The News:
Staph bug "steadily growing"
Hospitalizations for a drug-resistant strain nearly doubled, mostly because of skin infections.
By Jia-Rui Chong Los Angeles Times
Article Last Updated: 11/30/2007 12:44:37 AM MST
Hospitalizations associated with a drug-resistant form of a Staphylococcus bacterium doubled over six years in the U.S. to nearly 280,000 cases in 2005, according to a study published Thursday that provides a wider picture of the bug's effects. The rise in illnesses from methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, also known as MRSA, stemmed mostly from increased skin and soft-tissue infections, which typically are associated with strains acquired outside hospitals, the study found.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in Emerging Infectious Diseases.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Research News: CT scans' risks often needless
The News:
CT scans' risks often needless, report warns.
The 3-D X-rays boost cancer risks, especially in children, argue the authors of the report.
By Marilynn Marchione The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 11/29/2007 02:23:38 AM MST
Millions of Americans, especially children, are needlessly getting dangerous radiation from "super X-rays" that raise the risk of cancer and are increasingly used to diagnose medical problems, a new report warns.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the New England Journal of Medicine.
CT scans' risks often needless, report warns.
The 3-D X-rays boost cancer risks, especially in children, argue the authors of the report.
By Marilynn Marchione The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 11/29/2007 02:23:38 AM MST
Millions of Americans, especially children, are needlessly getting dangerous radiation from "super X-rays" that raise the risk of cancer and are increasingly used to diagnose medical problems, a new report warns.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Research News: Scientists in Colorado acclaim stem-cell feat
The News:
Scientists in Colorado acclaim stem-cell feat
The achievement not only holds hope for treating diseases but disarms the moral and political issues, one biologist says.
By Karen AugeThe Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 11/22/2007 12:06:01 AM MST
The creation of human stem cells without destroying an embryo holds promise both for defusing the moral and political debate and accelerating a variety of work on diseases, Colorado researchers say. "This is good news for everybody, actually," said Christopher Hogan, a stem-cell biologist at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine.
Lab coup could take years to harness
Some scientists call the fervor premature, as many questions remain.
By Malcolm RitterThe Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 11/22/2007 12:39:22 AM MST
NEW YORK — For all the excitement, big questions remain about how to turn this week's stem-cell breakthrough into new treatments for the sick. And it's not clear when that will happen. Scientists have to learn more about the new kind of cell that the landmark research produced. They have to find a different way to make it, to avoid a risk of cancer. And even after that, there are plenty of steps needed to harness this laboratory advance for therapy.
The Research:
Read the research behind these stories in the journals Science and Nature.
Scientists in Colorado acclaim stem-cell feat
The achievement not only holds hope for treating diseases but disarms the moral and political issues, one biologist says.
By Karen AugeThe Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 11/22/2007 12:06:01 AM MST
The creation of human stem cells without destroying an embryo holds promise both for defusing the moral and political debate and accelerating a variety of work on diseases, Colorado researchers say. "This is good news for everybody, actually," said Christopher Hogan, a stem-cell biologist at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine.
Lab coup could take years to harness
Some scientists call the fervor premature, as many questions remain.
By Malcolm RitterThe Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 11/22/2007 12:39:22 AM MST
NEW YORK — For all the excitement, big questions remain about how to turn this week's stem-cell breakthrough into new treatments for the sick. And it's not clear when that will happen. Scientists have to learn more about the new kind of cell that the landmark research produced. They have to find a different way to make it, to avoid a risk of cancer. And even after that, there are plenty of steps needed to harness this laboratory advance for therapy.
The Research:
Read the research behind these stories in the journals Science and Nature.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Research News: Use of pedometer associated with increased physical activity, decreased blood pressure and weight
The News:
Use of pedometer associated with increased physical activity, decreased blood pressure and weight.
Biology News Net, November 21, 2007. A review of previous studies indicates that use of a pedometer, especially with a daily step goal, is associated with significant increases in physical activity (additional walking of about a mile a day) and decreases in body mass index and blood pressure.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Use of pedometer associated with increased physical activity, decreased blood pressure and weight.
