Health News

Therapeutic algorithm developed for optimal nosebleed management

Date: Aug-28-2013
Approximately 60 percent of people experience epistaxis, commonly known as nosebleed, at least once in their lifetime. Of those who experience nosebleed, six percent require medical treatment. A study in the September 2013 issue of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, explores which nosebleed treatment options demonstrate the best outcomes. "Although data exist on the efficacy of the different epistaxis management techniques, outcome comparisons between the modalities for both primary management as well as management of cases of recurrence are currently lacking," the authors stated...

No evidence found that violent video games increase antisocial behavior in youths with pre-existing psychological conditions

Date: Aug-28-2013
Do violent video games such as 'Mortal Kombat,' 'Halo' and 'Grand Theft Auto' trigger teenagers with symptoms of depression or attention deficit disorder to become aggressive bullies or delinquents? No, according to Christopher Ferguson of Stetson University and independent researcher Cheryl Olson from the US in a study published in Springer's Journal of Youth and Adolescence. On the contrary, the researchers found that the playing of such games actually had a very slight calming effect on youths with attention deficit symptoms and helped to reduce their aggressive and bullying behavior...

Risk of kidney stones in women appears to be increasing, along with related ER visits

Date: Aug-28-2013
The risk of women developing kidney stones is rising, as is the number of cases being seen in U.S. emergency departments, while the rate of hospitalization for the disorder has remained stable. Those are among the findings of a new study led by Henry Ford Hospital researchers that set out to look at trends in visits, hospitalization and charges during a four-year period for patients who went to U.S. hospital emergency departments for treatment of kidney stones...

Study offers an explanation for why there is a genetic code

Date: Aug-28-2013
An analysis of enzymes that load amino acids onto transfer RNAs - an operation at the heart of protein translation - offers new insights into the evolutionary origins of the modern genetic code, researchers report. Their findings appear in the journal PLOS ONE. The researchers focused on aminoacyl tRNA synthetases, enzymes that "read" the genetic information embedded in transfer RNA molecules and attach the appropriate amino acids to those tRNAs...

Smartphone device can test for kidney damage

Date: Aug-28-2013
Scientists have created a portable device that conducts kidney tests and transmits the data through a smartphone attachment, according to a study published in the journal Lab on a Chip. Researchers from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), say the device could significantly reduce the need for frequent clinician visits for diabetes sufferers, and those with chronic kidney conditions. The device, which weighs around 148g (one-third of a pound) and attaches to the camera of a smartphone, can analyze the level of albumin present within a person's urine...

Study sets personal space boundary: 8 to 16 inches from face

Date: Aug-28-2013
A scientifically determined distance can now be given for how much personal space we need after researchers investigated the relationship between anxiety and distance needed from threats. The scientists have put the limit of what they call "peripersonal space" surrounding the face at around 8 to 16 inches (between 20 and 40 centimeters). The researchers, publishing in The Journal of Neuroscience, say that this personal space was previously thought of as a gradual boundary but has now been given "physical limits...

Diabetes: gene variant could explain heart disease risk

Date: Aug-28-2013
Scientists say they have discovered a particular gene variant in patients with type 2 diabetes that is linked to higher risk of heart disease. The researchers, from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, conducted an analysis of five different studies and have published their findings in the journal JAMA. This included 1,517 people with coronary heart disease (CHD), alongside 2,671 people without CHD. All participants had type 2 diabetes...

Emotional control more difficult even with mild stress

Date: Aug-28-2013
Even mild stress can thwart therapeutic measures to control emotions, a team of neuroscientists at New York University has found. Their findings, which appear in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, point to the limits of clinical techniques while also shedding new light on the barriers that must be overcome in addressing afflictions such as fear or anxiety...

Providing extra oxygen to oxygen-deprived muscle following injury

Date: Aug-28-2013
The same compound in a common household clothes detergent shows promise as a treatment to preserve muscle tissue after severe injury. Researchers at the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center's Institute for Regenerative Medicine hope the oxygen-generating compound could one day aid in saving and repairing limbs and tissue. The research in rats, published online ahead of print in PLOS ONE, found that injections of the compound sodium percarbonate (SPO) can produce enough oxygen to help preserve muscle tissue when blood flow is disrupted...

Shopping in high heels can change the way we think about things

Date: Aug-28-2013
Physical experience of balance influences consumer choices When shopping for a big ticket item, such as a television, there is a checklist of things you should always do:  Read reviews   Compare prices   Wear high heels If you're uncomfortable with No. 3, you have other options. You can ride up and down the escalator, play a few games using the Wii Fit, or just go shopping immediately following your yoga class...