Health and Medical News Headlines for January 9, 2009

Smarter Men Have More Sperm

Intelligence could indicate a person has a lot of good genes and traits.
Source: Livescience.com - Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 2:03 pm

Health Tip: See Your Doctor Before Pregnancy (HealthDay)

HealthDay - (HealthDay News) -- When you're pregnant, certain medical conditions can be dangerous for you and your developing baby, but you might not even be aware of some of these potential health risks.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 9 Jan 2009 | 2:02 pm

Antipsychotics Up Death Risk in Alzheimer's Patients (HealthDay)

HealthDay - FRIDAY, Jan. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Alzheimer's patients who are prescribed antipsychotic drugs face a higher risk of death than similar patients not given these medications do, British researchers report.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 9 Jan 2009 | 2:02 pm

Karaoke most irritating gadget: govt survey

Timeless, classic songs wrecked by tuneless, howling drunks: the karaoke machine is the most annoying gadget in Britain, a survey for the government found. A TNS Omnibus poll for the...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 1:07 pm

US STOCKS-Futures dip before payrolls; Chevron warns

NEW YORK, Jan 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures fell on Friday on investor unease ahead of government data expected to show that more than half a million jobs disappeared in December as recession...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 12:39 pm

UPDATE 1-Empyrean Energy to cut Texan well stake to 6 pct

Jan 9 (Reuters) - Oil and gas explorer Empyrean Energy Plc said on Friday it would reduce its interest in Block B of the Sugarloaf Project in Texas to 6 percent from 18 percent, effective immediately,...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:50 am

China bans diet drug, says it can harm heart

China's top food and drug regulator has ordered a halt to the sale and production of the weight-loss drug fenfluramine hydrochloride, citing its harmful side effects. Fenfluramine...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:28 am

UPDATE 1-Integra LifeSciences cuts 2008, 2009 forecasts

Jan 9 (Reuters) - Medical device company Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corp cut its 2008 and 2009 forecasts, citing the effects of the strong U.S. dollar and a slowdown in hospital capital spending.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:25 am

Diabetics sought for oats trial

Researchers are seeking people with diabetes to help check the health benefits of porridge and oatcakes.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:19 am

Slovenia say industry gas reductions possible

LJUBLJANA, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Slovenia's main gas supplier Geoplin said on Friday it may have to reduce or cut gas supplies to its industrial customers due to a lack of Russian gas unless supplies increase...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:17 am

UPDATE 1-Galapagos partners with Merck, shares jump

AMSTERDAM, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Shares in biotech company Galapagos rose on Friday after it signed a multi-year deal with Merck & Co to develop new obesity and diabetes treatments, with an upfront payment...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:11 am

New Editor For Developmental Neurorehabilitation

Informa has announced the appointment of Professor Jeff Sigafoos as the new Editor-in-Chief of Developmental Neurorehabilitation . Professor Sigafoos, who is also Co-Editor-in-Chief of Evidence-based Communication Assessment and Intervention published by Psychology Press, is based at the School of Educational Psychology & Pedagogy at Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Does Live, Microscopic Imaging Enhance Physician's Ability To Differentiate Cancerous Lesions In The Bile And Pancreatic Ducts

Doctors at the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora have treated the first patients in a study to confirm whether using Cellvizio®, the world's smallest microscope, with a standard diagnostic procedure will help physicians identify and differentiate pre-cancerous and cancerous lesions in the bile and pancreatic ducts more effectively than the standard method alone.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Antipsychotic Use In Elderly People With Alzheimer's Leads To Large Increase In Mortality

There is a large increased long-term risk of mortality in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) who are prescribed antipsychotic medication. These results, from long-term follow-up of the DART-AD study*, further highlight the need to seek less harmful treatments for neuropsychiatric symptoms in these patients.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

The UK Government's Obesity Initiative And Ill-Judged Partnerships With Companies That Fuel Obesity

An Editorial in this week's Lancet criticises the strategy of the three-year anti-obesity initiative launched by the UK government in the new year. The campaign aims to make the UK the "first major nation to reverse the rising tide of obesity".
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Washington Post Examines Effects Of Faltering Economy On Whitman-Walker Clinic

