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High pollution increases risk of repeated heart attacks by over 40%

Air pollution, a serious danger to the environment, is also a major health risk, associated with respiratory infections, lung cancer and heart disease. Now a Tel Aviv University researcher has concluded that not only does air pollution impact cardiac events such as heart attack and stroke, but it also causes repeated episodes over the long term.

6 Jun 2012

HDL to offer testing services based on Critical Diagnostics' Presage ST2 Assay

Critical Diagnostics, a U.S.-based biomarker company focused on cardiovascular diseases and Health Diagnostic Laboratory, Inc. (HDL, Inc.), announced today an agreement under which HDL, Inc. will soon offer ST2 testing services based on Critical Diagnostics' Presage ST2 Assay.

5 Jun 2012

Researchers uncover brain signaling pathway responsible for renal excretory function

Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researchers recently uncovered a brain signaling pathway responsible for regulating the renal excretion of sodium. The findings appear in the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

5 Jun 2012

New algorithm can help ED physicians to reduce number of heart failure deaths

Physicians can reduce the number of heart failure deaths and unnecessary hospital admissions by using a new computer-based algorithm developed at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES) that calculates each patient's individual risk of death. Published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the algorithm improves upon clinical decision-making and determines whether or not a patient with heart failure should be admitted to hospital.

5 Jun 2012

Regular and moderate exercise most beneficial for cardiovascular health

Micah True, legendary ultra-marathoner, died suddenly while on a routine 12-mile training run March 27, 2012. The mythic Caballo Blanco in the best-selling book, Born to Run, True would run as far as 100 miles in a day. On autopsy his heart was enlarged and scarred; he died of a lethal arrhythmia (irregularity of the heart rhythm). Although speculative, the pathologic changes in the heart of this 58 year-old veteran extreme endurance athlete may have been manifestations of "Phidippides cardiomyopathy," a condition caused by chronic excessive endurance exercise.

4 Jun 2012

High levels of antibody molecule linked to increased rates of death from all diseases

Mayo Clinic researchers have identified an immune system deficiency whose presence shows someone is up to four times likelier to die than a person without it. The glitch involves an antibody molecule called a free light chain; people whose immune systems produce too much of the molecule are far more likely to die of a life-threatening illness such as cancer, diabetes and cardiac and respiratory disease than those whose bodies make normal levels. The study is published in the June issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

4 Jun 2012

International community must sustain progress in reducing infant mortality rates

In this post in the Huffington Post's "World" blog, Cecilia Attias, former first lady of France and president and founder of the Cecilia Attias Foundation for Women, responds to a recent paper, published by the World Bank, which discusses significant declines in infant and under-five mortality in Kenya and across sub-Saharan Africa.

2 Jun 2012

Yawning gulf between maternal mortality policies and implementation

As the UN Special Rapporteur on maternal mortality in India points out there is a 'yawning gulf between commendable maternal mortality policies and their urgent, focused, sustained, systematic and effective implementation', the May issue of Reproductive Health Matters explores the causes and impact of this gap, but also highlights hopeful signs of progress.

2 Jun 2012

Global cancer rates could go up 75% by 2030, study suggests

"The number of people with cancer is set to surge by more than 75 percent across the world by 2030, with particularly sharp rises in poor countries as they adopt unhealthy 'Westernized' lifestyles," according to a study published Friday in the Lancet, Reuters reports.

2 Jun 2012

America's biopharmaceutical researchers work on many new approaches to fight cancer

America's biopharmaceutical research companies are testing 981 medicines and vaccines to fight the many types of cancer affecting millions of patients worldwide, according to a report released today by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.

2 Jun 2012

Post-revascularization exercise echo ‘of little benefit’

Asymptomatic patients identified as high-risk by exercise echocardiography after coronary revascularization and may not necessarily benefit from repeat revascularization, researchers say.

