Health News

Study Reveals How Bacterial Resistance Works

Date: Mar-28-2013
Researchers from Tufts University School of Medicine have identified an isolate of E. coli which is resistant to the class of antibiotics carbapenems - used to treat life threatening disease-causing bacteria. The study, published in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, revealed how bacteria are able to eventually become resistant to certain classes of antibiotics. Infections that become resistant to antibiotics lead to a considerable increased risk of infection, which can cause serious public health concerns...

By 2022 There Will Be Nearly 18 Million Cancer Survivors In The US

Date: Mar-28-2013
An aging population combined with better treatment techniques means more people will overcome cancer. The second Annual Report on Cancer Survivorship was released yesterday from the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and is published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.  The report reveals that currently there are 13.7 million cancer survivors in the United States - and this number will grow by 31% to 18 million by the year 2022. Julia Rowland, Ph.D...

Brain Scans Can Predict Criminal Behavior

Date: Mar-28-2013
Brain scans can predict whether convicted felons are likely to engage in criminal behavior in the future, according to neuroscientists. The experts, from the Mind Research Network in New Mexico, conducted research involving nearly 100 male prisoners who were given a functional MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan at the time of their release. The team, led by Kent Kiehl, examined the prisoners' anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) - an area located at the front of the brain that is responsible for making decisions. The scientists wanted to analyze the inmates' brains for impulsivity...

Some Women Over 40 Under The Misapprehension That Contraception Is Unnecessary

Date: Mar-28-2013
Women reaching the age of 40 tend to be less vigilant about birth control because they think the risk of pregnancy is low - or that birth control can cause health problems - but a review of the evidence by a team that includes a Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island physician recently underscored the need to be vigilant about contraception even in perimenopause. "Despite declining fertility, women over age 40 still require effective contraception if they want to avoid pregnancy," according to Rebecca H...

Maternal Sleep Position May Influence Pregnancy Outcomes

Date: Mar-28-2013
Pregnant women in Ghana who slept on their back (supine sleep) were at an increased risk of stillbirth compared to women who did not sleep on their back, according to new research led by a University of Michigan researcher. In the study, published this month in the International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics, researchers found that supine sleep increased the risk of low birth weight by a factor of 5 and that it was the low birth weight that explained the high risk for stillbirth in these women. The study's senior author, Louise O'Brien, Ph.D., M.S...

New Research Agenda Could Help Shed Light On Early Language, Cognitive Development

Date: Mar-28-2013
Researchers are digging deeper into whether infants' ability to learn new words is shaped by the particular language being acquired. A new Northwestern University study cites a promising new research agenda aimed at bringing researchers closer to discovering the impact of different languages on early language and cognitive development. For decades, researchers have asked why infants learn new nouns more rapidly and more easily than new verbs. Many researchers have asserted that the early advantage for learning nouns over verbs is a universal feature of human language...

Brain Origins Of Variation In Pathological Anxiety Discovered

Date: Mar-28-2013
New findings from nonhuman primates suggest that an overactive core circuit in the brain, and its interaction with other specialized circuits, accounts for the variability in symptoms shown by patients with severe anxiety. In a brain-imaging study published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), researchers from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health describe work that for the first time provides an understanding of the root causes of clinical variability in anxiety disorders...

Migraine Patients Have Brain Abnormalities Which Can Be Demonstrated Using MRI

Date: Mar-28-2013
A new study suggests that migraines are related to brain abnormalities present at birth and others that develop over time. The research is published online in the journal Radiology. Migraines are intense, throbbing headaches, sometimes accompanied by nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light. Some patients experience auras, a change in visual or sensory function that precedes or occurs during the migraine. More than 300 million people suffer from migraines worldwide, according to the World Health Organization...

Vitamin D Supports Lung Function As Well As Bone Health

Date: Mar-28-2013
Maintaining adequate levels of vitamin D can help people breathe better and may even protect against tuberculosis (TB), according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM). The study of more than 10,000 Korean adults found that lung function improved when people had absorbed more vitamin D into their bodies. Vitamin D is absorbed primarily through sunlight, with a healthy diet as a secondary source...

Technology For Treating Wastewater Has Many Applications From Desalination To Kidney Dialysis

Date: Mar-28-2013
A newly developed membrane used to separate waste from water could become key in the treatment of pollutants ranging from acid mine drainage to oil-containing wastewater, as well as in processes ranging from desalination to kidney dialysis. The research was published in Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group) on Friday, 22 March, coinciding with World Water Day and falling within South Africa's National Water Week...