Health and Medical News Headlines for December 30, 2008

Exercise Improves Kids' Academics

Aerobic exercise improves a student's fitness level and test scores, too.
Source: Livescience.com - Health | 29 Dec 2009 | 2:06 pm

Resolving to Break an Addictive Habit? (HealthDay)

HealthDay - TUESDAY, Dec. 30 (HealthDay News) -- No matter the addiction -- drugs, gambling, shopping, smoking, alcohol or more -- people who want to kick their habit in the new year might find help in a new Harvard University publication.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 30 Dec 2008 | 2:02 pm

The Evidence Gap: Patient’s DNA May Be Signal to Tailor Medication

Genetic tests can show which patients are suited to which drugs, but obstacles remain for personalized medicine.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 1:18 pm

UAE's Dana Gas announces Egypt gas, condensate find

DUBAI, Dec 30 (Reuters) - United Arab Emirates-based Dana Gas said it made a gas and condensate discovery in Egypt's Qawasim formation, its fourth find this year in the North African Country.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 12:58 pm

Ukraine govt approves compromise with Gazprom-Ifax

MOSCOW, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Ukraine's government has agreed to a compromise solution with Russia over debts and gas supplies for next year, Interfax news agency quoted a Ukrainian government source in Kiev...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 12:44 pm

UPDATE 1-India's Reliance Comm starts nationwide GSM service

MUMBAI, Dec 30 (Reuters) - India's dominant CDMA mobile operator, Reliance Communications , will also offer GSM-based mobile services across the country from Wednesday, in a move to lure more users in...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 12:15 pm

Experts test exercise, other steps, to prevent lymphedema after breast cancer

WASHINGTON - Hospitals in about a dozen states are testing whether some simple steps, such as arm-strengthening exercises, could reduce the risk of one of breast cancer's troubling...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 12:10 pm

Mylan's Matrix Receives Final FDA Approval for the Generic Version of the Antiretroviral Zerit(R) Capsules

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 12:00 pm

Walk Your Way to Better Health in 2009

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 12:00 pm

VideoMD.com Reaches Milestone of 2500 Patient Education Videos

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 11:50 am

Webcast Alert: Neogen Corporation To Announce 2nd Quarter Results

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 11:45 am

UPDATE 1-Venezuela tells India's ONGC it must cut output

NEW DELHI, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Venezuela has told India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp it will have to reduce output from their San Cristobal oilfield joint venture after OPEC this month agreed to cut production,...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 11:17 am

Gazprom: No deal with Ukraine yet, talks continue

MOSCOW, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Russia and Ukraine have failed to reach a deal over Ukraine's gas debts so far but talks are continuing, Gazprom said on Tuesday, less than 36 hours before its deadline for Ukraine...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Dec 2008 | 11:13 am

Virginity Pledge Teens Just As Sexually Active But Use Less Protection

American teenagers who take virginity pledges promising they will not have sex before marriage are just as likely to be sexually active as non-pledgers and moreover are less likely to protect themselves against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases said a scientist who recommended that all teenagers, especially pledgers, should receive birth control advice.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 11:00 am

New High Blood Pressure Gene Discovered

Using genome-wide association for the first time to scan for genes implicated in high blood pressure, and studying both Amish and non-Amish people, US scientists have discovered a gene involved in regulating how kidneys process salt whose variant they suggest is linked to high blood pressure risk.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 11:00 am

What Are Protective Effects Of Anti-ricin A-chain Aptamer?

Ricin, a lectin from the castor bean plant Ricinus communis is considered one of the most potent plant toxins. Ricin poisoning can cause severe tissue damage and inflammation and can result in death. Most accidental exposures occur by ingestion of the seeds of castor beans whereby the toxin is released after the seed coat is damaged.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 10:00 am

Transcendental Meditation Reduces ADHD Symptoms Among Students: New Study

The Transcendental Meditation technique may be an effective and safe non-pharmaceutical aid for treating ADHD, according to a promising new study published this month in the peer-reviewed online journal Current Issues in Education. The pilot study followed a group of middle school students with ADHD who were meditating twice a day in school.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 10:00 am

Economic Downturn To Increase Pressure On General Practice, Warn GP Managers In The UK

UK general practice will face increased pressures as a result of the economic downturn, according to a survey of 220 UK practice managers published in the latest issue of Management in Practice, the leading information resource for general practice managers. Seven in 10 respondents to the survey, sponsored independently by the Royal Bank of Scotland (see www.managementinpractice.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 10:00 am

