Intensive medical therapy more effective than stenting for preventing a second stroke — Results of NIH-funded clinical trial published in New England Journal of Medicine – Patients at a high risk for a second stroke who received intensive medical treatment had fewer strokes and deaths than patients who received a brain stent in addition to the medical treatment, a large nationwide clinical trial has shown.
65 million more obese adults in the US and 11 million more in the UK expected by 2030 — Resulting rise in US medical costs estimated to reach up to $66 billion a year – The rising prevalence of obesity around the globe places an increasing burden on the health of populations, on healthcare systems and on overall economies. A major challenge for researchers is to quantify the effect of these burdens to inform public policies.
Successfully tested in Rwanda, mChip diagnoses infectious diseases like HIV and syphilis at patients’ bedsides; new device could streamline blood testing worldwide – New low-cost diagnostics like the mChip can revolutionize medical care around the world, revealed by researcher in US. Microfluidics-the manipulation of small amounts of fluids-and nanoparticles can be successfully leveraged to produce a functional low-cost diagnostic device in extreme resource-limited settings.
Yale researchers discover many genetic keys needed to unlock autism – Investigating 1,000 families reveals hundreds of small genetic variations are associated with autism spectrum disorders, according to a multi-site collaborative study led by researchers at Yale University. These genetic findings can be used to begin unraveling the underlying biology of autism.
Vitamin E or Metformin May Not Be Effective for Treating Liver Disease in Children and Teens – In contrast to previous preliminary data, use of vitamin E or the diabetes drug metformin was not superior to placebo on a measured outcome for treating nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in children and adolescents.
Prenatal exposure to common insecticide linked to decreases in cognitive functioning at age 7 — Deficits in IQ and working memory suggest longer-term educational implications – Researchers from the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health at the Mailman School of Public Health report evidence of a link between prenatal exposure to the insecticide chlorpyrifos and deficits in IQ and working memory at age seven.
Weight loss improves memory, according to Kent State researcher – John Gunstad, an associate professor in Kent State University’s Department of Psychology, and a team of researchers have discovered a link between weight loss and improved memory and concentration. The study shows that bariatric surgery patients exhibited improved memory function 12 weeks after their operations.
Therapy to prevent heart failure more effective in women than men — Never before has a therapy proven more beneficial for women than men in preventing heart disease ? until now. – Women receive a significantly greater benefit ? a 70 percent reduction in heart failure and a 72 percent reduction in death ? from cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillator (CRT-D) than men, revealed by US researchers.
Researchers: Pay more attention to epilepsy, affects millions of people – Epilepsy, a common and serious neurologic disorder that affects millions of people, is not getting the public attention and funding for research it deserves, according to an editorial on a study published in the January_4, 2011, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Stem cells shape up to their surroundings – Many scientists aspire to take control over the stem cell differentiation process, so that we can grow organs and implants perfectly matched to each patient in the future.
