Health News

FDA approves Clinolipid for intravenous nutrition

Date: Oct-08-2013
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Clinolipid (lipid injectable emulsion, USP) for intravenous feeding (parenteral nutrition) in adult patients, providing a source of calories and essential fatty acids for adult patients who are unable to eat or drink. Clinolipid was granted a priority review to help alleviate a drug shortage.  "Preventing and mitigating drug shortages is a top priority for the FDA," said Janet Woodcock, M.D., director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research...

Tarsa presents meta-analysis showing calcitonin not associated with cancer

Date: Oct-08-2013
Tarsa Therapeutics, Inc. has announced that it presented a new meta-analysis showing that salmon calcitonin does not appear to be associated with an increased risk of cancer in postmenopausal women. The meta-analysis was conducted using data derived from approximately 11,000 women in 24 randomized, controlled calcitonin trials that included reporting of adverse events. The meta-analysis yielded an odds ratio close to unity with a narrow bound on the error of estimation, suggesting that calcitonin does not appear to be associated with an increased risk of cancer...

Study examines risk factors for major cardiac events following noncardiac surgery for patients with coronary stents

Date: Oct-08-2013
Emergency surgery and advanced cardiac disease are risk factors for major adverse cardiac events after noncardiac surgery in patients with recent coronary stent implantation, according to a study published by JAMA. The study is being released early online to coincide with its presentation at the American College of Surgeons 2013 Annual Clinical Congress.  "Approximately 600,000 percutaneous coronary stent procedures are performed annually in the United States...

People with mental health problems are up to ten times more likely to become victims of crime than the general population

Date: Oct-08-2013
People with mental health problems are up to ten times more likely to become victims of crime than the general population, according to new research by charities and academics.  'At risk, yet dismissed: the criminal victimisation of people with mental health problems' also found people with severe mental illness were more likely to be repeat victims of crime, yet were far less likely to be satisfied with their treatment by police. They were also more affected by crime than those without mental health problems...

Study examines widespread prescribing of levothyroxine for borderline thyroid hormone levels, overtreatment

Date: Oct-08-2013
A study of patients in the United Kingdom suggests widespread prescribing of the medication levothyroxine sodium to boost thyroid function among patients with borderline high levels of the thyroid-stimulating hormone thyrotropin (a sign of low thyroid function), raising the possibility of overtreatment, according to a study published by JAMA Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication...

Study examines probiotics to prevent or treat excessive infant crying

Date: Oct-08-2013
There still appears to be insufficient evidence to support using probiotics (Lactobacillus reuteri) to manage colic or to prevent crying in infants, especially in formula-fed babies, but it may be an effective treatment for crying infants who are breastfed exclusively and have colic, according to a study by Valerie Sung, M.P.H., of the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and Royal Children's Hospital, Australia, and colleagues.  Researchers conducted a systematic review of 12 trials that randomized 1,825 infants three months or younger to oral probiotics vs...

Parents play important role in teen eating behaviours

Date: Oct-08-2013
The way parents manage mealtimes has been linked to lower levels of eating disorders in teenagers, according to a new study from Loughborough University.  Researchers looked at perceptions of more than 500 teens aged 13-15, and found that those who felt their parents had more responsibility for providing meals, or whose parents were in charge of food provision, reported lower levels of eating disorders.  However, parents' use of more controlling food-related strategies was linked to less desirable teen eating behaviours...

New treatment options likely following discovery of enzymatic pathway common to drugs of abuse

Date: Oct-08-2013
The extracellular-signal regulated kinase (ERK) pathway plays a role in multiple drug addictions and appears to modulate neuronal plasticity through epigenetic mechanisms, say French scientists. The discovery could pave the way for new therapeutic options for treating drug addictions, the researchers claim. "The molecular adaptations induced by ERK include epigenetic regulation that causes a stable response that modifies the structure of DNA, hence accounting for long-term neuronal plasticity," says Dr Jocelyne Caboche, from the Pierre-and-Marie-Curie University, Paris, France...

Binge drinking impairs bone healing

Date: Oct-08-2013
Physicians have long observed that binge drinking can significantly impair the healing process following a bone fracture. Now a study by Loyola University Medical Center researchers is providing insights into how alcohol slows healing on the cellular and molecular levels. The findings could lead to treatments to improve bone healing in alcohol abusers, and possibly non-drinkers as well. Roman Natoli, MD, PhD, presented findings during the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research 2013 Annual Meeting in Baltimore. Senior author is John Callaci, PhD...

Metabolic enzymes discovered with 'widespread roles' in opium poppy

Date: Oct-08-2013
University of Calgary scientists have discovered metabolic enzymes in the opium poppy that play "widespread roles" in enabling the plant to make painkilling morphine and codeine, and other important compounds. The discovery, by university researcher Peter Facchini and PhD student Scott Farrow, includes the first biochemical reaction of its kind ever reported in plants, which may also occur in garden-variety poppies and other plants...