Study of energy and health in Africa focuses spotlight on charcoal and forest management
Berkeley and Boston -- A new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Harvard School of Public Health finds that promoting cleaner, more efficient technologies for producing charcoal in Africa can save millions of lives and have significant climate change and development benefits. ...... The African continent, as well as many developing nations in Asia and Latin Ame...Charcoal and forest management could reduce greenhouse gas levels & save lives in Africa
Berkeley, CA & Boston, MA A study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Harvard School of Public Health, finds that promoting cleaner, more efficient technologies for producing charcoal in Africa can save millions of lives and have significant climate change and development benefits. The findings appear in the April 1, 2005 issue of the journal Science. ......The Afr...International breast cancer prevention study launches in the United States and Canada
Boston-March 30, 2005 Today, a new clinical trial evaluating a novel approach to breast cancer prevention launched in the United States and Canada. Called the ExCel research study, this is the first North American clinical trial to evaluate the role of an aromatase inhibitor in the prevention of breast cancer. ......Coordinated by the National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group...Patients newly diagnosed with HIV are more likely to enter outpatient care with case management
ATLANTA--Patients recently diagnosed with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) are significantly more likely to seek medical treatment if they are followed even briefly by a case manager, according to findings of the national Antiretroviral Treatment Access Study (ARTAS). Physician/researchers in Atlanta, Baltimore, Los Angeles and Miami evaluated individuals recently diagnosed with HIV and found...Indiana University researchers closer to helping hearing-impaired using stem cells
INDIANAPOLIS -- Researchers at Indiana University School of Medicine are several steps closer to the day when a profoundly deaf patient's own bone marrow cells could be used to let him or her hear the world. ......The IU group, led by Eri Hashino, Ph.D., was able to transform, in the laboratory, stem cells taken from adult bone marrow into cells with many of the characteristics of sensory nerve c...Treatment of cardiac lesions without anaesthesic
... ......PFO is a defect of the interauricular septum (partition or wall separating the two (auricles) and that allows blood clots or thrombi to pass from the right auricle to the left. In most cases this opening closes after the baby is born but, on occasions, it stays open and, subsequently, clots can pass from the right auricle (venous) to the left (arterial) and give rise to a heart attack...New NHS payment system 'is no panacea'
The new NHS payment system has already run into problems and requires careful monitoring, say researchers at Dr Foster in this week's BMJ....... In April 2004 the NHS introduced its new "payment by results" system starting with foundation hospitals, whereby providers are paid for each individual case rather than through block contracts. ...... This new system uses healthcare resource groups (HRGs...(Philadelphia, PA March 9) Health-care policymakers and administrators have championed specialty-designed software systems including the highly-touted Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) systems as the cornerstone of improved patient safety. CPOE systems are claimed to significantly reduce medication-prescribing errors. "Our data indicate that that is often a false hope," says sociolo...New system for the analysis of facial movement in three dimensions
...The device, designed by STT Engineering & Systems of Donostia-San Sebastian and adapted for use by the Plastic Surgery service at the Hospital for facial applications, has received the 2004 Award in the Innovative Projects Competition for Young Entrepreneurs for Transference of Research Results (Ideactiva Gaztempresa). The device captures and quantifies facial movement in three dimensions by...Pet scanning better for heart disease diagnosis, management
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Using positron emission tomography (PET) scanning rather than other types of imaging as the first tool to diagnose heart-vessel blockages is more accurate, less invasive and saves dollars, a study by University at Buffalo researchers has shown.... The research findings were presented today (March 8, 2005) at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session in Orland...Influenza vaccination programmes for children in USA and Canada based on little evidence
Children in the USA and Canada are being vaccinated against influenza without adequate proof that it will work, concludes a study published in this week's issue of THE LANCET.... ...Most immunisation campaigns target people aged 65 years or older. The USA and Canada have recently started vaccinating children, including those aged 6 to 24 months, in the hope of reducing disease spread, admissions...Penn study will compare heart failure management technologies
(Philadelphia, PA) Researchers at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) have been awarded a $1.5 million dollar grant from the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality and the National Institutes of Health to study disease management technologies in patients with heart failure, and patients with both heart failure and diabetes. The principal investigator for the two-site trial...Marijuana ingredient may stall decline from Alzheimer's
WASHINGTON, DC February 17, 2005 -- New research shows that a synthetic analogue of the active component of marijuana may reduce the inflammation and prevent the mental decline associated with Alzheimer's disease....... "This research is not only a major step in our understanding [of] how the brain reacts to Alzheimer's disease, but may also help open a route to novel anti-Alzheimer's drugs," say...Physician roles at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo
...On Tuesday, March 1, the Harvard Medical School Division of Medical Ethics will host a public forum, "Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo: Medical Professionalism, Dual Loyalty, and Human Rights."...... This public forum will explore the role of medical military personnel in alleged torture and other violations of human rights in U.S. military facilities at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo. Medical professio...Molecular analyses of leukemia patients suggest strategies for better treatments
The cure rate for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) might continue to rise with improved use of conventional therapies. But even more effective and less toxic therapies based on genetic and pharmacogenetic studies might one day push the success rate close to 100 percent, according to an article published by investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in the April 8 issue of...Intensive diabetes management yields positive results, according to Pittsburgh project
PITTSBURGH, April 6 Increasing diabetes awareness and integrating a multi-faceted, approach to improve patient care and education, results in significantly improved patient outcomes, according to a report in the April issue of Clinical Diabetes, a publication of the American Diabetes Association. ...... The article reports the results of the first two years of an initiative to increase diabetes...Managing anger, boosting activity helps substance abusers stick with treatment
Encouraging substance abusers to participate in more rewarding activities and manage their negative emotions early in treatment may improve their chances of success, new research suggests....... Previous research has repeatedly shown that participants who stick with their treatment programs for the longest times are most likely to recover and not relapse, explains lead author Carolynn Kohn, Ph.D....Will a banana a day keep a stroke away?
