Arthritis is not just an ailment of old ag it can affect children too; causing lifelong pain and disability in its most severe forms. Fortunately, some kids grow out of it. Knowing which patients will develop milder forms of disease could spare them unnecessary treatment and potential medication side effects but currently; doctors have no…
The Prime Minister of Bhutan has instructed the health ministry to not construct grade II Basic Health Units (BHU) anymore. All BHUs would provide the services offered by those categorised as level I. Lyonchhen Dr Lotay Tshering announced this where he also said that the government would also switch its focus from primary to secondary…
In a surprising result, black and white men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC); treated with standard chemotherapy in phase 3 clinical trials had a similar overall survival (OS); report researchers. In the United States; black men are much more likely to die from prostate cancer than white men. The findings come from a retrospective…
There is an urgent need for novel classes of antibiotics able to escape the most common resistance mechanisms of pathogens. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are currently considered ideal candidates; for the development of new classes of antimicrobials effective against resistant pathogens. Their mechanism of action, which involves the perturbation of the membrane structure rather than the…
A new paper in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute suggests that artificial intelligence systems may be able to perform as accurately as radiologists in the evaluation of digital mammography in breast cancer screening. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, and despite important improvements in therapy, it is still a major cause…
Medically high-risk patients and communication breakdowns between providers contribute to the difficulty of medication management for older adults receiving home health care, finds a study led by researchers at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. The findings are published in the journal Medical Care Research and Review. Initial hospitalization “Our study suggests that medication management coordinated…
Use of electronic order sets is a safe and effective way to enhance appropriate electrocardiograph (ECG) monitoring of hospitalized patients, according to a study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Critical Care. Sue Sendelbach, Ph.D., retired from the Abbott Northwestern Hospital/Minneapolis Heart Institute/Allina Health in Minnesota, and colleagues evaluated the impact…
In a paper published in the journal Nature; an international research team led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden reports that bone growth takes place in accordance with the same principles as when new cells are in blood, skin and other tissue. This contradicts the previous understanding that bone growth depends on a finite number of…
DNA damage is occurring in our cells all the time due to external agents; such as exposure to sun, or internal agents, like reactive oxygen species. To detect and repair DNA lesions, cells have evolved DNA damage response. Activation of this response underpins genome integrity; which is crucial for preventing the onset of many human…
Diabetes is a debilitating health condition which is to reach epidemic proportions in the next 20 years. According to the World Health Organisation; 108m people around the world had diabetes in 1980; by 2014 that figure was 422m. Three years later in 2017, 425m people worldwide are living with the disease and this figure is…
Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) is known for its neurorestorative and neuroprotective effects in nonhuman primate models of Parkinson’s disease. However, despite promising results in early open-label clinical studies, placebo-controlled trials testing GDNF as a disease-modifying treatment for this relentlessly progressing disease have not shown a significant clinical benefit to date. In particular, as…
Every day, about 28% of Canadians provide care for a family member, friend or neighbour; and nearly half will do so at some point. Although many Canadians with chronic conditions and disabilities need care, the most common needs requiring caregiver help are age related. With 93% of older Canadians living at home, unpaid or informal…