Medical News

RSS

Oral lesion progression markers validated, discovered

Loss of heterozygosity can reliably differentiate between individuals with premalignant oral lesions who are likely to progress to oral carcinoma, and those who are not, show study results.

30 Aug 2012

Sterotactic radiotherapy offers good results in recurrent head and neck cancer

For patients with recurring head and neck cancer, stereotactic body radiotherapy offers a feasible and tolerable salvage treatment, with median overall survival rates of more than 1 year, report researchers.

30 Aug 2012

Non-right-handedness increased in BD patients

Patients with bipolar disorder are around twice as likely to be non-right-handed as mentally healthy individuals, study results show.

30 Aug 2012

Closing in on neurologic biomarker diagnosis

A panel of five cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers may help doctors to accurately diagnose patients with various forms of dementia and parkinsonian disorders, research published in the Archives of Neurology suggests.

30 Aug 2012

Anastomotic leakage does not increase rectal cancer recurrence risk

Incidence of clinical anastomotic leak after anterior resection for patients with rectal adenocarcinoma does not increase the risk for local disease recurrence, despite previous studies indicating the opposite, report US researchers.

30 Aug 2012

Pressure’s not off for diabetic feet

Custom-made footwear for diabetes patients must offload pressure if it is to be effective at preventing ulceration, Dutch researchers emphasize.

30 Aug 2012

Duration of untreated bipolar disorder ‘too long’

The mean duration of untreated bipolar disorder is “unacceptably” long, say French researchers who report that an increased duration is associated with more mood episodes, more suicidal behavior, and greater mood instability.

30 Aug 2012

Chronic nerve pain: an interview with Professor Sally Lawson

Chronic nerve pain results from pathological changes within a nerve that appear to be self-sustaining and thus the pain continues for a long time.

30 Aug 2012

Single serve packages may help reduce energy intake at breakfast

Mega-sized portions clearly have contributed to our nation's obesity problem, but it is not just the super-sized menu items that are a concern. Serving sizes at home have also crept up over recent decades, with plates and bowls much larger than the dishes used by our great-grandparents. Packaged foods that are available in portion packs might be an easy aid for reigning in portion sizes, but do they actually help us to eat fewer calories overall?

30 Aug 2012

First Edition: August 30, 2012

In this updated FAQ, Kaiser Health News staff writer Marilyn Werber Serafini reports: "It may come as a surprise that President Barack Obama and GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan are pushing the same target rate for controlling federal spending on Medicare.

30 Aug 2012

Tips to make the college transition easier

Your high school graduate is off to college to embark on a newly independent life. But they're not the only one making a transition: parents too face emotional and lifestyle adjustments. With advice on empty-nest syndrome and the college transition, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital physicians offer expert tips for parents and children on topics including redecorating your child's room, credit cards, keeping in touch and more.

30 Aug 2012

Christie says Romney would tell 'hard truths'

Republican keynote address lays "the foundation for calls" by Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan to change Medicare, Wall Street Journal reports.

30 Aug 2012

Tips for parents to help their kids get a smart start to the academic year

The first day of school always requires preparations -- notebooks, pens and a new set of clothes. But don't forget to prepare for your child's health, says Dr. Joan Bregstein, a physician in the Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian/Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital.

30 Aug 2012

Drug-resistant tuberculosis levels described as alarming by international study

A large, international study published Online First in The Lancet reveals alarming levels of tuberculosis (TB) that are resistant to both first-line and second-line drugs. The findings show high prevalence of resistance to at least one second-line drug (43.7%) among multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB patients from eight countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Worse still, the study found higher than expected overall levels of extensively drug-resistant (XDR) TB.

30 Aug 2012

DNA synthesis in the 3’ and 5’ direction possible using new template-directed method

When a cell divides, it passes on genetic information by producing copies of its DNA. Chemists have also learned to copy DNA. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, a German team has now introduced a new copying technique that uses a single strand of DNA as the “master copy”, like a cell, but does not require enzymes.

30 Aug 2012

Guinea worm disease on verge of eradication, WHO reports

"The World Health Organization reports Guinea worm disease, which has plagued people for thousands of years, is on the verge of eradication," VOA News reports. "The U.N. agency says fewer than 400 cases of the infectious parasitic disease exist in four African countries, and that it will soon become only the second, after smallpox, to be wiped off the face of the earth," the news service writes.

30 Aug 2012

New book on medical screening to be launched on Sep. 4

Delegates from around the world will gather for the launch of a new book on medical screening edited by University of Leicester academics.

30 Aug 2012

Poll: Abortion not decisive issue for more than half of voters

While the 2012 presidential race has energized pro- and anti-abortion rights groups, a new CBS News poll shows that as many as 57 percent of registered voters in both parties say it's possible they would vote for a candidate who disagreed with them on the issue. However, women are less likely than men to say that.

30 Aug 2012

Removing entire pancreas does not result in unmanageable diabetes in patients with cancer

Removing the entire pancreas in patients with cancer or precancerous cysts in part of the organ does not result in unmanageable diabetes — as many physicians previously believed, research at Mayo Clinic in Florida has found.

30 Aug 2012

Full-term pregnancy benefits many U.S. babies

More U.S. babies are getting the benefit of a full-term pregnancy, according to a new government report that shows that 61 percent of births now happen at 39 weeks of pregnancy or later, a five percent increase between 2006 and 2010.

30 Aug 2012