Sleep News and Research

Latest Sleep News and Research

Working rotating shifts may increase risk of developing IBS and abdominal pain

Nurses participating in shift work, especially those working rotating shifts, face a significantly increased risk of developing Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and abdominal pain compared to those working a standard day-time schedule, according to research published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology.

19 Mar 2010

FDA approves Somaxon Pharmaceuticals' Silenor for treatment of insomnia

Somaxon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the New Drug Application (NDA) for Silenor® (doxepin) for the treatment of insomnia characterized by difficulty with sleep maintenance.

19 Mar 2010

Senate parliamentarian wields authority over Democrats' health care efforts

The Associated Press: "When Congress battles over thorny bills, parliamentarian Alan Frumin has been known to sleep in his office — on call 24/7 as the Senate's Solomon, divining the answers. Frumin's ability to review long-standing rules and centuries of precedent to resolve Senate questions makes the mustachioed parliamentarian something of a Washington rock star these days.

18 Mar 2010

New specialty service at Montefiore Medical Center helps patients with drug allergies

A Westchester patient takes aspirin for pain, but develops rashes and hives. A Bronx patient with a gastrointestinal problem caused by bacteria is prescribed penicillin, then passes out. A Bronx woman is given a contrast dye for an internal diagnostic exam, then her skin peels off.

18 Mar 2010

Taking dietary supplements for adrenal fatigue may do more harm than good

Taking vitamins or supplements to treat "adrenal fatigue" may do more harm than good, says Todd Nippoldt, M.D., a Mayo Clinic expert in hormone disorders affecting the adrenal glands.

18 Mar 2010

Prevenar 13: Immunogenic and well tolerated in young children previously vaccinated with Prevenar

According to results from a Phase III safety and immunogenicity study presented today, Prevenar 13 (Pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine, [13-valent, adsorbed]) was shown to be immunogenic and generally well tolerated in healthy young children who had received at least three prior doses of Prevenar (Pneumococcal Saccharide Conjugated Vaccine, Adsorbed). These data were presented today at the 7th International Symposium on Pneumococci and Pneumococcal Diseases (ISPPD) in Tel Aviv, Israel.

17 Mar 2010

First Edition: March 17, 2010

Today's news continues to focus on Democratic leaders' efforts to finalize their health reform package and gather the votes necessary to gain House passage.

17 Mar 2010

Bench to Bassinet Program aims to move lab results into clinical practice

To help speed the translation of scientific discoveries into usable treatments in congenital heart disease, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health launched the Bench to Bassinet Program.

17 Mar 2010

GE Healthcare introduces OSA diagnostic tool for inpatient cardiac patients

GE Healthcare today introduced MARS® Virtual Sleep Lab (VSL), the first device to provide a streamlined view of quantitative cardiac and sleep apnea analysis from any GE-monitored inpatient bed, helping enhance speed of diagnosis.

16 Mar 2010

ATS releases new clinical policy statement on CCHS

The American Thoracic Society has released a new official clinical policy statement on congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS), a disorder of respiratory and autonomic nervous system (ANS) regulation. The ANS regulates reflexive acts, including heart rate and blood pressure, digestion, body temperature and pain perception.

15 Mar 2010

Combination therapy does not reduce cardiovascular risk in type 2 diabetes patients

Lowering blood pressure to normal levels - below currently recommended levels - did not significantly reduce the combined risk of fatal or nonfatal cardiovascular disease events in adults with type 2 diabetes who were at especially high risk for cardiovascular disease events, according to new results from the landmark Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) clinical trial.

15 Mar 2010

Investigators develop new mathematical approach to analyze molecular data

Investigators have developed a new mathematical approach to analyze molecular data derived from complex mixtures of immune cells. This approach, when combined with well-established techniques, readily identifies changes in small samples of human whole blood, and has the potential to distinguish between health and disease states.

11 Mar 2010

Sleep deprivation may increase heart attack risk

On average, people go to work or school on the first Monday of Daylight Savings after sleeping 40 fewer minutes than normal. And recent studies have found there's a higher risk of heart attacks, traffic accidents and workplace injuries on the first Monday of Daylight Savings.

11 Mar 2010

Sleep disorders may increase risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases

Many Americans will lose an hour of sleep on March 14, the first day of daylight-saving time, when clocks are set ahead one hour at 2 a.m. local standard time—making it harder to wake up, causing difficulty in staying alert and increasing the chance of sleepy-driving car crashes.

11 Mar 2010

SPO Medical signs MOU with MetroSleep

SPO Medical Inc., a leading developer of biosensor and microprocessor technologies for use in portable monitoring devices, today announced it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with MetroSleep Inc, a US corporation that specializes in products to diagnose and treat sleep apnea through at-home testing. The MOU enables the integration of SPO Medical' ASIC chip-set technology in a new MetroSleep product offering for the Sleep Disturbance Breathing monitoring market.

10 Mar 2010

Omeros obtains exclusive license to compounds from Asubio Pharma for use in its PDE7 program

Omeros Corporation today announced that it has obtained an exclusive license to compounds from Asubio Pharma Co., Ltd. for use in its PDE7 program, which is focused on the treatment of movement disorders.

9 Mar 2010

Positive interim results from NxStage Medical's FREEDOM study in RLS

NxStage Medical, Inc., a leading manufacturer of innovative dialysis products, today announced the latest interim results from its ongoing FREEDOM study, which show the significant improvement of overall sleep quality and marked improvement in Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) experienced by patients after four months of daily home hemodialysis therapy with the NxStage System One™.

8 Mar 2010

VIVUS granted three additional patents for Qnexa

VIVUS, Inc. today announced the issuance of three additional patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) covering Qnexa, an investigational new drug candidate for the treatment of obesity. The three new patents are the second, third, and fourth patents to be granted in a series of patent applications VIVUS has filed that are directed to the Qnexa product and methods of using Qnexa in various therapeutic applications.

8 Mar 2010

NSF's Sleep in America poll finds differences in sleep habits and attitudes among ethnic groups

The 2010 Sleep in America poll released today by the National Sleep Foundation reveals significant differences in the sleep habits and attitudes of Asians, Blacks/African-Americans, Hispanics and Whites. It is the first poll to examine sleep among these four ethnic groups.

8 Mar 2010

Grinding teeth at night common among those trying to cope with stress by escaping from difficult situations

People who are stressed by daily problems or trouble at work seem to be more likely to grind their teeth at night. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Head & Face Medicine studied the causes of 'sleep bruxism', gnashing teeth during the night, finding that it was especially common in those who try to cope with stress by escaping from difficult situations.

5 Mar 2010