Public Health News and Research

RSS

Taking multivitamins around time of conception reduces preeclampsia risk

Women who are considering becoming pregnant may significantly reduce their risk of developing a common life-threatening complication called preeclampsia by taking a multivitamin supplement regularly three months before conception and during the first trimester of pregnancy.

26 Jul 2006

Nitric oxide reduces lung disease in premature, very-low-birth-weight infants

Delivering nitric oxide to the lungs of premature, very-low-birth-weight infants during their second week of life improves their chances of surviving without chronic lung disease, according to a national study of nearly 600 babies.

26 Jul 2006

Active transportation increases adherence to activity recommendations

Some California residents who walk or bike to work or errands may not be as inactive as previous studies - which focused on leisure-time physical activity - have suggested.

26 Jul 2006

Midlife physical activity and mobility in older age

More physical activity in midlife translates to more physical mobility in old age, researchers conclude in a new study of older adults living in the Chianti region of Italy.

26 Jul 2006

Vaccination with irradiated Listeria induced protective T cell immunity

Vaccines made with bacteria killed by gamma irradiation, rather than by standard methods of heat or chemical inactivation, may be more effective, say researchers.

26 Jul 2006

Increasing rates of diabetes among U.S. adults

Adults in the United States have increasingly become overweight or obese in recent years, according to a national survey conducted for Indiana University, dispelling the notion of a plateau and injecting a note of urgency into efforts to help Americans achieve a healthier weight.

26 Jul 2006

Breakdown of disease caused by UV radiation

Ultraviolet radiation from the sun causes a considerable global disease burden, including specific cancers, a new World Health Organization (WHO) report finds.

25 Jul 2006

FDA approves Elaprase (idursulfase) for Hunter syndrome

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Elaprase (idursulfase), the first product for the treatment of Hunter syndrome (Mucopolysaccharidosis II, or MPS II).

25 Jul 2006

Global early warning system for zoonoses launched

A global early warning system for animal diseases transmissible to humans (zoonoses) was formally launched this week by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

24 Jul 2006

Increasing deaths from opioid analgesics in the United States

Trends analysis of drug poisoning deaths has helped explain a national epidemic of overdose deaths in the USA that began in the 1990s, concludes Leonard Paulozzi and colleagues at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

24 Jul 2006

Increasing deaths from opioid analgesics in the United States

24 Jul 2006

Giving up driving may be fast lane to aged care

Researchers have found that elders who stay behind the wheel are less likely to enter nursing homes or assisted living centers than those who have never driven or who have given up driving altogether.

21 Jul 2006

Neuraminidase inhibitors for preventing and treating influenza in healthy adults

A class of drugs commonly used to treat typical influenza symptoms such as fever, headache and cough do not prevent people from becoming infected with the flu virus.

19 Jul 2006

Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12-step programmes for alcohol dependence

Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12-step programs, while effective, are not the be-all and end-all in psychosocial treatments for alcohol dependence, according to new review of studies.

19 Jul 2006

Vaccines for preventing influenza in the elderly

Although national and international health organizations urge anyone over age 65 to get yearly flu shots, the vaccinations are only modestly effective in preventing flu and its complications among older adults, according to a new review of recent studies.

19 Jul 2006