St. Paul, MN People with a low amount of potassium in their diet may have an increased risk of stroke, according to a study published in the August 13 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology. ...The observational study involved 5,600 men and women over age 65 who were free of stroke when they started the study. The participants were followed for four to e...In a new observational analysis, Risedronate significantly reduced nonvertebral fracture risk
MINNEAPOLIS (September 22, 2003) In a new observational analysis presented at the 25th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR), osteoporosis patients taking risedronate (Actonel) had a 59 percent (p=0.04) lower risk of nonvertebral fracture than patients receiving alendronate (Fosamax) and a 75 percent (p<0.01) lower risk than patients receiving nasal calcito...AAPS kicks off new century with workshop on bioanalytical methods validation
. ALEXANDRIA, Va. - The American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) will present the. AAPS Workshop on Bioanalytical Methods Validation A Revisit with a Decade of Progress on January. 12-14, 2000 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Va. The workshop is co-sponsored by the. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).. . The goals and objectives of this workshop are to:. . Rev...No increase in C-sections when epidural analgesia given early in labor
Injecting spinal-epidural analgesia in early labor does not increase cesarean delivery rates and provides better pain relief and a shorter duration of labor than systemic opioid analgesia, according to an article by Northwestern University researchers published in the Feb. 17 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.... Epidural injections are administered into the space between the wall of...Study examines effect of managed care on quality of care for cancer patients
Increases in the market share of managed care within a community have limited or no effect on the quality of care that cancer patients receive, according to a new study in the February 16 issue of the ...... Increases in market share of managed care--the percentage of people in an area enrolled in managed care plans--have been associated with decreases in resource use and expenditures for manage...U of T researchers describe 'Joe Canadian' tongue
New imaging research about tongue shape and volume before and after surgery should ultimately help surgeons decide how to best reconstruct tongue defects resulting from cancer surgery, says a team of researchers at the University of Toronto. ......Tim Bressmann, a professor in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology, and his colleague Jonathan Irish, a professor in the Department of Otolary...Marijuana use affects blood flow in brain even after abstinence
ST. PAUL, Minn. People who smoked marijuana had changes in the blood flow in their brains even after a month of not smoking, according to a study published in the February 8 issue of , the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology....... The findings could explain in part the problems with thinking or remembering found in other studies of marijuana users, according to study author...Canadian neurologist wins highest award as American Stroke Association honors five
NEW ORLEANS, Feb. 2 One of North America's foremost neurologists and stroke researchers, Vladimir Hachinski, M.D., D.Sc., professor of neurology at the University of Western Ontario, London, Ont., Canada, is the recipient of the American Stroke Association's highest honor the Thomas Willis Award for 2005.... Hachinski will receive the award and deliver the prestigious Willis Lecture today at t...Cholesterol under-treated in high-risk women in managed care study
DALLAS, Feb. 1 Nearly two-thirds of women at highest risk for a heart attack and death from heart disease who have dangerously high cholesterol levels are not benefiting from life-saving cholesterol-lowering medications, according to a report in today's Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. ..."Cholesterol management in high-risk women has been proven to save lives and reduce r...Disaster management: Better management of hospital resources and staff is the answer
Better management of current hospital resources and staff could greatly...improve...preparedness for disasters such as the tsunami that hit South East Asia a...month...ago, according to an article by J Christopher Farmer and colleagues, to be...published in the journal Critical Care. ......To date, disaster medical response has predominantly focused on pre-hospital...issues such as triage, evacua...Marijuana associated with same respiratory symptoms as tobacco
New Haven, Conn.--Smoking marijuana is associated with increased risk of many of the same symptoms as smoking cigarettes--chronic bronchitis, coughing on most days, phlegm production, shortness of breath, and wheezing, according to a Yale study published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine....... In addition, marijuana smoking may increase risk of respiratory exposure by infectious organi...More efficient ways of managing patient flow may benefit Los Angeles County/USC hospital
