Climate change linked to rise in malaria, asthma
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Climate change may promote the spread of deadly diseases like malaria and asthma in both rich and poor countries by increasing the range of parasitic insects and whipping up dust from storms, a new report says.
As climates warm, malaria is becoming more common in the traditionally cool mountains of Africa, Asia and Latin America where 10 percent of the world’s people live, said Dr. Paul Epstein, the lead author of “Climate Change Futures.”
China sets bird flu fund
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Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has earmarked $248 million to fight bird flu, state radio said on Wednesday, as U.S. and Chinese officials discussed U.S. chicken exports should bird flu reach the United States.
Wen presided over a special cabinet meeting on Tuesday when it was decided to set aside 2 billion yuan ($248 million) from this year’s fiscal budget to prevent the spread of bird flu, state radio and Xinhua news agency said.
Alcohol raises breast cancer risk in HRT users
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Women taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) should avoid drinking alcohol because it can raise their risk of developing the most common kind of breast cancer, Swedish scientists said on Tuesday.
Researchers at the Karolinska Institute said they saw an increased incidence of estrogen positive breast cancer, the most common type of disease, especially among women who drank alcohol and took hormones to relieve symptoms of the menopause.
Hot flashes distressing for breast cancer patients
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Hot flashes (or flushes as they’re more commonly called in some parts of the world) remain an important and seriously under-played side effect of tamoxifen and other hormone treatments for breast cancer, leading some women to skip their medication, according to a UK survey of 200 women with breast cancer.
“We underestimate just how distressing the menopausal side effects of treatment are, and women acknowledge that they take drug holidays when hot flushes get really bad,” said Dr. Lesley Fallowfield from the University of Sussex who conducted the survey.
Silent reflux may be the cause of sleep disturbances in patients with unexplained sleep disorders
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Patients with sleep complaints but no heartburn symptoms suffered episodes of nighttime acid reflux according to research presented at the 70th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology.
In a separate study, researchers found that symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux (GER) are common and frequently severe in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.
Breastfeeding does not raise the risk of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis C virus
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Breastfeeding does not raise the risk of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV), according to two new studies published in the December 1 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online.
One study found that infant girls are twice as likely to be infected as infant boys. Both studies provide new information with which to counsel pregnant women infected with HCV. Taken together, the two new studies expand upon preliminary data from smaller studies of mother-to-child transmission of HCV.
Potential new targets for antibiotics
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A new study of genetic changes in bacteria may ultimately help drug makers stay a step ahead of disease-causing bacteria that can become resistant to antibiotics.
The secret lies in understanding the function of the ribosome, a tiny protein-making factory residing inside most cells.
Children with arthritis adapt well to the disease
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Unlike other rheumatic diseases, systemic juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (SJRA)—an inflammatory disease affecting numerous joints—is not associated with thinking impairments or increased social and emotional problems in young patients, suggests a study conducted in Germany.
“This result may support the premise that children and adolescents with SJRA adapt successfully to their chronic disease,” Dr. Reinhold Feldmann from University Hospital of Munster told Reuters Health.
AstraZeneca proposes FDA review of all drug ads
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AstraZeneca Plc on Tuesday proposed a mandatory requirement for pharmaceutical companies to submit all direct-to-consumer advertising to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for review prior to its use.
The Anglo-Swedish company said it made the recommendation in written testimony submitted to the FDA’s public hearing on consumer-directed promotion of regulated medical products.
Radiation for cervical cancer impacts sex life
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Women with cervical cancer that’s treated with radiation have worse sexual functioning years after treatment than women who undergo surgery for the disease, a new study shows.
In fact, women whose cervical cancer was treated surgically—by removal of the uterus and any surrounding cancerous lymph nodes—had sexual functioning identical to that of healthy women, Dr. Michael Frumovitz of the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and colleagues found.
Colorectal Risk Cut in Half Among Patients Taking Thyroid Drug
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Taking Levothyroxine (L-thyroxine) for at least five years appears to cut the risk for colorectal cancer in half, researchers reported here today.
In a case-control study of 2,102 matched pairs, Israeli investigators reported a significant reduction in colorectal cancer risk among L-thyroxine users (odds ratio, 0.49, 95% confidence interval 0.35-0.68). L-thyroxine is sold under several brand names including Synthroid and Levothroid.
Drug combo could stretch Tamiflu supplies - doctors
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Scarce supplies of Tamiflu, which is being stockpiled by governments in case of an influenza pandemic, could be stretched by giving it with another drug, doctors said on Tuesday.
Governments have been advised to stock up on Tamiflu, a prescribed drug for seasonal flu, because it will be a first line of defence if the H5N1 bird flu circulating in Asia and reported in other areas mutates into a human pandemic strain.
“Silent reflux” may cause sleep disturbance
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Gastric reflux that doesn’t cause heartburn may still lead to significant sleep disturbances, resulting in daytime sleepiness and fatigue, investigators reported this week at the annual meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Honolulu.
“For some time we have noted that acid in the esophagus that occurs when people are asleep will produce a brief arousal response, and that if it occurs multiple times over the course of a night it can produce significant sleep disruption,” said lead investigator Dr. William C. Orr.
Eating uncooked soy lowers cholesterol
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Two servings a day of soy protein—such as that found in tofu, soy milk or soy powder—can lower cholesterol levels by as much as 9 percent as long as the soy is uncooked, a study said on Monday.
Soy-fortified muffins, cereals or nutritional bars in which the soy protein was baked at high temperatures do not provide the benefit, study author James Anderson said.
Cardiac Rehab Offers Longer Life to Heart Attack Survivors
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Cardiac rehabilitation programs give many heart attack survivors better, longer lives, regardless of whether the programs include supervised exercise.
That is the major finding of researchers here, who pooled data from 63 studies of cardiac rehabilitation or secondary prevention programs into a meta-analysis, which was published in the Nov. 1 Annals of Internal Medicine.
