Health News

Patient Concerns And Misinformation Impede Treatment Of Menopausal Women

Date: Jul-12-2012
The Endocrine Society commissioned Lake Research Partners to conduct a national survey of 424 internal medicine, family practice and OB/GYN physicians about their attitudes and experiences related to treating menopausal symptoms. According to the survey, physicians say the primary barrier to women receiving hormone therapy is patients' fears about the risks and their unwillingness to discuss the option. This new survey follows a study conducted in April 2012 among 810 women ages 45 to 60 on the same topic...

Targeting Cancer With Decreased Toxicity: First-Of-Its-Kind Approach To Designing Nanomedicines

Date: Jul-12-2012
Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) are the first to report a new approach that integrates rational drug design with supramolecular nanochemistry in cancer treatment. Supramolecular chemistry is the development of complex chemical systems using molecular building blocks. The researchers utilized such methods to create nanoparticles that significantly enhanced antitumor activity with decreased toxicity in breast and ovarian cancer models...

HIV Drugs For Those At High Risk?

Date: Jul-12-2012
People at high risk of HIV infection can reduce their risk of acquiring the disease by taking antiretroviral drugs, according to Cochrane researchers. In an update of a systematic review first published in 2009, the researchers found that uninfected people in relationships with HIV-infected partners, men who have sex with men and those in other high risk groups are at a lower risk of becoming infected with the virus if they regularly take drugs that are normally prescribed to treat people with HIV...

Fibromyalgia Patients Self-Medicating With Cannabis May Have Poor Mental Health Outcomes

Date: Jul-11-2012
According to new research, 10% of fibromyalgia (FM) patients use marijuana for medicinal relief to combat FM symptoms, such as unexplained fatigue, and insomnia, widespread pain and other somatic symptoms. Fibromyalgia is a chronic pain syndrome that affects around 3% of the population and is more common in women. Herbal cannabis has been used for centuries as a painkiller, but nowadays it is mainly used outside of conventional medicine...

Academic Success Determined By Genetics

Date: Jul-11-2012
In a national longitudinal study of thousands of young Americans, researchers have discovered genetic markers that could potentially influence whether a person finishes high school and continues going to college. The study is published in the July edition of the American Psychological Association's journal Developmental Psychology...

WHO London Summit Calls For More Family Planning

Date: Jul-11-2012
The WHO announced new measures at it's London summit to ensure that low and middle income women have better access to quality birth control. They outlined strategies to strengthen and improve family planning and reproductive health services in developing countries. WHO Director General Dr Margaret Chan, who is chairing a panel at the Summit on increasing access and expanding choice clarified the WHO stance on family planning. "Access to modern contraception is a fundamental right of every woman ...

Baby Boomers Facing Mental Health Service Inadequacies

Date: Jul-11-2012
A considerable number of baby boomers will probably find it hard to access treatment and diagnoses for mental health issues and substance abuse problems unless a major overhaul is undertaken, according to a new report issued by the Institute of Medicine (IOM). The authors (Committee) explained that the numbers of mental health care professionals and other service providers need to be boosted significantly...

Lifetime Recovery Process For Pediatric Brain Injury

Date: Jul-11-2012
Researchers have gained a new understanding of pediatric brain injuries and their recovery over the last decade, allowing professionals to understand that recovery may be a lifelong process not only for the injured child, but also to the child's family, friends and healthcare providers. A recently published special edition of NeuroRehabilition features a discussion by leading experts on the latest efforts of advancing medical and rehabilitative services from moving children from medical care into rehabilitation to reintegrate them back into the community. Guest editors, Peter D...

Killing Cancer Cells With Weed Plant Anti-Cancer Drug

Date: Jul-11-2012
A new anticancer drug made from a weed-like plant that grows naturally in the Mediterranean region has been shown to effectively destroy cancer cells in mice, according to a study published in the journal Science Translational Medicine. The drug, developed by researchers at John Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, in collaboration with Danish researchers, is able to move - undetected by normal cells - through the bloodstream until activated by specific cancer proteins...

Are Your Friends An Influence On Your Weight? Probably

Date: Jul-11-2012
How much your friends weigh could influence your own weight, according to a new study published in the journal PLoS ONE. Researchers from Loyola University found that students were likely to gain weight if their friends were heavier than they were. However, if their friends were leaner, they were more likely to slim down, or gain weight at a slower pace. In addition, David Shoham, Ph.D...