Health News

Discovery Could Be 'Life-Changer' For Millions With MS, Stroke And Other Conditions That Cause Brain Damage

Date: Nov-03-2012
Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have discovered that blocking a certain enzyme in the brain can help repair the brain damage associated with multiple sclerosis and a range of other neurological disorders. The discovery could have major implications for multiple sclerosis, complications from premature birth and other disorders and diseases caused by demyelination - a process where the insulation-like sheath surrounding nerve cells in the brain becomes damaged or destroyed...

Retaining Strong Ties To Original Culture Benefits Jamaican Teen Immigrants

Date: Nov-03-2012
Many young Jamaican immigrants are succeeding in the United States precisely because they remain strongly tied to Jamaican culture, said University of Illinois professor Gail M. Ferguson. "Although many of these youths have forged a unique tricultural identity that draws from their Jamaican culture, African-American culture, and mainstream European American culture, the important factor in their academic and behavioral success is retaining strong ties to their Jamaican background," she said...

Caution Urged In Revising Diagnostic Guidelines For Gestational Diabetes

Date: Nov-03-2012
A number of important questions and issues should be addressed before changes are made to the guidelines for the diagnosis of gestational diabetes, according to a new article by University of Maryland School of Medicine Dean E. Albert Reece, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A., published online in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The article publishes in advance of a new National Institutes of Health (NIH) initiative to reconsider diagnostic guidelines for the condition...

Scientists Discover A New Type Of Anti-Inflammatory Drug That Also Works Against Arthritis And Related Conditions

Date: Nov-03-2012
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered the first selective inhibitors of an important set of enzymes. The new inhibitors, and chemical probes based on them, can now be used to study the functions of enzymes known as diacylglycerol lipases (DAGL), their products, and the pathways they regulate. Early tests in mouse macrophages suggest that DAGL-inhibiting compounds might also have therapeutic uses, for they suppress the production of a pro-inflammatory molecule that has been implicated in rheumatoid arthritis and related conditions...

Medical Schools Fall Short On Teaching Students About Obesity

Date: Nov-03-2012
It's no secret that obesity is a major problem in America. More than one-third of adults and one-sixth of children are obese and it is one of the leading causes of preventable death. The costs associated with obesity are estimated at $99 million annually, comparable to the economic toll of cigarette smoking. Despite all this, few U.S. medical schools are providing adequate, effective training on how to address weight issues in obese patients, according to researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center...

Skin Cancer Risk Among Redheads Higher Even Without Sun

Date: Nov-02-2012
Redheads and fair skinned people are more susceptible to developing skin cancer, regardless of whether or not they expose their skin to the sun, researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) reported in the journal Nature. The authors explain that the kind of skin pigment that predominates in red-haired and fair-skinned people may be a contributing factor in melanoma risk...

Self-Harm Among Teens Does Not Always Mean Mental Health Issues

Date: Nov-02-2012
Teens often hurt themselves simply because they have heard from others that it will make them feel good, they have seen it on television or in movies, or they have a friend who does it. However, self-harm among young people should not be compared to that of psychiatric patients, even though many adolescents have, at one point, hurt themselves on purpose, because most of the time the teens only do it once, and not on a regular basis, according to Jonas Bjärehed and his team at Lund University in Sweden...

Active Surveillance Helps Men Avoid Effects Of Prostate Cancer Treatment

Date: Nov-02-2012
Men with prostate cancer could dispense with radiation treatment and surgery, and avoid the negative effects that go along with it, including incontinence and impotence, by undergoing active surveillance. The finding, published in the journal European Urology, came from a study at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden that analyzed about 1,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer. Screening for prostate cancer, with prostate specific antigen (PSA) tests, can detect tumors early, therefore decreasing the number of death rates...

Drying Laundry Indoors May Pose Health Risks

Date: Nov-02-2012
A combination of prolonged wet weather and reducing use of tumble dryers as a way to cut fuel bills, may encourage people to dry more clothes indoors, for instance on drying frames or by draping on radiators. But according to researchers in Scotland, this could pose health risks by increasing moisture that encourages moulds and dust mites, which is bad for people prone to asthma...

Bacteria Test Could Prevent Deadly Infections In Newborns

Date: Nov-02-2012
Researchers have developed a small cartridge that can identify harmful microbes in a newborn or the mother. It is extremely easy to use and does not require much clinical microbiological expertise. The health worker simply adds a sample from the baby, mother, or both, and waits ten to fifteen minutes for the result. This simple, cheap and rapid test gives health care professionals useful data so that they can decide quickly what treatments to recommend. When a baby is born, they move from the protection of the womb to an environment with literally trillions of microscopic organisms...