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Baby Care :: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Program Reduces Premature Infants’ Length of Stay

An educational intervention program for parents of infants born prematurely that is implemented early in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) can reduce parental stress, depression and anxiety, enhance parent-infant interactions, and reduce hospital length of stay, according to a study led by Dr. Bernadette Melnyk, Dean and Distinguished Foundation Professor in Nursing at Arizona State University College of Nursing & Healthcare Innovation, Phoenix.

Macular Degeneration :: Laser Treatment Does Not Prevent Vision Loss for People with Early Age-Related Macular Degeneration

An extensive NIH-supported study has found that low-intensity laser treatment, thought to be possibly beneficial in slowing or preventing the loss of vision from age-related macular degeneration (AMD), is ineffective in preventing complications of AMD or loss of vision. This is the major conclusion of the Complications of Age-Related Macular Degeneration Prevention Trial (CAPT), a research study of more than 1,000 people that will be published in the November 2006 issue of the journal Ophthalmology. The study was supported by grants from the National Eye Institute (NEI) of the National Institutes of Health.

Health :: Improved safety for mental health inpatients

The Department of Health today announced a package of measures to improve safety on inpatient mental health settings, including targeting ?30 million capital funding to improve the sexual safety of female patients.

Health :: Red wines’ resveratrol offers survival benefits, increases lifespan

Researchers have used a single compound to increase the lifespan of obese mice, and found that the drug reversed nearly all of the changes in gene expression patterns found in mice on high calorie diets–some of which are associated with diabetes, heart disease, and other significant diseases related to obesity. The research, led by investigators at Harvard Medical School and the National Institute on Aging, is the first time that the small molecule resveratrol has been shown to offer survival benefits in a mammal. The study is reported in the November 1 advanced online edition of Nature.

Health :: Pharmion enrolled first patient into Vidaza Patient Registry

Pharmion Corporation (Nasdaq: PHRM) announced today the enrollment of the first patient in AVIDA(TM), a registry for patients treated with Vidaza(R) (azacitidine for injectable suspension). Vidaza was approved in May 2004 for the treatment of all five French-American-British (FAB) subtypes of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS): refractory anemia (RA) or refractory anemia with ringed sideroblasts (RARS) if accompanied by neutropenia or thrombocytopenia or requiring transfusions; refractory anemia with excess blasts (RAEB), refractory anemia with excess blasts in transformation (RAEB-T), and chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMMoL). Myelodysplastic syndromes are a serious and life-threatening group of diseases in which the bone marrow does not function normally, resulting in the production of malformed or immature blood cells.

Exercise :: Regular exercise plays a role in reducing fatigue, increasing energy

Forget so-called ?energy drinks.? A new analysis by University of Georgia researchers finds overwhelming evidence that regular exercise plays a significant role in increasing energy levels and reducing fatigue.

HIV :: New way to fight HIV / AIDS

For years researchers have been trying to understand how a few HIV-infected patients naturally defeat a virus that otherwise overwhelms the immune system. Last year, a research team at the University of Rochester Medical Center confirmed that such patients, called long-term non-progressors, maintain higher than normal levels of the enzyme called APOBEC-3G (A3G) in their white blood cells, which function to stave off infections. Now, the same group has teamed up with a structural biologist to provide the first look at the A3G structure. Such information represents an early step toward the design of a new class of drugs that could afford to all the same natural protection enjoyed by few, according to a study published today in The Journal of Biological Chemistry.

Plantar Fasciitis :: New stretch relieves pain from plantar fasciitis

A new stretch is proving quite effective to help treat and potentially cure plantar fasciitis, a condition that affects nearly 2.5 million Americans each year. In a study recently published in Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, researchers found that patients suffering from the painful heel spur syndrome had a 75 percent chance of having no pain and returning to full activity within three to six months of performing the stretch. In addition, patients have about a 75 percent chance of needing no further treatment.

Health :: Researchers turn cord blood into lung cells

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have, for the first time, coaxed umbilical cord blood stem cells to differentiate into a type of lung cell.

Dementia :: New dementia screening tool detects early cognitive problems

A screening tool for dementia developed by Saint Louis University geriatricians appears to work better in identifying mild cognitive problems in the elderly than the commonly used Mini Mental Status Examination, according to a new study.