Mental Health
UBC researchers have created the world"s first animal laboratory experiment to successfully model human gambling. The advance will help scientists develop and test new treatments for gambling addictions, a devastating condition that affects millions worldwide.
The results of an international study led by a Toronto-area doctor were unveiled today that show there"s a more effective way to treat patients with a severe arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, than the current treatment methods.
Human tissues normally discarded after surgical procedures could be a rich additional of stem cells for regenerative medicine. New research from BioMed Central"s open access Journal of Translational Medicine shows for the first time that human fallopian tubes are abundant in mesenchymal stem cells which have the potential of becoming a variety of cell types.
A radically different approach to choosing the best treatment options for early breast cancer has been proposed by an international panel of experts in a report from the 11th St Gallen conference.
The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) is calling on health practitioners and staff across England and Wales to follow recommendations, issued recently, to improve patient safety for children and young people.
Throughout the animal kingdom brilliant colors or elaborate behavioral displays serve as "advertisements" for the process of attracting mates. But, what do the ads promise and is there truth in advertizing? Researchers at Yale theorize that when males must provide care for the survival of their offspring, the males" "advertisements" will always be honest - and they may devote more of their energy to caring for their offspring than to attracting females.
Doctors in the Netherlands have developed new ways to perform radiosurgery on benign acoustic tumors using fast and precise RapidArc(TM) radiotherapy technology from Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR). This is among the findings in several papers published by the team at VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam.
The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) applauds the recommendations regarding chronic disease in the report by the Bipartisan Policy Center"s (BPC) Leaders" Project, entitled "Crossing Our Lines: Working Together to Reform the U.S. Health System." The report outlines key health care reform policy recommendations from a bipartisan perspective to ensure that all Americans have quality, affordable health care.
The American Nurses Association (ANA) announced the launch of its new Facebook and LinkedIn online community groups, providing nurses with access to two popular social networking sites that offer fast, free, and convenient new ways to share information and make professional connections online. By signing up to become a "fan" of ANA at http://www.nursingworld.org/facebook, users will be able to post news, share photos, download ANA video clips and join in on discussion boards on timely nursing issues. By joining LinkedIn, http://www.nursingworld.org/linkedin, users will be able to connect with a vast network of professional contacts within the nursing field.
Health Secretary Andy Burnham has congratulated NHS staff for their success in meeting the Government"s target to reduce Clostridium. difficile (C. difficile) infections by 30 per cent two years ahead of schedule.
Southampton researchers studying the treatment of severe asthma have won a share of a 23m euro grant. Experts at the city"s Respiratory Biomedical Research Unit (BRU), based at Southampton General Hospital, are among a consortium of 14 European academic centres of excellence to receive a slice of the funding.
Pomegranate juice may be beneficial in men who have undergone standard treatment for localized prostate cancer, according to a long-term study presented at the 104th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Urological Association.
Under legislation reported by the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, small companies that receive the majority of their financing from venture capital will once again be considered eligible to compete for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants. The change will allow more small biotechnology start-ups to compete for these funds and continue critical research and development of medical advancements and breakthroughs. Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) President and CEO Jim Greenwood made the following statement today:
- Using a lawn mower can be as routine as bike riding or barbeques during spring and summer months. But often, people find themselves in terrifying situations with these seemingly safe household machines. In fact, 200,000 people - 16,000 of them children - are injured in lawn mower-related accidents each year, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports. However, lawn mowers don"t "attack" on their own. Most injuries - such as severed fingers and toes, limb amputations, broken bones, burns and eye injuries - are caused by careless use and can be prevented by following a few simple safety tips.
Fallopian tubes normally discarded after hysterectomies and other procedures could become rich potential s for mesenchymal stem cells
According to a new review published in The Ulster Medical Journal, the Integrative Medicine for Children is "a useful reference for a medical library."
Congress can help diminish barriers to quality care for people with serious illness, according to Howard Tuch, MD, MS, a spokesperson for the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM). AAHPM was one of three groups that presented information at a Capitol Hill briefing coordinated by the offices of US Reps. Earl Blumenauer and Charles Boustany, MD, sponsors of legislation (HR 1898) that would provide Medicare coverage for "end of life" care consultations.
PLC Systems Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: PLCSF), a company focused on innovative cardiac and vascular medical device-based technologies, announced that it will be presenting at the IN3 East Medical Technology Company Conference at the Westin Copley Place Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts on Wednesday, June 24, 2009, at 5:35 pm. Presenting for the company, with a review of the Company"s newest product, RenalGuard(R), will be James G. Thomasch, Chief Financial Officer.
Individuals interested in cancer research and disease management are invited to attend the 26th International Conference entitled, "Advances in the Applications of Monoclonal Antibodies in Clinical Oncology and Symposium on Cancer Stem Cells."
