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MIR names Aetna as Health Insurer of the Year

Aetna a leading global diversified health care benefits company, has been named "Health Insurer of the Year" for 2013 by MENA Insurance Review (MIR), a leading magazine covering the insurance sector in the Middle East and North Africa.

18 Feb 2013

Aerobic exercise can increase brain size and improve cognition in children, older adults

Exercise doesn't only strengthen your heart and muscles - it also beefs up your brain. Dozens of studies now show that aerobic exercise can increase the size of critical brain structures and improve cognition in children and older adults.

18 Feb 2013

Study paves way for new prosthetics that connect directly to the nervous system

For an amputee, replacing a missing limb with a functional prosthetic can alleviate physical or emotional distress and mean a return of vocational ability or cosmetics. Studies show, however, that up to 50 percent of hand amputees still do not use their prosthesis regularly due to less than ideal functionality, appearance, and controllability. But Silvestro Micera, of the -cole Polytechnique F-d-rale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland, is paving the way for new, smart prosthetics that connect directly to the nervous system.

18 Feb 2013

Direct link between out-of-hospital cardiac arrests and levels of air pollution and ozone

Researchers at Rice University in Houston have found a direct correlation between out-of-hospital cardiac arrests and levels of air pollution and ozone. Their work has prompted more CPR training in at-risk communities.

18 Feb 2013

Research reveals how quickly the Achilles tendon can regenerate

The Achilles heel of the body - getting over damage to tendons can be a long and painful process. By combining the nuclear tests of the 1950s with tissue samples and modern technology, a research collaboration between the Aarhus University and University of Copenhagen now reveals why the healing process is so slow.

18 Feb 2013

Oxidized CaMKII may increase risk of death in diabetics following heart attack

Having diabetes doubles a person's risk of dying after a heart attack, but the reason for the increased risk is not clear. A new University of Iowa study suggests the link may lie in the over-activation of an important heart enzyme, which leads to death of pacemaker cells in the heart, abnormal heart rhythm, and increased risk of sudden death in diabetic mice following a heart attack.

18 Feb 2013

UC-led study takes a new direction in examining availability of healthy foods for urban populations

University of Cincinnati-led research takes a new direction in examining the availability of healthy foods for urban populations by examining the commuting patterns of its residents.

18 Feb 2013

Dietary impacts, health changes and oral pathogen genomic evolution

DNA preserved in calcified bacteria on the teeth of ancient human skeletons has shed light on the health consequences of the evolving diet and behaviour from the Stone Age to the modern day.

18 Feb 2013

New book discusses potential solutions and new ways of looking at hidden hunger

Hunger is a two-sided coin. It refers simultaneously to that which is visible and can be subjectively and objectively viewed, and that which is hidden. This less-visible hunger is known as 'hidden hunger' or chronic malnutrition. Every two minutes thirteen children worldwide die of the consequences of hidden hunger before they are five years old.

18 Feb 2013

Briefing examines relationships between high-levels of air pollution exposure and health effects

Lance Waller, PhD, chair of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics at Emory's Rollins School of Public Health, will present preliminary work that explores relationships between high-levels of air pollution exposure and health effects at a press briefing hosted by the American Association for the Advancement of Science on February 17, at 2 p.m. EST, in Boston.

18 Feb 2013

Five early career women scientists receive 2013 Elsevier Foundation Awards

Five medical and life science researchers from Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean Basin today received the 2013 Elsevier Foundation Awards for Early Career Women Scientists in the Developing World for work that could contribute to life-saving knowledge and therapies worldwide.

18 Feb 2013

New computational model could provide better insight into how today's diseases might strike

In a world of increasing global connections, predicting the spread of infectious diseases is more complicated than ever. Pandemics no longer follow the patterns they did centuries ago, when diseases swept through populations town by town; instead, they spread quickly and seemingly at random, spurred by the interactions of 3 billion air travelers per year.

18 Feb 2013

Shorter version of abPG-SGA can potentially improve outcomes for cancer patients

Considering the many things a cancer patient has to think about, it's easy to understand why maintaining proper nutrition may not be top of mind. This can be true, too, at busy outpatient settings where it's often difficult to find the time and resources to test cancer patients for malnutrition.

18 Feb 2013

Brain damage can persist for decades after original head trauma

As the National Football League braces for lawsuits by 4000 former players alleging the league failed to protect them from the long-term consequences of concussions, game-changing research by a leading Canadian researcher shows damage to the brain can persist for decades after the original head trauma.

17 Feb 2013

Infrared signaling could create sense of touch in artificial limbs

Rats can't usually see infrared light, but they have "touched" it in a Duke University lab. The rats sensed the light as a sensation of touch after Duke neurobiologist Miguel Nicolelis and his team fitted the animals with an infrared detector wired to electrodes implanted in the part of the mammalian brain that processes information related to the sense of touch.

17 Feb 2013

Study shows how gene mutations affect calcium pathway in arrhythmia

Using powerful X-rays, University of British Columbia researchers have reconstructed a crime scene too small for any microscope to observe - and caught the culprit of arrhythmia in action.

17 Feb 2013

Brain health just as important as physical health

We all know the importance of keeping healthy and are familiar with the refrains of 'exercise more', 'eat better' and 'get regular physicals'. But what about our mental health? Professor Barbara Sahakian, best known for her expertise on cognitive enhancers, challenges society (and government) to prioritise mental health in the same way as we do physical health.

17 Feb 2013

Blog examines child survival efforts in India

"Last week, the Government of India held a star-studded National Summit on child survival, 'co-convened' with USAID and UNICEF," Victoria Fan, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), and Rachel Silverman, a research assistant for the global health team at the CGD, write in the center's "Global Health Policy" blog.

16 Feb 2013

Two studies discover new enzyme that acts as a sensor of innate immunity

Two studies by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center could lead to new treatments for lupus and other autoimmune diseases and strengthen current therapies for viral, bacterial, and parasitic infections.

16 Feb 2013

Health exchanges: Today is states' decision day

States have to decide by Feb. 15 whether they will create their own health insurance exchanges or partner with the federal government. Meanwhile, during a congressional hearing marked by skepticism, a Health and Human Services official told lawmakers that the government would be ready to enroll people this fall.

16 Feb 2013