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British Liver Trust responds to warnings of cirrhosis study

The British Liver Trust has underlined the message of the King's College/London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine report published on Friday, 6 January 2006 in The Lancet on the worrying, yet largely ignored, steep increase in deaths from liver cirrhosis.

10 Jan 2006

Earlier access decline levels off; nearly 3 in 4 doctors accept all Medicare patients in 2004-05

Despite an earlier payment cut, the proportion of U.S. physicians willing to treat Medicare patients stabilized in 2004-05, with nearly three-quarters reporting their practices were open to all new Medicare patients, according to a national study released by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC).

10 Jan 2006

Lazy eye might see bright future

Amblyopia, commonly known as lazy eye, is a developmental disorder of spatial vision in the absence of any detectable structural or pathologic abnormalities that cannot be corrected by refractive means. Prevalence estimates range from 1% to 5% depending on the population studied and the definition used.

10 Jan 2006

New combination treatment that could dramatically shorten the length of tuberculosis treatment

The clinical results of a new combination treatment that could dramatically shorten the length of tuberculosis treatment were presented at a recent scientific conference in the USA. This virulent disease of the lungs still infects millions every year, with a notable resurgence in Europe, especially in the East.

10 Jan 2006

Approval of first immune globulin for use beneath the skin

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced the approval of the first immune globulin product for subcutaneous injection for the prevention of serious infections in patients with Primary Immune Deficiency Diseases (PIDD).

10 Jan 2006

Sydney researchers explain how stress makes you sick

Garvan Institute scientists have discovered how a hormone, known as neuropeptide Y (NPY), can prevent our immune system functioning properly, paving the way for two new major opportunities for therapeutic intervention.

10 Jan 2006

Why do teenage girls turn their back on playing sport?

In an age obsessed with fitness and body image, why do teenage girls turn their back on playing sport? Any if sport contributes to a well-rounded man, why do so many boys lose interest in the games of their youth?

10 Jan 2006

Human Genome Sciences announces license agreement with Amgen

Human Genome Sciences has announced a license agreement with Amgen under which Amgen has acquired exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize therapeutic biological products for human use based on a human gene discovered by Human Genome Sciences that may have potential applications in autoimmune diseases, immune deficiencies or suppression, and cancer.

10 Jan 2006

Fish oil shown to reduce airway inflammation caused by exercise-induced asthma

People suffering from exercise-induced asthma were able to reduce their symptoms below the threshold used to diagnose the disease by eating a diet supplemented with fish oil, according to new research findings from Indiana University reported in the January issue of the journal Chest.

10 Jan 2006

Asbestos: the iron grip of latency

It happens every day somewhere in Europe: a building from the 1950s is demolished. A few children on their way back from school watch the giant bulldozer at work. The engine has already attacked the ground floor - apparently nobody has noticed the asbestos pads…

10 Jan 2006

New web resource provides easy access to global health data

GlobalHealthFacts.org - a new and freely available website with the latest country and region-specific data on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other key health indicators - was launched today by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a non-profit, private operating foundation focused on health care issues.

10 Jan 2006

Loyola to study for first time IV medication for osteopenia and inflammatory bowel diseases

Researchers at the Osteoporosis and Metabolic Bone Disease Center and the Division of Gastroenterology at Loyola University Health System are studying a once-yearly, 15-minute infusion of an intravenous (IV) medication in patients with osteopenia (low bone mass) and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) that, if proven effective, may be considered the standard of treatment.

10 Jan 2006

Talking about postnatal depression

Ongoing media and community campaigns have helped to destigmatise, and inform about, a wide range of mental illnesses. However new Macquarie University research into postnatal depression has revealed that the identification and uptake of treatment for this disorder remains a serious problem among sufferers.

10 Jan 2006

More women need to know about folic acid's ability to prevent birth defects

Each year in Minnesota, more than 2,000 babies are born with birth defects. Many of those birth defects likely could have been prevented if the mother had taken enough folic acid.

10 Jan 2006

HHS awards $56.9 million to tackle health disparities

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt has announced the awarding of $56.9 million by the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD).

10 Jan 2006

Slow human evolution revealed by worm genome

Humans have retained genomic characteristics of a very ancient ancestor that have been lost in simpler animals such as the fly, indicating that humans are one of the most slowly evolving species. This is the finding of an international team of scientists including Dr David Ferrier of Oxford’s Department of Zoology published in a recent edition of the journal Science.

10 Jan 2006

Coronary artery disease patients consistently fail to take life saving drugs

Nearly half the coronary artery disease (CAD) patients in a seven-year study admitted they don’t consistently take beta blockers, cholesterol-lowering drugs and other medications that could extend their lives, researchers report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

10 Jan 2006