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Karolinska researchers recommend new routine for protection against infection during PEG

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet recommends a new routine for protection against infection when percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG), a tube for feeding directly through the abdominal wall, is surgically inserted in the stomach. The new routine is both simpler and cheaper than the one used today. The method, presented in the British Medical Journal, has been clinically tested on over 200 patients at the Karolinska University Hospital in Solna, Stockholm County, Sweden.

2 Jul 2010

Compugen's CGEN-15001 recombinant fusion protein abolishes spontaneous relapses in animal model of MS

Compugen Ltd. announced today that administration of CGEN-15001 in an animal model of multiple sclerosis (MS) has been shown to completely abolish spontaneous relapses. In addition, administration of this novel molecule prior to disease onset demonstrated a pronounced delay of disease onset and a significant decrease in disease symptoms.

2 Jul 2010

Aushon BioSystems introduces new Human multiplex biomarker panels

Aushon BioSystems, Inc., a leading provider of advanced microarray instrumentation and laboratory services for biomarker discovery, development and analysis, has launched new Human multiplex biomarker panels for the quantification of eight biomarkers related to drug-induced kidney damage, or nephrotoxicity.

2 Jul 2010

Plant extract effective against ulcerative colitis in mice

A South Dakota State University scientist's research shows an extract made from a food plant in the Brassica family was effective in alleviating signs of ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel condition, in mice.

2 Jul 2010

HL patients with heart disease at increased risk of hospitalization for cardiac complications after treatment

Older patients with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and a history of heart disease face a high risk of hospitalization for cardiac complications after completing treatment, according to research published online today in Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematology. HL is a form of cancer of arising in the lymph nodes, and approximately 8,500 people were diagnosed with the disease in 2009, according to the American Cancer Society.

2 Jul 2010

Cambridge Heart announces CMS reimbursement modification for MTWA test

Cambridge Heart, Inc., today announced that effective July 1, 2010, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will allow full reimbursement for both a Microvolt T-Wave Alternans (MTWA) test and a stress test when both tests are performed during the same patient visit. The CMS update removes a previous restriction that substantially limited reimbursement when a patient underwent an MTWA test on the same day as the patient underwent a standard cardiac stress test, echocardiography stress test, nuclear cardiac stress test, or pulmonary stress test.

2 Jul 2010

Parkinson's Disease Foundation awards $1.2M for research programs

The Parkinson's Disease Foundation (PDF) is pleased to announce awards totaling $1.2 million for research projects designed to understand the cause(s) of and find a cure for Parkinson's disease (PD).

2 Jul 2010

Frozen blood samples shows promise to study mechanism of blood disorders

Cells from frozen human blood samples can be reprogrammed to an embryonic-stem-cell-like state, according to Whitehead Institute researchers. These cells can be multiplied and used to study the genetic and molecular mechanisms of blood disorders and other diseases.

2 Jul 2010

OTA reminds consumers to choose organic foods over synthetic dye foods

In response to a call from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) to ban synthetic dyes to color foods, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) today reminded consumers that they can already avoid such dyes in the marketplace by choosing to purchase organic foods.

2 Jul 2010

Heart patients with transient kidney dysfunction have no serious complications

New research led by UC Health cardiologists shows that while short-term worsening kidney function is frequent among patients with heart failure, these patients also have better outcomes than those who have persistent kidney failure

2 Jul 2010

Elements Behavioral Health acquires The Ranch in Tennessee

Elements Behavioral Health, provider of residential treatment services for addiction and co-occurring disorders, announced this week the acquisition of The Ranch in Nunnelly, Tennessee. Elements is best known to the public as the owner of the internationally famous Promises Treatment Centers in Malibu and Los Angeles, where many Hollywood celebrities have been treated successfully for substance abuse.

2 Jul 2010

UCLA study highlights traffic-related asthma flares in urban areas

A new academic study led by UCLA scientists has found that even brief exposure to ultrafine pollution particles near a Los Angeles freeway is potent enough to boost the allergic inflammation that exacerbates asthma.

2 Jul 2010

Diabetics need more 'heat awareness'

Hot weather and diabetes can make for a potentially dangerous combination, according to a Mayo Clinic presentation at the 92nd Annual Meeting of the Endocrine Society in San Diego, California, June 19-22.

2 Jul 2010

Small business says 10 percent tanning tax that starts today is overcooked

As of July 1, tanning salons have to charge customers a 10 percent tax on their services to help pay for part of the new health reform law and that requirement has attracted the howls of small business, NPR reports. "Tanning salon owners are outraged. They say the new tax is the last thing they need in a struggling economy.

2 Jul 2010

DNA damage caused by UVA radiation leads to melanoma

A new study by researchers at NYU School of Medicine found that UVA radiation damages the DNA in human melanocyte cells, causing mutations that can lead to melanoma. Melanocytes, which contain a substance called melanin that darkens the skin to protect it from the ultraviolet rays of the sun, are more vulnerable to UVA radiation than normal skin cells because they are unable to repair themselves as efficiently.

2 Jul 2010

Allogeneic stem cell transplant holds promise for treatment-resistant chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Allogeneic (donor-derived) stem cell transplant (alloSCT) may be a promising option for patients with treatment-resistant chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), regardless of the patient's underlying genetic abnormalities, according to the results of a study published online today in Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematology.

2 Jul 2010

Researchers identify gene abnormality for most common congenital birth defect, clubfoot

Although clubfoot is one of the most common congenital birth defects, few genetic causes have been found. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found what they believe to be the most common cause of inherited clubfoot yet discovered.

2 Jul 2010

New formula may speed up organ allocation process, improve transplant outcomes

Only a small fraction of transplant centers nationwide are willing to accept and transplant deceased-donor kidneys that they perceive as less than perfect, leading to lengthy, organ-damaging delays as officials use a one-by-one approach to find a willing taker.

2 Jul 2010

Cancer stem cells may vary from tumor to tumor, say researchers

Cancer stem cells have enticed scientists because of the potential to provide more durable and widespread cancer cures by identifying and targeting the tumor's most voracious cells.

2 Jul 2010

Malnutrition during childhood diminishes brain function in late life

Malnutrition early in life appears to diminish brain function in older adulthood, according to a study led by a Michigan State University researcher that has implications for many poor, developing nations.

2 Jul 2010