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New clinical trial to assess antiretroviral treatment in HIV-infected individuals based on CD4 counts

A major new clinical trial seeks to determine whether HIV-infected asymptomatic individuals have less risk of developing AIDS or other serious illness if they begin taking antiretrovirals sooner rather than later, based on their level of CD4+ T-cells.

8 Mar 2011

Increased alcohol consumption leads to multiple cardiovascular outcomes

A summary paper on the effects of alcohol consumption on biologic mechanisms associated with coronary heart disease provides an excellent review of a large number of intervention studies in humans.

8 Mar 2011

North Shore-LIJ launches new prenatal quality initiative

Having a child is a life event that is equal parts magic and fear. Will the baby be healthy? Will labor and delivery pose challenges? Are there ways to reduce the risk for adverse events? Hospital obstetrical units face these questions round-the-clock.

8 Mar 2011

Humana joins with iCan to offer new individual healthcare plans

Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) has teamed with the iCan Benefit Group to offer a new line of discounted products for individual consumers. Effective immediately, people can access a variety of discounted packages that include dental, vision and pharmacy products.

8 Mar 2011

State roundup: Mass. effort to manage care for chronically ill; promoting organ donations

For a glimpse of the future of Massachusetts health care as Gov. Deval Patrick envisions it, consider Phyllis Minsky. At 82, Phyllis is complex. Medically, that is. ... Older patients with multiple chronic diseases are the biggest consumers of health care; some 15 percent of Medicare patients make up over 75 percent of health care spending.

8 Mar 2011

AstraZeneca grants $2.5 million to 14 U.S.-based organizations to improve cardiovascular health

The AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation today announced grants totaling more than $2.5 million to 14 U.S.-based nonprofit organizations from Maine to California dedicated to improving cardiovascular health in local communities.

8 Mar 2011

13 heart disease risk genes identified

Researchers have found 13 new gene variants that might increase the risk of heart disease. Heart disease being the largest killer worldwide, this discovery could shed light on causes and lead to more effective treatments.

7 Mar 2011

Down’s syndrome could be detected in mother’s blood test

European researchers have devised a blood test that could help pregnant women avoid the invasive procedures now used to diagnose Down syndrome prenatally and make the diagnosis with 100% accuracy. The study report was published this Sunday in Nature Medicine.

7 Mar 2011

Olivia’s cancer center’s future hangs in balance due to funds crunch

After the new Victorian government said that there is a “black hole” in funding the project, the proposed Olivia Newton-John Cancer Centre in Melbourne may face difficulties in coming into being. About 2000 Victorians are expected to receive treatment at the centre, which was due to open in early 2013.

7 Mar 2011

Carnot LSI launches new website for industrial contacts

Developed by Floralis, the University Joseph Fourier's technology transfer, the new website www.carnot-lsi.com www.carnot-lsi.com is more detailed comprehensive, more user-friendly and most of all more accessible to its target audience of industrial contacts.

7 Mar 2011

New insight into coronary artery disease

Insight into the complex biological mechanisms that cause heart disease has taken a major step forward with the discovery of 13 new genes that increase the risk of coronary artery disease.

7 Mar 2011

Duchenne Parent Project awards grant to AMT for DMD gene therapy

Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics, a leader in the field of human gene therapy, announced today that the Duchenne Parent Project, based in the Netherlands, has awarded AMT a grant of EUR 145,000 to support the development of AMT-080, AMT's gene therapy for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

7 Mar 2011

Study uncovers 13 new genes that increase risk of heart attacks

The largest-ever study of its type into coronary heart disease, involving scientists from the University of Leicester, has uncovered 13 new genes that increase risk of heart attacks.

7 Mar 2011

Scientists discover SNPs linked with high risk of sick sinus syndrome

Scientists at deCODE genetics and academic colleagues from Iceland, The Netherlands, Denmark, USA and Illumina, Inc., today report the discovery of single-letter variants in the sequence of the human genome associated with high risk of sick sinus syndrome.

6 Mar 2011

Researchers identify 13 new gene sites linked with risk of coronary artery disease

An international research collaboration has identified 13 new gene sites associated with the risk of coronary artery disease and validated 10 sites found in previous studies. Several of the novel sites discovered in the study, which is being published online in Nature Genetics, do not appear to relate to known risk factors, suggesting previously unsuspected mechanisms for cardiovascular disease.

6 Mar 2011

Study links 13 new gene regions to coronary atherosclerosis

Thirteen new gene regions have been convincingly linked to coronary atherosclerosis in a massive, new, international genetics study involving investigators from the Stanford University School of Medicine.

6 Mar 2011

Multifunctional balloon catheter can improve cardiac ablation therapy

In an improvement over open-heart surgery, cardiologists now use catheters to eliminate damaged heart tissue in certain patients, such as those with arrhythmias. But this, too, can be a long and painful procedure as many catheters, with different functions, need to be inserted sequentially.

6 Mar 2011

Efficient medical treatments to be showcased at SIR's 36th Annual Scientific Meeting

The Society of Interventional Radiology will feature minimally invasive scientific advances and new discoveries in treating a host of diseases at its 36th Annual Scientific Meeting March 26–31 at McCormick Place (West) in Chicago, Ill. The theme of the meeting is "IR Rising: Leading Image-guided Medicine," chosen to reflect interventional radiology's continued revolutionizing of modern medicine.

5 Mar 2011

Study examines effectiveness of active video games for improving health, fitness

A multidisciplinary team from the Universitat Politècnica de València, Universitat de València, Universitat Jaume I, University General Hospital from Valencia and the Biomedical Research Network Centre on Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition (CIBERobn) is developing a study on the effectiveness of active video games in children and teenagers (know as "exergaming platforms") for exercising and improving their health and fitness.

5 Mar 2011

Prestige Assisted Living at Sierra Vista to host educational speaker series that explores memory care issues

How can caregivers recognize the difference between normal age-related memory lapses and memory loss related to dementia? Prestige Assisted Living at Sierra Vista will host an educational speaker series that offers insight into memory care issues, beginning in March.

5 Mar 2011