BACKGROUND: Previous studies have suggested that people reduce their average alcohol consumption as they age. In the new study the researchers sought to determine whether the percentage of heavy drinkers–that is, men who have at least five drinks in one sitting and women who have at least four drinks — also reduced as they aged. This latest study was based on data from 14,127 participants, aged 25 to 74, in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Study, first administered betwe
A new study by researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and colleagues shows that a drug originally used to treat breast cancer may help combat the severe weight loss that can plague patients undergoing radiation treatment for lung and head and neck cancer.
“The drug clearly reduced weight loss and improved quality of life in study patients,” said Michael Farmer, M.D., who presented the results last month at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and
Study among people with fibromyalgia suggests those with greater swings in pain hour-to-hour, day-to-day are more likely to respond to placebos
Studies involving people who suffer from chronic pain often give some of them placebos, “sugar pills” with no medicinal value, to show whether the treatment has real value. Little is known, however, about the types of people who tend to respond positively to placebos, a mystery that places a hurdle before researchers who want to learn the
Sweating during physical activity or in hot weather is healthy. But when individuals begin perspiring while experiencing discomfort in their chest, arm, neck or jaw — with little or no exertion — it could be the onset of a heart attack, according to a new study at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
“We can stop a heart attack during the process, but you have to get to the hospital first,” said Catherine Ryan, research assistant professor of medical surgical nursing. “T
Melatonin in cancer
The role of melatonin for the treatment of cancer is looking compelling, according to a new study published in the Journal of Pineal Research. Researchers say that the results are so compelling that cancer funding agencies should be eager to support clinical trials to evaluate its therapeutic role in a variety of cancers.
Melatonin is a hormone naturally found in humans. Its association with cancer has been shown in many studies assessing links between
Families gathered around the Thanksgiving dinner table might consider giving thanks for the bacteria-busting ability of cranberry juice, say dental researchers who have discovered that the beverage holds important clues for preventing cavities.
A team led by oral biologist Hyun (Michel) Koo, D.D.S., Ph.D., at the University of Rochester Medical Center has discovered that the same traits that make cranberry juice a powerful weapon against bladder infections also hold promise for p
Imperial College London has received a £4.9 ($8.6) million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a simple, affordable and rapid test to measure the health of the immune system in HIV/AIDS patients in developing countries.
The ‘CD4 Initiative’ will develop an easy to use device which can measure CD4+ T-lymphocytes in HIV+ patients. The CD4 cell count measures the number of these critical disease-fighting cells in the blood, a figure which health care workers need
Researchers at The University of Nottingham are joining forces with health protection specialists to study the spread of hospital ’superbugs’ such as MRSA and identify successful methods of prevention and treatment.
The results of the research project could be used to inform future best practice guidance for hospitals and health professionals.
The three-year project is being carried out by Dr Phil O’Neill in the University’s School of Mathematical
There is a wide variation in the use of laparoscopic surgery for gall bladder removal in Hong Kong hospitals, and use of this procedure is more likely at certain hospitals and among younger female patients operated on more recently, according to a study in the November issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC, removal of the gallbladder by laparoscopy) is a well-established technique for the management of symptomatic galls
UT Medical School at Houston researchers’ findings contradict earlier studies
Researchers at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston have discovered that toddlers with sleep apnea experience more respiratory disturbances when they sleep on their backs than in other positions. Their findings, which contradict earlier studies on the subject, were published in this month’s issue of Archives of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery.
Obstructive sleep apnea
Methylphenidate, a medication used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), may be effective in treating hyperactivity symptoms in children with autism and related pervasive developmental disorders, researchers report in the November Archives of General Psychiatry.
The study was conducted by the Research Units on Pediatric Psychopharmacology (RUPP) Autism Network, a National Institute of Mental Health funded multi-site consortium dedicated to the development
Scientists are concerned with commodization of mobile communications. Although the damage of cellular phones’ electromagnetic radiation has never been proved, their safety can not be warranted either. Chairman of the Russian National Committee for defense from nonionizing radiation, Doctor of Science (Medicine), Professor, Yuri Grigirievich Grigoriev advises that children and teenagers are particularly sensitive to electromagnetic radiation. Judging by some data, long child’s conversations o
The discovery of a swarm of aggressive tiger mosquitoes, a type known to carry dengue fever, in the Netherlands has highlighted the lack of legislation for monitoring disease-carrying insects in the EU, reports Jennifer Rohn in Chemistry & Industry magazine.
A Dutch inspector was attacked and bitten by the swarm in a greenhouse during a routine inspection of imported bamboo. The bamboo and the insects originated in southeast China where the disease is rife. But it is not yet
Better means of communicating risks needed
In a survey of approximately 930,000 ambulatory care patients, researchers from the Department of Ambulatory Care and Prevention (of Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care) and colleagues found that 42 percent received prescriptions for drugs with Black Box Warnings (BBW), the Food and Drug Administration’s strongest label for high-risk medication. Additionally, physicians’ compliance with the recommendations of
Prevent bone loss, periodontal disease
Drugs that reverse and prevent bone loss due to osteoporosis also significantly ward off periodontal disease, according to a graduate of the Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine who reports in the current Menopause journal article, “Periodontal Assessments of Postmenopausal Women Receiving Risedronate.”
Leena Bahl Palomo, D.D.S and M.S.D., is the lead author on the study with Nabil Bissada, chair and professor
More than one third of 7 million cancer deaths are caused by 9 avoidable risk factors
Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and a network of collaborators estimated mortality for 12 types of cancer linked to nine risk factors in seven World Bank regions for the year 2001. They found that of the seven million deaths worldwide that year from cancer, 35 percent were attributable to the nine well-known behavioral and environmental risk factors. The researchers al
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