World / Health & Beauty
Effect Of Allopurinol On Germ Cell Apoptosis Following Testicular Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury In A Rat
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
ORLANDO, FL (UroToday.com) - It is recognized that apoptosis is involved in germ cell loss following testicular ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. Allopurinol is as a free radical scavenger which prevents tissue damage caused by reperfusion and oxygenation after ischemia. The authors have investigated the ability of allopurinol to effect testicular injury after torsion. Testicular ischemia in rats led to histological damage in the ipsilateral testis.
World
Urology
Changes In Bacterial Flora Associated With Kidney Stones: An Analysis Of Reported Literature
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
ORLANDO, FL (UroToday.com) - Dr. Romero examined the changing trend of bacterial culture isolates associated with renal urinary stones. To examine the current literature on stone culture results, a literature search using the PubMed and Ovid was performed, the results revealed a total of 12 manuscripts from 1984 to 2007 with stone culture data. In the recent literature, the most common bacterial isolates associated with renal urolithiasis were E.
World
Urology
Can Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy Induce Peyronie's-Like Plaque In Normal Penis?
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
ORLANDO, FL (UroToday.com) - This study out of Sao Paolo, Brazil showed that shock wave therapy (SWT) can actually induce tissue injury to the tunica albuginea to form a Peyronie's plaque in normal tissue. In a rabbit model, 25 animals were subjected to either SWT, protected SWT (via a rubber barrier), or controls; it was clearly shown that significant tissue trauma is induced during this therapy. Presented by Italo Cortez, MD, et al.
World
Urology
Analyzing The Occurrence Of Peyronie's Disease After Radical Prostatectomy
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
ORLANDO, FL (UroToday.com) - Dr. Matthias Heck, et al. examined the occurrence of Peyronie's disease (PD) after radical prostatectomy. The incidence of PD in the general population is estimated to be between 3-9%. A retrospective review of 589 patients undergoing radical prostatectomy was performed to examine the incidence of PD in this population with a mean age of 62 years. Results showed that 102/589 developed PD post prostatectomy for an incidence of 17%.
World
Urology
EU Organ Donation Directive Must Reflect Clinical Need
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
The House of Lords European Union Committee has welcomed EU proposals for a European directive on the quality and safety of organ donation and transplantation but has stressed that, in establishing minimum standards across Europe, the EU must not impose requirements beyond those which are clinically justifiable. The Committee stress that any directive should include significant flexibility to allow scope for clinical judgement and patient choice.
World
Transplantation
SmokeFree England One Year On - New Report Shows Benefits To Health
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
More people are trying to quit smoking, the air in pubs and bars is cleaner and rates of compliance with smokefree laws remain high, according to a new survey looking at the first year of Smokefree England, published recently. The report Smokefree England: One Year On summarises key findings from businesses, health workers and the public regarding the Smokefree legislation which was introduced one year ago today.
World
Smoking
Olympic Athletes: Trouble Breathing In Beijing?
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
When the world's top athletes convene next month for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, some will face a challenge that tests more than their athletic abilities. Heavy pollution in the Chinese capital could pose problems for competitors, especially those with asthma, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI).
World
Asthma
Doctor Who-Ever's Convenient, UK
02.07.2008 06:18
medicalnewstoday.com
Around two in three patients (65 per cent) don't mind which doctor they see if they can get a convenient appointment, according to new Which? research. 67 per cent of patients would be happy to see any doctor if they could easily access their medical records. Although 69 per cent of patients say they would prefer to visit the same doctor each time, only around half of people (52 per cent) who had seen a GP in the last year had seen the same doctor for their last three visits.
World
Critical Care Medicine & Anesthesiology
British Society For Antimicrobial Chemotherapy Launch The First Evidence-based UK Guidelines To Tackle Hospital-acquired Pneumonia (HAP)
02.07.2008 06:17
medicalnewstoday.com
The British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (BSAC) published the first evidence-based UK guidelines to address the management of hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) which is the most common hospital acquired infection in intubated1 patients increasing mortality by up to 75%2.
