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Occupational exposure to magnetic fields may moderately increase risk of Alzheimer's, ALS

Occupational exposure to magnetic fields (MF) may be associated with "moderately increased risk" of certain neurodegenerative diseases—including Alzheimer's and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, reports the February Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).

7 Feb 2013

Basis of antidepressant drugs and electroconvulsive therapy found

Through a series of investigations in mice and humans, Johns Hopkins researchers have identified a protein that appears to be the target of both antidepressant drugs and electroconvulsive therapy. Results of their experiments explain how these therapies likely work to relieve depression by stimulating stem cells in the brain to grow and mature.

7 Feb 2013

Liver gene found to regulate cholesterol and fat blood levels

Researchers have identified a microRNA liver gene, miR-27b, which regulates lipid (cholesterol or fat) levels in the blood. This regulator gene controls multiple genes involved in dyslipidemia—abnormal blood cholesterol levels that can contribute to heart disease.

7 Feb 2013

Four-step process delivers specific, reliable clinical rules

Dutch researchers have developed a four-step strategy for formulating clinical decision support systems, which they say could help reduce “alert fatigue.”

7 Feb 2013

Anxiety may contribute to cognitive dysfunction in bipolar disorder

Compromised cognitive and adaptive functioning in euthymic patients with bipolar disorder may be partly explained by related comorbid anxiety, suggest researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy risk highlighted in children

US researchers call for clinical guidelines for detection of diabetic peripheral neuropathy in children after finding that a significant proportion of young patients are affected.

7 Feb 2013

Antibiotics help severely malnourished children recover

Giving severely malnourished children antibiotics in addition to nutritional therapy significantly improves their chances of making a full recovery compared with nutritional therapy alone, say researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Eletrocardiographic mapping nearing clinical utility

Electocardiographic mapping may offer a noninvasive and accurate alternative to a standard electrophysiologic study, say researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Combination RT offers hope to late-stage esophageal cancer patients

Just over half of patients with advanced-stage esophageal cancer who are unsuitable for standard curative treatment survive for a year after receiving a combination of external beam radiotherapy and high-dose rate brachytherapy, report researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Telephone physiotherapy reduces treatment delays

Providing an initial physiotherapy assessment by telephone for patients with neuromusculoskeletal problems may help reduce waiting times, say UK researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Chlorhexidine bathing protects vulnerable hospital patients

Bathing hospital patients with chlorhexidine-impregnated washcloths reduces the risk for them acquiring multidrug-resistant organisms and developing bloodsteam infections, show study findings.

7 Feb 2013

Glimmer of hope for imatinib-resistant GIST

The monoclonal antibody SR1 can significantly inhibit gastrointestinal stromal tumor cell growth, report researchers in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

7 Feb 2013

First new TB vaccine in century fails initial testing

The first of a series of new vaccines that have been developed to combat tuberculosis failed to show efficacy compared with placebo in South African infants, show results from a phase II trial.

7 Feb 2013

Parental psychosis affects early schizophrenia risk factors

Parental psychosis alters the impact that individual biological risk factors during pregnancy and birth have on future schizophrenia risk, say Finnish researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Anxiety may contribute to cognitive dysfunction in bipolar disorder

Compromised cognitive and adaptive functioning in euthymic patients with bipolar disorder may be partly explained by related comorbid anxiety, suggest researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Language impairment affects children’s writing ability

Children with specific language impairment have a lower quality of written language than their typically developing peers, show study findings.

7 Feb 2013

Calcium supplements may increase men’s death risk

Men who have a high intake of supplemental calcium may be at an increased risk for cardiovascular disease death, report researchers.

7 Feb 2013

Migraine, epilepsy and genetics: an interview with Dr. Melodie Winawer

This work is the product of an extraordinary consortium called the Epilepsy Phenome/Genome project (EPGP). It is a consortium of 27 centres in the U.S. and internationally with several hundred physicians and staff who have worked together to enrol more than 4000 patients with epilepsy and their family members.

7 Feb 2013

Baby boomers not as healthy as previously believed

Despite having a reputation of being the healthiest and most active generation, baby boomers are actually in worse overall health than their parents, according to a new study by researchers at the West Virginia University School of Medicine.

6 Feb 2013

Study: 10 to 15% of people with TIAs will experience strokes within three months

Each year, as many as 500,000 Americans experience mini strokes called transient ischemic attacks (TIAs). Symptoms quickly go away, usually within an hour, and many people don't seek treatment. But 10 to 15 percent of people who experience TIAs will experience full-blown strokes within three months, and 40 percent of these strokes will occur in the first 24 hours, according to an article by three Loyola University Medical Center neurologists in the journal Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics.

6 Feb 2013