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EKG test is a poor predictor of sudden death syndrome in young athletes

The sudden death of a young athlete always prompts full media attention, most recently spurring a call for preventative screening methods, including costly electrocardiogram tests for all school-age athletes.

6 Apr 2011

Study finds marked increases in teen use of marijuana and Ecstasy

Following a decade of steady declines, a new national study released today by The Partnership at Drugfree.org and MetLife Foundation indicates that teen drug and alcohol use is headed in the wrong direction, with marked increases in teen use of marijuana and Ecstasy over the past three years.

6 Apr 2011

NYC scientists receive $420,000 S.L.E. Lupus Foundation grant for new research

New York City's S.L.E. Lupus Foundation is pleased to name the latest recipients of its Career Development and Basic Science Fellowships: Josephine Isgro, MD of Hospital for Special Surgery, Dipyaman Ganguly, PhD of Columbia University Medical Center, and Yi Yan, PhD of the Feinstein Institute at North Shore-Long Island Jewish Hospital.

6 Apr 2011

Neurotech’s NT-501 intraocular implant slows progression of vision loss in GA subjects

Neurotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced that it was reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that its product candidate NT-501 slowed progression of vision loss in patients with geographic atrophy (GA) associated with dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in a Phase 2 study.

6 Apr 2011

MRIs can help predict MCI individuals at greatest risk for developing Alzheimer's disease

Using MRI, researchers may be able to predict which adults with mild cognitive impairment are more likely to progress to Alzheimer's disease, according to the results of a study published online and in the June issue of Radiology.

6 Apr 2011

Device to treat resistant hypertension lowers blood pressure by 33 points

A device designed to treat people with resistant hypertension helped lower blood pressure by 33 points, a substantial drop that would otherwise require patients to take an additional three or four drugs, on top of this subgroup's usual regimen of up to five drugs, to control their difficult-to-treat condition.

6 Apr 2011

Pervasis' PVS-30200 study data in prostate cancer presented at AACR meeting

Pervasis Therapeutics, Inc. today announced preclinical data showing positive effects of PVS-30200, the company's investigational cell therapy for the treatment of solid tumors, on controlling tumor growth and inhibiting metastases in an animal model of prostate cancer.

6 Apr 2011

Retrovirus XMRV may not be associated with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in the central nervous system

There has been substantial mystery surrounding the origins of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), a condition affecting as many as four million Americans and marked by symptoms that include a sense of weariness that sleep does not improve and difficulty with memory and concentration.

6 Apr 2011

Study finds low multiple birth rates in 15 states that provide insurance coverage for IVF

Faced with the prospect of costly in vitro fertilization but with no help from insurance coverage, some infertile couples feel pressure to transfer multiple embryos in an attempt to ensure that the IVF is a success.

6 Apr 2011

Major depression linked to premature aging of immune cells: Study

Certain cases of major depression are associated with premature aging of immune cells, which may make people more susceptible to other serious illness, according to findings from a new UCSF-led study.

6 Apr 2011

Two reports show drastic increase in opioid prescriptions in America

Two reports by addiction researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and the National Institute on Drug Abuse show a drastic shift in prescribing patterns impacting the magnitude of opioid substance abuse in America.

6 Apr 2011

Editorial cautions against estrogen-only hormone therapy after hysterectomy

An editorial in the April 6 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association cautions against estrogen-only hormone therapy in women who have had a hysterectomy because of longstanding evidence that it raises the risk of breast cancer.

6 Apr 2011

PQM program launches new public medicine database

In the growing global battle against substandard and counterfeit medicines, the Promoting the Quality of Medicines program has launched a new, public database of medicines collected and analyzed in collaboration with stakeholders from countries in Africa, South America and Southeast Asia.

6 Apr 2011

Boston Scientific initiates clinical enrollment for INNOVA Self-Expanding Bare-Metal Stent System trial

Boston Scientific Corporation today announced the start of patient enrollment in the SuperNOVA clinical trial, an international, prospective, single-arm, non-randomized trial evaluating the safety and effectiveness of the INNOVA™ Self-Expanding Bare-Metal Stent System in patients with stenosis of the superficial femoral artery (SFA) or proximal popliteal artery (PPA).

6 Apr 2011

Caliper's CDAS unit enters cancer research collaboration with Denver-based CHI

Caliper Life Sciences, Inc., a leading provider of tools and services for drug discovery and life-sciences research, today announced that its Caliper Discovery Alliances and Services unit has formed a research collaboration with Denver-based Catholic Health Initiatives, one of the nation's largest health systems.

6 Apr 2011

Sleep apnea people may face risk of suffering ischemic stroke

According to research presented at the School of Medicine and the University of Navarra Hospital by Dr. Roberto Muñoz, a physician of the Neurology Service of the Hospital Complex of Navarra, those persons with serious cases of sleep apnea have more than twice the possibility of suffering an ischemic stroke. Specifically, 2.5 times more.

6 Apr 2011

Meditation for pain succeeds: Study

According to a new study meditation may help in reducing pain. For the study researchers mildly burned 15 men and women in a lab on two separate occasions, before and after the volunteers attended four 20-minute meditation training sessions over the course of four days. During the second round, when the participants were instructed to meditate, they rated the exact same pain stimulus - a 120-degree heat on their calves - as being 57 percent less unpleasant and 40 percent less intense, on average.

5 Apr 2011

Estrogen only hormone replacement not so risky after 50’s: Study

According to a new study hormone therapy may not be as risky for elder women as earlier thought. This comes from the Women's Health Initiative, a federally funded trial that tracked thousands of women taking hormones or placebo pills for years. The WHI looked at women who have had hysterectomies or have had their uterus removed and thus can take estrogen unaccompanied by another hormone, progestin. It found that a heightened risk of stroke from taking estrogen faded with time, while a reduced risk of breast cancer held steady.

5 Apr 2011

Zebrafish research suggests new drug targets and markers to help treat melanoma

Thanks to the zebrafish, there is new hope for people with melanoma, an aggressive skin cancer that is responsible for approximately 8,700 deaths each year in the United States.

5 Apr 2011

MR patients treated with Abbott MitraClip system demonstrate clinical benefits of initial treatment at two years

Abbott today announced data from its EVEREST II (Endovascular Valve Edge-to-Edge REpair STudy) study showing that patients with significant mitral regurgitation (MR) treated with the company's investigational percutaneous catheter-based MitraClip® system continue to demonstrate the clinical benefits of initial treatment shown at one year out to two years, including improvements in heart function and reductions in symptoms.

5 Apr 2011