Health News

Happy long-term marriages may depend on husband's health and attitude

Date: Mar-18-2014
A husband's agreeable personality and good health appear crucial to preventing conflict among older couples who have been together a long time, according to a study from University of Chicago researchers.The report found that such characteristics in wives play less of a role in limiting marital conflict, perhaps because of different expectations among women and men in durable relationships."Wives report more conflict if their husband is in poor health," said the study's lead author, James Iveniuk, PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology.

CU-Boulder develop Innovative solar-powered toilet

Date: Mar-18-2014
A revolutionary University of Colorado Boulder toilet fueled by the sun that is being developed to help some of the 2.5 billion people around the world lacking safe and sustainable sanitation will be unveiled in India this month.The self-contained, waterless toilet, designed and built using a $777,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, has the capability of heating human waste to a high enough temperature to sterilize human waste and create biochar, a highly porous charcoal, said project principal investigator Karl Linden, professor of environmental engineering.

After 35 years most Charnley total hip replacements still viable

Date: Mar-18-2014
In a new study presented at the 2014 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), researchers sought to evaluate the clinical, radiographic and functional outcomes of a Charnley total hip replacement (THR) - a traditional hip prosthesis consisting of a polyethylene acetabular (plastic) cup and a metal femoral head - in patients under age 50 at a minimum of 35 years after the initial surgery.

Saving brain cells after stroke by halting immune response

Date: Mar-18-2014
A new study in animals shows that using a compound to block the body's immune response greatly reduces disability after a stroke.The study by scientists from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health also showed that particular immune cells - CD4+ T-cells produce a mediator, called interleukin (IL) -21 that can cause further damage in stroke tissue. Moreover, normal mice, ordinarily killed or disabled by an ischemic stroke, were given a shot of a compound that blocks the action of IL-21.

Discovery of gene family that suppress prostate cancer

Date: Mar-18-2014
Cornell researchers report they have discovered direct genetic evidence that a family of genes, called MicroRNA-34 (miR-34), are bona fide tumor suppressors.The study is published in the journal Cell Reports.Previous research at Cornell and elsewhere has shown that another gene, called p53, acts to positively regulate miR-34. Mutations of p53 have been implicated in half of all cancers. Interestingly, miR-34 is also frequently silenced by mechanisms other than p53 in many cancers, including those with p53 mutations.

Discovery of gene family that suppress prostate cancer

Date: Mar-18-2014
Cornell researchers report they have discovered direct genetic evidence that a family of genes, called MicroRNA-34 (miR-34), are bona fide tumor suppressors.The study is published in the journal Cell Reports.Previous research at Cornell and elsewhere has shown that another gene, called p53, acts to positively regulate miR-34. Mutations of p53 have been implicated in half of all cancers. Interestingly, miR-34 is also frequently silenced by mechanisms other than p53 in many cancers, including those with p53 mutations.

Possible association between soy formula and seizures in children with autism

Date: Mar-18-2014
A University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher has detected a higher rate of seizures among children with autism who were fed infant formula containing soy protein rather than milk protein.The study found excess seizures among girls and in the total sample of 1,949 children. The soy-seizure link reached borderline significance among boys, who comprised 87 percent of the children described in the database under study.Seizures - caused by uncontrolled electrical currents in the brain - occur in many neurological disorders including epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, Down syndrome and autism.

2.5 million Americans living with an artificial hip, 4.7 million with an artificial knee

Date: Mar-18-2014
More than 7 million Americans are living with an artificial (prosthetic) knee (4.7 million) or hip (2.5 million), which may have significant future implications in terms of the need for ongoing patient care, according to new research presented at the 2014 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS). Two related studies also found a growing incidence of adults younger than age 65 undergoing total knee replacement (TKR) and total hip replacement (THR) surgeries, and a potential underutilization of these procedures in some segments of the population.

Extreme sports responsible for significant head, neck injury risk

Date: Mar-18-2014
A new study presented at the 2014 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) found that the thrill of extreme sports comes at a price: a higher risk for severe neck and head injuries.Extreme sports are gaining in popularity: skateboarding has surged 49 percent to 14 million U.S. participants, and snowboarding now claims 7.2 million enthusiasts, up 51 percent since 1999.

2.5 million Americans living with an artificial hip, 4.7 million with an artificial knee

Date: Mar-18-2014
More than 7 million Americans are living with an artificial (prosthetic) knee (4.7 million) or hip (2.5 million), which may have significant future implications in terms of the need for ongoing patient care, according to new research presented at the 2014 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS). Two related studies also found a growing incidence of adults younger than age 65 undergoing total knee replacement (TKR) and total hip replacement (THR) surgeries, and a potential underutilization of these procedures in some segments of the population.