More efficient ways of managing triage, scheduling and routing of patients through Los Angeles County/USC Hospital could trim delays dramatically and relieve overcrowded conditions, according to a new USC/Los Angeles County Hospital study. ...... "County/USC Hospital serves an enormous population in the region, with many patients going to the emergency room first, so the waits can be long," sai...Information fusion research simulates disasters to manage emergency response
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Improving how decision-makers respond in the minutes and hours that follow the first reports of a natural disaster like the recent tsunami or a manmade incident, such as a chemical accident or a terrorist attack, is the focus of a research project at the University at Buffalo's Center for Multisource Information Fusion. ... "Responders immediately begin knitting together a...Macular degeneration patients benefit from self-management training
A 12-hour self-management program for individuals with advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD) leads to lasting improvements in mood and function, especially in depressed patients, and decreases the development of clinical depression in AMD patients over time, according to a University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Shiley Eye Center study published in the January 2005 Archives of Ophtha...Birth simulator helps physicians I.D. least forceful way to manage problem deliveries
Johns Hopkins researchers, using a novel birthing simulator designed by biomedical engineering faculty, staff and students at the University, have identified what may be the least forceful way to deliver a baby whose shoulders are stuck in the birth canal....... Shoulder dystocia, in which the baby's shoulders won't move past the mother's bony pelvis during delivery, occurs in about 5 percent of...Researchers develop MRI technique to study brain anatomy in invertebrates
ATLANTA -- Scientists with the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, a research consortium based at Georgia State University, have for the first time used a form of magnetic resonance imaging to reveal anatomical features of the nervous system in a live crayfish, a crustacean whose brain measures only 3 millimeters wide. ...The technique, which is reported and highlighted in an accompanying comm...Canadian researchers' important discovery in HIV research
CANVAC, the Canadian Network for Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics, is proud to announce the development of a new method to assess how well the thymus (an organ located at the base of the neck) works and the discovery of a functional abnormality of this organ in HIV-infected individuals.... ...The team of investigators led by Dr. Rafick-Pierre Skaly, professor at Universit de Montral, scientist a...Re-analysis of large trials shows greatest benefit of chemotherapy in ER-negative tumors
Despite the common belief in the oncology community that cancer research and treatment have focused on breast tumors that are estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, a researcher from The University of Texas ...M. D. Anderson Cancer Center maintains that clinicians have made "enormous strides" in treating patients with tumors that are ER-negative.... ... In a presentation at the annual meeting of the Sa...First-ever safety study of medical cannabis use in Canada launched
MONTREAL, 8 December 2004 -- A first-of-its-kind study of safety issues surrounding the medical use of cannabis has just been launched. Known as the COMPASS study (Cannabis for the management of pain: assessment of safety study), the research initiative will follow 1400 chronic pain patients, 350 of whom use cannabis as part of their pain management strategy, for a one-year period. Seven particip...Impact of 2002 Canadian forest fires felt 700 miles away in Baltimore, Maryland
Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health analyzed how airborne particulate matter from forest fires in the Canadian providence of Quebec traveled more than 700 miles to homes in Baltimore, Md. The study authors found a dramatic increase in outdoor and indoor fine particulate matter an atmospheric pollutant that is harmful to people with respiratory diseases in Baltimo...Novel imaging technique shows abnormal brain anatomy in children with ADHD
CHICAGO Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) display anatomical brain abnormalities beyond chemical imbalance, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Stimulant medications prescribed to balance brain chemistry appear to normalize some of these brain irregularities, a second study reported. ... ..."We fo...Canadian researchers to develop 'smart drug' to repair psychiatric disorders
"Smart" drugs capable of targeting specific brain cells to control psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia may be ready for early clinical trials within three years, with the launch of a $1.5 million project to take place at the Brain Research Centre (BRC), a partnership of the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI).... ...The new dru...Humble Planaria worm offers ideal model for drug withdrawal research
Through the humble Planaria worm, Temple University researchers hope to discover what happens when drug abusers who take more than one drug-a common practice-go into withdrawal. Their work, which is funded by a new $450,000, three-year grant from the National Institutes of Health, is expected to lead to a better understanding of how withdrawal is influenced by poly-drug abuse and someday to the d...