World
Infectious Diseases
DxS Launches Cancer Mutation Kit For K-RAS In Australia - New Diagnostic Assists Clinicians In Selecting Appropriate Cancer Therapy For Patients
02.07.2008 06:17
medicalnewstoday.com
DxS, a personalised medicine company and leaders in the provision of companion diagnostics, has today announced the launch of its K-RAS cancer mutation detection kit in Australia. This follows the kit meeting the compliance standards of Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).
World
Cancer
Yeast-Based Vaccine Induces Immune Responses And Reduces Tumor Size In Mice
02.07.2008 06:17
medicalnewstoday.com
Scientists have found that vaccination with a heat-killed, nontoxic yeast that is genetically engineered to manufacture a common tumor protein can induce specific and repeated anti-tumor immune responses in mice. Vaccination extends overall survival and reduces tumor size in mice that have been injected with cancer cells displaying the same protein that was engineered into the yeast.
World
Cancer
Cimzia(R) Filed With EMEA For Treatment Of Rheumatoid Arthritis, Europe
02.07.2008 06:16
medicalnewstoday.com
UCB announced that a Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) has been submitted to the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) requesting the approval of Cimzia® (certolizumab pegol) as a subcutaneous treatment for adults with moderate to severe active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and has been accepted for review. Subject to approval, Cimzia® will be the first and only PEGylated, Fc-Free anti-TNF (Tumour Necrosis Factor alpha) biologic therapy available in Europe for the treatment of RA.
World
Arthritis
How relaxation response helps you deal with high BP, infertility and more
02.07.2008 05:26
b4uindia.com
A collaborative study by members of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind/Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and the Genomics Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) casts light on how the relaxation response, a physiologic state of deep rest, enables patients to deal with disorders like high blood pressure, pain syndromes, infertility, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. The study appearing in the open-access journal PLoS One suggests that works by influencing the activation pattern of genes associated with the body’s response to stress. "For hundreds of years Western medicine has looked at mind and body as totally separate entities, to the point where saying something 'is all in your head' implied that it was imaginary. Now we've found how changing the activity of the mind can alter the way basic genetic instructions are implemented," says Dr. Herbert Benson, director emeritus of the Benson-Henry Institute. Dr. Towia Libermann, director of the BIDMC Genomics Center and the report's co-senior author, adds: "This is the first comprehensive study of how the mind can affect gene expression, linking what has been looked on as a 'soft' science with the 'hard' science of genomics. It is also important because of its focus on gene expression in healthy individuals, rather than in disease states." Over the years, studies in many peer-reviewed journals documented how the relaxation response not only alleviates symptoms of psychological disorders such as anxiety but also affects physiologic factors such as heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen consumption and brain activity. However, the mechanism underlying such effects remained unknown to date. The researchers said that they designed the current study to determine whether changes in the expression of specific genes were behind the wide-ranging effects of the relaxation response. In the first phase of the study, gene expression patterns of 19 long-term practitioners of different relaxation response techniques were compared with those of 19 individuals who had never engaged in such practices. In the second phase of the study, the control participants went through an eight-week training program to investigate whether initiating relaxation response practice could change gene expression over time. Both phases of the study indicated that the relaxation response alters the expression of genes involved with processes such as inflammation, programmed cell death, and how the body handles free radicals – molecules produced by normal metabolism that, if not appropriately neutralized, can damage cells and tissues. The researchers repeated both phases in six different relaxation response practitioners and five non-practitioners to validate their findings, and observed significantly similar changes in gene expression. "Changes in the activation of these same genes have previously been seen in conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder; but the relaxation-response-associated changes were the opposite of stress-associated changes and were much more pronounced in the long-term practitioners," said Dr. Jeffery Dusek co-lead author of the study. Benson said: "People have been using these culturally determined mind/body