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Slower care for heart attack patients treated after hours and on weekends

Heart attack patients treated with primary percutaneous intervention (PCI) at hospitals after hours and on weekends wait longer to receive clot busters and other treatments and have a higher risk of death than those treated during regular hospital hours

18 Aug 2005

Global prevalence of kidney failure among critically ill patients

A multinational study has found that 5 to 6 percent of patients in intensive care units experience acute kidney failure, and about 60 percent of these patients die in the hospital, according to an article in the August 17 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

18 Aug 2005

Separate studies produce conflicting results on race and gender disparities in U.S. health system

Two newly released studies in the U.S. have to some extent come to conflicting results. According to one study, by researchers at Emory University, attempts over the last decade to address race and gender disparities in the treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks, still in some respects raise cause for concern.

18 Aug 2005

First clear evidence that olfaction is uniquely a "dual" sense

In the August 18, 2005, issue of Neuron, researchers report that the smell of chocolate activated different brain regions according to whether the odor was introduced into the olfactory system through the mouth or through the nose.

17 Aug 2005

Treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks continues to vary according to sex and race

Despite a decade of initiatives to remedy health disparities in cardiovascular medicine, at least some aspects of the treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks continues to vary according to sex and race, according to a study by researchers at Emory University in collaboration with Yale University and other centers.

17 Aug 2005

Common non-aspirin painkillers linked to high blood pressure in women

Women who consume higher doses of non-aspirin painkillers are much more likely to develop high blood pressure than women who do not use them, according to research reported in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association.

17 Aug 2005

Low hemoglobin levels are a predictor of increased risk of death among heart failure patients

Hemoglobin (Hgb) is the major substance in red blood cells, and its level indicates the blood's ability to carry oxygen throughout the body. Studies have shown that low hemoglobin, which may result in anemia, is more common among patients with heart failure than it is among people in the general population.

17 Aug 2005

Tobacco control and healthier diets are key to cutting heart deaths

Encouraging everyone to stop smoking and eat healthier is four times more effective at reducing heart deaths than current government initiatives that target patients who already have heart problems, finds a study published online by the BMJ today

16 Aug 2005

Interferon selectively kills colon cancer cells when combined with irinotecan chemotherapy agent

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists have found that interferon, used for 30 years to treat blood cancers, multiple sclerosis and hepatitis, selectively kills colon cancer cells when combined with another standard chemotherapy agent.

16 Aug 2005

Overweight children who can shed their puppy fat by age 14 can expect lower blood pressure

About 2794 children in Brisbane for the study had their blood pressure and body mass or fat index (weight in kilograms divided by height in metres square) recorded at age five then at 14.

16 Aug 2005

Gene expression levels may reveal stage of Huntington's disease

A survey of the genome of patients with Huntington's Disease (HD) has identified potential markers of the progression of this devastating neurological disorder.

16 Aug 2005

Weight control protein may yield new approaches for treating obesity and type 2 diabetes

The findings in mice further suggest that particular variants of the protein SH2-B might underlie obesity in humans, the researchers said.

16 Aug 2005

Breakthrough in human stem cell research

A breakthrough in human stem cell research, producing embryonic-like cells from umbilical cord blood may substantially speed up the development of treatments for life-threatening illnesses, injuries and disabilities.

16 Aug 2005

Good news for the hundreds of thousands of cancer patients who undergo radiation therapy

Scientists report that they have a better understanding of the complex effects of radiation on tumor biology and that specific radiation treatment regimens may enhance the effectiveness of radiotherapy, even in tumor populations that have been notoriously difficult to treat.

16 Aug 2005

Adult stem cells may play a role in the development of some forms of cancer

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have determined that stem cells in a certain region of the brain may be the source of a particular type of incurable brain tumor and may be implicated in other types of brain cancers as well.

16 Aug 2005

Decline in energy production by mitochondria appears to be a key problem leading to insulin resistance

A detectable decline in energy production by mitochondria - the organelles that are the cell's furnace for energy production - seems to be a key problem leading to insulin resistance, and thus to type 2 diabetes, according to studies by Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers.

16 Aug 2005

New study shows even non-prescription painkillers raise blood pressure in women

According to a new U.S. study women who take higher doses of common, over-the-counter painkillers, such as Ibuprofen and even Tylenol, have higher blood pressure than women who do not.

16 Aug 2005

New hope for those deaf from immune system attack

A new study may one day help those deafened by immune system attack, and possibly also lead to a test that could show which patients may be helped by immediate steroid treatment.

16 Aug 2005

Chronic use of nitroglycerin for chest pain could lead to mitochondrial damage

Definitive evidence to explain how the drug nitroglycerin relieves chest pain has resulted from a new study by Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigators at Duke University Medical Center. Nitroglycerin relaxes blood vessels to boost blood flow, yet the mechanism by which the drug works has remained a matter of scientific controversy.

16 Aug 2005

Oral medications may control symptoms of Type II diabetes in children just as well as insulin injections

According to the medical records of 26 children diagnosed with the disease, oral medications reduced levels of a compound in the blood called hemoglobin A1C by an average of 2 percentage points.

15 Aug 2005

Blood News and Research

Slower care for heart attack patients treated after hours and on weekends

Global prevalence of kidney failure among critically ill patients

Separate studies produce conflicting results on race and gender disparities in U.S. health system

First clear evidence that olfaction is uniquely a "dual" sense

Treatment of U.S. patients hospitalized for heart attacks continues to vary according to sex and race

Common non-aspirin painkillers linked to high blood pressure in women

Low hemoglobin levels are a predictor of increased risk of death among heart failure patients

Tobacco control and healthier diets are key to cutting heart deaths

Interferon selectively kills colon cancer cells when combined with irinotecan chemotherapy agent

Overweight children who can shed their puppy fat by age 14 can expect lower blood pressure

Gene expression levels may reveal stage of Huntington's disease

Weight control protein may yield new approaches for treating obesity and type 2 diabetes

Breakthrough in human stem cell research

Good news for the hundreds of thousands of cancer patients who undergo radiation therapy

Adult stem cells may play a role in the development of some forms of cancer

Decline in energy production by mitochondria appears to be a key problem leading to insulin resistance

New study shows even non-prescription painkillers raise blood pressure in women

New hope for those deaf from immune system attack

Chronic use of nitroglycerin for chest pain could lead to mitochondrial damage

Oral medications may control symptoms of Type II diabetes in children just as well as insulin injections

Leveraging the power of automation to boost research

Automating research - solutions and best practices

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

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