Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Hydroxyurea for sickle cell patients

An independent panel convened this week by the NIH concluded that the use of hydroxyurea for sickle cell patients should be increased in adolescents and adults.

28 Feb 2008

New genetic link to schizophrenia

Schizophrenia emerges from an altered pattern of brain development, and researchers continue to search for the genes that cause the brain to develop along a path that ultimately leads to schizophrenia.

28 Feb 2008

New insight into maternal love

The distinctive ability of mothers to identify the cries of their offspring is widely evident in nature, where it is critical to the survival of these offspring.

28 Feb 2008

Lilly knocked back by FDA on Zyprexa for schizophrenia treatment

Eli Lilly and Company has received a not approvable letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Zyprexa long-acting injection (olanzapine LAI) for the treatment and maintenance treatment of schizophrenia in adults, the company announced.

28 Feb 2008

Treatment of children and adolescents with schizophrenia

There is a wealth of scientific literature available on the treatment of adults diagnosed with schizophrenia.

28 Feb 2008

UCLA to study health care disparities affecting minorities

The UCLA Department of Family Medicine, with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, has launched the Network for Multicultural Research on Health and Healthcare, a group that will study health care disparities affecting minorities with chronic diseases.

28 Feb 2008

Chewing gum helps recovery from gastrointestinal surgery

In an article recently recommended by Bradley Kropp of Faculty of 1000 Medicine, researchers find chewing gum is a simple solution to the recovery of bowel function after gastrointestinal surgery – a problem that has troubled patients and physicians for decades.

28 Feb 2008

AHF to congress: keep PEPFAR funding priority on AIDS treatment

With a bipartisan voice vote earlier today, The House Foreign Affairs Committee today passed House Resolution 5501 (the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Reauthorization Act), a bill to reauthorize the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the US global AIDS program.

28 Feb 2008

The impact of breast cancer on financial status of patients and their families

Canadian women diagnosed with early breast cancer lose, on average, more than a quarter of their typical income during the first 12 months after their diagnosis, according to a study published online February 26 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

27 Feb 2008

Spinal cord injury may not increase risk of heart disease

Americans who live with spinal cord injury do not appear to be at greater risk of developing carbohydrate and lipid disorders such as insulin resistance, diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance, and high or low blood cholesterol levels - risk factors for heart disease - than able-bodied persons, according to a new evidence review by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

27 Feb 2008

More money for state health in Australia will depend on performance reports

Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon has plans for all states to publish performance reports about public hospitals and be accountable for how they spend extra commonwealth funding.

26 Feb 2008

Mail order pharmacies growing more popular

Of Americans who buy prescription drugs, the proportion who purchase them from mail order pharmacies rose from just under 9 percent in 2000 to just over 13 percent in 2005, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

26 Feb 2008

Higher prevalence of stroke in the United States compared to Europe

American adults have a higher prevalence of stroke than their European counterparts, due in part to a higher rate of stroke risk factors among Americans and barriers to care in the United States, according to a study presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2008.

26 Feb 2008

Technology to defeat bacterial infections shows positive results

The use of natural controls against serious bacterial infection and superbugs is being led by a UK company. Scientists at Biocontrol Ltd have presented at the Bacteriophage 2008 meeting in Hertfordshire a first look at the results of their initial Phase II clinical trial.

25 Feb 2008

XYNTHA approved for teatment of hemophilia A by FDA

Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, a division of Wyeth ( NYSE:WYE) , announced today that it has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for XYNTHA(TM) (Antihemophilic Factor [Recombinant], Plasma/Albumin-Free), a recombinant factor VIII product, for patients with hemophilia A for both the control and prevention of bleeding episodes and surgical prophylaxis.

22 Feb 2008

Researchers explore the antidepressant effects of ketamine

Drug treatments for depression can take many weeks for the beneficial effects to emerge.

22 Feb 2008

No good evidence that private treatment centres are value for money

There is no good evidence that independent sector treatment centres have provided additional capacity, value for money, or high quality care, argue researchers in this week's BMJ.

22 Feb 2008

New clinician's guide to prevention and treatment of osteoporosis

The National Osteoporosis Foundation has released its new "Clinician's Guide to Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis" which represents a new era for healthcare providers in the evaluation and treatment of people with low bone mass or osteoporosis.

22 Feb 2008

Comparison of venlafaxine and SSRIs in the treatment of depression

There are numerous antidepressant medications currently on the market, but sadly, many patients still experience the debilitating symptoms of depression even with treatment.

21 Feb 2008

Downward trend in cancer deaths between 2004 and 2005

New data revealing decreasing trends in cancer deaths in the United States overall, and in colorectal cancer deaths in particular, highlight the remarkable benefits of colorectal cancer screening tests, but the lifesaving potential of these tests is unrealized for many Americans according to experts from the American College of Gastroenterology.

21 Feb 2008