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New technique could lead to more effective therapies for AIDS

When researchers came up with the powerful cocktail of anti-HIV drugs known as highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), they hoped they had found a way to finally rid the body of the virus. But they were wrong.

4 Jan 2005

Elementary school intervention boosts positive functioning in early childhood

An elementary school intervention program that taught children impulse control and gave their teachers and parents better management skills has long-lasting effects extending into early adulthood, showing that the children are more productive and well-adjusted members of society at age 21, according to a new study.

4 Jan 2005

Hypnosis helps kids undergoing difficult procedure called voiding cystourethography

Elaine Miller desperately wanted to find a way to help her daughter, Hannah, endure an awkward and painful medical examination in which doctors insert a catheter into her bladder, inject a dye and ask her to urinate while being X-rayed.

4 Jan 2005

Study is the first to track changes in the rate of ICD utilization among blacks and whites

Racial disparities in the use of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) declined during the 1990s as use of the devices spread into communities with larger African-American populations, according to a new study in the Jan. 4, 2005 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

4 Jan 2005

Patient safety measures work at children’s hospitals

In recent years, children's hospitals have joined in the national push to improve patient safety and avoid preventable problems. But it has been hard to measure progress, because of uncertainty about whether standard patient safety measurement tools apply to their patients, who are younger, smaller and on average sicker than those at other hospitals.

4 Jan 2005

Calcium intake contributing factor in formation of kidney stones

Individuals with either calcium oxalate or calcium phosphate kidney stones should not take extra calcium on their own as suggested by previous research, but should check with their doctors to determine the dietary guidelines that work best for them, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have found.

4 Jan 2005

Technology that could double the effectiveness of cancer drugs

To identify the best treatment for recurrent ovarian cancer, researchers at Yale School of Medicine are studying a technology called the Yale apoptosis assay in combination with another technology called the ChemoFX assay, which could double the response rate to existing drugs.

4 Jan 2005

No link between immunizations and autism

Over the past 20 years, there has been speculation about a connection between immunizations and an increase in autism. However, a study by Mayo Clinic researchers published in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine suggests the increase may be due to improved awareness, changes in diagnostic criteria and availability of services, not environmental factors or immunizations.

4 Jan 2005

Signaling molecule involved in osteoarthritis identified

Using naturally-occurring mutant mice with a defective collagen gene, scientists at Harvard have identified a signaling molecule involved in one of the most common causes of disability among the elderly in the United States, osteoarthritis.

4 Jan 2005

3 or more alcoholic drinks increases risk of ischemic stroke by 45%

A new study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) has found that heavy drinkers -- men who consume an average of three or more alcoholic beverages per day -- are nearly 45 percent more likely to suffer an ischemic stroke compared with nondrinkers.

4 Jan 2005

Higher risk of kidney infection among women with a history of incontinence and diabetes

Researchers at Seattle-based Group Health Cooperative and the University of Washington (UW) report that some of the same factors that put women at risk for simple, lower urinary tract infections (UTIs) - as well as some unexpected factors - also make them susceptible to more serious kidney infections.

4 Jan 2005

For uncomplicated colds antibiotics are not necessary

If a runny nose and congested chest have you thinking of antibiotics, think again.

3 Jan 2005

Least forceful way to deliver a baby whose shoulders are stuck in the birth canal

Johns Hopkins researchers, using a novel birthing simulator designed by biomedical engineering faculty, staff and students at the University, have identified what may be the least forceful way to deliver a baby whose shoulders are stuck in the birth canal.

3 Jan 2005

Minimally invasive surgery to alleviate the pain and pressure of sinusitis is a safe

Minimally invasive surgery to alleviate the pain and pressure of sinusitis is a safe, effective therapy for geriatric patients who can't be helped by medication alone, according to new research.

3 Jan 2005

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the most common endocrine disorder among reproductive-age women

The polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the most common endocrine disorder among reproductive-age women, produces a wide variety of body changes with both physical and emotional implications for sufferers.

3 Jan 2005

The rise in over the counter drugs, why?

Switching of prescription drugs to over the counter availability is increasingly common, but what are the motives behind this trend, ask US researchers in this week's BMJ?

3 Jan 2005

Eli Lilly aware in the 1980s that fluoxetine had troubling side effects

The BMJ has turned over confidential drug company documents that went missing from a 10 year old murder case to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for review.

3 Jan 2005

Who's to blame for obese kids?

Most Americans endorse public efforts to reduce childhood obesity but don't want to do so through taxes or regulation, a new survey reveals.

30 Dec 2004

Pegaptanib (Macugen) is an effective treatment for neovascular age-related macular degeneration

Results from two concurrent, prospective, double-blind, multi-center clinical trials show that pegaptanib (Macugen), an anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy, is an effective treatment for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD), according to a paper in the Dec. 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. Macugen was approved by the Food and Drug Administration on Dec. 17.

30 Dec 2004

Link between body-mass index and oral-contraceptive failure

Overweight and obese women who take oral contraceptives are 60 percent to 70 percent more likely to get pregnant while on the birth-control pill, respectively, than women of lower weight, according to new findings from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center that will be published in the January issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

30 Dec 2004