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Research on cartilage erosion and bone abnormalities

While characteristic of osteoarthritis (OA), a degenerative joint disease that affects some 20 million Americans, cartilage erosion and bone abnormalities are also associated with many rare hereditary conditions.

3 Oct 2005

Behavior-based means of cutting the risks of tobacco

Three researchers who study behavior-based means of cutting the risks of tobacco use have made a case for counseling patients about the health risks of exposure to secondhand smoke when they're asked about direct tobacco use.

3 Oct 2005

Chemical in cocoa beans can limit the development of fluids that cause diarrhea

A new study conducted by researchers at Children's Hospital & Research Center Oakland is the first to discover that a chemical in cocoa beans can limit the development of fluids that cause diarrhea. Cocoa beans contain a large amount of chemicals called flavonoids.

3 Oct 2005

Important developmental link between the cerebrum and the cerebellum

Higher cognitive functions, like language and visual processing, have long been thought to reside primarily in the brain's cerebrum. But a body of research in premature infants at Children's Hospital Boston is documenting an important role for the cerebellum

3 Oct 2005

Brain abnormalities in people who habitually lie

While previous research has shown that there is heightened activity in the prefrontal cortex - the area of the brain that enables most people to feel remorse or learn moral behavior - when normal people lie, this is the first study to provide evidence of structural differences in that area among pathological liars.

3 Oct 2005

Doctors should encourage teens to limit their intake of food prepared away from home and to eat family dinners together

New research shows that adolescents who eat large amounts of fried food away from home are heavier and more likely to have a poor-quality diet.

3 Oct 2005

Greasing the gears that drive the interferon signal

Interferon -- a critical protein that mediates the body's defense against a wide variety of infectious agents and tumors -- may soon have greater therapeutic value as the result of a new study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

3 Oct 2005

Elimination of charges for health care at the point of use could have an immediate and substantial impact on child mortality

Abolishing user fees (charges for health care at the point of use) could prevent approximately 233,000 child deaths annually in 20 African countries, say researchers in this week's British Medical Journal.

3 Oct 2005

Healthy 3 and 4-year-olds drive flu epidemics

Current immunization policies recommend universal flu vaccination for children aged 6-23 months, but shots are advised for older children only if they have high-risk medical conditions.

3 Oct 2005

Steroids significantly reduce heart damage in children with Kawasaki's disease

When added to standard treatment, steroids significantly reduce the odds of developing heart damage in children with Kawasaki's disease, according to a study in the October issue of Pediatrics. These findings address a gap in knowledge.

3 Oct 2005

Concerta, a once-daily form of the drug methylphenidate, successfully controlled ADHD symptoms

A new study has found that an all-day, extended-release stimulant for treating attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) remains effective for up to two years without significant side effects.

3 Oct 2005

Children enrolled in fitness-oriented gym classes showed greater loss of body fat

Overweight children who took part in lifestyle-focused, fitness-oriented gym classes showed significant improvement in body composition, fitness, and insulin levels, according to a study in the October issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

3 Oct 2005

Artemisinin combination therapies have potential to be one of the major public health interventions for Africa in this decade

Despite changes in policy in many African countries, most cases of malaria are still treated with old drugs that often fail, say researchers the British Medical Journal.

3 Oct 2005

MRI may better enable physicians to plan care for infants with heart defects

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques can provide real-time measurements of volume in a fetal heart, and may better enable physicians to plan care for infants with heart defects, according to a new study.

3 Oct 2005

Grant for private, secure, electronic medical records search system

A Boston consortium has been awarded one of two national grants to form a CDC Center of Excellence in Public Health Informatics.

28 Sep 2005

Housework has an adverse effect on wages

While prior research has shown that housework has an adverse effect on wages, a new University of Michigan study finds that only young and middle-aged women are affected.

28 Sep 2005

HeartMate XVE left ventricular assist device

Nine years ago this week, a team of University of Michigan doctors gave a dying heart patient a second chance at life by implanting a high-tech pump in his chest. The high-risk procedure was the first in Michigan performed using a new blood-pumping device called a HeartMate XVE left ventricular assist device, which helped the patient live until he received a heart transplant five weeks later.

28 Sep 2005

Salivary antimicrobial peptide expression and dental caries experience in children

A study comparing antimicrobial peptides, or AMPs, a group of small proteins that occur naturally in human saliva and act like antibiotics against oral bacteria, could lead to new ways to screen children for risk of tooth decay and protect them against this common, chronic problem.

28 Sep 2005

Possible new therapy for lymphoma and leukemia patients

Marty Holmes, a landscaper from Stockton, Calif., had never heard of a regulatory T cell before his doctor suggested that it could be the key to helping him survive his cancer.

28 Sep 2005

Parental behavior about smoking affects children

Twelve-year-olds whose parents smoked were more than two times as likely to begin smoking cigarettes on a daily basis between the ages of 13 and 21 than were children whose parents didn't use tobacco, according to a new study that looked at family influences on smoking habits.

28 Sep 2005