Biology News Net, November 21, 2007. A review of previous studies indicates that use of a pedometer, especially with a daily step goal, is associated with significant increases in physical activity (additional walking of about a mile a day) and decreases in body mass index and blood pressure.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Research news: Scientists Make Advances in Extracting Hydrogen
The News:
Scientists Make Advances in Extracting Hydrogen
Talk of the Nation, November 16, 2007 · Researchers have developed a more efficient way to extract hydrogen from biological materials using a bacterial fuel cell. Bruce Logan, one of the scientists working on the project, discusses the efforts and whether the new method might change the debate over biofuels.
The Research:
Read the research behind the news in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Scientists Make Advances in Extracting Hydrogen
Talk of the Nation, November 16, 2007 · Researchers have developed a more efficient way to extract hydrogen from biological materials using a bacterial fuel cell. Bruce Logan, one of the scientists working on the project, discusses the efforts and whether the new method might change the debate over biofuels.
The Research:
Read the research behind the news in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Friday, November 16, 2007
Research news: Bugged into conformity
The News:
Bugged into conforming
Robotic cockroaches shed light on power of group behavior
By Kenneth Chang and John Schwartz The New York Times
Article Last Updated: 11/16/2007 01:20:18 AM MST
Many moms have said, with a sigh, "If your friends jumped off a cliff, would you jump too?" The answer, for cockroaches at least, may well be yes.
Researchers using robotic roaches were able to persuade real cockroaches to do things that their instincts told them were not the best idea.
This experiment in bug peer pressure combined entomology, robotics and the study of ways that complex and even intelligent patterns can arise from simple behavior. Animal-behavior research shows that swarms working together can prosper where individuals might fail, and robotics researchers have been experimenting with simple robots that, together, act a little like a swarm.
"We decided to join the two approaches," said Jose Halloy, a biology researcher at the Free University of Brussels and lead author of a paper describing the research in today's issue of the journal Science.
Halloy and his colleagues worked with roaches because their societies are simple, egalitarian and democratic, with none of the social stratification that marks some other insect societies - no queen bees, no worker ants.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Science.
Bugged into conforming
Robotic cockroaches shed light on power of group behavior
By Kenneth Chang and John Schwartz The New York Times
Article Last Updated: 11/16/2007 01:20:18 AM MST
Many moms have said, with a sigh, "If your friends jumped off a cliff, would you jump too?" The answer, for cockroaches at least, may well be yes.
Researchers using robotic roaches were able to persuade real cockroaches to do things that their instincts told them were not the best idea.
This experiment in bug peer pressure combined entomology, robotics and the study of ways that complex and even intelligent patterns can arise from simple behavior. Animal-behavior research shows that swarms working together can prosper where individuals might fail, and robotics researchers have been experimenting with simple robots that, together, act a little like a swarm.
"We decided to join the two approaches," said Jose Halloy, a biology researcher at the Free University of Brussels and lead author of a paper describing the research in today's issue of the journal Science.
Halloy and his colleagues worked with roaches because their societies are simple, egalitarian and democratic, with none of the social stratification that marks some other insect societies - no queen bees, no worker ants.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Science.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Research news: Stem-Cell Researchers Clone Monkey Embryo
The News:
Stem-Cell Researchers Clone Monkey Embryo
by Joe Palca All Things Considered, November 14, 2007 ·
Scientists have announced another first in cloning: They have cloned a primate embryo. The researchers in Oregon say they used those cloned monkey embryos to derive embryonic stem cells.
A few years ago, South Korean scientists said they had done the same thing with human cells, but that turned out to be a fraud. The journal that published this new work took the unusual step of having an independent laboratory verify the results.
Researchers hope to one day use such a process in humans to create customized stem-cell therapies for individual patients.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Nature.
Stem-Cell Researchers Clone Monkey Embryo
by Joe Palca All Things Considered, November 14, 2007 ·
Scientists have announced another first in cloning: They have cloned a primate embryo. The researchers in Oregon say they used those cloned monkey embryos to derive embryonic stem cells.
A few years ago, South Korean scientists said they had done the same thing with human cells, but that turned out to be a fraud. The journal that published this new work took the unusual step of having an independent laboratory verify the results.
Researchers hope to one day use such a process in humans to create customized stem-cell therapies for individual patients.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Nature.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Research news: Men talk more than women overall, but not in all circumstances
The News:
Men Talk More Than Women Overall, But Not In All Circumstances
ScienceDaily (Nov. 13, 2007) — A Gallup poll recently confirmed that men and women both believe that it is women who are most likely to possess the gift of gab. Some even believe that women are biologically built for conversation. This widespread belief is challenged in new research.
