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Impact of oral contraceptives not immediately reversible after discontinuation

Hormonal changes induced by oral contraceptives (OC) are not immediately reversible after discontinuation of use, according to new research issued today at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) Fourteenth Annual Meeting and Clinical Congress.

18 May 2005

Metabolic syndrome linked to testosterone deficiency

Among men studied, those with a history of diabetes, hypertension or hyperlipidemia have a higher prevalence of hypogonadism, according to new research issued today at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) Fourteenth Annual Meeting and Clinical Congress.

18 May 2005

North American women receiving inadequate vitamin D

Vitamin D inadequacy may be overlooked by clinicans thus leading to inadequate vitamin D supplementation in patients with osteoporosis, according to new research issued today at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) Fourteenth Annual Meeting and Clinical Congress.

18 May 2005

Only 34% of polling stations accessible to disabled people

Sixty-six per cent of polling stations surveyed failed a basic access test for disabled people, according to Scope’s Polls Apart campaign, which tested the accessibility of polling stations and postal voting in the General Election earlier this month.

18 May 2005

EraGen Biosciences and Bayer announce agreements for new cystic fibrosis (CF) assay

EraGen Biosciences, a rapidly growing molecular diagnostics company and Bayer HealthCare LLC, Diagnostics Division, announced today that EraGen has licensed its patented MultiCode-PLx® System to Bayer HealthCare in an exclusive worldwide agreement for Cystic Fibrosis.

18 May 2005

Global project to combat parasites that cause cancer and infection in millions

Many cancers are associated with infections (for example cervical cancer is linked to the human papilloma virus) but there is no stronger link between a human malignancy and a parasitic infection than that between cancer of the bile ducts and a liver fluke called Opisthorchis viverrini.

18 May 2005

Nutritional composition of a mother’s breast milk may depend not just on her diet - but on her genes

“It is well known that genes control the nutrient levels in cow’s milk” said Richard B. Weinberg, M.D. “But until now, no one has considered how genes might affect human breast milk. This is the first study to demonstrate a genetic effect on human lactation.” The results were presented today at Digestive Disease Week 2005 in Chicago, Ill.

18 May 2005

New combination vaccine effective against plague

Plague, a bacterium that ravaged Europe in the Middle Ages and is today one of the most feared potential agents of bio-terrorism, may have met its match, according to Wake Forest University School of Medicine scientists.

18 May 2005

Australia to establish a national clinical trials register

For the first time, medical researchers, doctors and the general public will have information about clinical trials happening across the country in all areas of health, with the announcement of a national on-line register of all types of clinical trials.

18 May 2005

Concurrent radiation, chemo, followed by surgery lengthens lung cancer patients' survival

Patients whose lung cancer has spread to the lymph nodes have a better chance of long-term survival if they receive combined modality therapy, such as concurrent radiation and chemotherapy followed by surgery, according to a study that Loyola University Health System’s Dr. Kathy S. Albain presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting.

18 May 2005

Advanced breast cancer drug appears effective on multiple targets

An experimental breast cancer drug that simultaneously attacks five tumor targets has halted progression of the disease in a clinical trial for patients with advanced disease.

18 May 2005

Antiretroviral therapy may prevent excess risk of some cancers in people with HIV

In people infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) may prevent most excess cases of Kaposi sarcoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, according to a new study in the March 16 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

18 May 2005

World Health Assembly hears warning on avian influenza threat

The 58th World Health Assembly heard a warning from Dr. LEE Jong-wook, Director-General of the World Health Organization, on what he called the "most serious known health threat the world is facing today, which is avian influenza."

18 May 2005

Roche to discontinue the sale and distribution of Fortovase (saquinavir)

Roche announced today that it has decided to discontinue the sale and distribution of Fortovase (saquinavir), as clinical demand for the drug has declined significantly due to the availability of a new formulation of Invirase (saquinavir mesylate), which increasingly has become the preferred formulation of saquinavir.

18 May 2005

Cardiovascular risk factors among homeless people are under-treated in Canada

The study, the first comprehensive assessment of cardiovascular risk factors in a representative sample of homeless adults, also found that cardiovascular risks among the homeless may be underestimated due to commonly used risk assessment tools that do not account for cocaine use and the level of smoking exposure.

18 May 2005

Artificial disc offers new option for back pain

Until recently San Diego residents with severe back pain from degenerative disc disease have had few options. But Oceanside resident Joan Steggell decided the traditional treatment, spinal fusion, was not the right choice for her. Instead she opted for an innovative new surgery at UCSD’s Thornton Hospital.

18 May 2005

Leading patient safety advocates assess progress in reducing medical error five years after landmark IOM report

It has been five years since the release of the Institute of Medicine’s landmark report on medical errors, “To Err is Human.” What progress has been made to improve patient safety since the report found that nearly 100,000 deaths occur annually as a result of medical error?

18 May 2005