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Insulin - possible vaccine against type 1 diabetes

It has taken scientists at the University of Miami's Diabetes Research Institute eight long years of painstaking research, but they believe they have finally pinned down Insulin, the hormone most closely linked to diabetes, to be the cause of the inherited form of the blood sugar disease.

11 May 2005

Type 2 diabetes may begin with Grandma's diet, study suggests

An innovative study published in the latest online edition of the Journal of Physiology provides the first evidence that the insulin resistance typical of type 2 diabetes can be "programmed" across two generations by poor nutrition during a grandmother’s pregnancy and lactation.

11 May 2005

Some children in the United States are still at risk for lead poisoning

Despite efforts to remove lead from many products, such as gasoline and paint, some children in the United States are still at risk for lead poisoning. A new study shows that children at the greatest risk for lead poisoning, and also those identified with elevated blood lead levels through screening, were the least likely to get follow-up testing needed for prevention.

10 May 2005

It's OK again to drink milk!

In yet more advice on what and what not to eat, now it seems that milk after all is OK for us as long as it's low-fat.

10 May 2005

Benitec announces clinical candidate for the treatment of Hepatitis C

Benitec Ltd. announced today that it has identified a highly promising clinical candidate for its RNA interference (RNAi)-based therapeutic against the hepatitis C virus (HCV).

10 May 2005

As science gets wiser, so do the bugs

As science gets wiser, so do the bugs. The rates of drug-resistant bacteria infecting patients in the community and in the hospital have been increasing steadily in recent years, according to two new studies in the June 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases.

9 May 2005

Metabolic syndrome costing four times that for all other patients

It is well known that hypertension, diabetes, and obesity are each taking a toll on Americans' health, but according to a new analysis, metabolic syndrome, a condition characterized by a combination of these and/or other risk factors, is fast becoming one of the nation's costliest health concerns.

9 May 2005

Decline in major heart disease offset by rise in diagnosed angina among British men

Rates of heart attack and coronary death among British middle aged men have fallen steadily since the late 1970s, but this has been largely offset by an increase in the rate of diagnosed angina, finds a study in this week's BMJ.

5 May 2005

Experts warn that osteoporosis is not a healthcare priority for patients or physicians

A panel of medical experts, Congresswoman Shelley Berkley (D-NV) and Congresswoman Sue Myrick (R-NC) gathered today on Capitol Hill to examine the barriers that currently exist to proper prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, a disease that affects up to 44 million Americans.

5 May 2005

Survey of ED doctors shows team-based stroke care, risk-reducing measures, needed to increase use of tPA

Forty percent of emergency physicians say they're unlikely to give stroke patients the only FDA-approved drug shown to improve their prognosis, even in an ideal setting, mostly because of the fear of causing brain bleeding.

5 May 2005

Controlling a person’s weight after they have given up smoking could help maximise the benefits for their lungs

Lung function normally declines with advancing age, and smoking causes premature onset and acceleration of this age-related decline. Stopping smoking is beneficial for lung function but may lead to weight gain. Previous studies have reported the effects of quitting smoking and weight change on lung function, but the total effect has not been reported in a general population study.

4 May 2005

Study examines influence of celebrity endorsements of cancer screening

More than one-half of adults surveyed nationwide had seen or heard celebrity endorsements of cancer screening tests, and more than one-fourth of those who had seen or heard an endorsement reported that it made them more likely to undergo the promoted screening test, according to a new study in the May 4 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

3 May 2005

Researchers have successfully induced adult heart-muscle cells to divide and multiply

In the best documented effort to date, researchers from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School have successfully induced adult heart-muscle cells to divide and multiply.

3 May 2005

Self-expanding metal tubes or stents are a safe and effective treatment for obstructive jaundice

One key goal of treating pancreatic cancer, which is often fatal within a year, is making sure patients have a good quality of life with as few complications as possible. This is especially important if they are candidates for surgical removal of the cancer.

2 May 2005

Mobile phones join the fight against youth depression

Mobile phones are to be used in a 400 person study to determine how youth depression starts and develops. The researchers hope to use the results to create a mobile phone program to act as an early warning system for at-risk young people.

28 Apr 2005

New look at role of nurses in frontline health

The expanding role of nurses in general practices across Australia will be examined in detail in a new study which will deliver alternatives for medical service delivery in Australia.

28 Apr 2005

Researchers zero in on sleep gene

Zeroing in on the core cellular mechanisms of sleep, researchers at University of Wisconsin Medical School have identified for the first time a single gene mutation that has a powerful effect on the amount of time fruit flies sleep.

27 Apr 2005

Antibiotics do not prevent heart attacks

Clinicians and researchers have found that more than three quarters of heart attack patients have been infected with chlamydia pneumoniae - a bacteria found in arteries of heart attack patients - and multiple studies have found this can double the risk of developing subsequent heart attacks.

27 Apr 2005

Patients' lives at risk from substandard drugs say heart specialists

Global action is needed to counter the dangers of substandard life-saving drugs that are putting patients' lives and health at risk, according to heart specialists writing in the new (19 April) issue of Europe's leading cardiology journal, the European Heart Journal.

27 Apr 2005

New drug combo helps prevent strokes

A British research team at St. George's Hospital Medical School in London, have found that the addition of the anti-clotting drug Plavix to daily doses of aspirin helps prevent the risk of later strokes better than using aspirin alone.

25 Apr 2005