1 Jun 2012

Mothers who smoke during pregnancy increase risk of asthma in children

African-American and Latino children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy are more likely to suffer from acute asthma symptoms in their teens than asthma sufferers whose mothers did not smoke, according to a new study led by a research team at UCSF.

1 Jun 2012

Vena cava filter does not improve mortality rates for patients with PE

A filter used to block clots from passing from the veins in the legs to the arteries of the lung does not improve mortality rates for most patients suffering a pulmonary embolism. However, if a patient is unstable - in shock or requires a ventilator - filters can save lives.

1 Jun 2012

75% increase in cancer incidence predicted by 2030

The global cancer burden is set to surge more than 75% by 2030, according to new research published Online First in the Lancet Oncology. The rise is predicted to be even larger in the developing world, with the poorest countries experiencing a projected increase of more than 90%.

1 Jun 2012

Opinion pieces, editorial discuss significant decline in child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa

The following summaries of two opinion pieces and an editorial explore a recent paper published by the World Bank discussing significant declines in infant and under-five mortality in Kenya and across sub-Saharan Africa.

1 Jun 2012

Zinc supplementation in young children with serious infections significantly lowers risk of treatment failure

Treating young children with suspected serious bacterial infection with zinc in addition to standard antibiotics significantly reduces the likelihood of treatment failure, according to new research published Online First in The Lancet. In 2010, worldwide, infections were responsible for nearly two-thirds of deaths in children under 5, with around two-fifths of deaths occurring within the first month of life.

1 Jun 2012

Target of 25% reduction in premature mortality from NCDs by 2025 a 'rallying call' for global health community

Member states at the 65th session of the World Health Assembly, which concluded last week, "agreed to adopt a global target of a 25 percent reduction in premature mortality from non-communicable diseases [NCDs] such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases by 2025."

1 Jun 2012

Foreign-born populations in the U.S. are at increased risk for chronic HBV

The prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the U.S. may be as high as 2.2 million cases according to a new study now available in Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

1 Jun 2012

Researchers identify new peptide that can block fibrosis of the skin and lungs

A member of the Scleroderma Foundation's Board of Directors has led a team of researchers who have identified a peptide that can block fibrosis of the skin and lungs, according to a report published today.

31 May 2012

Despite progress, more effort 'urgently' needed to prevent maternal mortality in Africa

Citing a U.N. report released in May, titled "Trends in Maternal Mortality: 1990 to 2010," which shows "the number of women worldwide dying of pregnancy and childbirth-related complications has almost halved in the last 20 years," Agnes Odhiambo, a researcher for women in Africa at Human Rights Watch, writes in this Inter Press Service opinion piece.

31 May 2012

Mortality News and Research

High pollution increases risk of repeated heart attacks by over 40%

HDL to offer testing services based on Critical Diagnostics' Presage ST2 Assay

Researchers uncover brain signaling pathway responsible for renal excretory function

New algorithm can help ED physicians to reduce number of heart failure deaths

Regular and moderate exercise most beneficial for cardiovascular health

High levels of antibody molecule linked to increased rates of death from all diseases

International community must sustain progress in reducing infant mortality rates

Yawning gulf between maternal mortality policies and implementation

Global cancer rates could go up 75% by 2030, study suggests

America's biopharmaceutical researchers work on many new approaches to fight cancer

Post-revascularization exercise echo ‘of little benefit’

Mothers who smoke during pregnancy increase risk of asthma in children

Vena cava filter does not improve mortality rates for patients with PE

75% increase in cancer incidence predicted by 2030

Opinion pieces, editorial discuss significant decline in child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa

Zinc supplementation in young children with serious infections significantly lowers risk of treatment failure

Target of 25% reduction in premature mortality from NCDs by 2025 a 'rallying call' for global health community

Foreign-born populations in the U.S. are at increased risk for chronic HBV

Researchers identify new peptide that can block fibrosis of the skin and lungs

Despite progress, more effort 'urgently' needed to prevent maternal mortality in Africa

Leveraging the power of automation to boost research

Automating research - solutions and best practices

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

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