Health News

Robot-assisted partial nephrectomy for kidney cancer preserves kidney function

Date: Jan-16-2014
Patients with chronic kidney disease who received robot-assisted partial nephrectomy to treat kidney cancer have minimal loss of kidney function -- a smaller amount even than patients with normal kidney function, according to researchers at Henry Ford Hospital's Vattikuti Urology Institute.The study, which includes patient data from five U.S. medical centers, is the largest of its kind.The study is published online ahead of print in European Urology, the journal of the European Association of Urology.

Why is it that parents accidentally confuse their children's names?

Date: Jan-16-2014
When choosing baby names, parents often want something that is pleasing to the ear. Some even turn to alliteration when naming multiple children. But according to a new psychology study from The University of Texas at Austin, parents set themselves up for speech errors when they give their children similar-sounding names.The findings, published online recently in the peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS One, show that what many people consider to be "Freudian slips," may be a quirk in the brain's information-retrieval process.

Why is it that parents accidentally confuse their children's names?

Date: Jan-16-2014
When choosing baby names, parents often want something that is pleasing to the ear. Some even turn to alliteration when naming multiple children. But according to a new psychology study from The University of Texas at Austin, parents set themselves up for speech errors when they give their children similar-sounding names.The findings, published online recently in the peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS One, show that what many people consider to be "Freudian slips," may be a quirk in the brain's information-retrieval process.

Record decline in US teen childbearing may be due to TV shows '16 & Pregnant' and 'Teen Mom'

Date: Jan-16-2014
Despite concerns that turning teen moms into reality TV stars has glamorized teen pregnancy, a new study shows that MTV's 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom have had a more powerful impact in the opposite direction: the series has significantly reduced births to teens.The research, coauthored by Wellesley College economist Phillip B. Levine and University of Maryland economist Melissa Schettini Kearney, finds that MTV's 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom led to a 5.

How long does postpartum depression really last?

Date: Jan-16-2014
A new, comprehensive review of clinical studies examining postpartum depression has shown that although symptoms of postpartum depression in most women recede over time, for a large number of women, depression remains a long-term problem.Although it is common to experience mood swings or become tearful in the weeks following childbirth, in some women these symptoms may become more persistent and severe, and could be an indication of postpartum depression.

Promising drug candidates, biased agonists, developed for pain and addiction

Date: Jan-16-2014
Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have described a pair of drug candidates that advance the search for new treatments for pain, addiction and other disorders.The two new drug scaffolds, described in a recent edition of The Journal of Biological Chemistry, offer researchers novel tools that act on a demonstrated therapeutic target, the kappa opioid receptor (KOR), which is located on nerve cells and plays a role in the release of the neurotransmitter dopamine.

Traumatic brain injury linked with increased risk for premature death

Date: Jan-15-2014
Patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) have a higher risk of premature death, particularly from suicides, injuries and assaults, according to a study by Seena Fazel, M.D., of the University of Oxford, United Kingdom, and colleagues. TBI is a substantial cause of disability, according to the study background. Researchers studied all patients born in 1954 or later in Sweden who were diagnosed with TBI from 1969 to 2009 (n=218,300). Among 11,053 patients with premature death after TBI, 2,378 (21.5 percent) died six months or later after diagnosis.

Cervical cancer: the importance of regular screening

Date: Jan-15-2014
The American Cancer Society states that cervical cancer used to be the leading cause of cancer death for women in the US. But because more women are undergoing screening for the disease, the number of deaths from the condition have decreased significantly over the past 40 years.However, it is estimated that 12,340 new cases of cervical cancer were diagnosed in the US last year and 4,030 deaths occurred as a result of the disease, suggesting that there is still more that can be done to combat the cancer.

How drinking the legal limit of alcohol impairs vision by 30%

Date: Jan-15-2014
Having a designated driver on hand while drinking is an important part of being responsible on the road. Though blood alcohol concentration restrictions are imposed on drivers, how is our vision affected when we are under this limit? Researchers in Canada set out to answer this question and found that our vision is impaired by up to 30% - before we even hit the legal limit.The research, published in the journal Perception, was conducted by Kevin Johnston and Brian Timney, from the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and Western University's Social Science department in Ontario.

Study points to 'growing class gap' in US teen obesity

Date: Jan-15-2014
Although recent reports suggest the childhood obesity epidemic in the US may have abated somewhat, a new study finds that the overall trend masks growing socioeconomic disparities, with teens in poorer families showing increased rates of obesity.In August 2013, researchers reported how for the first time in 30 years, in all but one state of the US, obesity rates are holding steady. Meanwhile, also in August 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that US child obesity rates are dropping.