Health News

Lessons Learned From Lost Creek Fire, Southwest Alberta, 2003

Date: Feb-25-2013
Nobody can foresee disaster, but changing climate conditions are prompting smart communities increasingly to prepare for them with solid emergency response plans and protocols. Images as recent as those from the 2011 wildfire in Slave Lake, Alberta or as distant as those from the 1998 ice storm in Eastern Ontario and Quebec are distressing reminders that no area is immune from devastation, and reinforce the need to be prepared...

New Compounds Will Lead To A New Generation Of Anti-Influenza Drugs That The Virus' Strains Can't Adapt To

Date: Feb-25-2013
Simon Fraser University virologist Masahiro Niikura and his doctoral student Nicole Bance are among an international group of scientists that has discovered a new class of molecular compounds capable of killing the influenza virus. Working on the premise that too much of a good thing can be a killer, the scientists have advanced previous researchers' methods of manipulating an enzyme that is key to how influenza replicates and spreads...

Researchers Believew Clot-Busting Drug Is Worth The Risk For Embolism Patients

Date: Feb-25-2013
When doctors encounter a patient with a massive pulmonary embolism, they face a difficult choice: Is it wise to administer a drug that could save the patient's life, even though many people suffer life-threatening bleeding as a result? Based on new findings published in the American Journal of Medicine, Michigan State University researchers are answering that question in no uncertain terms. "The message to doctors is clear: Take the chance," said Paul D. Stein, a professor in MSU's Department of Osteopathic Medical Specialties...

Advances In IPSC Technology Lead To Improved Modeling Of Alzheimer's Disease

Date: Feb-25-2013
Working with a group from Nagasaki University, a research group at the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA) at Japan's Kyoto University has announced in the online publication of Cell Stem Cell that it has successfully modeled Alzheimer's disease (AD) using both familial and sporadic patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and revealed stress phenotypes and differential drug responsiveness associated with intracellular amyloid beta oligomers in AD neurons and astrocytes...

Mouse Model Developed To Aid In Stem Cell Research

Date: Feb-25-2013
Cell therapy is a promising alternative to tissue and organ transplantation for diseases that are caused by death or poor functioning of cells. Considering the ethical discussions surrounding human embryonic stem cells, a lot is expected of the so-called 'induced pluripotent stem cells' (iPS cells). However, before this technique can be applied effectively, a lot of research is required into the safety and efficacy of such iPS cells. VIB scientists associated to the UGent have developed a mouse model that can advance this research to the next step...

Gene Mutation Discovered That Causes Schnyder Corneal Dystrophy

Date: Feb-25-2013
Research conducted by Dr. Jayne S. Weiss, Professor and Chair of Ophthalmology at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, and colleagues has discovered a new mutation in a gene that causes Schnyder corneal dystrophy (SCD.) The gene was found to be involved in vitamin K metabolism suggesting the possibility that vitamin K may eventually be found useful in its treatment. The findings are published in the February 2013 issue of the peer-reviewed journal, Human Mutation...

New Research Using Information Technology To Improve Quality Of Health Care

Date: Feb-25-2013
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is aiming to become a leader in using health information technology (HIT) to change the way patients experience medical care, to decrease medical mistakes, and to improve health outcomes. A special March supplement of Medical Care highlights new research into the many and varied types of HIT projects being explored to improve the quality of patient care throughout the VHA system. Medical Care is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health...

Breast Cancer Tumour Growth Inhibited By OMEGA-3s

Date: Feb-25-2013
A lifelong diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids can inhibit growth of breast cancer tumours by 30 per cent, according to new research from the University of Guelph. The study, published recently in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, is believed to be the first to provide unequivocal evidence that omega-3s reduce cancer risk. "It's a significant finding," said David Ma, a professor in Guelph's Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences, and one of the study's authors...

Accidental Inhalation Of Betadine During Surgery Leads To Rare Complication

Date: Feb-25-2013
A routine step in preparing for cleft palate surgery in a child led to an unusual - but not unprecedented - case of lung inflammation (pneumonitis), according to a report in the The Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. The journal, edited by Mutaz B. Habal, MD, FRCSC, is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health. The complication resulted from accidental inhalation of povidone-iodine (PI), or Betadine - an antiseptic widely used before surgery...

In Future It May Be Possible To Sniff Out The Side Effects Of Radiotherapy

Date: Feb-25-2013
Researchers at the University of Warwick and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust have completed a study that may lead to clinicians being able to more accurately predict which patients will suffer from the side effects of radiotherapy. Gastrointestinal side effects are commonplace in radiotherapy patients and occasionally severe, yet there is no existing means of predicting which patients will suffer from them...