Health News

Availability of transcatheter repair of aortic stenosis benefits patients

Date: Jan-28-2014
The introduction of minimally invasive transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) for treatment of aortic stenos not only has increased the number of patients eligible for aortic valve replacement (AVR), but also has led to a decrease in patient mortality, according to a study released at the 50th Annual Meeting of The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. These results suggest that patients fare better when multiple treatment options are available.Using data from the STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database and the STS/ACC Transcatheter Valve Therapy (TVT) Registry™, J.

Religion, prejudice and "love thy neighbor"

Date: Jan-28-2014
Most religions teach their followers to "Love thy neighbor" -- including those of different races, nationalities or beliefs. But is religiousness really related to love of neighbors?A Baylor University study provided partial support for that idea. When factoring out the level of right-wing authoritarianism (RWA), researchers found a positive association between being religious and having loving attitudes toward other racial and ethnic groups but not toward those who violated their values.The study was published in the journal Psychology of Religion and Spirituality.

Religion, prejudice and "love thy neighbor"

Date: Jan-28-2014
Most religions teach their followers to "Love thy neighbor" -- including those of different races, nationalities or beliefs. But is religiousness really related to love of neighbors?A Baylor University study provided partial support for that idea. When factoring out the level of right-wing authoritarianism (RWA), researchers found a positive association between being religious and having loving attitudes toward other racial and ethnic groups but not toward those who violated their values.The study was published in the journal Psychology of Religion and Spirituality.

Variation discovered in circadian clock protein in fruit flies

Date: Jan-28-2014
The circadian clock is a molecular network that generates daily rhythms, and is present in both plants and animals.A University of Leicester research team led by Dr Eran Tauber has studied genetic variation in circadian clock genes in wild populations of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster - and has discovered that their genes have developed different genetic variations that are functionally important.

Growth of vestibular schwannomas/acoustic neuromas may be halted by aspirin

Date: Jan-28-2014
Researchers from Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Massachusetts General Hospital have demonstrated, for the first time, that aspirin intake correlates with halted growth of vestibular schwannomas (also known as acoustic neuromas), a sometimes lethal intracranial tumor that typically causes hearing loss and tinnitus.Motivated by experiments in the Molecular Neurotology Laboratory at Mass.

Task Force evidence reviews suggests that one-time screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms could benefit older men

Date: Jan-27-2014
A one-time screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm in men 65 years or older is associated with decreased AAA rupture and AAA-related mortality rates, according to a new review being published in Annals of Internal Medicine. AAA is a weakening in the wall of the infrarenal aorta resulting in localized dilation, or ballooning, of the abdominal aorta. A large proportion of AAAs are asymptomatic until a rupture develops, which is generally acute and often fatal (up to 83 percent of patients die before hospitalization).

Pandemic concerns prompt experts to seek better understanding of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS)

Date: Jan-27-2014
Health officials have expressed concern that the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) could become a major public health threat, according to an article being published in Annals of Internal Medicine.Since September 2012, 163 infections have been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO), including 71 deaths. The severity of symptoms, high fatality rate, and ease of transmission resemble the infection caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) but data on MERS-CoV-infected critically ill patients are limited.

Researchers discover new hormone receptors to target when treating breast cancer

Date: Jan-27-2014
About three-quarters of breast cancers, the most common cancer in women in the U.S., are estrogen hormone dependent. Patients with this type of breast cancer are initially treated with drugs that block estrogen, such as Tamoxifen. However, one-third to half of these patients eventually become resistant to this treatment. For these patients and those whose tumors are not estrogen dependent to begin with, there are no alternative hormone treatment options. In a new study directed by Tan A. Ince, M.D., Ph.D.

Gun-related injuries 'hospitalize 20 children in the US every day'

Date: Jan-27-2014
New research suggests that around 20 children in the US are hospitalized every day after being injured by firearms, and approximately 6% of these children die from their injuries. This is according to a study published online in the journal Pediatrics.The research team, led by Dr. John Leventhal of the Yale School of Medicine in Connecticut, analyzed data of children and adolescents under the age of 20 who had been admitted to a hospital in the US during 2009.

Long-living breast stem cells give clues to cancer cells of origin

Date: Jan-27-2014
Researchers in Australia have found that breast stem cells and their "daughters" have a longer life than previously believed. This newly discovered longer lifespan suggests that these cells could carry damage or genetic defects earlier in life that eventually lead to cancer decades later.The researchers, from Melbourne's Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, have published their results in the journal Nature, and they say their discovery could help with the development of treatments and diagnostics for breast cancer.