Asthma News and Research

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Asthma is a common inflammatory disease affecting the airways that leads to shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing. Symptoms range from mild to severe but are generally manageable with appropriate treatment.

Scientists have determined the crystal structure of a protein kinase C (PKC) isozyme

This structure should prove extremely useful in the rational design of small molecule inhibitors of PKCÈ, which has been implicated in T-cell mediated disease processes including inflammation and autoimmunity.

19 Nov 2004

FDA Vioxx fiasco raises questions about AIDS drug approvals for developing world

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), today noted that the current "FDA fiasco" involving the agency's initial approval and subsequent recall of Merck's troubled arthritis drug, Vioxx, raises serious questions about the FDA's ongoing parallel role in the approval of generic AIDS drugs for widespread use in Africa and the developing world.

19 Nov 2004

Cotinine not linked to hearing loss

Levels of cotinine, a chemical that is made by the body from nicotine, which is found in cigarette smoke, does not appear to be linked to hearing loss, according to an article in the November issue of The Archives of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery.

16 Nov 2004

Fluorescent protein tool may speed identification of molecular changes that reveal cells' inner workings

Scientists at Johns Hopkins and the University of Texas Medical Branch have created a new tool that easily reveals when and where a key cellular signal is active.

16 Nov 2004

Mast cells can provide protection from a potentially deadly condition known as sepsis

Mast cells are immune cells known mostly for their unwanted effects: they cause the wheezing of asthma, the itching of eczema, the sneezing and runny nose of hay fever and, in extreme cases, the life-threatening shock of anaphylaxis.

14 Nov 2004

BMA Cymru Wales to petition parliament to ban smoking in public places unless Wales goes smoke free within 10 months

BMA Cymru Wales is seriously considering the possibility of petitioning Parliament for a ban in public places in Wales using the rarely used private bills procedure.

14 Nov 2004

Researcher highlights hidden problem of smoking after pregnancy

Most women know to drop cigarettes and alcohol while they are pregnant. In fact, about half of women smokers now quit smoking when they become pregnant.

9 Nov 2004

Fresh insight into how teenage girls with anorexia nervosa really feel about themselves

A new University of Western Sydney study has given a fresh insight into how teenage girls with anorexia nervosa really feel about themselves, paving the way for more effective treatments for the potentially fatal eating disorder.

9 Nov 2004

Major bone trial to test high dose corticosteroid steroid tablets

Researchers in Aberdeen are about to launch a major multi-centre clinical trial to test whether a new drug could prevent bone thinning in adults taking moderate to high dose corticosteroid "steroid" tablets, such as prednisolone.

8 Nov 2004

Symptoms of heartburn and GERD are highly prevalent among obese patients

Overall, heartburn and or acid regurgitation were found among 75 percent of the morbidly obese patients, while 23 percent experienced difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) and 34 percent experienced asthma symptoms.

1 Nov 2004

Red wine delivered though an aerosol for COPD, asthma, and possibly even arthritis

Homing in on mechanisms for the reported effectiveness of resveratrol, which is found in red wine, researchers at Imperial College London, England, confirmed its broad anti-inflammatory action, and found potential for applications in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, and possibly even arthritis.

29 Oct 2004

Mail-order prescriptions exposed to excessive heat may become significantly less effective for patients

Mail-order prescriptions exposed to excessive environmental heat, such as temperatures found in mailboxes and car interiors, may become significantly less effective for patients.

28 Oct 2004

Umbilical cord blood may hold clue to childhood allergy and asthma

High levels of antibodies to allergens in a baby's umbilical cord blood might be more important in the development of childhood allergies and asthma than exposure to allergens, or lack of them, after birth, suggests research in Thorax.

28 Oct 2004

Brief psychological interventions are effective in relieving traumatic stress symptoms in family members

Family therapy and other psychological treatments may help reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress among teenaged survivors of childhood cancer--as well as among their parents.

28 Oct 2004

Arizona will receive 22,500 additional doses of flu vaccine

Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano announced today that Arizona will receive 22,500 additional doses of flu vaccine as early as Wednesday, and will distribute the vaccine to local health departments in the next week.

25 Oct 2004

Who should and who should not get a flu shot?

This year's supply of flu vaccine is limited. It is important that people at highest risk of serious illness or death from the flu get a flu shot. Complete this CDC form to see if you or your child should or should not get a flu shot.

25 Oct 2004

Genes affect how asthma patients respond to albuterol

While a few weeks of regular use of albuterol improved overall asthma control in individuals with one form of the gene, stopping all use of albuterol eventually improved asthma control in those with another form of the gene. Albuterol is the most commonly used drug for relief of acute asthma symptoms, or “attacks.”

22 Oct 2004

MedImmune initiates clinical trial comparing intranasal influenza vaccine with injectable flu vaccine

MedImmune announced that it has initiated a pivotal head-to-head Phase 3 clinical trial designed to compare its next-generation, refrigerator- stable intranasal influenza vaccine (CAIV-T: cold adapted intranasal influenza vaccine, trivalent) with the injectable flu shot (TIV: trivalent influenza vaccine).

22 Oct 2004

Study clearly showed the benefit of weight loss in terms of pain, function and quality of life

Over 18 months, researchers at University Hospitals of Cleveland and Case Western Reserve University studied the frequency and prevalence of musculoskeletal (MSK) complaints in obese patients before and after undergoing gastric bypass surgery.

21 Oct 2004

Researchers identify a protein that could banish allergies

The suffering of millions of people with allergies could one day be eased thanks to new research from UK investigators. Findings from the University College London branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR), published in the Oct 2004 issue of Nature, detail how inactivating a key signalling molecule called p110delta reduced the effect of allergies on mice.

21 Oct 2004

Asthma News and Research

Further Reading

Scientists have determined the crystal structure of a protein kinase C (PKC) isozyme

FDA Vioxx fiasco raises questions about AIDS drug approvals for developing world

Cotinine not linked to hearing loss

Fluorescent protein tool may speed identification of molecular changes that reveal cells' inner workings

Mast cells can provide protection from a potentially deadly condition known as sepsis

BMA Cymru Wales to petition parliament to ban smoking in public places unless Wales goes smoke free within 10 months

Researcher highlights hidden problem of smoking after pregnancy

Fresh insight into how teenage girls with anorexia nervosa really feel about themselves

Major bone trial to test high dose corticosteroid steroid tablets

Symptoms of heartburn and GERD are highly prevalent among obese patients

Red wine delivered though an aerosol for COPD, asthma, and possibly even arthritis

Mail-order prescriptions exposed to excessive heat may become significantly less effective for patients

Umbilical cord blood may hold clue to childhood allergy and asthma

Brief psychological interventions are effective in relieving traumatic stress symptoms in family members

Arizona will receive 22,500 additional doses of flu vaccine

Who should and who should not get a flu shot?

Genes affect how asthma patients respond to albuterol

MedImmune initiates clinical trial comparing intranasal influenza vaccine with injectable flu vaccine

Study clearly showed the benefit of weight loss in terms of pain, function and quality of life

Researchers identify a protein that could banish allergies

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