimen cut the overall TB rate in half and lowered the rate of drug-resistant cases even more dramatically in a remote Mexican health district with a high prevalence of the disease.

3 Apr 2005

Hormonal treatment improves survival in high-risk prostate cancer patients

Administering hormonal treatment in addition to radiation therapy in patients with high-risk prostate cancer can improve survival rate, according to a new study published in the April 1, 2005, issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology-Biology-Physics, the official journal of ASTRO, the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology.

3 Apr 2005

Patch therapy provides similar pain relief as oral medications for patients with osteoarthritis (OA) knee pain

Researchers from the Altoona Arthritis and Osteoporosis Center have announced that data presented at the 24th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Pain Society suggest that patch therapy provides similar pain relief as oral medications for patients with osteoarthritis (OA) knee pain.

3 Apr 2005

Radiation for prostate cancer doubles the risk of developing rectal cancer

Men who undergo radiation for prostate cancer have nearly double the risk of developing rectal cancer when compared to men who opt to have surgery to treat prostate cancer, according to a study published today in the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) journal Gastroenterology.

3 Apr 2005

Blood pressure control suggests new approach to hypertension therapy

The kidneys have long been known to play a major role in many cases of high blood pressure, but a new study by researchers at Duke University Medical Center reveals that the body's control of blood pressure depends as much on other organs in the body.

3 Apr 2005

cT3 prostate cancer is operable

New findings from Mayo Clinic indicate that cT3 prostate cancer, a disease in which the cancer has spread locally from inside the prostate to immediately outside it, is operable and has 15-year cancer survival rates of almost 80 percent.

3 Apr 2005

Researchers are changing the face of drug addiction treatment

People addicted to heroin, alcohol and other drugs of abuse often fail to stay clean because they won't go to or won't stay in treatment.

3 Apr 2005

Movie techniques, MRI/CT data combine with computer modeling of knee/patella to aid surgery

Take the kinds of movie techniques that allow animation with true-life action, throw in an anatomically-based muscle, ligament, tendon, bone and soft-tissue geometries dataset, and add individual patient MRI or CT scan data.

3 Apr 2005

Airway inflammation boosts infarction damage

Epidemiological studies show that the incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) complications are increased in long standing cases of asthma. Historically, the complications are often attributed to the chronic drug therapy used to treat asthma.

3 Apr 2005

Adding growth factor to baby formula could reduce necrotizing enterocolitis

Could it be that the most widespread and devastating gastrointestinal disease affecting premature babies could be conquered simply by adding a common polypeptide, epidermal growth factor (EGF), to infant formula? And if so, exactly how does it work, and why?

3 Apr 2005

Moderate aerobic exercise improves cardiovascular and nervous system function in HIV+ subjects

Researchers from Teachers College, Columbia University, and Coler Goldwater Specialty Hospital and Nursing Facility report that moderate aerobic exercise for 10 weeks, three times a week for 45 minutes each session significantly improved function of the nervous system and circulation in those with HIV disease.

3 Apr 2005

Statins, other cholesterol-depleting agents, may disrupt hypertension from developing

Cholesterol-lowering agents, such as the widely-prescribed statin drugs, and cholesterol-blocking agents may prove to be “novel therapeutic agents to modify cellular calcium that contributes to the development of pulmonary hypertension,” according Hemal H. Patel who lead a multidisciplinary team of researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD).

3 Apr 2005

Directly observed therapy effective against drug resistant tuberculosis

Directly observed therapy (DOTS) - the main strategy for tuberculosis control - can rapidly reduce the transmission and incidence of the drug resistant form of the disease, concludes a study published in this week’s issue of The Lancet.

3 Apr 2005

Aspirin safer than Warfarin for treating blocked arteries

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), have shown for the first time that aspirin works as well as warfarin in reducing blood clotting. Until now doctors have lacked good evidence for choosing one therapy over the other.

30 Mar 2005

New drug approved for treating endometriosis

Drug manufacturer Pfizer announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given approval for the release of depo-subQ provera 104 to be prescribed for the management of pain associated with endometriosis, a gynecological condition that affects one in ten women of reproductive age.

30 Mar 2005

Construction will enable pSivida to increase BrachySil production

Global nanotechnology company pSivida Limited has announced that it's UK manufacturing partner, Atomising Systems Ltd ("ASL"), has reached a key milestone in the manufacture of BrachySil, its lead product, by completing construction of a state of the art dedicated cleanroom facility to GMP specifications at its Sheffield plant in the United Kingdom. ASL is a world leader in high temperature atomising technology.

30 Mar 2005

Mesoblast moves towards adult stem cell human trials

Exciting Australian adult stem cell company, Mesoblast Limited, today announced that it is set to begin the first human clinical trials using its specialist adult stem cells for orthopaedic and cardiovascular diseases.

30 Mar 2005