A study of the award-winning Behavioral Pharmacy Management Program (BPM) shows the private-public Medicaid partnership program has helped improve patient care while saving eight states almost $95 million in behavioral health pharmaceutical costs. Lilly funds the program, which is designed and run by research firm Comprehensive NeuroScience, Inc. (CNS) at the sole direction and guidance of state Medicaid departments. The BPM, which has been executed in more than half of the states, has won a variety of national awards, including the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Science and Service Award, URAC Silver Award for Best Practices in Consumer Empowerment and Protection, American Psychiatric Association Bronze Achievement Award and Disease Management Association of America Gold Award.
TranSenda International, LLC announced today that it is developing a new solution, Cortex, designed to improve an organization"s ability to manage a clinical trial"s performance. Based upon patent-pending ClinBUS® data interchange technology already in use in TranSenda"s Office-Smart solutions, Cortex will enable organizations to leverage the power of access to centralized operational data from all applications used across all clinical studies. For years the industry has struggled with an increasingly fragmented environment of disconnected clinical applications, sites and partners. TranSenda"s Cortex, with its proven ClinBUS technology, represents a breakthrough in managing and controlling studies within a common environment-independent of study data formats and clinical trial applications.
UroToday.com - Gluttony is becoming an ever-increasing problem in our pediatric patients, and this is directly correlated to an increase risk of stone disease.
Women are under too much pressure to lose weight quickly after giving birth, according to German Institute
News outlets are searching out interesting quotes from players in the health reform debate.
A federal grand jury yesterday indicted Pamela Arrey, age 48, of
Just in time for Father"s Day weekend, the Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius announced a new public service campaign today promoting fatherhood that features a PSA by President Obama. The campaign, sponsored by the department"s Administration for Children and Families and the Advertising Council, can be found at http://www.fatherhood.gov. The public service announcements and supporting campaign materials highlight the critical role fathers play in their children"s lives.
As part of an effort to encourage Staten Island, N.Y., residents to be tested for HIV, the CARE Network, the Black Leadership Commission on AIDS and the City Council"s Communities of Color Faith Initiative, have partnered to launch the "Staten Island HIV Status Check Campaign," the Staten Island Advance reports. "Status Check" postcards that include information on free local HIV testing locations, HIV educational literature and condoms will be distributed by local organizations and businesses as part of the initiative. The goal is to reach the 56 percent of local residents who have never been tested for HIV, Karina Ryan, CARE Network coordinator, said (Slepian, Staten Island Advance, 6/18).
More pre-cancerous polyps were found in colonoscopies performed with deep sedation primarily using Propofol than with milder sedation in which patients remained conscious, according to a recent study conducted by Katherine Hoda, M.D. of Oregon Health and Science University. This improvement in cancer detection will save lives and reduce the number of patients requiring surgery and chemotherapy.
BBC examines a campaign in sub-Saharan Africa that is helping to distribute drugs to prevent onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness - a disease "caused by a parasite that is spread from human to human by the black fly, which once flourished along river beds where there is fast-flowing water." According to the BBC, "Some 35 million people are currently infected with river blindness, and about 140 million people in Africa are at risk of infection."
The following summarizes selected women"s health-related blog entries.~ "A Radical Notion: Women"s Health Care as Mainstream," Cecile Richards, Huffington Post blogs: "To hammer ... home" the message that "Planned Parenthood and other essential community providers are the affordable, local access to basic preventive care that saves lives," the Planned Parenthood Action Center has introduced advertisements "educating the policy folks involved in fixing our health care system" about "why women"s health care needs to be taken care of in this mega-reform effort," Richards writes. She writes, "From cancer screenings to contraception to immunizations, the majority of women who go to women"s health care centers consider them their primary health care provider," adding, "In fact, more than 90% of what Planned Parenthood health centers do is preventive and primary care." According to Richards, "Essential community providers, including those who provide women"s health care, need to be part of any newly established health care system." She adds that "the three million patients who came to Planned Parenthood health centers last year can testify to it." Richards writes that "[f]amily planning and reproductive health care are unfortunately still not fully part of mainstream health care, even though 98% of women use contraception at some point in their lives -- there"s nothing more universal!" The "fact that women reproduce and, therefore, have different types of health care needs makes some folks on Capitol Hill go pale and start to sweat," Richards writes. She concludes, "Maybe one day we won"t need a special campaign to support women"s health," but "until then, Planned Parenthood is here to make sure women aren"t worse off after health care reform than before" (Richards, Huffington Post blogs, 6/18).