Health News

Spouse in pain? Love affects sleep, study shows

Date: Aug-17-2013
Spouses who have a close relationship share many things - material and non-material, highs and lows. And when one spouse experiences chronic pain, it can have a ripple effect for the other spouse, affecting sleep and even increasing risks for health problems, say researchers from Penn State University. A study recently published in the journal PAIN analyzed relationships in which one spouse experienced chronic knee pain. The researchers said they chose knee pain because it oftentimes causes difficulties staying comfortable in bed at night for many patients...

New brain drugs could follow 'rocking receptor' discovery

Date: Aug-17-2013
John Hopkins biophysicists have identified a "rocking" motion in a protein ensemble, a "back and forth" movement critical in the normal functioning of brain signaling molecules. The work could lead to advancements in neurological treatments. The newly discovered "rocking receptor" is thought to be critical to the communication between nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord; the back-and-forth motion responsible for fully activating a protein...

Money motivates employees to lose weight

Date: Aug-17-2013
Financial incentives can be a very effective tool in encouraging employees to lose weight at companies that offer their workers those types of programs, research from a University of Texas at Arlington economics assistant professor shows. Joshua Price, a UT Arlington assistant professor of economics, teamed with Cornell University Professor John Cawley to perform a case study on an employer-sponsored program that offered financial incentives for weight loss. The study was accepted for publication in The Journal of Health Economics and was featured recently on its website...

What are blisters? How to prevent blisters

Date: Aug-16-2013
Blisters are small pockets of liquid that form on the outer layer of the skin after the skin becomes damaged (usually caused by forceful rubbing or burning). Blisters prevent the area from becoming further damaged by protecting the skin underneath and giving it adequate time to heal. Blisters are filled with serum, which is essentially blood plasma without fibrinogens (the red blood cells and clotting agents are removed). However, some blisters may be filled with blood (blood blisters) - if they become infected or inflamed they can also be filled with pus...

Research 'backs watchful waiting' in prostate cancer

Date: Aug-16-2013
Prostate cancer researchers publishing in the Cancer Research journal argue for more watchful waiting to manage the disease, rather than moving straight to aggressive treatment or surgery. "Radical prostatectomy or radiation therapy, the usual treatments for prostate cancer, can have negative side-effects such as impotence and incontinence," the lead researcher said. Kathryn Penney ScD, instructor in medicine at the Harvard Medical School, added: "Choosing active surveillance could prevent this decline in quality of life...

MRSA traced back to cattle infections

Date: Aug-16-2013
A new study has suggested that a type of MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) found in humans may have originated from cattle as far back as 40 years or more. Researchers from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, analyzed around 40 strains of the bacterium - Staphylococcus aureus, which is capable of building up methicillin antibiotic resistance, leading to MRSA. Staphylococcus aureus spreads easily in humans through skin-to-skin contact...

Safer heart surgery from humble blood pressure cuff

Date: Aug-16-2013
Scientists have discovered that inflating a blood pressure cuff on the upper arm immediately prior to heart bypass surgery could decrease risk of heart injury and increase long-term survival rate. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 395,000 coronary artery bypass graft surgeries were carried out in the US in 2010. Heart surgery, such as coronary bypass, can often cause heart muscle damage, the researchers say. It is linked to reduced long-term survival and can cause severe health outcomes such as heart attacks...

"Reprogrammed" treatment-resistant lymphomas respond to cancer drugs

Date: Aug-16-2013
A phase I clinical trial showed diffuse, large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCLs) resistant to chemotherapy can be reprogrammed to respond to treatment using the drug azacitidine, according to a study published in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. Patients whose lymphomas recur after initial chemotherapy are treated with a combination of approaches, including high-dose chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant...

Geriatrics Safe Medicines Summit, 16th-17th of September 2013 in London

Date: Aug-16-2013
Representation of Older People in Clinical Trials SMi Group reports (August 15, 2013): Big Pharma Companies will meet in London at Geriatric Safe Medicines Summit to discuss challenges and opportunities for performing clinical trials in older people. Patients over the age of 65 are prescribed the majority of prescription drugs used in the UK but are significantly under-represented in clinical trials. Statistics show that although over 65's carry 60% of the disease burden they are only represented at a rate of 32% in phase I-III Clinical Trials...

Siemens introduces the future of molecular imaging

Date: Aug-16-2013
Siemens Healthcare has launched a new platform with the potential to change how molecular imaging is performed. The Symbia Intevo™ is the world's first xSPECT system. It combines the high sensitivity of single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) with the high specificity of CT, completely integrating the data from the two modalities, to generate high resolution and, for the first time, quantitative images[1]. The system demonstrates Siemens' innovation and competitiveness, key components of the Healthcare Sector's Agenda 2013 two-year initiative...