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Visions of primary care in 2015

The forthcoming white paper on health and community services in England will affect all of our futures, so the British Medical Journal asked some people with an interest in general practice to predict the future.

6 Jan 2006

Caspase 8 gene halts spread of aggressive childhood cancer

A team of cancer researchers has shown that a gene commonly lost during neuroblastoma tumor formation, one of the most aggressive cancers in babies and children, is in fact a "metastasis suppressor" gene.

6 Jan 2006

Exposure to infections at birth can trigger brain damage and the development of cerebral palsy

Exposure to certain viral infections shortly before and after birth (the perinatal period) is associated with cerebral palsy, finds a study published online by the British Medical Journal.

6 Jan 2006

Magnet therapy shows no benefits

Patients should be advised that magnet therapy has no proved benefits, and that any healing effect is likely to be small, say U.S. researchers in this week's British Medical Journal.

6 Jan 2006

Astrocytes play a direct role in controlling blood flow in the brain - influencing Alzheimer's

New findings that long-overlooked brain cells play an important role in regulating blood flow in the brain call into question one of the basic assumptions underlying today's most sophisticated brain imaging techniques and could open a new frontier when it comes to understanding Alzheimer's disease.

6 Jan 2006

Australian researchers discover stem cell that drives the formation of all breast tissue

Victorian Breast Cancer Research Consortium scientists from The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, using a mouse model, have discovered the rare stem cell that drives the formation of all breast tissue.

5 Jan 2006

Risky sex, quality of children's medical care - Journal of Urban Health

The newest issue of the Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of The New York Academy of Medicine includes a host of compelling research findings regarding risky sexual behavior in the vacation hotspot of Miami, racial influences on the quality of children's medical care, and willingness of blacks to use the Internet to manage their diabetes. These studies are summarized below.

5 Jan 2006

Cyclosporine suppresses hepatitis C virus and increases the chance of a sustained virological response after liver transplantation

Liver transplant patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) achieved significantly better long-term viral response when taking the immunosuppressive agent Cyclosporine along with interferon-ribavirin combination therapy. Cyclosporine also showed efficacy against Hepatitis C virus in vitro.

5 Jan 2006

Researchers discover brain mechanism involved with interpreting visual signals

Researchers from the University of Chicago have uncovered an important mechanism used by the developing brain to pattern nerve connections in the part of the brain that interprets visual signals.

5 Jan 2006

Molecular finding will help better understand measles and mumps

A team of Northwestern University researchers has solved the structure of a molecule that controls the ability of viruses of the paramyxovirus family, including the viruses that cause measles, mumps, and many human respiratory diseases, to fuse with and infect human cells.

5 Jan 2006

Researchers move closer to understanding the basis of a severe epilepsy and mental retardation

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine took a step closer to understanding the basis of a severe epilepsy and mental retardation syndrome with work published in the January 5, 2006 issue of the journal Neuron.

5 Jan 2006

Abstinence and Abstinence-Only Education: A Review of U.S. Policies and Programs

While few Americans remain abstinent until marriage and most initiate sexual intercourse as adolescents, abstinence from sexual intercourse is an important behavioral strategy for preventing human immunodeficiency virus, other sexually transmitted infections, and unintended pregnancy among adolescents

5 Jan 2006

New pathways linking liver disease to changes in the central nervous system

Liver disease is often associated with "sickness behaviors," such as malaise, listlessness, anorexia, difficulty concentrating, and fatigue. In cholestatic liver diseases (where bile production is impaired) such as primary biliary cirrhosis, fatigue occurs in up to 86 percent of patients.

5 Jan 2006

Treating gum disease may reduce heart problems

The Journal of Dental Research has just published the results of a study showing that treatment of gum disease may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

5 Jan 2006

Brain's endocannabinoids protects neurons from inflammation

Some clinical studies have indicated that marijuana or its active cannabinoid ingredient alleviates symptoms of the inflammatory disease multiple sclerosis (MS).

5 Jan 2006

Limitation of combination therapy of Interferon and Ribavirin for older patients with chronic hepatitis C

A new Japanese study examining the effects of combination therapy on older patients with hepatitis C found more adverse effects necessitating discontinuation of treatment, lowering of dosages, and lower long-term benefits in this age group.

5 Jan 2006

National estimates for 18 specific major birth defects between 1999 and 2001

Cleft lip is a treatable birth defect, but for the families of the estimated 6,800 U.S. infants born with one, it's a heartbreaking experience – not only because of the associated health problems, but because friends and family may ignore the condition or because of social stigma associated with facial defects.

5 Jan 2006