~ "The Role of Medical Education in Preserving Abortion Access," Our Bodies, Our Blog: In response to a recent Salon opinion piece that examined whether there will be a next generation of abortion providers, the blog post discusses a few organizations that are "working to increase access to (accurate) abortion-related training." The blog includes links to Medical Students for Choice -- a group that "does student organizing and advocacy to influence medical school curricula, workshops ... and lectures on abortion techniques" -- and The Ryan Program -- which offers "funding, technical expertise, curriculum, workshops and other res to support training opportunities in abortion and contraception for ob-gyn residents." The blog entry also highlights the work of Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health, which partners with members of the American Medical Student Association "to provide "project in a box" materials for medical students wanting to access and influence their schools" curricula on sexual and reproductive health" (Our Bodies, Our Blog, 6/18). ~ "Regulating Abortion May Be OK But Not To Avoid Sex-Selection," Marianne Mollmann, Huffington Post blogs: "Sex-selective abortion raises a multitude of overlapping ethical concerns regarding eugenics, population control and provider privilege or knowledge," according to Mollmann, advocacy director for the Human Rights Watch"s Women"s Rights Division. Mollmann writes that recent media reports indicating that sex-selective abortion occurs among some ethnic communities in the U.S. "has generated new discussion about what to do -- indeed what to think -- about the practice here." She continues that the "effect of abortion regulations depends on the context and motivation," adding that "[f]rom a human rights perspective, the regulation of medical procedures and interventions is legitimate and indeed often necessary so long as they are based on full respect for the full range of human rights." It is "perhaps tempting to hope that banning sex-selective abortions would safeguard the gender balance of future generations," but the "criminalization of abortion for whatever reason has in the past led only to underground and unsafe prac
Fresenius Medical Care, which operates the nation"s leading network of dialysis clinics, today endorsed the Performance Excellence and Accountability in Kidney Care (PEAK) campaign recently launched by Kidney Care Partners (KCP) - a coalition of patient advocates, dialysis professionals, care providers and manufacturers working together to improve quality of care for individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The PEAK initiative is designed to significantly reduce the mortality rate for patients in their first year of dialysis.
On the observation of President Obama"s first 150 days in office, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the nation"s largest AIDS organization, is continuing its "Change AIDS Obama" campaign with the release of a new online advocacy video chastising the president for his ongoing-and baffling-silence on AIDS.
A new study analyzing the prevalence of sensory impairment among older U.S. workers found that hearing impairment prevalence was three times that of visual impairment, and that 38 percent of older workers reported experiencing either impairment.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to switch to a new generation of animal-free tests for predicting the toxicity of chemicals to humans, according to an article scheduled for the June 22 issue of Chemical & Engineering News, ACS" weekly newsmagazine.
Withdrawal of the painkiller co-proxamol from the UK market has led to a major reduction in suicides and accidental poisonings involving the drug, without an increase in deaths from other painkillers, finds research published on bmj.com today.
With rising taxes and increasing restrictions on smoking and tobacco, smokers looking for temporary relief from cravings and withdrawal symptoms during periods when they couldn"t smoke, or chose not to, were out of luck. But a new breed of short-term cessation treatment -- based on age-old homeopathic practices -- promises to help smokers manage cravings on-the-spot, when lighting up isn"t an option.
There are few things as vital to health and well-being as a good night"s sleep. Yet millions of us -- nearly 50 million according to the National Sleep Foundation -- suffer from chronic sleep problems or disorders. Every year, more and more scientific studies are showing correlations between poor or insufficient sleep and disease. Now there is a simple, easy way to quantify and measure sleep problems with patient populations.
The recent explosion in the development of nanomaterials with enhanced performance characteristics for use in commercial and medical applications has increased the likelihood of people coming into direct contact with these materials.
A paper that appears in the June 2009 issue of Anesthesiology details how AMPAKINE CX717, a Phase II compound created by Irvine, California-based neuroscience company Cortex Pharmaceuticals, demonstrated the rescue of fentanyl-induced respiratory depression and sleep apnea in rats. In this same study, CX717 demonstrated equal efficacy with the opioid antagonist Naloxone, a drug used to counter the effects of opioids on suppression of breathing. CX717 did not, however, interfere with the action of pain-killing opiates. This offers a distinct advantage compared with Naloxone and could provide a novel therapeutic means of treating those patients who are particularly prone to breathing depression with opiates while achieving maximum pain relief.
Immobilized microbes can break down potentially harmful phthalates, according to researchers in China, writing in the International Journal of Environment and Pollution. The microbes might be used to treat industrial waste water and so prevent these materials from entering the environment.
PharmaMar SA (Grupo Zeltia, ZEL.MC) announces the initiation of Phase I clinical trials with PM1183, a new antitumor compound developed by
The rapid development of modern neuroimaging has made a decisive improvement in the diagnosis of neurological illnesses. As Professor Filippi notes: "Neuroimaging makes new diagnostic tools available with the potential to quantify the extent of CNS injury, to define the nature of the different pathological substrates of the various CNS affections and to assess the functional changes following tissue damage with the ability to limit the clinical consequences of injury."
