1/4 of HIV Patients Believe Their Doctors Stigmatize Them
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Physicians might want to be extra careful about how they treat HIV-infected patients —not just in the clinical sense but in the way they behave toward them.
Even the perception that physicians are stigmatizing patients for carrying the virus that causes AIDS can discourage these individuals from seeking proper medical care, according to a new UCLA study.
Obesity is greatest health threat facing Europe
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Obesity is the greatest health threat facing the European Union, the bloc’s health chief said on Friday.
European Commission figures show up to 27 percent of European men and 38 percent of women are obese. The prevalence of obesity has more than trebled in many European countries since the 1980s, the World Health Organisation says.
Biologic treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and the risk of cancer
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The relationship between rheumatoid arthritis (RA), an autoimmune disease marked by chronic inflammation of the joints and tissue surrounding vital organs, and the incidence of cancer is complicated. Epidemiologic studies have generally demonstrated that blood, lung, and skin cancers are increased among RA patients, while breast and colon cancers are decreased. Whether these cancer rates are caused by the nature of RA or by immunosuppressive drugs used to treat RA is an issue of ongoing debate and investigation.
Findings of various clinical trials and observational studies conflict over the risk of malignancy related to the use of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFá) blockers, a biologic therapy shown effective at controlling the symptoms of RA in patients who fail to respond to traditional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs).
Researchers identify a role for glucose-sensing neurons in type 2 diabetes
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In cases of Type 2 diabetes, the body’s cells fail to appropriately regulate blood glucose levels. Research has suggested that this results from two simultaneous problems: the improper functioning of pancreatic beta cells and the impairment of insulin’s actions on target tissues, including the liver, fat and muscles.
But now, research led by scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Oregon Health & Science University has identified a third abnormality that could play an important role in the development of obesity-induced Type 2 diabetes.
Guide to healthy eating for diabetics exposes myths
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A new report from Harvard Health Publications dispels common myths concerning diet and diabetes and explains what people with diabetes should eat to keep their blood sugar levels in check.
One of the most common myths is that there is a “diabetes diet” that prohibits sugar and lists other items to avoid. “In fact, the advice for people with diabetes is similar to that for the general population, but with extra emphasis on weight control and control of blood sugar and risk factors for heart disease,” the report states.
Testosterone patch sparks sex drive for some women
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Testosterone patches can significantly boost the libido for some women with sub par sex drives after surgery to remove their ovaries, who report an average of one additional sexual encounter a week after starting to use the hormone, a new study shows.
“It doesn’t work for everybody, but when it works it works nicely,” Dr. Sheryl Kingsberg of University Hospitals of Cleveland in Ohio, the study’s lead author, told Reuters Health.
Women top men as seekers of online health info
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Women are much more likely than men to search the Internet for information on health, according to research conducted by two professors from Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island.
The finding is consistent with gender differences in healthcare utilization; for instance, women are more apt than men to go to the doctor when sick, the researchers say.
One gene may be key to coveted perfect pitch
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Musicians and singers work for years to develop their sense of pitch but few can name a musical note without a reference tone. U.S. researchers on Monday said one gene may be the key to that coveted ability.
Only 1 in 10,000 people have perfect or absolute pitch, the uncanny ability to name the note of just about any sound without the help of a reference tone.
Exercise cuts heart risks for type 1 diabetes kids
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Children and teens with type 1 diabetes may be able to reduce their risk of future heart and blood vessel disease by taking part in regular exercise, German researchers report.
In their study of 23,251 type 1 diabetes patients ranging in age from 3 to 18 years old, those who were the most active had the best long-term blood sugar control, Dr. Antje Herbst of the Hospital of Leverkusen and her colleagues found. Study participants who exercised more often were also less likely to have high blood pressure or high cholesterol.
Chewing tobacco not “safe” alternative to smoking
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People who use chewing tobacco expose themselves to even higher levels of a particular cancer-causing compound than tobacco smokers do, according to a new study.
Researchers found that compared with cigarette smokers, adults who used chewing tobacco appeared to have greater exposure to a substance called NNK, one of the prime carcinogens in tobacco. In laboratory animals, NNK has been found to cause cancer of the lung, pancreas, liver and nasal mucosa.
Meth abuse may speed age-related brain degeneration
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Young people who abuse methamphetamines may put themselves at risk of parkinson-like movement disorders later in life, a new animal study suggests.
In experiments with mice, scientists found that animals deficient in a protein called glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) were especially vulnerable to long-term movement problems after being exposed to the neurotoxic effects of a methamphetamine “binge.”
Prostate Cancer Survival is Dependent on Season of Diagnosis
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A report in the September 2007 issue of The Prostate by Dr. Lagunova and associates from Norway and Oregon suggests that men diagnosed with prostate cancer (CaP) in the summer and autumn seasons have better survival.
The work was based upon the knowledge that racial and environmental factors affect CaP rates and prognosis. Vitamin D deficiency is linked to higher CaP mortality. The authors hypothesized that calcidiol levels are higher during summer and autumn and thus may impact CaP incidence and outcome.
Frovatriptan may prevent puncture-related headache
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Frovatriptan, used to prevent and treat migraine headaches, may also be of use in preventing post-dural puncture headache, according to Italian researchers.
In the journal Cephalalgia, Dr. Gennaro Bussone of Istituto Nazionale Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan and colleagues note that post-dural puncture headache is associated with the loss of CSF following dural puncture and subsequent shifts in cranial contents.
Viagra boosts feel-good “love” hormone: study
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Impotence drugs such as Viagra may do more than help men physically have sex—they may also boost levels of a hormone linked with feelings of love, U.S. researchers reported on Thursday.
Viagra, known generically as sildenafil, raised levels of the hormone oxytocin in rats; the team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison reported the Journal of Physiology. This hormone is involved in nursing and childbirth, and also in orgasm and feelings of sexual pleasure.
Diabetes may impair tuberculosis treatment response
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Patients with tuberculosis and diabetes do not respond as well to tuberculosis therapy as those who are non-diabetic, Dutch researchers report.
The reason for this is unclear, but screening for and aggressively treating diabetes may improve the outcomes of patients receiving tuberculosis therapy, Dr. Reinout van Crevel, from Radboud University Medical Center in Nijmegen, note in the current issue Clinical Infectious Diseases.