The Washington Post on Thursday examined how the Washington, D.C.-based Whitman-Walker Clinic has been "struggling with declining revenue and increased expenses because of an increase in patient care for most of a decade." According to the Post, the recent economic downturn also has made the clinic "scale back even further.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Genome-Wide Study Identifies New Type Of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia Associated With Poor Treatment Outcome

A genetic analysis of children with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) has identified a new subtype of this disease that is associated with a poor treatment outcome, according to an Article published early Online and in the February issue of The Lancet Oncology. Patients who have particular subtypes of ALL have an unfavourable prognosis.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Report Examines Impact Of Providing No-Cost Health Care To Children In Ghana

"Effect of Removing Direct Payment for Health Care on Utilization and Health Outcomes in Ghanaian Children: A Randomized Control Trial," PLoS Medicine: The report examines the impact of providing no-cost care on the health outcomes of children younger than age five in Ghana.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Mach One Corporation Enters Letter of Intent to Acquire Ceres Organic Harvest, Inc.

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

House Democrats Plan To Vote On Stand-Alone SCHIP Reauthorization Bill

The House next week plans to vote on SCHIP expansion legislation similar to a bill that President Bush vetoed in 2007, Dow Jones reports (Boles, Dow Jones, 1/7). According to House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), the House will consider the legislation as a stand-alone bill, rather than as part of an economic stimulus package (Edney, CongressDaily, 1/7).
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Doctors Criticise Israel's Human Rights Abuses Against West Bank And Gaza

In Correspondence published early Online and in an upcoming edition of The Lancet, a group of four UK and one Italian doctors describe the human rights abuses they saw against Palestinian residents on a recent fact-finding mission.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Hard To Treat Diseases (HTDS) Recapitalization

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

President-Elect Obama Says Overhauling Entitlement Programs 'A Central Part' Of Administration Spending Control Efforts

During a speech in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, President-elect Barack Obama said overhauling entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security will be "a central part" of his administration's efforts to curb federal spending, the New York Times reports (Zeleny/Harwood, New York Times, 1/8).
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 9 Jan 2009 | 11:00 am

Big measles rise in UK

There is an "unprecedented increase" in measles cases in England and Wales, experts report.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 10:46 am

China's Huadian Power warns of 2008 loss

HONG KONG, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Huadian Power International Corp Ltd said on Friday it was expecting a full-year 2008 loss, although it gave no specific figure.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 9 Jan 2009 | 10:26 am

Taking back what's mine - man asks for kidney's return in divorce

A US man divorcing his wife demands that she return the kidney he donated to her or pay him $1.5m (£1m) in compensation.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 9:50 am

Breast cancer gene-free baby born

The first baby in the UK tested before conception for a genetic form of breast cancer has been born.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 9:24 am

Salmonella Outbreak Sickens Hundreds

Georgia and Ohio are among the states that are part of a national salmonella outbreak that has sickened nearly 400 people, officials said Thursday.

Source: NYT > Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 8:55 am

Seniors Mixing Prescription and O.T.C. Drugs

Older adults frequently take multiple drugs and supplements, risking adverse consequences, researchers said.

Source: NYT > Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 8:55 am

Major Flu Strain Found Resistant to Leading Drug, Puzzling Scientists

Health officials are trying to figure out why the dominant flu strain in the U.S. is resistant to the leading antiviral drug, Tamiflu.

Source: NYT > Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 8:54 am

Morning Rounds: Drug Makers on the Defensive, Rising Teen Birth Rates and the Medicaid Nightmare

Health news from around the Web.

Source: NYT > Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 8:38 am

Doctor and Patient: In Search of a Good Doctor

Leading physicians share their advice on researching doctors and diseases online.

Source: NYT > Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 8:22 am

Body repair 'could be ramped up'

A combination of drugs could trick the body into sending its repair mechanisms into overdrive, say scientists.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 7:47 am

Mixed-sex wards 'blighting NHS'

The government has failed to live up to its promise to phase out mixed-sex wards in hospitals in England, the Conservatives say.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 7:27 am

Medical Journal Changes Its Policy After Criticism by Group

The accreditation group said The New England Journal of Medicine had failed to disclose an author’s financial conflicts.

