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Tackling antimicrobial resistance

Drug resistance is making many diseases increasingly difficult and sometimes impossible to treat, according to Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

11 Mar 2008

Biopsy techniques have made PSA test less predictive

Prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels typically have correlated with prostate biopsy results in the detection of prostate cancer, but that correlation no longer exists for men with a normal prostate exam, according to a new study published in the April 15, 2008 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

11 Mar 2008

Allergy testing is essential in the effective management of patients with allergic conditions

When combined with a detailed medical history, it can identify the causes of allergy symptoms and provide the basis for avoidance, environmental control and immunotherapy.

11 Mar 2008

Gene could spell new chapter in fight against gout

Researchers have found why some people are more susceptible to gout than others. The scientists looked at the genetic codes of more than 12,000 people after identifying a gene linked to uric acid levels in the blood.

10 Mar 2008

Bottom-up fabrication of tiny wires may help detect cancer and other diseases

Bottom-up manufacturing may hold the key to production of tiny medical devices capable of testing for multiple molecules like viruses or cancer markers, according to an interdisciplinary team of Penn State researchers.

10 Mar 2008

Discovery of gene abnormality that causes the fatal paralysis, motor neuron disease

In a world first, University of Sydney researchers from the ANZAC Research Institute at Concord Hospital, in collaboration with colleagues at Kings College London, have found a new gene abnormality that causes the fatal paralysis, motor neuron disease (MND).

6 Mar 2008

Cause of depression and anxiety unknown not chemical

The theory that depression is caused by a chemical imbalance is often presented in the media as fact even though there is little scientific evidence to support it, according to a new study co-authored by a Florida State University visiting lecturer.

4 Mar 2008

Rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis

In an article recommended by Annelies Boonen of Faculty of 1000 Medicine, researchers look at the way rheumatoid arthritis is diagnosed by analysing the administrative databases used by physicians in Quebec.

4 Mar 2008

Gold nanoparticle-based colorimetric assay for the direct detection of cancerous cells

Early detection of tumors is one of the Holy Grails of cancer research, an achievement that would greatly improve cancer therapy and prognosis. Two new reports describe different but promising approaches to solving this problem.

3 Mar 2008

FDA approves PRISTIQ for the treatment of adult patients with major depressive disorder

Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, a division of Wyeth, has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved PRISTIQ (desvenlafaxine), a structurally novel, once-daily serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), to treat adult patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).

3 Mar 2008

New blood test for early stage ovarian cancer

Australian researchers say they have developed an accurate blood test to detect the first stages of ovarian cancer.

3 Mar 2008

Simple screening questionnaire for kidney disease outperforms current clinical practice guidelines

The general public is not sufficiently aware that chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a serious and progressive medical condition.

1 Mar 2008

Brain differences between women and men

What was once speculation is now being confirmed by scientists: the brains of women and men are different in more ways than one.

1 Mar 2008

Real-time imaging device may improve surgery for congenital colon disease

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center are developing a spectral imaging system that could result in shorter operating times for infants undergoing surgery for Hirschsprung's disease, according to a mouse study reported in the Journal of Biophotonics.

1 Mar 2008

Abilify (aripiprazole) approved for acute treatment of bipolar I disorder in adolescents

Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the supplemental New Drug Application for ABILIFY (aripiprazole) for the acute treatment of manic and mixed episodes associated with Bipolar I Disorder, with or without psychotic features in pediatric patients (10 to 17 years old).

1 Mar 2008

Research leading to tools for managing bovine respiratory disease complex

Bovine respiratory disease complex has multiple causes. It's sometimes hard to classify and predict. It also costs the beef industry more than any other disease -- an estimated $690 million in 2006, according to one report.

28 Feb 2008

Imaging Dynamics Company receives patent on dual energy imaging technology

Imaging Dynamics Company Ltd has announced that it was awarded the patent for a dual energy optically coupled digital radiography system.

28 Feb 2008

Decline in cystic fibrosis since introduction of prenatal carrier screening

A brief report in the February 28, 2008, New England Journal of Medicine, led by researchers at the New England Newborn Screening Program (NENSP) of the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS), indicates a declining incidence of a genetic disease, providing what may be the first demonstration of a link between two independent population-based screening programs.

28 Feb 2008

Other types of E. coli shouldn't be ignored

While many of us are worried about E. coli 0157 in our food supply, a pre-harvest food safety expert at Kansas State University cautions that other types of E. coli shouldn't go ignored.

27 Feb 2008

GeneSearch Breast Lymph Node Assay reduces recurrence of breast cancer

A new test that examines large sections of the sentinel lymph node for genes expressed by breast cancer could reduce the risk of recurrence and multiple surgeries, doctors say.

27 Feb 2008