A genetic variant present in nearly half of Americans of European ancestry is linked to greater effectiveness of the smoking cessation medication bupropion (Zyban), according to research by scientists supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Scientists have discovered new information about an immune pathway in mice that explains how oxidative stress that results from acute estrogen deficiency leads to the loss of bone. The finding, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could help in identifying a new drug target for preventing postmenopausal bone loss.
Mind-body therapies, which focus on the interactions between the mind, body and behavior, and the ways in which emotional, mental, social and behavioral factors can affect health, may be of particular benefit to elderly chronic pain sufferers. A new study published in Pain Medicine provides a structured review of eight mind-body interventions for older people, including progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, hypnosis, tai chi and yoga.
A new study shows that patients with pulmonary hypertension who receive a placebo during a clinical trial may experience clinical deterioration.
A small device implanted in the skull that detects oncoming seizures, then delivers a brief electrical stimulus to the brain to stop them is under study at the Medical College of Georgia.
In lifesaving procedures to open blocked heart arteries a key question has persisted for years: Is use of the more expensive drug, abciximab, justified over use of the less-expensive eptifibatide
Health Canada is advising Canadians not to use the unauthorized product Colloidal Silver Water 20ppm, because of the potential health risk to consumers.
The number of serious adverse drug events reported to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) more than doubled between 1998 and 2005, as did deaths associated with adverse drug events, according to a report in the September 10 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Researchers have found surprising evidence that an antidepressant (citalopram) may perform as well as a commonly prescribed antipsychotic (risperidone) in the alleviation of severe agitation and psychotic symptoms of dementia. Researchers also found that the antidepressant was associated with “significantly lower” adverse side effects.
Patients are being put at risk because some hospital doctors are not always following warning procedures over known drug allergies, new research launched at the British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC) in Manchester shows.