Source: NYT > Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 6:32 am

Health Tip: Dental Visits for Older Patients (HealthDay)

HealthDay - (HealthDay News) -- For seniors, regular dental visits are as important as ever.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 9 Jan 2009 | 4:47 am

Hormone Therapy May Cut Colorectal Cancer Risk (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, Jan. 8 (HealthDay News) -- Hormone therapy may lower a woman's risk of colorectal cancer, especially if she is no longer taking the hormones.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 9 Jan 2009 | 4:47 am

Dementia drug death risk warning

Experts have condemned the commonplace prescribing of sedatives to people in the UK with dementia.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 2:17 am

Many to mourn

How TB is tearing apart lives in Tajikistan
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 2:03 am

Behaviour link to lifelong health

Britons who behaved badly at school are more likely to have had mental health and social problems, a study suggests.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 9 Jan 2009 | 1:27 am

Illinois, 41 other states in salmonella outbreak (AP)

AP - A nationwide salmonella outbreak that has struck 42 states has put about one in five of its victims in the hospital, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 9 Jan 2009 | 1:23 am

Will Americans put on "recession pounds"? (Reuters)

Reuters - Americans may reduce the amount they spend on food in response to a sour economy but some experts fear they may pick up weight in the process.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 9 Jan 2009 | 12:50 am

Early Caesareans Pose Risks to Newborns

Babies born by C-section after 39 weeks had fewer complications than those delivered earlier.

Source: NYT > Health | 9 Jan 2009 | 12:23 am

Alzheimer's drugs double death risk in elderly (AP)

AP - Anti-psychotic drugs commonly used to treat Alzheimer's disease may double a patient's chance of dying within a few years, suggests a new study that adds to concerns already known about such medications.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 9 Jan 2009 | 12:05 am

FDA backs Vytorin after finishing study review (AP)

AP - The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday patients should not stop taking Vytorin or other cholesterol-lowering drugs, based on its just-completed review of a controversial study that hammered Vytorin sales.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 8 Jan 2009 | 11:22 pm

FDA scientists complain to Obama of 'corruption' (AP)

AP - In an unusually blunt letter, a group of federal scientists is complaining to the Obama transition team of widespread managerial misconduct in a division of the Food and Drug Administration.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 8 Jan 2009 | 11:22 pm

NIH Issues Guidelines on Hepatitis B Management

The National Institutes of Health have issued a consensus development conference statement on the management of hepatitis B virus infection.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 10:32 pm

Antioxidants Reduce Pain, Oxidative Stress in Chronic Pancreatitis

In a randomized controlled trial, antioxidant supplementation was effective in relieving pain and reducing levels of oxidative stress in patients with chronic pancreatitis.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 10:16 pm

Antioxidants Reduce Pain, Oxidative Stress in Chronic Pancreatitis

Improving Neonatal Growth May Enhance Neurodevelopment

A new study suggests that in extremely preterm infants, enhancing early neonatal growth may improve long-term outcomes.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 10:00 pm

Link Between Ovarian Cancer, BMI May Vary by HRT Use

The risk for ovarian cancer is significantly higher for obese women than for normal-weight women, but only among women who have never used hormone-replacement therapy.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 9:58 pm

Triplets survive against the odds

A woman from Cornwall who gave birth to triplets 14 weeks early describes their survival as a "miracle".
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 8 Jan 2009 | 9:01 pm

Nearly 400 People in 42 States Affected in Salmonella typhimurium Outbreak

The source of a Salmonella typhimurium outbreak that has sickened at least 388 people in 42 states has still not been identified, according to the CDC.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 8:59 pm

HIV Transmission From Surgeon to Patient Highly Unlikely

A case report of an HIV-infected cardiothoracic surgeon in Israel reinforces the message that the risk of transmitting the virus from surgeon to patient is very low.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 8:27 pm

Nurses Offer Rx for Affordable Healthcare, but Will Washington Listen?

Nursing organizations have met with the Obama administration, and they are working toward more nurse voices within institutions and insurers, but time will tell whether they have been heard.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 8:20 pm

SSRI Exposure in Pregnancy May Increase Gestational Hypertension Risk

Women who take selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors during late pregnancy may be at increased risk for gestational hypertension, a study suggests.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 8 Jan 2009 | 8:17 pm

Mass. wants calorie counts at fast-food outlets (AP)

AP - Massachusetts health officials plan to follow the lead of New York City and California in requiring fast-food chains to post calorie counts for their products on boards behind the order counter.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 8 Jan 2009 | 8:00 pm

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