AP - The United States proposed an international coalition to support Syria's opposition Sunday after Russia and China blocked a U.N. attempt to end nearly 11 months of bloodshed, raising fears that violence will escalate. Rebel soldiers said force was now the only way to oust President Bashar Assad, while the regime vowed to press its military crackdown.
AP - For the first time in nearly two decades of escalating tensions over Iran's nuclear program, world leaders are genuinely concerned that an Israeli military attack on the Islamic Republic could be imminent — an action that many fear might trigger a wider war, terrorism and global economic havoc.
AP - A protest of the embattled president of Yemen outside the New York hotel where he's staying got heated when demonstrators saw him leave the building.
AP - Ignoring a U.S. threat to cut off aid, Egypt on Sunday referred 19 Americans and 24 other employees of nonprofit groups to trial before a criminal court on accusations they illegally used foreign funds to foment unrest in the country.
AP - Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, who was toppled by a 1989 American invasion and later convicted of drug running, was transferred from prison to a hospital on Sunday, possibly because of a stroke, police said.
AP - The recording was forgotten, and so, too, was the odd twist of history that brought together Malcolm X and a bespectacled Ivy Leaguer fated to become one of America's top diplomats.
AP - When US News & World Report debuted its list of "America's Best Colleges" nearly 30 years ago, the magazine hoped its college rankings would be a game-changer for students and families. But arguably, they've had a much bigger effect on colleges themselves.
AP - MVP quarterbacks on marquee franchises. A rematch of a nail-biter from four years ago, featuring many of the same key characters. Madonna and plenty of Manning — Eli, and Peyton, too.
Does A Lab-Measured Compassionate Brain Fare Well In Real Life?
A new series of studies is being launched by the University of Wisconsin-Madison, exploring insight knowledge on how laboratory measures of moral qualities, such as compassion, relate to real-life behavior. Founder of the UW's Center for Investigating Healthy Minds (CIHM), Dr. Richard J. Davidson at the Waisman Center, was awarded a three-year, $1.7 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation for developing laboratory and real life measures of moral qualities, such as compassion and selflessness...
Treating Brain Injuries With Stem Cell Transplants - Promising Results
The February edition of Neurosurgery reports that animal experiments in brain-injured rats have shown that stem cells injected via the carotid artery travel directly to the brain, greatly enhancing functional recovery...
Drinking decaffeinated coffee may improve brain energy metabolism associated with diabetes type 2, according to a study published in Nutritional Neuroscience and carried out by researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Brain energy metabolism is a dysfunction with a known risk factor for dementia and other neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease...
NHS Will Have To Be Re-Reformed Within Five Years, UK
In five years the NHS will require another reform, caution the editors of three leading healthcare publications. In addition, they request a public debate regarding the NHS's future to "salvage some good" from the government's "damaging" reforms. According to a second BMJ report discarding the Health and Social Care Bill, now would save more than £1 billion in 2013. Editors from the BMJ, Nursing Times, and Health Service Journal, explain that: "(the NHS) is far too important to be left at the mercy of ideological and incompetent intervention...
According to an investigation of GPs (general practitioners) in one region of South East England, burnout levels in UK general practice are high. The study is published in BMJ Open. The article reveals that primary care physicians (GPs, general practitioners, family doctors) who work in group practices, those who always see the same patient, and male doctors appear to be at considerably higher risk. This finding urged the researchers to reveal that "a significant group of doctors is in trouble...
A Missouri State Medical Association, led by two Saint Louis University pediatricians, aims to raise awareness about the importance of getting children vaccinated and change the way in which doctors respond to parents' fears of vaccines. The campaign is the focus point of Ken Haller, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, and Anthony Scalzo, M.D...
Robin van Persie's hat-trick, two goals from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Mikel Arteta's strike and Thierry Henry's late goal help Arsenal thump Blackburn.
Two Saint Louis University pediatricians are leading a Missouri State Medical Association statewide effort to change the way doctors respond to parents' fears of vaccines, and to raise awareness about the importance of getting children vaccinated. Ken Haller, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, and Anthony Scalzo, M.D...
For Kidney Disease Patients, Goals For Blood Pressure May Be Unrealistic
An upward revision of the blood pressure numbers used to identify risk of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) might actually help doctors provide better care for their patients, said the authors of a study in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The researchers found that systolic blood pressure - the "upper number" in a blood pressure reading - was the key variable. Current guidelines call for CKD patients to maintain a systolic pressure of 130/80 or lower in order to prevent ESRD, which is complete or almost complete kidney failure, leading to dialysis, kidney transplant, or death...