Amicus Therapeutics (Nasdaq: FOLD) announced it has commenced the U.S. registration Phase 3 trial with its investigational drug, Amigal(TM) (migalastat hydrochloride) for the treatment of Fabry disease. The Company has reached agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the key protocol design elements of the pivotal trial, including the use of the surrogate primary endpoint of the change in the amount of kidney interstitial capillary GL-3, the substrate that accumulates in the cells of Fabry patients. In addition, the FDA is in agreement that the Company is eligible to seek Accelerated Approval for Amigal according to Subpart H regulations. The Company has begun submitting the Phase 3 protocol to investigational sites worldwide and expects to begin the dosing of subjects in the second half of this year.
Biomodels LLC, a preclinical research organization specializing in cancer support care, announced that its customized research program allowed ActoGeniX NV, a development stage biopharmaceutical company, to rapidly attain Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for Phase 1b clinical trials of AGO13 in cancer patients with oral mucositis.
Oncothyreon Inc. (Nasdaq: ONTY) (TSX:ONY) (the "Company") announced that Merck KGaA of Darmstadt, Germany, has initiated a global Phase 3 trial of Stimuvax(R) (BLP25 liposome vaccine, L-BLP25) in patients with hormone receptor-positive, locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic breast cancer. Stimuvax is an investigational therapeutic cancer vaccine being developed by Merck KGaA under a license agreement with Oncothyreon.
Essentialis Inc, a clinical stage pharmaceutical company, announced that it met its primary endpoint of statistically significant triglyceride reduction in a 90-patient Phase 2b trial of DCCR in dyslipidemic patients. The study encompassed both patients with very high triglycerides and mixed dyslipidemia and included normal weight, overweight and obese patients presenting with or without hypertension.
David L. Shern, Ph.D., President and CEO of Mental Health America, will testify on Tuesday, June 23 before the Health Subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee in a hearing to discuss a comprehensive health care reform bill unveiled last week by the Chairmen of the three lead health care reform committees in the House of Representatives: Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, and Education and Labor.
"No one can figure out a politically acceptable way to pay for an overhaul of America"s health care system, and until someone does, the effort is stalled. Maybe indefinitely," McClatchy reports. Michael Tanner, a "health care analyst" at the Cato Institute, says "it"s quite feasible that the whole thing could crash and burn because of sticker shock." The Senate Finance Committee has postponed writing legislation until July. "Legislative committees plan hearings and bill-writing sessions next week, and will face two key cost-related obstacles: No one really knows any plan"s price tag, and few so far are willing to take the political risk of raising taxes to pay for it. Add to that growing public wariness: Polls show people are increasingly disturbed by record federal deficits. A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll conducted June 12 to 15 found that 58 percent said that the president and Congress should focus most on keeping the deficit down, even if that means it will take longer for the economy to recover."
The total cost for treating a child with autism can reach $5 million, but insurance companies rarely cover autism therapy and few states mandate it. CBS News reports that "an estimated one in every 150 children in America has autism and the number of reported cases is growing" while "parents are increasingly demanding that insurance companies cover the newest treatment."
On Wednesday, a national HIV testing campaign called "Don"t?Guess?Test!" is making a "controversial move" by distributing free HIV testing kits that have not been approved by FDA in the lead up to National HIV Testing Day on June 27, the Washington Business Journal reports. The kits have been clinically tested and are available in Africa, Asia and Europe, according to the Business Journal. Due to the sensitive nature of the non-FDA-approved kits, campaign officials are not disclosing how many tests will be distributed or the location of distribution at this time (Plumb, Washington Business Journal, 6/22).
CNN examines China"s efforts to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS by educating sex workers about the disease and prevention strategies. "It is estimated that some 700,000 people are living with HIV in China and there are about 50,000 new infections every year, according to the Chinese government and UNAIDS. The U.N. agency believes a significant number of those new infections include sex workers," CNN writes.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers not to eat California Prime Produce and Orange County Orchards brands of pistachios repacked by Orca Distribution West Inc., Anaheim, Calif. Orca received and repacked pistachios recalled by Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella Inc., Terra Bella, Calif.
45th DIA Annual Meeting -- Booth # 1501 -- WorldCare Clinical, LLC (WCC), a leading imaging CRO for clinical trials in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries, announced that it is offering version 1.0 of the Metrics Champion Consortium (MCC) Imaging Performance Metrics to all sponsors" imaging trials beginning July 1, 2009, through its WorldPro™ technology solution.
The colon is the longest part of the large intestine and the lowest part of the digestive system. Inside the colon, water and salt from solid wastes are extracted before the waste moves through the rectum and exits the body through the anus.
