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Pure oxygen harms the brain

A paramedic or doctor plops a mask over the face of a person struggling to breathe and begins dispensing pure oxygen.

24 May 2007

University of Alabama at Birmingham opens adult Down Syndrome clinic

UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham) has opened one of the few clinics in the nation dedicated to providing services to adult patients with Down Syndrome.

24 May 2007

Effects of estrogen therapy with perimenopausal women

When is the best time in a woman's reproductive history to start hormone therapy? How does estrogen therapy affect a woman's cognition and mood? What is the most beneficial form of estrogen?

24 May 2007

Passengers contribute to road accidents

The new study, by The George Institute for International Health, was designed to determine the risk of a crash associated with passenger carriage compared with that of using a mobile phone while driving.

24 May 2007

Obese people more likely to have persistent or severe persistent asthma

A new study presented at the American Thoracic Society 2007 International Conference finds that obese people are significantly more likely to have persistent or severe persistent asthma than their thinner counterparts.

24 May 2007

U.S. parents not in favor of HPV vaccine mandates

While debate in several state governments continues to grow over school mandates for Gardasil – a vaccine recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for girls ages 11 to 12 that is designed to provide protection against human papillomavirus, or HPV, the virus linked to cervical cancer and genital warts – the majority of U.S. parents have already reached a decision on the issue: They do not want the vaccine to be mandated.

24 May 2007

Some children are genetically less responsive to inhaled steroids for asthma

Some children may not be able to keep their asthma under control even if they consistently report using inhaled corticosteroids, a mainstay of asthma treatment, suggests a new study presented at the American Thoracic Society 2007 International Conference, on Wednesday, May 23.

24 May 2007

New understanding of how immune-based therapies can treat Alzheimer's disease

Researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College have gotten much closer to understanding how immune-based therapies can treat Alzheimer's disease -- by studying how antibodies go inside brain cells to reduce levels of Alzheimer's-linked amyloid peptides that form plaques between neurons.

24 May 2007

10 rules to prevent child drownings

Summer has arrived, and UCLA emergency physicians would like to remind parents how to prevent drownings and water-immersion injuries involving children.

24 May 2007

COX inhibitors may weaken protective qualities of estrogen therapy

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine found in a database study of women heart patients that COX inhibitors such as traditional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may undermine any purported protection against heart disease in participants taking estrogen therapy.

24 May 2007

Am I exercising too much?

You run in the morning, train for your next marathon at night despite a nagging injury, and head to the gym to weight train in your free time. Missing a workout is not an option.

24 May 2007

Yoga shows promise in improving symptoms associated with depression, anxiety and epilepsy

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and McLean Hospital have found that practicing yoga may elevate brain gamma-aminobutyric (GABA) levels, the brain's primary inhibitory neurotransmitter.

23 May 2007

Cause of drug-resistant wound infections among soldiers in Iraq down to hospitals not battlefield

An outbreak of drug-resistant wound infections among soldiers in Iraq likely came from the hospitals where they were treated, not the battlefield, according to a new study in the June 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, currently available online.

22 May 2007

Laparoscopic radical prostatectomy with robot technology can improve survival rate for prostate cancer patients

Performing less invasive laparoscopic surgery using robotic technology may improve survival rates for prostate cancer patients, according to a study by urologic oncologists at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital's multidisciplinary Genitourinary (GU) cancer center.

22 May 2007

Impact of lifestyle on GI health

According to new research presented at Digestive Disease Week 2007 (DDW), lifestyle factors like choosing your diet regimen or ordering an appetizer for dinner may have a significant impact on the gastrointestinal (GI) system, affecting your risk for certain diseases, weight and general GI-related activity.

22 May 2007

Brca2 gene prevents medulloblastoma

Investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have gained some of the first major insights into how certain genes known to prevent cancer also guide the normal development of the nervous system before birth and during infancy by repairing DNA damage.

22 May 2007

Marijuana worsens breathing problems in current smokers with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

"This study suggests an interaction between cigarettes and marijuana smoking. These findings have not been reported before, and they have a big public health implication," Dr. Tan says.

22 May 2007

Improving communication with families of dying patients reduces post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression

Hospitals that use a simple strategy of enhancing communication with family members of patients dying in the intensive care unit can greatly reduce post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression after their loved one dies, according to a study to be presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference in San Francisco.

22 May 2007

Flash-heating breast milk infected with HIV successfully deactivates virus

A simple method of flash-heating breast milk infected with HIV successfully inactivated the free-floating virus, according to a new study led by researchers at the Berkeley and Davis campuses of the University of California.

22 May 2007

Extremely drug resistant TB a serious problem in India

Extremely drug resistant TB, or XDR-TB, is a serious problem in India, according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society 2007 International Conference, on Monday, May 21.

22 May 2007