Wound Healing News and Research

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University of Florida researchers reveal secret lives of genes during spinal injury

The body attempts to heal a damaged spinal cord in much the same way it repairs skin after simple cuts and scrapes, an insight that may lead to new treatments for the thousands of people paralyzed each year because of spinal cord injuries, say scientists at the University of Florida Health Science Center.

5 Oct 2004

Researchers discover new mechanism responsible for blood vessel tumors that cause facial deformities

Researchers have discovered a new mechanism responsible for the growth of blood vessel tumors that can cause facial deformities in infants and young children, paving the way for an antibody-based treatment to remove cells that fuel the tumors’ growth.

5 Oct 2004

Research confirms benefits of commonly used traditional remedies for a range of illnesses

Research presented to the British Pharmaceutical Conference today, confirms the benefits of commonly used traditional remedies for a range of illnesses, including cancer, offering a scientific justification for their use.

29 Sep 2004

Breast reconstruction at the time of mastectomy does not delay post-operative chemotherapy for women with breast cancer

“The findings weren’t a surprise to us, but we wanted to document the safety of immediate breast reconstruction so that surgeons in other settings can have the same confidence in the approach,” Bold said.

20 Sep 2004

Mitomycin C offers limited benefit in reducing unsightly scars

The tendency for extreme scarring is one reason many African Americans avoid plastic surgery and other surgical incisions. Though surgeons continue to develop less invasive techniques that minimize scarring, other options are needed to help these individuals who are prone to developing keloid scars.

17 Sep 2004

Maggots may help decrease the risk of post-operative infections

Maggots aren’t high on most people’s favorite-animals list. But maggots - specifically, the larvae of the green blowfly, Phaenicia sericata - can be helpful for the very reason they horrify.

16 Sep 2004

Herbals, surgery and anesthesia don't always mix

The woman who swears by gingko biloba wonders why her mouth won't stop bleeding after wisdom tooth surgery. What she doesn't know is that the herbal remedy she takes religiously to enhance mental alertness also acts as a powerful blood thinner that inhibits clotting.

10 Sep 2004

Bone marrow produces cells that permanently heal wounds

Bone marrow produces cells that not only help fight infection but also permanently heal wounds, according to research at the University of Washington. Previously, researchers had not known that bone marrow contributed to the development of new skin in wounds.

5 Sep 2004

Researchers explain dual effects of ginseng

In work that emphasizes the need for stronger regulations of herbal drugs, an international team of MIT scientists and colleagues has unraveled the yin and the yang of ginseng, or why the popular alternative medicine can have two entirely different, opposing effects on the body.

30 Aug 2004

Research unlocks the mystery of the miraculous healing powers of honey

A Sydney researcher has unlocked the mystery of the miraculous healing powers of honey, adding to the calls for its use as a first line defence against serious infection.

11 Aug 2004

Wounds on hamsters without companionship don't heal as fast as those on hamsters with companionship

Researchers looked at the effect social contact had on wound healing in stressed hamsters. Results showed that skin wounds healed nearly twice as fast in the hamsters paired with a sibling. These animals also produced less of the stress hormone cortisol than unpaired hamsters.

9 Aug 2004

First evidence of the molecular link between inflammation and cancer

The investigators found that a gene called I-kappa-B kinase (IKK beta), a pro-inflammatory gene, acts differently in two cell types to cause cancer. When IKK beta was deleted, the cancer incidence and tumor growth in mice was decreased by nearly 80 percent.

5 Aug 2004

Enzymes from king crab are an effective treatment for scalds, sores, and trophic ulcers

Chemist Galina Rudenskaya from the Moscow State University and her colleagues from small enterprise TRINITA have made an important discovery in medicine, thanks to funding extended by the RFBR and FASIE.

2 Jul 2004

Class of molecules that could lead to treatments for a wide range of diseases, including cancer, arthritis, and heart disease

By making use of model compounds in drug design, chemists at the University of California, San Diego identified a class of molecules that could lead to treatments for a wide range of diseases, including cancer, arthritis, and heart disease.

21 Jun 2004

Avastin study shows significant improvement in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer

Genentech, Inc. and Roche have announced that the New England Journal of Medicine published the first Phase III study of an anti-angiogenesis cancer therapy, showing that the addition of Avastin™ (bevacizumab) to the IFL chemotherapy regimen (5-FU/Leucovorin/ CPT-11) significantly extended survival in patients with first-line (previously untreated) metastatic colorectal cancer.

2 Jun 2004

Cellular garbage plays a key role in the process of cytokinesis, or cell division

A cellular structure discovered 125 years ago and dismissed by many biologists as "cellular garbage" has been found to play a key role in the process of cytokinesis, or cell division, one of the most ancient and important of all biological phenomena.

27 May 2004

$1.5 billion annual cost of surgical site infections can be reduced

A research paper published in the American Journal of Infection Control says a systematic approach to preparing patients for surgery can reduce both secondary, hospital-acquired patient infections and related healthcare expenses nationwide.

19 May 2004

Second-hand smoke scars and affects healing

Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have found that breathing “second-hand” smoke reduces the speed at which wounds heal, leading to greater levels of scarring.

17 Apr 2004

Growth hormones combat Crohn’s disease, cardiac disorders and improve fertility in invitro fertilisation

New treatments for breast cancer, skin and wound healing and obesity will be revealed at an international conference in Cairns, Australia next week.

13 Apr 2004

Immunomodulator induces long-term anti-tumor activity

EntreMed, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutic candidates primarily for the treatment of cancer, today reported that three months following administration with ENMD 0996, preclinical animal models showed inhibition of metastases. Data presented demonstrated that ENMD 0996 specifically blocks the activity of basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF-2), a naturally-occurring protein that stimulates angiogenesis, but had no effect on other angiogenesis stimulators.

29 Mar 2004