With millions of people in the United States eagerly awaiting those July 4 fireworks displays - and our Canadian neighbors doing likewise for their July 1 Canada Day celebrations - here"s a prospect for those light shows of the future likely to ignite a smile on Mother Nature"s face: A new generation of "green" fireworks is quietly making its way toward the sky.
A survey of 140 independent imaging centers across the United States reveals that diagnostic radiology specialty networks play a critical role in channeling patients to imaging centers for both workers" compensation and health insurance patients.
Collaboration in prostate cancer translational research in Europe is not only vital to sustain the progress achieved in recent years but also to streamline current efforts between researchers and clinicians and avoid duplication or overlaps. This was amongst the goals of the two-day Prostate Cancer Translational Research in Europe (PCTRE) Meeting which opened recently in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
A tiny plant with a long name (Arabidopsis thaliana) helps researchers from over 120 countries learn how to design new crops to help meet increasing demands for food, biofuels, industrial materials, and new medicines. The genes, proteins, and other traits of this fast-growing, tiny mustard plant reside in a vast database dubbed the Arabidopsis Information Re (TAIR), which has over 1.6 million page hits each month. The TAIR group, headed by Dr. Eva Huala at Carnegie"s Department of Plant Biology, just released a new version of the genome sequence of this model plant, which includes an array of improvements and novel features that promise to accelerate this critical research.
Research led by scientists in India suggests there is a direct link between smoking and brain damage whereby a compound in tobacco that turns
Warts are skin growths which are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV) - they are non-cancerous. The virus causes keratin, a hard protein in the epidermis (the top layer of the skin) to grow too fast. Warts are different from moles. While moles are dark and can be quite large, warts tend to be small, skin-colored rough lumps. Warts most commonly appear on a person"s hands and feet.
Soft Network Users Group (SNUG) is holding its 17th annual conference, for users of SCC Soft Computer"s (SCC) clinical laboratory software solutions, May 18-21 at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort in Clearwater, Florida. This year"s conference, SNUG 2009- Cultivating Knowledge- a Shared 30-Year Journey of Innovation and Excellence, will include a celebration of SCC Soft Computer"s 30th anniversary with clients and SCC staff members. The conference provides educational opportunities through technical sessions and product demonstrations. Established to promote the free exchange of ideas and suggestions, relating to the applications of SCC Soft Computer"s laboratory software package, SNUG is also a vehicle of communication between users and SCC.
A group of German investigators demonstrated that the early increase in phosphorylated CREB (pCREB) is related to treatment response and does not depend on pharmacological interventions or brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) plasma levels. For the first time, cellular biological markers could be associated with response to psychotherapy.
It is possible to determine which patients run a high risk of developing Alzheimer"s disease and the dementia associated with it, even in patients with minimal memory impairment. This has been shown by recent research at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden.
Melatonin can slow down the effects of aging. A team at laboratoire Arago in Banyuls sur Mer (CNRS / Universitç© Pierre et Marie Curie) has found that a treatment based on melatonin can delay the first signs of aging in a small mammal. These results appeared in the journal PLoS ONE on 15 June 2009.
Underweight people and those who are extremely obese die earlier than people of normal weight - but those who are overweight actually live longer than people of normal weight. Those are the findings of a new study published online in Obesity by researchers at Statistics Canada, Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, Portland State University, Oregon Health & Science University, and McGill University.
Who suffers from low back pain; my brother, my boss"s brother, my neighbor, a friend on the golf course and recently the media reports Regis Philbin and Jeff Gordon suffer from low back pain.
An article published Online First and in the July edition of The Lancet Oncology indicates that weight-loss surgery known as bariatric surgery could be linked to a reduction in cancer risk in obese women, but not in obese men.
A study that attempted to replicate the "seminal" study that laid the
BMA Scotland has warned that children who smoke face years of tobacco addiction that can lead to life-threatening diseases and premature death. The association also called on MSPs to support the proposals contained in the Tobacco and Primary Medical services (Scotland) Bill in order to reduce children"s exposure to tobacco products.
Australian regenerative medicine company Mesoblast Limited has announced successful results from the first five patients who underwent bone marrow transplantation with haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells expanded by the patented allogeneic, or "off-the-shelf", Mesenchymal Precursor Cells (MPCs).