techniques for millenia. We found that no matter which particular technique is used – different forms of meditation and yoga, breath focus, or repetitive prayer – the mechanism involved is the same. Now we need to see if similar changes occur in patients who use the relaxation response to help treat stress-related disorders, and those studies are underway now." Libermann said that the sensitive genomic analyses conducted in the study were at the cutting edge of efforts to unravel the genetic aspects of complex disorders. "There are a lot of differences in gene expression between one healthy person and another, so it is challenging to analyze the kinds of subtle changes we are seeing and identify what changes are significant and what are just background noise. Our approach uses the latest bioinformatics tools to identify potential gene functions, generating hypotheses that can then be tested in laboratory or clinical studies," added the researcher. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
Mediterranean diet cuts cancer risk by 12pc
02.07.2008 05:26
b4uindia.com
The benefits of a Mediterranean diet are not just confined to healthy weight loss. According to a new research, the diet rich in fruit and vegetables can also cut the risk of cancer by 12 per cent. The diet, reports the British Journal of Cancer, also includes higher amounts of fruits, vegetables, cereals, and less red meat. The Mediterranean diet came under scrutiny after researchers noticed lower rates of illnesses such as heart disease in countries such as Spain and Greece. They noticed that people living there generally ate more vegetables and fish, less red meat, cooked in olive oil and drank moderate amounts of alcohol. The latest study is one of the largest yet to look at the potential impact on cancer of the various parts of this diet. Researchers from Harvard University persuaded thousands of Greek people of various ages to record their food intake over an eight-year-period. Their adherence to the Mediterranean diet was ranked using a scoring system, and the group with the worst score compared with those who followed a couple of aspects of the diet, and those who followed it the most closely. The biggest effect they found - a 9 percent reduction in risk - was achieved simply by eating more "unsaturated" fats such as olive oil. But just two changes - eating less red meat, and more peas, beans and lentils, cut the risk of cancer by 12 percent. "Adjusting one's overall dietary habits towards the traditional Mediterranean pattern had an important effect,” BBC quoted Dr Dimitrios Trichopoulos, the study’s lead author, as saying. Sara Hiom, from Cancer Research UK, said the research highlighted the importance of a healthy balanced diet. "It shows there are a number of things you can do, and there is no one 'superfood' that can stop you developing the disease,” Hiom said. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
Lesbians nearly twice as likely to be obese than straight women
02.07.2008 05:26
b4uindia.com
A new study has found that lesbians are nearly twice as likely to be overweight than heterosexual women. Researchers at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing are now using an extraordinarily successful, predominately lesbian weight loss group in Atlanta, as a model system for discovering how to target obesity in a lesbian population. Sarah Fogel, Ph.D., R.N., associate professor of Nursing at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, is studying the group, and her findings are giving her a different view on weight loss. “All weight loss groups offer an environment of like-bodied people (overweight or obese), but this is the first group, to my knowledge, that has been developed around other personal and social issues,” said Fogel. Adherence to a new lifestyle is often the most difficult barrier to overcome in weight loss. However, the Atlanta group has had remarkable success in developing long-term change in its member’s lifestyles. “Perhaps the best representation of the group is to say that there are still several women in the group who were ‘founding members.’ They have been attending since October 2006 and continue to come even though a couple of them have reached their weight loss goals,” Fogel said. “The other side of this is that even the women who have not been able to lose what they want to lose keep coming . . . this is unheard of. It says volumes about the group,” she added. Being overweight or obese can result in a number of health problems, namely cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, so understanding how obesity develops in different populations is a pressing concern. Fogel will study the group over a six-month period, both empirically and qualitatively. Using body mass index (BMI) and relative weight loss, she will put a number on the group’s success. Fogel has already held focus groups in order to lend a deeper, more personal aspect to the study, and therefore weight loss. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
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