Neurology News and Research

Latest Neurology News and Research

Damage to the left half side of brain may make a right-handed person more susceptible to infection

A major immunological difference between the opposite halves of the human brain is now confirmed in a study published May 24, 2004 in the online edition of the Annals of Neurology. Researchers have found that damage or surgery to the left half of the brain may make a right-handed person more susceptible to being immunocompromised.

24 May 2004

Australian neurology ward goes wireless

In a first for the Monash Medical Centre, Ward 54 is going wireless. Efficiencies are expected to increase when clinical staff use innovative hand-held devices and mobile equipment to deliver patient care.

24 May 2004

Research reveals that children with mild head injury may be at risk of long-term complications

New research from the University of Warwick reveals that children with even mild head injury may be at risk of long-term complications, including personality changes, emotional, behavioural and learning problems.

21 May 2004

Hypertension treatment could reduce hemorrhagic strokes by nearly 30 percent

Treating hypertension could cut the annual number of bleeding strokes in the United States by about one-fourth, according to a report in today’s rapid access issue of Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

20 May 2004

New medical device indentifies abnormal heart rhythms called atrial fibrillation

A new device identified abnormal heart rhythms called atrial fibrillation in one of 18 stroke patients in whom two standard tests failed to detect the irregularity, researchers report in today’s rapid access issue of Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

20 May 2004

Researchers to study link between diabetes and early dementia

Understanding the link between diabetes and early dementia – as well as how diabetes relates to other causes of memory loss – is the focus of a new study at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) and approximately 40 other medical institutions nationwide.

20 May 2004

Closer to understanding the function of a protein linked to an inherited form of the movement disorder dystonia

The protein, torsinA, is defective in patients with DYT1 dystonia, an inherited condition that causes uncontrollable movements in the limbs and torso. Learning what torsinA does could be an important step toward developing a treatment for the disorder.

19 May 2004

Research into sleeping disorder drug may help multiple sclerosis patients

A University of Nottingham academic is leading a research project looking at whether a drug produced for a sleeping disorder could improve the quality of life for thousands of multiple sclerosis patients.

17 May 2004

Cholesterol-lowering drugs could treat multiple sclerosis

Drug treatments for MS are expensive and only partially effective. Recent knowledge that statins promote an anti-inflammatory response from the immune system suggest a potential in the treatment of MS.

13 May 2004

Study shows states will see an average 44 percent increase in Alzheimer’s disease by 2025

According to the May 11 issue of Neurology, U. S. states will see an average 44 percent increase in Alzheimer’s disease by 2025, with the Western and Southeastern states to be hit the hardest.

11 May 2004

World’s first clinical images acquired using a 64-slice CT system

Siemens Medical Solutions today released the world’s first clinical images acquired using a 64-slice computed tomography (CT) system, which were acquired at the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany.

11 May 2004

Indicators identify shingles patients who have an increased risk of developing persistent pain

Researchers have recently confirmed a set of indicators that, alone and in combination, identify shingles patients who have an increased risk of developing persistent pain after the shingles rash heals. Results and implications of their study will be presented in the May 11 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 May 2004

PPD, Inc. has announced the launch of PPD Medical Device Division

PPD, Inc. has announced the launch of PPD Medical Device, a division of PPD Development, providing services to the medical device industry with experience in developing stents, devices and therapies in the areas of interventional cardiology, endovascular, neurology and orthopedic disorders as well as wound care.

10 May 2004

Belarus to collaborate with GenoMed on West Nile virus encephalitis

GenoMed, Inc. has announced that the leading experts in West Nile virus encephalitis in Belarus will collaborate with the Company in treating cases of suspected West Nile virus encephalitis this summer. Belarus, formerly part of the USSR, is now a democratic country of 10.5 million people lying between Poland and Russia; its capital is Minsk.

7 May 2004

Heart pumps better than medical therapy in keeping heart failure patients alive

Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) – heart pumps – worked better than medical therapy in keeping seriously ill congestive heart failure patients alive, despite an increased risk of neurological complications, researchers report in today’s rapid access issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

6 May 2004

New guidelines for using new antiepileptic drugs to treat epilepsy

The number of drugs available to treat epilepsy have more than doubled in the last decade. The American Academy of Neurology and the American Epilepsy Society have assembled the top experts in the field to evaluate the available data of 1,462 research articles in order to create a guideline for the treatment of epilepsy with the new antiepileptic drugs (AEDs).

6 May 2004

Ritalin drug used to treat hyperactive children boosts the potency of Parkinson's drug levodopa

A well-known drug used to treat hyperactive children boosts the potency of another drug that reduces Parkinson's disease symptoms, an Oregon Health & Science University study has found.

6 May 2004

Research into Chinese herbal medicine Qian Ceng Ta may help Alzheimer’s

Georgetown University Medical Center researchers today opened a new clinical trial designed to test if huperzine A, a natural product derived from a Chinese herb, can slow down or prevent cognitive decline in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s Disease (AD).

6 May 2004

LVAD heart pumps improve survival in congestive heart failure patients

Despite a risk of stroke, left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) – heart pumps – work better than medical therapy in keeping seriously ill congestive heart failure patients alive, according to Columbia researchers.

4 May 2004

First imaging-based diagnostic test for living Alzheimer’s

Mayo Clinic researchers have devised a way to produce enhanced MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) pictures of the destructive brain lesions that cause Alzheimer’s disease. This advance using laboratory mice lays the foundation for the first imaging-based diagnostic test for living Alzheimer’s disease patients.

30 Apr 2004