Available treatments for hepatitis C virus cost-effective when initiated early
2015-03-16
(Press-News.org) New treatments for hepatitis C virus (HCV) may be highly effective but are associated with substantial costs that may compel clinicians and patients to consider delaying treatment. However, a new study shows that immediate treatment of HCV-infected patients with moderate or advanced liver scarring is cost-effective. Immediate treatment of patients with minimal or no scarring can be cost-effective as well, particularly when lower treatment costs are assumed.
"The devastating effects of hepatitis C continue to threaten the health of many Americans, with baby boomers at particular risk. This analysis of treatment available for hepatitis C describes specific scenarios when immediate or earlier treatment can be both cost-effective and increase quality of life," said Dr. John Ward, co-author of the Hepatology study and director of CDC's Division of Viral Hepatitis.
INFORMATION:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2015-03-16
Heidelberg, 16 March 2015 - A new approach for studying the behaviour of proteins in living cells has been developed by an interdisciplinary team of biologists and physicists in the Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit, the Ellenberg Laboratory and the Advanced Light Microscopy Facility at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg.
Described in a new study, published today in Nature Biotechnology, the approach allows scientists for the first time to follow the protein networks that drive a biological process in real time.
Which proteins interact with each ...
2015-03-16
LOS ALAMOS, N.M., March 16, 2015--Two reports from Los Alamos National Laboratory this week in the Nature journal Scientific Reports are helping crack the code of how certain materials respond in the highly-damaging radiation environments within a nuclear reactor.
The goal of these efforts is to understand at an atomistic level just how materials develop defects during irradiation, and how those defects evolve to determine the ultimate fate of the material.
"The new insights provided by these studies will aid in both predicting and designing materials for improved performance ...
2015-03-16
A new study has found a strong link between prolonged work at the World Trade Center (WTC) site following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and the development of various autoimmune diseases including arthritis and lupus.
The risk of developing an autoimmune disease over the next decade increased by about 13% for each month worked at the site. Investigators estimate that individuals worked 10 months at the site were more than 3-times as likely to develop an autoimmune disease than those who worked there for 1 month.
"We believe that this is the first study ...
2015-03-16
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, is characterized by a state of inflammation. A new Respirology study has identified certain inflammatory markers that can be used to predict which patients are at the highest risk of dying prematurely.
In a national sample of 1144 US adults who were followed from 1988 to 2006, those with obstructive lung function had higher levels of white blood cell count and fibrinogen as well as a higher percentage of elevated C-reactive protein than participants with normal lung function. White blood cell count and concentrations of ...
2015-03-16
Research suggests that the ratio of the lengths of the index finger and the ring finger in males may be predictive of a variety of disorders related to disturbed hormonal balance. When the index finger is shorter than the ring finger, this results in a small 2D:4D ratio, pointing to a high exposure to testosterone in the uterus.
In a new study of 103 male patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and 100 matched healthy male individuals, investigators found that the 2D:4D ratio may be an effective predictor of schizophrenia--there were significant differences between schizophrenia ...
2015-03-16
Heterothermy, the ability of some animals to lower their metabolism and body temperature, is traditionally seen as an effective adaptation to predictable seasonal bottlenecks of unproductive cold periods. A new review suggests that the use of heterothermy may have been used as a response to acute emergency situations in animals that colonized Madagascar.
Land mammals from Africa may have colonized Madagascar by rafting on drifting vegetation, and heterothermy may have facilitated survival on rafts and after colonization. Furthermore, delayed childbirth and prolonged sperm ...
2015-03-16
In a study of 171 women, those who obtained more sleep on a given night experienced greater sexual desire the next day. Reflecting sleep's impact on sexual desire, each additional hour of sleep increased the likelihood of sexual activity with a partner by 14%. Sleep was also important for genital arousal, such that women who slept longer on average experienced fewer problems with vaginal arousal than women who obtained less sleep.
"The influence of sleep on sexual desire and arousal has received little attention in the field, but these findings indicate that insufficient ...
2015-03-16
Some children and adults are allergic to nickel and develop rashes when they come in contact with it. They also may react to foods--including peanuts, chocolate, oats, and processed American cheese--that contain a significant amount of nickel.
A new Pediatric Dermatology study presents 4 clinical cases of hypersensitivity in children due to chocolate consumption at Easter. They all developed dermatitis flares approximately 48 to 96 hours after the holiday and admitted to binging on chocolate during their Easter Egg hunts.
INFORMATION: ...
2015-03-16
MAYWOOD, Ill. (March 16, 2015) - A minimally invasive spinal fusion back surgery results in less blood loss, less postoperative pain, smaller incisions, a shorter hospital stay and faster recovery and return to work.
Rather than cutting through paraspinal (back) muscles, the surgeon spreads and dilates the muscles to obtain access to the lumbar (lower back) spine. One such operation is called a minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS TLIF).
It's a complex procedure with a steep learning curve, said Loyola University Medical Center spine surgeon ...
2015-03-16
Researchers have identified genes that may be involved in determining whether an individual is sensitive or resistant to rabies virus infection.
Through a screening method involving mouse embryonic stem cells, the investigators uncovered 63 genes, some with roles in the immune response, that represent potential targets for prevention or treatment. The wide variety of functions of the genes that were identified points to numerous interactions between the host and the virus at all stages of infection.
"Our study is the first to show that libraries of mutant stem cells ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Available treatments for hepatitis C virus cost-effective when initiated early
