Disability News and Research

RSS

First new treatment for Elephantiasis (lymphatic filariasis)

Scientists at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine have proved that a single course of one antibiotic may hold the key to curing the parasitic worm disease Elephantiasis (lymphatic filariasis) that has been one of the most common causes of global disability since Biblical times.

21 Jun 2005

Make friends, live longer

New research by the Centre for Ageing Studies at Flinders University suggests that a network of good friends is more helpful than close family ties in prolonging life among older people.

21 Jun 2005

First blood test to help predict a patient's risk for ischemic stroke

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first blood test designed to help predict a patient's risk for ischemic stroke, the most common type of stroke and one of the nation's leading causes of long-term disability affecting approximately 700,000 people per year.

19 Jun 2005

People who have had a minor stroke have a 43% chance of another stroke or vascular event within 10-years

Although worldwide fatality rates from cerebrovascular disease have fallen, stroke remains one of the most serious neurological problems, and leaves many patients with a chronic disability.

16 Jun 2005

Single course of one antibiotic can successfully treat elephantiasis

A single course of one antibiotic can successfully treat elephantiasis (filariasis) - a parasitic worm disease that is one of the most common causes of global disability, concludes a study published in this week’s issue of The Lancet.

16 Jun 2005

Schiavo finally laid to rest

Hopefully autopsy findings released today will finally allow Terri Schiavo to be laid to rest.

16 Jun 2005

New Zealand moves to routinely offering antenatal HIV screening

New Zealand will progressively move to a policy of routinely offering antenatal HIV screening as part of antenatal care, Ministry of Health spokesman Dr Pat Tuohy said this week.

15 Jun 2005

Spinal arthritis often overlooked in children

When kids or teens experience aching joints and stiffness it may be more than growing pains. It may be arthritis of the spine and other joints (ankylosing spondylitis), which researchers report can often go undiagnosed for years and years, leading to serious problems in adulthood.

15 Jun 2005

Anti-cancer drug could be the first effective treatment for premature births

An anti-cancer drug could potentially be the first effective treatment for the many thousands of premature births that occur worldwide each year, scientific tests have found.

13 Jun 2005

New diabetes drug has a double whammy and is a potential blockbuster

There are, according to the latest statistics, more than 18 million Americans with diabetes, and each year over a million new cases are diagnosed.

13 Jun 2005

Experts call for more research into treatments for children's brain tumours

More independent study is needed into the biology of children's brain tumours if effective treatments are to be developed, experts at The University of Nottingham have said in a leading journal.

10 Jun 2005

Northern Ireland is leading the way with a strategy aimed at reducing the impact of respiratory disease

'A Healthier Future: A Strategic Framework for Respiratory Conditions', is a consultation document which sets out a 10-year framework for preventing respiratory disease, and for improving treatment and care for people with respiratory conditions.

9 Jun 2005

Experimental drug therapy could open new window for treatment of deadly stroke

A new type of drug therapy that is currently being tested in Canada could significantly reduce the death rate caused by the deadliest form of stroke. According to the Canadian Heart and Stroke Foundation, new developments in stroke research make it more important than ever that Canadians recognize and react to the warning signs of stroke.

9 Jun 2005

Association between chronic cytomegalovirus (CMV) and frailty syndrome

Older women with chronic cytomegalovirus (CMV), a lifelong viral infection, were found to have more than triple the risk of being frail than those who did not have the infection, as reported in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. This is the first demonstration to show an association between CMV and frailty syndrome.

9 Jun 2005

Physical activity in old age is beneficial for physical, cognitive and psychological health

Older persons who are capable of physical activity but do not exercise have an increased risk of future problems walking or climbing stairs, according to research published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

9 Jun 2005

Rheumatoid arthritis costs more to business and industry than almost any other disease

Speaking at a rheumatology congress in Vienna today (Thursday 9 June), USA experts estimated that RA costs employers over $4,000 more per person, per year.

9 Jun 2005

Study is the first to identify involvement of chromosome 21 in developmental regression autism

A new Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center study links regions of two chromosomes to susceptibility for a type of autism characterized by regression in development. Developmental regression can include the loss of previously acquired language, social skills or both.

8 Jun 2005

Arthritis patients still suffer as drugs guidelines are ignored

Access to drugs whose use was approved by the UK's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) three years ago is still being denied to patients with severe rheumatoid arthritis.

7 Jun 2005

Doctors study surgery to stop epileptic seizures

Melinda Hillyard of Winchester, Va., first had epileptic seizures when she was eight years old. The seizures went away for years, then returned after the birth of her first child. "I never knew when my world would turn upside down," she recalled.

6 Jun 2005

Major advances in the global fight against eye disease

Now research offering a better understanding of the genetics controlling endemic eye diseases will be advanced by an international collaboration between Cardiff University’s School of Optometry and Vision Sciences and the Department of Opthalmology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Japan.

6 Jun 2005