The article* describes a recent set of meta-analyses conducted by Campbell Leaper and Melanie Ayres. These analyses collect all of the available evidence from decades of scientific study and systematically combine the findings into an overall picture of the differences between men and women regarding talkativeness.
The authors found a small but statistically reliable tendency for men to be more talkative than women overall -- especially in certain contexts, such as when they were conversing with their wives or with strangers. Women talked more to their children and to their college classmates.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Review.
Men Talk More Than Women Overall, But Not In All Circumstances
ScienceDaily (Nov. 13, 2007) — A Gallup poll recently confirmed that men and women both believe that it is women who are most likely to possess the gift of gab. Some even believe that women are biologically built for conversation. This widespread belief is challenged in new research.
The article* describes a recent set of meta-analyses conducted by Campbell Leaper and Melanie Ayres. These analyses collect all of the available evidence from decades of scientific study and systematically combine the findings into an overall picture of the differences between men and women regarding talkativeness.
The authors found a small but statistically reliable tendency for men to be more talkative than women overall -- especially in certain contexts, such as when they were conversing with their wives or with strangers. Women talked more to their children and to their college classmates.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Review.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Research news: Yellowstone Volcano Inflating With Molten Rock At Record Rate
The News:
Yellowstone Volcano Inflating With Molten Rock At Record Rate
ScienceDaily (Nov. 9, 2007) — The Yellowstone "supervolcano" rose at a record rate since mid-2004, likely because a Los Angeles-sized, pancake-shaped blob of molten rock was injected 6 miles beneath the slumbering giant, University of Utah scientists report in the journal Science.
"There is no evidence of an imminent volcanic eruption or hydrothermal explosion. That's the bottom line," says seismologist Robert B. Smith, lead author of the study and professor of geophysics at the University of Utah. "A lot of calderas [giant volcanic craters] worldwide go up and down over decades without erupting."
The upward movement of the Yellowstone caldera floor -- almost 3 inches (7 centimeters) per year for the past three years -- is more than three times greater than ever observed since such measurements began in 1923, says the study in the Nov. 9 issue of Science by Smith, geophysics postdoctoral associate Wu-Lung Chang and colleagues.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Science.
Yellowstone Volcano Inflating With Molten Rock At Record Rate
ScienceDaily (Nov. 9, 2007) — The Yellowstone "supervolcano" rose at a record rate since mid-2004, likely because a Los Angeles-sized, pancake-shaped blob of molten rock was injected 6 miles beneath the slumbering giant, University of Utah scientists report in the journal Science.
"There is no evidence of an imminent volcanic eruption or hydrothermal explosion. That's the bottom line," says seismologist Robert B. Smith, lead author of the study and professor of geophysics at the University of Utah. "A lot of calderas [giant volcanic craters] worldwide go up and down over decades without erupting."
The upward movement of the Yellowstone caldera floor -- almost 3 inches (7 centimeters) per year for the past three years -- is more than three times greater than ever observed since such measurements began in 1923, says the study in the Nov. 9 issue of Science by Smith, geophysics postdoctoral associate Wu-Lung Chang and colleagues.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Science.
Friday, November 9, 2007
Research news: Florida Red Tides Linked To Mississippi River Nutrient Outflow
The News:
Florida Red Tides Linked To Mississippi River Nutrient Outflow.
ScienceDaily (Nov. 9, 2007) — A new NOAA research model indicates nutrients flowing from the Mississippi River may stimulate harmful algal blooms to grow on the continental shelf off the west coast of Florida. The peer-reviewed hypothesis is being published in a special issue on Florida red tide in the journal "Continental Shelf Research."
According to the model, algal blooms form on the Florida coast because of weather and gulf currents. The algae grows offshore, supplied with additional nutrients that appear to have originated from the Mississippi River, in a process driven by normal seasonal wind patterns.
"We found that the concentrations of nutrients needed to start the Florida red tides is much lower than previously suspected," said NOAA oceanographer and lead author of the paper, Richard Stumpf, Ph.D. "The hypothesis means that offshore areas should be examined for both small increases in nutrients and modest concentrations of the algae at the start of the bloom season."
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Continental Shelf Research.
