Health News

Study Shows How Minimal Intervention Can Preserve Marital Quality Over Time

Date: Feb-08-2013
Marital satisfaction -- so critical to health and happiness -- generally declines over time. A brief writing intervention that helps spouses adopt a more objective outlook on marital conflict could be the answer. New Northwestern University research shows that this writing intervention, implemented through just three, seven-minute writing exercises administered online, prevents couples from losing that loving feeling...

Alzheimer's - Let's Focus On Early Stages, FDA Proposes

Date: Feb-07-2013
In an effort to treat and identify Alzheimer's patients early on during the disease, the FDA says it may relax the guidelines on Alzheimer's early-stage trials. The Agency has issued a proposal designed to help researchers and developers find new treatments for patients before the onset of overt (noticeable) dementia. It is virtually impossible to enroll patients in experimental drug trials for early-stage Alzheimer's disease because of the lack of definitive biological markers for this stage of the disease, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) explained...

Stem Cell Differentiation Is Triggered By A Key Protein

Date: Feb-07-2013
Scientists have discovered a key protein that kicks off the natural process that differentiates stem cells into any cell of the body. They hope the discovery will help development of therapies for degenerative diseases. The team, from the Medical Research Council Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Edinburgh in the UK, describe their findinds in the 7 February issue of Cell Reports...

A Mammogram Every Two Years Is Best For Older Women

Date: Feb-07-2013
Receiving a mammogram every two years is just as advantageous for older women as getting a mammogram every year. However, screening for breast cancer every two years results in significantly fewer false positives, researchers of a new study found. The research, conducted by a team at the University of California, San Francisco, was published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute and involved over 140,000 females who were between 66 and 89 years old. The research supports the U.S...

Raising Alcohol Prices Saves Lives

Date: Feb-07-2013
After raising alcoholic drink prices by 10%, alcohol-related deaths in Canada dropped by nearly one third, researchers from the University of Victoria's Centre for Addictions Research of British Columbia reported in the journal Addiction. The authors explained that between 2002 and 2009, the total number of deaths in British Columbia fell considerably more than experts had expected after the minimum price of alcohol was raised. This study has "significant implications for international alcohol policy", they wrote...

Obesity Causes Vitamin D Deficiency

Date: Feb-07-2013
Obesity can cause Vitamin D deficiency, according to a study published in a recent issue of PLoS Medicine. The study, led by researchers from the D-CarDia collaboration, is the first to associate a high BMI with low Vitamin D levels. The implications of the finding are significant as it suggests that as obesity increases in the world so does Vitamin D deficiency, which can pose a serious range of health issues. Over 42,000 people from 21 countries participated in the study...

Non-Familial Parkinson's Cause And Treatment Clue Found In Three Genes

Date: Feb-07-2013
New research from the US finds the action of three gene variants already linked with Parkinson's may contribute to a defect in how brain cells move internal proteins around. The discovery could help explain the cause of, and point to treatment for, the common, non-familial form of the disease. The researchers, from Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) in New York, write about their findings in the 6 February issue of Neuron...

I Will If You Will: What Motivates Spouses To Get Fit, Manage Illness

Date: Feb-07-2013
Before spouses take their first step toward fitness, their partner's interest or willingness to participate can sway them, says a Purdue University family studies expert. "Marriage commitments focus on a couple's devotion in either a state of sickness or in health, but it's also about the in between - a person's readiness to change for better health," says Melissa M. Franks, an assistant professor of human development and family studies...

FDA Clears Sculptor Robotic Guidance Arm™ For Unicompartmental Knee Replacement Surgery

Date: Feb-07-2013
Stanmore Implants ('Stanmore'), specialists in the design and manufacture of patient specific and modular orthopaedic implants, announced today that it has received 510(k) clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market its Sculptor Robotic Guidance Arm™ ("Sculptor RGA™") for precision implant placement in unicompartmental knee surgery, also known as partial knee resurfacing...

Landmark Study Shows Low-Quality TB Drugs Widely Used In 17 Countries

Date: Feb-07-2013
Nearly 1 in 10 Failure Rate Could Accelerate Spread of Drug Resistance In the largest ever study of its kind, new research shows that substandard and falsified tuberculosis medicines are widely used and likely contribute to the rise in drug-resistant strains of the disease. Researchers tested 716 samples of two tuberculosis medicines, isoniazid and rifampicin, which comprise a standard TB treatment regimen. The samples were purchased from pharmacies in 17 countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Across all countries, 9...