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Over-the-counter decongestant as good as prescription drug in relieving hay fever symptoms

There is no significant difference between an over-the-counter decongestant and a prescription medication that costs almost four times as much in relieving hay fever symptoms, report researchers from the University of Chicago in the February issue of Archives of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery.

24 Feb 2006

Australia boost preparedness for Avian Influenza

Australia's preparedness for a potential Avian Influenza pandemic will be boosted by four new projects at The Australian National University (ANU), funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).

24 Feb 2006

Singulair pill shows more promise for obese people

As the nation's collective waistline has swelled in recent decades, rates of asthma diagnoses also have accelerated. Indeed, much research has affirmed a link between the two conditions.

23 Feb 2006

Discovery of molecule that may hold key to learning and memory

Independent research teams from Harvard Medical School and Children's Hospital Boston have identified a master protein that sheds light on one of neurobiology's biggest mysteries--how neurons change as a result of individual experiences.

23 Feb 2006

Most patients have kidney removed, despite organ-sparing surgery option

A less aggressive type of surgery designed to spare healthy organ tissue is used infrequently to treat early-stage kidney cancer, according to researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

21 Feb 2006

Potential new drug for treating all forms of tuberculosis

An experimental tuberculosis drug may be effective against not only multi drug-resistant forms of the disease but could also be the first compound to treat the latent stage of infection as well. Researchers reported their results at the 2006 ASM Biodefense Research Meeting.

20 Feb 2006

Antidepressants may affect fetus

A University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine collaborative study with Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center found an increased risk of persistent pulmonary hypertension (PPHN) in newborns of mothers who used certain commonly prescribed antidepressants in late pregnancy.

20 Feb 2006

Protein levels predict bone marrow transplant survival

Researchers say that protein levels can predict which bone marrow transplant patients are likely develop a deadly complication a week after the procedure and well before any symptoms occur.

19 Feb 2006

Hospitalization of a spouse can harm the wellbeing of his or her partner

In the largest study ever to quantify caregiver burden and the widower effect, researchers found that for people aged 65 and older, hospitalization of a spouse can harm the wellbeing of his or her partner and significantly contribute to that partner's death.

17 Feb 2006

Unexpected rheumatoid arthritis discovery

What makes joints in people with rheumatoid arthritis, and related conditions like Lyme disease or lupus, so susceptible to attack by the body's immune system, leading to painful flare-ups and deterioration? The answer may surprise you.

17 Feb 2006

Children and teen-agers with bipolar disorder suffer from the illness differently than adults do

Their symptoms last longer and swing more swiftly from hyperactivity and recklessness to lethargy and depression.

17 Feb 2006

Protein level predicts who will develop graft vs. host disease after marrow transplant

Researchers could determine one week after a bone marrow transplant which patients were likely to develop a serious and deadly complication, making them candidates for preventive treatment before any symptoms occur.

17 Feb 2006

Elastin fragments drive emphysema

Pulmonary emphysema is caused primarily by cigarette smoking, and the underlying cellular mechanisms are thought to involve smoke-induced activation of tissue degrading enzymes known as proteases.

16 Feb 2006

Researchers develop way to visualize synchronized interactions of nerve cells in the brain

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School and the Brain Sciences Center at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center have discovered a new way to assess how brain networks act together.

16 Feb 2006

New way to culture adult stem cells from bone marrow

In a significant advance for regenerative medicine, researchers at Rice University have discovered a new way to culture adult stem cells from bone marrow such that the cells themselves produce a growth matrix that is rich in important biochemical growth factors.

16 Feb 2006

Adverse drug events believed to be among the leading causes of mortality in the United States

Less than 1 percent of outpatients who received medication in 2002 were prescribed a medication that violated a prescription drug's black box warning, according to a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

16 Feb 2006

Discovery suggests potential treatment for regenerating nerve tissue after stroke

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School have discovered a new population of cells in human umbilical cord blood that have properties of primitive stem cells.

16 Feb 2006

Some patients with glaucoma have higher pressure at night

Some patients with glaucoma appear to have higher pressure in their eyes during sleep at night than during the day when it is usually measured, possibly putting them at higher risk for progression of the disease than previously thought, according to a study in the February issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

14 Feb 2006

Discovery of new cord blood cells

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School have discovered a new population of cells in human umbilical cord blood that have properties of primitive stem cells.

14 Feb 2006