Medical News

RSS

Study confirms D-penicillamine and trientine effective against Wilson disease

Results from the first ever European-wide retrospective analysis presented today at the International Liver CongressTM have shown both D-penicillamine and trientine continue to be effective treatments, providing positive survival rates in patients with Wilson disease free from a liver transplant.

1 Apr 2011

New data confirms antiviral activity of fluvastatin in patients with HCV

New data presented today at the International Liver CongressTM confirm the antiviral activity of fluvastatin -- commonly used as a cholesterol-lowering treatment -- in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

1 Apr 2011

Merck's VICTRELIS phase III study results against HCV presented at EASL annual meeting

Merck, known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, announced results from several new data analyses from the pivotal Phase III studies evaluating the addition of its investigational oral protease inhibitor VICTRELIS to peginterferon alfa-2b and ribavirin in adult patients with chronic hepatitis C virus genotype 1 infection.

1 Apr 2011

DNA damage can lead to regulation of inflammatory responses

Researchers offer the first evidence that DNA damage can lead to the regulation of inflammatory responses, the body's reaction to injury. The proteins involved in the regulation help protect the body from infection.

1 Apr 2011

ESRC funded project reveals how teens view their mums

Just in time for Mother's Day teens have spoken out on what they consider makes a good mother. The project Young Lives and Times, part of the Timescapes study and funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, reveals how teens view their mums.

1 Apr 2011

Progressive resistance training can help minimize loss of muscle mass and strength as we age

Getting older doesn't mean giving up muscle strength.

1 Apr 2011

Opinions: Foreign aid; Congressman's global war on abortion

The idea that wealthy countries have a moral obligation to provide aid to poor nations "persists in the face of overwhelming evidence that such 'aid' does the world's poor more harm than good," Marian Tupy, a senior fellow at the Legatum Institute in London, writes in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece.

1 Apr 2011

Seat of emotion in the brain critical for creating long-term memories

When we suddenly get the answer to a riddle or understand the solution to a problem, we can practically feel the light bulb click on in our head. But what happens after the 'Aha!' moment? Why do the things we learn through sudden insight tend to stick in our memory?

1 Apr 2011

Middle-aged adults with diabetes more likely to develop age-related ailments

Middle-aged adults with diabetes are much more likely to develop age-related conditions than their counterparts who don't have diabetes, according to a new study by the University of Michigan Health System and VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System.

1 Apr 2011

New research sheds light on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome

New research published today in The Journal of Physiology sheds light on areas of the brain thought to be the root cause of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome - the poorly understood condition also known as 'cot death'.

1 Apr 2011

Study: Electronic faucets more likely to become contaminated with bacteria

Researchers at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have determined that electronic faucets are more likely to become contaminated with unacceptably high levels of bacteria, including Legionella spp., compared with traditional manually operated faucets.

1 Apr 2011

Intuitive Surgical, Luna extend development and supply agreement

Luna Innovations Incorporated announced today that it has agreed with Intuitive Surgical, Inc., to extend its development efforts under its development and supply agreement with Intuitive towards further integrating Luna's shape sensing technology into Intuitive's products.

1 Apr 2011

Vertex announces final results from Phase 3 REALIZE study against HCV

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced final results from its pivotal Phase 3 REALIZE study that evaluated people with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C whose prior treatment with pegylated-interferon and ribavirin was unsuccessful either because they relapsed, had a partial response or had a null response.

1 Apr 2011

Biota Scientific receives BARDA contract to develop single-dose antiviral drug

A contract has been awarded to develop a long-acting single-dose antiviral drug for use in the United States, the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority announced today.

1 Apr 2011

Medicare moves to pay for Provenge

On Wednesday, Medicare officials signaled the federal insurance program will pay for this costly prostate cancer drug, a move that National Journal described as heading off "accusations that the [government] would be 'rationing' care."

1 Apr 2011

Hands-free electronic water faucets more likely to be contaminated with hazardous bacteria

A study of newly installed, hands-free faucets at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, all equipped with the latest electronic-eye sensors to automatically detect hands and dispense preset amounts of water, shows they were more likely to be contaminated with one of the most common and hazardous bacteria in hospitals compared to old-style fixtures with separate handles for hot and cold water.

1 Apr 2011

Viewpoints: Controlling long-term-care spending; march madness and health reform; hospital physicians

Prepare to hear a lot about Medicaid, the government health-insurance program for the poor. ... The U.S. government can't put itself on a sustainable fiscal course without doing something to slow health spending. It can't slow health spending costs without treating Medicaid. And it can't treat Medicaid without confronting the fact that it has become the long-term-care insurer of last resort for an aging society.

1 Apr 2011

New discovery on IL-23 can lead to novel IBD treatments

A new discovery published in the April 2001 issue of Journal of Leukocyte Biology raises hope that new treatments for illnesses like Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are on the horizon.

1 Apr 2011

Conatus CTS-1027 Phase 2 trial results against HCV presented at EASL meeting

Conatus Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced today 24-week interim results from a clinical trial with CTS-1027 in combination with Peginterferon Alpha-2a and ribavirin in a treatment experienced, hepatitis C virus null-responder patient population.

1 Apr 2011

Roundup: Minn. and Fla. weigh changes in programs for disabled, poor; Iowa lawmakers consider new abortion restrictions

Due to a shockingly large deficit, Gov. Rick Scott is planning to invoke his emergency powers and make deep cuts to the rates charged by group homes and case workers who help the developmentally disabled. Scott could announce a 15 percent rate cut as early as Thursday to close the $170 million budget gap in the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, according to lawmakers who were briefed Wednesday.

1 Apr 2011