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New study to benefit pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers

Pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers are set to benefit from the first study of its kind in the UK. Researchers at the Highlands and Islands Health Research Institute (HIHRI) will undertake a three-year study, which is being funded from £500,000 worth of awards from the Scottish Executive Health Department (SEHD) Chief Scientist Office.

4 Apr 2004

Link Between Stress And Multiple Sclerosis Attacks

A new study that combined results of previously published research findings suggests that acute attacks of multiple sclerosis may be associated with stressful life events. The study, appearing in the British Medical Journal and funded in part through National MS Society postdoctoral fellowships, is a “meta-analysis” (which statistically combines findings) of previously published studies of the topic of stress and MS.

1 Apr 2004

Gene of immune system linked to severe adverse drug reaction called Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS)

In a study of Han Chinese patients, researchers have for the first time directly linked a gene of the immune system to a severe adverse drug reaction called Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), according to a Duke University Medical Center medical geneticist and collaborators in Taiwan.

1 Apr 2004

GlaxoSmithKline and Theravance to form strategic alliance

GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) and Theravance, Inc., a privately-held pharmaceutical company, announced today that they have entered into an innovative broad-based strategic alliance to develop and commercialise novel medicines across a variety of important therapeutic areas, including bacterial infection, respiratory, urinary incontinence and gastrointestinal.

31 Mar 2004

Air pollution effects Cystic Fibrosis Sufferers

University of Washington (UW) researchers have shown for the first time that air pollution has adverse effects on people with cystic fibrosis (CF). The research results are published in the April 1 edition of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

29 Mar 2004

Listening to music can ease osteoarthritis pain

US research has shown listening to music for 20 minutes a day can reduce perceived pain levels among older people suffering from chronic osteoarthritis.

29 Mar 2004

Asthma study turns up new information on viral infections

Researchers know that viral infections can exacerbate asthma and, in turn, make people with the condition more sensitive to environmental exposures such as endotoxin. But how viral infections contribute to this sensitivity in airway cells has not been clear. A recent study led by investigators from the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in Iowa City shows, for the first time, that viral infections may increase environmental sensitivity in lung epithelial (surface) cells by changing expression of receptors on those cells.

25 Mar 2004

20% of worldwide population lack enough zinc in diet

Up to one-fifth of the world's people lack sufficient zinc in their diet, while an estimated one-third live in countries considered at high risk of zinc deficiency, warns a comprehensive new report by an international group of medical researchers.

23 Mar 2004

Raptiva, 20 percent improvement in an individual's signs and symptoms of arthritis.

Genentech, Inc. and XOMA Ltd. today announced preliminary results of a randomized, placebo-controlled Phase II study with RAPTIVA™ (efalizumab) in 107 patients with psoriatic arthritis. The study did not reach statistical significance at 12 weeks (84 days) for the primary endpoint, ACR 20 response. An ACR 20 response indicates at least a 20 percent improvement in an individual's signs and symptoms of arthritis.

22 Mar 2004

New Treatment for Chronic Head Pain

Dr. Levy pioneered a procedure known as supraorbital nerve stimulation or SOS, in which neurotransmitters are implanted into the forehead to block head pain. Tiny wires are burrowed under the skin until the precise location of pain is marked by a tingling response to electrical charge. The wires are kept in place for a week, and if pain is lessened and the patient is comfortable with the technology, neurotransmitters are surgically implanted under local anesthesia. The patient is able to control pain relief by manually adjusting the level of electrical stimulation through a hand held device.

22 Mar 2004

Mouse antibodies neutralise SARS virus

The mouse immune system develops antibodies capable of single-handedly neutralizing the SARS virus, researchers at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) report in the April 1 issue of the Journal of Virology, now available online. NIAID is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

22 Mar 2004

Sleep apnea may be commonly misdiagnosed with hypertension

Patients with sleep apnea may be commonly misdiagnosed with hypertension, says a study published in the March issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians. In the study, one-third of patients with sleep apnea who were physician-diagnosed with hypertension actually had "white coat hypertension" (WCH), a condition characterized by an increase in blood pressure during a doctor's office visit and normal blood press during all other situations.

20 Mar 2004