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Inhibiting proteins may prevent cartilage breakdown in arthritis patients

Current arthritis medications can ease the pain, but stopping the progression of the disease requires more aggressive treatments: use of very limited available drugs or surgical intervention.

20 Feb 2009

Study examines the effects of indoor particulate matter pollution on asthma in children

A study by researchers at Johns Hopkins University found an association between increasing levels of indoor particulate matter pollution and the severity of asthma symptoms among children.

20 Feb 2009

High-fat diets inflame fat tissue surrounding blood vessels

A study by researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) shows that high-fat diets, even if consumed for a short amount of time, can inflame fat tissue surrounding blood vessels, possibly contributing to cardiovascular disease.

20 Feb 2009

Human papillomavirus lesion identified with VELscope at dentist

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a group of viruses that includes more than 100 different strains or types and is the most common sexually transmitted virus.

20 Feb 2009

Lynx2 gene linked to nervous behavior in mice

To measure anxiety in a mouse and suggest it's similar to anxiety in a person may seem like a stretch, but the metrics sound uncannily familiar.

20 Feb 2009

Racial disparities in colorectal cancer screening persist

Colorectal cancer screening among patients with Medicare coverage is increasing, but a persistent gap remains between whites - who are screened most frequently - and all other racial and ethnic groups, according to a new study by researchers at UC Davis and the University of Washington.

20 Feb 2009

FDA approves humanitarian device exemption for deep brain stimulator

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a humanitarian device exemption for the first implantable device that delivers intermittent electrical therapy deep within the brain to suppress the symptoms associated with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

20 Feb 2009

FDA issues warning on psoriasis drug Raptiva (efalizumab)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a public health advisory concerning three confirmed, and one possible report of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a rare brain infection, in patients using the psoriasis drug Raptiva (efalizumab).

20 Feb 2009

Echoes discovered in early visual brain areas play role in working memory

Vanderbilt University researchers have discovered that early visual areas, long believed to play no role in higher cognitive functions such as memory, retain information previously hidden from brain studies.

20 Feb 2009

Optimizing dosage of blood-thinning drug warfarin

In a large-scale study and an upcoming clinical trial, scientists supported by the National Institutes of Health address one of the trickiest issues in prescribing medicine - how to quickly optimize each patient's dosage of the common blood-thinning drug warfarin.

20 Feb 2009

Collective religious rituals, not religious devotion, spur support for suicide attacks

In a new study in Psychological Science , a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, psychologists Jeremy Ginges and Ian Hansen from the New School for Social Research along with psychologist Ara Norenzayan from the University of British Columbia conducted a series of experiments investigating the relationship between religion and support for acts of parochial altruism, including suicide attacks.

20 Feb 2009

Childhood Varicella zoster could affect oral health years later

You may recall as a child catching the itchy red rash, chicken pox.

20 Feb 2009

Cancer Research UK launches first super cancer centre in Birmingham

Birmingham will become the first link in a unique chain of Cancer Research UK Centres to be launched round the country.

20 Feb 2009

Cancer death rates fall among African Americans - survival rates still low

While death rates from cancer continue to drop among African Americans, the group continues to be diagnosed at more advanced stages and have lower survival rates at each stage of diagnosis compared to whites for most cancer sites.

20 Feb 2009

Can breastfeeding reduce multiple sclerosis relapses?

Women who have multiple sclerosis may reduce their risk of relapses after pregnancy if they breastfeed their babies, according to a study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 61st Annual Meeting in Seattle, April 25 to May 2, 2009.

20 Feb 2009