ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

Most coronary patients in Europe are not meeting their lifestyle, therapeutic and risk factor targets after hospitalisation Posted: 16 Feb 2015 05:49 PM PST Fewer than one half of all European patients following a heart attack are even receiving the benefits of cardiac rehabilitation and preventive care, research shows. In reviewing the results the investigators note considerable variation between European countries in lifestyle and risk factor management, the use of cardioprotective medication, and the provision of rehabilitations services.

Women active a few times weekly have lower risk of heart disease, stroke and blood clots Posted: 16 Feb 2015 05:05 PM PST Middle-aged women physically active a few times per week have lower risks of heart disease, stroke and blood clots than inactive women. More frequent physical activity does not appear to lower the risks further, research shows.

Changing stem cell structure may help fight obesity Posted: 16 Feb 2015 05:04 PM PST Scientists have found that reducing the size of tiny hair like structures on stem cells stops them turning into fat. The discovery could be used to develop a way of preventing obesity.

Terror attacks offer insights for first responders Posted: 16 Feb 2015 05:04 PM PST When terrorists strike, emergency workers who have the proper training, information access and a positive work environment will make better decisions, according to research.

Organizational culture, climate predicts use of evidence-based practices in the treatment of youth with psychiatric disorders Posted: 16 Feb 2015 05:03 PM PST Many mental health therapists use treatments that have little evidence to support them. A new multi-institution study has found that an organization’s culture and climate are better predictors of the use of evidence-based practices than an individual therapist’s characteristics in the treatment of children and adolescents with psychiatric disorders.

When strep throat is something else: Forgotten bacterium is cause of many severe sore throats in young adults Posted: 16 Feb 2015 05:03 PM PST New research suggests that Fusobacterium necrophorum more often causes severe sore throats in young adults than streptococcus — the cause of the much better known strep throat. The findings, suggest physicians should consider F. necrophorum when treating severe sore throat in young adults and adolescents that worsens.

Molecular trigger of inflammatory bowel disease discovered Posted: 16 Feb 2015 12:57 PM PST Cells lining the gut form a barrier that can be breached because of a signaling molecule called tumor necrosis factor (TNF). Elevated levels of TNF have been shown to cause inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), but what triggers the uptick in TNF is still not clear. Now researchers have discovered that a gene called uhrf1 acts like a kind of molecular handbrake, keeping TNF from setting off signals to inflame and damage the digestive tract.

In the short run, a high-fat diet may help minimize heart attack damage Posted: 16 Feb 2015 12:57 PM PST A high-fat diet, eaten one day to two weeks days before a heart attack, reduced heart attack damage in mice by about 50 percent, according to a new study. The finding could provide insight into the "obesity paradox," by which obesity appears to provide protection to heart attack patients. Researchers emphasize the study is not a license to eat a lot of cheeseburgers and ice cream.

Gene mutation drives cartilage tumor formation Posted: 16 Feb 2015 12:56 PM PST Researchers have shown how gene mutations may cause common forms of cartilage tumors. In a new study, they have revealed that mutations in the isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) gene contribute to the formation of benign tumors in cartilage that can be a precursor to malignancies.

In rural India, children receive wrong treatments for deadly ailments Posted: 16 Feb 2015 10:11 AM PST Few health care providers in rural India know the correct treatments for childhood diarrhea and pneumonia -- two leading killers of young children worldwide. But even when they do, they rarely prescribe them properly, according to a new study.

Anti-inflammatory mechanism of dieting and fasting revealed Posted: 16 Feb 2015 10:11 AM PST Researchers have found that a compound produced by the body when dieting or fasting can block a part of the immune system involved in several inflammatory disorders such as type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis, and Alzheimer's disease.

Link between powerful gene regulatory elements and autoimmune diseases Posted: 16 Feb 2015 10:11 AM PST Investigators have discovered the genomic switches of a blood cell key to regulating the human immune system. The findings open the door to new research and development in drugs and personalized medicine to help those with autoimmune disorders such as inflammatory bowel disease or rheumatoid arthritis.

Scientists uncover marvel molecule that could lead to treatments for inflammatory diseases Posted: 16 Feb 2015 10:11 AM PST Scientists have uncovered a marvel molecule that blocks a key driver of inflammatory diseases. The finding could meet a major unmet clinical need by inspiring new non-invasive treatments for arthritis, multiple sclerosis and Muckle-Wells syndrome, among a myriad of other inflammatory diseases.

Hot flashes, night sweats last for seven or more years in many midlife women Posted: 16 Feb 2015 10:11 AM PST Frequent menopausal vasomotor symptoms (VMS), including hot flashes and night sweats, lasted for more than seven years during the transition to menopause for more than half of the women in a large study and African-American women reported the longest total VMS duration, according to a new article.

Mindfulness meditation appears to help improve sleep quality Posted: 16 Feb 2015 10:11 AM PST Mindfulness meditation practices resulted in improved sleep quality for older adults with moderate sleep disturbance in a clinical trial comparing meditation to a more structured program focusing on changing poor sleep habits and establishing a bedtime routine, according to a new article.

New therapeutic strategy discovered for ovarian cancer Posted: 16 Feb 2015 10:11 AM PST Ovarian cancer is the deadliest of all cancers affecting the female reproductive system with very few effective treatments available. Prognosis is even worse among patients with certain subtypes of the disease. Now, researchers have identified a new therapeutic target in a particularly aggressive form of ovarian cancer, paving the way for what could be the first effective targeted therapy of its kind for the disease.

