Health News

Brain Development Should Be Taken Into Account When Criminal Law Involves Children

Date: Jun-20-2012
The legal system needs to take greater account of new discoveries in neuroscience that show how a difficult childhood can affect the development of a young person's brain which can increase the risk of adolescent crimes, according to researchers. The research will be presented as part of an Economic and Social Research Council seminar series in conjunction with the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology...

New Clinical Practice Guidelines On The Management Of Osteoporosis In Men

Date: Jun-20-2012
Osteoporosis in men causes significant morbidity and mortality. The Endocrine Society has released clinical practice guidelines (CPG) for management of this condition in men. "Osteoporosis in Men: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline," is published in the June 2012 issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM), a publication of The Endocrine Society. Osteoporosis is a silent disorder characterized by reduced bone strength predisposing to increased fracture risk...

Possible Approaches To Protect Those At Risk For Huntington's Disease

Date: Jun-20-2012
In Huntington's disease, abnormally long strands of glutamine in the huntingtin (Htt) protein, called polyglutamines, cause subtle changes in cellular functions that lead to neurodegeneration and death. Studies have shown that the activation of the heat shock response, a cellular reaction to stress, doesn't work properly in Huntington's disease...

Leukemia Patients 16 To 39 Have Higher Long-Term Survival Rates With Pediatric Regime Of Chemotherapy

Date: Jun-20-2012
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), usually found in pediatric patients, is far more rare and deadly in adolescent and adult patients. According to the National Marrow Donor Program, child ALL patients have a higher than 80 percent remission rate, while the recovery rate for adults stands at only 40 percent. In current practice, pediatric and young adult ALL patients undergo different treatment regimes...

What Is Leptospirosis? What Causes Leptospirosis?

Date: Jun-20-2012
Leptospirosis is a fairly uncommon bacterial infection caused by a strain of Leptospira. It is most commonly transmitted from animals to humans when people with unhealed breaks in the skin, come into contact with water or soil that has been contaminated with animal urine - the bacterium can also enter the body through the eyes or mucous membranes. Typically, the animals that transmit the infection to humans include rats, skunks, opossums, foxes, raccoons and other vermin...

Huntington's Disease Patients May Benefit From Device Implanted In Brain

Date: Jun-20-2012
Studies suggest that neurotrophic factors, which play a role in the development and survival of neurons, have significant therapeutic and restorative potential for neurologic diseases such as Huntington's disease. However, clinical applications are limited because these proteins cannot easily cross the blood brain barrier, have a short half-life, and cause serious side effects. Now, a group of scientists has successfully treated neurological symptoms in laboratory rats by implanting a device to deliver a genetically engineered neurotrophic factor directly to the brain...

Medical Marijuana Not Found To Increase Teen Drug Use

Date: Jun-20-2012
While marijuana use by teens has been increasing since 2005, an analysis of data from 1993 through 2009 by economists at three universities has found no evidence to link the legalization of medical marijuana to increased use of the drug among high school students. "There is anecdotal evidence that medical marijuana is finding its way into the hands of teenagers, but there's no statistical evidence that legalization increases the probability of use," said Daniel I. Rees, a professor of economics at the University of Colorado Denver...

Elderly Need Longer To Cross The Road

Date: Jun-19-2012
Most people take the ability of crossing a road in time for granted. However, a new UK study featured in Age and Ageing, which has compared the walking speed of those aged 65 years or older with the speed required to use a pedestrian crossing, has revealed people need to walk faster than 1.2 meters per second in order to cross a pedestrian crossing. The study, entitled 'Most older pedestrians are unable to cross the road in time: a cross-sectional study' was led by Dr Laura Asher of the Department of Epidemiology & Public Health at UCL (University College London)...

How Do Infections Lead To Malignancy?

Date: Jun-19-2012
Viral or bacterial chronic inflammations of the colon, liver or stomach are often large risk factors for cancer. A new MIT study published the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences provides a detailed explanation as to how infections like these can turn healthy tissues into cancerous ones. Peter Dedon, MIT professor of biological engineering explains: "If you understand the mechanism, then you can design interventions...

Cardiovascular Death Risk Linked With Living Solo

Date: Jun-19-2012
According to a recent study published in Archives of Internal Medicine, people living alone, who have arterial vascular disease, have a greater chance of dying from cardiovascular health problems than those living with other people. The study claims that around 1 in every 7 American adults live by themselves, and when a person is socially isolated, their risk of health problems increases. The researchers highlight that living alone may result in the following factors: The person may not have adequate access to health care treatment...