Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

OncoGel: New system for delivering chemotherapy for patients with esophageal cancer

Gastroenterologists at Rush University Medical Center are studying the safety and efficacy of a new system for delivering chemotherapy for patients with esophageal cancer, a rare, but deadly disease that attacks the throat.

15 Apr 2009

Stem cell transplantation helps patients with diabetes become insulin free

The majority of patients with type 1 diabetes who underwent a certain type of stem cell transplantation became insulin free, several for more than three years, with good glycemic control, and also increased C-peptide levels, an indirect measure of beta-cell function, according to a study in the April 15 issue of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.

14 Apr 2009

'Good' brown baby fat can ward off obesity and type 2 diabetes

Scientists in the United States say people who hang on to their baby fat may be protected from developing type 2 diabetes and becoming obese - obesity is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes.

13 Apr 2009

Large waist size tied to increased risk of heart failure in middle-aged and older populations

Adding to the growing evidence that a person's waist size is an important indicator of heart health, a study led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has found that larger waist circumference is associated with increased risk of heart failure in middle-aged and older populations of men and women.

12 Apr 2009

FDA stops Neilgen Pharmaceuticals and Advent Pharmaceuticals from making unapproved drugs

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced that it had obtained a permanent injunction barring Neilgen Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Westminster, Md., its parent company, Advent Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Advent), of East Windsor, N.J., and two of their officers, Bharat Patel and Pragna Patel, from manufacturing and distributing any unapproved, adulterated or misbranded drugs.

12 Apr 2009

Discovery of key decision-point at which cells with broken DNA repair themselves or die

When cells undergo potentially catastrophic damage, for example as a result of exposure to ionizing radiation, they must make a decision: either to fix the damage or program themselves for death, a process called apoptosis.

12 Apr 2009

Researchers explain process by which cells 'hide' potentially dangerous DNA segments

The DNA in the 23 pairs of chromosomes in each of the billions of cells of the human body is so tightly packed that it would measure six feet in length if stretched end to end.

12 Apr 2009

Treatment for acid reflux does not improve asthma symptoms

A commonly used treatment for acid reflux does not improve asthma symptoms or control in patients who do not have symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux (GER), according to a new study supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health and by the American Lung Association (ALA).

12 Apr 2009

Prescription heartburn medications do not ease asthma symptoms

The predominance of heartburn among asthma sufferers led many specialists to suspect that acid reflux could be a trigger for the coughing, wheezing and breathlessness of asthma.

9 Apr 2009

Coartem tablets approved in U.S. to treat malaria

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Coartem tablets (artemether and lumefantrine) for the treatment of acute, uncomplicated malaria infections in adults and children weighing at least five kilograms (approximately 11 pounds).

8 Apr 2009

National study results change common method of treating asthma

A nationwide study of adults with asthma reveals no benefit for treatment for silent acid reflux, which long has been thought to be the culprit for some severe asthma symptoms such as coughing, wheezing and breathlessness.

8 Apr 2009

A person's waist size is a predictor of heart health

8 Apr 2009

Study looks at functional decline in seniors after hospitalization

Motivation and expectation may be factors in helping older adults regain lost functional ability after hospitalization, say researchers with the Birmingham Veterans Administration Medical Center and UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham).

8 Apr 2009

Immune cells in skin fight off infection better than the rest

Scientists at the University of Melbourne have discovered the local action of immune cells in the skin, which could improve treatment of viral skin infections.

8 Apr 2009

Intercell starts trial for Streptococcus pneumoniae vaccine candidate

Intercell AG has announced that a Phase I clinical trial with the company's vaccine candidate IC47 to prevent disease caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae has started.

8 Apr 2009

New nanostructured biosensors

Research and industry are increasingly exploiting the potential of aptamers.

8 Apr 2009

Cigarette smoke changes the immune response to bacteria - culprit behind COPD exacerbations

Smoking cigarettes is not only the principle cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), but it may change the body's immune responses to bacteria that commonly cause exacerbations of the disease, according to new research in a mouse model.

8 Apr 2009