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Researchers find link between highways and breathing problems in kids

Children living close to a major road are significantly more likely to have asthma than children who live farther away, according to study findings presented today at the American Thoracic Society International Conference.

25 May 2005

New WHO rules mean countries could face quarantine in bid to beat killer epidemics

Under new rules agreed by the World Health Organisation yesterday (WHO), serious outbreaks of deadly diseases such as bird flu and SARS could mean travel and trade restrictions could be placed on many countries.

24 May 2005

Stem cell legislation holds promise for 18.2 million Americans with diabetes

The American Diabetes Association today strongly expressed its support for federal legislation that would accelerate stem cell research by easing existing restrictions and supporting research that uses embryonic stem cells.

23 May 2005

Children living close to a major road are significantly more likely to have asthma than children who live farther away

The study found that children living within 75 meters (about 82 yards) of a major road had an almost 50 percent greater risk of having had asthma symptoms in the past year than were children who lived more than 300 meters (about 328 yards) away.

23 May 2005

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors updates requirements for clinical trials registry

The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) today issued a follow-up joint editorial regarding its goal to foster a comprehensive, publicly available database of clinical trials. The joint editorial by 11 ICMJE member journals is published online simultaneously today and is posted on the JAMA website. It will also appear in print in the June 15 issue of JAMA.

23 May 2005

Mental health literacy in rural areas could reduce homophobia-linked suicides

With male suicide rates in rural areas of Australia seven times higher than in metropolitan areas, a researcher is exploring the issue of compromised mental health associated with bullying.

23 May 2005

Judges perceive child witnesses as being more honest than adults when testifying in court

The multi-disciplinary research, the first of its kind to examine judges' perceptions of child witnesses, was led by Queen's Child and Family Law scholar Nick Bala. It addresses how judges assess the honesty and reliability of children's court testimony, and how accurate their observations are.

20 May 2005

Cameras and MP3 players are fun, but the next wave of add-ons for cell phones and laptops may help users keep track of their health

A University of Florida engineer has built a working prototype for a small, portable system that can monitor a person’s breathing and heart rate automatically via wireless signal, with no need for cords or plugs. The goal is to make it easy for people to check their own vital signs, and then transmit them in real time to medical personnel through a cell phone or Internet connection, all with little more than a press of a button.

18 May 2005

Scientists confirm rarefied air poses in-flight problem

More than half of all air passengers experience significant blood oxygen decreases at high altitudes, UK researchers report in the scientific journal Anaesthesia. We take a look at the findings and EU research in the aeronautics field.

18 May 2005

Researchers to explore genome of disease-fighting fungus

A team of Texas Agricultural Experiment Station scientists will soon begin genome sequencing a disease-fighting fungus used to protect crops, which has implications for both agriculture and the pharmaceutical industry.

15 May 2005

Miserable mumps makes a comeback

There is concern in the UK at the growing number of outbreaks of mumps among children and young people.

12 May 2005

NIAID has awarded 10 grants and 2 contracts totaling approximately $27 million to fund development of new therapeutics and vaccines against bioterrorism

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has awarded 10 grants and 2 contracts totaling approximately $27 million to fund development of new therapeutics and vaccines against some of the most deadly agents of bioterrorism including anthrax, botulinum toxin, Ebola virus, pneumonic plague, smallpox and tularemia.

11 May 2005

Canada may ban bulk exports of drugs to the United States

In a move to forestall a potential drug shortage in Canada, Canadian Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh, is contemplating imposing a ban on bulk exports of drugs to the United States.

10 May 2005

Call for action on static Australian breastfeeding rates

New laws to protect the rights of breastfeeding women who return to work may be needed if Australia is to meet national breastfeeding targets.

10 May 2005

U.S. Government will pay hospitals for treatment provided to illegal aliens

Health care providers in the U.S. will, as from this week, be able to charge the government for emergency care they provide to illegal aliens.

9 May 2005

Girl juvenile offenders exhibit more problems, risks than boys

Girls in the juvenile justice system exhibit more risks than do boys for problem behaviors that may lead them to serious trouble, according to new research. Girls had more problems than boys in areas such as family and peer relations, physical health, mental health, traumatic events, and accountability issues.

9 May 2005

FDA seeks to ban gay men from donating sperm

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), to the dismay of gay-rights activists, is recommending that any man who has had sex with another man in the previous five years be barred from serving as an anonymous sperm donor.

8 May 2005

RADAR may have already saved hundreds of thousands of lives

As many as hundreds of thousands of lives may have saved by a program that identifies serious, sometimes fatal medication reactions.

4 May 2005

45% of US drug arrests are for marijuana, is this a waste of resources?

A great deal of time and money as well as man-power is spent on chasing after people using, possessing and trafficking in drugs. Since 1990, there have been 6.2 million arrests for marijuana possession and 1 million for marijuana trafficking.

3 May 2005

A grandparent at home buffers the drawbacks of single-parenthood

Many studies have shown that children living in a single-parent family tend to do worse academically and receive less intellectual stimulation than children living with married parents. Having a grandparent in the home, however, appears to buffer some of these negative effects, according to a new Cornell University study.

2 May 2005