A new analysis of malaria mortality published in The Lancet this week suggests deaths to the parasitic disease worldwide have been grossly underestimated, especially in adults. If confirmed, the study has huge implications for how large amounts of charity money are spent in controlling the disease. However, the study also finds that thanks to improved prevention and treatment, such as anti-malaria drugs and insecticide-treated bed nets, deaths to malaria are falling rapidly...
Bone Density Testing - ASBMR Response To NEJM Article
The recently reported study on bone density testing in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) may have inadvertently resulted in confusion about the use and recommended frequency of an important diagnostic tool used for osteoporosis, a very serious condition that affects many women...
A report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that was published in Child Abuse and Neglect - The International Journal, reveals that the total lifetime estimated financial costs that is associated with just one year of confirmed cases of child maltreatment, including physical and sexual abuse, psychological abuse and neglect, is about 124 billion U.S. dollars. The researchers examined confirmed incidents of child maltreatment over the period of one year and found 1,740 fatal and 579,000 non-fatal cases...
US Pediatricians Recommend Routine HPV Vaccination For Boys
As part of a revised standard published this week, the American Academy of Pediatrics says boys should be routinely vaccinated against the human papillomavirus (HPV), a common virus that is spread through sexual contact. Although there are dozens of types of HPV, vaccines can protect both male and females against some of the more common types that can lead to disease and cancer...
Adaptive Designs In Clinical Drug Development Conference, 26 - 27 March 2012, London
Join SMi at their Adaptive Designs in Clinical Drug Development conference to be held on the 26th & 27th March at the Grange Holborn in London. This event is the premier event of its kind in Europe and the only event to focus exclusively on how adaptive designs in clinical drug development. With more flexibility, faster development timelines and significant monetary savings, an adaptive design trial is the way forward. Jürgen Hummel, Associate Statistical Science Director, PPD has joined the speaker line-up...
Study Looks At Reasons For Lack Of Improvement In Outcomes For Treatment Of Unruptured Brain Aneurysms
Despite advances in the diagnosis and treatment of unruptured brain aneurysms, outcomes have remained stagnant over the last 10 years. This can be explained by the dramatic proliferation of minimally invasive endoscopic coiling procedures at lower-volume community hospitals, where outcomes are inferior. These findings are reported in a study by neurologists, neurosurgeons and neuro-anesthesiologists at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and published in the journal Stroke...
Erratic Heart Rhythm May Account For Some Unexplained Strokes
Occasional erratic heart rhythms appear to cause about one-fifth of strokes for which a cause is not readily established, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012. About one-third of survivors leave the hospital with the cause of their stroke still undetermined. "Identifying and treating these patients for irregular rhythm could reduce the recurrence of stroke by 40 percent compared to reducing the risk by treating them with aspirin," said Daniel J. Miller, M.D...
In Preadolescence, Sleep Deprivation Tied To Increased Nighttime Urination
Nighttime visits to the bathroom are generally associated with being pregnant or having an enlarged prostate, but the problem can affect youngsters, too. A new study sheds light on why some children may need to urinate more often during the rest cycle. Danish researchers have found that sleep deprivation causes healthy children, between the ages of eight and twelve, to urinate significantly more frequently, excrete more sodium in their urine, have altered regulation of the hormones important for excretion, and have higher blood pressure and heart rates...
Brain Blood Flow And Oxygen Monitored By First-Of-Its-Kind Head Patch
A research team led by investigators at Mayo Clinic in Florida has found that a small device worn on a patient's brow can be useful in monitoring stroke patients in the hospital. The device measures blood oxygen, similar to a pulse oximeter, which is clipped onto a finger. Their study, published in Neurosurgical Focus, suggests this tool, known as frontal near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), could offer hospital physicians a safe and cost-effective way to monitor patients who are being treated for a stroke, in real time...
Rutgers scientists have uncovered genetic clues as to why some mice no longer in danger are still fearful while others are resilient to traumatic experiences - knowledge that could help those suffering with crippling anxiety and PTSD. "Our work with mice demonstrates how genes play a role in developing and extinguishing pathological fear like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," says Gleb Shumyatsky, an associate professor in the Department of Genetics in the School of Arts and Sciences...
