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Top-line results from Inviragen's INV21 Phase 1 trial on HFMD

Inviragen today reported top-line results of a placebo-controlled, randomized Phase 1 trial of INV21, the Company's highly purified virus particle vaccine against Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) caused by enterovirus 71.

12 Mar 2012

Researchers identify genetic signature for eosinophilic esophagitis

Researchers have identified a genetic signature for a severe, often painful food allergy – eosinophilic esophagitis – that could lead to improved diagnosis and treatment for children unable to eat a wide variety of foods.

12 Mar 2012

Many children with life limiting conditions have been underestimated

The number of children with conditions such as muscular dystrophy, neurodegenerative disorders or severe cerebral palsy who are surviving into adulthood has been underestimated, a new study shows.

12 Mar 2012

New insight into causes of childhood pneumonia

The scientific journal Clinical Infectious Diseases has released its March Special Supplement focusing entirely on the research design of and pilot data from the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health (PERCH) Project, which seeks to identify the causes of pneumonia among the world's most vulnerable populations.

12 Mar 2012

First study to document potential effects of cancer on young children's development

Infants and toddlers who have been treated for cancer tend to reach certain developmental milestones later than do their healthy peers, say researchers at the National Institutes of Health and in Italy.

12 Mar 2012

One in three 13 year olds are binge drinking: Study

Some 35% of school pupils drink to excess by their early teenage years, a study has found. The findings came out of a survey of drinking habits in six European countries: Germany, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Scotland. The study defined binge drinking as consuming five or more alcoholic drinks on one occasion.

12 Mar 2012

APTA honors Women & Infants physical therapist with Elizabeth Noble Award

Wendy Baltzer-Fox, PT, DPT, GCS, WCS, of Cranston, supervisor of Women's Health Physical Therapy Services at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, has been presented with the Elizabeth Noble Award from the Section on Women's Health American Physical Therapy Association.

12 Mar 2012

Pink slime to make its way into school lunches: Debate ensues

McDonald's and other fast food chains may have removed “pink slime” from their foods but the ‘gooey’ sounding chemical treatment that removes bacteria from meat is still making its appearance at kids’ school lunches.

11 Mar 2012

Tobacco use among the youth should stop: Surgeon General’s Report

Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin has declared a war against tobacco, this time aiming to stop young people from starting to smoke, with the aim to have the next generation tobacco free. More than three million high school students are smokers, and smoking is now being called a pediatric epidemic the report said.

11 Mar 2012

Methylphenidate may affect learning and memory in children with ADHD

New research with monkeys sheds light on how the drug methylphenidate may affect learning and memory in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

11 Mar 2012

Women exposed to SSRIs during pregnancy are less likely to initiate breastfeeding

Researchers at the California Teratogen Information Service (CTIS) Pregnancy Health Information Line, a statewide non-profit organization based at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, have found women exposed to certain antidepressants during pregnancy were significantly less likely to breastfeed their babies compared to unexposed women.

9 Mar 2012

Challenges to achieving an AIDS-free generation

In a plenary presentation at the 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in Seattle on Wednesday, Dorothy Mbori-Ngacha of UNICEF examined the challenges to reaching the goal of an AIDS-free generation, by "eliminating 90 percent of HIV infections among children by 2015," and "outlined the four pillars of achieving that goal," including preventing HIV among women, preventing unintended pregnancies, preventing mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT), and supporting HIV-positive women and their families, the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" reports.

9 Mar 2012

Maternal obesity may contribute to cognitive impairment in extremely premature babies

Maternal obesity may contribute to cognitive impairment in extremely premature babies, according to a new study by researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

9 Mar 2012

Exposure to MSS could help reduce cardiorespiratory events in preterm infants

When babies are born prematurely, they are thrust into a hospital environment that while highly successful at saving their lives, is not exactly the same as the mother's womb where ideal development occurs. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is equipped with highly skilled care givers and incubators that regulate temperature and humidity, but Amir Lahav, ScD, PhD, director of the Neonatal Research Lab at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) thought that something was missing - simulation of the maternal sounds that a baby would hear in the womb.

8 Mar 2012

Scientists believe that ageing can be programmed in the womb

Ageing is a complex process involving physical, psychological, and environmental factors. Scientists believe that ageing can be programmed in the womb. One example of stress during pregnancy is the administration of glucocorticoids, i. e. synthetic stress hormones to accelerate fetal lung maturation in premature labor to allow breathing after birth. Could exposure to these stress hormones have an effect on health later in life?

8 Mar 2012

Ugandan government draws up response plan to combat 'nodding disease'

The Ugandan government is creating a "wide-ranging response plan" to "nodding disease, a mysterious ailment characterized by seizures, nodding of the head, mental retardation and stunting, which affects thousands of children in northern Uganda," IRIN reports.

8 Mar 2012

Progress made in talks with North Korea regarding food aid, U.S. envoys say

"U.S. envoys said there was progress in talks Wednesday on arrangements for the first U.S. government food aid shipment to impoverished North Korea in three years, part of an agreement aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear programs," the Associated Press reports.

8 Mar 2012