More than 500 scientific abstracts to be presented across 20 types of
New research from scientists in the US and Greece suggests that the health and longevity effects of the Mediterranean Diet are more strongly
The National Right to Life Committee last week held its national convention in Charlotte, N.C., attracting as many as 1,300 antiabortion-rights advocates from around the U.S., according to event organizers, the Charlotte Observer reports. According to the Observer, a large part of the convention focused on President Obama"s appeal for "common ground" in the abortion-rights debate, with many participants arguing there is not much in common to be found between abortion-rights supporters and opponents.NRLC Political Director Karen Cross said that Obama is "the most pro-abortion president" in U.S. history, telling convention delegates, "Look at the devastation brought by the first 100 days" of his administration. Cross was referring to Obama"s decisions to ease restrictions on embryonic stem cell research, lift the "global gag" rule and his intentions to repeal the Bush administration"s provider "conscience" rule.Although Obama has sought to achieve common ground on abortion by promoting adoption and methods of preventing unintended pregnancies, his "view of common ground is not common ground at all" for "people with very strong pro-life positions," John Green, a senior fellow at the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, said. Green said that the "positive news is abortion is not a priority for many Americans." Green said that results from a recent a Pew Research Center poll could indicate that "pro-life constituencies are becoming more vocal and more strident precisely because there"s a president with more pro-choice sympathies." Similarly, a May Gallup poll found that 51% of U.S. residents consider themselves "pro-life," compared with 42% who call themselves "pro-choice." The poll was the first time Gallup found that more people identified themselves as "pro-life."Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, said that the Gallup poll "doesn"t square" with the election of Obama and abortion-rights majorities in both chambers of Congress. She said, "Americans want a change in the tone of the debate and that begins with common ground on birth control and sex education." She added, "As long as right-to-life refuses to support better access to contraception, they will continue to be outside the mainstream values of this country" (Morrill, Charlotte Observer, 6/20).
Elizabeth Letts, an author and certified nurse-midwife, in the New York Times" "Cases" column on Tuesday reports on her first experience assisting in the delivery of a stillborn infant. Letts describes how witnessing a more experienced midwife comfort the pregnant woman and perform the delivery helped her to stop "believ[ing] that providing support meant sitting in a corner pretending that death could be covered up with small talk." The experience reminded Letts that "birth and death are right around the corner from each other, and that as a midwife I may be charged with bringing either one into the world" (Letts, "Cases," New York Times, 6/23).
"Just because something is legal -- and should be legal -- does not mean it is always ethical," Frances Kissling, former president of Catholics for Choice, writes in a Salon opinion piece, adding that "sometimes the right thing to say to a woman [seeking abortion] is "I am so sorry, I cannot do what you ask."" According to Kissling, there has "always been a fear in the choice movement that if we deal with "morality," we are going to lose." However, "tough issues come up more frequently than they did in the first years after" Roe v. Wade, and such issues "should make us pause and think hard," Kissling writes, adding, "The thought of putting every woman through the indignity of meeting with an ethics committee, or getting a doctor to sign off on her reasons for abortion, has forced most of us to stick with the principle that women must be allowed to make their own private ethical decisions, without the state getting involved." However, Kissling comments that "we express moral views about every other issue under the sun." She continues, "Expressing our views about controversial issues is how society develops norms and shared values."Kissling adds that if abortion-rights supporters "follow the example of those opposed to abortion and present only one value -- a woman"s right to make this decision -- as the only ethical consideration worth discussing in difficult cases, do we not become as extremist as we say they are?" She continues, "Is there not, in an ethical sense, an important weighing of women"s rights and needs against a respect for life, even the life of nonpersons? Is there a point in pregnancy when our respect for life might outweigh a woman"s right to make this choice?" Kissling asks, "[I]s the fact that we have avoided it part of the reason that polls show that more people are willing to call themselves pro-life than ever before?"According to Kissling she has "come to believe that women"s autonomy does not require that all efforts be made to protect women from pain or from hearing the word "no."" Kissling writes, "I still have a twinge of doubt when I write these words," adding, "For most of my years as an advocate of a woman"s right to decide, I stepped back from this conclusion" and "could not bring myself to say that there are circumstances in which I would force a woman to continue a pregnancy." The piece continues, "What changed for me? ... Mostly, I feared that single value ethics about abortion, on either side of the debate, would result in a coarsening of our respect for both women and for life" (Kissling, Salon, 6/21).
The Allied Health Professions Leadership Challenge winners are East Midlands SHA, The Department of Health announced today.
Older eyewitnesses can inadvertently add or change aspects of their account if they have the chance to speak to another eyewitness. This is one of the findings of Jane Montague and colleagues from University of Derby who will present their research at the British Psychological Society"s Division of Forensic Psychology"s Annual Conference today, Wednesday 24th June. The conference is being held the University of Central Lancashire, Preston.
Pancreatic cancer is a devastating disease with poor prognosis. This warrants the development of novel therapies including gene therapy. However, clinical studies have demonstrated poor efficacy of adenoviral gene therapy because of the absence of adenoviral binding sites on pancreatic cancer cells such as the coxsackie and adenovirus receptor (CAR). Circumventing CAR-mediated entry therefore seems a promising option to improve adenoviral entry into pancreatic cancer cells and to enhance the efficacy of adenoviral vectors.