Urologists perform microsurgery for fertility in 'sterile' men Posted: 16 Feb 2015 09:54 AM PST A microsurgical technique credited with revolutionizing treatment of men once thought to be infertile is now being performed.

Molecule that provides cellular energy found key to aggressive thyroid cancer Posted: 16 Feb 2015 09:54 AM PST Cancer researchers have identified a molecule they say is important to survival of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) — a lethal tumor with no effective therapies. The molecule also seems to play a role in a wide range of cancers, they report.

Sexual reproduction has another benefit: It makes humans less prone to disease over time Posted: 16 Feb 2015 09:54 AM PST For decades, theories on the genetic advantage of sexual reproduction had been put forward, but none had ever been proven in humans, until now. Researchers have just shown how humanity's predispositions to disease gradually decrease the more we mix our genetic material together. This discovery was finally made possible by the availability in recent years of repositories of biological samples and genetic data from different populations around the globe.

Lack of RNA 'editing' leads to melanoma growth, metastasis Posted: 16 Feb 2015 09:54 AM PST The importance of RNA editing in melanoma has been demonstrated by scientists. The study revealed that a lack of RNA editing, a process by which information inside RNA molecules is transformed, leads to tumor growth and progression through manipulation of proteins.

Mothers can pass traits to offspring through bacteria's DNA, mouse study shows Posted: 16 Feb 2015 09:54 AM PST A new study in mice has shown that the DNA of bacteria that live in the body can pass a trait to offspring in a way similar to the parents' own DNA. According to the authors, the discovery means scientists need to consider a significant new factor -- the DNA of microbes passed from mother to child -- in their efforts to understand how genes influence illness and health.

Researchers may develop saliva test to diagnose autism Posted: 16 Feb 2015 09:54 AM PST A spit test may one day be able to diagnose autism according to new research. Scientists have published the first study showing that children with autism spectrum disorder have differences in protein levels in their saliva when compared to typically developing children.

Possible treatment for diseases caused by mitofusin 2 deficiency Posted: 16 Feb 2015 08:07 AM PST Researchers have discovered a novel role for Mitofusin 2, and the findings may point to a new treatment for patients with diseases caused by loss of the mitochondrial protein.

Newly discovered bacterial family may become a weapon in the fight against malaria Posted: 16 Feb 2015 06:21 AM PST A new family of bacteria that are common in malaria mosquitoes has been described by researchers in a recent publication. Now, attempts are made to use these bacteria in the fight against malaria.

More infectious diseases emerging in animals as climate changes, say zoologists Posted: 16 Feb 2015 03:49 AM PST The appearance of infectious diseases in new places and new hosts is a predictable result of climate change, say zoologists in a new article. Climate change brings humans, crops, wildlife and livestock into contact with new pathogens, which are more likely to jump from one host to another than scientists previously believed.

Teens increasingly sleep deprived Posted: 16 Feb 2015 03:49 AM PST A new study found that female students, racial/ethnic minorities, and students of lower socioeconomic status are less likely to report regularly getting seven or more hours of sleep each night compared with their male counterparts, non-Hispanic white teenagers, and students of higher socioeconomic status, respectively. The largest decrease in the percentage getting seven hours of sleep per night was 15-year-olds, a particularly concerning trend for students at this important juncture in development.

Eating disorders linked with financial difficulties in female students Posted: 16 Feb 2015 03:48 AM PST Experiencing financial difficulties at university may increase the risk of female students developing an eating disorder, according to new research. Conversely, the study also found that having extreme attitudes to food and eating predicted short-term financial difficulties for female students, suggesting the possibility of a 'vicious cycle' occurring, researchers report.

Even mild heart failure can lead to sudden death Posted: 16 Feb 2015 03:47 AM PST Sudden cardiac arrest is a possible cause of death in patients with non-ischemic cardiac muscle weakness, i.e. a type of heart failure caused by genetics or for which no cause is known. Now, researchers have successfully demonstrated the advantages of an implanted defibrillator (ICD) as a means of prevention in patients with moderately restricted cardiac function, and that patients with the condition must be treated as carefully as patients with ischemic heart failure which has developed following a heart attack, for example.

New figures on two muscular dystrophy disorders Posted: 16 Feb 2015 03:46 AM PST Public health researchers report the freqency of two muscle-weakness disorders that strike mostly boys: Duchenne muscular dystrophy and Becker muscular dystrophy. The team found that about 1 in 5,000 boys in the United States, between 5 and 9 years old, have the inherited disorders. They also find that the diseases appear to affect Hispanic boys more often than white or African-American boys, for unknown reasons.

An Italian cemetery may provide clues on cholera's evolution Posted: 15 Feb 2015 03:51 PM PST A team of archaeologists and other researchers hope that an ancient graveyard in Italy can yield clues about the deadly bacterium that causes cholera.

Human neural stem cells restore cognitive functions impaired by chemotherapy Posted: 15 Feb 2015 04:02 AM PST Human neural stem cell treatments are showing promise for reversing learning and memory deficits after chemotherapy, according to radiation oncology researchers.

Stress linked to worse recovery in women after heart attack Posted: 13 Feb 2015 01:48 PM PST Young and middle-aged women experience more stress than their male counterparts, which could contribute to worse recovery from acute myocardial infarction, according to new findings by researchers.

Door-to-door campaign linked hepatitis C patients to care Posted: 13 Feb 2015 08:23 AM PST Working on the streets in medically underserved Philadelphia neighborhoods, members of the Do One Thing program have been able to identify residents chronically infected with hepatitis C and help them overcome the hurdles that prevent people from being cured, according to a new study.