Florida Red Tides Linked To Mississippi River Nutrient Outflow.
ScienceDaily (Nov. 9, 2007) — A new NOAA research model indicates nutrients flowing from the Mississippi River may stimulate harmful algal blooms to grow on the continental shelf off the west coast of Florida. The peer-reviewed hypothesis is being published in a special issue on Florida red tide in the journal "Continental Shelf Research."
According to the model, algal blooms form on the Florida coast because of weather and gulf currents. The algae grows offshore, supplied with additional nutrients that appear to have originated from the Mississippi River, in a process driven by normal seasonal wind patterns.
"We found that the concentrations of nutrients needed to start the Florida red tides is much lower than previously suspected," said NOAA oceanographer and lead author of the paper, Richard Stumpf, Ph.D. "The hypothesis means that offshore areas should be examined for both small increases in nutrients and modest concentrations of the algae at the start of the bloom season."
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Continental Shelf Research.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Research news: New Insights into how Natural Antioxidants Fight Fat
The News:
New Insights Into How Natural Antioxidants Fight Fat
ScienceDaily (Nov. 8, 2007) — Scientists in Taiwan are reporting new insights into why diets rich in fruits and vegetables reduce the risk of obesity. Their study focuses on healthful natural antioxidant compounds called flavonoids and phenolic acids.
In the study, Gow-Chin Yen and Chin-Lin Hsu point out that large amounts of those compounds occur in fruits, vegetables, nuts and plant-based beverages such as coffee, tea, and wine. Scientists long have known that flavonoids and phenolic acids have beneficial health effects in reducing the risk of heart attacks, cancer, obesity, and other disorders. However, there has been uncertainty about exactly how these compounds affect adipocytes, or fat cells.
The researchers studied how 15 phenolic acids and six flavonoids affected fat cells in laboratory cultures of mouse cells. Their results showed that fat cells exposed to certain antioxidants had lower levels of an enzyme that forms triglycerides and accumulated lower levels of triglycerides -- fatty materials which at high levels increase the risk of heart disease.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
New Insights Into How Natural Antioxidants Fight Fat
ScienceDaily (Nov. 8, 2007) — Scientists in Taiwan are reporting new insights into why diets rich in fruits and vegetables reduce the risk of obesity. Their study focuses on healthful natural antioxidant compounds called flavonoids and phenolic acids.
In the study, Gow-Chin Yen and Chin-Lin Hsu point out that large amounts of those compounds occur in fruits, vegetables, nuts and plant-based beverages such as coffee, tea, and wine. Scientists long have known that flavonoids and phenolic acids have beneficial health effects in reducing the risk of heart attacks, cancer, obesity, and other disorders. However, there has been uncertainty about exactly how these compounds affect adipocytes, or fat cells.
The researchers studied how 15 phenolic acids and six flavonoids affected fat cells in laboratory cultures of mouse cells. Their results showed that fat cells exposed to certain antioxidants had lower levels of an enzyme that forms triglycerides and accumulated lower levels of triglycerides -- fatty materials which at high levels increase the risk of heart disease.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Research news: Study flips ideas on obesity's risks
The News:
Study flips ideas on obesity's risks
Some heft actually helps fend off many causes of death, but not diabetes and kidney disease, federal scientists find.
By Rob Stein The Washington Post
Article Last Updated: 11/06/2007 09:45:37 PM MST
WASHINGTON — Being overweight boosts the risk of dying from diabetes and kidney disease but not cancer or heart disease, and carrying some extra pounds appears actually to protect against a host of other causes of death, federal researchers reported Tuesday.
The counterintuitive findings, based on a detailed analysis of decades of government data about more than 39,000 Americans, suggest that being overweight does carry risks, but the dangers may be less dire than thought.
"The take-home message is that the relationship between fat and mortality is more complicated than we tend to think," said Katherine Flegal, a senior research scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, who led the study.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, was greeted with sharply mixed reactions. Some praised it for providing persuasive evidence that the dangers of fat have been overblown.
The analysis is based on the best health statistics federal scientists collected between 1971 and 2004, including cause-of-death data from 2.3 million adults from 2004.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Study flips ideas on obesity's risks
Some heft actually helps fend off many causes of death, but not diabetes and kidney disease, federal scientists find.
