Delaying medication for infrequent seizures may be the best option
...y of immediate treatment with antiepileptic drugs, mainly with carbamazepine or valproate, reduces the occurrence of seizures in the next 12 years, but does not modify rates of long-term remission after a first or after several seizures. At 2 years, the benefits of improved seizure control with immediate tr...Scientists advocate delaying medication for early epilepsy
...y of immediate treatment with antiepileptic drugs, mainly with carbamazepine or valproate, reduces the occurrence of seizures in the next one to two years, but does not modify rates of long-term remission after a first or after several seizures. "After two years, the benefits of improved seizure control wi...The Lancet calls for open debate on illegal drug use
...debate over how to combat illegal drug use focuses mainly on when to legislate and to what extent. But from a health perspective, doctors cannot address the problem of illicit drug use because patients may not admit to an illegal addiction, and research into the management of conditions resulting from drug ...Non-invasive MRI technique distinguishes between Alzheimer's and frontotemporal dementia
...t common dementia after Alzheimer's disease, which mainly affects other brain areas such as the hippocampus and the temporal lobe. In their early stages, the two diseases present similar symptoms, making accurate diagnosis difficult, said Schuff, who is also an associate professor of radiology at the Univer...Young drug abusers suffer brain damage similar to early Alzheimer's, says new research
...The brains of 34 intravenous drug abusers, who had mainly used heroin and methadone, were examined after dea...cumented drug users had a history of opiate abuse mainly heroin and methadone but were HIV negative and had no history of head injury. The 16 control cases ...Antibiotics appear to have little benefit for uncomplicated lower respiratory tract infections
...he United States, excess antibiotic prescribing is mainly for pharyngitis and acute bronchitis, amounting to 55 percent of prescriptions and costing $726 million per year. A consensus has been made for limiting antibiotic use in acute lower respiratory tract infection. However, recent reviews have come to d...New report calls for recovery units to boost surgery survival rates
...n be delivered with existing resources and involve mainly a shift in priorities over how budgets related to surgery are allocated. "The effect of major surgery on the energy reserves of a patient is equivalent to running a half-marathon for a fit person, which is why it is crucial to assess a patient's fit...End-of-life study to focus on needs of Sikh and Muslim patients
...recent phenomenon, and even now these services are mainly focused on the needs of elderly people dying from cancer. However, migrant communities in Britain are typically younger and have proportionately higher death rates from diseases not related to cancer. "No effective national provisions are in place fo...Does vitamin C help prevent or treat the common cold?
...ralizations from this finding in 6 studies that is mainly based on marathon runners. What about vitamin C as a possible treatment for an established cold? The authors found seven trials (all in adults) evaluating whether vitamin C taken when their symptoms started would shorten the cold. When they ...Health professionals believe gender bias limits women's progression in NHS
... strategy by the majority of participants who were mainly of White British origin. Disability and sexual orientation was also perceived as a barrier to career progression - 87% of disabled respondents felt their disability limited their chances of promotion. Dr Bogg added: "It is clear the NHS is striving t...Quality measures need to be field-tested, researchers find
...dy use some of these indicators in daily practice, mainly those related to patient outcome in large studies and those required for accreditation review," Dr. Schouten said. Effective treatment of LRTI patients while minimizing the risk of drug resistance hinges on physicians' use of the indicators. "Why doe...Alcohol abuse: Early diagnosis is key to treatment success
...r suspicion arises. "Current methods that consist mainly of self reporting and screening for severe liver damage do not detect most cases of alcohol abuse," said Harris, "and a sensitive and specific test is needed." - Biological markers such as carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT), gamma-glutamyl t...Doctors should stop prescribing antibiotics for the common cold, review advises
...dverse effects." In addition to the side effects, mainly diarrhea, "overuse can increase levels of antibiotic resistance in the community," the review advises. Colds are caused by viruses and not bacteria, upon which antibiotics act, yet, says Arroll, "There is evidence of high usage of antibiotics for the...Diabetes drug controls blood glucose, cardiac risk
...hey confirm that the adverse effects of metformin, mainly on the digestive tract, are not life-threatening. Metformin first became available in Europe in 1979, but was not cleared for use in the United States until 1994 due to concerns about a potentially fatal complication called lactic acidosis. Diabetes ...Bone-protecting drugs reduce pain and fractures in metastatic breast cancer
...rm that one bisphosphonate is better than another, mainly because the appropriate studies have not been done," he adds....Exposure to pesticides in schools produces illnesses among school employees and students
...mployees and students in the United States, albeit mainly of low severity and with relatively low incidence rates," the authors write. "To prevent pesticide-related illnesses at schools, implementation of integrated pest management programs in schools, practices to reduce pesticide drift, and adoption of pe...New study: Sexually transmitted disease treatment can be effectively administered by sex partners
...vered partner treatment is not yet used widely due mainly to fears that are largely unfounded, said Patricia Kissinger, PhD, of Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine and lead author of the article. "Clinicians have fears of legal liability, particularly if the partners have side ef...Depression linked to previously unknown dopamine regulator
... brain's mood, reward, and motivation circuits are mainly governed by dopamine and have been regarded as potential alternative targets for treating depression. Many of these functions are integrated by the medium spiny neurons of the striatum, which lie below the cortex of the brain and respond to dopamine....Dialysis treatment choice affects risk of death in patients with end-stage kidney disease
...ross the United States and monitored their health, mainly through reviews of patient charts and medical records, for eight years while they underwent dialysis treatment. The study participants, men and women between 18 and 96 years old, chose the method of dialysis: 274 selected peritoneal dialysis and 767...Women missing out in heart treatment more needed in clinical trials
...vidence-based data obtained from studies conducted mainly in men and we do not really know whether we help or harm the female patients. Take one example: as we have no prospective data for digitalis in female patients, it's unclear whether it is really linked to increased mortality among women or whether th...