Medical | Page 305 of 472 | SpiritIndia.com

Stroke :: Fewer patients undergoing stroke prevention surgery for wrong reasons

A new study has found a drop in the number of patients undergoing the most commonly used stroke prevention surgery, carotid endarterectomy, for inappropriate reasons. Researchers are crediting the drop to highly publicized randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that clarified the appropriate use of the surgery. The researchers’ findings are published in the January 16, 2007, issue of Neurology?, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Breast Cancer :: Selective marker found to indicate aggressive form of breast cancer

Researchers have linked a structural protein called nestin to a particularly deadly form of breast cancer, identifying a new biomarker that could lead to earlier detection and better treatment.

Lung Cancer :: Combination gene therapy suppresses lung cancer in preclinical test

Combination gene therapy delivered in lipid-based nanoparticles drastically reduces the number and size of human non-small cell lung cancer tumors in mice, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center report in the January 15 edition of Cancer Research.

Dementia :: Relationship between delirium and dementia

For the most part, dementia and delirium have been viewed as separate and distinct conditions. But a special section of the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, appearing in January 2007, looks at their interface, asking: Can delirium itself lead to the development of a cognitive disorder? Do delirium and dementia represent opposite ends of the same spectrum of disease, rather than two separate conditions?

Healthcare :: Doctors worried about future job prospects

One in four specialist trainee doctors “very worried” about future job prospects. One in four specialist trainee doctors in England views their future job prospects as “poor” or “very worrying,” as a result of changes in training and health-care delivery, reveals a survey published ahead of print in a special edition of Postgraduate Medical Journal.

Alzheimer’s Disease :: New gene uncovered for late-onset Alzheimer’s

An international team of researchers, led by Columbia University Medical Center, Boston University School of Medicine and the University of Toronto, has uncovered a major new gene — SORL1 — implicated in late-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Replicated in four distinct ethnic groups, SORL1 is only the second genetic variant for late-onset Alzheimer’s, the type of Alzheimer’s found in 90 percent of people with this devastating disease. ApoE4, the first, was identified in 1993.

Fruit :: Fruit at meal times boosts iron levels in toddlers

Toddlers should eat fruit at meal times to make sure they have enough iron for proper development of their brains. A study at The University of Auckland has been looking at dietary habits and iron status in children aged between 6 and 23 months.

Mad Cow Disease :: FDA barring certain cattle material as BSE safeguard

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is proposing to limit the materials used in some medical products in order to keep them free of the agent thought to cause mad cow disease, also known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy or BSE.

Decree :: GE OEC Medical Systems Signs Consent Decree with FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that GE OEC Medical Systems, Inc., its parent company, the General Electric Company doing business as GE Healthcare, and two of their top executives have signed a consent decree of permanent injunction related to X-ray surgical imaging systems manufactured by GE OEC Medical Systems.

Health Plan :: California health plan ambitious and risky

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled a $12 billion-a-year plan to extend health care coverage to most of California’s 6.5 million uninsured and make it the second state, behind Massachusetts, to require everyone to carry insurance. Coverage for the poorest of the poor would be free; for many others, it would be heavily subsidized.