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Vitamin D deficiency associated with increase in lung transplant rejection, infections

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with an increase in lung transplant rejection and infections, according to research conducted at Loyola University Health System.

25 Apr 2012

Link between binge eating and addiction-like behaviors

A history of binge eating -- consuming large amounts of food in a short period of time -- may make an individual more likely to show other addiction-like behaviors, including substance abuse, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers. In the short term, this finding may shed light on the factors that promote substance abuse, addiction, and relapse. In the long term, may help clinicians treat individuals suffering from this devastating disease.

25 Apr 2012

Elusive G-spot does exist anatomically: New study

For centuries, women have been reporting engorgement of the upper, anterior part of the vagina during the stage of sexual excitement, despite the fact the structure of this phenomenon had not been anatomically determined.

25 Apr 2012

NCH opens first suburban ambulatory surgery center

Nationwide Children's Hospital has opened its first suburban ambulatory surgery center. Located in Westerville, Ohio, the center is an extension of the current surgical services on the main campus, one that gives families an option for convenient access to a full spectrum of pediatric outpatient surgical services.

25 Apr 2012

CML and B-ALL arise from the long-term haematopoietic stem cells

Although people generally talk about "cancer", it is clear that the disease occurs in a bewildering variety of forms. Even single groups of cancers, such as those of the white blood cells, may show widely differing properties. How do the various cancers arise and what factors determine their progression? Clues to these two issues, at least for leukaemias, have now been provided by Boris Kovacic and colleagues at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna.

25 Apr 2012

AMSSM researcher discusses genetic associations with concussions

Thomas R. Terrell, MD presented "Prospective Cohort Study of the Association of Genetic Polymorphisms and Concussion Risk and Postconcussion Neurocognitive Deficits in College Athletes" at the 21st American Medical Society for Sports Medicine Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Ga. on April 23, 2012.

25 Apr 2012

U of O introduces Refugees and Global Health online program in Canada

All Canadian medical students, residents and practitioners now have full access to an innovative Web-based tool to enhance their understanding of medical care for refugees and new Canadians.

25 Apr 2012

Clinical trial to evaluate IGF-1 in children with SHANK3 deficiency

In an important test of one of the first drugs to target core symptoms of autism, researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine are undertaking a pilot clinical trial to evaluate insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) in children who have SHANK3 deficiency (also known as 22q13 Deletion Syndrome or Phelan-McDermid Syndrome), a known cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

25 Apr 2012

Strong link between childhood physical abuse and suicidal behaviours

Adults who were physically abused during childhood are more likely than their non-abused peers to have suicidal thoughts, according to a new study from the University of Toronto.

25 Apr 2012

MSU report: Rate of workplace deaths in Michigan remained steady in 2011

The rate of workplace deaths in Michigan remained steady in 2011, as 141 workers died on the job compared with 145 in 2010, according to an annual report from Michigan State University.

25 Apr 2012

Bats may be a common source of many viral diseases

Where do viruses dangerous to humans come from, and how have they evolved? Scientists working with Prof. Dr. Christian Drosten, Head of the In-stitute for Virology at the Universit-tsklinikum Bonn, have made significant progress in answering this question. "We already knew from prior studies that bats and rodents play a role as carriers of paramyxoviruses," said Prof. Drosten.

25 Apr 2012

Eating disorders can be triggered by lack of support following traumatic events

Eating disorders can be triggered by lack of support following traumatic events such as bereavement, relationship problems, abuse and sexual assault, according to research published in the May issue of the Journal of Clinical Nursing. Even changing school or moving home can prove too much for some young people and lead to conditions such as anorexia or bulimia.

25 Apr 2012

Study sheds light on how stress differently affects women’s hearts

Coronary artery disease continues to be a major cause of death in the U.S., killing hundreds of thousands of people per year. However, this disease burden isn't evenly divided between the sexes; significantly more men than women are diagnosed with coronary artery disease each year. The reasons behind this difference aren't well defined. Though some studies have shown that men's hearts become more constricted than women's during exercise, letting less blood flow through, women are more likely than men to have symptoms of heart trouble after emotional upsets.

25 Apr 2012

CU School of Medicine researcher devises new exercise for BPPV

A CU School of Medicine researcher who suffers from benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) and had to "fix it" before she could go to work one day was using a maneuver to treat herself that only made her sicker. "So I sat down and thought about it and figured out an alternate way to do it. Then I fixed myself and went in to work" and discovered a new treatment for this type of vertigo.

24 Apr 2012

Neuron-killing pathology of AD requires presence of a-beta and elevated p-tau levels

According to a new study, the neuron-killing pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD), which begins before clinical symptoms appear, requires the presence of both amyloid-beta (a-beta) plaque deposits and elevated levels of an altered protein called p-tau.

24 Apr 2012

CRG to host EuroStemCell meeting on April 27

Stem cells are in the news quite a bit, but it can be difficult to pick out the true science from the hype. How can patients, school students and members of the public make sense of this fast-changing area of research? EuroStemCell aims to meet this challenge and engage the public in developments in this complex area of science.

24 Apr 2012

Computational adaptive optics for real-time in-vivo applications

Real-time, 3-D microscopic tissue imaging could be a revolution for medical fields such as cancer diagnosis, minimally invasive surgery and ophthalmology. University of Illinois researchers have developed a technique to computationally correct for aberrations in optical tomography, bringing the future of medical imaging into focus.

24 Apr 2012

Immunosignatures can yield reliable and highly stable diagnostic results

Identifying diseases at an early, presymptomatic stage may offer the best chance for establishing proper treatment and improving patient outcomes. A new technique known as immunosignaturing harnesses the human immune system as an early warning sentry-one acutely sensitive to changes in the body that may be harbingers of illness.

24 Apr 2012

Researchers describe novel mechanism of HIV-1 spread by dendritic cells

A new understanding of the initial interactions of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and dendritic cells is described by Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researchers in a study currently featured in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

24 Apr 2012

Text messaging increases flu vaccination coverage in low-income children

A text messaging intervention with education-related messages sent to parents increased influenza vaccination coverage compared with usual care in a traditionally hard-to-reach, low-income, urban, minority population of children and adolescents, although coverage overall remained low, according to a study in the April 25 issue of JAMA.

24 Apr 2012