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Study reveals consistent correlation between adult diabetes and particulate air pollution

A national epidemiologic study finds a strong, consistent correlation between adult diabetes and particulate air pollution that persists after adjustment for other risk factors like obesity and ethnicity, report researchers from Children's Hospital Boston. The relationship was seen even at exposure levels below the current EPA safety limit.

30 Sep 2010

Radiologists urge judicious use of radiation-based imaging in children

A CT scan can mean the difference between an accurate and a wrong diagnosis, timely and delayed treatment and, in some cases, life and death. But because CT scans and other tests that use X-ray technology expose the body to often large doses of radiation, their unnecessary, repeated and excessive use may increase cancer risk, especially in children.

30 Sep 2010

U.N. agencies' report examines global progress in fight against HIV/AIDS

"A record 1.2 million people in low- and middle-income countries started antiretroviral therapy for HIV/AIDS in 2009" - a 30 percent increase from the previous year and a 13-fold increase in six years, according to a joint report released Tuesday by the WHO, UNICEF and UNAIDS, Reuters reports. In total, the report found that 5.25 million people received antiretroviral therapy (ART) in 2009, three-quarters of them living in Africa (Migiro, 9/28).

30 Sep 2010

Merck's ROTATEQ vaccine receives Prix Galien USA 2010 Award for Best Biotechnology Product

ROTATEQ® (Rotavirus Vaccine, Live, Oral, Pentavalent), Merck's vaccine for rotavirus gastroenteritis in infants and children, received the Prix Galien USA 2010 Award for Best Biotechnology Product, Merck announced today.

30 Sep 2010

First direct genetic link to ADHD

The latest study shows evidence of a genetic link to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD. The researchers from Cardiff University, Wales said the disorder was a brain problem like autism and not due to bad parenting. The paper appeared in the acclaimed journal Lancet.

30 Sep 2010

Health law's medical loss ratios, exchanges scrutinized

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners, which is working with the Department of Health and Human Services on implementing key parts of the health law, is still considering how to determine the kinds of insurers' expenses that are considered medical care.

30 Sep 2010

Midlife crisis is hitting Britons earlier: Survey

The latest British research shows that the tmidlife crisis that was once thought to hit people on their fifties is now affecting people in their mid-thirties. The changes in the work culture may be the main reason say researchers.

30 Sep 2010

Study shows blueberries may help fight atherosclerosis

Blueberries may help fight atherosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries, according to results of a preliminary U.S. Department of Agriculture funded study with laboratory mice. The research provides the first direct evidence that blueberries can help prevent harmful plaques or lesions, symptomatic of atherosclerosis, from increasing in size in arteries.

30 Sep 2010

Precautionary guidelines on flu vaccine safety for allergic children

With the flu season looming and health officials calling for across-the-board immunization, some parents may wonder just how safe the egg-based flu vaccine is for children with allergies. Pretty safe, say pediatricians from Johns Hopkins Children's Center: Even though the flu vaccine contains egg protein, most children with egg and other food allergies can be immunized safely with a few basic precautions.

30 Sep 2010

New immunotherapy regimen improves survival rate in children with neuroblastoma: Research

Administering a new form of immunotherapy to children with neuroblastoma, a nervous system cancer, increased the percentage of those who were alive and free of disease progression after two years, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and fellow institutions.

30 Sep 2010

Opinions: U.S. aid to Pakistan; MDGS; GHI and Global Fund

The U.S. military has been working hard to provide flood assistance, but most of that is invisible to Pakistanis, David Ignatius writes in a Washington Post opinion piece. The article examines the views of Pakistani flood victims, including criticism of their own government's response.

30 Sep 2010

Today's Opinions: Health law leaves children behind; growing fear of accountable care organizations

The child only market is used mostly by poor families who can't afford to insure everybody in their household, or whose peculiar circumstances make it inconvenient for them to cover a child under a parent's plan.

30 Sep 2010

Michigan University researchers receive funds to study breast cancer risk factors

A team of researchers led by a Michigan State University scientist has been awarded $14 million to identify risk factors for breast cancer in young women, focusing on growth, diet, physical activity and body size during a woman's lifetime.

30 Sep 2010

Breakthrough neuroblastoma treatment

According to a new study the addition of an experimental immunotherapy drug to the standard regimen of care extended the lives and decreased the risk of a disease recurrence in children with high-risk neuroblastoma. This tumor most frequently originates in one of the adrenal glands, but can also develop in nerve tissues in the neck, chest, abdomen, or pelvis. It forms 12 percent of cancer-related deaths in children under the age of 15 and half of patients with this type of malignancy have the high-risk form.

29 Sep 2010

Circadian partners with Cincinnati Children's Hospital to develop blood test diagnostic for LAM, a serious lung disease

Circadian Technologies (ASX.CIR) has announced today that it has partnered with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Centre (CCHMC) to develop and market a blood test to diagnose LAM, a serious lung disease that strikes women, usually in their child bearing years.

29 Sep 2010

Swine flu no longer a threat to Americans: Report

According to the latest research most Americans are immune to the swine flu virus. Results of the study by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, published in the journal mBio show that around 59 percent of the 310 million U.S. population has developed immunity to H1N1 either from exposure to similar viruses, vaccination, or natural H1N1 infection.

29 Sep 2010

Malaria vaccine close to reality

A successful and effective malaria vaccine could be available in Africa by 2015 revealed a co-inventor of the shot against the killer disease, Tuesday. Advance trials of the RTS,S vaccine against falciparum malaria are under way in seven African countries. This variety of malaria is the deadliest and trials are said to be showing encouraging results according to GlaxoSmithKline researcher Joe Cohen, who has been working on developing the vaccine for over 20 years.

29 Sep 2010

Study links noise and stochastic resonance to higher cognitive functions and attention

Playing white noise in class can help inattentive children learn. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Behavioral and Brain Functions tested the effect of the meaningless random noise on a group of 51 schoolchildren, finding that although it hindered the ability of those who normally pay attention, it improved the memory of those that had difficulties in paying attention.

29 Sep 2010

New program offers options for fertility preservation in children with cancer

It is estimated that 1 in 500 children will be diagnosed with a form of childhood cancer. Fortunately, with the use of aggressive treatment modalities, more than 75% of these children will be cured. Therefore, many of these children and parents are looking beyond the cancer at important quality of life issues and guiding their treatments to assure "normal" post-cancer survivorship.

29 Sep 2010

Quidel receives FDA clearance for QuickVue RSV 10 immunoassay test

Quidel Corporation, a leading provider of rapid diagnostic testing solutions, announced today that it has received 510(k) clearance from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the sale of its QuickVue RSV 10, a lateral flow immunoassay test for the qualitative detection of acute respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections.

29 Sep 2010