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Altering the course of schizophrenia with new research

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is launching a large-scale research project to explore whether using early and aggressive treatment, individually targeted and integrating a variety of different therapeutic approaches, will reduce the symptoms and prevent the gradual deterioration of functioning that is characteristic of chronic schizophrenia.

21 Jul 2009

New swine flu resource online

A new interactive website providing accurate, bang-up-to-date information on swine flu to the general public launches today.

20 Jul 2009

Researchers expose the biology of Clostridium difficile transmission in mice

New research suggests that antibiotic treatment could be asymptomatically inducing the transmission of the healthcare-acquired infection, C. difficile, contributing to the outbreaks that have recently been widely reported in hospitals and other settings. A team of scientists have successfully mirrored the infection cycle of C. difficile by generating a 'mouse hospital' with conditions mimicking the human environment in which C. difficile is transmitted.

20 Jul 2009

Swine flu warning issued to pregnant women

Health officials are warning pregnant women to be extra careful in the midst of the current swine flu pandemic after three pregnant patients in New South Wales are in intensive care after contracting the novel H1N1 influenza virus.

16 Jul 2009

Dental problems may predict future medical issues

Dental disease may be a wake-up call that your diet is harming your body. "The five-alarm fire bell of a tooth ache is difficult to ignore," says Dr. Philippe P. Hujoel, professor of dental public health sciences at the University of Washington (UW) School of Dentistry in Seattle. Beyond the immediate distress, dental pain may portend future medical problems. It may be a warning that the high-glycemic diet that led to dental problems in the short term may, in the long term, lead to potentially serious chronic diseases.

9 Jul 2009

African scientists ask developed countries for greater investment in African research

The Network of African Science Academies (NASAC) issued a statement (pdf) asking developed countries to establish training programs that would allow African students to stay in Africa or other developing countries in effort to curb the "tide of African talent leaving the continent's universities," CNN reports (Wong, CNN, 6/22).

23 Jun 2009

New theory for global diabetes epidemic

A new "fertility first" hypothesis published this week by a group of international experts in the American Journal of Human Biology, proposes that the global epidemic of Type 2 diabetes has its origins in the struggle, over millennia, to sustain human fertility in environments defined by famine.

19 Jun 2009

Preventing spread of infectious diseases is everyone’s responsibility – and everyone’s job

According to a report published today, we must all share responsibility for preventing the spread of diseases such as swine flu, SARS, avian influenza, diarrhoeal and skin diseases, and even the common cold.

16 Jun 2009

Recent releases: HIV prevention; clinical trials debate; definition of global health; drug resistant tuberculosis

In a Journal of the American Medical Association commentary piece, Anthony Fauci and Carl Dieffenbach of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases explore results from a WHO mathematical model study that found universal, voluntary, annual HIV testing followed up with immediate treatment for those testing positive -- the "test and treat model" -- could "reduce HIV incidence" and "end the [HIV] pandemic within 50 years."

13 Jun 2009

UK tops the list of countries at extreme risk to the spread of swine flu

A Warwick Business School professor and one of the founders of global risks specialist, Maplecroft, has released three new maps and indices revealing the countries most at risk from an influenza pandemic.

12 Jun 2009

Don't panic because there's a pandemic!

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has officially raised the level of the swine flu alert to 6 - the highest level - and declared the outbreak a pandemic following an emergency meeting.

12 Jun 2009

Disease control expert urges health workers to clean hands and save lives

Australia's World Health Organization infectious disease expert and Director of Hand Hygiene Australia has urged all health professionals to improve infection control and save lives by adopting the new National Hand Hygiene Initiative.

9 Jun 2009

Study finds conflict-affected countries receive less money for reproductive health

A recent study found developing countries affected by war receive less money for reproductive health than other developing nations, despite having acute needs, Reuters reports.

9 Jun 2009

The effect of computer game play on sleepiness and sleep hygiene

Computer/console gamers who play for more than seven hours a week and who identify their gaming as an addiction sleep less during the weekdays and experience greater sleepiness than casual or non-gamers, according to research presented at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.

9 Jun 2009

Having flu when pregnant increases risk of schizophrenia in offspring

When mothers become infected with influenza during their pregnancy, it may increase the risk for schizophrenia in their offspring. Influenza is a very common virus and so there has been substantial concern about this association. A new study in the June 15th issue of Biological Psychiatry, published by Elsevier suggests that the observed association depends upon a pre-existing vulnerability in the fetus.

9 Jun 2009

International health experts to discuss environmental effects on children's health

International health experts will gather through Wednesday in Busan, South Korea, to discuss the effects of the environment on children's health for the Third WHO International Conference on Children's Health and the Environment, the Korea Times reports.

9 Jun 2009

Correlations between physical activity and sleep

According to a research presented at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, days with increased activity were followed by nights with lower total sleep time (TST), while nights with lower TST were followed by increased activities during the next day.

9 Jun 2009

Short sleep duration and the risk of obesity among black and white Americans

According to a research abstract presented at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, race significantly influences the risk of obesity conferred by short sleep duration, with blacks having a greater risk than whites.

9 Jun 2009

Effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral treatment program for chronic insomnia

A majority of people experiencing chronic insomnia can experience a normalization of sleep parameters through the use of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), according to a research abstract that will be presented on Tuesday, June 9, at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.

9 Jun 2009

Effects of meditation on sleep in chronic insomnia

Meditation may be an effective behavioral intervention in the treatment of insomnia, according to a research abstract that will be presented on Tuesday, June 9, at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies

9 Jun 2009