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Vitamin D may help fight childhood acute respiratory infections

Supplementation with vitamin D, particularly in winter, appears to reduce a child’s risk for contracting acute respiratory infections by almost 50%, show results from a Mongolian study.

21 Aug 2012

Highly sensitive troponin assay shortens heart attack diagnosis

An algorithm that incorporates high-sensitivity cardiac troponin could allow accurate rule-in and rule-out of patients with acute chest pain within 1 hour of presentation, a study shows.

21 Aug 2012

Childhood asthma link shows it is never too soon for mums to quit smoking

Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk for asthma and wheezing in early childhood, even if children are not exposed to smoke after birth, a European study shows.

21 Aug 2012

Social phobia prevalent in OCD patients

Social phobia is common among patients with obsessive compulsive disorder and frequently co-occurs with other related disorders, researchers report.

21 Aug 2012

Deep abdominal muscle activation lessens lower back pain

Improving transversus abdominis slide appears to be associated with clinically important long-term pain reduction in people experiencing lower back pain, researchers report.

21 Aug 2012

CHD patients do not need to rule out high-intensity exercise

Findings from a retrospective study show that patients with coronary heart disease who engage in high-intensity exercise have a similarly low risk for a cardiovascular event as those engaging in moderate-intensity exercise.

21 Aug 2012

Sore throat treatment should be individually tailored

Throat discomfort may have a variety of causes and a range of symptoms, all of which should be considered before decisions about treatment are made, report researchers.

21 Aug 2012

Gene therapy applied to peripheral arterial disease

Hepatocyte growth factor gene therapy could be used to treat patients with severe peripheral arterial disease, suggest results of a phase I clinical trial.

21 Aug 2012

Arthritis patients prioritize lifestyle intervention research

Most patients believe that research into joint pain should focus on self-management and lifestyle modifications, suggests a UK survey of older individuals with self-reported joint pain.

20 Aug 2012

Working out during pregnancy wards off muscle pain

Not enough healthy pregnant women are doing the recommended amount of physical exercise, suggest study findings.

20 Aug 2012

Talk smoothes the way to better understanding sick babies

Clinicians must foster improved communication with the mothers of critically ill newborns to improve understanding of their child’s condition, research suggests.

20 Aug 2012

Walnuts optimize male fertility

Eating walnuts on a daily basis seems to improve the quality of men’s sperm, show study findings.

20 Aug 2012

Enzalutamide extends castration-resistant prostate cancer survival

Enzalutamide treatment significantly improves survival in men with castration-resistant prostate cancer, demonstrate phase III trial results published in TheNew England Journal of Medicine.

20 Aug 2012

Specialist referral unearths wide spectrum of adult primary immune deficiencies

The range of adult primary immune deficiencies is considerable and the majority of patients are diagnosed only after specialist referral, conclude Canadian scientists who identified two novel patient groups with humoral abnormalities.

20 Aug 2012

US task force unconvinced of case for hearing tests in elderly

A US Preventive Services Task Force review of screening for hearing impairment in older, asymptomatic adults concludes that there is insufficient evidence to assess whether or not the benefits outweigh the harms.

20 Aug 2012

Early treatment vital for infantile hemangiomas

US research shows that infantile hemangiomas, otherwise known as “strawberry” birthmarks, grow faster and earlier than previously believed.

17 Aug 2012

Biopsy required for accurate renal diagnosis in diabetes

People with diabetes and symptoms of nephropathy should undergo renal biopsy before a diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy is assumed, report researchers.

17 Aug 2012

HRT linked to ulcerative colitis in postmenopausal women

Taking postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy increases the risk for ulcerative colitis, but not Crohn’s disease, a study shows.

17 Aug 2012

One-week ciprofloxacin effective for pyelonephritis

Treatment for 7 days with the antibiotic ciprofloxacin is as effective at treating acute pyelonephritis in women as a 14-day regimen of the fluoroquinolone, with a similar safety profile, report Swedish researchers.

17 Aug 2012