Brown against assisted dying law

Prime Minister Gordon Brown tells the BBC he is "totally against" changing laws on euthanasia.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 30 Dec 2008 | 9:37 am

Bioreactors Might Solve Blood-Platelet Supply Problems

It might be possible to grow human blood platelets in the laboratory for transfusion, according to a new study at The Ohio State University Medical Center.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 9:00 am

A Breakthrough In Diagnosis Of Enteric Lesions

Capsule endoscopy (CE), which is virtually a micro-camera, is a revolutionary diagnostic tool in diagnosing small bowel diseases, and CE can obtain 40-60 thousand images of the GI tract, though the number of the images for the lesions is smaller than 500 in most of the patients.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 9:00 am

Vitamin D Deficiency Associated With Greater Rates Of Cesarean Sections

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) found that pregnant women who are vitamin D deficient are also at an increased risk for delivering a baby by caesarean section as compared to pregnant women who are not vitamin D deficient. These findings currently appear on-line in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 9:00 am

AVI BioPharma Announces FDA Clears IND Applications For Clinical Trials Of RNA Therapeutic Agents For Treatment Of Ebola And Marburg Viruses

AVI BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVII), a developer of RNA-based drugs, announced that it learned earlier today that it has received verbal clearance from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the Investigational New Drug (IND) applications filed in November for its two lead products for Marburg and Ebola viruses.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 9:00 am

Study First To Pinpoint Why Analgesic Drugs May Be Less Potent In Females Than In Males

Investigators at Georgia State University's Neuroscience Institute and Center for Behavioral Neuroscience are the first to identify the most likely reason analgesic drug treatment is usually less potent in females than males. This discovery is a major step toward finding more effective treatments for females suffering from persistent pain.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 30 Dec 2008 | 9:00 am

Tobacco Company Downplayed Risks in China, Report Says

An international tobacco company sought to shift attention from the dangers of secondhand smoke in China, researchers claim.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 8:54 am

20% 'have blood pressure gene'

One in five white people carries a gene fault which could raise their risk of high blood pressure, research suggests.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 30 Dec 2008 | 8:06 am

Can sleeping habits predict Parkinson's? (Time.com)

Time.com - Scientists say a rare sleep disorder may be a precursor to the eventual onset of severe symptoms of the disease
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 30 Dec 2008 | 8:05 am

Recipes For Health: At the Start of the New Year, Prosperity Means Beans

Beans are the perfect beginning to a new year — particularly this new year.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 7:24 am

Family Response Key to Health of Gay Youth

Even modest attempts by family members to accept a teen’s sexual orientation helped improve health, researchers found.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 7:24 am

Weight Loss Surgery Reverses Diabetes in Obese Teens

In a few extremely obese teenagers, diabetes disappeared after a weight loss operation usually reserved for adults, researchers said.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 7:24 am

Cyberknife boost to cancer care

A robot radiotherapy machine to treat cancer is to be available in the UK for the first time from February.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 30 Dec 2008 | 6:00 am

Really?: The Claim: New Year’s Is the Most Dangerous Time of the Year to Be on the Road

Do the open bars, late-night revelry and carefree attitude of New Year’s Eve lead to more car accidents?

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 5:37 am

Global Update: Fewer Human Deaths From Virus Even as It Spreads Among Poultry

Rates of the avian flu tend to rise during the winter months, but deaths are declining.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 5:29 am

Books: The High and Low Tech of Health Care Innovation

Whether you prefer cutting-edge medicine or time-tested practices, these books cover the gamut of health care advances past, present and future.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 5:17 am

NHS 'fast losing its compassion'

There has been a deterioration in the level of compassion in the NHS in recent years, the head of a health think-tank tells the BBC.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 30 Dec 2008 | 5:02 am

Cases: A Failure of Nerve, and a New Beginning

Trapped in a body that can't walk, a woman learns to appreciate reality.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 4:58 am

Many teens don't keep virginity pledges, study finds (HealthDay)

HealthDay - MONDAY, Dec. 29 (HealthDay News) -- Teens who take virginity pledges are just as likely to have sex as teens who don't make such promises -- and they're less likely to practice safe sex to prevent disease or pregnancy, a new study finds.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 30 Dec 2008 | 4:49 am

Gastric Bypass Halts Diabetes in Obese Teens (HealthDay)

HealthDay - MONDAY, Dec. 29 (HealthDay News) -- Obese teenagers who have gastric bypass surgery not only lose weight but see their type 2 diabetes disappear, a new study finds.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 30 Dec 2008 | 4:49 am

Degarelix Approved for Advanced Prostate Cancer (HealthDay)

HealthDay - MONDAY, Dec. 29 (HealthDay News) -- The injected drug degarelix has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat advanced prostate cancer.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 30 Dec 2008 | 4:49 am

New Model of Care Is Needed, Experts Say

A new approach to geriatric care will be essential to improve health care in America, experts say.

