Latest science news in Health & Medicine
The body's ability to fight infection studied by NASA
Space shuttle Discovery will bring NASA scientists one step closer to helping astronauts and the public discover ways to battle and prevent serious illness and infection.
Change in how paramedics use oxygen could reduce deaths
A change to the way paramedics use oxygen when treating patients with chronic lung disease could cut the death rate in these cases by up to 78 percent, according to...
Gene therapy helps depressed mice
Revving up expression of a single gene in the brain reverses depression symptoms
Genetic predisposition to certain skin cancers may be associated with vitamin D deficiency
Patients with basal cell nevus syndrome, which predisposes them to develop non-melanoma skin cancers, appear to be at increased risk for vitamin D deficiency if they take steps to protect...
Psychiatric illnesses before surgery associated with modest increased risk of death afterward, study finds
Individuals with co-occurring psychiatric illnesses, especially anxiety and depression, appear to have an increased risk of death within 30 days of surgery, according to a new study.
Vitamin B12 may reduce risk of Alzheimer's disease
A new study shows that vitamin B12 may protect against Alzheimer's disease, adding more evidence to the scientific debate about whether the vitamin is effective in reducing the risk of...
It is unclear if programs to encourage cycling are effective
More research and evaluation are needed to determine the most effective community programmes to encourage cycling, says a study published in the British Medical Journal today.
Western diet exacerbates sepsis
High fat diets cause a dramatic immune system overreaction to sepsis, a condition of systemic bacterial infection. An experimental study in mice, published in the open access journal BMC...
Treating cancer with light
Can skin cancer be treated with light? Scientists now believe so. They're exploring new ways to image cancerous lesions using LEDs that might advance a technique for treating cancer called...
Stem cell trial puts Atlanta in spotlight
ATLANTA, Oct. 18 (UPI) -- Atlanta is in the center of the biomedical spotlight as the site of the first human trial involving embryonic stem cells -- and it's...
Diabetic adults' conditions improved after phone calls with fellow patients
Phone calls with a peer facing the same self-management challenges helped diabetes patients manage their conditions and improved their blood sugar levels better than those who used traditional nurse care...
Is team science productive?
PHILADELPHIA - Taking a cue from the world of business-performance experts and baseball talent scouts, Penn Medicine translational medicine researchers are among the first to find a way to measure...
Global Update: South Africa: Condoms Star in a Sex Film With a Message
The nation’s first all-black pornographic movie features male cast members who wear condoms and an entire cast that was tested for H.I.V. and other diseases.
Bringing in Family to Combat Anorexia
Unlike traditional treatments, in which the patient sees the therapist one on one, a kind of family-based treatment encourages parents to play a pivotal role.
Personal Best: How to Push Past the Pain, as the Champions Do
“Mental tenacity” separates “the mortals and immortals in running,” an expert said. Some can be so focused as to ignore the saliva on their faces.
Early evaluation and intervention critical for vaccinated children with hearing loss from meningitis
Despite widespread use of pneumococcal vaccination, some children still develop deafness following pneumococcal meningitis, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of OtolaryngologyHead & Neck Surgery. Based...
Surgery in infants and young children heightens neurodevelopmental risk
When children undergo anesthesia during surgery, the long-term effects that anesthetics have on the developing brain is relatively unknown. A new study assesses the association between exposure to anesthesia in...
New Drug Blocks Stress Hormone, Improving Memory in Elderly Mice
Lab Mouse Wikimedia Commons/Rama Scottish researchers may have found a key to preventing senior moments, by blocking a stress hormone that interferes with memory. The treatment works surprisingly fast in mice, improving their...
Vital Statistics: Prescription Drug Use Soared in Past Decade
If you are taking a prescription medicine and you are older than 60, it is probably a cholesterol-lowering drug. If you are 20 to 59, it is more likely to...
Demand for radiation therapy projected to outpace supply of radiation oncologists
Between 2010 and 2020, the demand for radiation therapy will exceed the number of radiation oncologists practicing in the U.S. tenfold, which could profoundly affect the ability to provide patients...
Surgical complications drop at hospitals that share patient safety data
Michigan hospitals reduced surgical complications by nearly 10 percent at a time when the rest of the nation saw no change in complication rates, according to a new study out...
Research team identifies new mechanism with suspected role in cancer
If women had no prolactin receptors on cells in their mammary glands, they would not produce milk when they were nursing. Prolactin receptors are also found in other organs including...
FDA panel backs anemia drugs for kidney disease
(AP) -- Federal health advisers say patients with failing kidneys should continue taking a group of widely used anemia drugs, despite a recent study showing they can increase the...
New Real-Time Blood Monitoring May Lessen the Need for Transfusions During Surgery
A patient on the operating table starts bleeding profusely. Medical staff use sponge after sponge to soak up the blood, unsure of exactly how much has been lost. Should the...
Green: Parody Trips Up Chevron Ad Campaign
A spoof news release carries the headline "Radical Chevron Ad Campaign Highlights Victims."
Vital Signs: Vision: A Quick High for Sex May Damage Vision
Ophthalmologists describe four cases over three months in which patients’ vision was affected after they used “poppers” at parties.
Body's bacteria affect atherosclerosis
New findings suggesting that bacteria in the mouth and/or intestine can affect the the outcome pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and lead to new treatment strategies, reveals research from the University of...
Tackling cognitive deficits in Alzheimer's disease: 1 'STEP' at a time
Lowering levels of a key protein involved in regulating learning and memory -- STtriatal-Enriched tyrosine Phosphatase (STEP) -- reversed cognitive deficits in mice with Alzheimer's disease, Yale School of Medicine...