Systemic Sclerosis :: New treatment hope for systemic sclerosis
Experiments indicate the promise of imatinib mesylate to prevent tissue fibrosis and bring meaningful advances to the treatment of SSc.
Treatment
Rheumatoid Arthritis :: Sex differences and rheumatoid arthritis
A humanized mouse model may be valuable for not only studying sex differences in RA, but also for understanding why women are particularly vulnerable to autoimmunity and for developing future therapeutic strategies.
Aging :: Reduce aging blood vessels by anti TNF treatment
Recent studies show promise for significantly reducing vascular aging by inactivating TNF?, which has been linked to blood vessel dysfunction and cell death. The related report by Csiszar et al., “Vasculoprotective effects of anti-TNF? treatment in aging,” appears in the January issue of The American Journal of Pathology.
Gene :: Gene discovered for brittle bone disease – Osteogenesis Imperfecta
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have discovered that a previously unexplained fatal form of Osteogenesis Imperfecta — a disorder that weakens bones and which may cause frequent fractures — results from a genetic defect in a protein involved in the production of collagen.
Healthcare :: Safer ICUs – Cheap, simple, low-tech steps work
Hospitals will quickly slash the rate of common, costly and potentially lethal catheter-related bloodstream infections in their intensive care units (ICUs) by using cheap, low-tech, common-sense measures like hand washing, timely removal of unneeded catheters and use of sites other than the groin to place lines when possible, according to a report from safety experts at Johns Hopkins in the Dec. 28 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Heartburn :: Heartburn drugs leads to fractures, hip fractures
Long-term use of popular anti-heartburn drugs like Nexium, Prevacid and Prilosec that decreases stomach acid production increases the risk of hip fractures in adults over 50, perhaps because the drugs inhibit calcium absorption, researchers said.
Kidney :: Protein Essential for Kidney-to-Bladder Urine Transfer
Tests of a protein’s role in the immune system have revealed a surprising connection to a kidney problem that occurs in approximately one percent of all live births.
GERD :: Acidity medication increases hip fracture risks
Use of the drugs proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) for the treatment of acid-related diseases such as gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is associated with a greater risk of hip fracture, according to a study in the December 27 issue of JAMA.
Osteoporosis :: Women on osteoporosis drug can discontinue use with no risk
A long-term study of the most widely used osteoporosis drug has found that many women can discontinue the drug after five years without increasing their fracture risk for as long as five more years.
Gene :: Cancer genes to better and earlier detection of lung, breast, prostate and colon cancer
A research team at UT Southwestern Medical Center has for the first time identified several genes whose expression is lost in four of the most common solid human cancers — lung, breast, prostate and colon cancer.