IPM Decreased Pesticide Use In Univ Of Florida Housing
A new study recently published in the Journal of Integrated Pest Management (JIPM) shows that from 2003 to 2008, the use of insecticide active ingredients was reduced by about 90% in University of Florida housing buildings after an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program was implemented. IPM is a systematic approach to managing pests based on long-term prevention or suppression by a variety of methods that are cost effective and minimize risks to human health and the environment...
Genes Linked To Alzheimer's Are The Same For Early- And Late-Onset
The same gene mutations linked to inherited, early-onset Alzheimer's disease have been found in people with the more common late-onset form of the illness. The discovery by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis may lead doctors and researchers to change the way Alzheimer's disease is classified. They reported their findings in the online journal PLoS One (Public Library of Science)...
Though pacemakers require only small amounts of energy (about 1 millionth of a Watt), their batteries have to be replaced periodically, which means multiple surgeries for patients. Researchers have searched for ways to prolong battery life - trying to generate energy to power a pacemaker using blood sugar, or the motion of the hands and legs - but these methods either interfere with metabolism or require a more drastic surgery, such as passing a wire from the limbs to the chest area...
Susan G. Komen Starts U-Turn After Planned Parenthood Cut-Off
After announcing that it was going to cut funding for Planned Parenthood's breast screenings, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a breast cancer foundation, today announced that it is changing its funding criteria, meaning it will probably resume funding to Planned Parenthood, a sexual health organization. The public outcry regarding alleged reasons for Planned Parenthood being dropped as a grantee by Komen appears to have taken the breast cancer charity by surprise...
Hepatitis C is a viral disease that leads to inflammation and organ failure. However, researchers are puzzled as to why some individuals are very susceptible to the disease, while others are not. Researchers believe they could find out how genetic variations produce these different responses by investigating liver cells from different individuals in the lab. However, liver cells are hard to obtain and extremely challenging to grow in a lab dish as they often lose their normal function and structure when removed from the body...
Partial Mastectomies Often Result In Further Surgeries
According to an investigation in the February 1 issue of JAMA, surgery to remove additional tissue (reexcision) is required in almost 1 in 4 women who undergo a partial mastectomy for breast cancer treatment. In addition, there is considerable surgeon and institutional difference in the rate of reexcisions that have nothing to do with patients' characteristics. In the U.S., the current environment of health care reform requests transparency of health care outcomes and increasing hospital and physician accountability...
After 100 days in hospital and undergoing a complicated 6-organ transplant, 9-year-old Alannah Shevenell, from Maine, leaves Boston Children's Hospital today and goes home. Alannah has been treated for a rare form of cancer; an inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor continued to grow after all possible treatments failed, and was compromising her internal organs. A team of surgeons, led by Dr. Heung Bae Kim, the hospital's Pediatric Transplant Center director, performed the transplant procedure of Alannah's liver, spleen, pancreas, stomach, small intestine and esophagus...
According to an analysis of complaints in the latest edition of inpractice, the Medical Defense Union's journal that appears twice a year and is aimed at GP practice manager members covering topics like complaints, RCN indemnity changes and dealing with estranged parents, over 90% of 2,410 complaints made by GP members in the year April 2009/2010 seem to have been resolved locally. According to the MDU, this quota represents a great achievement made by practice managers who frequently take a lead in managing complaints...
Pharmaceutical Legislation Changes In Europe - EMA and Member States Prepare
Preparations are underway at the European Medicines Agency together with European Member States and the European Commission, for the introduction of the new pharmacovigilance legislation in July this year. The new legislation will represent the biggest change to the legal framework since The Agency was founded in 1995. The Agency is finalizing their preparations for the inaugural meeting of the new Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC), which is scheduled for 19 July 2012...
The World Health Organization (WHO) has ongoing programs to improve and monitor tuberculosis (TB). The WHO's 2011 report on global TB control provides the most comprehensive information ever collected on the problems and issues of disease, as well as deaths caused by TB and multidrug-resistant TB (i.e. disease marked by in vitro resistance to at least isoniazid and rifampicin). They also look at treatment outcomes, financing mechanisms and new TB diagnostics, drugs and vaccines...
Suicide Recommendations Lead To Drop In Suicides Across England And Wales
According to new research published by The Lancet, there has been a substantial decrease in suicide rates among health authorities across England and Wales that adopted a new range of suicide recommendations. The recommendations were made by the National Confidential Inquiry (NCI) into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness in the 1990s, a project that is striving to monitor suicide and enhance health-care quality in the UK...