By Rob Stein The Washington Post
Article Last Updated: 11/06/2007 09:45:37 PM MST
WASHINGTON — Being overweight boosts the risk of dying from diabetes and kidney disease but not cancer or heart disease, and carrying some extra pounds appears actually to protect against a host of other causes of death, federal researchers reported Tuesday.
The counterintuitive findings, based on a detailed analysis of decades of government data about more than 39,000 Americans, suggest that being overweight does carry risks, but the dangers may be less dire than thought.
"The take-home message is that the relationship between fat and mortality is more complicated than we tend to think," said Katherine Flegal, a senior research scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, who led the study.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, was greeted with sharply mixed reactions. Some praised it for providing persuasive evidence that the dangers of fat have been overblown.
The analysis is based on the best health statistics federal scientists collected between 1971 and 2004, including cause-of-death data from 2.3 million adults from 2004.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Research news: Wildfire Drives Carbon Levels In Northern Forests
The News:
Wildfire Drives Carbon Levels In Northern Forests
ScienceDaily (Nov. 5, 2007) — Far removed from streams of gas-thirsty cars and pollution-belching factories lies another key player in global climate change. Circling the northern hemisphere, the conifer-dominated boreal forests - one of the largest ecosystems on earth - act as a vast natural regulator of atmospheric carbon levels.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Nature.
Wildfire Drives Carbon Levels In Northern Forests
ScienceDaily (Nov. 5, 2007) — Far removed from streams of gas-thirsty cars and pollution-belching factories lies another key player in global climate change. Circling the northern hemisphere, the conifer-dominated boreal forests - one of the largest ecosystems on earth - act as a vast natural regulator of atmospheric carbon levels.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Nature.
Monday, November 5, 2007
Research news: Educational TV for toddlers OK
The News:
Study: Educational TV for toddlers OK
Other, violent shows, such as "Scooby-Doo" or "Power Rangers," are linked to attention problems in later years.
By Lindsey Tanner The Associated Press
Article Launched: 11/05/2007 01:00:00 AM MST
CHICAGO — "Arthur" and "Barney" are OK for toddler TV- watching. But not "Rugrats" and certainly not "Power Rangers," reports a new study of early TV-watching and future attention problems.
The research involved children younger than 3, so TV is mostly a no-no anyway, according to experts. But if TV is allowed, it should be educational, the researchers said.
Every hour per day that kids under 3 watched violent child- oriented entertainment, their risk doubled for attention problems five years later, the study found. Even nonviolent kids' shows like "Rugrats" and "The Flintstones" carried a substantial risk for attention problems, though slightly lower.
On the other hand, educational shows, including "Arthur," "Barney" and "Sesame Street," had no association with future attention problems.
Interestingly, the risks occurred only in children younger than age 3, perhaps because that is a particularly crucial period of brain development. Those results echo a different study last month that suggested TV-watching has less impact on older children's behavior than on toddlers.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no television for children younger than 2 and limited TV for older children.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Pediatrics.
Study: Educational TV for toddlers OK
Other, violent shows, such as "Scooby-Doo" or "Power Rangers," are linked to attention problems in later years.
By Lindsey Tanner The Associated Press
Article Launched: 11/05/2007 01:00:00 AM MST
CHICAGO — "Arthur" and "Barney" are OK for toddler TV- watching. But not "Rugrats" and certainly not "Power Rangers," reports a new study of early TV-watching and future attention problems.
The research involved children younger than 3, so TV is mostly a no-no anyway, according to experts. But if TV is allowed, it should be educational, the researchers said.
Every hour per day that kids under 3 watched violent child- oriented entertainment, their risk doubled for attention problems five years later, the study found. Even nonviolent kids' shows like "Rugrats" and "The Flintstones" carried a substantial risk for attention problems, though slightly lower.
On the other hand, educational shows, including "Arthur," "Barney" and "Sesame Street," had no association with future attention problems.
Interestingly, the risks occurred only in children younger than age 3, perhaps because that is a particularly crucial period of brain development. Those results echo a different study last month that suggested TV-watching has less impact on older children's behavior than on toddlers.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no television for children younger than 2 and limited TV for older children.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Pediatrics.
Research News: Sleep may curb obesity in kids
The News:
Sleep may curb obesity in kids
More slumber cut risk in study
By Carla K. Johnson The Associated Press
Article Launched: 11/05/2007 01:00:00 AM MST
CHICAGO — Here's another reason to get the kids to bed early: More sleep may lower their risk of becoming obese.
