Health News

Technique from astronomy will change the way eye care professionals think about vision correction

Date: Aug-29-2013
Techniques developed by astronomers seeking a clear view of objects in space are coming closer to home, as eye care professionals apply the concept of wavefront optics to understanding - and correcting - subtle visual abnormalities of the human eye, according to a special article in the September issue of Optometry and Vision Science*, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health...

A history of depression increases risk for future episodes following divorce

Date: Aug-29-2013
Divorce is associated with an increased risk of future depressive episodes but only for those who already have a history of depression, according to a new study published in Clinical Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. "Stressful life events like divorce are associated with significant risk for prolonged emotional distress, including clinically-significant depression," notes psychological scientist and lead researcher David Sbarra of the University of Arizona...

Software tool developed for cancer genomics

Date: Aug-29-2013
Researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) have developed a new bioinformatics software tool designed to more easily identify genetic mutations responsible for cancers. The tool, called DrGaP, is the subject of a new paper published in the American Journal of Human Genetics. Xing Hua, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow in biostatistics at the National Cancer Institute, and a former visiting scholar at MCW, is the first author of the paper. Yan Lu, Ph.D., assistant professor of physiology, is corresponding author; and Pengyuan Liu, Ph.D...

Novel treatment for stroke and possibly other neurological diseases

Date: Aug-29-2013
In the latest in a series of experiments testing the use of stem cells to treat neurological disease, researchers at Henry Ford Hospital have shown for the first time that microscopic material in the cells offers a "robust" treatment for crippling stroke. "In this study we pioneered a totally new treatment for stroke, and possibly for all neurological disease," says Michael Chopp, Ph.D., scientific director of the Henry Ford Neuroscience Institute. The new study is published online in the current issue of Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism...

Complex human 'mini-brains' successfully grown from stem cells

Date: Aug-29-2013
Scientists have successfully grown complex human brain tissue from stem cells using a new 3D culture system, according to a study published in the journal Nature. Researchers from the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) at the Austrian Academy of Sciences (OeAW) say the newly created tissue could be the start of developing model systems for the human brain. The scientists began the research by using established human embryonic stem cell lines and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from mouse embryonic fibroblasts...

Gynecologic surgery patients benefit from enhanced recovery pathway

Date: Aug-29-2013
Patients who had complex gynecologic surgery managed by an enhanced recovery pathway (ERP) resulted in decreased narcotic use, earlier discharge, stable readmission rates, excellent patient satisfaction and cost savings, according to a Mayo Clinic study. The findings are published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology. A team of gynecologic oncologists, urogynecologists and anesthesiologists developed an enhanced recovery pathway for patients undergoing gynecologic surgery to recover more quickly...

Men and women equally depressed, study shows

Date: Aug-29-2013
Around the world, women are typically diagnosed with depression twice as often as men. But a recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry looks at these disparities in a new way by considering alternative symptoms of depression typically attributed to men. The researchers, led by Lisa A. Martin, Ph.D., analyzed data from a national mental health survey of 3,310 women and 2,382 men while also looking for alternative symptoms...

Cannabis and the adolescent brain: Perception as a 'safe drug' is scientifically inaccurate

Date: Aug-29-2013
The nature of the teenage brain makes users of cannabis amongst this population particularly at risk of developing addictive behaviors and suffering other long-term negative effects, according to researchers at the University of Montreal and New York's Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "Of the illicit drugs, cannabis is most used by teenagers since it is perceived by many to be of little harm. This perception has led to a growing number of states approving its legalization and increased accessibility...

Non-invasive transcranial direct current stimulation improves sleep in patients with post-polio syndrome

Date: Aug-29-2013
Of the 15 million people around the world who have survived poliomyelitis, up to 80% report progressive deteriorating strength and endurance many years after infection, a condition known as post-polio syndrome (PPS). Researchers in Italy from the National Hospital for Poliomyelitis, the Policlinico G.B. De Rossi in Verona, and the University of Milan have found that transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for 15 days improved sleep and fatigue symptoms in patients with PPS, suggesting this non-invasive tool may be a new therapeutic option for this condition...

Personalised management of atrial fibrillation in the future will reduce the associated excess mortality

Date: Aug-29-2013
Personalised management is the only way to close the mortality gap for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), according to an ESC consensus paper presented at ESC Congress 2013 by Professor Paulus Kirchhof (UK). The Atrial Fibrillation competence NETwork (AFNET) and European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) consensus paper is published online in the European Journal of Pacing, Arrhythmias, and Cardiac Electrophysiology (EP-Europace)1 and presented during the ESC Congress session on personalised cardiology...