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New evidence supports use of catheter-based therapy to remove blood clots in stroke patients

Nearly 90 percent of the 700,000 strokes that affect U.S. patients each year are caused by a blockage of blood vessels supplying the brain, known as ischemic stroke.

29 Mar 2009

Psychiatric disorders common in adults who have had anorexia

Many adults who were diagnosed as teenagers to be suffering from anorexia nervosa cannot work due to psychiatric disorders. A follow-up 18 years after the onset of anorexia has shown that one in four are on disability benefit or have been signed off sick. The long-term follow-up by the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, does, however, show some encouraging results.

26 Mar 2009

Collaborative care intervention helps improve management of chronic pain

Patients with chronic pain who took part in a collaborative care intervention that included patient and clinician education and symptom monitoring and feedback to the primary care physician had improvements in pain-related disability and intensity, compared to usual care, according to a study in the March 25 issue of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.

24 Mar 2009

Link discovered between anesthesia exposure and learning disabilities in children

Mayo Clinic researchers have found that children who require multiple surgeries under anesthesia during their first three years of life are at higher risk of developing learning disabilities later.

24 Mar 2009

Thinning of right hemisphere in brain a marker for familial form of depression

Findings from one of the largest-ever imaging studies of depression indicate that a structural difference in the brain - a thinning of the right hemisphere - appears to be linked to a higher risk for depression, according to new research at Columbia University Medical Center and the New York State Psychiatric Institute.

23 Mar 2009

Research suggests those who have chronic pain may need to assess vitamin D status

Mayo Clinic research shows a correlation between inadequate vitamin D levels and the amount of narcotic medication taken by patients who have chronic pain

22 Mar 2009

Scots and Irish at greater risk of drink-related death, study shows

Alcohol-related deaths in England and Wales are twice as high among people born in Scotland or Ireland compared with the rest of the population, a study has shown.

20 Mar 2009

U.S. preterm birth rate declined slightly in 2007

The nation's preterm birth rate declined slightly in 2007 – a finding that the March of Dimes hopes will prove to be the start of a new trend in improved maternal and infant health.

20 Mar 2009

Disparities in stroke outcomes between black and white patients still great

In Florida, black young adults are hospitalized for stroke at a rate three times higher than their white and Hispanic peers, a new study by University of South Florida researchers reports.

15 Mar 2009

Weighing the options after life-altering stroke

Choosing to have aggressive brain surgery after suffering a severe stroke generally improves the patients' lives and allows them to live longer, according to research by neurologists at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

12 Mar 2009

Researchers shed new light on dyslexia

By peering into the brains of people with dyslexia compared to normal readers, a study published online on March 12th in Current Biology , a Cell Press publication, has shed new light on the roots of the learning disability, which affects four to ten percent of the population.

12 Mar 2009

Weighing the options after life-altering stroke

12 Mar 2009

Childhood diarrhoea needs greater research focus

The list of priority research questions focus on how to make the best use of interventions that are available today, in order to make the most difference, and ultimately save as many children's lives as possible.

11 Mar 2009

Metabolic and neurological disorders may share common risk factors

Metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes appear to share risk factors with and may influence the development of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, according to several reports published in the March issue of Archives of Neurology.

10 Mar 2009

Long-term effects of two common drugs for early Parkinson's similar

A study published online in the Archives of Neurology involving two common drugs used to treat early-stage Parkinson's disease shows that, while the drugs each have advantages and disadvantages, the overall impact tends to even out over a long period of treatment.

10 Mar 2009

Insomnia often a persistent condition

About three-fourths of individuals with insomnia report experiencing the condition for at least one year and almost half experience it for three years, according to a report in the March 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

10 Mar 2009

Effective stem cell treatment for strokes a step closer

Effective stem cell treatment for strokes has taken a significant step forward today (09 March) as scientists reveal how they have replaced stroke-damaged brain tissue in rats.

8 Mar 2009

Untreated psychiatric disorders common in single mothers on welfare

Urban single mothers nearing the end of their welfare eligibility appear more likely to have substance use and psychiatric disorders than women in the general population, and often do not receive treatment, according to a report in the March issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

2 Mar 2009

Universal vaccination associated with decreased Canadian cases of most deadly strain of meningitis

Universal childhood vaccination against meningococcal C appears to reduce Canadian incidence of the most deadly strain of bacterial meningitis, reports new research published in the March issue of The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal.

2 Mar 2009

Noninvasive optical device monitors brain blood flow and metabolism in stroke victims

A University of Pennsylvania team has completed the first successful demonstration of a noninvasive optical device to monitor cerebral blood flow in patients with acute stroke, a leading cause of disability and death.

2 Mar 2009