Health News

Brain Scans Help Decode Sleepers' Dreams

Date: Oct-23-2012
Scientists from Japan reported at a conference last week how brain scans helped them decode the visual content of volunteers' dreams as they slept. They suggest their findings support the idea that dreaming and perception share the same brain circuits. Study leader Yukiyasu Kamitani of the ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories in Kyoto, and colleagues, used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to scan the brains of three male volunteers as they slept, while also recording electroencephalograms (EEG) of their brain waves...

American Academy Of Pediatrics Weighs In For First Time On Organic Foods For Children

Date: Oct-23-2012
Parents know it's important for children to eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy products, and whole grains. But it's less clear whether spending the extra money on organic foods will bring a significant benefit to their children's health. To offer guidance to parents - and the pediatricians caring for their children's health - the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has conducted an extensive analysis of scientific evidence surrounding organic produce, dairy products and meat...

Link Between College Education, Moderate Alcohol Intake And Lower COPD Risk

Date: Oct-23-2012
College education and alcohol consumption may be linked to risk for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Researchers from Kaiser Permanente Medical Group in Oakland, California, followed 126,019 people who supplied baseline data from 1978 - 1985 through 2008 with analyses of hospitalizations attributed to COPD (emphysema, chronic bronchitis, or chronic airway obstruction)...

Unmodifiable Risk Factors May Drive COPD Readmission

Date: Oct-23-2012
National efforts are underway to reduce 30-day readmission for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); however, new research suggests that COPD readmissions may be related to risk factors that cannot be modified, including advanced disease and psychosocial factors. Researchers from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston performed a retrospective chart review of all patients with primary discharge diagnosis of COPD. Of the 160 patients admitted for a total of 193 hospitalizations, 30 patients were readmitted within 30 days...

Lung Function Improved By Roflumilast After 6 Months Compared With Placebo

Date: Oct-23-2012
Roflumilast was associated with significant improvements in lung function in patients with moderate and severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) after 6 months of treatment compared with placebo. Roflumilast is approved to reduce the risk of exacerbations in patients with severe COPD associated with chronic bronchitis and a history of exacerbations...

Synchrotron X-Rays Confirm A New Method For X-ray Image Processing: Breast Cancer Scans Possible With A 25 Times Reduced Radiation Dose

Date: Oct-23-2012
Scientists have developed a way to produce three-dimensional X-ray images of the breast at a radiation dose that is lower than the 2D radiographies used in clinics today. The new method enables the production of 3D diagnostic computed tomography (CT) images with a spatial resolution 2-3 times higher than present hospital scanners, but with a radiation dose that is about 25 times lower. This breakthrough has the potential to overcome the main obstacle limiting conventional CT imaging of the breast: the high radiosensitivity of the breast glandular tissue...

A Man's Risk Of Dying From Prostate Cancer May Be Increased By Metabolic Factors

Date: Oct-23-2012
High blood pressure, blood sugar, blood lipids, and body mass index - characteristics that are often lumped together as the metabolic syndrome - are jointly linked with an increased risk of dying from prostate cancer. That is the conclusion of a new study published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The study's results suggest that public health recommendations regarding diet and lifestyle to prevent heart disease and diabetes may also decrease a man's likelihood of dying from prostate cancer...

COPD Diagnoses May Increase With 5-Question Survey

Date: Oct-23-2012
A simple, five-question patient-administered survey (COPD-PS) may lead to increased diagnoses of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Researchers from David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Olmsted Medical Center, Boehringer-Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc , and Pfizer Inc, randomized 9,704 patients with no prior COPD diagnosis from US primary care practices in seven states into three groups based on treatment: Arm 1: COPD-PS plus spirometry; Arm 2: COPD-PS alone; Arm 3: usual care...

Pediatric Asthma Symptoms Reduced By Tonsil And Adenoid Removal

Date: Oct-23-2012
Children with asthma who have their tonsils and adenoids (T&A) removed may experience fewer asthma symptoms. Researchers from Children's Hospital and Research Center in Oakland, California, followed 105 children with asthma (7-21 years) referred for sleep study for suspected sleep apnea. Twenty-four patients with sleep apnea required T&A, of which 11 patients followed through with surgery. Results indicated that asthma scores trended toward improvement with T&A. However, there was no significant increase in the lung function following T&A...

Discovery Of Energy-Sensing Switch Could Have Broad Implications For Biology And Medicine

Date: Oct-23-2012
Biochemists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered a genetic sequence that can alter its host gene's activity in response to cellular energy levels. The scientists have found this particular energy-sensing switch in bacterial genes, which could make it a target for a powerful new class of antibiotics. If similar energy-sensing switches are also identified for human genes, they may be useful for treating metabolism-related disorders such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease...