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Global prevalence of kidney failure among critically ill patients

A multinational study has found that 5 to 6 percent of patients in intensive care units experience acute kidney failure, and about 60 percent of these patients die in the hospital, according to an article in the August 17 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

18 Aug 2005

Separate studies produce conflicting results on race and gender disparities in U.S. health system

Two newly released studies in the U.S. have to some extent come to conflicting results. According to one study, by researchers at Emory University, attempts over the last decade to address race and gender disparities in the treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks, still in some respects raise cause for concern.

18 Aug 2005

Treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks continues to vary according to sex and race

Despite a decade of initiatives to remedy health disparities in cardiovascular medicine, at least some aspects of the treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks continues to vary according to sex and race, according to a study by researchers at Emory University in collaboration with Yale University and other centers.

17 Aug 2005

Common non-aspirin painkillers linked to high blood pressure in women

Women who consume higher doses of non-aspirin painkillers are much more likely to develop high blood pressure than women who do not use them, according to research reported in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association.

17 Aug 2005

Low hemoglobin levels are a predictor of increased risk of death among heart failure patients

Hemoglobin (Hgb) is the major substance in red blood cells, and its level indicates the blood's ability to carry oxygen throughout the body. Studies have shown that low hemoglobin, which may result in anemia, is more common among patients with heart failure than it is among people in the general population.

17 Aug 2005

Stem Cell Sciences to commercialise breakthrough in neural stem cell technology

Stem Cell Sciences has announced that it has an exclusive license to a new patented technology to derive and grow neural stem cells. This technology has been licensed from the University of Edinburgh.

16 Aug 2005

Interferon selectively kills colon cancer cells when combined with irinotecan chemotherapy agent

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists have found that interferon, used for 30 years to treat blood cancers, multiple sclerosis and hepatitis, selectively kills colon cancer cells when combined with another standard chemotherapy agent.

16 Aug 2005

Weight control protein may yield new approaches for treating obesity and type 2 diabetes

The findings in mice further suggest that particular variants of the protein SH2-B might underlie obesity in humans, the researchers said.

16 Aug 2005

Decline in energy production by mitochondria appears to be a key problem leading to insulin resistance

A detectable decline in energy production by mitochondria - the organelles that are the cell's furnace for energy production - seems to be a key problem leading to insulin resistance, and thus to type 2 diabetes, according to studies by Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers.

16 Aug 2005

New study shows even non-prescription painkillers raise blood pressure in women

According to a new U.S. study women who take higher doses of common, over-the-counter painkillers, such as Ibuprofen and even Tylenol, have higher blood pressure than women who do not.

16 Aug 2005

New hope for those deaf from immune system attack

A new study may one day help those deafened by immune system attack, and possibly also lead to a test that could show which patients may be helped by immediate steroid treatment.

16 Aug 2005

Chronic use of nitroglycerin for chest pain could lead to mitochondrial damage

Definitive evidence to explain how the drug nitroglycerin relieves chest pain has resulted from a new study by Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigators at Duke University Medical Center. Nitroglycerin relaxes blood vessels to boost blood flow, yet the mechanism by which the drug works has remained a matter of scientific controversy.

16 Aug 2005

Oral medications may control symptoms of Type II diabetes in children just as well as insulin injections

According to the medical records of 26 children diagnosed with the disease, oral medications reduced levels of a compound in the blood called hemoglobin A1C by an average of 2 percentage points.

15 Aug 2005

Large-scale computer simulations reveal new insights into antibiotic resistance

Large-scale computer simulations have pinpointed a tiny change in molecular structure that could account for drug resistance in Streptomices pneumoniae, the organism that causes childhood pneumonia and claims 3.5 million lives a year, mainly in developing countries.

15 Aug 2005

Complications from angioplasty much lower among patients whose doctors perform a large number of those procedures each year

Before patients get their clogged heart arteries re-opened, they may want to ask their doctor just how many such procedures he or she has done, a new study finds. The answer may make a big difference in each patient's risk of suffering a major setback before leaving the hospital.

15 Aug 2005

Adalimumab and methotrexate is about five times more effective than methotrexate alone for rheumatoid arthritis

For people with long-standing rheumatoid arthritis, combined treatment with the new "biologic" drug adalimumab and methotrexate is about five times more effective than methotrexate alone, according to a new systematic review of studies.

15 Aug 2005

Abbott receives European approval to market Humira

Abbott has announced that it has received approval from the European Commission to market Humira (adalimumab) as a treatment for psoriatic arthritis and early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in Europe.

15 Aug 2005

Genomes of Trypanosoma brucei and Trypanosoma cruzi sequenced

Oxford scientists have contributed to the genome sequencing of two parasites which cause major health problems in the developing world.

15 Aug 2005

Key toxin could provide for world's first treatment for Alzheimer's

Dr Karen Cullen at Sydney University’s Institute for Biomedical Research is part of a collaborative team which has identified a key component in the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, a finding which may produce the world’s first effective treatment to combat the debilitating effects of the disease.

15 Aug 2005

FDA places very tight restrictions on acne drug Accutane

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said late last week, that in future, patients and doctors will have to register with manufacturers and promise to comply with tight restrictions, before using the acne drug Accutane and it's generic versions.

14 Aug 2005

Drugs News and Research

Global prevalence of kidney failure among critically ill patients

Separate studies produce conflicting results on race and gender disparities in U.S. health system

Treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks continues to vary according to sex and race

Common non-aspirin painkillers linked to high blood pressure in women

Low hemoglobin levels are a predictor of increased risk of death among heart failure patients

Stem Cell Sciences to commercialise breakthrough in neural stem cell technology

Interferon selectively kills colon cancer cells when combined with irinotecan chemotherapy agent

Weight control protein may yield new approaches for treating obesity and type 2 diabetes

Decline in energy production by mitochondria appears to be a key problem leading to insulin resistance

New study shows even non-prescription painkillers raise blood pressure in women

New hope for those deaf from immune system attack

Chronic use of nitroglycerin for chest pain could lead to mitochondrial damage

Oral medications may control symptoms of Type II diabetes in children just as well as insulin injections

Large-scale computer simulations reveal new insights into antibiotic resistance

Complications from angioplasty much lower among patients whose doctors perform a large number of those procedures each year

Adalimumab and methotrexate is about five times more effective than methotrexate alone for rheumatoid arthritis

Abbott receives European approval to market Humira

Genomes of Trypanosoma brucei and Trypanosoma cruzi sequenced

Key toxin could provide for world's first treatment for Alzheimer's

FDA places very tight restrictions on acne drug Accutane

Drug Discovery - Second Edition eBook

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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