Pneumonia News and Research

Latest Pneumonia News and Research

Healthcare-associated pneumonia management could be improved

Although healthcare-associated pneumonia is common among patients treated in internal medicine departments and linked to poor outcomes, rates of testing and adherence to therapeutic guidelines are low, say Spanish investigators.

30 Jul 2012

Researchers develop piglet model to study infant brain development

Events that take place early in life almost certainly have consequences for later cognitive development. Establishing the connections is difficult, however, because human infants cannot be used as laboratory subjects. Rodney Johnson and his collaborators have developed an alternative model for studying infant brain development. "Assistant professor Ryan Dilger and I became interested in establishing the neonatal piglet as a model of human brain and cognitive development 3 or 4 years ago," he said.

26 Jul 2012

Obama skipping AIDS conference; Black community still bearing high burden of the disease

For all the dignitaries on the schedule at the International AIDS Conference this week in Washington, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates and former President Bill Clinton, it's the absence of one that has activists talking. With the conference being held in the U.S. for the first time in 22 years, President Barack Obama is out of town campaigning and raising money for his re-election. His only presence is a 50-second cameo in a three-minute video welcoming delegates.

26 Jul 2012

Researchers discover bats as reservoir of infections

Measles, mumps, pneumonia, influenza and encephalitis in man, Carré's disease in dogs, Ovine Rinderpest (PPR)… all of these diseases are caused by viruses from the same family: Paramyxoviridae. A vast international study, carried out in collaboration with IRD researchers and published in Nature communications has led to the discovery of more than 60 new species of these dangerous infectious agents, almost double the number previously recorded. This family of highly diverse pathogens affects all animals, from canines to fowl, cattle and humans.

25 Jul 2012

Scientists discover structure and operating procedures of anti-bacterial killing machine

Scientists have discovered the structure and operating procedures of a powerful anti-bacterial killing machine that could become an alternative to antibiotics.

25 Jul 2012

FDA grants accelerated approval for Kyprolis to treat multiple myeloma

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced that its licensee, Onyx Pharmaceuticals, received accelerated approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Kyprolis (carfilzomib) for Injection, a proteasome inhibitor indicated for the treatment of patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least two prior therapies, including bortezomib and an immunomodulatory agent, and have demonstrated disease progression on or within 60 days of completion of the last therapy.

21 Jul 2012

FDA grants accelerated approval to Onyx's Kyprolis for treatment of multiple myeloma

Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted accelerated approval of Kyprolis (carfilzomib) for Injection, a proteasome inhibitor, indicated for the treatment of patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least two prior therapies, including bortezomib and an immunomodulatory agent, and have demonstrated disease progression on or within 60 days of completion of the last therapy.

21 Jul 2012

Researchers discover potential drug targets that might reduce ventilator-induced lung inflammation

When hospital patients need assistance breathing and are placed on a mechanical ventilator for days at a time, their lungs react to the pressure generated by the ventilator with an out-of-control immune response that can lead to excessive inflammation, new research suggests.

19 Jul 2012

Study gauges depression among spouses of severe-sepsis survivors

Severe sepsis, a body's dangerous defensive response against an infection, not only diminishes the quality of life for patients - it puts their spouses at a greater risk of depression, a joint University of Michigan Health System and University of Washington School of Medicine study shows.

19 Jul 2012

Adding stroke severity in hospital mortality model may improve prediction of death risk

Adding stroke severity to a hospital 30-day mortality model based on claims data for Medicare beneficiaries with acute ischemic stroke was associated with improvement in predicting the risk of death at 30 days and changes in performance ranking regarding mortality for a considerable proportion of hospitals, according to a study in the July 18 issue of JAMA.

18 Jul 2012

Specific therapy may cut pneumonia mortality in HIV babies

The high mortality rate associated with acute severe pneumonia-related respiratory failure in infants exposed to or infected with HIV can be reduced to 30% if a treatment plan involving antibiotics, ventilation, and fluid restriction is used, researchers report.

17 Jul 2012

MSU nursing researcher’s Wii-Fit program helps lung cancer patients reduce fatigue

With the support of a $379,741 grant from the National Cancer Institute and the Nintendo Wii game system, nursing researcher Amy Hoffman aims to help lung cancer patients reduce fatigue and get more exercise as they transition from the hospital to the home after surgery.

17 Jul 2012

Chest X-ray prevents excess antibiotic use in childhood pneumonia

Use of a chest X-ray as well as traditional clinical parameters to diagnose childhood pneumonia can prevent overdiagnosis and unnecessary use of antibiotics, say researchers.

16 Jul 2012

High cost of ‘weekend effect’ in stroke care

Weekend admission adversely affects a range of quality and safety indicators of acute stroke care, report UK researchers.

16 Jul 2012

ACE inhibitors ‘protect against pneumonia’

Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, but not angiotensin receptor blockers, reduce the risk of pneumonia, findings from a meta-analysis show.

16 Jul 2012

Researchers discover HVEM’s unknown role in fighting off E. coli infections

Despite ongoing public health efforts, E. coli outbreaks continue to infiltrate the food supply, annually causing significant sickness and death throughout the world. But the research community is gaining ground. In a major finding, published today in the scientific journal Nature, researchers from the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have discovered a molecule's previously unknown role in fighting off E. coli and other bacterial infections, a discovery that could lead to new ways to protect people from these dangerous microorganisms.

16 Jul 2012

PCR assay ‘superior’ to culture for neonatal sepsis, meningitis

In neonates with probable sepsis or meningitis, a realtime polymerase chain reaction assay specific for a virulence gene in Streptococcus agalactiae is superior to standard bacterial culture identification, results of a pathology study show.

11 Jul 2012

Chest X-ray prevents excess antibiotic use in childhood pneumonia

Use of a chest X-ray as well as traditional clinical parameters to diagnose childhood pneumonia can prevent overdiagnosis and unnecessary use of antibiotics, say researchers.

10 Jul 2012

PCV13 offers best overall protection from CAP in young children

Researchers have identified a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine that is effective for treating bacteremic pneumococcal community-acquired pneumonia in children aged 5 years or younger.

9 Jul 2012

Special surface coating for stents to keep them in place

If a person's windpipe is constricted, an operation in which the surgeon inserts a stent to enlarge the trachea is often the only way to relieve their respiratory distress. But this grid-like implant can slip out of position, closing off the windpipe altogether. Researchers are working on a special surface coating for the stents to keep them in place.

9 Jul 2012