News by Subject Medicine & Health

Higher than normal body mass index (BMI) is known to lead to cardiovascular ill-health in mid-to-late life, but there has been limited investigation of its effect in young, apparently healthy, adults. Researchers have now shown that having a higher BMI can cause worse cardiovascular health in those aged as young as 17.

Melanoma is a particularly difficult cancer to treat once it has metastasized, spreading throughout the body. University of Illinois researchers are using chemistry to find the deadly, elusive malignant cells within a melanoma tumor that hold the potential to spread. Once found, the stemlike metastatic cells can be cultured and screened for their response to a variety of anti-cancer drugs, providing the patient with an individualized treatment plan based on their own cells.

Skull fractures and other head and facial injuries from motorcycle trauma in Michigan have doubled since that state relaxed its motorcycle helmet laws, reports a study in the June issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The new study is one of the first to focus on how helmet laws affect CMF trauma rates.

For some patients undergoing intestinal or multi-organ transplantation, closing the abdominal wall poses a difficult surgical challenge. Total abdominal wall transplantation provides an alternative for abdominal closure in these complex cases, according to a state-of-the-art approach presented in the June issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

A large new study based on Medicaid data identifies a clear trend of people staying on their HIV medications longer than they used to.

New research from the University of Cincinnati reveals that residents of the mid-Ohio River Valley had higher than normal levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) based on serum samples collected over a 22-year span. The exposure source was likely from drinking water contaminated by industrial discharges upriver. This is the first study of PFOA serum concentrations in US residents in the 1990s.

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have made another important advance in HIV vaccine design.

A FORMER top detective turned University of Huddersfield researcher has published his findings that coroners in England and Wales are seemingly unable to agree on what caused a person's death or whether it merits an inquest, even when faced with identical case information.

A new study published today in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology has found that taking Vitamin D supplements in pregnancy can positively modify the immune system of the newborn baby, which could help to protect against asthma and respiratory infections, a known risk factor for developing asthma in childhood.

In this article that appeared in Infectious Disorders - Drug Targets, Dr. AlaaAbouelfetouh, Associate Professor of Microbiology at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, is gathering the published data describing methicillin resistance in S. aureus (MRSA) in Egypt.