Medical News

RSS

Epidurals in labour and delivery reduce pain but can increase the risk of needing forceps

Epidurals in labour and delivery reduce pain but can increase the risk of needing forceps Pain relief is an important issue for women in labour and epidurals are increasingly used.

18 Oct 2005

Not enough evidence to recommend routine bed rest for hypertension in pregnancy

Currently there is a lack of evidence that keeping pregnant women with high blood pressure in bed for a prolonged period of time improves the chance of a healthy delivery. Prolonged bed rest is disruptive to women's lives, carries the risk of generating blood clots, and may be expensive.

18 Oct 2005

Acyclovir use uncertain in children with chickenpox

There seems to be little value in using acyclovir to treat children with chickenpox who are otherwise healthy.

18 Oct 2005

No credible evidence behind claims of harm from the MMR vaccination

There was no credible evidence behind claims of harm from the MMR vaccination. This is the conclusion drawn by the Cochrane Review Authors, an international team of researchers, after carefully drawing together all of the evidence found in 31 high quality studies from around the world.

18 Oct 2005

Beta blockers not as effective as other drugs that reduce high blood pressure in patients with hypertension

Beta blockers are not as effective as other drugs that reduce high blood pressure in patients with hypertension, concludes a meta-analysis published online by The Lancet.

18 Oct 2005

Expert evaluates orlistat (Xenical)

A 60 mg low-dose version of the prescription weight-loss medication orlistat (marketed by GlaxoSmithKline as Xenical 120 mg) was found to be safe, effective and tolerable in overweight individuals, according to new data presented today at the 2005 Annual Meeting of NAASO, The Obesity Society in Vancouver, British Columbia.

18 Oct 2005

Short course of rTMS can increase finger sensitivity

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has emerged as an intriguing technique for exploring brain function, and a promising, though still unproven, form of therapy.

18 Oct 2005

Discovery increases the yield of stem cells from umbilical cord blood

A team of bioengineers led by the University of Toronto has discovered a way to increase the yield of stem cells from umbilical cord blood, to an extent which could broaden therapeutic use of these cells.

18 Oct 2005

No evidence of a "safe" threshold with environmental toxins

Four of the most widespread environmental toxins - lead, trihalomethanes (found in drinking water), ionizing radiation from indoor radon gas, and tobacco smoke - can cause serious damage to health even at very low levels, say researchers in the open access journal PLoS Medicine.

18 Oct 2005

Protein involved in 'mad cow' disease

The journal Brain Research has recently published the results of research work by scientists from the University of Navarra.

18 Oct 2005

Hertfordshire group to adopt a new approach to weight loss

A new group which will help women who are seriously overweight to lose weight and keep it off run by the University of Hertfordshire will start in Stevenage in January.

18 Oct 2005

Bayer to produce new Tuberculosis drug at low prices for poor nations

A promising new antibiotic, moxifloxacin, produced by Bayer Healthcare is about to be tested against tuberculosis, a disease that kills 5,000 people a day.

18 Oct 2005

Bird Flu now confirmed in Greece

Greece has become the first country in the European Union to confirm its first case of bird flu, although cases are being tackled in Turkey and Romania.

18 Oct 2005

Want to get sexy? lose some weight!

According to a new study, obese women who start to lose weight will also see an improvement in the quality of their sex lives.

18 Oct 2005

New prostate cancer test far more accurate

At present in order to predict prostate cancer outcomes, doctors rely on measures that suggest how far the tumour has spread and how abnormal the cancer cells appear under the microscope.

18 Oct 2005

Drug company warns of risk of liver problems with antidepressant

The warning about possible liver-related problems with the depression drug, Cymbalta, has been expanded and doctors are being cautioned against its use in chronic liver disease patients.

18 Oct 2005

Pathological liars found to have less gray matter

In a new study Dr. Adrian Raine and Yaling Yang of the University of Southern California, and colleagues found that individuals who habitually lied and cheated had less gray matter and more white matter in their prefrontal cortex than normal people.

18 Oct 2005

More doubt cast on benefit of beta blockers for high blood pressure

A comprehensive study has produced more evidence that a drug widely used to treat high blood pressure may not be the best option for many patients.

18 Oct 2005

Cannabis smoke less likely to cause cancer than tobacco smoke

According to a leading U.S. expert, cannabis smoke is less likely to cause cancer than tobacco smoke.

18 Oct 2005

Brain injury can cause detrimental functional changes in brain regions far from the site of the actual injury

A study of patients who have difficulty paying attention to the left side of their environment has provided some of the first direct evidence that brain injury can cause detrimental functional changes in brain regions far from the site of the actual injury.

17 Oct 2005