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New HIV/AIDS initiative in Tanzania aims to increase condom availability

Condom vending machines will be unveiled on Monday in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, as part of a six-year pilot HIV prevention initiative in the country, Tanzania's The Citizen reports.

18 May 2009

Denver Post examines efforts to establish needle-exchange programs in Colorado

The Denver Post on Friday examined efforts to establish needle-exchange programs in Colorado to reduce the risk of HIV and hepatitis C among injection drug users.

18 May 2009

Vaccine candidate successful in blocking Simian version of HIV

Researchers have successfully blocked SIV, the simian version of HIV, using a new technique that could help lead to the development of an effective HIV/AIDS vaccine, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. The team also included scientists from Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and the New England Primate Research Center in Boston.

18 May 2009

Asian-Americans in California adopting unhealthy sun-exposure behaviors

A new survey from the Stanford University School of Medicine suggests that a significant number of Asian Americans living in California adopt unhealthy sun-exposure behaviors as they become more westernized.

18 May 2009

New insight into primate eye evolution

Researchers comparing the fetal development of the eye of the owl monkey with that of the capuchin monkey have found that only a minor difference in the timing of cell proliferation can explain the multiple anatomical differences in the two kinds of eyes.

18 May 2009

Many low-income women breast cancer patients skipping hormonal therapy, lowering their survival rates

Many low-income women are failing to take the hormonal therapy prescribed as part of their breast cancer treatment, possibly lowering their survival rates, according to a study led by a researcher in the Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center.

18 May 2009

Trends in gallbladder cancer over forty years

Overall prognosis for gallbladder cancer appears to be improving, although many patients still have incurable disease and poor survival rates, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Surgery.

18 May 2009

Study looks at transpalatal advancement pharyngoplasty procedure for sleep apnea

Treatment with surgery or an oral appliance that adjusts the jaw is associated with improvements in obstructive sleep apnea, a condition caused by blocked upper airways in which patients periodically stop breathing during sleep, according to two reports in the May issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery.

18 May 2009

Weight loss in seniors may increase risk of dementia

A new study shows that older people who are thinner or are losing weight quickly are at a higher risk of developing dementia, especially if they started out overweight or obese. The research is published in the May 19, 2009, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

18 May 2009

Thyroid surgery outcomes may be worse in pregnant women

Pregnant women appear to have worse clinical and economic outcomes after thyroid and parathyroid surgery compared with women who are not pregnant, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Surgery.

18 May 2009

Rituximab linked to viral brain infection

The 57-year-old lawyer in New York had handily completed the New York Times' Saturday crossword puzzle - the hardest of the week - for years. But one Saturday morning, suddenly he couldn't retrieve the words to fill in the squares.

18 May 2009

Protein synaptotagmin-IV helps maintain an efficient brain

The instruction manual for maintaining an efficient brain may soon include a section on synaptotagmin-IV (Syt-IV), a protein known to influence learning and memory, thanks to a study by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers.

18 May 2009

Recession is contributing to a decline in overall family health in the Hispanic community

The economic downturn is contributing to a decline in overall family health in the Hispanic community, with parents prioritizing their children's health over their own. While 44 percent of Hispanics consider it equally important for parents to take care of their own health and the health of their children, significantly more parents say the economic downturn has affected their own health and wellness compared to that of their children (69 percent vs. 59 percent).

18 May 2009

A hard-line approach to cardiovascular risks in diabetes

When treating the diabetes patient, doctors discussed how a "one size fits all" approach to testing is not enough to reveal an individual's risk for cardiovascular disease Saturday at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 18th Annual Meeting & Clinical Congress.

18 May 2009

America’s epidemic of children with type 2 diabetes

With the number of children suffering from type 2 diabetes growing at an alarming rate, physicians gathered Saturday to discuss strategies for prevention and treatment of the disease among children and adolescents at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 18th Annual Meeting & Clinical Congress.

18 May 2009

Experts say current recommendations for Vitamin D "grossly inadequate"

Current recommendations for Vitamin D were called "grossly inadequate" today at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 18th Annual Meeting & Clinical Congress.

18 May 2009

FDA clears new treatment for facial wrinkles

Ellman International, Inc. announced today that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted clearance to Pelleve, a skin tightening system for the non-ablative treatment of mild to moderate facial wrinkles and rhytids for skin phototypes I-IV.

18 May 2009

Patients want full access to all medical records - willing to make privacy concessions

As President Barack Obama calls for streamlining heath care by fully converting to electronic medical records and as Congress prepares to debate issues of patient privacy, one question has largely gone unasked: What do patients want?

18 May 2009

Study comparing partial and complete smoking bans finds no significant difference in impact on employment

Some cities and states around the country have completely banned smoking in public places. Others have instituted partial bans to avoid negative economic consequences, such as loss of employment in restaurants and bars due to reduced patronage by smokers.

18 May 2009