Source: NYT > Health | 30 Dec 2008 | 4:26 am

Trying to prevent lymphedema after breast cancer (AP)

AP - Hospitals in about a dozen states are testing whether some simple steps, such as arm-strengthening exercises, could reduce the risk of one of breast cancer's troubling legacies the painful and sometimes severe arm swelling called lymphedema. Lymphedema has long been a neglected side effect of cancer surgery and radiation: Many women say they never were warned, even though spotting this problem early improves outcomes.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 30 Dec 2008 | 2:12 am

Hard to hear at holiday parties? Blame your brain (AP)

AP - It's almost New Year's Eve, a time for plunging into boisterous crowds bathed in loud music.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Dec 2008 | 11:07 pm

Teens may not know risk factors for infertility (Reuters)

Reuters - Canadian high school students may lack important knowledge about risk factors for infertility, survey findings suggest. For example, most students were unaware that some sexually transmitted infections can cause infertility.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:17 pm

Heart-Failure Risk Climbs With Increasing Body Weight, Even for the "Preobese"

The Physicians' Health Study shows that the risk for heart failure is high for obese participants but is still increased by approximately half for participants who are only overweight.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:00 pm

Glucose Variability Less With Insulin Glargine vs NPH/Lente in Children With Type 1 Diabetes

In a randomized, open-label study of pediatric patients with type 1 diabetes, insulin glargine was associated with greater reductions in glucose variability vs NPH/Lente insulin.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:00 pm

The Case for Measuring Kidney Function When Evaluating Suspected CAD

Studies support chronic kidney disease as a predictor of cardiac death and other events and suggest that kidney function be considered more often in the evaluation of patients for coronary disease.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:00 pm

Fatty Liver Disease May Resolve With Bariatric Surgery-Induced Weight Loss

In obese individuals, weight loss after bariatric surgery leads to significant improvement or complete resolution of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in the majority of patients.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:00 pm

Glucose Variability Less With Insulin Glargine vs NPH/Lente in Children With Type 1 Diabetes

Chopped arm man can use fingers

An East Sussex man who chopped his left arm off with a chainsaw described having it re-attached as like "winning the lottery".
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 9:26 pm

Mice Study Shows Caffeine in Pregnancy Affects Cardiac Function of Offspring

A new study in mice indicates that the ingestion of caffeine during pregnancy adversely affects fetal heart development and results in reduced cardiac output when the offspring grow up. But the researchers caution that observations in mice may not be directly relevant to human health
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 7:35 pm

FDA approves new prostate cancer drug (AP)

AP - Federal regulators on Monday said they have approved the first new drug to treat prostate cancer in four years.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Dec 2008 | 7:21 pm

One in 10 Stops Taking Clopidogrel Because of "Nuisance Bleeding"

Nuisance bleeding, such as easy bruising, bleeding from cuts, and minor hemorrhages from broken vessels, affects 85% of patients taking clopidogrel following stent implantation, one center reports. Of these patients, 11% stop taking the antiplatelet medication.
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 7:18 pm

Heart-Failure Risk Climbs With Increasing Body Weight, Even for the "Preobese"

The risk was very high for the obese but was still increased by about half for participants of the Physician's Health Study who were only "overweight."
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 7:03 pm

High Intake of Phosphate Food Additives May Increase Risk for and Proliferation of Lung Cancer

Preliminary data show that a high intake of inorganic phosphates stimulated lung cancer development in mice and that dietary regulation of inorganic phosphates may be crucial for lung cancer treatment as well as prevention.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 5:57 pm

Automated Telephone Counseling May Help Parents Reduce the Weight of Overweight Children

In a randomized controlled trial, automated telephone counseling helped support the parents of overweight children in reducing the extent to which their children are overweight.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Dec 2008 | 4:36 pm

Study: Family behavior key to health of gay youth

December 29, 2008 SAN FRANCISCO - Young gay people whose parents or guardians responded negatively when they revealed their sexual orientation were more likely to attempt suicide, experience severe depression and use drugs than those whose families accepted the news, according to a new study.
Source: PsycPORT.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:36 pm

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