Medicine News and Research

RSS

Treating sleep apnea with continuous positive airway pressure reduces incidence of stroke

Patients with moderate to severe sleep apnea who have significantly higher serum levels of inflammatory markers that serve as precursors to coronary artery disease, as well as lesions associated with silent brain infarction, have an elevated risk of stroke, according to a group of Japanese medical researchers.

19 Mar 2007

New procedure to estimate reproductive potential of individual embryos

To address the high rate of multiple births resulting from in-vitro-fertilization (IVF), researchers at Yale School of Medicine and McGill University have developed a procedure that estimates the reproductive potential of individual embryos, possibly leading to a decrease in multiple-infant births and a higher success rate in women undergoing IVF.

19 Mar 2007

Trojan horse approach designed to defeats drug-resistant bacteria

A new antimicrobial approach can kill bacteria in laboratory experiments and eliminate life-threatening infections in mice by interfering with a key bacterial nutrient, according to research led by a University of Washington scientist.

19 Mar 2007

Inflammation plays key role in the metastasis of prostate cancer

Many would assume that "mounting an immune response" or "having your body fight the cancer" is a good thing.

19 Mar 2007

Blood pressure drug shows potential as lung cancer treatment

A hormone that is important in the control of blood pressure also shrinks lung cancer tumors in mice, suggesting a new way to prevent or treat the deadly cancer, according to scientists at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

19 Mar 2007

Growing number of young people have fatty liver disease

Indiana University School of Medicine researchers are taking a closer look at a disease whose incidence is rising as obesity in children increases.

15 Mar 2007

No-line bifocals slows myopia progression in some children

Certain children who wear a special kind of no-line bifocal lenses show signs of slower progression of myopia than those who wear more conventional lenses according to a new study published in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS).

14 Mar 2007

Exposure to phthalates linked to abdominal obesity and insulin resistance in adult males

Exposure to phthalates, a common chemical found in everything from plastics to soaps, already has been connected to reproductive problems and now, for the first time, is linked to abdominal obesity and insulin resistance in adult males, according to a study by the University of Rochester Medical Center.

14 Mar 2007

Clinical trial of a medication to treat kleptomania

A small clinical trial of a medication to treat kleptomania has failed to find any conclusive benefit for patients with the impulsive stealing disorder, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

14 Mar 2007

Call for health coverage for women of childbearing age and children

Dr. Marina L. Weiss, senior vice president, public policy and government affairs of the March of Dimes, made the following statement as the Senate Committee on Finance held a hearing entitled "Charting a Course for Health Care Reform: Moving Toward Universal Coverage".

14 Mar 2007

Sedative-hypnotic drugs to get stronger warning labels

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has requested that all manufacturers of sedative-hypnotic drug products, a class of drugs used to induce and/or maintain sleep, strengthen their product labeling to include stronger language concerning potential risks.

14 Mar 2007

Researchers uncover genetic sequence responsible for rare form of pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is an almost uniformly fatal disease regardless of the stage at time of diagnosis. However, a small percentage of patients develop a form of ductal adenocarcinoma associated with cystic lesions that can be detected earlier, is less aggressive and has a 50 percent long-term survival rate.

14 Mar 2007

Crocodiles provide clues to new pain treatments for humans

Sydney University researchers have identified how crocodiles and other reptiles detect temperature - shedding new light on their adaptation to environmental changes and pointing to new pain treatments for humans.

14 Mar 2007

Talk therapy works for panic disorder

Psychoanalytic therapies have been in professional use for over a century, but a new study from physician-scientists at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center is the first to show that a classic psychoanalytic talk therapy is efficacious in treating panic disorder.

14 Mar 2007

Two novel therapies for multiple myeloma

Two novel biologics are currently being investigated for their potential benefit to multiple myeloma patients in separate ongoing clinical trials at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

14 Mar 2007

Gene and a region of a chromosome identified that may lead to autism in children

Yale School of Medicine autism experts Fred Volkmar, M.D. and Ami Klin are part of a global research consortium from 19 countries to identify a gene and a region of a chromosome that may lead to autism in children.

13 Mar 2007

Technologies to improve prevention, tracking and detection of counterfeit medicines

More than twenty technology companies are responding to a call to support the fight against counterfeit medicines spearheaded by the International Medical Products Anti-Counterfeiting Taskforce (IMPACT) set up by the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners.

13 Mar 2007