Medical News

RSS

New guideline recommends when to use CT scans in ER for seizures

A guideline developed by the American Academy of Neurology recommends immediate brain CT scans to screen certain emergency room patients with seizures.

29 Oct 2007

Research finds novel mechanism for synovial inflammation in degenerative arthritis

The most common degenerative joint disease, osteoarthritis (OA) is marked by the breakdown of articular cartilage, which is the type of cartilage that lines the ends of most limb bones.

29 Oct 2007

New egg-specific gene, JY-1 offers clues to infertility

A newly identified gene that controls embryo development in cows may someday offer clues into the cause of infertility in women.

29 Oct 2007

Step towards vaccine to prevent Chlamydia

Genetically engineered mice may hold the key to helping scientists from Queensland University of Technology and Harvard hasten the development of a vaccine to protect adolescent girls against the most common sexually transmitted disease, Chlamydia.

29 Oct 2007

Higher radiation doses over shorter periods of time for prostate cancer doesn't lead to sexual dysfunction

Recent advances in the delivery of radiation therapy for prostate cancer are fueling a new trend of providing higher radiation doses over shorter periods of time.

29 Oct 2007

Gene screen patent brings 2007 Deal of Distinction Award to UChicagoTech

UChicagoTech, the University of Chicago's Office of Technology and Intellectual Property, has received a 2007 Deal of Distinction Award from the Licensing Executives Society of U.S.A. and Canada.

29 Oct 2007

Extra radiation dose prevents breast cancer return in young women

Women 40 years and younger with early-stage breast cancer who receive an additional high dose of radiation (boost dose) after undergoing breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy) and standard radiation treatment are almost twice as likely to be free of cancer 10 years after treatment compared to those who don't receive the boost dose, according to a large European study presented at the Plenary I session on October 29, 2007, at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology's 49th Annual Meeting in Los Angeles.

29 Oct 2007

Epilepsy-induced brain cell damage blocked in lab experiments

For some epilepsy patients, the side effects of epilepsy can be as troubling as the seizures.

29 Oct 2007

Low-dose CT scanning detects cancers long before symptoms ever appear

Early screening for lung cancer using non-invasive, low-dose CT scanning detects early stage cancers long before symptoms ever appear, according to results of a clinical study with 1,000 high-risk Canadian smokers.

29 Oct 2007

Childhood apraxia of speech becoming more common

Speech pathologists at Nationwide Children's Hospital report an increasing number of patients diagnosed with childhood apraxia of speech, a motor speech disorder in which children have difficulty saying basic sounds and words.

29 Oct 2007

Do statins make radiation more effective at curing prostate cancer?

Patients with prostate cancer who receive high-dose radiation treatment and also take statin drugs commonly used to lower cholesterol have a 10 percent higher chance of being cured of their cancer at 10 years after diagnosis (76 percent), compared to those who don't take these medications (66 percent), according to a study presented at a scientific session October 31, 2007, at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology's 49th Annual Meeting in Los Angeles.

29 Oct 2007

Can you put your faith in dolphin assisted therapy?

WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, is today calling for a total ban on Dolphin Assisted Therapy (DAT), stating that the therapy provided is ineffective and potentially harmful to both people and animals.

29 Oct 2007

Study confirms the aggressive nature of breast cancer in African-American women

Contrary to previous studies, African-American women with early-stage breast cancer who have surgery to remove the cancer (lumpectomy) followed by radiation therapy have a higher chance of their cancer coming back in the breast and lymph nodes 10 years after diagnosis, compared to their Caucasian counterparts, according to the largest study of its kind, presented at a scientific session October 29, 2007, at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology's 49th Annual Meeting in Los Angeles.

29 Oct 2007

Hunger influenced by leptin hormone

Researchers at UCLA have determined the brain circuits involved in hunger that are influenced by a hormone called leptin.

29 Oct 2007

Lessons learned from Marburg and Ebola outbreaks

Outbreaks of filovirus haemorrhagic fevers (FHFs) such as those caused by the Ebola and Marburg viruses can only be controlled if agencies have the support and trust of local communities, according to two papers just published in the online edition of the Journal of Infectious Diseases as part of a special supplement on filovirusues.

29 Oct 2007

Study finds increase of avoidable hospitalizations in Washington, D.C.

The rate of avoidable hospitalizations in Washington, D.C., increased from 39.1 per 1,000 adults ages 40 to 64 in 2004 to 43.4 in 2006, and from 8.9 per 1,000 children younger than age 18 to 12.1 during the same period, according to a report released Thursday by RAND, the Washington Post reports.

29 Oct 2007

Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report reports on Presidential campaigns related to health care

Forty-six percent of U.S. adults who responded to a recent survey conducted by Scripps Howard and Ohio University said that Democrats were more likely to improve access to health care than Republicans, Scripps Howard/Richmond Times-Dispatch reports. The survey, which included responses from 811 adults nationwide collected from Sept 24. to Oct. 10, has a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points.

29 Oct 2007

Baltimore Sun examines U.S. health care system, efforts for reform

The Baltimore Sun on Sunday examined how the lack of progress toward the "goal" of ensuring that all U.S. residents have affordable health coverage "is causing a slow-motion health care crisis that is already threatening the well-being of millions."

29 Oct 2007

UnitedHealth concurs with House panel that access to dental care lacking for child Medicaid beneficiaries in Maryland

UnitedHealth Group Senior Vice President Judah Sommer in a letter to members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Domestic Policy agreed with a panel finding that thousands of Maryland children enrolled in the company's Medicaid plan were unable to receive dental care after initially denying the claims, CQ HealthBeat reports (Carey, CQ HealthBeat, 10/25).

29 Oct 2007

UAW members at Chrysler approve four-year contract with voluntary employees' beneficiary association

United Auto Workers officials on Saturday said that Chrysler Group employees represented by the union approved a four-year contract that will establish a voluntary employees' beneficiary association, the Detroit Free Press reports (Higgins, Detroit Free Press, 10/28).

29 Oct 2007