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New plan to tackle off-label prescribing

Physicians and policy-makers know that drugs are frequently prescribed to treat certain diseases despite a lack of FDA approval - a practice known as off-label prescribing.

24 Nov 2008

Ultrasound helps provide rapid treatment of DVT

Scientists in the United States have discovered that ultrasound waves help dissolve blood clots in deep vein thrombosis (DVT) faster than clot-busting drugs.

24 Nov 2008

Researchers discover how red wine may reduce Alzheimer's

Scientists call it the "French paradox" - a society that, despite consuming food high in cholesterol and saturated fats, has long had low death rates from heart disease.

21 Nov 2008

Lung cancer facts

Lung cancer kills more than four times as many Americans as breast cancer. But while pink ribbons trumpet Breast Cancer Awareness Month throughout October, little attention is paid to lung cancer in November, which is that disease's awareness month.

21 Nov 2008

Long-term use of a macrolide antibiotic reduce COPD exacerbations, raise questions

Long-term use of a macrolide antibiotic may reduce the frequency of exacerbations in patients with moderate to severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by as much as 35 percent, according to a London-based study.

21 Nov 2008

Reminder, signs of a heart attack can be subtle

You know the drill: join the family for feasting on a high-fat, carbohydrate-filled meal followed by a generous slice of pumpkin pie

21 Nov 2008

FDA approves tapentadol immediate-release tablets for pain in adults

Millions of Americans with moderate to severe acute pain and their health-care providers will soon have a new treatment option.

21 Nov 2008

Children born four months before height of cold and flu season have a greater risk of developing childhood asthma

It is said that timing is everything, and that certainly appears to be true for autumn infants.

21 Nov 2008

Smokeless tobacco products target youth

New research at West Virginia University is examining whether a smokeless, spitless tobacco product aimed at young adults is catching on.

21 Nov 2008

NJISA experts available for interviews on Alzheimer's disease

An estimated five million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's, a disease that affects parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language and is the most common form of dementia among older people.

21 Nov 2008

Scientists discover an important new layer of regulation in the cell division cycle

A Florida State University College of Medicine research team led by Yanchang Wang has discovered an important new layer of regulation in the cell division cycle, which could lead to a greater understanding of the way cancer begins.

21 Nov 2008

Bipolar disorder genes, pathways identified

Neuroscientists at the Indiana University School of Medicine have created the first comprehensive map of genes likely to be involved in bipolar disorder, according to research published online Nov. 21 in the American Journal of Medical Genetics.

21 Nov 2008

Non-pharmacologic interventions for the control of osteoporosis and obesity

The Department of Biomedical Engineering at Stony Brook University received a $1.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate the biologic and physical mechanisms of very low-magnitude mechanical signals and how they strengthen bone and muscle.

20 Nov 2008

Possible new target for anticancer therapeutics

New data, generated in mice, by Pierre Sonveaux and colleagues, at University catholique de Louvain, Belgium, have identified a potential new target for anticancer therapeutics.

20 Nov 2008

Scientists develop unlimited pure insulin-producing cells from mouse embryonic stem cells

These pure insulin-producing cells, which according to electron microscopy studies, have the same sub-cellular structures as the insulin-producing cells naturally found in the pancreas, were highly effective in treating diabetes in the mouse model.

20 Nov 2008

Scientists trick immune system of mice into believing transplanted islets are its own cells

The body's immune system hates strangers. When its security patrol spots a foreign cell, it annihilates it.

20 Nov 2008

New system helps the repair of hip joint using arthroscopy

Smith & Nephew's Endoscopy Division has announced the launch of the CROSSTRAC Hip Guide System, which enables surgeons to accurately establish pathways to diagnose and repair the hip joint using arthroscopy, or minimally invasive, repair procedures.

20 Nov 2008

Researchers reveal a new aspect of tumor development

The DNA in our cells is constantly under assault from oxygen, the sun's radiation and environmental stresses.

20 Nov 2008

Food scientists study link between pathogens and illness

No food processor wants pathogens contaminating the product in the plant for at least one obvious reason; the product on sale at retail might carry the risk of foodborne illness.

20 Nov 2008

Gefitinib just as effective as chemotherapy for lung cancer

Gefitinib, also known as Iressa, the once-promising targeted therapy for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer, has proven as effective as chemotherapy as a second-line therapy for the disease with far fewer side effects, according to an international Phase III clinical trial, led by researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

20 Nov 2008