Health News

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.

How safe are 'eye-safe' lasers when very low-energy radiation can damage DNA?

Date: Mar-18-2014
Damage to DNA by high energy radiation constitutes the most lethal damage occurring at the cellular level. Surprisingly, very low-energy interactions - with OH radicals, for instance - can also induce DNA damage, including double strand breaks. It is known that single strand breaks in the DNA backbone are amenable to repair but most double strand breaks are irreparable. The propensity with which slow OH radicals damage DNA depends on their rotational energy: rotationally "hot" OH is more proficient in causing double breaks.

How safe are 'eye-safe' lasers when very low-energy radiation can damage DNA?

Date: Mar-18-2014
Damage to DNA by high energy radiation constitutes the most lethal damage occurring at the cellular level. Surprisingly, very low-energy interactions - with OH radicals, for instance - can also induce DNA damage, including double strand breaks. It is known that single strand breaks in the DNA backbone are amenable to repair but most double strand breaks are irreparable. The propensity with which slow OH radicals damage DNA depends on their rotational energy: rotationally "hot" OH is more proficient in causing double breaks.

Environmental factors may explain some racial disparities in childbirth

Date: Mar-18-2014
A new study investigating racial disparities in birth outcomes shows that contrary to some theories Vitamin D is unlikely to play a role in differences in preterm birth and low birth weight between African-Americans and whites."For years there has been this hypothesis that African-Americans have worse birth outcomes because they have more melanin in their skin which reflects the sun and therefore lowers levels of Vitamin D," said study author Zaneta Thayer, PhD, assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Colorado Denver .

Environmental factors may explain some racial disparities in childbirth

Date: Mar-18-2014
A new study investigating racial disparities in birth outcomes shows that contrary to some theories Vitamin D is unlikely to play a role in differences in preterm birth and low birth weight between African-Americans and whites."For years there has been this hypothesis that African-Americans have worse birth outcomes because they have more melanin in their skin which reflects the sun and therefore lowers levels of Vitamin D," said study author Zaneta Thayer, PhD, assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Colorado Denver .

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.

Pneumonia coding practices may skew hospital performance outcomes

Date: Mar-17-2014
Variations in coding practices related to pneumonia cases may bias efforts to compare quality of care among hospitals, according to an article being published in Annals of Internal Medicine.Pneumonia is the most common reason for emergency hospitalization in the United States, making it an appropriate target for quality improvement initiatives and public reporting of hospital quality.

Patients co-infected with HIV and HCV more likely to suffer liver decompensation

Date: Mar-17-2014
Despite treatment with antiretroviral therapy (ART), patients co-infected with HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) have higher rates of liver decompensation than patients with HCV alone, according to an article being published in Annals of Internal Medicine.Up to 30 percent of patients with HIV also are often co-infected with HCV and HCV-related liver complications are an important cause of morbidity in co-infected patients. It has been suggested that ART slows HCV-associated liver fibrosis.

Evidence does not support guidelines on fatty acid consumption to reduce coronary risk

Date: Mar-17-2014
Current evidence does not support nutritional guidelines that advocate high consumption of polyunsaturated fatty acids and low consumption of total saturated fats, according to an article being published in Annals of Internal Medicine.For cardiovascular health, nutritional guidelines generally encourage low consumption of saturated fats, high consumption of w-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, and avoidance of trans fats.

Men receive faster care than women for heart attacks, study shows

Date: Mar-17-2014
Researchers looking into differences in care have found that gender impacts on how quickly certain patients receive care in the wake of a heart attack. The main finding shows that men are more likely than women to receive faster care.The team, which published the results in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, says gender has a wider scope than sex and incorporates "the effects of social norms and expectations for men and women.