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Researcher studying sarcasm for insight into child development

"Sarcasm is something that we don't 'get' until a certain point in our childhood stage of development, late in our primary years," she notes. "It's a learned thing, and takes time to develop."

26 Jul 2007

Metformin gets top grade for diabetes

A type 2 diabetes drug taken orally and in widespread use for more than a decade has been found to have distinct advantages over nine other, mostly newer medications used to control the chronic disease, according to a study by researchers at Johns Hopkins.

26 Jul 2007

Are your friends making you fat? Or keeping you slender?

According to new research from Harvard and the University of California, San Diego, the short answer on both counts is "yes."

26 Jul 2007

Jury out on high fructose corn syrup and obesity

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has been singled out as having special properties that make Americans fatter than sugar and other energy sources with identical calorie contents.

26 Jul 2007

Obesity spreads within social networks

People wondering about excessive weight gain might look to their relationships with family and friends for one clue, suggests new research reported July 26, 2007, in The New England Journal of Medicine.

26 Jul 2007

PA catheterization uses decreases substantially in U.S.

Use of the pulmonary artery catheter decreased by 65 percent in the U.S. between 1993 and 2004, possibly due to growing evidence that this invasive procedure does not reduce the risk of death for hospitalized patients, according to a study in the July 25 issue of JAMA .

25 Jul 2007

$Hip protectors do not reduce risk of hip fracture for nursing home residents$

Hip protectors do not reduce risk of hip fracture for nursing home residents

Use of an energy-absorbing hip protector did not provide a protective effect against hip fracture for nursing home residents, adding to increasing evidence that hip protectors, as currently designed, are not effective for preventing hip fractures, according to a study in the July 25 issue of JAMA.

25 Jul 2007

Implantable contraceptives are extremely effective

Although the devices are barely used in developed countries and only a bit more popular elsewhere, a new review of research suggests that implantable contraceptives are extremely effective.

25 Jul 2007

Sewage-contaminated groundwater found at offshore reefs of upper Florida Keys

Athens, Ga. A new University of Georgia study finds that sewage-contaminated groundwater is reaching the offshore reefs of the Upper Florida Keys, possibly threatening corals and human health.

25 Jul 2007

Research sheds light on synesthesia

In the psychological phenomenon known as 'synesthesia', individuals sensory systems are a bit more intertwined than usual.

25 Jul 2007

Radiation therapy combined with microsurgery shows promise for curing injured spinal cord

Research on rats with crushed spinal cords, similar to human injury, reveals that treatment soon after injury combining radiation therapy to destroy harmful cells and microsurgery to drain excess fluids significantly increases the body's ability to repair the injured cord leading to permanent recovery from injury, according to the study published in the July 18 peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE.

25 Jul 2007

Prenatal alcohol exposure alters brain activity in the frontal-striatal areas

Heavy prenatal alcohol exposure does not always lead to fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS); sometimes it can lead to cognitive and behavioral deficits in the absence of craniofacial features needed to make an FAS diagnosis.

25 Jul 2007

Telephone counseling coaxes reluctant alcoholics into treatment

Telephone counseling might be an effective primary care intervention for men who are not seeking treatment for their alcohol dependence or abuse, according to a new study.

25 Jul 2007

Experience of the surgeon determines outcome of prostate cancer surgery

According to a new study published online in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, prostate cancer patients treated by highly experienced surgeons are much more likely to be cancer-free five years after surgery than patients treated by surgeons with less experience.

25 Jul 2007

New approach to rapid identification and development of malaria vaccines

Malaria is the world's most frequent parasitic disease, affecting more than 100 countries in the tropical zones, mostly in Africa, and 40% of the world population, with more than a million deaths per year.

25 Jul 2007

Link between breast cancer and hormone therapy confirmed

A sharp drop in breast cancer rates from 2003 to 2004 is linked to an even larger drop in women's use of hormone therapy that began around 2000, according to a Kaiser Permanente study in the August 1, 2007, issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute that confirms the connection between breast cancer, hormone therapy and mammography screening over the past 25 years.

25 Jul 2007