The Lupus Foundation of America (LFA) is seeking proposals for grant funding for research studies on lupus, an unpredictable and potentially fatal autoimmune disease. Grants will support areas of study in pediatric lupus and adult stem cell transplantation. The purposes of the studies are to advance adult stem cell transplantation research in humans as a treatment for lupus and address key understanding of pediatric/adolescent lupus research issues.
MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) today announced that the Company has submitted an application for the authorization of a phase 1b/2a clinical study in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) for its lead drug MOR103, a fully human HuCAL-derived monoclonal antibody directed against Granulocyte Macrophage-Colony Stimulating Factor. The trial, which will be conducted in multiple centers in several European countries, is expected to enroll 135 patients in total beginning in the second half of 2009. Additionally, the Company today reported positive results from the phase 1 clinical study for MOR103 in healthy volunteers. The results of this study indicate that MOR103 is generally safe and well tolerated at all doses administered.
A lack of serotonin, commonly known as the "happiness hormone", in the brain slows the growth of mice after birth and is responsible for impaired maternal behavior later in life. This was the result of research conducted by Dr. Natalia Alenina, Dana Kikic, and Professor Michael Bader of the Max DelbrÃøck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch, Germany. At the same time, the researchers discovered that the presence of serotonin in the brain is not crucial for the survival of the animals. Furthermore, they were able to confirm that there are two strictly separate pathways of serotonin production: One gene is responsible for the formation of serotonin in the brain, another gene for the production of the hormone in the body (PNAS, June 23, 2009, Vol. 106, No. 25, pp 10332-10337)*.
Research presented by Bernard Casey of the University of Warwick"s Institute for Employment Research shows that work-related stress today damages national output even more than the loss to national output due to strikes at the peak of industrial unrest in the 1970s.
The effect of anxiety on academic performance is not always obvious but new research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council suggests that there may be hidden costs. The research found that anxious individuals find it harder to avoid distractions and take more time to turn their attention from one task to the next than their less anxious peers.
On June 18, the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) announced the award of $9.16 million for the creation of a national technology platform aimed at mapping the human interactome. This national platform, headed by Dr. Benoit Coulombe from the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montrç©al (IRCM), will not only provide Canadian researchers with new state-of-the-art equipment in proteomics, functional genomics and bioinformatics, but also bring together integrated infrastructure for deciphering the human interactome an expertise that, until now, has been spread in 12 universities across Canada.
Spherix Incorporated (Nasdaq CM: SPEX), an innovator in biotechnology for diabetes therapy, and a provider of technical and regulatory consulting services to food, supplement, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, announced positive preliminary results from a Phase 2 clinical trial of its novel compound, Naturlose(R) (D-tagatose), in the treatment and management of Type 2 diabetes. The Phase 2 trial is expected to be completed in early 2010.
Congressional leaders and leading pharmaceutical companies have come up with a plan to reduce medication costs for millions of senior citizens enrolled in the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug program. In combination with other discount programs and rebates, the savings to the U.S. government could represent $80 billion. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) is leading the charge to specifically close the coverage gap for patients whose medications costs fall into the "doughnut hole."
New research from two Philadelphia-area cardiologists finds that an over-the-counter dietary supplement sold at pharmacies and health food stores may be an alternative for patients who cannot take traditional statin medications to lower cholesterol because of statin-related muscle pain. The findings of their study, "Red Yeast Rice for Dyslipidemia in Statin-Intolerant Patients," appear in the June 16, 2009 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.
Caldera Medical, Inc. announced that it has received FDA clearance and CE Mark certification for the Ascend Pelvic Floor Repair System with Apical Support, a novel treatment for female pelvic organ prolapse. Ascend® is the latest addition to the Caldera Medical family of products designed to treat female stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and pelvic organ prolapse (POP). Caldera"s product line includes the Desara® Sling System, a universal sling that allows surgeons their choice of multiple surgical approaches by utilizing reusable instrumentation. Caldera is the only U.S. company offering this unique solution, which benefits surgeons, hospitals, and the environment.
The emerging field of synthetic biology draws on a variety of technologies, including genetic engineering and nanotechnology, to engineer biological systems to perform novel tasks. As the science and its applications develop, instead of creating a "new kind" of ethics for each new techno-scientific arena, a comprehensive approach is needed to address ethical and social issues of emerging technologies as a whole, according to a report by Erik Parens, Josephine Johnston, and Jacob Moses of The Hastings Center. Synthetic biology promises significant advances in areas such as biofuels, specialty chemicals, agriculture, and medicine but also poses potential risks.
House Democrats readying a health reform bill without a price tag or a budget analysis will hear from business interests today that their plan is irrevocably broken and that they need to start from scratch, CongressDaily reports.