Researchers have found that every additional hour per night that a third-grader spends sleeping reduces the chances of being obese in sixth grade by 40 percent.
The less sleep they got, the more likely the children were to be obese in sixth grade, no matter what the weight in third grade, said the University of Michigan's Dr. Julie Lumeng, who led the research.
If there was a magic number, it was nine hours, 45 minutes of sleep. Third-graders who slept more than that lowered the risk significantly.
The study gives parents one more reason to enforce bedtimes, restrict caffeine and yank the TV from the bedroom. The study appears in the November issue of the journal Pediatrics.
Lack of sleep plays havoc with two hormones that are the "yin and yang of appetite regulation," said endocrinologist Eve Van Cauter of the University of Chicago, who was not involved in the study.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Pediatrics.
Sleep may curb obesity in kids
More slumber cut risk in study
By Carla K. Johnson The Associated Press
Article Launched: 11/05/2007 01:00:00 AM MST
CHICAGO — Here's another reason to get the kids to bed early: More sleep may lower their risk of becoming obese.
Researchers have found that every additional hour per night that a third-grader spends sleeping reduces the chances of being obese in sixth grade by 40 percent.
The less sleep they got, the more likely the children were to be obese in sixth grade, no matter what the weight in third grade, said the University of Michigan's Dr. Julie Lumeng, who led the research.
If there was a magic number, it was nine hours, 45 minutes of sleep. Third-graders who slept more than that lowered the risk significantly.
The study gives parents one more reason to enforce bedtimes, restrict caffeine and yank the TV from the bedroom. The study appears in the November issue of the journal Pediatrics.
Lack of sleep plays havoc with two hormones that are the "yin and yang of appetite regulation," said endocrinologist Eve Van Cauter of the University of Chicago, who was not involved in the study.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the journal Pediatrics.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Research News: Blood-thinning drug shows promise, pitfalls
The News:
Blood-thinning drug shows promise, pitfalls
CNN.com updated 8:50 a.m. EST, Sun November 4, 2007
ORLANDO, Florida (AP) -- A new blood thinner proved better than Plavix, one of the world's top-selling drugs, at preventing heart problems after procedures to open clogged arteries, doctors reported Sunday. But the new drug also raised the risk of serious bleeding. People given the experimental drug, prasugrel, were nearly 20 percent less likely to suffer one of the problems in a combined measure -- heart attack, stroke or heart-related death -- than those given Plavix, a drug that millions of Americans take to prevent blood clots that cause these events.
The Research:
Read an editorial behind this story in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Blood-thinning drug shows promise, pitfalls
CNN.com updated 8:50 a.m. EST, Sun November 4, 2007
ORLANDO, Florida (AP) -- A new blood thinner proved better than Plavix, one of the world's top-selling drugs, at preventing heart problems after procedures to open clogged arteries, doctors reported Sunday. But the new drug also raised the risk of serious bleeding. People given the experimental drug, prasugrel, were nearly 20 percent less likely to suffer one of the problems in a combined measure -- heart attack, stroke or heart-related death -- than those given Plavix, a drug that millions of Americans take to prevent blood clots that cause these events.
The Research:
Read an editorial behind this story in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Research News: Brain scans find abnormalities more common
The News:
Brain scans find abnormalities more common
By Mike Stobbe The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 10/31/2007 10:49:28 PM MDT
ATLANTA — One in 60 older people may be walking around with benign brain tumors and don't know it. Even more may have bulging blood vessels in the head that could burst. These results come from a surprising new Dutch study that finds brain abnormalities are not all that uncommon. It's not clear how alarming this is. Most of the abnormalities hadn't caused any symptoms, though some were potentially life-threatening.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Brain scans find abnormalities more common
By Mike Stobbe The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 10/31/2007 10:49:28 PM MDT
ATLANTA — One in 60 older people may be walking around with benign brain tumors and don't know it. Even more may have bulging blood vessels in the head that could burst. These results come from a surprising new Dutch study that finds brain abnormalities are not all that uncommon. It's not clear how alarming this is. Most of the abnormalities hadn't caused any symptoms, though some were potentially life-threatening.
The Research:
Read the research behind this story in the New England Journal of Medicine.
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