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SmartTots announces recipients of inaugural round of research grants

SmartTots announced Robert Block, PhD and Caleb Ing, MD as the recipients of its inaugural round of research grants today. The research grants are intended to support investigations into the existence of a clinical signal suggesting poor neurocognitive outcomes as the result of early exposure to anesthesia. Drs. Block and Ing will be conducting separate studies both centered around determining the effects of anesthetics on early brain development. Both recipients will receive $100,000 to fund their studies.

26 Jun 2012

Congressional eyes focused on the high court

Depending on how the decision shakes out, funding provided for the health law would be fair game during a time marked by difficult budget choices. Meanwhile, the GOP stays steady on its pledge to repeal the health law, or whatever remains of it.

26 Jun 2012

Most adolescents undergoing evaluation for bariatric surgery are deficient in vitamin D

Most adolescents preparing for weight-loss, or bariatric, surgery are deficient in vitamin D, a new study demonstrates. The results will be presented Tuesday at The Endocrine Society's 94th Annual Meeting in Houston.

26 Jun 2012

Nanoparticles that can slip through mucus barriers shown to protect against herpes infections

Johns Hopkins researchers say they have demonstrated, for the first time in animals, that nanoparticles can slip through mucus to deliver drugs directly to tissue surfaces in need of protection. The researchers used these mucus-penetrating particles (MPPs) to protect against vaginal herpes infections in mice and the goal is to create similar MPPs to deliver drugs that protect humans against sexually transmitted diseases or even treat cancer.

26 Jun 2012

Tools to achieve child survival goals are 'at our disposal'

"The Child Survival Call to Action that took place recently in Washington, D.C., was a unique opportunity for 700 stakeholders working in the government, the private sector, faith-based organizations, and civil society to come together to kick off a long-term, focused effort to save children's lives," Rachel Wilson, the senior director of policy and advocacy at PATH, writes in this post in the Global Health Technologies Coalition's "Breakthroughs" blog.

26 Jun 2012

Having antibodies for cutaneous HPV and sun exposure can act synergistically in BCC, SCC

Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues at the University of South Florida and the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg have found that having antibodies for cutaneous types of human papillomavirus (HPV), coupled with sun exposure (ultraviolet radiation) or poor tanning ability, can act "synergistically" in the development of non-melanoma skin cancers such as basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).

26 Jun 2012

A new initiative explores what data can mean to patients

Two key elements necessary to turn this public data resource into better health and financial reward are 1) a robust private/public partnership and 2) a rethinking of the traditional roles of doctors and patients, who are increasingly taking greater responsibility for making decisions about their care.

26 Jun 2012

Clinical trial to examine functional benefits of combined therapy against stroke

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center are leading an international clinical trial to examine the functional benefits of a combined therapy to treat acute ischemic stroke, a type of stroke where a blood clot becomes lodged in an artery within the brain, reducing blood flow and depriving brain cells of oxygen. Eighty-seven percent of strokes are ischemic.

26 Jun 2012

Stillbirth rates higher among least well off in England

The rate of stillbirths in England is twice as high among the least well off as it is among the most affluent, shows research published in the online journal BMJ Open.

26 Jun 2012

Care home residents denied right to consensual sex due to fears over safety and ageism

Concerns about safety, and ageism, are needlessly denying elderly care home residents what is often one of their few remaining pleasures - the right to consensual sex - say specialists in the Journal of Medical Ethics.

26 Jun 2012

Stricter professional requirements are sending nurses back to school

Jennifer Matton is going to college for the third time, no easy thing with a job, church groups and four children with activities from lacrosse to Boy Scouts. She always planned to return to school, but as it turned out, she had little choice: her career depended on it. Ms. Matton, a nurse, works at Abington Memorial Hospital, one of hundreds around the country that have started to require that their nurses have at least a bachelor's degree in nursing.

26 Jun 2012

STOP Obesity Alliance releases new bulletin for state leaders

The Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity Alliance today released a new bulletin for state leaders that offers information on ways to integrate obesity into a state's essential health benefits package.

26 Jun 2012

Swine flu vaccination programme a success in Scotland

The H1N1 (“Swine flu”) vaccination programme introduced in Scotland in October 2009 had a positive effect in reducing the number of hospital admissions and deaths as a result of H1N1 infection, according to an Article published Online First in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. The study was funded by the National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment (NIHR HTA) programme.

26 Jun 2012

States offer test kitchen for health law theme of coverage expansion

Some state programs will continue, regardless of the high court's finding. Still, the various Supreme Court scenarios that could play out would cause some rethinking of state-level reform approaches.

26 Jun 2012

Tiniest and heaviest fetuses at increased risk of being stillborn

The tiniest and the heaviest fetuses are at much higher risk of being stillborn than those of average weight, new research has found.

26 Jun 2012

Event highlights impact of AIDS on women worldwide

The Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog summarizes an event held Thursday, titled "AIDS-free Generation? Not Without Women," that was sponsored by the National Council of Women's Organizations. The session aimed "to draw attention to pivotal issues surrounding the impact of AIDS on women worldwide" ahead of the International AIDS Conference, the blog states.

26 Jun 2012

“Swine flu” deaths may be fifteen times higher than previously reported

The number of deaths from the 2009 H1N1 (“swine flu”) pandemic may be fifteen times higher than the number of laboratory-confirmed deaths previously reported by countries to the World Health Organization (WHO), according to an Article published Online First in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. While estimates of 2009 H1N1-associated deaths have been derived for some countries such as the United States, these are the first estimates of the worldwide number of deaths caused by the pandemic.

26 Jun 2012

Researchers discover how GLP-2 receptor suppresses hunger and food intake

Researchers have discovered how a hormone in the gut slows the rate at which the stomach empties and thus suppresses hunger and food intake. Results of the animal study will be presented Monday at The Endocrine Society's 94th Annual Meeting in Houston.

26 Jun 2012

New drug better than chemotherapy for skin cancer patients

A new drug, dabrafenib, shows improvements over chemotherapy for patients suffering from a form of advanced skin cancer, according to the results of a Phase III study (“BREAK-3” trial) published Online First in the Lancet.

26 Jun 2012

Myanmar government should shift funding away from military into health care

Burma, also known as Myanmar, "seems to be making the difficult and fragile transition from military dictatorship to fledgling democracy," but the country has "some of the worst health indicators in the world," a Lancet editorial states.

26 Jun 2012