Health News

Dog-Lovers Beware: Obese Dogs At Risk Of Health Condition Experienced By Humans

Date: Nov-02-2012
Veterinary scientists at the University of Liverpool have found that, like humans, obese dogs can experience metabolic syndrome, a condition that describes multiple health issues that occur in the body at the same time. The condition occurs when a number of health problems, such as increased blood glucose and increased cholesterol levels, develop together, with the potential to increase the risk of other diseases, such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes...

In Red-Haired, Fair-Skinned Individuals, An Unexpected Factor Contributes To Melanoma Risk

Date: Nov-02-2012
The well-established elevated risk of melanoma among people with red hair and fair skin may be caused by more than just a lack of natural protection against ultraviolet (UV) radiation. In an article receiving Advance Online Publication in Nature, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cutaneous Biology Research Center (CBRC) and Cancer Center researchers report finding that the type of skin pigment predominantly found in red-haired, fair-skinned individuals may itself contribute to the development of melanoma...

Detailed Picture Of Human Variation Revealed By 1,000 Genomes Project

Date: Nov-02-2012
First, there was the single human reference genome completed in 2003. Then there was the HapMap project to identify the common genetic variants occurring in human beings with the first map published in 2005. Now an international consortium has released the first phase of the 1,000 Genomes Project that profiles the rare and common genetic variations in 1,092 people drawn from 14 human populations from Europe, Africa, East Asia and the Americas. The next phase of the project will include as many as 3,000 individuals, said Dr...

Complications Associated With Repeat Caesarean Sections

Date: Nov-02-2012
The risk of maternal complications and preterm deliveries is significantly higher for women undergoing their fifth or more caesarean section, finds a new study published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The study explored the incidence of UK women having Multiple Repeat Caesarean Sections (MRCS), defined as five or more, and the outcomes for them and their babies compared to women having their second to fourth caesarean section...

Non-Invasive Stereotactic Radiosurgery Shows Promise For Kidney Cancer

Date: Nov-02-2012
A first-of-its-kind clinical trial conducted at University Hospitals (UH) Case Medical Center Seidman Cancer Center has shown encouraging results for the use of stereotactic radiosurgery to treat kidney cancer. This non-invasive treatment technique may represent a potential new non-surgical option for patients with this deadly disease who have limited treatment options...

Total Number Of Lymphocytes Tied To Outcome In Merkel Cell Carcinoma

Date: Nov-02-2012
A routine blood test may help predict survival in patients with an aggressive form of skin cancer known as Merkel cell carcinoma, according to new findings by Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers. The results were presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's 54th Annual Meeting. "With such a fast-growing cancer, we get one question a lot: 'how long do I have?'," says Matthew Johnson, MD, a resident physician in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Fox Chase and lead author on the study. "That's usually hard to answer...

Medicare Regional Analysis Masks Substantial Local Variation In Health Care Spending

Date: Nov-02-2012
Reforming Medicare payments based on large geographic regions may be too bluntly targeted to promote the best use of health care resources, a new analysis from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health suggests. The analysis will be published in the Nov. 1 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. "Much policy attention has been drawn to the large geographic variation in health care spending across regions, and for good reason - because regional variation points to inefficient use of resources," said lead author Yuting Zhang, Ph.D...

How Can Parents Protect Children From Whooping Cough?

Date: Nov-01-2012
Pregnant women and the parents of young kids should make sure they are up to date on their whooping cough immunizations, The Public Health Agency (PHA) suggested after seeing the increase in the number of cases during 2012. Although there has been a rise in the number of children receiving vaccines for the disease in Northern Ireland, the prevalence of whooping cough, also known as (pertussis), has elevated this year. As of the end of September, there have been 221 established cases so far, 30 of which accounted for the last month alone, and kids were responsible for 137 of those cases...

One Specific Protein Identified As The Biological Cause Of Several Childhood Psychiatric Conditions

Date: Nov-01-2012
A disruption in the SRGAP3 protein may lead to hydrocephalus, mental retardation, schizophrenia, and some forms of autism. A new biological understanding of this protein offers a different aim for the development of treatments targeted at the biological cause of psychiatric disorders in children, and not just the symptoms, according to a study in The FASEB Journal. When the protein known as SRGAP3, involved in brain development, is deformed...

Toilet Training Method Not Linked To Accidents Among Kids

Date: Nov-01-2012
Parents can sleep soundly knowing that no matter which method of toilet training they use, it does not affect whether their child has a urinary accident, according to a study published in Clinical Pediatrics...