Health News

How does the FDA 'approve' medical products?

Date: Feb-20-2014
You may have seen medical products that claim to be "FDA cleared," "FDA registered," "FDA listed" or "FDA approved" - but what do these labels mean? You would be forgiven for feeling confused. In this feature, we look at what the differences in Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classification actually mean, what you need to be aware of as a consumer and what the future holds for the regulation and classification of medical products in the US.

A supercomputer could change how diseases are treated

Date: Feb-20-2014
The medical community has increasingly turned to genetic information to understand, treat and prevent disease in humans; but analyzing information from a single genome can take many months. Now, researchers working with one of the fastest supercomputers in the world are able to get data on 240 complete genomes in only 2 days.The researchers, from the University of Chicago, have published results of their analysis in the journal Bioinformatics.

High stress levels 'increase frequency of headaches'

Date: Feb-20-2014
Whether a result of our work, home or social lives, all of us go through stressful periods. Now, new research has linked high stress levels to increased occurrence of headaches - an association that has long been suspected.The study findings are due to be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 66th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA, in April.The research team, including Dr. Sara H. Schramm of University Hospital at the University Duisburg-Essen in Germany, analyzed 5,159 people between the ages of 21 and 71 years old.

Cell therapy to treat leukemia shows more promise

Date: Feb-20-2014
New findings on cell therapy to treat leukemia bring more encouraging news of the promise that this experimental area of cancer treatment holds for patients for whom conventional approaches do not work.In the journal Science Translational Medicine, researchers from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, report the results of the largest clinical study yet conducted in patients with advanced leukemia.

IIC Show - the North of England's largest disability expo exceeds expectations

Date: Feb-20-2014
The IIC Show at Manchester Central did not disappoint the 7900 visitors that attended over the 2 day expo. The doors opened at 10 am on Friday 14th February to crowds and crowds of people all eager to enter and take advantage of the only disability healthcare expo of this scale in the North of England. The show consisted of a mixture of healthcare professionals, education professionals, disabled and end user visitors, trade visitors and families with relatives with mixed ability/disabilities.

Poor sleep tied to widespread pain and fibromyalgia

Date: Feb-20-2014
New research from the UK finds that among adults over the age of 50, non-restorative sleep - the sort where you wake up feeling tired and worn out - is strongly tied to onset of widespread pain, a hallmark of fibromyalgia.They also found that anxiety, memory impairment and poor physical health were linked to higher risk of developing widespread pain in older adults.Dr. John McBeth, of the Arthritis Research UK Primary Care Centre at Keele University in Staffordshire, and colleagues report their findings in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatology.

Positive top-line results from clinical trial of microbiome modulator NM504 in type 2 diabetes reported

Date: Feb-20-2014
MicroBiome TherapeuticsTM LLC, (MBT) has announced positive top-line results from the company's clinical trial of lead microbiome modulator NM504 in development for type 2 diabetes and prediabetes. NM504 is designed to improve glucose tolerance and other metabolic parameters in patients with diabetes by shifting the gastrointestinal (GI) microbiome. Studies have shown that type 2 diabetics typically have GI dysbiosis, or microbial imbalances, that may contribute to the metabolic dysfunction associated with the condition.

Sitting too much linked to major disability after 60, regardless of exercise

Date: Feb-20-2014
If you're 60 and older, every additional hour a day you spend sitting is linked to doubling the risk of being disabled -- regardless of how much moderate exercise you get, reports a new Northwestern Medicine® study.The study is the first to show sedentary behavior is its own risk factor for disability, separate from lack of moderate vigorous physical activity. In fact, sedentary behavior is almost as strong a risk factor for disability as lack of moderate exercise.

European study reinforces importance of eating breakfast for children's health

Date: Feb-20-2014
The message that 'breakfast is the most important meal of the day' is familiar to many of us. And now a European study of Cypriot children has revealed that choosing the right kind of breakfast each morning can have a direct impact on their weight and overall health.The paper, published online in the International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition, investigates the significance of breakfast food choices in child health and the association between eating breakfast and Body Mass Index (BMI), which is an indicator of healthy weight.

A method for the diagnosis and prognosis of melanoma, the most aggressive skin cancer, is patented

Date: Feb-20-2014
UPV/EHU researchers have developed a method for the diagnosis and prognosis of cutaneous melanoma, the type of skin cancer with the highest mortality rate. This method will help not only in the more effective early detection of this cancer, but also in the development of more personalised treatments.Melanoma is a malignant tumour resulting from the transformation of melanocytes, the cells that undertake to synthesise melanin, which protects us from the negative effects of solar radiation.