Health News

Thousands of patients suffering preventable strokes due to cost, UK

Date: Nov-26-2013
According to a new survey, four in 10 AF patients in the UK are either receiving aspirin (28%), which has been deemed less effective for stroke prevention, or no treatment at all (10%), potentially leaving thousands of people in the UK at risk of stroke, with budget pressures on GPs cited as a major contributing factor1.

Amino acid substitution at peptide-binding pockets of HLA class I molecules increases risk of severe acute GVHD and mortality

Date: Nov-26-2013
The shift from serologic human leukocyte antigen (HLA) testing to allele-specific molecular testing was a necessary prerequisite to successful unrelated donor transplantation. However, although there is a correlation between allelic mismatch, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), and mortality, post-transplant patient outcomes remain somewhat unpredictable. In this week's issue of Blood, Pidala and colleagues offer new insights into the prognostic significance of specific HLA class I mismatches and their impact on patient outcome.

Indolent T-cell lymphoproliferative disease of the gastrointestinal tract

Date: Nov-26-2013
A manuscript in this week's issue of Blood provides important new details on potential therapeutic strategies for primary T-cell lymphoma of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, a rare yet very aggressive disease. In the manuscript Perry and colleagues describe 10 cases of indolent T-cell lymphoproliferative disease of the gut, associated with GI symptoms and occurring throughout the GI tract, of which all were clonal diseases as determined by gamma-chain rearrangement studies.

Highly electronegative LDL from patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction triggers platelet activation and aggregation

Date: Nov-26-2013
Data presented in this week's issue of Blood shed new light on the interaction between lipoproteins and platelets that may lead to heart attack. In the manuscript, Chan and colleagues report that L5, the most highly electronegative fraction of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), is markedly elevated in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Utilizing in vitro studies, investigators demonstrate that L5 increased adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-induced platelet aggregation, platelet P-selectin expression, GPIIb/IIIa activation, and platelet-endothelial cell adhesion.

Study examines barriers to human papillomavirus vaccination among teens

Date: Nov-26-2013
Barriers to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among adolescents in the U.S. range from financial concerns and parental attitudes to social influences and concerns about the vaccination's effect on sexual behavior, according to a review of the available medical literature published by JAMA Pediatrics, a JAMA Network publication. HPV vaccine coverage among teenagers has increased since the vaccine was licensed in 2006 but it still remains low compared with other recommended vaccinations.

Findings not supportive of using women-specific chest pain symptoms in early diagnosis of heart attack

Date: Nov-26-2013
Using chest pain characteristics (CPCs) specific to women in the early diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI, heart attack) in the emergency department does not seem to be supported by the findings of a study published by JAMA Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. While about 90 percent of patients with AMI present with chest pain or discomfort, some patients present without typical chest pain. Sex-specific differences in symptom presentation among women have received increasing attention.

Study examines regional spending on vascular care and amputation rate

Date: Nov-26-2013
Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) can cause critical limb ischemia that is treated with amputation, and while there is much spending on interventions to try to prevent amputations, higher spending does not necessarily mean lower amputation rates, according to a study by Philip P. Goodney, M.D., M.S., of the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, N.H., and colleagues. In recent years, vascular care aimed at preventing amputation has become increasingly expensive due to the rise in use of less invasive techniques, according to the study background. Researchers studied 18,463 U.S.

Vaccinations: One more weapon in the fight against antibiotic resistance

Date: Nov-26-2013
Doctors, pharmacists and nurses are being asked to encourage their patients to keep up with the vaccinations recommended in the National Immunisation Program (NIP) schedule, as immunisation can help reduce the rates of vaccine-preventable diseases that may have required antibiotics to treat them or their complications. A new NPS Direct article explains that along with the judicious use of antibiotics, vaccinations are an integral component in the fight against antibiotic resistance.

DrugScope latest street drug survey highlights risks of new designer drugs for young people

Date: Nov-26-2013
The 2013 street drug survey from DrugScope, the UK's leading drug information charity, highlights the health risks faced by young people experimenting with drugs designed to mimic illegal drugs and evade the drug laws, often called 'legal highs' or new psychoactive drugs. The survey also revealed that many high street outlets are selling these drugs, not just 'head shops' and internet websites.

Antidepressants are not 'happy pills'

Date: Nov-26-2013
Depression medicines are not 'happy pills' or 'a quick fix' people who use antidepressants have said in a series of frank, heartfelt video interviews. The videos form part of a piece of research by Oxford University and the University of Nottingham that has been made into an information resource for the public, published on Healthtalkonline.org. Some of the interviewees explained that finding the right medication could be like 'waving a magic wand' but others struggled with unpleasant side effects, such as anxiety, loss of sex-drive, headaches and feeling 'detached'.