Research News and Research

RSS

Patient safety incidents at the nation's hospitals rose three percent

Patient safety incidents at the nation's hospitals rose three percent over the years 2003 to 2005, but the nation's top-performing hospitals had a 40 percent lower rate of medical errors when compared with the poorest-performing hospitals, according to the largest annual study of patient-safety issued today by HealthGrades, the leading independent healthcare ratings company.

2 Apr 2007

Gender differences and skin cancer

Inherent gender differences – instead of more sun exposure – may be one reason why men are three times more likely than women to develop certain kinds of skin cancer, say researchers at Ohio State University Medical Center.

2 Apr 2007

PCV7 vaccine reduces frequent ear infections in children

A vaccine has been shown to help reduce the number of infants and toddlers developing frequent ear infections, according to new research from Katherine A. Poehling, M.D., a pediatrician at Brenner Children's Hospital, part of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

2 Apr 2007

USAID is extending its HIV/AIDS prevention and care project in Pakistan

USAID is extending its HIV/AIDS prevention and care project in Pakistan by awarding grants to three organizations working to combat the disease among high-risk groups in the country, USAID Director for Pakistan Jonathan Addleton said last week at the grant awards ceremony, the PakTribune reports.

2 Apr 2007

Critics question Wikipedia-style web site created by physicians

Several Cleveland Clinic physicians recently launched the Web site Ask Dr Wiki -- a medical version of Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia that users can edit -- but critics have raised concerns about the reliability of the new site, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

2 Apr 2007

HHS Inspector General Office to review conflicts of interest for NIH grantees, employees

HHS Inspector General Daniel Levinson has announced that investigators will examine conflict-of-interest policies at NIH regarding scientists who are not employed by the agency but who use federal grant money, the AP/New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.

2 Apr 2007

Scientists uncover bacterial cloaking

Scientists have uncovered the workings of a method bacteria responsible for diseases such as meningitis and blood disorders use to hide from the body's immune system.

2 Apr 2007

People who are pre-diabetic or who have Type 2 diabetes have much shorter telomeres

New genetic markers may be able to predict whether a person is likely to have coronary heart disease (CAD) in the future.

2 Apr 2007

Breastfeeding significantly reduces risk of HIV transmission from mother to child

A study by scientists at the Africa Centre for Health and Population Studies, South Africa, has shown that exclusive breastfeeding can significantly reduce the risk of HIV transmission from mother to child in infants aged under six months when compared to those also given solid foods or replacement feed (i.e. formula milk).

2 Apr 2007

New insights into melatonin production

In the April 1 issue of G&D, a Korean research team led by Dr. Kyong-Tai Kim (Pohang University) describes how melatonin production is coordinated with the body's natural sleep/wake cycles.

2 Apr 2007

Precise region in the frontal cortex may be specialised for learning social information

Is there a specific memory for events involving people Researchers in the Vulnerability, Adaptation and Psychopathology Laboratory (CNRS/University Paris VI France ) and a Canadian team at Douglas Hospital, McGill University (Montreal), have identified the internal part of the prefrontal cortex as being the key structure for memorising social information.

2 Apr 2007

Treatment for acute intermittent porphyria

The Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA) from the University of Navarra and the Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics BV (AMT) have demonstrated the pre-clinical effectiveness of a treatment against acute intermittent porphyria.

2 Apr 2007

Revving up a crucial set of muscle genes improves muscular dystrophy symptoms in mice

Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have shown in a laboratory study that revving up a crucial set of muscle genes counteracts the damage caused by a form of muscular dystrophy.

2 Apr 2007

Study results on bifeprunox in patients with schizophrenia

Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and Lundbeck A/S presented clinical study results on bifeprunox at an international medical congress this week.

2 Apr 2007

New insight on tree frog adhesion

Tree frogs have the unique ability to stick to smooth surfaces even when they are tilted well beyond the vertical - some small tree frogs can even adhere when completely upside down.

2 Apr 2007

Regenerative medicine project taps into human stem cells

Researchers at the McKnight Brain Institute of the University of Florida have initiated a project to treat human brain and other diseases by plundering the secrets of regeneration from creatures with remarkable powers of self-renewal, such as salamanders, newts, starfish and flatworms.

2 Apr 2007