Health Care Overhaul: The Public Option Debate CQ Politics
A Christian-theater troupe and other area religious leaders are participating in HIV testing efforts targeting the black community in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky as part of National HIV Testing Day, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. According to the Enquirer, local public health officials have long struggled to encourage blacks and other groups to get tested for HIV. Increased awareness efforts by black religious leaders and national initiatives - such as the "Test One Million" campaign organized by the Black AIDS Institute in Los Angeles - have recently focused attention on HIV/AIDS in the black community, Mamie Harris, founder and executive director of IV-Charis, the lead agency in Cincinnati for the "Test One Million" campaign, said (O"Farrell, Cincinnati Enquirer, 6/23).
Health Minister Edwina Hart and Minister for Rural Affairs Elin Jones will speak at an event held as part of the consultation process on a major new plan to drive forward improvements in healthcare services in rural areas.
IRIN Examines Hardships Facing Parents, Guardians Of Children Living With HIV/AIDS
Transferring heart attack patients to specialized hospitals to undergo angioplasty within six hours after receiving clot-busting drugs reduces the risk of life-threatening complications including repeat heart attacks, according to a new study from St. Michael"s Hospital and Southlake Regional Hospital.
The latest figures from the Confidential Enquiry into Maternal and Child Health (CEMACH) Perinatal Mortality Surveillance Report 2007 show improvements in the stillbirth and neonatal death rates in the UK.
Investigators at Children"s Hospital Oakland Research Institute, Oakland, California found a way to obtain large numbers of hematopoietic stem cell from human term placenta. The results, which appear in the July 2009 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, describe detailed report on quantification, characterization, engraftment capacity, and most importantly, practical way to obtain hematopoietic stem cells from placenta in numbers that are several-fold higher than could be obtained from cord blood.
In his weekly radio and Internet address, President Obama discussed efforts by congressional leaders and health care industry groups on health care reform legislation, The Hill reports. He said that "while there remains a great deal of difficult work ahead, I am heartened by what we have seen these past few days: a willingness of those with different points of view and disparate interests to come together around common goals -- to embrace a shared sense of responsibility and make historic progress" (Youngman, The Hill, 5/16). He said, "I have always believed that it is better to talk than not to talk, that it is far more productive to reach over a divide than to shake your fist across it," which has "been an alien notion in Washington for far too long, but we are seeing that the ways of Washington are beginning to change."In the Republican radio and Internet address. Rep. Charles Boustany (R-La.), a cardiovascular surgeon, said that a "government takeover of health care will put bureaucrats in charge of health care decisions that should be made by families and doctors." He added, "It will limit treatment options and lead to rationed care," and "to pay for government health care, your taxes will be raised." Boustany, a member of the House Republican Health Care Solutions Group, said, "That is something we cannot support, and frankly, it would clearly violate some of the principles the president himself has endorsed" (Superville, AP/Washington Post, 5/16). In related news, Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag on Sunday said on CNN"s "State of the Union" that the administration might support taxing health care benefits to health pay for health care reform (Barr, Politico, 5/17). Timeline
Despite recent declines in cigarette use in the U.S., nicotine dependence has remained steady among adults and has actually increased among some groups. The finding by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health suggests that public health initiatives have been far more successful in preventing Americans from taking up smoking than in persuading hard-core smokers to stop. The study is available online in the American Journal of Public Health and will be published in the August 2009 issue.
The National Pharmacy Association is organising a Health Inequalities Summit in the Toynbee Hall lecture theatre, Tower Hamlets on Monday 29 June, 10.00am-4.00pm.
New research1 conducted by Asthma UK suggests that people with asthma are struggling to afford the medicines they need to stay well and out of hospital, and that this situation has been made even worse since the recession began.
DrugScope has today welcomed the National Treatment Agency"s announcement of a pilot scheme that will see families and carers of opiate users trained in drug overdose management and the administration of naloxone, a drug which reverses the effects of a drug overdose [1].
Kirsten de Beurs, an assistant geography professor in Virginia Tech"s College of Natural Res, has received a NASA grant to direct a large international land abandonment study in Russia with Grigory Ioffe of Radford University, Geoffrey Henebry of South Dakota State University, and in-country collaborator Tatyana Nefedova.
At the 8th International Conference on Bipolar Disorder this week in Pittsburgh, four distinguished individuals will be honored for their contributions to bipolar disorder research, education and service. The conference is the only venue in the world devoted exclusively to highlighting new research into bipolar disorder
The European Medicines Agency"s (EMEA) Committee for Medicinal Products
Headaches are a widespread problem in the United States, affecting roughly 45 million people. Migraine headaches affect millions of Americans each year they are the most common type of headache that sends patients running to their doctor"s office. Migraines occur when constricting blood vessels in the brain cause intense, recurring vascular headaches. Like other forms of headaches, women suffer from migraines more frequently than men.
The National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research based at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has released its 26th annual all sports report.